23:58 UTC | 08°44.872’N 085° 58.575’W
Motoring
The first highlight of the day was spotted during the night watch, blinking lights on the horizon that proved less remarkable upon further inspection of the mystery object, yet it did provide much speculation during our full day motoring on calm seas.
The day’s real highlight though was waking up to Mary’s freshly made pancakes and coffee for our 5am watch. After another surreal Pacific Ocean sunrise, the day was spent motoring, counting boobies on the bow, eyes peeled for the next set of dolphins or hoping to be blessed by another turtle.
An endless blue half dome, not a single boat siting all day. Though most were hoping for more sailing, I think the smooth waters allowed all some much needed deep rest — a few extraordinary dreams were shared over dinner. Now that the sun is setting, we’ve been briefed there is wind coming tonight, we will be sailing and back to Marina Flamingo for lunch tomorrow!
// Nick
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Kärt barn har många namn
A dear child goes by many a name, or as we say in Swedish "kärt barn har många namn". This is the case for many a person, but also some species, not least the Mahi mahi, which also goes by dolphin fish, golden mackerel, and dorado, among others. Soon, we could see the fish jump, a hundred feet or so behind the boat, and as I kept reeling, a beautiful Mahi appeared under the surface. Manot showed us how to clean and fillet it, and after a complete team effort two large fillets are now in the freezer of Adrienne II.
Cast off the lines
When we awoke it was overcast but the Brazilian sun quickly burned the clouds away and we were left with blue skies. We reviewed some safety procedures, cleaned the boat and had an exciting Person Overboard (POB) recovery. Once we were underway spirits soared as we pointed the bow toward the Canary Islands. As I write this we are heading upwind and dealing with all that involves, and working into our first watches. It is hot, a bit bumpy but we are sailing!!
People Get Ready!
The last three days have been an intense (and intensely hot) period of discovery, practice, and planning. Because Adrienne II is not a 59N boat, there's been some extra setup and coordination needed including rigging all the sails that were out for repairs before we arrived. Its been a blast working alongside the 59N team getting to help them work things out on a less familiar boat in real time. Tomorrow morning we'll run through our Person Over Board training as the final pre-departure task, cast off and head out. Can't know all that it will be, but its going to be a great adventure out in the vast world with some pretty fantastic people.