We carry 3800 liters of fuel (1,004 gallons). In calm water we could cross comfortably, but variety is what we get and need to make the best of it. We left Cape Town at 03:15 Jan 1st in good weather. It has been windy so this is our window to get past the Agulhas current and the South African continental shelf. We expect 2 days of head winds Jan 3 and 4, but as much as we want to avoid head winds to make our fuel last, it is still our best option. We met Stan Honey who started Sailmail as he is racing the Volvo Ocean Race. Stan introduced us to their weather man, Ken Campbell of Commander's Weather so we got some premium weather consultation prior to departure. Normally we would try to stay on the south side of the highs and get a nice comfortable westerly, however the high is a bit farther south just now than we want to go and it would mean coming back north again soon. This will affect the racers too, but in the opposite way, they of course want wind. We think more normal conditions will prevail once we get out 1000 miles. We have a very small spinnaker which will help extend our range when we get the westerlies, and they will come, we just need to be patient. There is no turning back. Take care, Ben, Brad & Kevin -- Idlewild Custom Buehler 55 Home port: Dunvegan, Alberta http://www.idlewildexpedition.ca/ http://dieselducks.com/Idelwild.html http://www.trawlersandtrawlering.com/ http://lists.samurai.com/pipermail/passagemaking-under-power/2005-December/001646.html