Location: UW to St. Barths
Leaving an island is always an exciting time. Lifting the anchors in anticipation of passage is like riding the first incline of a rollercoaster before a huge plummet. Some of us have looks of dread thinking of the inevitable second sight of what they ate for breakfast that morning, and some cannot wait to put their hands up on the way down the ride. Leaving islands has become somewhat regular for us at this point. Waking up today, I was eager to see what was next for us out there at sea. For breakfast, we enjoyed some rice and eggs made by Lulu, a meal inspired by her days as a high school student. We had a couple of classes before lunch where we learned about fisheries and enjoyed a very special rap music video about St. Barths, courtesy of Kiki and Jack. After lunch, we enjoyed some delicious caramel pecan cake in celebration of Clara’s 20th birthday. Although Jack and I gave it a solid effort, we were unable to finish the entire cake and had to keep some leftovers. Due to a minor setback in the engine room, we had a little extra time after lunch to swim and dance to 80s music before lifting the anchor and raising the sails en route to St. Barths.
There was a small break before dinner where the rescue divers had some time to review their worksheets from the previous day while the rest of the crew had some free timedinner time rolled around quickly after bearing away where we had curry. The sun set as we ate and shared dinner time together, and soon, the dark shroud of night fell over the ocean star. I think that nighttime adds a thrilling element to the passage, like being on a spaceship traveling through the milky way, while others say it is like a nightmare of lost sensation and upside-down stomachs. The squeeze question for tonight was what would you do if money was no object. We all spoke of traveling the world or living on a large property in the country, growing fresh fruits and veggies with our families, friends, and pets. The passage was beautiful. My watch team told ghost stories from 9-12 and then enjoyed a peaceful sunrise shift from 6-9. With just over three weeks left on our program, I try extra hard every day to live in each moment of this journey. Trying not to waste precious time worrying about the future or the past, not to miss out on the opportunity of right now. Waking up every day to the sun shining down on my face and getting rocked to sleep by the ocean every night for over two months now has done more for me than I ever would have expected. I can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings. I have one more skipper day after this one left. Until then, I will be soaking in the salt and the sun.
My mom and dad shared with me the other day that they have trouble putting names on faces. Here is a comprehensive guide to the Ocean Star crew, some more candid than others, for all of you who might be having similar experiences.
ML, Sara, Jack, Jules, Griffin, Ben, Kiki, Casey, Kylie, Katie, Lulu, Clara, Eva, Grace, Ash, Sam, Nick, and Heather. Hope those all made it on in the right order.
– Casey signing off