Day 8 33’00.202W/137’06.458W

All is well aboard the fair ship Haunani! Even with basically being becalmed for 2 days, we are very well and in good spirits! We have been moving a little, but not much (it reminded me of my qualifier) which was starting to get really annoying. I have been doing my best with guessing my best course (which obviously didn’t work out the past 2 days), but between my lack of experience navigating trips like this (involving weather and strategy) and a rocky satellite download situation that’s what I have had to do. I, of course have my chart plotters as a reference as well as a log of the changing barometric pressure to have an idea where I am in relation to the high. It’s all very in the moment and fun to be honest! I am going to try and de-bug my satellite situation this afternoon and hopefully will have some breakthroughs and be a little more “official” in my decision making!

My days on board are a mix of relaxation and exertion. This morning I flew the spinnaker for awhile again, and when the wind got too light for that, I set up my whisker pole for the genoa and cruised wing on wing for another while. It’s always a bit of a work out to deal with the spinnaker, but I am getting more efficient all the time. Once I was cruising wing on wing for a bit, I got very tired of the slow going dead down wind so I decided to take a leap and head south for a while before I jibe back towards the rhumb line. We will see how that works out!

Being alone and surrounded by water as far as I can see definitely has stirred up the deeper places of my soul. I am a water sign after all, and this is pretty much like emotional and spiritual crack for me! Haunani is an amazing container for all of it, as well as a sturdy and reliable vessel. I feel so safe and at peace aboard this magical boat! My world has become so small and intimate. Being with myself in this way is definitely different than anything I have ever experienced. I actually like it, although I will admit, there are moments when it is a little bizarre. The buck definitely stops and starts with me. I cannot afford to be lazy about anything, least of all my own health and mental state. Despite the deep emotional excavating and what that unearths, I am very lucid and happy out here. I miss my people, but I am also very content. I wasn’t sure if it would be that way. This whole experience so far has been really pleasantly surprising. Sleep is good, I am not talking to my shrouds or hearing voices, and I feel in very good spirits all in all!

The magic that surrounds me out here can and does bring me to my knees on a regular basis. Even in the middle of the night when I have to reluctantly go on deck to deal with something, I am blown away by what I see and feel. I saw 2 shooting stars last night and a beautiful crescent moon hanging in a moody foggy sky. There was also so much phosphorescence in my wake that I couldn't believe it. I felt like tinkerbell leaving sparkles in my wake. We were blessed by a gentle rain shower in the night as well, which felt very cleansing for both Haunani and me. Then, today I saw a frigate bird. My dad told me to watch for them. She circled my boat a few times and then went on her way. I felt as if I was being beckoned home. Its funny that she came today too, because when I went up on deck this morning at sunrise, the ocean smelled different….like the Hawaii pacific I grew up on. It was a beautiful moment and I had to stop and reflect once again at the magnitude of what I am doing right now. I am sailing home, not only to Hawaii, but to myself.