Bermuda to Azores | Day 6

This morning’s sunrise

What day are we on?? Six? seven?  It is hard to keep track.

Yesterday was calmer. Unfortunately, we motored the whole day. Again, fuel is limited, so we need to be mindful of how we use it. But the choices before us were pretty slim. So we motored.

However, motoring brought the benefit of having hot water. And with the sea having settled a bit, we took advantage of it and took showers. The calmer sea state also made it a little easier for me to make bread!

Yesterday’s excitement was a large pod of dolphins surfing our bow—leaping and weaving as they raced against the boat. They always seem to show up at the right time, too, giving you that morale boost. That never gets old!

Planning meals for long passages like this is always interesting. Our time sailing in the Bahamas, Grenada, and Bermuda revealed how food-rich the United States is. We have so many choices. Produce of all kinds in abundance. Fifty different types of coffee, hummus, and yogurt. I stocked up on all meats and non-perishables before leaving the United States. Then, right before we left Bermuda, I grabbed whatever fresh produce I could find. Refrigeration space aboard is limited, so I chose based on what I could fit and what might last longer. But you also have to choose based on what you can find.

While on passage, you work through your fresh goods first, because they will go bad faster. Then, when that runs out, you move to your shelf-stable foods. We still have some fresh goods from Bermuda, though that is dwindling now. So meal planning can get interesting. I had some squash and zucchini that needed to be eaten pretty quickly, so I decided to make a roasted-vegetable, crispy-speck pizza. And it was stinking delicious! I drizzled olive oil over the pizza crust and placed thinly sliced garlic on top. Then I put pre-roasted squash and zucchini, crispy speck, caramelized onions, and a sprinkling of feta cheese. Wow. So good. Definitely a meal I would make again. And I made it more out of necessity than anything. It’s amazing what being forced to be creative does.

I captured a photo of the sunrise this morning as my watch was winding down. It was a beautiful way to start the day. But as I stared at it, I was reminded of the adage, “Red skies at night, sailors delight. Red skies in the morning, sailors take warning.” We are due for a couple of days of inclement weather (high winds and elevated seas), starting Monday. So this morning’s red sky gave me a glimpse of the potentially spicy days to come.

All in all, day 6 was good. We all caught up on rest from the last bout of spicy weather!

We are almost halfway there now. 980 miles left to go. Woohoo! Depending on the wind and other variables, we could arrive in 7-9 days. Hallelujah!

All is well.

Day Six Stats
Nautical Miles Sailed In The Last 24 Hours 125

Average Boat Speed 5.2 kts

Max Boat Speed 7.6 kts

GPS Coordinates 38 48.308N 51 28.949W

Miles to go 980 ish?

Here are a few more pictures and a video of the dolphins. If you are reading from your phone, be sure to click the link to view the post on the website in order to see the dolphin video!

Last night’s delicious dinner!

Making anything on board often requires pulling everything out to get to the one item you need.