Fish Tales - Part II

On Thursday this past week, Sue put in a request that we needed to catch a Yellow Fin tuna.  “If it isn’t a Yellow Fin, then throw it back,” she said.

Around 4:00pm we heard the reel screeching from one of the fishing rods and we knew that we had another big fish on the end of the line. We had been catching a lot of Blue Marlin during the week (nothing as big as Martin’s first legendary one) but still they were pretty large.  Meredith caught a Spearfish the day before and so we thought that it might be another one (which we release since the meat on them isn’t good to eat). 

Meredith's 5-foot Spearfish. 

Now, I don’t want to sound “picky” but I’ll admit I was a little frustrated because every time we do catch a Marlin, it takes forever to reel them in and remove the hook in order to release them.  I was just hoping that it would be smart enough to pull itself off the hook, so we didn’t have to put in the time.

 Meredith helping Martin reel in the motherload.

Martin grabbed the rod and he could instantly tell from the weight and bend in the rod that this was ONE BIG FISH!  So, he started reeling it in.  It took him a good hour and 45 minutes get the fish up to the boat.  By then, Martin’s arm muscles were beyond exhausted and we were all so curious to see what it was.  We knew by then that it might not be another billfish because most of the ones that we had caught earlier would jump clean out of the water shaking their swords trying to get unhooked.  They always gave themselves away pretty quickly after getting hooked.  This fish just dove deep and took out line whenever he felt like going for a stroll.

 Our first sighting!

Finally, the “fish” came to the surface and we all caught a first glimpse of what was at the end of the rod.  All of us squealed with delight when we saw the “Yellow Fin.” Sue was especially happy.  Remembering Sue’s request earlier in the day, Martin said to her rather jokingly, “Sue, I got you your fish!”  Sue was quick to reply, “Well if you can get me a Yellow Fin that quick, I’d like to put in an order for a quart of ice cream!”  We all laughed and then got busy trying to bring the Yellow Fin on board.    That’s right around the time we noticed that this was no ordinary Yellow Fin tuna.  This guy was HUGE!

We pulled him out of the water and quickly assessed that he was approximately 90 lbs.  Then we grabbed the measuring tape and got a length of 51 ¾ inches with a girth of 37 inches.  He was the size of about 5 tunas that we had caught in the past! 

Martin and David quickly started slicing into him and cutting out beautiful 30-pound tuna filets.  Then Meredith and I started cutting them into steaks and packing them and sealing the meat in airtight bags getting them ready for the freezer.  Sue got busy making fresh sashimi and frying up some of the steaks. 

Lily slept her way through the fish frenzy.

We have been feasting on this amazing tuna for the past 4 days.  What was once a “Bananafest” has now turned into a “Tunafest” and Sue is pulling out the big guns making up different kinds of recipes that can incorporate tuna.  It’s been lovely.

 Bye-bye Bananas!

Speaking of bananas, we had a "banana ceremony” earlier that same day and threw out the remaining ripe bananas out into the deep blue.  Nothing felt more liberating than knowing we weren’t going to be eating anything laced in banana for a while.  What a relief.

Last night we celebrated being at sea for a solid two weeks.  Just as the celebration was about to begin, we saw our first ship!  We haven’t seen a single ship the entire time during this Pacific crossing.  So, we all just went up to Amara’s flybridge and watched the freighter as it came into view and passed within a half mile of us.  Then we called it up and introduced ourselves to them.  They were a Japanese car carrier coming from Peru and heading back to Japan.  For us, it was all very exciting.  Something about realizing that you AREN’T alone in the world is very comforting after not seeing anything (other than fish) for two weeks. 

Other News:

So, we decided yesterday that we were ready for land and changed course (again) and are now heading for the Marquesas. Going there should get us in to the island of Hiva Oa on the 5^th (fingers crossed).  We’ll stay there to check into customs, get some laundry done and then take off to Takaroa (which is another 3 day sail).  Takaroa is a unique island and it just so happens that our neighbor back home in Utah, Joey Buchan, owns a pearl farm there.  So, we are going there to meet his partners and watch them harvesting pearls.  We’re super excited to do this.  From Takaroa, we will head to Fakarava where we will have to say goodbye to Meredith as she heads back home to Utah.  From Fakarava we’ll head to Tahiti, so that I can finally buy my “little grass skirt.”  I can hardly wait to get back to society.  Maybe that's why they call them the Society Islands.

Rites of Passage - Midway Through the Pacific

Meredith jumping off AMARA
to celebrate this huge milestone!

Martin jumping in to celebrate!

Wednesday, we celebrated our mid-passage point of 1500 miles behind us and 1500 miles to go.  To celebrate, we had ice-cream (a luxury at this point in the game). 

