DEEPWATER SWIMMING
24º 23’ N, 113º 39’ W
1428 Ship’s Time
Sailing
After poke tuna nachos (corn tortilla chips + Ryan’s guac + leftover poke tuna), we stopped the boat for a swim. The water had been glassy since shortly after sunrise and we finally gave up on ghosting along at 2-3 knots and fired up the diesel. The sun was out, music was playing in the cabin, and with a sloppy weather forecast on the horizon for tonight and tomorrow morning, we took advantage and took the plunge.
The water here is 10,000-feet deep, and extremely blue. Crustal clear, you open your eyes underwater and can just see forever, right into the literal abyss. Temps are in the mid-70s, so for me who’s used to swimming in Sweden in the summertime in the mid-60s, it was downright balmy. Most of the crew partook, with Eric standing watch on the cockpit and doing the final headcount to make sure we all came back aboard. It’s been a while since I did an offshore swim, and man it’s so fun.
Now we’re in prep mode for some anticipated heavy-ish weather tonight and into the morning. The boat’s cleaned up inside and out, the staysail is rigged and flaked on the foredeck, and the off-watches are resting. Just as I started writing this the wind is starting to fill in from the SSW, and we’re sailing again, now on a close-reach with the yankee and full main. If I had to bet, I’d say we’ll be reefed down before midnight, and maybe wet by sun-up with some rain squalls in the offing as part of a weak cold front that’s going to pass over us tonight and tomorrow morning.
We’ve also decided to stop short in Cabo San Lucas. The marina there has space for us, and being that we’re behind schedule thanks to a very light-wind passage thus far, the crew voted to pull in, so if you see us on the tracker in Cabo, we didn’t just stop off to party :) Mary and me, plus the incoming staff for the next leg, might move the boat up to La Paz in-between trips, but that remains a future problem for now. And in any case, it’s only a two-hour drive from La Paz to Cabo, so if we end up staying put it’s not going to mess up the big-picture plans.
// Andy
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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.