Rhapsody - Rhapsody - Day Nine: What kind of an ARC is this?

Seriously? Upwind? On port tack? What kind of ARC is this?

The lovely low-pressure system that has driven most of the fleet below 20°N brought us a nice lull in the wind this morning, giving us all a chance to jump in, wash up and chill out. Not a fish to be seen, let alone a shark. Just six Rhapsody crew members, smelling slightly better and wondering where they’d left the conditioner.

When we’d dried off, we packed the spinnaker into its bag, put the pole back on the mast and got ready for a couple of days of beating. In fairness, the ex-Clipper members of the crew all looked much happier when the boat started leaning over. For days, I’ve been having to throw buckets of water on them and shake them from side to side just so they’d remember they’re on a sailboat. At least I can have a rest now.

In other news, we saw another boat today - our first sighting in three days. And later on, we saw a barrel. Who says life at sea isn’t exciting?

Terry and the crew of Rhapsody