I don't sleep well as I keep thinking about what might be going on back home. I fell I have been gone too long and really hope all is well. Get wakes me at 3 AM for my watch. I grab my hoodie, jacket, life vest and iPod and head topside. It is overcast but nice out. Not stars and no ships. I watch from the cockpit stairs under the dodger with a vigilant eye and music in my bears keeping me alert. At 6AM I awaken Yves and crawl into bed. Nothing to report on thi...

Greg wakes me up at midnight for my watch. With the spinnaker we are making about 4-5 knots. I check and see that we have 812 nautical miles (nm) to go. I am much more vigilant and sit in the cockpit listening to my iPod in one ear and scanning the horizon. It is a nice night out with just a trace of cool wind. The spinnaker is luffing (losing air) a bit as the wind is shifting slightly and dying to about 2-3 knots. I see some lights on the stern horizon. It is...

Greg awakes me just after 5AM. There are dolphins outside. I go topside and just catch a dorsal fin as they leave us. So close. I go to bed for the next 45 min. I get up and start making coffee when Greg yells he got a bite on the fishing line. He hauls in a beautiful 3 foot, blue and green dolphin fish (also called mahi mahi or dorado). We tie it to the back of the boat after a few pictures. I make coffee and have some cereal. Yves checks the ham radio as the...

12:30 AM - I awake to noise topside. I get up and Yves and Greg have taken the main sail down trying to get more air to the spinnaker. I go back to sleep after about 15 minutes - realizing I have nothing to do. Before I do,Greg pulls his back with the last sheet pulled in. He is in pain and takes naproxen. Greg wakes me at 3 AM for my shift. He has been trying to optimize the spinnaker in a shifting wind and gives me some directions if the wind shifts. I settle ...

Midnight - night watch. I awoke to hear Yves ask Greg what our speed was - we are doing 4 knots, which is better than we expected. I get up and relieve Greg. I throw on my hoodie under my jacket and life vest / harness as it it is chilly. I grab my iPad and head topside. The night air is refreshing, clear and the sky is full of stars. No moon out which surprises me as we saw a crescent the night before. I start working on the blog and time flies by. My butt hurt...