FIRST BIG CROSSING: Day 3

DAY THREE

24 hours-89 miles.
Yup. Yesterday was slow. But it was lovely.

The Pacific welcomed us with open arms. It was as flat as an enormous ocean can possibly be and the winds were light. Too light to do anything other than set out our (borrowed) asymmetrical spinnaker, which is a tiny bit small for us- but works perfectly in light winds. It's being undersized, only makes it even easier to deal with-which is good because Jon and I were both a little fuzzy from lack of sleep.

Which brings me to...Night watch.
I know this is what our family probably fears most, when they think about us out here, in the middle of an ocean. But night watch is just part of what is so totally awesome about this experience. It's a little freaky, sure. Being surrounded by darkness and the all encompassing maw of a great Ocean... but then, you settle down and it feels like you have the entire planet to yourself.

The Moon is a shy companion these days, only showing up at the end of the party, so most of the dark hours are spent dancing with the stars. Last night, we had the Southern Cross to Port and Pollux to Starboard. We didn't even have to look at the compass and we knew we were headed in the right direction. Glowing dolphins trailing phosphorescent sequins ghost by the boat and inexplicable sounds drift from the unknown around you; sqealing and chirping, tinkling bells, a soft moaning... We imagine they are the calls of the Kracken-bats and the Sea-elves. At least, this is the only explanation WE can come up with.

The kids are mostly giggling. They whisper and play games together all day. They eat a little and sleep a lot. There is much to unwind from the world.
And they haven't once asked... when we'll get there.

Oh, and a little albatross told me this:


The Great Barrier Reef, measuring 1,243 miles, is the largest living structure on Earth. It can be seen from the Moon.