Leg 2

We made it! Fifteen days of sailing with no fridge, the radio, steering, and autopilot breaking, two storms, and enough leaks to fill my bunk with water, but we made it. I now know how Uma Thurman felt in "Kill Bill" after waking from a comma and trying to walk. When I first got off the boat my legs began to shake and coordination to walk up hill took a lot of effort. I hadn't realized how jelly like my body had gotten from sitting for two weeks.

In all, the trip over was good. In the time it took to write the last email on Bermuda a woman came up to my dad and used the old joke, "Hey, you need one more, I'm trying to get rid of my son." Ever the opportunist my dad jumped and Matt, 27, joined our crew the same day he arrived in Bermuda. When I walked back to the boat strangers were taking pictures of me and I was meeting his whole family without knowing why. I was finally told as he was moving his things in that he was the replacement.

The trip was scheduled for 5 knots as our average speed with 8 being as fast as the boat was designed to go. The first couple of days the wind was perfect and the boat was surfing down waves. We managed to average 7.5 and at one point reach 11.5 while costing down a large swell. This, simple to say, was very exhilarating. The good fortune lasted six days.

On the seventh day, in no direction was there sun or sky and a low pressure system brought huge white caps, little wind, and rain. After thinking I was okay my sea sickness came back with a vengeance. With the rain came the leaks and my bed became squishy with water. For two days straight we fought the waves. When our steering broke and the rudder jammed up we decided to wait out the storm a while and just bob. As I sat for my watch sick, wet, and miserable a shark fin broke the water and circled our boat twice. Perfect, I knew something was missing from the scene.  

The shark didn't kill us and the weather cleared up. We celebrated my dad’s sixty-first birthday with sips of brandy, booming music, and the best canned ham money can buy. When you become so accustomed to conditions it is startling when things change. We began to see birds and lots of garbage floating in the water and we knew we were close to land. The smell of the ocean even changed from the fresh breeze people associate with detergents named ocean splash to the murky brine smell of offshore pollution.

The entry to the Azores current was met by huge dolphin pods diving in and out of the storm surge created by another low front. The winds of the storm brought us into harbor. While Bermuda was relatively flat, the Azores are very steep with cliffs and volcanoes making up their landscape. Sailing into harbor while the sun was setting in the middle of the storm was picturesque. I wouldn't quite compare it too the opening of "Jurassic Park" but that didn't stop the theme song from going through my head

So far Portugal is great. The highest point is a Volcano called "Pico" and at 7,000 feet is something I want to attempt while I am here after my legs start working properly. They serve their soda in a glass bottle cold and their fish with all the bones. This is heaven compared to canned food and Kool-Aid for two weeks. I'll let you know more when I have the chance.

Chris