Our First Night At Sea
Wednesday Night August 30th through Thursday August 31st
We motored into the wind from the Golden Gate Bridge to just past the the last shipping channel marker. The air was warm and the sea state was mixed as we bobbed up and down over the swells and into the 15 knots of wind. Progress was average and as the wind direction shifted in our favor we turned westerly and set the main and the jib each with one reef. Now we were truly underway. Hurrah! We were doing better than 7 knots and sometimes reached 8 with the six foot swell rocking us as it passed beneath. Life was good and we were pleased with our performance thus far. I was far too excited to take seriously that my stomach was just the slightest bit queasy.
A gorgeous sunset ensued followed by the rising of the full Blue Moon. We were tearing along and the scenery was fabulous. “Wow” I thought, “this ain’t a bad way to travel all the way to Alaska. Don’t know why I didn’t do this earlier!” As it got dark, the wind picked up to 25 knots and we began a rock and a rolling. The first thing to go was my carefully packed fruit and vegetables in the V berth down below. Four milk crates that had been ingeniously packed and secured by friend Don Bauer. Rolling around the floor were apples, celery, carrots, parsnips. That didn’t take long. What a mess. Randall kindly went down put the goods back in the box and strapped them down so they could resist a strong starboard tack. Order restored for the moment.
The wind quickly began gusting 35 and we had way too much sail up. Getting the next reefs in proved wet as we had not properly donned our foul weather gear. The first wave poured through the neck and sleeve of my brand new jacket. Note to self - zip it up next time.
We had already double reefed the jib, and we needed to triple reef the main. I watched Randall go to the mast to do the maneuver. As this was only our second time sailing MŌLI together and the first time at night, we both thought it best that I would observe rather than help (How convenient for me!). At the mast Randall gets pounded by a few waves as he notices that one of the cars that holds the main to the mast is tangled on the lazy jack so he cannot lower the main. Clearly not the first time this has happened - the best I could do was shine the light to illuminate the problem area while Randall worked through his detangling magic. A long ten minutes of crashing waves and gusting wind passed and voila, order restored and the third reef installed.
We go below deck to dry off. Eating anything in this weather was not an option so we decided that I would take the first rest (thanks Randall!) Barely two hours out the gate and in severe chop and roll, my stomach asked me why I had not taken a Dramamine. I’ll just go to bed and sleep it off I thought. I go into the pitch black V berth, crawl into my bunk and realize that I am in the front seat of the world’s biggest roller coaster only I am laying down, trying to go to sleep and wondering if my stomach will get the better of me. I tried to calm myself by taking some deep breaths. Not only is sleep impossible, but my stomach is ready to lose it. I bolt out of there into the salon and beg Randall for a Dramamine. It goes down surprisingly smooth, and I spend the remainder of my off-watch bolted to the couch in the salon, happy to be out of the V berth and feeling good that I can at least maintain myself here.
When it became time for me to take my watch, I suddenly appreciated MŌLI’s doghouse that lets you monitor and control many functions from inside the cabin, only having to go outside to adjust lines and the monitor wind-vane. In my semi-conscious Dramamine state, the four hours passed, the wind calmed and I completed my next sleep in the V-berth as conditions began to calm.