Noon Report 22 April 2024 – CV23 Perseverance – North Pacific
I started my sailing life about 20 years ago, with the local sea scouts. It is where I learned to sail as a kid during sail weeks. Fun-filled weeks, with daytime sailing and evenings filled with theory and games. Those weeks usually took place in October, when autumn provides for windy, cold and wet conditions. One of the fond memories of these weeks are the "broodjes knak" in the afternoon (Dutch sausage roll).They would bring them out with a motorboat to keep us warm - topped with our favourite condiments.
There aren't any "knakworsten" on board Perseverance, although I have been longing for them quite a bit on the afternoon watches, mainly to keep us warm. As we are now approaching America, I'll be getting a juicy hotdog once we get in, topped with everything they have to offer. For now, the savoury tooth is filled with an endless variety of Chinese flavoured crisps, combined with nuts, chocolate and biscuits.
Seattle and the route through Juan the Fuca Strait will feel a little bit as a homecoming to me. The sea scouts kicked off a maritime spirit in me that resulted into going to the Maritime University of Rotterdam. My professional carrier started in Seattle as a Cadet Officer with Holland America Line doing weekly cruises to Alaska. Seattle was our homeport for the season, and these turnaround days would always be too busy to get off the ship. So I'm glad to now finally be able to fully experience Seattle.
We are down to the last 200nm, and as I'm writing this, we are caught in a wind hole. We are still slowly moving in the right direction, however hoping for more wind - and earlier then our competitors. Nothing is granted yet, and we could still end up somewhere between 3rd and 8th place. Back to wind hole jobs for now - checking halyards and making sail repairs.