8°21.5' N 026°17.2' W
October 9, 2025 | 8°21.5' N 026°17.2' W | Halfway mark and Wahoo Sashimi!
Joining Adrienne, I didn’t know what to expect, having no experience offshore and very little sailing experience overall, but after 9 days and over 1500 nautical miles all my expectations have been exceeded. Both in tough ways, experiencing a lot of seasickness for the first few days; and in happy ones, like full days of exceptional downwind sailing. Led by skipper Eric and mate Tim, the crew, and our home-away-from-home, Adrienne, take it all in stride. We support and look out for each other every day to make sure everyone is as happy and healthy as can be.
For the last few days we’ve been in the doldrums, which means lack of wind and rain squalls popping up left and right (or based on our current winds, windward and leeward). Adrienne seems to be immune to them, even at times when a bit of rain would be a welcomed respite from the tropical heat.
Life onboard can be a little bit different than on land, so here is a snapshot from this morning on Adrienne:
5:30 AM: I get woken up by the off-coming watch to get ready for my 6 AM start. Living on land, I’d be dreading this early start, but on Adrienne, we all live in a different reality.
6:00 AM: I pop my head out of the hatch and see the smiling faces of my shipmates David, Lance, Andrew, and Brittany. They’ve been up for the last 4 hours keeping Adrienne on course and looking out for squalls, but now is the time for them to sleep and team A to take over. Vilgot is up already, with Jim, Nicole, and I following close behind.
6:15 AM: We witnessed the most beautiful sunrise of the trip so far.
7:00 AM: We opt for the luxury breakfast, prepared by chef Vilgot, with pancakes and lingonberry jam and Nutella to keep us happy.
7:45 AM: Coffee time.
8:30 AM: We planned a busy schedule for ourselves this morning starting with a workout circuit. On the bow, core exercises; lower body amidship; upper body on the stern deck, with the last station being the helm, as someone needs to steer Adrienne after all.
8:50 AM: Rolled out the Genoa.
9:00 AM: Avoid a couple big squalls that we’ve watched develop over the last few hours.
10:30 AM: Start preparing lunch. Today, we’re having couscous with aubergines and sausages.
12:00 PM: Lunch time. Rest of the crew has woken up and we're ready to eat like a big happy family. This also marks the end of the watch, so after lunch team B takes over again and we slowly rinse off the salt, sweat, and sunscreen, and rest.
Overall, every day is filled with kindness, fun, and beauty, and I am grateful to be part of this amazing crew. To Chloe, I love you. Thank you for supporting me in this wild idea, and give Lou a belly scratch from me.
Pete, Crew
PS. I have to go now as Andrew just caught a huge beautiful fish, so we’re changing tonight’s menu from halloumi stroganoff to Wahoo sashimi on rice!
PPS. From David, this was the best day ever! We celebrated our halfway mark for this passage together in the forward cockpit eating the sashimi fish. Just as we did, a rain squall blew over us, and left us with beautiful pink sunset clouds. Tears in eyes.
ADRIENNE II Skipper
crew@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!