Day 4 at Sea – Life Aboard

We’re just beginning our 4th day at sea….Everyone seems to be settling into the routine very nicely.  We are fortunate in that the seas have been very benign and our ride has been extremely comfortable.  Comfort means good meals are being prepared, walking about the cabin is easy, reading is a pleasure, and the wear factor on boat and crew are minimal.

Since John’s log is keeping everyone up to speed with the gory details of the passage, I won’t bother to reiterate those things, but perhaps highlight a few different things that also are important to making a passage such as this, which may be of some interest to others….

When we set out, we weren’t sure how the meal times would work since we’re all taking watches and resting at different times of the day.  Rose and I had talked about it and decided that we’d try having our main meal sometime in the afternoon when we were all likely to be awake and moving about.  The other advantage to a daytime meal is that daytime watches are much more flexible and we could all eat together up on the flybridge.  Thus far, that has worked out well.  We’ve been having a good breakfast around 9 am (as it seems we’re all up at that time too) and our big meal of the day around 1 or 2 pm up on the flybridge.  By the time the evening watches begin, a light sandwich or snacking has been the sustenance of choice.  As I said, this has worked out very well to date……We’ll see how it evolves as time and the seas pick up….

Provisioning…..Wow! What an endeavor that was!!  I was so grateful to have Rose to help me!  Between the two of us, it took somewhere on the order of 6 trips to various stores and markets to get the things we wanted…..And that was only the fill-in items and fresh foods – the freezers were already full of meats and frozen fruits and veges from Panama!  Just as a point of interest to those who may be curious, this is what we brought on board for fresh food:

1 stalk of bananas

13 bell peppers (green, red, and yellow)

16 potatoes

3 huge heads of cabbage

4 heads of lettuce

6 eggplants

8 small zucchini

12 big carrots

4 cucumbers

3 pineapples

18 white onions

2 large bunches green onions

8 apples

20 tomatoes

2 heads broccoli

3 heads cauliflower

12 radishes

8 loaves sliced whole grain bread (Bimbo brand – scary, but it doesn’t mold!)

5 flats [12 & ½ dozen] non-refrigerated fresh eggs

This is all in addition to the canned goods, boxed cereals, UHT milk, tortillas, condiments, coffee, teas, soft drinks, paper goods, laundry detergent, soaps, etc. that are also on board.  I can safely say that every locker on board Mystic Moon (plus the 3^rd stateroom) is full to the brim with provisions and supplies.  We will certainly not go hungry or run out of toilet tissue – Ha!

Stowing……Please see paragraph above.  Plus, we have hung 3 hammock-type nets in several locations aboard to hold things like delicate fresh foods, chips, crackers, and bread. The stalk of bananas is hung on the flybridge to ripen.  Just when I thought we could hold no more, Rose found places for yet more cereal, canned beans, eggs, crackers, and tissues.  I think she must have her clothes stowed in the toothbrush holder!!  She’s good!

Comfort…..It’s hot, no two ways about it.  As I type this, we are still only 1 and ½  degrees below the Equator…. The temperature inside the cabin runs about 87°F and 80 -85% humidity during the day, and 82°F with 79% humidity at night.  We are keeping all windows and doors open for the breeze above, and the hatches and ports below are open as the seas allow.   A/C is out of the question right now, as it requires generator operation, and we don’t dare run that until we are sure about our fuel consumption and the speed and miles made good.  The good news is, it actually sounds worse than it is (which I just realized as I typed the figures- Wow!  That sounds atrocious!) because we have so many fans running in every cabin.  The moving air helps immensely!  And, the outside humidity is somewhat less and the breeze on the flybridge is quite nice. We’ve also had some clouds and even a good shower yesterday, so that helped to keep us a bit cooler, as well.  I guess I would say it’s hot, but not miserable…..

Cooking…..With these temps, using the oven is not an option!  But, we have managed to use the stovetop without too much discomfort and of course the microwave is our best friend!  Right now, seas are calm enough to use the grill above, so beef tenderloin and vege brochettes are on the menu for our meal today, so we’re not suffering too much!  🙂

Passing time…..Doesn’t seem to be a problem….  Between watches, preparing meals, engine room checks, resting for watches, logs and blogs, and personal and domestic duties, the time is going very quickly!  In fact, I’ve only just started one of the books I wanted to read and haven’t even yet opened the French refresher course I have.  Where does the time go??!  Maybe tomorrow…..

Sleeping…..Again, the fans save the day (or the night, as the case may be) and a cool shower before hitting the sheets goes a long way towards getting some good rest.  Earlier in the trip (day 2?) we ran through a cold current for several hours where the water temp dropped to 68°F…..The difference in the temp in the cabins below was marked and immediate.  Sure do wish we could find some of that cooler water now – we’re in 82°F water at present.

Spirits…..No I don’t mean those fun liquid “spirits” as we generally run a dry boat while underway, I mean the spirits of us people on board.  The attitudes of the crew make a huge difference in the daily life on board. Spirits have been good so far, but right now, spirits are especially high….We have just very successfully emptied our first fuel bladder into our fuel tanks and our speed has picked up to 5.9 kts.  We actually saw 4.8 kts earlier today, and I think we were all a little low with that.  But, the easy transfer of the fuel and the pick-up in speed has perked us up immensely.  Believe I saw John doing the happy dance on the bow a moment ago. Wait, was that Les with him??  Heck, I think we’ll all just dance on the bow right now!  🙂