Day 26 - Becoming a better sailor
Captain and I enjoyed a lazy morning at anchor. I had time to write in my log and actually upload two days’ worth of entries all while sitting outside on deck all to myself. Not a soul in sight and the most amazing weather. I had slept well as the low overnight was down in the low 60’s which is a huge swing from 75 the night prior. We don’t have forced air on the boat. Our stove keeps us warm; we rely on little rechargeable fans to just move air. Our V-berth is generous in many ways and lacking in others. One is our headspace at night is only about two and half feet so it gets stuffy pretty fast. We made left over tacos for breakfast and took Kona to shore. I asked a fisherman what fish we may have heard the night before and he said carp, but he also seemed liked he didn’t really want to be hailed down to chat either. So maybe not prime fishing. Unless you really like geflite fish.
We weighed anchor around noon. I managed the helm while Captain did my job. It was nice to only have to come up for the last big pull. I was able to get us out of the anchorage and sails up right away. Today went a lot smoother. Calmer seas help. We had steady wind though and it was just about a perfect Debbie sail day-even up wind! Granted, winds were steady 6 knots, but I’m happy with my level of comfort. Captain and I agreed today was easier and the more I do the maneuvers the easier it will get. I was able to sail to the telltales and sailed most of the way. At one point the winds just tied. I had been cruising along at 5 knots and then just zero. And then the sky opened and the rain just poured. For about 5 minutes and then the wind picked back up all the way to Cedar River. Captain was tired of being 1st mate and finally begged the wheel away from me about an hour away. He agrees, it is different on the non-captain side. Since we don’t have auto-pilot one of us is always very on point while the other has a strange desire to take a nap. Captain did make me do the captain work for dropping sail, which also went well. I am too short to secure the last part of the main though we found out.
We got a pump out on the way in and enjoyed chatting with the marina staff. Docked safely around 4:30. I went ahead and washed the deck and the dingy to rid it of Kona’s mulch party and clean Ciara up for the weekend. Checked the packing; dripping at 15 sec! Yay! By then the rain that was expected was picking up and Captain again said he’d rather just go to the Halfway then cook. We spoil ourselves. Enjoyed a simple dinner of pizza and chicken strips. They had sold out of everything else over the weekend. Life up in the UP is very different.
And with bellies full and tired from sailing all day we went to bed before the sun. We didn’t take a lot of photos today, or at least I haven’t. The log is a bit quiet right now as things are calm before the storm. I remind myself the log is for keeping track of boat things, keeping family and friends up to date, and offering insight to places we have been. The stories and pictures are the bonus, part of the bigger picture, and I am itching to tell them before they even happen!
