Two Fish - day 69 Still at sea

Ups and Downs of a Long Passage

If you get annoyed waiting for an elevator or find the money machine too slow then a 3,000 mile passage is the right medicine. It will cure you of the "rush rush" anxiety. Miles come slowly on a sailboat and other times they come very slowly. On watches I tend to watch the bursting blue of the cresting waves, look at the complex clouds releasing energy and observe the feeding sea birds. This can occupy an entire 2 hour watch. The sea birds look carefree as they skim the surface of the ocean. However, I suspect a bird is terrified because one lost meal and they will perish in the remote ocean. The bird plays a dangerous game of hunting at sea where harbors and help are too far away to offer any hope. Two Fish and her crew know this fact as well but it is not discussed. Instead we carry spares, stay in contact with other boats and sail the boat conservatively. We do not want to be another sea bird statistic.

Two days ago we discovered an issue with the engine. It was a simple fix but consumed most of my day. Thankfully, Tim was on board coaching me through the problem. Tim does not get stressed. The engine room work was hot and by dinner time I was exhausted physically and emotionally. Robin had steered the boat wing on wing for most of the day, which is not easy. Gail made the most wonderful dinner along with some brownies to lift spirits during the day. Black bean burgers with homemade hummus and guacamole on homemade flat bread. Just writing about the meal makes me hungry. Each couple is in charge of the galley for 3 day periods. When we are not on galley duty, I refer to it as going out to dinner. Tim and Robin have prepared some great dishes (chicken curry with homemade naan, beer battered wahoo from the ocean and a pizza with homemade dough).

During watch my mind dwells on the massive size of the ocean. A wave passes by and lifts the hull of Two Fish. This wave came unfettered from the southern ocean 3,000 miles away. The height of the wave has dropped during the long trip north, the water temperature has risen and even the salinity has changed by a tiny amount. Like mammals owning the land the ocean is owned by the waves. Unstoppable and endless.

The ocean is rich in nutrients that feed an ecosystem. Early in the voyage we had freeloading red footed boobies as stowaways on the bow. For the past two weeks our stowaways are farther down the food chain. We had grass grow on the back steps. I went down the steps to remove the grass with a scrub brush and misjudged the grass's slipperiness. I almost fell into the ocean. I held firmly to the arch while vigorously scrubbing. Darwin would observe that this grass has evolved to fight cruisers scrub brushes. The Galapagos was concerned about Two Fish importing non native species, but Gail has been more concerned with the Galapagos giving us species. A few moths and many waterline plants are the current tally of "gifts" from the Galapagos. Should I mail them back?

Last night we had a large electrical storm 15 miles away. It was due north so I was confident that it would move away from the path of Two Fish. Gail protected our back-up navigation equipment in the oven but changed to the microwave after concerns of the oven being still warm from dinner. A large series of rain clouds ruined the evening of sailing. We lost our wind, forcing us to motor. The waves were from an uncomfortable angle which caused me to swear a few times. The morning brought us clear skies and a wind determined to push us to Fatu Hiva.

I noticed some rust forming at the bow pulpit. Stainless steel rusts when far from the unlimited marina water. But this seemed to be rusting faster than usual since I had just polished the stainless in the Galapagos. During my nap I figured out that the power cable from the hyrdo-generator was creating enough amps to create a circuit with the lifelines. I removed the rust, re-polished the stainless and added foam insulation to keep the stray amps away from the handrails. I will monitor this modification.

We just changed the clocks, making this our third time zone change for this voyage. We will hold off on the last half hour change until we anchor. We have been sailing for 16 days. What milestones have passed in your world during the past fortnight? A new crisis at work, a friend's birthday or the US election cycle. The good and the bad of our land lives does not make it across the waves to Two Fish. Instead we think of time in 3 day increments (galley rotation) and 6 hour increments (time to next watch). Our past weeks have been dominated by the wind. We talk of the wind all day as it drives our motion, ruins our sleep and is our livelihood. We are harvesting the wind. We busy our selves with checking for chafing lines, rigging issues and the fitness of our craft. She has sailed many miles and seems happiest at sea.

Other boats have had issues on the passage. The most serious is broken steering hydraulics. The factory back in France is trying to help the crew of the cat fix the problem. Luckily the autopilot is still working just fine, fingers crossed for them. We are still annoyed by having a broken wind instrument but all will be fixed soon.

We have chosen to go to Fatu Hiva but are hoping for a kinder island than the one Thor Heyerdahl experienced. He saw elphantitis and cannibals. Well actually just a single cannibal.

jason
www.twofishcat.com