Day 3 at-seA
13º 47’ N, 031º 41’ W
February 8, 2024
2130 Ship’s Time
13º 47’ N, 031º 41’ W
Steering 270º at 8-9 knots
Groundhog day out here, in the best way. The wind remains steady from the ENE and FALKEN is smoothly making way downwind with a happy and rested crew.
Day 3 today, the day it always turns around, even for the worst of the seasick. Sara had been feeling less than 100% since the start, but props to her for continuing to stand her watches and do her stints at the helm. Tonight was her first full meal at dinner and the first time she actually felt like herself, and with a long way still to go she’ll finally get to enjoy the sailing. I’ve long said that it takes three days for everyone to acclimate to life offshore, whether seasick or not. I had my first real solid, deep sleep this morning, visiting another planet during my four-hour off watch, which felt amazing.
The showers today also felt amazing. While the evenings onboard are cool and damp, the morning watch from just after 8am through to about 1430 is brutally hot and sunny. We’ve been hiding from the sun down below when we can, with only a helmsman and one watchkeeper outside together in the hottest part of the day. So when we decided to call for showers earlier this afternoon it was a welcome announcement. We ran the watermaker all afternoon, topped up the battery charge with the engine, scrubbed the cockpit, and took turns at the stern showering in the ‘bathtub’, which offers the best view of the following seas, and hot water too.
Manot made a chicken curry for dinner tonight, with curry paste all the way from Switzerland. As I type, the Milky Way is visible overhead and the on-watch is chit-chatting in the cockpit while FALKEN keeps making the miles downwind. So far we’ve covered 469 miles since Mindelo and counting.
// Andy
andy@59-north.com
View more passage logs
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!