Location: 7*51.500 S 76*55.214 E
Hey ya’ll
Today was a very, very chill day on passage. The seas were calm, and the sun was blazing, making for a good day to go swimming. Swimming knowing that there is three miles of water below you is a scary yet exciting feeling. Also, having ocean swells that raise you up and down make for a once-in-a-lifetime experience. While swimming, we also found some fishing line that was caught on the bottom of Vela and has turned it into bracelets. After an afternoon swim, we had lunch then a team meeting about passage and how it will be extended. With the engine off, we have had a couple of slow days sailing, and now we have added an extra 800 Nm to the passage, choosing to cut under Great Chagos for more favorable weather. With that comes some adjustments to daily life, but the crew doesn’t mind. Captain Tom says that it will be an extra 13 days approx from when we hit the trade winds, which will be most likely in the next 1-2 days. After our meeting, we had classes canceled for the day, and we had a lot of free time to do whatever we wanted ( I caught up on some much-needed sleep ). Most people hung out in the saloon with the AC on or were up on deck catching some sun. We ended the day with a great sunset and raised the mainsail to catch some expected wind tonight. I’m feeling great, and the crew is feeling great, and we are all just taking things one day at a time and making the most of them. Night watches have been uneventful but nice because it gives people a lot of time to talk. Also, the other day we caught out first fish. It was a flying fish that had blown onto the deck. We discovered him on deck at 4 am, and the crew named him Jeff. Jeff was then put in the freezer to be studied at some other time.
To my family and friends, I miss you guys and can’t wait to catch up.
-Max Schrock
Drone Shot from Dylan