overnight passage to Marco Island

We left Banana Bay shortly after midnight as planned, hoping for an uneventful crossing between two weather systems.  We set the sails, cut down Bessie, and took off on a broad reach.  Cap'n went to lay down for a nap, and I took the first shift since I am usually up late, anyhow.  I couldn't maintain our course. Though I continued to head northerly as needed, I had gotten nearly six miles off to the east by the time Cap'n came to relieve me at 3:30am.  Oops.

I couldn't capture any decent pics on my IPhone, and my better camera was down below.  Since Agnes (the autopilot) crapped out, we had to hand steer all the way.  I couldn't leave the helm for the better camera, so I got this one off the internet.  The moon was that blood red, y'all!  And the lunar eclipse was ah-mazing!  You'll have to take my word for it, unless you set your alarm for 3am to view it, too.

Cap'n came to relieve me, and it was my turn to take a nap down below- but not before I made him some coffee and a snack.  He was very bleary-eyed, and that had me a little worried...

In the two and a half hours I was down below, I got up a few times for the things Cap'n needed, but mostly I just tossed and turned.  I was so tired, but simply could not sleep.  By 6:00am, it was my turn back up at the wheel.  Two and a half hours of hand steering in a sloppy following sea is hard work.



Sometime an hour or so into my second shift, the sun started to rise.
It was so beautiful, I must have snapped a dozen photos.
It looked like heaven, y'all.  So beautiful. So peaceful.
The only sound was the water rushing under the hull of Marquesa.
I will never tire of that sound.

As the sun continued to rise, the moon began to set.
Our best point of sail was full jib, and Bessie turning
about 1300 rpms.  We steadily made 6-6.5 knots
all day, and surfed down waves over 7 knots.  Fun!

The day really flew by, and suddenly, we were greeted by a pod of three dolphins!

They stayed to play in our bow wake for at least fifteen minutes :)

They were so.

much.

fun!  I love this pic with my toes in it, as you can see how close they were :)

The light grey one kept turning her head and surfacing
repeatedly.  I swear we were making eye contact!





What you hear in the background is me hitting

my ring against the bow rail.  If you see dolphins

from a distance, the noise seems to call them up.

 

Captain and I took turns at the helm, and the afternoon seemed to fly by.
He even got a chance to play with the dolphins in the bow, too.
Before long, it was Land Ho!  Marco Island was plainly in sight.
When we made this passage last year, it took us 18 hours.  We
traversed into Factory Bay and dropped the hook by 6:02pm, 18:02 hours
later.  That's pretty good figuring!  The best news of all?  I never got seasick,
and that was a first for me, on a passage of any length at all.
Thanks for the prayers, people!
 

As soon as the hook was dropped, Cap'n fired up
the grill for some pork chops and vegetables.
I steamed the crab claws that Len gave us.
Oh. My. God. were they ever good :)
I was famished; and we ate like kings!

 

I got the dishes done, and the galley cleaned up, then I took a bath in the galley sink like I used to do to the kids when they were little- only different, lol.  I couldn't fold myself up THAT small, but I parked my hiney on the counter and tried my best.  I had to rinse off in the cockpit- I was making too much of a mess in the galley!  I was in bed by 8pm, and asleep just a short time later.  I was one tired First Mate.  G'nite, y'all!