23 is a Magic Number

On February 14, we were finally prepared to depart on our voyage.  At 9:30 AM we sat down for a safety meeting followed immediately by a launch meeting.  We were eager to learn the times of our shifts, I was placed at 10-2, overlapping Laser and Dhany for the first 2 hours and Carol for the second half.  My shift coordinated with two groups of onboard activities, Lunch and clean up/food management.  Before learning the 5 Emergency Calls, we were informed that the general consensus in the marina was that we were mad to embark on the voyage with such an inexperienced crew!  The 4^th safety call is the Man Overboard emergency, which we learned is almost impossible to recover the helpless crew; In rough seas, only 1 time in 10 does the boat ever get back in contact with the MOB.  In the case of an Abandon Ship emergency, Satyavan and I are responsible for launching the emergency life raft, then I am in charge of the Medical supplies.  Our voyage would take us through the world’s largest port straight, with one of the busiest shipping lanes, then into the open South China Sea, where we would only sea fishing boats, get accustomed to searching for other boat’s lights at night, and pass safely through pirate waters.

Launching Mir first involved turning her 180˚, which was left up to me and Jasmina to swing the bow; it is not easy to gain momentum trying to pull an 80 ton ship through the water.  We cleared the all of the boats in Raffles Marina and received a bon voyage from the boat boys and many of the other captains.  Due to unfavorable tides, it took us nearly 4 and half hours to chug (averaging 2.5 knots) around to the southern side of Singapore where we found our fueling barge (Victory Petroleum).  Refueled, we continued heading east to the Singapore Straight, around Batam.  Once clear of Batam, we adjusted our course to SE, where we had more room to navigate the busy shipping lane; Some cargo ships went flying past us at speeds around 20 knots, its pretty incredible to see these massive vessels travelling so fast, and in such a great quantity.

I began my first shift at 11:30 PM.  The night was booked with keeping out of large container ship’s paths, all of which are indicated by a lower light on their bow, a higher light on their stern, and a red (port) and green (starboard) light showing their tack.  At midnight, I was wished happy birthday by Dhany and Laser, who shortly after retired allowing Carol to become my on duty Mate.  The night was peaceful, seeing the glow cities from the shores on either side, the constant hum of the engine, and the traffic of the shipping lanes.  I awoke to the smell of fried salami, and was given a hearty plate for breakfast.  At 10 AM when my shift began, our first duty was to set the sails.  We had finally made it out of the busy lanes, and were heading in a favorable direction for the Northeasternly wind.  We set up 2 fishing rigs off of the stern of the ship, but no luck all day.  The day was full of napping, manning the helm, and enjoying the beautiful color of the ocean (it is the most amazing shade of blue).    As the sun set and it became completely dark, we said farewell to the last signs of land.  We had a great dinner feast; T-bone steaks, mashed potatoes, home made apple sauce, and veggies.  Afterwards, Laser and Dhany made a banana crepe cake 23 layers high filled with raw coconut palm sugar; it was superb!!  At 11:30 PM I started my shift by manning the helm.  It was a beautiful night, with no light pollution from land, only several fishing ships off in the distance.  We were under full power of sail, allowing the only noise to be the crashing of waves in every direction.  The night shift can get a bit cool, but it is a welcome relief to the HOT days and the constant high humidity.  Carol saw a few dolphins, unfortunately I was below and missed them, but towards the end of my shift I was laying on the stern and I saw the first shooting star!  I was at the helm for 2.5 hours during my shift, singing and enjoying the serenity of the sea.  With the bright light of the moon illuminating the path we had already travelled, I set the Southern Cross over the main starboard backstay and rode the Northeasternly wind on a port tack to the equator.  The only light in sight was the brilliance of the waxing moon, the twinkle of the stars, and three fishing ships (1 North, 1 South, and 1 West).  At 4:50 we crossed the Equator, marking my first steps into the Southern Hemisphere.

When the sun rose back into the sky, there was no land in sight in any direction.  The only thing we saw all day was a tug boat pulling a barge of coal.  For the next day and half, we would be completely alone on the peaceful sea, kept vigilant by Mir’s forceful rocking.