Pot dodging and whale watching
2246UT | 52 18.64’N 130 05.84’W
Motoring, whale watching, snacking
Well, we are one full day in. It's been a bit of motoring and sailing so far. We had good wind around 9:00 last night. Duncan got us up to eleven knots at one point! Go Duncan!! The Ferriers also logged our first Orca sighting on their 3am-6am watch!
This morning is a gift as the temps are just right and we finally have some blue sky and plenty of sunshine. What a morale booster! Virginia served us a two-course meal that included chicken and frittata. So fancy! It was just what we all needed to warm us up in the chilly evening air. I can't end this post without mentioning the humpback whales. Wow! They really put on a show for us in all directions yesterday. Have a great day everybody!
-Denise
Denise is completely correct that the Ferrier’s were zooming around last night, but I’d like to add that they were zooming along whilst dodging a minefield of crab pots. We’d initially opted to scooch down the outside of the marked channel of Haida Gwai so we could tootle along free of cruise ships. However as we approached this area after dinner we were greeted with lines on lines of pots that made for some exciting sailing - 10/10 spotting and driving from Jarrett, Duncan and Jeremy. I decided that I didn’t want to spend my night hours trying to spot pots whilst going at 11 knots, so we altered course to the east and entered the marked channel. Here we were greeted by the bigger boats and deeper water, including one cruise ship that seemed worryingly intent on aiming for us no matter our course change. (Obviously we managed to hail them on the radio eventually so we’re still floating)
It was a glorious few hours sailing before it inevitably died as forecast. We’ve since been motoring along, looking hopeful whenever we get a sniff of breeze. I live in hope that by sunset tonight we’ll be back sailing as we emerge out of the lee of the island and the wind will be more westerly which lends itself to a better sailing angle. That should mark the start of a decent chunk of sailing until we reach the Juan de Fuca Strait. In the meantime we’ve been spotting whales all over the shop, so much so that the whale alarm is now much more subdued than prior. All good on board, sextant has been out whilst we’ve had clear skies, but looking forward to utilising our sails again soon.
Mary
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A last hurrah
Under the dome of stars in a moon-less sky, each of us during our time at the helm used the most rudimentary celestial navigation, keeping a star or two lined up with the mast as a helper to following the heading range. It was a whole crew event to set the spinnaker, reef the mainsail and practice the heave-to in case of man overboard. Alex stressed that the key to success in all of these crucial activities is preparation. It was hugely satisfying to accomplish these tasks through teamwork. We share a constant good hearted back and forth full of stories, one-liners and comebacks that also means constant laughter.
One little bird!
Falken has almost rounded the Channel Islands and is cruising along splendidly about 100 miles offshore. Though several models predicted some slightly fresher winds today, we were met with a consistent 18-20 kts of pure bliss. It seems that from the moment we left the dock in San Francisco, there has been much laughter and conversation amongst everyone. The plan is to gybe in a few hours and begin our approach to Ensenada. As much as I do appreciate the jokes and intellectual musings, I equally appreciate the natural, silent moments we share at night, all of us on watch gazing up above to the shooting stars, constellations, and planets putting on their quiet show.
Birds and glows
The sun brought new wind and we were soon putting up the Yankee (jib) and turning off the motor. During the evening tradition of sharing “glums and glows” that follows the crew dinner, our Mate Ryan proclaimed it a “champagne sailing” kind of day. As Alex noted this evening, life goes by so fast that one of the very best things about his line of work is enjoying the passage of time in the slow lane of an ocean passage. But by tomorrow, the green blobs in the weather sailing app indicate we’re going to pick up some significant northwesterly winds and we’ll take them ever further south to the Channel Islands latitude. We’re all super excited for the knots to climb and to see Falken really run.