By this point in the passage, we’ve settled into our daily watch routine. Like many sailors, our watch schedule has evolved over time, starting with numerous short watches and eventually stretching into fewer, longer watches. Where we’ve settled is a fixed watch schedule at night and a more flexible arrangement during the day.
We usually eat an early dinner together, and then Mike takes watch from 6 until 9pm while Angie gets a couple hours of rest. From 9 until 1:30am, it’s Mikes turn to sleep while Angie is on watch. At 1:30, it’s time to swap again Mike’s on watch and Angie can sleep until 6am. At that point, Angie is ready to start the day and takes over while Mike sleeps until he naturally wakes up, usually around 3 hours or so later.
During the day, it’s less structured – if someone is tired they’ll grab a nap. Otherwise one or both of us are relaxing in the cockpit anyway, so someone is always watching.
We’ll sometimes change things, for example at the beginning of a passage when we’re easing into the rhythm, or if we’re expecting heavy weather. But this setup works well for us – Angie is more of a morning person, while Mike does a bit better late at night. And getting at least one uninterrupted 4 hour stretch of sleep has proven important for both of us to stay as rested as possible.
All’s well onboard.
Day Thirteen
171nm
30 57.1S 45 19.3W
