Yes, we sailed right through the infamous Bermuda Triangle! And, I admit that it was disconcerting at one point as we approached a large rectangular area where the cartography on KR's GPS chart plotter simply didn't exist. Is the Bermuda Triangle really more of a rectangle? Were we about to fall off into the void? Is this what happened to all of the ships lost with no trace over the centuries?

You have a lot of time to think of such things while on passage - as well as a sleep-deprived and somewhat addled brain, fertile soil for growing dark, weird thoughts.

Happily, we did not fall into the abyss and are now anchored in St. Georges harbor in Bermuda after a truly lovely 6 day - 8 hr passage from Man of War Cay in the Bahamas.

We arrived on Wednesday afternoon. As I write this on Sunday morning almost all remaining vestiges of the passage have been ameliorated - sleep patterns restored, laundry done, internet reconnected, family and friends assured, boat cleaned (the last of the salt encrustation should be power washed off by today's forecasted showers and squalls), more interesting provisions obtained and, most importantly, long hot showers ecstatically enjoyed.

All that is left is to re-hash the stories of a week at sea - a week with very cooperative weather, on a good boat and with a good friend. To that end...

The friend. I first connected with Jay Peters in Provincetown on one of my earliest visits there. He and his wife were anchored nearby in Jay's Pacific Seacraft 37, Kenlanu - KR's slightly larger sister-ship. Cocktail hour and connections occurred then and we have often reconnected as we bounced around the seas traveling in our respective ladies. Our cruising grounds have overlapped from Kenlanu's homeport of Buck's Harbor, Maine as the northern extreme and the Bahamas to the south.

Jay is a sailor (Like me, one for whom diesel engines are a necessary evil - but clearly evil nonetheless. I respect this). And yet, he had really not done any long passages. Last summer, when we met in Maine during my cruise with Cheryl on Evergreen and as we talked about out respective cruising plans - He planning on hauling Kenlanu and staying in Maine for the winter - Me Bahamas, Bermuda, Nova Scotia, Maine, Jay suggested that he would like to do a passage with me. I did not immediately respond because, I admit, I have very mixed feelings on the whole "crew" thing. Having used crew on 3 other long passages, I clearly see the advantages of having another soul on-board - more sleep, an extra hand and someone (other than oneself) to talk to. The downside is that once there is another person's life, comfort and happiness to be considered, additional responsibility falls on the Captain. When by myself, my choices affect only me. With another aboard, compromised decisions may be necessary, more and more varied food and provisions expected and more safety due diligence required.

All of my previous passages using crew were good experiences. And yet, the balance point between "To Have Crew or Not to Have Crew" has not clearly fallen to the affirmative. Therefore, my default has been to do solo passages.

Jay's interest kept playing in my mind, however. The big difference in his case being that he really is a sailor. He can look at and understand the weather forecasts and can anticipate what the seas will really feel like. He is not dependent on me for interpretation. And, he knows how to trim sails and handle a boat (Kenlanu is very similar in rig and gear to KR). Perhaps most importantly Jay is a diverse and interesting person with whom long conversations would (and have) certainly prove interesting.

Jay flew into Marsh Harbor on Monday, the 24th and the departure window shaping up for that Thursday (that we had both been watching) just kept solidifying nicely. We were out North Man of War Inlet by 8:30 Thursday morning, diesel doused and all sails set.

The Weather. I have known ever since first hatching the idea to sail from the Bahamas to Bermuda this year that it would be almost impossible to sail the rum line course. The normal winds just won't get you there - not in a straight line at least. I have expounded at length this winter (to anyone willing to pretend to listen) that it would probably be required to play a front for a large chunk of northing followed up with working the southerlies that are more prevalent farther north to get the 630 miles of easting required - essentially a right angle course. Perhaps the opposite could be made to work as well.

Imagine then, my surprise, in watching the forecasted wind patterns develop for our departure and passage time. The winds were to be ESE to SE at between 10-15kn for four straight days. On a comfortable close reach (KR loves to sail at 60degrees off the wind!) these winds would keep us near but pushing north of the rum line for 4 glorious days of sailing - before the bill came due, that is. And, the bill, in this case, would come due in the form of NO wind - better than taking a pasting, of course, but not my cup of tea. And, the good winds could leave us more than 300 miles from Bermuda with just 300miles of fuel available. Still, the decision to leave was easy - no sailor in his right mind would pass up that forecast.

