Planning

How many eggs will three people eat during a month at sea? What if we rip the main sail to shreds in a storm? How much diesel are we going to carry? What do the team back in Bristol need from me to be able to carry on with my projects when I’m gone? Will 2 inch bolts be long enough to through the pad-eye and the deck when I fit the new inner forestay? Is there anything else I need to do for my Federal or State tax returns? Do I need a Visa to get into New Caledonia? Are there any more spares I need to buy for the boat?

My head’s full to bursting in the final lead up to departing for Australia. As for Brightpearl, the promised “two months of intense work” has indeed been just that, ramping up in the last couple of weeks too. Long hours at the computer day after day. A trip to the UK to be in the office there for a while. Coding, thinking, planning, tweaking, testing. I’ve been getting headaches from thinking too hard for too long. Old Mr Brain isn’t used to this!

I’m coming up for air every now and then to make sure I’m on top of everything that’s needed for the trip ahead, making last minute purchases and downloading information off the interweb. My bag is full of shiny stainless steel bits, hi-tech ropes, charts, a storm jib, new EPIRB, couple of extra solar panels, games and a whole load of other gubbins. I hope they don’t sting me for import duty…

I’ve not been able to put as much time into mental preparation as I would have liked, my mind has been kinda preoccupied. I’m sure I’ll switch straight back into the groove as soon as I step out of the plane in Puerto Vallarta though. I’m really looking forward to getting back to a slower pace of life. The beautiful open expanse of days with not much to fill them with. Spending every hour outside, seeing every dawn, every dusk. Reading. Thinking. Meditating. Navigating. Just sailing along, keeping the ship in shape and the crew happy. For thousands and thousands of miles…

Rose is getting ready for her residencies in Colorado and Canada – we leave San Francisco on the same day in just over a week’s time, going our separate ways for a while. Being apart for at least a couple of months is going to be a tough one, but we’re tough and will see it through, journeying our own journeys and being able to share lots of stories on the other side. At the moment we’re staying at a buddy’s place on the north side of the bay – they’re away in Hawaii at the moment and we have the place to ourselves. It’s right on the waterfront with postcard views over Angel Island and the Golden Gate Bridge, we have our own room and a car to borrow. Thanks to their kindness we’ve been spared from going crazy in the small, skanky apartment we had in the city when we first arrived. Here we can just enjoy the space and get down to work without feeling cramped. Thanks guys! Grandma arrives on Sunday and is going to be moving into our room so we’ll need to find somewhere else. Best get those bags packed again for another move. I wonder where we’ll be living next week!