Remembering the magic

Day 4: Sailing from Newport to the Azores

It’s day 4 of our passage from Newport to the Azores. We’ve covered over 500miles so far and we’re all settling into life at sea.

Jasper is almost over the cold he left land with, he’s getting his voice back and is naturally adapting back into his role as captain. I love watching him grow in confidence at how Maru Noa is performing at sea.

Tino is in his element, completely unstoppable, always fixing or improving something onboard. So far he’s fit a foot pump to the galley sink, made a wooden latch to stop our can locker flying open and spilling its contents all over the saloon floor and helped Jasper tighten up some bolts that were coming loose on the hydrovane. Never idle, his endless energy and enthusiasm amazes me.

James doesn’t seem to need much rest either, surviving off coffee, good vibes and great chat. I think after racing around the world on the clipper boats, we are a welcome change of pace, potentially even a little boring at times for him!

I on the other hand am taking things a bit more gently, finding my sea legs again, resting as much as I can and focusing on keeping everyone well fed. I’m grateful to have a dry bunk and a place to retreat and gather my energy.

On our first sunset at sea the four of us sat in the cockpit and made a toast to Neptune. A small splash of rum over the side, to say thank you to the ocean, send our respects and relay our wishes for a safe passage. Moments later, under a golden pink sky, a whale breached astern of us. I’m taking that as a good omen.

Last night as Jasper and I sat on watch together, we heard a breath, pssshhhhh, and a rush in the water. We peered over the side and found two dolphins  playing along side us, bioluminescence streaming around them. Tornadoes of fairy dust. They swam so fast and effortlessly, weaving around eachother, diving under the hull and popping out on the other side. Sparkling white streaks ghosting through the water. It felt as though they were slowing down to match our pace, a brief pit stop in their journeys through the ocean. As we peered over the side, holding tight to the guard wires, our faces felt the cool breeze and salt spray of the oceans surface, they were so close we could almost touch them. It was complete magic. Of the wide expanse of ocean around us they chose to play in our wake. Companions of the night.

Around 11pm and the sky became brighter, the dolphins disappeared, and a big squished orange clementine of a moon rose over the horizon.

These moments of magic are why we do this.

It’s a harsh environment being at sea on a small boat, and sometimes it’s easy to question why I’m out here. It’s hard to cook, hard to wash, hard to sleep. My core tensing constantly with the rolls, every movement takes more energy.

As the days wear on it feels like there is a growing film of salt on everything and with our limited fresh water supply and the speed we’re going there’s not a lot we can do about it.

This morning we were bundled up in every warm layer and waterproof we could put on and this afternoon we’ve been sat out in shorts and t shirts. The sea has turned from grey to blue and the water temperature has risen drastically.

The conditions can change so quickly; for a few hours the wind is up around 25-30kts and we’re being thrown about, hanging on as best we can, the swell builds and Maru Noa charges down the waves. I wonder if this is it now, a wild ride until we reach the Azores. Then a few hours later, after a good sleep, I wake up and everything’s mellowed out and is more manageable again.

The sea challenges you always, but rewards you often enough to keep things positive. It’s the ultimate lesson to bend to the present moment and that everything is temporary.

These past few months haven’t been easy for me, and I’ve been giving myself a bit of a hard time, but this passage so far, even in its challenges is reminding me of the magic. We still have a long way to go and I want to remain open to what the ocean has to teach me. It’s a good place to decompress.

It looks like we have another relatively chill day ahead of us before a cold front will catch up with us on Friday. I’ll prepare some food ahead of time and do what else I can to be ready for it. For now I’m going to enjoy the rest of the afternoon and bask in this glorious sunshine.

Thanks for reading, it’s great to have you with us!