And, the forecast was right - for the first four days. Yes, the winds were up and down a bit (we did have 6 hours of touchy spinnaker sailing the first afternoon) and they did periodically clock or back through about 20 degrees(ish) making our windvane-steered course seem a bit drunken at times. Wilbur Windvane performed heroically while set at 50-60degrees wind angle for almost 4 days straight! Watch standing was about making small sail changes in trim or reefing just to keep KR well balanced. Wilbur did the rest.

Lest the un-initiated think this all just a little too easy (those who have been to sea would already understand this bit), it is true that when a monohull is powered up on a close reach, making 5.5 to 6.5kn, the boat, while riding comfortably, is anything but upright. She is, in fact, heeled quite a bit. This does take some getting used to and does require an incredibly large dose of strength and balance to do anything - cooking, sail-trimming, moving around the boat, excretory matters etc. All good, though.

Approaching the limits of our good sailing weather window after 3-4 days, and having by then been pushed approx. 100miles north of the rum line, a miracle started to happen. The forecast - both in Grib file form (downloaded through KR's Ham radio) and through Chris Parker, our weather guru with whom we talked on SSB most days - started to change. The cold front coming off the US coast that was supposed to get shunted north well before reaching Bermudian waters would penetrate just a bit farther. As a result, the winds that we would see for the last 300 miles of mostly an easterly course would stay in the 10-20kn range and CLOCK to the SSE and S - essentially a beam reach the last two days! This is hero-making wind - sailor's heaven! Wilbur was just as happy steering at 90degrees off the wind as he had been at 60 and KR was delivered to Bermuda from the Bahamas COMPLETELY under sail at an average speed of 5kn. Nice!

The Boat. Actually, there is not that much to say here. KR did great! Wilbur has already gotten kudos for his efforts but I would also say that KR's two new headsails - especially the new 110 genoa/yankee - performed well. The theory in getting a 110 instead of another 130 genoa was to try to have a sail that, when reefed, would balance like the 85% yankee also on board and yet have a bit more power in light air. Having now spent a long passage with sailing winds ranging from 8-20knots mostly ahead of the beam, I can confirm that this was a successful choice. The few misc and, thankfully, unimportant issues that cropped up aboard while en route have already been taken care of. A few improvement projects have been added to the list - mostly a result of Jay's input and suggestions. It is and always has been fascinating to me the degree to which even your basic OCD like myself will just get by with cumbersome or awkward situations by developing automatic workarounds. It is only with the perspective of the new person aboard that these problems (and their all too obvious solutions) reveal themselves.

So, now we are in Bermuda - a beautiful and fun place that has long been a favorite of mine based on my previous two visits. This is a busy time of year in Bermuda every year as boats transiting from the Caribbean and bound for either the east coast of the US or the Azores are likely to make landfall en route. But, we are here this year just as activities are ramping up to the orgasm of excitement that the America's Cup Finals will bring next month. I don't intend to be here for the finals, hoping to leave for Halifax sometime in early June. There will, however, be plenty of festivities in the time I will be here. Next week, the ARC Rally shows up with many (how many as yet unknown to me) boats. Two offshore races will also arrive in the weeks following and, especially exciting to me, there is a Tall Ship flotilla arriving around May 23rd with 20 ships that will be anchored here in St. Georges for four days before heading to Hamilton harbor at the other end of the Bermudian archipelago. I can't wait to see that sight! And, I will certainly have the opportunity to see the amazing America's Cup foiling catamarans in action.

There will be much to engage, entertain and amaze. I will, however, be hard pressed to keep track of all the cool boats coming and going in the harbor. This could be a full time obsession.

Jay will fly home to Maine on Friday - leaving us a week of good touristy time to explore Bermuda together before he departs. Both of the lovely ladies in his life - the lovely, animate and human Leslie and the lovely but inanimate and un-human Kenlanu - await.

I would be remiss if I did not take a few minutes to thank Jay for being excellent crew, a wonderful companion, great cook and, most importantly, a good friend. How anyone can remain brightly friendly and optimistic while dealing with the Bligh-like nature of a Captain with a horrible case of OCD in all matters boat related (and perhaps not just boat related) is beyond me. He was able to adapt and we had a great passage and great fun together. Thank you, Jay.

We will, no doubt, reconnect in Maine late this summer.

With all the festivities here in Bermuda this next 3-4 weeks, I will try to be a bit better about routinely posting to this blog.

Best to all.