3/28/09 - Making our passage to Florida

This morning an anonymous voice on the VHF echoed the exact sentiment I expressed to Wayne yesterday: "Is anyone else out here getting tired of all this wind?" He was probably on a fishing vessel, and of course we're on a sailboat, but still... we've had so much wind for so many days that my whole being yearns for stillness. The reality of only getting off the boat twice in nine days compounds that yearning.

The upside, naturally, is that we haven't needed to motor. And Lena Bea has been in her glory, like a wild mustang set free - this is what she was born for! The winds have been blowing at over 20 knots, sometimes topping out at 30. Although the direction hasn't been optimal (too much behind us), we've been riding the waves at the rate of 7-8 knots for nine consecutive days - ever since leaving Blackpoint on March 20.

Along with the winds, we've experienced pretty big waves as well - some 6-8' - but at least we haven't had to sail into them. After we left Paradise Island on March 24 we anchored off Chub Cay for a night. The following night we anchored on the Banks of the Bahamas, with no land in sight, in big waves. Suffice it to say, we didn't sleep, but we did manage to stay in bed without getting thrown out! We wouldn't have chosen to anchor there in those conditions, but being so far from land our only other option was to sail through the night; I didn't want to cross the Gulf Stream alone at night in high winds and waves, so we just rode it out and napped the next day.

We slept REALLY well the next night off Rodriguez Cay, however, and also while moored at Marathon the night after that. Whew! It was a relief to be back in Florida and have the worst (mentally, if not factually) of our passage-making behind us.