Day 3    Monday, December 15, 1997

Pacific Ocean (San Francisco - Monterey)

Three helmsmen, Take I

Three helmsmen, Take II

I woke up again early this morning, tried to move about a bit, and quickly started seeking for that plastic bag again. I'm a bit better now, thank you, but still a bit week & wobbly. I've been above deck manning the wheel for the past two hours and it's not too bad. The sea is fairly calm although the swells are still annoying enough. Because we have no wind, the boat is on engine power and we keep rolling back and forth. We're currently making about 5 knots in an east-south-easterly heading (150º). The sky is mostly clear with only a few lonely clouds up there and we're steering straight into the sun. (Mexico, here we come!) Ray was the only one up here when I came up, but Ashikin joined us shortly, and after a while, Andy and Ken too. Every one seems pretty battered. Andy and Ashikin are now asleep, Ken is dozing off to, I think. Ray is down below taking a well deserved rest too. All I'm hearing is the dull engine noise, the autopilot's whine, and the sound of the waves crashing against the ship's side.

Sea, sea, sea, all you can see is sea in every direction. It's calmed down even more now, but everyone is still asleep everywhere except Ken who I think is fixing himself a snack downstairs. I just took a long nap myself, thank you very much. I went over by the main sail and lied down next to the vent to the cabin. The teak floor is smooth and soft -- all you need is a pillow to prop you up a bit. Oh, and something to hold on to or push against. Although it's pretty steady, she still rolls quite a bit.