Winning!
Location: Antigua
Today began seemingly in the middle of the night, as I woke up to join my watch team for the second time on this last passage. While doing the 3-hour watch rotations, days seem to run together, and the numbers on the clock become less consequential than the heading on the compass or the barometer reading. At a certain point on each passage, things fall into place again...the sun rises, land can be seen, and there is an arrival time insight. Today that point came at around 10 am, when we called all hands on deck to begin striking sails, rounding a turn toward the long-awaited island of Antigua. This was our second passage as a group, a much smoother operation than the first ...everyone really seemed to get their sea legs under control on this voyage. The reward has been a relaxing day in this pleasant cove, surrounded by 1700s Western architecture and the promise of further exploration of this new port tomorrow. But for tonight, we can rest easy, knowing we made it and feeling accomplished for not the first, but perhaps one of the most gratifying times thus far.