Day 21 – 3 Weeks at Sea, 1 Day to Go! – 11-11-24

So I am trying to get my mind around this one. It’s been 3 weeks since we left Nuku Hiva, and right now we have Ensenada 20 miles off our starboard side.  In some ways it was an incredibly long 3 weeks, but now its hard to believe its coming to and end. 

I was telling my crew, Dean, Luke and Mateo, what an awesome job they all did.  Everyone had a great attitude, we never got on each other’s nerves and each person gave it 100%. I could not ask for more from a crew. As Luke and Mateo were laying down tonight, they each said how much they will miss this.  It has truly been an epic adventure for these two young men. They have really grown in their knowledge and sailing abilities. I am super proud of both of them.

Dean has been the rock of our team.  Always levelheaded, never complains, no matter how tough it gets, and he just gets the job done.  I am SO grateful for Dean!

We had a great night sailing last night and this morning with 10 to 12 knots of wind on a close reach.  When I woke up this morning we were greeted by a pod of dolphins.  Dolphins always bring joy when they show up!

This afternoon, as forecasted, the wind began to climb into the low 20 knot range. Fortunately, the seas were not big, so we put two reefs in the mainsail and 3 in the jib, and we were fine. As we are approaching land tonight, the wind has gone back down to 10 to 12 knots, and we have full sails up again.

Being closer to land we have the benefit of having less wind than what is happening offshore (gale force in some places) but now we must really be alert with all the boat traffic and obstacles that are along the coast.   We have spent most of our time in the wide-open ocean and have not had to worry much about obstacles. So we have our charts up and radar on, we should be good to go.

We covered 144 miles since yesterday, and we have just over 100 miles to go.  This should put us into Newport Harbor in the late afternoon or early evening tomorrow.  It is going to be surreal for me, the end of an epic 8 month adventure.  But I am so looking forward to seeing my family and friends. Oh, and to walk on LAND!