20º 29.8’ N / 040º 23.40.9’ W
January 26, 2025, 20:46 UTC | 18:46 Ship’s Time | 20º 29.8’ N / 040º 23.40.9’ W | Scott’s Lifelong Dream
By early Sunday morning, we have the 3rd reef in the main with the wind off our starboard quarter. After two days of heavier weather helm, the crew is presented with a perfectly balanced sail plan. The winds are still 25-38 knots, but we are back to fingertip control on the wheel. Watch B heads off to bed at 0200, and Watch A has the task of rigging the spinnaker pole through the night to allow us to sail wing on wing. This gives us the ability to sail another 20 degrees downwind, giving us a course to steer directly towards Antigua.
As the sun rises in the east, the clouds are pushed away and we are presented with a beautiful sunny day. The winds abate and are now 20-25 knots. The temperatures are becoming warmer as each nautical mile slips beneath our keel. I felt today was a reset for the FALKEN crew. We all commented how tired we were yesterday. Adrenaline from helming was keeping us awake, and as the pressure came off, we all went to our berths tired but content, knowing that the boat would gently rock us off to sleep.
As I sit on deck writing today’s blog, the yankee is poled out and FALKEN is a freight train running down the track pointed directly towards Antigua. What else is going on? Sarah is stretching and doing her yoga on the cockpit floor, Brendan is reading about sail trim in the yacht master’s book, Derek is on the helm, and I am enjoying and appreciating our time at sea. Our crewmates are blissfully sleeping on their six hours off to the gentle rocking of the boat.
I also feel that all of us have settled into life at sea. All outside influences have long been forgotten as we focus on standing watch, drinking tea, hydrating, eating when you can, and sleeping at every opportunity. This has been a lifelong dream to sail an ocean. I can’t imagine any better way of fulfilling such a dream as signing onto FALKEN as a working crew member. The boat is safe, fully prepared, rigged, and equipped for whatever Mother Nature can throw at us. With Emily and Mia in charge and all of us as willing crew, it is a marvelous experience that I will forever treasure.
The only thing that would make it better would be sharing it directly with my family. However, in this regard, we have found the balance of coastal cruising on our own boat in the Pacific Northwest, with me (Dad) getting his ocean miles through 59 North. I will leave the blog here with a big thank you for all the family and friends sending us their best wishes. As information, we read the comments at mealtime in the cockpit with all crew.
Scott
Calgary, Alberta, Canada (now 1765 nm offshore - mid Atlantic)
crew@59-north.com
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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!