The equatorial current flow eastward across the Atlantic. When it reaches the bulge of Brazil, it splits in two. The Brazil current flows towards the southwest down the southern coast, while the Guyana current flows towards the northwest along the northern coast.
As we made our 1000 mile journey to the northeast off the southern coast of Brazil, we battled the Brazil current nearly the entire way. While it only averaged around a half knot in speed, over the course of 2 weeks sailing that added about a day to our trip.
Now that we’ve turned the corner around the bulge, we have the Guyana current working for us. It averages between 1 and 2 knots in speed, which means that we sail 15 to 25% faster than we would otherwise.
Combined with good wind, the result is that Madrone clocked her first ever 200 mile day from noon to noon! Who knew we had a race boat?
All’s well onboard.
Day Twenty-six
206nm
02 27.3S 38 45.1W
