Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Day Five of Blue Water

It is day five and we still have about 300 miles to go. YIKES! Fortunately the seas have calmed down, and the wind has remained consistent, and this morning is absolutely stunning: blue skies, deep blue seas, 12 kts of wind, and warm sunshine but coolish air. We are out at sea with Ecuador east of us and we are headed west so that we can miss the Humboldt Current that is extremely strong going north along the coast.

Both of us had forgotten what a long passage feels like, especially when sleep deprivation begins to take hold. Fixing meals is always a scene, even when one knows what to expect and being down below is not a place you want to be for long. We have had a few midnight challenges on deck with 18 kt winds and 6 ft sloppy seas, a scene of edgey minimum terror and frustration, but we have both survived. PHEW!

The beautiful sunrises always bring the light, a new day, and morning calm, and we have fun drinking our freshly brewed coffee and reflecting on the intensity of being out here, especially at night, going to weather. The long passage to the South Pacific should be quite different with following seas and warm winds, but I know from experience that any passage can be scary and very tiring. There is a wildness and awesomeness about being so far away, with no land in sight, and a momentum which propels us forward (and in the last few days, every which other way); the perpetual motion feels wonderful. I'm sure all of you who are prone to seasickness can just imagine that and thank your lucky stars you are on the land! Our present location is N 02 degrees 25.5 and W 81 degrees 48.2. It will probably take at least three more days to complete our journey to La Libertad, Puerto Lucia. Mucho love to all, Suzi  (and David)

1 comment:

Jim said...

If my calulations are correct, that's about here: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=-2.425,-81.803333&sll=37.09024,-95.712891&sspn=52.815565,134.912109&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=&ll=-2.679687,-81.320801&spn=16.774646,33.728027&t=h&z=6