SAILING NORTH

Sunday, June 8, 2025 | Papeete, Tahiti
Approaching the 24-hour mark since slipping lines from Tahiti, I asked the self-named ‘Spare Change’ watch for a sentence or two about their experience at sea so far. They are as follows:
Adam Baker: “The ocean is big and it’s empty, no ships, a lot of birds and clouds. Wonderful time today.”
Jake Davis: “I’m excited to be the only Jake for once. Beautiful sunrise, very pleasant sailing and I’m sure the readers will love to know that my heat rash is improving.”
Tara Tinan: “Sailing north.”
Whilst these weren’t quite what I was expecting, it’s a pretty apt summary of our trip so far. The ocean is indeed big, we haven’t seen any other boats since sailing north of Tahiti, and the temperature is definitely cooler at sea.
The wind has reduced from 20 knots to 6-10 knots, but in typical FALKEN fashion, the miles are still being eaten up. It’s been a lovely sail so far—maybe upwind isn’t so bad? Although Alex has been very insistent that close reaching doesn’t really count as upwind.
Everyone’s been doing a great job helming and generally settling into life offshore. Glums and glows were very glowy; Orie’s extensive list of glows was a highlight for many.
Whilst the clouds didn’t allow us a full sky of stars last night, it did mean the wind has stayed and is allowing for some respite from the sun. The forecast is for the wind to reduce in a couple of days, but fingers crossed we can keep the engine off. In the meantime, we’ll continue to sail north, in a big ocean, and be sure to get regular updates on Jake’s heat rash for all interested.
- Mary | FALKEN mate
Approaching the 24-hour mark since slipping lines from Tahiti, I asked the self-named ‘Spare Change’ watch for a sentence or two about their experience at sea so far. They are as follows:
Adam Baker: “The ocean is big and it’s empty, no ships, a lot of birds and clouds. Wonderful time today.”
Jake Davis: “I’m excited to be the only Jake for once. Beautiful sunrise, very pleasant sailing and I’m sure the readers will love to know that my heat rash is improving.”
Tara Tinan: “Sailing north.”
Whilst these weren’t quite what I was expecting, it’s a pretty apt summary of our trip so far. The ocean is indeed big, we haven’t seen any other boats since sailing north of Tahiti, and the temperature is definitely cooler at sea.
The wind has reduced from 20 knots to 6-10 knots, but in typical FALKEN fashion, the miles are still being eaten up. It’s been a lovely sail so far—maybe upwind isn’t so bad? Although Alex has been very insistent that close reaching doesn’t really count as upwind.
Everyone’s been doing a great job helming and generally settling into life offshore. Glums and glows were very glowy; Orie’s extensive list of glows was a highlight for many.
Whilst the clouds didn’t allow us a full sky of stars last night, it did mean the wind has stayed and is allowing for some respite from the sun. The forecast is for the wind to reduce in a couple of days, but fingers crossed we can keep the engine off. In the meantime, we’ll continue to sail north, in a big ocean, and be sure to get regular updates on Jake’s heat rash for all interested.
- Mary | FALKEN mate
FALKEN|Skipper&Mate
View more passage logs


Hat overboard!
On June 4, we reviewed our passage plan before our departure from the marina in Hjellested.


Departure from Bergen!
The crew on the women’s sail training on Isbjorn is settling into a great routine for managing the boat and life onboard.


The sun sets on another journey
The hardest part of sailing across French Polynesia wasn't the night watches, the heat, or the open ocean — it was the prospect of being trapped on a small boat with a group of strangers. First-timer Natalie boards as a self-described land crab and discovers that the sea has a way of reshaping both your sea legs and your assumptions. What follows is dolphins, sharks, the Milky Way in full technicolour, and a crew that somehow made the whole thing better than she ever imagined.
