On the evening of October 30th we departed Virginia on a passage of 879 NM to Great Exuma, Bahamas. Here are some highlights from our trip:
Three’s Company– No we did not have Suzanne Somers, but our friend Darryl from Atlanta joined the crew for the trip. He gave us a call a month back and let us know he was eager for a long ocean passage. We were just as enthusiastic to have him aboard. He is a great crew and wonderful conversationalist on late night watches.
The Cape– We have rounded Cape Hatteras on three occasions, but only in light conditions. We passed it heading south on a close reach with decent sized swells. It was probably the roughest section of the trip. At least one crew member was a little green.
Dolphin Daze– After leaving the cape and before we entered the Gulf Stream, we ran upon a pod of 40+ dolphins the followed us all the way to the edge of the stream.
Power Boat?– This trip set the record for time used on the engine, almost 80 hours! We had several days with hours of little or no wind. We saw quite a few sailboats motoring out in the Atlantic, some discussing weather and fuel supply with buddy boats.
Atlantic Plunge– One day we stopped the boat in no wind conditions to cool off for a quick dip. The swim was only in 16,600 feet of water!
Spinnaker will travel– We were able to pull out the spinnaker on at least three days when the wind allowed. There is nothing better that cruising along at 7 to 9 knots in 10 to 15 knots of breeze downwind.
No Rockets Red Glare? – We were passing at a near perfect latitude to view the SpaceX launch overhead at 2 AM on launch night but nothing happened. We learned after making landfall the mission had been delayed.
All Systems Go– We do not have any broken items or maintenance issues to report. That is a big deal on a near week-long passage. It is sort of like someone under age 20 speaking a sentence without the words “literally”, “like”, or “bro” in it. However, for some reason my cell phone has like literally swollen up like a pillow bro and that will be fun to deal with in paradise. I guess sailing can make you young at heart.
