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Captain's Log – At Sea Finally

Date: Monday June 13, 2016
Time: 2145 EDT
Position: 37d 16.8 North X 75d 26.7 West or 33.5 nautical miles north east of Cape Henry and about 14 nautical miles from Rogue Island, Virginia on DelMarVa Peninsula.

A lot of getting done, to quote a tv ad, has been going on aboard Pride II
since she sailed down ‘The Bay’ last Wednesday.

A parade of sail for Norfolk, VA Harbor Fest.

Two and a half days of deck tours with festival public.

One fully attended evening private reception of HarborFest vips’ for Saturday evening’s spectacular fireworks.

Last minute refresh of fruits and vegetables loaded.

Final Canadian “entry” paperwork filled out and emailed back to Pride, Inc. Operations Manager Erica Denner for sending forward to Canada. (Must give Canada at least 96 hours advance notice of who is aboard as well other
details of the ship and what it is carrying).

Finally tie-loose from the dock right after lunch and start motoring toward sea.

While motoring out to sea the mainsail was set and a lot of re-adjustment was made to it to make it set well. There was also some re-adjustment to the tightness of the jib and jib-topsail stays. Then the staysail was set.

When all was done, around 1540 hours (that is the normal way we speak of and think of time aboard a vessel expecting to remain under way for 24 hours a day for consecutive days) there was an all hands muster and details about the way life would unfold aboard the ship was reviewed. 4-hour watches by three different groups must follow a well declared regimen. Trash and garbage must be handled in a very special way or the ship will turn into a out-of-control mess. After the high points were re-declared all hands broke into their respective groups for more intimate organizing. Then at 1600 hours watches were set. The off watch and stand-by watch were stood-down.

Wind was light and changeable. But both the staysail and the mainsail provided some assist to the two engines pushing Pride II along. Just before dark the jib was set. Wind had come up lightly from the south. With it’s assistance Pride II is making around 7 knots in a lumpy swell from the north from the recent cold front that passed by Sunday evening. So she is leaping and plunging a little with this dying head sea.

It is dark now. The off-shore passage to Nova Scotia is around 700 nautical miles. Maybe six days. Hoping for 5 days. As always, the sailing vessel mariner will see what shall be seen. No amount of wishing will alter things. But how we anticipate and respond to what comes will have a lot of affect on how we experience what unfolds.

Signed, Jan C. Miles