Location: Underway to Fiji
Wow, I am skipper again! It doesn’t even feel like 1 week, let alone 27 days! We were told once we started our first passageway back in Antigua that passages and the trip would soon enter into a time warp; at the time, I’m not sure if I believed it, but I sure do now! Anyway, today is a whole new day of passage, and it was like every other one but also completely different. We still followed the watch rotation, lunch, classes of marine biology, and our last seamanship class before our NavMaster exam, deck showers, and dinner, but in between, so much happened. My watch team, watch team 1, had the 12-4 am watch this morning, and as we were taking in on the main staysail preventer, a bird hit the sail, walked around, then tried… and failed to jump into an open hatch. At lunch, we had a time change on the boat and gained an extra hour, which gave us more time for studying and free time after classes. Best of all-right before dinner (drum roll, please…) WE CAUGHT OUR FIRST FISH!!!
Yes, you read correctly; we finally caught our first fish of the semester (and hopefully not our last); it was a four-foot wahoo that put up a small fight. Tim managed to win, though, and Lolo led an impromptu dissection. As Lolo’s favorite part is looking in the fish’s stomach, that is where we started, and inside we found the two cutest, tiniest little pufferfish, parts of a fish, and two parasitic worms that are only found in the stomachs of wahoo. Then we figured out it was a male and filleted all of its meat off for a fresh meal tomorrow! After a wonky layered dinner as many stayed late to watch the fish dissection, we got to see an absolutely beautiful sunset over the south pacific ocean.
As it is my last skipper day, I am really starting to notice just how much I have learned over these past 78 days; being out here on the ocean is such an amazing experience that I will never forget. Going on deck every day and looking out at the seemingly endless water while watching the waves roll past will never get old. Waking up at 4 am for watch and staring at the sky, looking at the stars, and waiting for shooting stars will never get tiring. Getting to participate in Argo’s longest and furthest passage has been an incredible joy especially getting to share it with a group of people who always strive to make each other laugh. I cannot wait for the next however many days of passage as I know they will be just as fun.
Current Position: 1111.7475’S x 15707.6386’W
Pictures:
1. Group photo with the wahoo
2. Lolo starting the dissection
3. Sunset during dinner