Starry Nights

Going back a few days now, I want to write about my first few overnight sails. I had not done this since 2005 when we bought our boat and sailed it home from Connecticut. I don’t remember much about that experience, as I was queasy both from being unaccustomed to longer periods of sailing, and also being newly pregnant with Madelyn. Plus, I did not take much responsibility then because there were 3 other people aboard to navigate (Brian, his sister Vera, and our hired crew member Dennis).

Overnight sails are ideal when sailing in “open water”, offshore, with little navigation necessary. It is not a good idea to sail into an unfamiliar harbor at night, with shoals to avoid and sometimes tricky tides in rivers or inlets. But offshore, it is just blue water, no obstructions. Buoys (in the US anyway) are sometimes lighted. All buoys show up on our GPS. Both buoys and other boats show up on our radar screens. All boats over a certain size must have specific lights aboard, illuminated in a certain way to show if you are moving or anchored, or moving to your port or starboard side. Our new AutoPilot can be programmed to follow a course on the compass and even make pre-planned turns. Brian even figured out how to connect our cockpit electronics to our TV screen down below in the cabin, so that we can stay inside during bad weather or for short breaks.

The person on watch is responsible for making sure we: 1.) stay on course, 2.) don’t run into anything either fixed or moving, and 3.) the engine is running properly and sails are trimmed. We can do this by checking the systems every 10 minutes or so, and reading or doing other things in between.

Last week when we sailed from NC to Georgia, we sailed for over 250 miles, through 2 night sails. We took turns every 2-4 hours or so. The first night was relatively calm on the water. Still, at about 1:00 am, I was on watch and felt unsure. In our cabin when everyone is awake, it is a warm place full of life. But now everyone else was asleep, and I was in the cockpit in almost complete darkness. I could not see land. There were no other lights on the horizon from buoys or boats. The moon was behind the clouds and not many stars were visible. I started to feel isolated. Around that time, I saw blips on our radar screen, all around our boat. This was confusing. I couldn’t see anything above the water. I felt badly, but I had to wake Brian to ask him to make sure I wasn’t going to hit something. Neither of us knew what it was, but it didn’t seem to cause a problem, so we decided to ignore them.

Then I heard them – splashing and jumping. Dolphins! About 6-8 of them were swimming alongside our boat! I saw them with our handheld spotlight, grey skin glistening in the black water. When the light was turned off, I could hear them blowing air when their bodies broke the surface of the water. Down below, I could even hear their high pitched calling noises. It was thrilling. They stayed with me for about one hour. I felt as if everyone who has been thinking of us and praying for us was right there, joining me when I needed some reassurance and companionship.

The next day, the girls were in the cockpit with me and saw more dolphins next to the boat. This time, the family (or herd?) followed us for several hours. Madelyn’s hazel eyes were huge. She saw them jumping, leaping, swimming under the boat to the other side, playing up at the bow, and jumping in tandem as groups of 2 or 3. Here I was, feeling badly because I never took them to the Aquarium in Wilmington before we left! Now they got a private show! Katja was jumping up and down on my lap singing “Me see dolphins, Mama!” Madelyn would breathlessly yell out “Mommy, I saw its fur!” or “I saw his arm!” Then once with all of her energy she cried out “MOM! That one JUMPED SO HIGH and I SAW HIS FACE AND HE WAS SMILING AT ME!!”

(This is a Google Images photo, not ours!)

The next leg of the sail was bumpy, windy with some small waves. We had to motor most of the way because the wind was light and variable. It was uncomfortable, with the boat pitching and lurching around. I took motion sickness medication and felt better. Madelyn wouldn’t take her medication, and got sick a few times, but overall we were OK. Brian and I took turns napping. Katja was fussy but tolerated it.

Starting the 2nd night, I was already tired. I enjoyed reading Eat, Pray, Love… a few great chapters helped. In a surreal moment of a probably delirious state, I started singing to keep myself awake. It worked! Using my mental energy to think of songs and then try to remember the words helped. I sang hymns, 1960’s and 70’s folk songs (from my summer camp days in junior high), and even pulled out the patriotic ones like the Star Spangled Banner and America the Beautiful. It sounds so hilarious now to think of myself sailing along in the darkness, singing at the top of my lungs in the cold night air, but it helped us all to stay safe for an hour at least, and it’s a good memory. 

When we reached St Mary’s Georgia in the morning, it was such a good feeling to see land in the distance! We anchored, turned off the engine, and relaxed. It was the beginning of Thanksgiving Day. We had a lot to be thankful for.