Wednesday 13th January

dawnysmiff
Jan 14
2 min read

(Covering the last 24 hours)

It’s been a pretty dreary 24 hours, with heavy grey skies hanging over us. The wind has been doing that frustrating thing where it picks up as rain clouds approach, then drops off completely — sometimes to a strangely still calm — once they pass. Speeds have been a bit up and down, but trudge on we do. Every stroke we take is a stroke closer to Antigua.

I often think back to my first ocean row, when I spent 24 hours rowing into a headwind, only to end up completing a very impressive circle and finishing exactly where I’d started. With that in mind, we really don’t have much to complain about here.

Well… we could complain.

Sore hands.

Sore back.

Very little sleep.

A bunk that’s not only uncomfortable but moves and makes noise just when you want it to behave.

The list could go on. But honestly, we’re happy with our simple lot — moving forward a little more each day and finding positives wherever we can.

🎧 Perspective at Sea

I’m currently listening to an audiobook about a guy with very little running experience and zero travel experience who decided to fly to Istanbul and then run a marathon a day all the way back to the UK. No sponsorship, no money, not much of a plan — just to prove he could do it.

When I explained the storyline to Paul, he shook his head and said, “Some people do crazy things.”

Without saying a word, I looked at Paul… then slowly turned 360 degrees, taking in nothing but endless ocean… then glanced at our tiny rowing boat… and finally looked back at him.

We both completely cracked up laughing.

Sometimes you’re so deep in it, you forget that what you’re doing is, by most standards, utterly bonkers.

🐟 An Unwanted Passenger

The highlight of the night shift was a flying fish landing directly in my lap. It then promptly fell into the footwell and began buzzing around the deck while I attempted to grab it and return it to the sea.

Flying fish are remarkably slippery, especially at 2am, in the dark, when you’re tired and trying not to lose your balance. After a few failed attempts and what must have looked like an aggressive interpretive dance, I finally managed to get hold of it and send it back overboard.

I’m fairly sure it flew off thinking, “Well, that was traumatic.”

The forecast still looks good, and if it holds, we could be on land in about two weeks, celebrating the end of Leg 1.

I’ll leave you with a quote that feels fitting today:

“A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.”

All for now.

Dawn

“Together Paul and I are rowing home — the long way round.”

Hometown Row

Leg 1 – La Gomera to Antigua

Leg 2 – Antigua to Florida

Leg 3 – Canada to the UK

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