Gauntlet of Tamar - The Halfway Point

It happened in the blink of an eye, that all important milestone passed us by today as Gauntlet and her motley crew hit the halfway point of our voyage. Charging along at 7-8 kn a cheer rumbled up from the chart table as Skipper Andy informed us of the moment. It seems strangely as if we have been at sea for both a very short but also fairly long period, coming towards the end of our 9th day onboard.

With the exception of First Mate Tom (who completed the Arc in 2008 aboard a different vessel) it's the first time for Gauntlet and her crew. As such, everything seems fairly extraordinary, even the more mundane elements of day to day life. Preparing and consuming our delicious meals, personal hygiene routines, washing our increasing salty clothing and all the things one does in autopilot on dry land, suddenly have become novel and at times, adventurous when undertaken upon a rocking Sigma in the mid-Atlantic. One thing is for sure, before attempting the voyage again I will be dropping by my local chandlery to get the latest gimbled knee-caps installed to make these tasks a little simpler.

Yet there is far more than just the day to day tasks to report. Navigation wise, Steph has been taking regular sights on her sextant, tracking our position against the GPS, much to the admiration of us digitally dependent crew members (she's still working on closing one eye while keeping the other open but has an eye patch to assist). The boat is holding up brilliantly but we have had a small issue with a ball bearing popping out of it's car on the main track - fixed by Skipper with a combination of finesse and force. A few more Mahi-Mahi have been generous enough to nibble on our lures, affording us some more incredibly delicious fresh fish dishes, rustled up in the galley by our Flare Chef Nick Martin who can work wonders with garlic, lime and some chill. We are also reminded about the humbling power of the ocean when not 15 minutes ago a larger than average Northerly wave swept across our starboard side, pushing our boom into the water and reminding us all that concentration remains key (especially myself who was at the time in the heads having a quick douche and almost skidded out into the saloon along with the toiletries).

On a final and personal note (though I suspect we all feel similarly) the sheer beauty of looking out across this ocean (especially in the morning and evening), staring into the deep blues as they pass us by (a shade of which I have never seen before) and looking up at the stars at night puts one into a mindset which is hard to achieve anywhere else on this planet that I have come across. A mixture of reflection, happiness and expectation at what more might be coming. Put simply I do not really have the words to describe it but I am sure anyone who has undertaken the trip themselves will know what I mean.

Gauntlet out.