11/7/10 - 12.00 UTC - 35.02.49 S 174.40.23E first night at sea
Flying Cloud
Julian Nichols
Sun 11 Jul 2010 11:27
Its cold but sunny - soon to be warm and sunny we hope! To demonstrate how cold, there is NO hot water at the galley - because the freezer and fridge pipes that go to the keel coolers are so cold that they have 3 or 4 cm of ice around them (as they have no lagging), and have frozen the nearby hot water pipe!
A very small first happy hour at 7pm as I start cooking. Its small as we now have 3 reefs in the main and the swell is already a good size - especially for us landlubbers who haven't been to sea properly for nearly 8 months exactly! Harry is doing his first night watch and finding his sea legs.
At 10pm I take over for my first night watch. It's a great time to remind me of all the things I love about sailing, and of course all the things that i'm not sure if I like but come with the package. The easy likes with me now: phosphorescent dolphins coming like torpedos at the boat through the dark night, the amazing Souther Cross and all the other beautiful stars in the sky, the peace and time to myself to think, the sense of excitement and adventure. The things i'm not sure of.... that uncomfortable knot in my stomach made from all the unknowns!