Saga - Day 4 - Getting Our Sea Legs

Getting your sea legs truly is a real thing. Today is day 4 of our voyage and we finally all have our sea legs. I have always heard that the first three days of a passage are the worst, and it played out that way this time.

Our first 2 days were pretty rough. The weather was predicting some high winds and rough seas for the first couple of days, but if we waited, the wind was predicted to almost completely disappear. We had to choose between going in rough weather and having a tough first couple of days, or waiting and then having to motor instead of sail. We were all pretty anxious to get going, so we decided to go for it. We had sailed in worse conditions and we knew our boat could take it.

Those first 2 days are a complete blur for me. I slept and slept and slept and slept. I woke up for my food and watched and that was it. Niels and Greg had iron stomachs. They seemed completely unaffected by the seas and they held things together for all of us. The rest of us got through with nausea meds and sleep.

By yesterday, day 3, we all felt better. The weather calmed quite a bit and we were all up and awake most of the day. The boys tried some fishing, we all ate 3 real meals, good music was playing and spirits were high.

On my watch last night, I was in radio contact with two other sailboats, one from our rally and one from a different rally. I could just see one of them on the horizon, her lights a faint flicker. The other was well out of sight. We talked sailing and weather and routes. It was surreal staring out into a dark ocean, with a sky loaded with the brightest stars I have ever seen, talking to others somewhere out there in the night, doing exactly what we were doing.

This morning, I had the sunrise watch, my favorite. From 6 to 8, I was alone in the cockpit. I had one ear bud in listening to music. My other ear was free to hear the radio. I watched the sky slowly brighten and change colors, listening to my favorite songs and drinking my first cup of coffee of the trip.

When I thought of doing this, our first major ocean passage, years ago, I wondered what it would be like. I was worried that I would be nervous or scared, being essentially alone in the middle of nowhere. I wondered if I would be able to do it. In reality, I feel so at peace. What an incredible experience being here, in this moment, is.

Pam and the Saga Crew