Programs Blog

Monday, 9 June 2025.

Noon Position: 41 23.8’N x 070 51.3’W

Ship Heading: Anchored

Ship Speed: Anchored

Log (nm): 394.5nm

Weather / Wind / Sail Plan: Partly sunny throughout most of the day but fog and light rain started rolling in later in the evening.

Description of location: Menemsha Bight, Martha’s Vineyard

Today A Watch started off our morning at 0100 with Dawn Watch! We woke up at 0030 and headed up to the darkened deck to relieve C Watch and let them go to sleep while we started our day. Our day started with a beautiful darkness; there were no lights (besides a few other ship lights) that the eye could see. The air was particularly foggy and we were heading into supposed lobster pot territory but the night sky was amazing. Due to the coldness, wind, and low visibility, the lookout position at the front of the boat was rotated hourly, being swapped with the helmsman and the standby boat-check person. While we did not encounter any lobster pots or other fishing gear, we did encounter other boats and reacted accordingly. Right after the fog lifted, we were able to watch the sunrise and begin to peak out behind a few clouds brightening the sky for the rest of our watch! We finished the cold morning being relieved by B Watch and headed down to eat breakfast, or our dinner, and go to bed for a few hours.

Most of us woke up around lunch time and helped B Watch set some sails and started preparing for our Zooplankton presentation tomorrow! While we were asleep or barely awake and still present, we watched B Watch lab process a Neuson Tow and a Shipek grab. In those we found many interesting flora and fauna. We found our first crab megalopae and a very interesting polychaete moving around. After we had a few more hours of napping and watching, it was time for class.

For class today it was the famous SEA Expedition Pin Rail Chase! This competition was between watches to see which watch learned the most lines and found them on the ship the fastest. A Watch zoomed through the note cards while cheering each other on, when we needed help, “HOTTER” or “COLD”, “Freezing cold!!!” We finally reached the last card and it said Conga Line, we looked around the ship thinking “What?!? When did we learn that one?!?” Then in almost simultaneous realization, oooh, the dance, the conga line! Then we began our instructed celebratory dance around the deck, meanwhile, all the other watches were confused with our actions, as they had not reached the card yet. A Watch won the pin race!!! Followed by C and then B, however we all managed to memorize the lines, so we all won in the eyes of knowledge! We took our win and imaginary trophy straight toward our bed to take a nap before dinner and evening watch.

We have all had a great time on the water but we are all looking forward to warm dry beds and seeing family.

Tessa T-C, Charlotte Evans, A Watch