More firsts...

Sunday June 24 Location:  Somewhere in the Gulf of Alaska           My first wheel watch! After Jeff and Ty got us through the more complicated areas, it was time for me to take a turn at a straight away. I started at about 2:30 am and drove until about 5:00 am. Jeff was just around the corner, ready to help and checking on me.  Keep in mind it doesn’t get dark here until about midnight, then it is only dark for a few hours and starts to brighten up about 4 ish. I learned how to rely on our radar, maintain our course and make corrections; how to slow the boat down, put it into neutral, and even reverse if necessary.  So, I sat there, staring at the instruments and out into the blackness hoping that nobody was out there. There were a few boats, so I learned how to track them, determine their direction and speed and so on. Pretty cool. I felt much better when the sun started to peak out again. This part of our trip was a bit rocky, as Jeff says, we were in the ditch, so the boat rolls from side to side. It is an unsettling feeling, but ½ a patch helps, and just refusing to give into the quesy feeling gets me through. When we approached our way point, I woke Jeff up and he took over. Breathing a huge sigh of relief, I went to bed and slept for hours. Then, I made pancakes for the first time ever. Granted they were Krusteaz, but still!