DAY 18: Tuesday April 26, 2011
Position: 18 degrees 38 minutes North, 137 degrees 02 minutes West
About 1000 miles to go…
More about being halfway there… Someone told us that when we reached halfway point we would be the furthest point from land of any passage - we wonder if this is true? Of all the resources we have onboard, one of our favorites is a blow-up globe. It's remarkably correct for gag gift (Jane gave it to Tim & crew as part of their xmas package the year they were sailing the boat from Maryland to the Virgin Islands). Tim has tracked his entire voyage since he purchased Midnight Blue on the globe in silver sharpie pen. It's pretty cool to think about the long line he will draw once we reach Hawaii! Anyhow, we pondered the idea that we were probably as far from land as we and most travelers ever could be on earth. A scary and at the same time impressive thought. It looked as though it might be true, based on the globe!
A few other thoughts about long passages on a sailboat. We've had people comment to us that the experience sounds similar to giving birth and being a new parent… We can certainly see the similarities - sleep deprivation, and how easily you forget the painful parts. We sailors so easily forget the hard sailing and bad weather parts, especially once we reach port. We've experienced this phenomenon several times already this trip! In the first few days, with strong NW winds, beating to windward, taking waves continuously over the bow, Tim said "If it's like this the whole way to Hawaii we're selling the boat!" As recently as yesterday, we were writing things in the log like "this sucks!" But in between, when the sun is shining and we get on a perfectly comfortable beam reach, these things get crossed out of the log, and (almost) erased from our memory of the trip. A nice meal (like easter brunch with French toast made from homemade cinnamon raisin pecan bread), a hot shower, and a little nap and we're good as new! For the meantime anyhow.
We celebrated Easter with a special brunch (which almost didn't happen when the bowl of egg mixture capsized on the counter due to large swells passing under the boat - what a mess). We also opened up our "hampers" baskets of goodies- meant for Christmas, but not delivered to us until the night before we left by our friends JP & Katya (thanks!). The crew voted to forgo the mimosas and save the champagne for our arrival in Hilo. It's too hard to juggle glasses and a plate of food, while gripping the seat to keep from sliding around when the swells hit the boat. We're all really ready for some solid ground (or a calm sea) with no more "wobblies"!
A final note for today - yesterday we caught a beautiful Mahi - Jane caught and cleaned it and we made ceviche for lunch and then tim cooked us some filets for dinner (no easy task given the sailing conditions!). We're going to gag Tim, because every time he comments about how smooth the boat is sailing, we get hit with a big set of waves, and the sails start flogging!
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