Slow… very slow… extremely slow.

At times we are moving at less than 4 knots — and that’s with the engine running.

Could we go faster? Technically yes. Practically it would just mean feeding alarming quantities of diesel into the engine while still not exactly breaking any speed records.

So we decided to embrace the luxury of going slowly.

Because honestly — it is lovely out here. The boat barely moves. Just a gentle swell rocking us up and down like a floating hammock.

With all that extra time on our hands we fixed the sail… and then did something that probably slowed us down even more: we went swimming.

At 31°C water temperature, the ocean wasn’t exactly refreshing. More like stepping into a giant bathtub. But still — instant mood booster.

And with the sea this calm the Pacific showed us what there is to see.

Whales passed in the distance. A small sperm whale surfaced next to the boat, took three relaxed breaths, and then disappeared into the deep again. Sharks cruised past. Turtles floated by as if they had nowhere particular to be — which, to be fair, neither do we.

So being slow today doesn’t feel like a problem.

It feels more like a lifestyle.

I spent hours watching our travel companion — a red-footed booby — performing aerial acrobatics while chasing flying fish that Akuna kindly scared into the air. National Geographic could not have staged it better.

In between wildlife documentaries we also worked on the sail, hoping to squeeze a few more miles out of it. But the poor thing is starting to look like it’s ready for retirement.

We’re hoping it will hang in there just a little longer… long enough to get us to… well… somewhere.

Because yes — the small detail is: we’re not entirely sure where we’re going.

Originally we planned to sail to the Marquesas Islands, where we once arrived in the spectacular Bay of Virgins on Fatu Hiva.

But then in Shelter Bay another sailor told us about the Gambier Islands… which also sound amazing.

The catch: sailing there would put wind and waves much more on the side of the boat — also known as “the washing machine setting.”

So we’ll wait until we reach the trade winds and then decide.

Which brings me to the second topic: why we’re doing this without crew.

After our great trip with Neli we were pretty sure bringing someone along for “the long one” was a good idea. We even had someone lined up.

But after many conversations and a bit of soul-searching we realized something: inviting someone you barely know to live on a small boat with you in the middle of the Pacific for weeks is… a bit of a gamble.

It could be wonderful.
Or it could become a very awkward floating reality show.

And since there are not exactly many airports out here, you’re all pretty committed to each other.

It would also mean committing to specific timing and destinations.

Meanwhile Mark and I discovered that six-hour watches work surprisingly well for us, so eventually we decided: let’s risk it and go just the two of us. We have done it before…  and with our boys being really great crew, they handle the first days with slightly sleep-deprived parents remarkably well. (A new lego set also helps!) 

Sure, there are risks. If one of us gets sick it could get complicated. But then again, a third person could also get sick.

So after thinking about it for quite a while we decided to trust our system — and ourselves.

And so here we are:
short handed, not entirely sure where we are going

…and somehow very happy about it