After battling with depression after depression solo sailor Dee Caffari, 32, rounding the world the wrong way in Aviva, her 72 ft sloop, takes a momentary breather to reflect on what surrounds her.

First there is fellow single handed sailor, Donna Lange, sailing Inspired Insanity a 28-foot yacht from the US to New Zealand. They passed each other without seeing one another on the ‘vast ocean’. ‘I wish Donna a safe and speedy voyage. Every sailor that enters the Southern Ocean has utmost respect for it and is thankful for a safe passage through it,’ Dee said.

Secondly there is the unexpected conditions of her next approaching front: ‘There has been a strange turn of events .As we approached the front the wind has done the exact opposite of what I was prepared for. It is raining and the wind has vanished. When this happens it is easy to get disorientated and not know what to expect next. It is almost more difficult to deal with,’ Dee adds.

Thirdly there is the charted shape of the Kerguelen Islands, which she is passing north of: ‘They look like the head of the donkey from the film ‘Shrek’. Also we learnt that these islands grow salt-water cabbages. As the islands slip astern it is another reminder that I am progressing towards The Cape of Good Hope.’