Archive for August, 2008

Night: the golden glow

Monday, August 4th, 2008

Current position 63 deg 52.8′ N, 060 deg 20.2′ W. We will soon head to leg 2 of recommended route through Baffin Bay. So far we have open water, occasional HUGE bergs, but very little ice in the water. It is 2:40 AM and the sun is about to rise! As we go we maintain a golden glow on the horizon all (short) night and gulls are criss-crossing in front of the bow. Kip & I are doing our shift while Pat & Shane sleep. We have been doing two-person, 4 hour shifts, but not staggered like we have done previously. Should be another nice day.

[Editor’s Note: We asked the crew to send updates more regularly, rather than at every big “happening.” If they keep up this pace, we may need to consolidate all the updates into a daily digest! Thanks to the crew for staying in touch. It helps us back home to know all is well.]

Another Update at 7:45pm

Sunday, August 3rd, 2008
The Candian Ice Service is sending us west of the pack [ed. There is a huge “island” of pack ice floating in the middle of Baffin Bay], east of the coastal ice. Current coordinates are at 7:45 PM are 63 deg 11.07′ N, 062 deg 12.6′ W. We are fine. Had a depth “experience” here in 900 feet of water. All of a sudden the shallow alarm warning goes off; depth was 16′, went down to 112′ back to 900′. Was it a whale or a submarine? Who knows but it sure got our attention.
Pat talked Kip into CCC’s — so much for his diet. Shane took a salt water shower in the cockpit. His voice rose an octave and he says that you do NOT want to fall into this water.
Condensation in the boat is a nuisance and sometimes a problem as everything is damp. There is no longer a refrigerator problem:) We are saving the melted cooler water in jugs and heating it for dishes and a “spit bath.” The sunshine has been so great and the main salon is dried out again.

6:00pm Update

Sunday, August 3rd, 2008

63°05’N, 62°28’W—Fog has lifted. Expect light winds from the west tomorrow! Some GIANT (city block or bigger) bergs; some normal office building size. These must be seen in person to comprehend the grandeur.

Turning left, going North!

Sunday, August 3rd, 2008

8:00am Sunday morning, and a good Sabbath to everyone. At the end of the day (beginning?) we turned left to follow the routing suggested by the Canadian Ice Service to Pond Inlet. The decision came down to the ice report for the opening of the way through mostly open water (bergy) and that the water maker loss is not a safety issue. It is a nuisance and very inconvenient, but the damage caused by the water intrusions have been repaired or worked around. We will work on shipping in more parts to Pond Inlet.

Kip & I are on watch while Shane & Pat are getting some much needed sleep amidst fog with approximately half a mile visibility and the sun trying to break trough overhead. I was on watch over the “dark” night and it was like a sunset the whole time with the sun just below the horizon! Everyone is in pretty good spirits. Pray for that as well as no more failures.

The pictures show an iceberg on the horizon, how they look when we first spot them.  Also you can see how they show up on the radar. The rings are set at two miles out so the one on the left, in the picture, is five miles away and the one on the right, in the picture, is eight miles away.


I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go — Genesis 28:15