We did a mid-ocean swim and then I also threw out a "message in a bottle" overboard hoping that it arrives in some exotic foreign country, where some interesting person will find it.  Then they'll write me and we will become pen pals for life (Ok.  I threw in a few bucks for incentive).

 

I wrote a poem and sent it off into

the waters for good will.

The mid-ocean swim turned out to be quite a treat from the constant time at sea these past 11 days.  It's obvious that we are getting closer to paradise as the water was a warm 80-degrees when we jumped in the Pacific.  It was such a wonderful time and fun had by all. 

Sue and David getting in on the action.

Well... for everyone but me.  Somehow when I jumped in the water, I managed to jump into a patch of some type of jellyfish and was stung all over my arms and back.  I kept saying to everyone, "Is anyone else feeling this?  Cuz it's stinging!"  Not a one had this experience.  Just my luck, but at least  I'll never forget my mid-ocean swim because of it.  I guess that took "one for the team" and sucked it up and kept swimming.  

Lily did a mid-ocean swing instead.

Getting mid-point in the Pacific ocean is a monumental rite of passage as it is the furthest point in the water from land.  Such daredevils.   It really was fun and I didn't think once about all the critters that could be potentially swimming beneath me and just enjoyed the celebration.  I will say, that I didn't let Lily's feet get even wet.  She just enjoyed all the festivities from her swing and seemed just as excited as we were.

These two are always working on something.

 Until then, meet us up on the lido deck, cuz that's where you'll find us most days.

Editor's Note:  Congratulations to my dearest friend, Tonia.  She is the best friend that a girl could ever have.  Tonia welcomed baby "Beatrice" into the world this week and my only regret is that I wasn't there to introduce myself to her.  "Busy", be prepared to be spoiled when I get my hands on you.

The Confessions of a Less Than Average Sailor

At the helm.

I’m going to be honest here.  At the moment, life at sea isn’t quite as romantic as I thought it would be.  Let me clarify.  Life at sea, during a long passage, is much different than visiting one wild, exotic island after another - like we were doing prior to the Pacific passage.   For all you novice armchair sailors, the Pacific crossing is the longest passage of all ocean passages.  It can be as fast as 16 days and as long as 35 (depending on the type and speed of the boat).  One item that I have gleaned from this experience is that it will be my ONLY experience doing the crossing.
 

I wasn’t born with salt water running through my veins, or the adventurous spirit ready to uncover the undiscoverable.  Rather, I find life… uh umm… “normal-everyday-people-life” quite satisfying.   In fact, more than ever, I miss running a good errand or getting Lily ready for school.  I probably miss itmore because I am surrounded by miles and miles of ocean with no plans to escape… only because I can’t. 

Like all memories, I know that this one will be filed away as it fades from my memory and becomes an experience that toughened me up, made me ask myself deep questions and will probably become it’s own kind of folklore in my head.  The stuff of legends.  But for now, I just miss air-conditioning and the international food section at my local supermarket. 


Ask me in a week when I am swimming with whales and I will equate this experience to having a baby.  After giving birth, most mothers forget about the pain they endured during labor once they are holding a little bundle with rose-colored lips in their arms.  Babies are masters mind benders.  Once that little babe has arrived you finally realize that it was worth the nine months of doubling in size, endlessly looking for benches to sit on and surveying a building for the closest bathroom.  Instead, after giving birth, you just talk about the miracle of it all. 


I am positive that once I see my first coconut tree or try on a cute little grass skirt, this time at sea will all have been worth it.  I am sure that I will look back at this experience with fondness.  However, right now, my ankles are swollen and need to be placed above my head.  I’m craving pickles and begging for that knot in my back to get rubbed out as I look for pillows to surround and cradle my heavy belly.  (This is just a metaphor, mom).


This isn’t to say that I didn’t grab onto this adventure of crossing the Pacific Ocean with both hands.  I picked up both ends of the stick with zeal and the sense of adventure tingling in the tips of my fingers.  I was flat out given the option to take Lily home during the crossing and then meet Martin in paradise at the end of the passage.  My stubbornness won out without me even considering the monotony of everyday life on a boat.  Yep.  There was no way that Martin was going to be able to talk about this experience without including my name in the adventure.  I was not going to miss out on the ending credits. Surely, I was tough enough to get through this.  Looking back, it all boils down to ignorance, and boy was it bliss!  Like that newborn baby; it will have been worth it in the end.  For now though, where’s that bench?


