[Lisbon to the Cape Verde Islands.]
We left Restello[28] on Saturday, July 8, 1497. May God our Lord permit us to accomplish this voyage in his service. Amen!
On the following Saturday [July 15] we sighted the Canaries, and in the night passed to the lee of Lançarote. During the following night, at break of day [July 16] we made the Terra Alta, where we fished for a couple of hours, and in the evening, at dusk, we were off the Rio do Ouro.[29]
The fog[30] during the night grew so dense that Paulo da Gama lost sight of the captain-major, and when day broke [July 17] we saw neither him nor the other vessels. We therefore made sail for the Cape Verde islands, as we had been instructed to do in case of becoming separated.
On the following Saturday, [July 22], at break of day, we sighted the Ilha do Sal,[31] and an hour afterwards discovered three vessels, which turned out to be the store-ship, and the vessels commanded by Nicolau Coelho and Bartholameu Diz [Dias], the last of whom sailed in our company as far as the Mine.[32] They, too, had lost sight of the captain-major. Having joined company we pursued our route, but the wind fell, and we were becalmed until Wednesday [July 26]. At ten o’clock on that day we sighted the captain-major, about five leagues ahead of us, and having got speech with him in the evening we gave expression to our joy by many times firing off our bombards[33] and sounding the trumpets.
The day after this, a Thursday [July 27], we arrived at the island of Samtiago [São Thiago],[34] and joyfully anchored in the bay of Santa Maria, where we took on board meat, water and wood, and did the much-needed repairs to our yards.
[Across the Southern Atlantic.]
On Thursday, August 3, we left in an easterly direction. On August 18,[35] when about 200 leagues from Samtiaguo, going south, the captain-major’s main yard broke, and we lay to under foresail and mainsail for two days and a night. On the 22nd of the same month, when going S. by W., we saw many birds resembling herons.[36] On the approach of night they flew vigorously to the S.S.E., as if making for the land.[37] On the same day, being then quite 800 leagues out at sea [i.e., reckoning from S. Thiago], we saw a whale.
On Friday, October 27, the eve of St. Simon and Jude, we saw many whales, as also quoquas[38] and seals.[39]