Day 9 - Click image for larger view
Sometime during the night I made the decision to start a slow turn to the East. Riding the Gulf Stream had added a huge boost to Southern Light's ground speed but it had started getting a bit dicey as the wind slowly clocked to the South. It was just as PredictWind had predicted and we were finally headed East into the wild North Atlantic Ocean.
As the wind increased I reefed the mainsail down to its 2nd point, which was the smallest for this sail, and rolled the genoa (head sail) in approx. 50%. This was enough to keep her sailing at a reasonable speed for the conditions.
Arrant waves played havoc with my psyche! Periodically one would align itself on the bullseye and dump 50 gallons or more of seawater into the cockpit.
This amount of seawater would take a few anxious minutes to drain through the two 1-1/2" cockpit drains!
This is what I signed up for, a real solo adventure! It was just me and Southern Light out in our element alone.
I wasn't completely alone. The occasional flying fish made its way onboard. If I found them in good time I'd toss them back into their environment to sail another day.
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Sometime during the night I made the decision to start a slow turn to the East. Riding the Gulf Stream had added a huge boost to Southern Light's ground speed but it had started getting a bit dicey as the wind slowly clocked to the South. It was just as PredictWind had predicted and we were finally headed East into the wild North Atlantic Ocean.
As the wind increased I reefed the mainsail down to its 2nd point, which was the smallest for this sail, and rolled the genoa (head sail) in approx. 50%. This was enough to keep her sailing at a reasonable speed for the conditions.
Arrant waves played havoc with my psyche! Periodically one would align itself on the bullseye and dump 50 gallons or more of seawater into the cockpit.
This amount of seawater would take a few anxious minutes to drain through the two 1-1/2" cockpit drains!
This is what I signed up for, a real solo adventure! It was just me and Southern Light out in our element alone.
I wasn't completely alone. The occasional flying fish made its way onboard. If I found them in good time I'd toss them back into their environment to sail another day.
copyright 2025 paul sedwick