When discussing the concept of sailing on long distance passages, people have asked us in the past “What do you do at night? Are there places to stop?”. Of course, the answer is that we just keep the boat sailing and we take turns sleeping.

Because there is just the two of us onboard, we run a 3 hour watch system …. that’s 3 hours on and 3 hours off, and in theory that allows you 12 hours to sleep, albeit in small chunks. In reality, it works out a little different, however, it does work well for us.

Three hours is a long time in the middle of the night to be awake, alert and to be managing the boat. On the other hand three hours is not a long time to sleep … and for the off-watch person, that three hours is often not actually three hours. By the time you’ve given the person coming on watch a chance to wake up and get themselves oriented, briefed them on what’s happened over the last three hours, taken the opportunity of two of you on deck to make any sail changes or adjustments, had a chat (because otherwise you don’t see much of each other), got out of your deck gear, got below, had a wash, cleaned your teeth, sorted yourself out and hopped into bed, you’ve probably now only got about 2-2 ½ hours available for sleeping.

And while we’re talking about sleeping, there’s a lot to learn there too. I’m normally a side sleeper, and on land (or in a quiet bay) it works just fine, but on a boat that is sailing over large waves in mid-ocean, side sleeping is just not practical … you get thrown around in the bed. I very quickly developed a new sleeping position that I call “the starfish”. This is essentially lying on your front and spreading your arms and legs out to try to make yourself as stable as possible (remember, your partner is up in the cockpit trying to stay awake, so the risk of being told off for taking up too much bed is very small). It works well in moderate seas, however, when things get a bit rougher there is a variation I call “the octopus” …… its like the starfish except that you jam your feet and knees up against bulkheads etc, and hang on with your hands, all in a bid to stop being tossed around in your bed.

And speaking of boats bouncing around and practicalities, there’s the entertaining business of doing your business to consider. If it’s difficult to find stability in bed at sea, it’s even trickier when you’re trying to sit on a loo. Luckily, the heads on most boats are quite small spaces so you can jam your elbows and knees and feet and hands against things to stay perched on the throne, but there’s always the worry of the unexpected lurch just as you’re at your most vulnerable … with your pants around your ankles.

Even the simplest things can become adventurous and acrobatic experiences.