February 22, Day 15 | Mid-Atlantic Pizza Shop! Day 13…? Or something like that. The days fly by as we sit in shorts and sunglasses, basking in the sun and listening to music. The weather has really been on our side. Apart from the high pressure with no wind, we are now forcing our way through by engine. On the other hand, it feels like a little sun holiday in the middle of the Atlantic—not bad for us coming from the North.
The morning watch was nicely visited by 15-20 dolphins who seemed to enjoy Adrianne's company. When the wind lets us down, we find other joys. Besides nice music on deck, we usually discover treats in the kitchen’s hiding places, with a little help from hidden talents like Vegard fixing pancakes for breakfast and Ken baking the best pizzas a few hours later—all in an oven that passed its best a few decades ago.
The night that passed was really dark. Now the old man in the moon has disappeared for a while, and last night some stars tried to act as a night light but didn’t get very far with it. With that said, we have now done a safety check on deck, gone through sheets and lines, fittings and blocks—all before the downhill race we hope to have in the last 24 hours, starting Monday morning.
It now feels like we are a slightly bigger dot on the map as we slowly approach the GC with 530 NM to go! GC—here we come!
Jacob Gellerstam, Crew Adrianne
crew@59-north.com
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HMS Night Watch Party
Wing on wing worked well until the wind shifted then the helm became the cone of despair for our night watch crew of three (H, M and S) Alex made the decision to drop the pole, shifting wing on wing to a close reach. Wind increased to low teens and speed picked up to a flying pace. Day spent wandering toward Ensenada. Alex, Adam and David got us into port under another starry night.
No Kitemares Today
After a night marked by sudden wind accelerations peeling off Point Conception, and a vibrant, pulsating sky blistered with shooting stars, the off-watch woke to commotion on the foredeck. The wind had gone light and the swell had tapered just enough to raise the spinnaker. The sail filled with an urgent pop, the sheet strained and Falken charged down the face of the next wave. By mid-day, we doused the spinnaker and set our minds to the more precise task of safely punching through a gap in the notorious Cortez Bank. The border to Mexico looms ahead.
The California coast
We had a very lively first day of sailing with steady winds between 25 and 30 kn gusting to mid 30s. All of the crew got experience at difficult downwind helming as we covered 200 nautical miles in the first 24 hours. This morning brings winds in the teens and calmer seas. The sun is still shining, and the green monster has been slayed by those afflicted!