Wind!
Sunday, June 10, 2025 | Wind of all kinds
The common consensus was that yesterday gave us a little bit of everything: squally weather with large downpours of cool rain, no wind, some wind, wind in the right direction, wind in the wrong direction, some birds, and a large birthday tuna caught by the birthday girl, Mary. As today brings less wind and the rumble of the motor, we have the opportunity to do some essential ocean skills, like making sushi and winch maintenance.
Being at sea is a great time to be reflective and listen to what comes up. FALKEN is definitely an example of why safe harbors are not meant for ships; she spent too long in the boatyard, left and unused before we even took on the project of her refit. Those months inside the shed felt never-ending, a goal in sight but difficult to comprehend. It’s been a while since I have been to sea, to do a long passage or an ocean crossing, and I’m starting to wonder if, like FALKEN, I am also not meant for marinas, boatyards, and safe harbors.
— Adam
Write your comments below and I’ll forward them to the boat with the daily update :)
— Mia (shore support)
FALKEN|Skipper&Mate
View more passage logs
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.