Sailing into the New Year!!!!!

Departure: 1:00pm
Return: 4:30pm
Weather conditions: Cloudy/overcast, but nice steady breezes
Tide: Low was at 3pm
Boat: Blue Club Boat
Crew: 5 (Woody, Tom, Chris, Dave & Carol)

Sailing is a funny thing. It's so random. Each sail is going to be a unique experience. It's as changeable as the weather it relies on. It's all about stepping into the unknown and having an adventure. I think that's what I love about it so much. And maybe why some don't. Take yesterday for example.

Yesterday was our first club sail of the year. Naturally, I wasn't going to miss it for anything, but it didn't look promising. Looking out my window, I couldn't see a lick of wind and the forecast confirmed it. I forged ahead anyway: packed my food, and extra clothes and headed out. At the dock, it was more of the same: calm. But it didn't matter, I would take what the day gave and enjoy it.

Another club member, Carol, had an even tougher decision; it was raining at her house. Should she go, or should she stay? She came. As it turned out, both our decisions were well rewarded with a very pleasant sail that included a good steady breeze and no rain. And that's my point. With sailing you just don't know what the weather is going to deal you, and sailing has everything to do with the weather.

Outside the harbor we picked up a nice steady 7-8 knot wind. It doesn't take much wind to move a boat. In fact, you can quickly get too much wind and end up reducing sail area to compensate. This was nice breeze that moved us along with mild steady heeling, no swells and small waves.

We saw a couple of seals and other birds but that was about it for the wildlife.

A new member, Chris, joined us for this sail. He and his family recently moved to Poulsbo from Colorado. I should mention that for him to attend, he had to drive 45 minutes. For someone who loves to sail, that's just what you do. It was a lot of fun telling him about the area and welcoming him to the club.