For those of you that have been on the sea in a boat... you will appreciate this post. The pic above - this is what I call perfect sea conditions. Flat calm and oily slick. The open waters are beautiful, breathtaking when the seas are like this.
But...we only see the sea in this state on rare occasions. It is magical to be on the open water with barely a ripple noted. I LOVE IT when we can move around on the big water in this tranquility. However, this was not the case with our passage from Jacksonville, Florida to Charleston, South Carolina. The seas did not look like the pics above! For us, this is a journey that takes us about 36 hours to travel off shore on Sun Daze. If we traveled the IntraCoastal Waterway, it would have taken about 5 days. Sun Daze is a small catamaran with top cruising speed of 6-7 knots with the sails up and a good breeze. No breeze and we are motoring a bit slower. Off shore we can travel day and night and get to our destination sooner, while on the ICW we can only travel during daylight and often have to wait for lower bridges to open to allow us to pass through. So when it is safe, we take the opportunity to go off shore for the faster route.
I have a confession to make. I am not a true sailor at heart. Oh, it is wonderful on the rivers or lakes with a bit of breeze to carry you along. But in the ocean, a good breeze means waves. And sometimes big ones. I am not a fan of big waves. I have a tendency to get sea sick and big waves means I am more sea sick. Our 36 hour trip to Charleston was one of big waves. I am still getting nauseous from thinking of it. The constant motion along with looking out at waves higher on one side than our boat and the other side dipping down and knowing that in a few seconds your stomach will lurch upwards as the boat transitions from side to side...😵Oh my goodness...not fun and the hours just seem to pass ever so slowly. For the cruisers that spend days on end on the open waters...my hats off to you. I know I could never do that. We know cruisers that have traveled around the world and sometimes have been off shore for longer than 20 days at a time. Nope, not for me.
My captain is such a sport, as I am pretty much helpless in this state. He handles the boat, fixes his meals and makes sure we are safe, while I lay in the salon waiting to pass out. On a positive note...it is a way to loose a few pounds.
I was so, so HAPPY!!!! when we entered Charleston Harbor. It is amazing how the sea sickness just disappears with getting in calm waters. Although this time, it did take me a few hours to feel back to my old self. Whew. Am hoping the rest of our journey back home is flat calm. I can hope, right?
So as you can see from this post, our time traveling is not all sunshine and huge big smiles on my face. But, it is a small price to pay for the rest of our treasured time on the waters.
Now, it is time to enjoy the tastes, sounds, and sights of this beautiful city of Charleston.
Until next time...
Enjoy!
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