7 Days On The Robert C. Seamans Pt. 1

It is 12 am and I am sitting here dearly wishing that I was elsewhere. I get this way after going on a trip somewhere, but I think this is a little different. Instead of wishing I was in Wales or France, I wish I was standing on the lookout bench at the prow of the Robert C. Seamans and halfway through my turn as forward lookout. I miss the feeling of standing there, holding onto the stay with the jib and the fore stays'l rustling above me and the bow dipping deep and rising high in the swell. I actually had a moment at work when I dearly missed the feeling of the ship responding to the turn of the rudder, and the 5 degrees rudder angle I just put on to compensate for the 8 ft Pacific swell messing with my course ordered. I miss the midwatch (11pm to 3am) and the sound of the water flowing past the ship during the night. I miss the quiet of the rest of the crew asleep, minus my watch, and the moon lighting everything so well that we didn't need flashlights to do the on-deck boat check. I miss the starry sky and being far enough out to sea that we couldn't see land. And even though it was my first time out to sea, I think I have some small idea of what countless others before me have felt and expressed in so many songs and stories about the sea. I can't wait to go out again.




Over the next few days, I will give a daily account of what I did and what I went through on that awesome trip. Above are a few pictures I took on my trip. More to come.

Ta!