Resume+of+the+diary

toc =1. From 3th to 9th of August= They sailed with a strong sea breeze until sunset, S for 60 miles, which is 15 leagues, then SW and S by W, which was the route to the Canaries. In sunday the made more than 40 leagues. On Monday the rudder of La Pinta drift.

=2 From 10th of august to 10th of september = Because the mastil was broken the ships were repared in la Gomera, after a month the ships left the port, but someone was persecuting them, probably someone sended by the king. The friday was becalmed all the day until the saturday that he mades 15 leagues, and that night made 120 miles which is 30 leagues. He made 60 leagues that days and that night 20 leagues.

=3 From the 11th to the 17th of september= The 11th they made 20 leagues and saw a great portion of the mast of a ship, they steered their course W. The 12th they made 33 leagues during the night and day, reckoning fewer for the reason given.The 13th at nightfall the needles pointed NW and in the morning somewhat to the NE. In friday 14th the crew of the caravel Niña said that they had seen a tern and a reed-tail, and these birds never go more than 25 leagues from land.The 15th he steered his course W making a little over 27 leagues, and at nightfall they saw a marvellous sheet of fire fall from the sky into the sea 4 or 5 leagues away. The 17th they saw a good deal of weed, very frequently, and it was a rock weed and came from westward. They reckoned they were near land. The pilots took the north and marked it and found that the compass needles veered NW by a full point, and the sailors were fearful and anxious and did not say why.

=4 From the 18th to the 25th of september= The 18th they made about 55 leagues; but he only put down 48. All those days he had a very calm sea, like the river at Seville. Martín Alonso with the Pinta, which was very fast, did not wait, for he told the Admiral from his caravel that he had seen a large flock of birds flying westward and that he expected to sight land that night and for that reason was making such speed. The 20th he steered W by N and WNW because, with the prevailing calm, the winds were variable. They made about 7 or 8 leagues. This day they caught by hand a bird which was like tern; it was a river bird and not a sea bird; it had feet like a gull's. The day 20th was mostly calm and later there was some wind. They made about 13 leagues during the day and night, some of it on course, some not.