Dead Calm

Dead Calm

Written on Board

2 February 2014

Somewhere near Palau

After being thrown around and having to move around on a boat at a 45 degree angle for a couple of weeks, it is a great change to be on an even keel just bobbing around on a calm sea. To be fair, we have actually been moving along at about eight knots average with the gentle swoosh of the water at the side of the boat as proof of our progress, even though it is not fast enough for our competitive spirits. We've had three days of a calm that is frustrating in the sense of wanting to move forward faster on our way to Singapore, but the welcome alternative is hard not to enjoy and revel in.

The mood on the boat is laid back and up beat even though we have started running out of food and our meals are becoming mundane and very predictable, with only slight variations on the pasta and lentil dishes. We are all dreaming of fresh vegetables and fruit, and all sorts of other delights when we arrive in port again. The past three days have been great for doing our washing, showers at the back of the boat, laying around reading, enjoying each other and the beauty around us. I've been doing lots of helming during the day and night time, and love the challenge and different sea states to contend with and master.

A highlight for me was the initiation of the new Shellbacks on board. You might recall that I mentioned in a previous blog that when someone sails across the equator the marine tradition is to do a little ceremony with King Neptune turning the Pollywogs into Shellbacks. This was a crowning moment for me in the sense that I realized that this was now the second time that I had crossed the Equator; a rather significant achievement in this race around the world, and an indication that we are not truly over the half way mark!

How time flies. Even though I sometimes just live for the next port and proper shower, I am also very mindful that this is such a unique experience and that I really shouldn't wish any moment, good or bad, over too soon.