38-23N / 64-40W – 1819 Atlantic time
Captain Daniel D. Moreland
Things have been fine so far – conditions fair to moderate, not bad at all. Now the Picton Castle is about 360 miles south of Lunenburg and about 480 miles east of the Delaware Bay and right up to the edge or ‘north wall’ of the Gulf Stream – it really is a river in the ocean – we will be crossing most of it tonight – winds went light and then ahead so we have stowed sail and are pushing under power steering SE – we are expecting some breeze tomorrow and then hopefully a wind shift to the NW which is just what we want – that should carry us close to the tradewinds but probably not before we motor through some calms on the latitude of Bermuda – the ship is well lashed and stowed, crew are getting their sea legs – Chibley is working her charm for small bits of meat. Cabbage, roast potatoes, some fine cut of beef, green salad and walnut ginger cake for supper – lunch was a rich lentil stew and fresh herb bread.
Maggie Ostler reporting…
Weather seems to be the theme of this passage, from discussions in the charthouse of the latest weather forecasts and analysis, to idle chat on the aloha deck where Sophie’s brave transition into sandals was admired by some and shocking to others. The water temperature has risen significantly since we left Lunenburg – it was 6 degrees Celsius then, went up to about 20 degrees last night and has been hovering around 15 degrees this morning. We haven’t crossed the Gulf Stream yet, but that time is coming soon.
As we hope for warmer weather, the crew are getting used to the routine of life aboard. They’re getting to know the characteristics of a good wake-up call, how to walk on deck while the ship is moving, where all the lines are in the dark, how to keep a good lookout, which way to stow their belongings in their bunk so they don’t get klonked by stuff falling off their bunk shelves in the middle of the night, and how to steer our little barque. By necessity the learning curve is pretty steep in the first few days at sea – our gang all seem to be getting it and are working well together. Very pleasing to see.
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