Programs Blog

Author: Nathan Miller, B Watch, Franklin and Marshall College

Ship’s Log

Position
38° 00’ N x 122° 58’ W

Sail Plan
All sails furled, anchored with two shots of chain at the water

Weather
Foggy in the mornings, sunny in the afternoons, calm seas

Wind
Variable, light

Description of location
Drake’s Bay

Souls on Board

Today was our relaxed full day anchored at Point Reyes. We’ve all had extra time to relax and reflect, our duties on watch consisting mostly of brief anchor checks, boat checks, and weather logging.

Drake’s Bay showing up nicely on the radar.

It’s tranquil here in Drake’s Bay. A couple of fishing boats are moored around us, and they motor in at dusk just as the fog comes back in. It feels funny to see other boats now—we’ve been used to seeing only big container ships and tankers on the horizon since we left San Diego a month ago. This is a gentle way to be reintroduced to land—one cliff, one buoy, one coastal vessel at a time, before we get underway again and I brace myself for the cacophonous San Diego harbor.

Today, the big event was the small-boat trips to shore. Becca, who won the Land Ho competition and guessed when we’d see land first, (she also sighted land (“LAND HO!”) while steering) boarded the first boat to shore as promised by the terms of the competition. I was on the second trip to the beach, and we learned that the ocean creates waves on the beach and sometimes gets people soaked when they ride an inflatable boat to shore.

We had a lovely time frolicking on the beach with the Seamans in the distance. Walking on land felt a little strange; some of us swayed a bit at first. I enjoyed viewing our ship from different angles as we drove away from it in the small boat. Putting some distance between me and the ship was a reminder of the whole world outside the rails of the ship we’ve been sailing through the Gyre and back.

We’ll raise anchor and get underway tomorrow morning, and we’ll get back in the familiar rhythm of watch rotations too. I’m looking forward to seeing all the people I love who are on land soon, but right now I’m ready to make the most of this final week of the voyage!

– Nathan Miller, Franklin and Marshall College/B Watch

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