February 15, Day 7 | A small dot on the chart! We continue to look for favorable winds and hope that the low pressure above us will push on and give us a few more knots. After yesterday, with clear water, bathing, and a job well done with cleaning and washing, we are all longing for more pressure in the sails. We are now trying to steer straight towards the GC and keep the pace of the sailing. I wrote these lines this morning in the bowl, and since then the wind has come. We now have a constant half wind of 20-23 knots and a wave height approaching 1.8-2 meters. Tomorrow the wind will drop again, so we are really trying to take everything we can now.
A little personal reflection: I was aware that the Atlantic Ocean is big, but the feeling of being so alone in such a huge and desolate place cannot be taken in beforehand—it has to be experienced. We are lucky; Adrienne is a "Happy Ship." Everyone in the crew contributes with work, laughter, and old robber stories during the night watches, which means that the time just ticks by. I think that the feeling will be shared when we arrive. Life on the Atlantic really happens in a kind of nice bubble that you want to last for a long time.
- Jacob Gellerstam, ADRIENNE Crew
crew@59-north.com
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Seasickness
But maybe, I thought, with some drugs I could stay ahead of it. The first 48 hours I felt horrible. But luckily with 3 health care professionals on board and in a very encouraging environment, my body found its way. Anyway, someone offered me a patch (unavailable in Canada) and someone else gave me some pills for nausea and now I feel much, much better.
Dolphins and Bioluminescence
We had a good run with the sails but weather has changed and we are once again chasing the wind. Everyone is getting a chance to practice helming in big swell; starting to get a feel of the wind and water and how it pushes and pulls the hull. A pod of dolphins came to visit at night, splashing in the bioluminescent water, and again in the day, dancing in the bow wake. For now enjoying the calmer sea state and falling asleep to the rumble of the engine and the gentle whooshing of the water on the hull.
Greetings from Lala Lemonshark
The brave crew is toughing it out and staying cheerful despite being tossed around. The engine is off and we are true sailing-main and jib. In the first 12 hours we saw two pods of Orca and four humpback whales, two of which were 20 yards off the starboard beam!