Tahira - ARC BLOG D-Day 14 [03-Dec-23]

TAHIRA ARC BLOG
D-Day 14 [03-Dec-23]
Location: Open Seas - Atlantic
Lat: 14.24N Long: 42.27W

THE SECOND THIRD
Hooray - as we rapidly approach the last third of our journey, we reflect back on what each of the three segments has or will hold in store.

The first third
Getting out of Gran Canaria was in itself a major milestone - simply getting the boat and crew ready to head out on the voyage of a lifetime for many. The following 7 days for us were all about building the team and getting into our routines. This was a time of turbulence and learning, and simply getting used to our new environment in the middle of the ocean.

As well as the challenges faced - water, radio, watch system, navigation etc, we had some delightful moments - and none more so than visitations by local wildlife. Since starting our voyage, we have been visited by several creatures ranging from the tuna we caught and ate, to the daily inspection from the dolphins and the flying fish - skimming across the ocean surface at speed. And most importantly, no mosquitoes or cockroaches!

But is was the visitation of an egret that we nicknamed Eddie that captured our attention. This beautiful creature decided to join our crew for a few days. He would sit on the foredeck keeping an eye on us - moving about the boat as we would go about our daily routines. Overnight he would settle down on one of the hand rails and gently rock back and forth as the boat danced to the increasing size of the Atlantic waves. He became a constant source of discussion on the daily radio updates with other boats, but after 4 days, he finally left us heading for the African coast.

The second third
Three days ago we passed the 1,000 mile mark - this felt very significant and reflected moving from an initial 'storming' phase where everything was new and had a degree of nervous energy, to a phase where every day has become the same as the previous. Like the film Groundhog Days!

So during this second phase we recognised the need to stay focused and to keep everyone motivated as we still have over 1,000 miles to go! We have now completed and planned several events:
- Curry night: we have had two great curry nights - one Indian and one Thai. Fantastic. Although we have agreed that we shouldn't have curry every night!
- Film night: last night we had an open air cinema production of Devotion. We used one of our tablets and a Bluetooth speaker, and whilst it wasn't the best viewing experience, sitting in the cockpit surrounded by 1,000s of stars was magical.
- Bread making: we also made our first bread and had this for lunch yesterday. It felt really nice to be able to make our own bread - and I am pleased to report that it passed the crunchy peanut butter test.
- Sing-along: we still have our first on-board concert to plan. We are fortunate to have a guitar and two guitarists on board - Bryan and Peter. We will let you know how we get on!

The final third
Once we pass the 2,000 mile mark we will have less than 1,000 miles to go - approximately 7 days of sailing. I am sure that once we pass this milestone tomorrow, we will increasingly focus on the goal and trying to predict when we will arrive in St Lucia. This will be amazingly exciting, but we will hopefully still be able to enjoy living in the moment until we get there.

Blog author: Andy Bruce