Pre-Departure
July 18, 2024 | Getting ready for a passage
Hjelmås, Bergen
We are in Bergen as we speak, or actually, to be more correct, in Hjelmås, about 45 minutes north of the city, rafted up to ISBJØRN at her summer berth. FALKEN arrived to Bergen from Galway on Saturday and I flew in with Andy. Last year when we looked at the schedule, we realized that both ISBJØRN and FALKEN would be in Bergen at the same time, for the first time. We had to do something special! We hosted an ‘Open House’ on Sunday in downtown Bergen, and on Monday we took both boats out sailing up the fjords and got some stunning photos of the two boats alongside each other.
Nikki, who is the skipper for this leg, arrived Monday and we have spent the last few days getting the boat ready and planning the passage south to Amsterdam, a new port for 59º North. Crew will come out to FALKEN today; this will be our third ‘All Female’ Crew, something we started back in 2022 when Emma, Nikki, and I sailed ICEBEAR from Marstrand, Sweden to Portsmouth, UK.
- Mia
mia@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!