Day 9 At-Sea
13º 10’ N, 052º 52’ W
14 February 2024
2308 Ship’s Time
13º 10’ N, 052º 52’ W
Steering 285º at 8-9 knots
We’ve slowed down a touch today with some lighter winds, but are still above our 200 miles per day threshold over the past 24 hours. You get spoiled when you top out at 220+!
I’m tired as I write this. It’s the tail end of my 2000-0000 watch. I’ll get 4 hours off, then stand the sunrise watch from 0400-0800 before getting a longer 6-hour break from 0800-1400. We run a staggered watch schedule on FALKEN whereby myself or Manot is awake, but staggered so that we get to overlap with each of the crew watches and thereby get to sail with everyone on the boat. The Port watch is on right now, standing their 2200-0200 stint. The waxing moon has provided the perfect runway by which to steer—keep the moonlight on the horizon just to starboard and the boat is bang on course.
We’ve crossed the 400-miles-to-go barrier. While it’s still a long way off, talk has begun of landfall and arrival procedures. I’ve been quick to quell it to keep people in the moment, but by dinnertime tomorrow night it’ll be inevitable. The ‘philosophical middle stage’ of this long voyage will end and the ‘landfall’ stage will begin. The crew, myself included, will shift our focus from the present to the future. We’ll look at the charts and plan our pilotage on arrival to Barbados (necessary); we’ll talk about the first food ashore we’re going to eat and how good a cold drink is going to taste (superfluous but fun!).
But that’s for tomorrow. Tonight, we’re still in the present tense, still gazing at the same stars that we’ve been sailing to for over a week now, still discussing the finer points of life at sea and still hot and sweaty from the afternoon heat. I’m topping up the water tanks tonight with a long run on the watermaker in anticipation of our last showers at sea tomorrow afternoon.
// Andy
andy@59-north.com
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The Penultimate Blog from Adrienne II
After 20 days, and 3000+ nautical miles, we're back on land. The motley crew of Adrienne II, consisting of 7 happy amateurs supported by 3 professionals, have completed an epic journey many dream of but few realize. So much of this trip has been about being present - with nature, with each other, with this boat. My biggest takeaway from this trip is the amazing crossing of the ITCZ (Inter Tropical Convergence Zone). We all hope you've enjoyed the blog as much as we've enjoyed creating it.
Mother Nature, you’ve outdone yourself!
It’s been a great experience to have a non-traditional trans-Atlantic, as it’s been packed with genuinely cool features. The Doldrums!! A place sailors have been talking about for centuries. The unpredictability is what made it such an exhilarating experience. While some might be frightened or alarmed by this kind of weather, I was embodied with a sense of calm and awe. There’s something wildly beautiful about being reminded how small you are, while feeling so incredibly alive.
A Heavenly High
As you have probably figured out at this point, the drug of choice on board is, of course, celestial navigation- an art which has hooked offshore sailors for centuries. Once addicted, navigators will emerge from down below only to get their fixes two times per day, and spend the rest of their days and nights down below doing complex spherical mathematics. On Adrienne II, our skipper is our dealer. I must confess that I myself gave in to the strange urge which I’ve felt witnessing my crewmates practice this fine art, and yesterday felt an amazing sensation as I was able to wield the sextant for the first time and with it, bring down the tip of our starboard spreader to the top of our front sprayhood, presicely measuring the angle between the two (35deg, 38,8’ min). This afternoon, Naxo then showed me how to get my fix from the very sun itself - and I now fear there is no turning back.