Publish Date: Thursday, May 12, 2011
Location: Straits of Florida
Coordinates: 27º 19.336′ N 079º 44.978′ W
By the time I finish posting this blog entry we will have covered half the distance on our journey from Puerto Rico to Rhode Island. We have been underway for six days straight, and we’ve broken our previous distance and time records for a non-stop transit. It has been a remarkable voyage for us, and we’re not finished yet.
When we left Puerto Rico last Thursday afternoon, we hoped the weather would hold long enough for us to get to Florida, and it did. We’ve had light winds and calm seas the entire way, which is pretty unbelievable given the distance covered. Our ship systems are performing flawlessly, and it feels like Three@Sea could continue on indefinitely (given enough fuel). Most important, all three of us feel good: We’re getting enough sleep, sharing the tasks of being underway, and enjoying the family time together. The only potential problem is that we’re running out of new movies to watch!
Last night while crossing the Bahama Bank we evaluated the latest weather information to decide if we could keep going. Ideally we would like to go all the way to Rhode Island, but that will be up to Poseidon, Neptune, and Mother Nature. Would the latest forecast allow us to get to Charleston, SC? How about Beaufort, NC? Our insurance coverage requires us to be north of the Florida border by June 1, and we need to get somewhere with a decent airport so I can effectively work. Either of those places, as well as several others along the East Coast would be fine, but how long would our weather luck hold?
I’m happy to report that we’ve pointed the bow north, and we are currently riding the Gulf Stream towards Cape Hatteras. The weather looks good enough that we should be able to get as far as Hatteras, which we should round on Saturday. After that it looks a bit uncertain, but we’ll keep an eye on it over the next couple days. If we get around Cape Hatteras, then we could stop somewhere in the Chesapeake Bay or Cape May, NJ, and then we could hop up to Rhode Island over a weekend. We’re thrilled with our weather and sea-state fortune — another ration of rum for Poseidon and Neptune!