Life at sea consists of our days being broken up into 3-hour increments in whose watch is when at the helm.  After my watch, I know that Martin will be up at the flybridge from 12-3pm.  After him, Meredith takes her turn at the helm from 3-6pm.  Then Sue and lastly, David.  By then it’s 9pm, and waaay past my bedtime.  I’m off the hook for night watches because Lily is an early riser these days and I have to be alert for this little one.  In fact, most nights I go to bed at 7pm because it’s dark, reading makes me nauseous, and a movie never seems quite as entertaining as I always hoped it would be.  The kicker is that by 4:30am, I have slept 9.5 hours and I just can’t sleep anymore.  So, I get up and muddle around the dark room trying to stay quiet for Martin (who will have just gotten off his 12-3am shift an hour before and needs his sleep).  So mainly, I write, read as much as I can before I get nauseous, I plan out my future i.e., cooking classes, finishing my masters, maybe try running, etc… Lastly, I practice boiling a good egg.  No lie.  I’ve gotten quite good at hard-boiled, soft-boiled, poached, cottled and the old stand by, scrambled.  You name it; I probably mastered it by day nine.  I mean, what other time in the world would I have had the time to just focus on the different ways to cook an egg?  None!


Some days I dread having to do my watch.  Going up top and just sitting there, watching out for ships or lending a hand in changing a sail.  I have a terrible habit of looking at my watch far too many times to count.  It gets really bad when I start timing how far it takes AMARA to go one nautical mile and then figure out from there how many hours it will take us to get to Rangiroa.  Other days, I relish my time alone.  I’m allowed to just listen to my music and think.  Think for hours if I wanted to, which I’ve found that mostly I don’t.  My "people-person-persona" gets the better of me and I think about all the lunches and dinners I am going to throw the minute we get home after this adventure has come to an end.

Then there is the matter of Lily.  Lily joins me for most of my watches.  I hook up her earphones and she joins me in listening to the songs that followed me into adulthood.  I am hoping that she is starting to gain an appreciation for Van Morrison, Cat Stevens, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Johnny Cash, Dar Williams and ok, I’ll say it… even a little Carrie Underwood now and then.  At this point, Wilson Phillips' well-known song, “Hold On” has become my personal mantra on my iTunes.  I can “break from the chains and hold on for one more day.”   This song has shot up the charts and made a comeback in my personal, life soundtrack.

Sure, when this adventure ends, I admit that I can’t wait for the conversations that I am going to have and all the limitless hours that I am going to spend on the phone talking to my 3 sisters throughout the day.  I miss them.  I miss that life.  But I wouldn’t have missed this experience in the world either.  So torn, but not really.  Maturity holds me steady knowing it will all be there when I get back - so just enjoy the monotony for the next seven days.  Once we arrive in Ragiroa, all it will take is one good scuba dive with whales or a swim with manta rays and I’ll forget about this entire Pacific crossing whoa-ing and wallowing.   I know that I can mind-muscle through this when I remind myself what’s at the end of it all.  So, for now, I’ll take the advice from the offspring of the Beach Boys and the Mamas and the Papas and, “…just hold on for one more day.”  Things will most definitely go my way.



Only 188 hours, 54 minutes and 59 seconds to paradise.  …but who’s counting?

Pacific Crossing Statistics So Far...

A quick stop at Turtle Bay in the Galapagos before we took off last Saturday.

So far, this is what our Pacific Crossing statistics look like:

•       On Friday (May 24), after 6 days at sea, we officially crossed the 1,000 mile mark.  Only 2,000 more miles to go!
•       Avg Speed: 7 knots  (Although a few days we were doing well above 9!)  We have been lucky to have a lot of current going with us.
•       Weather:  No rain and quite comfortable breeze the entire time (post edit:  It just rained, for about 5 minutes.)
•       Fish Caught: 2 Mahi Mahi: 1 caught by me and then an hour later, 1 caught by Meredith.   Mahi Mahi remain faithful to their mates throughout their lives.  So, we figure I must have caught "Fred" first and "Joan" (Meredith's fish) may have sacrificed herself to spend her remaining days in the freezer with Fred.  Completely speculative, but it makes sense.
•       1 Skip Jack Tuna (I don't remember who caught the tuna).
•       2 small Mahi Mahi (released).  At least 20 squid and oodles of flying fish have found their way onto AMARA's deck each morning.
In fact, one day, while Sue and Martin were up on the fly bridge, they saw a flying fish fly up over the fly bridge and almost stop in mid-air to assess the situation and then continue on to the other side of the boat and into the water.  It may be a fish tale, but these two are sticking with their story.
•       Sea Life:  2 spouts from a whale (witnessed by Sue and David) and a pod of around 100 spinner dolphins (witnessed by all).  Jumping Mahi-Mahi.   Martin saw more whales and dolphins on his afternoon watch today.
•       Books read:  David-1.5, Sue-3.5, Meredith-1.5, Kym-1
•       Bouts with seasickness:  Kym, 7 days and counting.  The rest of the crew, are reading books, watching movies and I may have even witnessed a little dancing.  In other words, the rest of them are just fine.
•       Bananas Consumed:  40.  Only 160 more bananas to go.  Turns out, the Frey family is not big on more than one banana each per day.  Had we known this prior to purchase;  instead of paying $13 for 200 bananas, we would have just spent $6.50 on 100.  However, Sue is determined that the banana's not go to waste.  It feels a bit like an excerpt out of Forest Gump when Bubba starts naming off all the things you can do to prepare shrimp.  It's an ongoing joke... Well, not really because anytime you walk out of the kitchen, Sue says, "Would you like a banana with that?"

