Day 6 at sea

Natalia Cohen By

Day 6 at sea

There will be many lessons we learn from the majestic Ocean and this is my first:

She is constantly changing

Ems and I had a beautiful first night time shift. There was a sliver of moon, a few stars, mild wind and manageable swell. The second shift was another story. We spent 2 hours fighting against the wind and trying to keep her on course and moving a depressing 0.3 kts.

Izz and LP were up next and before they had finished their shift we were woken up and the decision made to deploy the para anchor. More time stuck in the cabins at the mercy of the winds and being blown back East and undoing all our hard work from the day before. Very frustrating!

row1

We had further strong NW wind to contend with this morning and have been doing our best with the rolling swell and making every effort to try get as far South West as the ocean will allow.

She is very much in control and her beauty and strength keeps us mesmerised and focused for now. My favourite shift was the one just before sunset. The sun shone through clouds and lit the water a mercury colour. It spread out before us as far as the eye could see and looked like a shimmering mountain range. I breathed in her power as another day ended on the Pacific.

 

Despite direction setbacks, spirits remain high on Doris.

Albert is still with us… x

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13 Comments

  1. lucky you keep rowing full stream ahead arsenal 0 Chelsea 0 thank you blog

  2. Simon TY says:

    I find it hard to imagine the immensity of the Ocean around you. Bet then I love mountains and deserts and open space, so maybe all the same. Though your open space rather larger !! And able to move you about a bit. Hope spirits high. You must wake up and curse the waves, then giggle at the joy, the ambition, the achievement, and pinch yourselves that this is now really happening. The amazing thing: the Boat Race this year for the first time for the women…..the reason given every year to date…..women could not row for 22 minutes. How about weeks !! Go for it.

  3. Katie Lucas says:

    Sounds so unbelievably frustrating. But great to hear spirits are still high! We’re all in awe of you girls here! Thinking of you all so much xxx

  4. Bethan says:

    I am in awe of you ladies, I am following your progress having heard you talking to Sara Cox on radio 2…you are truly inspirational and I wish you a safe journey.

  5. Great picture, still makes me think how small one can feel when faced with nature.

    Keep focused, don’t loose heart, but row a bit harder if you can, gotta get away from these conditions that are pinning you against the west coast.

    Need conditions that will work IN your favour rather than AGAINST you.

    Perhaps the gods of the ocean require a sacrifice, how about some of that freeze dried shepherds pie, or will Emma fight for that?

  6. pat says:

    Don’t give up hope.You can do this you are strong determined women. Of course GOD is in control at all times. Pray for guidance.

  7. Karl says:

    Gotta be harder rowing uphill! That picture conveys the hardship. The ocean will eventually calm for you and its got to be getting warmer as you head south.

    How about a pic of Albert??

    Your quest of epic proportions makes mincemeat of anything that is going on for the rest of us, here on land!

    Seize the day and maintain synergistic optimism!

  8. Danielle says:

    Love this!! You’re doing so well ladies! Great to see some photos! Don’t forget to take one of Albert!! Can’t believe he’s still there!!
    Love and strength xxxx

  9. Cath Allaway says:

    Hi girls.. this is my first reply, but I’ll be watching you every day. I did the Atlantic in 2007, so understand a lot of your stuff.. but the idea of 6 months on a 4 ?!?.. WOW.. brilliant and mental :-) enjoy the sea.. she’s beautiful but can be a real moody bitch .. watch out for those squall strops. Those pre-sunset shifts were my fave too, but the sun coming up is also great.. an end to the long night. Keep well & happy

  10. if it was easy, everyone would do it! Hang in there ladies and know that there are many, like us, that wake up and go to the blog to see how you are doing. I have to go to an office today and sit there for 8-9 hours. You? Well, you get to do something far more grand and that rocks despite the immense difficulty and it courages it takes.

    Go get em Up tomorrow and to http://www.coxless.crew.com as soon as I sit down.

    Rich and Karla

  11. Simon TY says:

    Cath, will their boat still look that tidy after six months ????? Well done Oarsome Foursome. looks like making progress south west for a few hours

  12. Georgina says:

    So beautifully inspiring Natalia. I had a dream about you last night!!! We are all here cheering you on xxxxx

  13. Your strength, determination and courage precedes me. Never lose faith. You are in such a powerful element. Much love and respect xxx

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