Latitude: 00°57.6’N
Longitude: 087°47.1’W
Monday, March 24
00°57.6’N 087°47.1’W
20:20 UTC / 15:20 Local time
Adventure at sea—what does that mean to me? TIME AWAY from the world and a chance to meet others who love sailing as I do. No news, no knowledge of anything but the nature around us, whether that be clouds, birds, dolphins, whales, lightning, swells to ride on, no wind to sweat in, and maybe a little swim.
What would your thought be as to water temperature in the South Pacific? As I got ready to dive in, I was prepared for a very cold adventure, but lo and behold, the water was warm—very nice and enjoyable.
We just witnessed a few dolphins entertaining us with their cool jumps. Since our attention was distracted, our stowaway blue-footed booby decided to take off and leave us with great pictures and a bit of poop to take care of later. It was fun to see it move from place to place over the last 20 hours, I am thinking to find the perfect takeoff spot.
As I see birds out here, I always wonder how they live so far from land. Then my thoughts go to the explorers of old and the Pilgrims that were brave to come out on the ocean to find a new world. It’s easy to look out and think one is just going to fall off at some point. I hope that I have found a time or two when I was that brave.
Life is good and I’m looking forward to the crossing the line ceremony as we cross the Equator. Since I am a veteran Shellback, what do these Pollywogs have in store? A special moment for all. Thankful to be here enjoying each day.
- Linda McDavid | FALKEN Crew
P.S. If you are reading this blog, please write some comments in the section below and we’ll send it over to the crew to read. I am sure they will love it :)
- Mia & Andy (shore support on Leg 5, Panama to Galapagos)
FALKENCrew
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Ketch us if you Kan
Falken is soon to carry on our preferred route of South, back to (hopefully) warmer climates. We’re all excited to set off and see more of this wild landscape as we head down to Victoria. A thermal trough over Vancouver combined with an offshore high pressure creating funneling NW’ly winds means it is due to be pretty fruity on the 9th. This passage is just under 600 miles, relatively short for Falken, but I’m sure we’ll be kept entertained with dramatic scenery, wildlife and weather!
Final Blog
Falken and her crew arrived safely into port last night around 8pm boat time, 10pm Prince Rupert time. Some spicy weather was anticipated, but luckily the 35kt gusts and 2.5 meter waves were no match for this expert crew. We had an exceptionally smooth docking, despite it being Alex's first time parking this year (!). We all agreed that this was a very special group of people—I for one am so impressed with how everyone stayed so positive, helpful, and appreciative of humor despite an arguably challenging passage. We'll all return home significantly saltier than we were when we left, a mark of a passage properly sailed.
Lessons and a Gift
The biggest lesson is the helm. The lesson here is that even if you don't think you can do it over and over again with no sleep, cold and damp, it has to be done and so it can be done. Flying fish are cool, dolphins are really really cool, but the coolest of them all are the whales. And most of all Alex: "Find your center Carla. Always know where your center is so you can come back to it". He means the helm but it applies to life as well.