Second Star to the Right
S/V Agua Dulce sails around the world in search of Neverland
| Vessel Name: | Agua Dulce |
| Vessel Make/Model: | Hylas 54 |
| Hailing Port: | Park City, UT |
| Crew: | Charles & Gretchen Cunningham |
| About: | Charles is a retired lawyer from Dallas who started sailing Sunfish in Corpus Christi, TX when he was a boy. I'm Gretchen, and I was a stay-at-home mom who doesn't stay at home much anymore. I fell in love with sailing on our first bare boat adventure in the Caribbean 30 years ago. |
| Extra: | Special thanks to Peter Pan for inspiring generations to stay young and keep searching for their own Neverland. |
15 December 2019 | 14 04'N:60 57'W,
12 December 2019 | 14 18'N:59 07'W,
11 December 2019 | 14 39'N:56 13'W,
10 December 2019 | 14 56'N:53 33'W,
09 December 2019 | 15 15'N:50 25'W,
08 December 2019 | 15 31'N:47 45'W,
06 December 2019 | 16 15'N:42 29'W,
05 December 2019 | 16 41'N:39 38'W,
04 December 2019 | 16 54'N:37 13'W,
03 December 2019 | 17 31'N:34 13'W,
02 December 2019 | 17 51'N:30 58'W,
01 December 2019 | 18 12'N:28 13'W,
30 November 2019 | 18 38'N:26 01'W,
28 November 2019 | 22 18'N:20 41'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
28 November 2019 | 23 36'N:19 48'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
28 November 2019 | 24 49'N:18 12'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
28 November 2019 | 26 12'N:16 25'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
28 November 2019 | Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
27 November 2019 | 23 28'N:19 54'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
08 May 2019
Recent Blog Posts
12 December 2019 | 14 18'N:59 07'W,
Log Day 19 Ð Last Full Day at Sea
All of us are extremely excited to get to the marina in St. Lucia. We've been talking about what will be the first thing we are going to do after we arrive and get the boat tied up. It's hard to say right now. Agua Dulce has been our cocoon for the last three weeks, and she has seen us safely 3000 miles [...]
09 December 2019 | 15 15'N:50 25'W,
Log Day 16 Ð Counting down the miles!
We have broken the 700NM to go mark, and at 750NM to go, we were three-quarters of the way to St. Lucia. During my 11pm-1am watch tonight, we should break the 600NM mark as well. We're all getting excited to be in the Caribbean! I wish I had downloaded some steel drum Christmas music to get us in the [...]
08 December 2019 | 15 31'N:47 45'W,
Log Day 15 Ð Squalls + Swells Lack of Sleep
It was a wet and squally night. We had lots of rain and gusts in the 30's, but it was all manageable. The worst part about squalls is that when they pass they suck the energy out of the air, and we have practically no wind for a time. In addition, the seas were extremely rolly last night and they have [...]
Log Day 2 Ð Settling in
28 November 2019 | 26 12'N:16 25'W, Between the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands
Log Day 2 Ð Settling in
Our first full day at sea was really just a process of settling in to the rhythm of watches, eating, sleeping, etc. The winds ranged from 9-15 knots from the NNE and the seas were a bit rolly. By the evening, we stopped rolling as much and were able to get a good night's sleep when off watch.
We're having an issue with the generator, again. We don't think it's getting fuel even though it's a brand new fuel pump. We're waiting to hear back from Fischer Panda to hear how to trouble shoot. So, we ran the engine for about an hour to charge batteries and run the watermaker. Speaking of which, I LOVE our new Dessalator watermaker! It is simple and reliable and we topped off our tanks quickly.
Weather was gray and cool Ð I'm really looking forward to the sunny Caribbean!
We dragged a lure all day, but again, no hits, no fish, no fresh sushi for dinner. I've got the soy sauce, pickled ginger and wasabi, so I'm ready to catch some fresh tuna!
The most exciting thing that happened was that we had a visitor on board about mid-day for several hours. A Eurasian Dove landed on our genoa pole and then flew to the stern and sat on our dinghy for a few hours. He wouldn't eat any crackers or take any of the fresh water I put out for him, so I think he was just tired. Since I know dove are not seabirds, I sure hope he is able to hitch enough rides to get back to land and not have to travel all the way across the Atlantic!
The interesting thing about traveling in a rally this big is that there are still visible boats around us. When we did the ARC Europe several years ago, there were only about 30 boats, and after we departed, we didn't see any after the first day until we all converged on Bermuda or the Azores or Portugal and everyone's routes began coming together. It's not a bad feeling to know that you're not all alone Ð but of course we talk to each other daily on the SSB.
Keeping our fingers crossed for a fish tomorrow!
Our first full day at sea was really just a process of settling in to the rhythm of watches, eating, sleeping, etc. The winds ranged from 9-15 knots from the NNE and the seas were a bit rolly. By the evening, we stopped rolling as much and were able to get a good night's sleep when off watch.
We're having an issue with the generator, again. We don't think it's getting fuel even though it's a brand new fuel pump. We're waiting to hear back from Fischer Panda to hear how to trouble shoot. So, we ran the engine for about an hour to charge batteries and run the watermaker. Speaking of which, I LOVE our new Dessalator watermaker! It is simple and reliable and we topped off our tanks quickly.
Weather was gray and cool Ð I'm really looking forward to the sunny Caribbean!
We dragged a lure all day, but again, no hits, no fish, no fresh sushi for dinner. I've got the soy sauce, pickled ginger and wasabi, so I'm ready to catch some fresh tuna!
The most exciting thing that happened was that we had a visitor on board about mid-day for several hours. A Eurasian Dove landed on our genoa pole and then flew to the stern and sat on our dinghy for a few hours. He wouldn't eat any crackers or take any of the fresh water I put out for him, so I think he was just tired. Since I know dove are not seabirds, I sure hope he is able to hitch enough rides to get back to land and not have to travel all the way across the Atlantic!
The interesting thing about traveling in a rally this big is that there are still visible boats around us. When we did the ARC Europe several years ago, there were only about 30 boats, and after we departed, we didn't see any after the first day until we all converged on Bermuda or the Azores or Portugal and everyone's routes began coming together. It's not a bad feeling to know that you're not all alone Ð but of course we talk to each other daily on the SSB.
Keeping our fingers crossed for a fish tomorrow!
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