48º 38.8N 125º 09.6W
Sunday, August 10, 2025, 07:30 Local time | 48º 38.8N 125º 09.6W
It was 3 AM, blowing 30 knots, ink-black night before the moonrise. We were about 20 miles off Vancouver Island—a place visited by massive sunfish and rarely anyone else—surfing waves on 65’ FALKEN, hitting speeds of 14 and 15 knots. Regina leaned over and whispered, “From reading the 59 North brochure I wasn’t really sure if they would let ‘us’ sail in these conditions.” The ‘us’ she was referring to was the collective group of sailors huddled in the spray who had never been on a boat this large, going this fast, in conditions this heavy. It was a lot to process.
“Regina, your turn!” Nikki beckoned. It was the moment of truth. About 15 minutes later, Regina had hit a high speed of 14.6! The crew cheered, and there was a collective awe—we were experiencing something very few people ever get to witness. It. Was. Incredible.
Later that night, under a blazing moon, Nikki and Topher both hit 16.2 knots, flying down the breaking swells, hooting with glee. Exhausted from the adrenaline rush and lack of sleep, I crawled into my bunk, knowing that there was no way I would be able to process this experience for days, weeks, or even months. I simply went to sleep with the hunch that this experience had changed the course of history—for all of ‘us’.
- Andy | FALKEN Crew
FALKENCrew
View more passage logs
People Get Ready!
The last three days have been an intense (and intensely hot) period of discovery, practice, and planning. Because Adrienne II is not a 59N boat, there's been some extra setup and coordination needed including rigging all the sails that were out for repairs before we arrived. Its been a blast working alongside the 59N team getting to help them work things out on a less familiar boat in real time. Tomorrow morning we'll run through our Person Over Board training as the final pre-departure task, cast off and head out. Can't know all that it will be, but its going to be a great adventure out in the vast world with some pretty fantastic people.
Among the Channel Islands
In the wind shadow of SoCal we had a restful night with calm conditions ghosting through smooth seas. We’re getting ourselves in position for spicy weather tonight once we round Cape Conception, the seas build and the breeze freshens. It will be an upwind sail into an acceleration zone along a formable coast with few bailout points, Morro Bay being one. The crew is really gelling with lots of smiles and laughter on deck. Monterey is in our sights!
Day Two Delights
The seas were completely glassy with a gentle swell as we approached San Clemente Island, the southernmost of the Channel Islands. Everyone jumped in and marvelled at the lovely temperature and crystal clear, indigo-colored water. Before long the wind started to pick up, and we happily unfurled the jib and were sailing again. The afternoon has been gorgeous, cruising along at 5-6 kts, close hauled on a port tack in a gentle breeze, Catalina Island in the distance on our starboard side, and everyone is happy.