36°53.6’N 36°43.1’W
SOG (Speed over Ground): 6.1 knots (sailing)
Heading: 060
Distance from Bermuda: 1,405nm
Distance to Horta: 397nm
ETA (Horta): Saturday (evening) May 31
In my previous logs it looks like I’ve been a bit confused about days of week in my ETAs. May 31 is not a Sunday so I’ve corrected this to Saturday. As of now our ETA is in the evening but this could easily end up being Sunday. Yesterday involved a few changes of sail configurations as the winds were variable. Our track for the day looks a little drunk as we coped with the changes in wind angle. We ended the day on a starboard tack for the first time this entire leg of the journey.
Apart from that very little of interest to report for yesterday. No wildlife sightings. No ships. No planks even. One orange float was spotted but we weren’t motivated to go and look. Still no fish on the hook. I finally finished my book.
Before this trip one of the unanswered questions I hoped to address was whether or not I would enjoy trips of this duration or greater. It was interesting to note that 20% of the boats that came up from Antigua had some sort of unplanned crew change upon arrival in Bermuda. Admittedly they were tested with some extreme weather but this affected people differently. I have come to the conclusion that ones experience of passages is dependent on two things: your inner self and your companions. I have already touched on my inner experiences. The acceptance of a new range of experience leads to highs and lows coming from different and surprising places. This places a lot of emphasis on crew compatibility. I can see how easily rifts and annoyances could build if tolerance was not universal. I am fortunate to be accompanied by the crew we have aboard Windancer. We have three very different backgrounds and perhaps would never have met under any other circumstances. This seems immaterial to the shared relationship we have aboard. We’re able to mix well as well as find time to be ourselves when we need to. We work well together when we need to. We’ve had a few good laughs.
Last night we completed a full cycle of the shift rota. Every had their preferences and as we may only have three nights left we decided to randomize tonights rota. As a result of certain constraints we had to repeat a previous shift so we used a pack of cards, assigned suits to the shifts and Jim (as cook) drew. So we’re back on shift 1. Tomorrow night will be shift 3 as it’s the exact opposite. So here I am at 1:22am (ship time) on standby and due upstairs at 2am. It’s a clear sky night so I’m looking forward to it.
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