Simon's mobile signal hasn't been great, so it was good to speak to him on the water.

Winds are still strong, but he's making excellent progress. Simon should reach Crookhaven this afternoon.

And he's even had a brush with a whale!

Listen to Simon's audio postcard.

The big news of the last few days was the sudden realisation that he was not alone!

Hard paddling on Tuesday was interrupted by the sudden appearance of a huge fin appearing out of the water. A few moments later, the rest of the whale burst through the waves 30-40 feet away, spurted a stream of water skywards, and dived back down to the depths.

Simon's perspective on this huge stranger - a tiny kayak. Apparently it was Simon's first whale sighting... and he confirms that it was all rather frightening.

After frustrating storms last week, Simon's been making awesome progress over the last few days as he aims to take advantage of the improved weather.

Happy Birthday Steve! Simon hopes to reach Crookhaven about 4.00 this afternoon, as he plans to come off the water early so the team can celebrate cyclist Steve Bromely's 26th Birthday. Apparently Steve even had a candle in his bowl of porridge this morning!
	Steve with fellow cyclist Phil Hughes

Simon intends to keep up the momentum over the next few days as he hopes to leap ahead of the cyclists... particularly as they are likely to catch up in the coming weeks.

Listen to Simon's latest audio postcard