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Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Journal - 2/10/09

We made it to the Bahamas: feelings of jubilation mixed with post traumatic stress.

I can imagine a casual 30 min plane ride from West Palm Beach to Freeport. We chose to sail-- 60+ miles ocean...

At no point did I fear for my life; the crossing was more like a 16hr bull ride with somebody occasionally hosing you in the face with salt water. When we arrived at West End I hadn't slept for about 24hrs and had flecks of salt caked to my skin and clothes... Upon stepping onto land I couldn't help but bust out a jig/crip walk with my remaining energy.

Probably the scariest moment of the trip was when we were floating 25 miles off shore and lost both power and the engine for about ten minutes... That and the first time we lost sight of land in all directions... and it being night time... Or the huge waves in general.

The best part of the trip besides stepping onto land again, was when we saw land for the first time. I've always wanted to yell, "Land Ho!" under it's intended definition and really mean it (almost tears of joy).

There were also a few moments when we took a breath to enjoy the surroundings: the night sky, the sunrise, or being the only people in sight.

When we asked about the current conditions most experienced sailors said, "I wouldn't do it." We were also told it would be a good idea to go with other boats as a safety precaution.... But after a chat with one brazen sailor who had crossed from the UK, we felt inspired. "Let's do this!" (He said he might cross if he were younger.)

All in all, the crossing was one crazy trip, but we survived. Now time to cruise the shores of the Bahamas...

Oh, and probably the craziest piss I've ever had to take... probably.

-Ian Graham, February 10, 2009

"Whisky Deck, hasn't sunk yet."

1 comment:

OfCarloWeTrust said...

Redbeard,

Land ho, mothertrucker! This will be grand reading for the landlubbers n' such. Great to hear your maiden voyage went swimmingly.

Until next time,
N