Sailing to the Dry Tortugas, Day 5

Got up at daybreak for an early start to the day.  It's looking to be a 12 hour+ day of sailing back to Marathon.  The good news is that the wind is in our favor going home, out of the south/southeast, a close reach, but still sailing.  The bad news, we woke up to the "wind whistling in the rigging", which it doesn't do unless it's blowing 15-20 knots steadily.  Looks to be a bumpy ride home.  Armed with my wristbands and Bonine, we weighed anchor before 8am and headed for home.  We got off to a rather inauspicious start, as we ran aground trying to leave our anchorage.  No worries, we seemed to hit sand, and easily put it in reverse and backed off- whew!  As we rounded out into deeper waters, and came out from the lee side, we were hit with those winds and pretty good wave action.  We threw out all the jib, and double reefed the mainsail.  This means now that Donnie is on deck and I am at the helm.  While this first mate took care of all deck work on our previously owned sailboats, I cannot manage the size of these larger sails.  I suppose I would have to in a pinch if there were some crisis, but if that were the case, I would hope a dose of adrenalin and fear would give me the Herculean strength!

In all the rockin' and rollin', Willis assumed his usual positon... hiding
and safely tucked in some pillows, this time on Mamaw and Paps bed.
This little buddy just tries to sleep his way through seasickness.

It seemed to take FOREVER to leave the Marquesas Islands...they just stayed in view on our portside for the longest time.  The depths remained spotty...and sure enough, we slammed into the trough of a wave with a huge THUD...it sounded like the keel came down on a boulder.  Seriously?!  In the vastness of this big ocean, our boat manages to hit a rock???  We all held our breath for a minute....waiting to see if the bilge was going to kick on (if we were taking on water)...but all seemed to be in working order, so we kept sailing on through.  The plus side to this day was that it was nearly all sailing, very little motor sailing.  It is so much more pleasant to ride with the wind in your ears and not the iron jenny!  It was sunny and beautiful, too.

A bit later in the morning, as I was feeling none too well, it seemed the wind had abated some, so Donnie wanted to shake out the second reef, leaving just one in.  I took over the helm, turning Marquesa into the wind so he could take care of trimming the mainsail.  It took a couple of tries, as it was hard to hold her steady into the wind, she kept wanting to jibe.  Instead, we layed ahull (having the jibsail backed) while he got the job done.  While the wind had layed down some, the waves had not yet followed suit.  I swear we were rocking in some 4's and 5's.  Donnie insists they were only 3' and 4's (Paps sided with me).  From the trough to the top of the waves, I know we hit some 5's.  By the time Donnie got done, I felt my oats in the back of my throat.  Oh no, was I really going to get sick?  I leaned over the downwind side of the cockpit, snotting and eyes tearing up, breathing for all it was worth.  I managed to not throw up, but my body sure wanted to.  Bonine is only to be taken once a day....four hours later, I was popping another pill and sipping on gingerale.

My beloved snapped this picture of me while I was passed out.
I know, I look one step away from death.  Note the wristbands
I was wearing that seemed to NOT be working.

At the same time, he snapped this picture of Willis...who had moved
to the galley still trying to sleep off the seasickness, too.  The poor kitty
 was doing the "hot spit" thing as he had a wet spot on the newspaper where
he was resting his chin.  Yes, that's the Middletown News, lol.
(The blurried picture is a testament to the motion of the boat :)
I rest my case.

Mamaw and Paps we're doing just fine...she never took a pill, and
Paps swears by Dramamine.  Aren't they cute in their matching outfits?!

Cap'n, of course was feeling great.  It's a good thing, too, as he did
most of the driving (with some help from Agnes) the better part of the
day.  I finally came to life and started feeling better at about four in the
afternoon.  I made a late lunch for everyone, and took over for about
an hour and a half so he could go "to the basement" to read and rest.
I prefer to hand steer the boat, it's more of a challenge to stay on course:)

We enjoyed a beautiful sunset at about 7:30pm.  The bad news...we were
still nearly four hours away from home.  The rest of the trip was sailing in the dark.
By the time we got to the seven mile bridge, I was up on the foredeck with
my life jacket on and flashlight in hand, looking for the channel markers.
I decided two things; 1.  I do not like sailing in the dark as I don't trust
my night vision.  2.  We MUST invest in set of walkie talkies, because
trying to scream directions to my husband, over sound of the engine, is for the BIRDS.
The bad news, we no sooner cleared the bridge, and we ran aground for the second
time that day.  I tried to yell to Donnie that I spied the warning sign, but of course,
he couldn't hear me...geesh.  The good news, we were safely docked back at Banana Bay
shortly after 11:00pm.  It was an amazing adventure, and I was so glad we got
to share it with Donnie's parents.  Next year, I want to take MY momma there :)