Passage

We left Brunswick yesterday morning just before 5 am, with current against us for the first hour. Once we left the channel we continued on a course toward the entrance to the Gulf Stream. At 6:30 am we attempted to listen to Chris Parker’s weather forecast but our Starlink service kept cutting out and has continued to do so off and on. George checked the Starlink’s wiring and did some research during times we had service. The problem is apparently due to faulty hardware. Starlink will replace the unit, but since we are on our way to the Bahamas, we aren’t sure how we would get the replacement or send back the faulty unit within the required timeline. It is something we will have to figure out. 

We had enough wind for sailing for a time yesterday, but when the wind dropped and we had to furl the sail, we couldn’t get it to furl properly on the spindle in the boom. We eventually dropped the mainsail into the deck and furled it from there. When I reduced the throttle on the engine while attempting to furl the sail, the engine stalled. We suspect air is somehow getting into the fuel system. Add that to the list of problems to be solved. 

On a more positive note, we saw dolphins several times yesterday. One pod stayed with us and played at our bow for a while. It was calm enough that George could get to the bow and take a video. We also had an experience that was new for us. We saw a submarine. The submarine crossed in front of us a mile or two away. Two other ships and a Coast Guard cutter joined the sub. None of them were identified on AIS so we don’t know what or who they were, other than the Coast Guard cutter. One of the ships hailed us and asked us to stay at least two miles away. Of course, since they weren’t on AIS, we had no idea how many miles away we were but we altered course to give them a wider berth anyway. 

We entered the Gulf Stream last evening and exited in the wee hours of the night. The Gulf Stream can get gnarly with large, confused seas but the wind was light and the seas were quite calm. Even though I prefer sailing over motoring I am grateful for the calm conditions.  Last evening I was in the cockpit on my watch when I looked up and saw an orange light in the sky. I grabbed my camera and took a photo. It took me a minute to realize it was a Starlink launch from Cape Canaveral. 

                                                                Full moon in the Gulf Stream. So calm!

                                                                 Starlink launch from Cape Canaveral. 

                Screenshot of a video George took from the bow. The dolphins were racing back and forth in front of us.