Daze at Sea

July 2 2334(Z)/1334(L); 3323.09N/16032.57W; Heading due North making 5.5 kts in light winds and relatively calm seas. For those without a map at hand, we are about 2100NM directly West of San Diego.

It was a rude awakening yesterday at 0400, not because there was anything unusual going on, but because I was actually asleep and dreaming! This despite the condensation dripping off the ceiling onto my feet at regular intervals like Chinese torture. After donning my gear (light weight Gortex layer, harness, life jacket, headlamp, hat, and gloves) I joined Dom topside to find out we were headin' straight towards a large shower. Dom had come on at midnight to relieve Chris. I was relieving Nick. As an aviator, my gut reaction is to avoid the bad weather. But the jet travels faster than the weather, a real advantage when planning avoidance! No such advantage with a sailboat. While we make attempts to plan a course that will miss the most dense areas, Mother Nature has the final call. At the onset of the rain we had winds gusts to 30kts and white caps atop of 8 foot swells crashing over the boat. Twenty minutes later the wind nearly died, boat speed dropped to 2-3 kts, as the rain continued for the next 3 hrs. It was a good test of our outerlayer as the temperatures are still warm once the sun rises. As we get north of 40 deg latitude, staying dry will be an imperative to staying warm. I think we are prepared. The rest of the day turned out to be a beautiful day for sailing. How fortunate for us!
I repeated this act today, but in place of the rain showers, a spectacular sunrise greeted us. Dom snapped some great photos. I suppose if you live on the East coast along the shore, you have seen the sunrise over the ocean. That is not my case. With few exceptions, my over-the-sea sunrises have been witnessed from 35,000ft while flying Eastbound and it take no time at all. Not so at sea. This morning it was as if the world slowed down. The sunrise was stunning, sustained, ever changing and seemingly never over. What a way to start the day.