Currently, we have had the following banana concoctions prepared by Sue:
        1.  Day 1: Banana Bread (2 loaves)
        2.  Banana Custard
        3.  Bananas Foster (sans Rum)
        4.  Banana Pancakes
        5.  Banana Smoothies
        6.  Candied Bananas-Pan fried with syrup and sugar
        7.  Plantains
        8.  Crushed Bananas on you name it
        9.  Bananas and Peanut Butter on toast
       10. Day 6: More Banana Bread (2 more loaves today)
       11. There's even been a discussion of drying some sliced bananas above the generator to make banana chips.

Meredith had to bow out of the banana smoothies, but she gave it the old college try.   I really tried to like the banana custard, but with my sensitive stomach; toast and saltine crackers are pretty much my food of choice these days.  Lily is probably the best sport in eating bananas.  She even had them with her eggs yesterday morning.  As usual, she thinks anything that Sue prepares for her is like ambrosia to the gods - so she is game for anything.

At the end of one day, Martin and David counted that they had eaten 16 slices of banana bread between the two of them.  If only another ship would come by so we could throw them some bananas... not so lucky.  So far, we have seen no other ships.  Just us in the middle of the ocean.

We are shooting to reach the Marquesas on June 6 or 7th, but Meredith and I are secretly hoping it will be the 5th.

Spirits are high and our determination to get to the South Pacific remains steady.

Keep following us!

We're In This Boat Together

Last night as I was getting ready for bed, I glanced over at this little ceramic boat that I had given to Martin when we first bought AMARA.  I didn't realize the significance of it maybe at the moment I gave it to him, but last night it hit me.  "Buddy, we are in this together."

Buying AMARA and then sailing her has not come without headaches.  Yes, we have amazing adventures as we sail together with our family.  We have the wonderful opportunity to go into new ports and discover new land, people and cultures.  But along the way, we are also discovering ourselves and one another (a little more under the microscope, I might add).

We have only been sailing for 2 months together and we still have so much more to sail to and see.  However, these two months have pulled us even closer together as a couple.  No longer do we go about our day doing our own things and interests and then come together in the evening.  Now, we wake up, eat together, get Lily ready together, make decisions together, we pray together and we sail together.  I feel so blessed to have this time with Martin.  I feel so blessed to have him as a husband who listens to me and always asks me each day, "What can I do to help you today."

Sailing hasn't come without it's arguments.  Martin and I didn't meet and marry until we were in our forties (well, I was barely) and we had lived a lifetime before meeting one another.  So, yes, we have differing opinions at times, but because we made a commitment to one another, we are both willing to bend.  Sometimes Martin bends a little more and sometimes I bend a little more.  We take turns, we talk, we reason, we remind one another how much we love the other person, and again, we continue to sail... together.

Today, we are about to take off and leave for our 22 day passage across the Pacific.  NO LAND FOR 22 DAYS!   Thinking about it gets me excited but it also makes me nervous.  For 22 days, Martin and I (and Sue, David, Meredith and Lily) will be there together, with little time to be apart or find alone time (something I crave).  But I am strengthened knowing that Martin will be with me every step of the way.  He will teach me and I will teach him more than anything... patience.  Sailing has brought us a whole new level in our relationship.  One that I couldn't have understood unless I had lived and experienced it.  

I am so grateful to have AMARA as she teaches Martin and I daily to face the wind, trim the sails if necessary and know that more than anything, "We are in this together."

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WHERE IN THE WORLD

Don't forget to follow AMARA by clicking on the big blue map in the right Nav bar (Where in the World) and follow us as we sail across the Pacific.  It updates almost hourly, so you can see exactly where we are at any given time.

Also, I have a really cool tool now that allows me to blog while we are on the boat (it will be slow, and it ain't cheap) so my updates will probably be once or twice a week.  Keep checking back because we have so much more to discover... together.