A soft cloud cover kept the early morning cool, but dampened the trade winds on our first morning on board the legendary Sea Cloud. Captain Komakin had set the lower and upper topsails and all the topmast staysails overnight, which was a beautiful spectacle on our first evening. But we had to keep one engine helping us along in order to make it to make to our morning waypoint, and we were thankful that E.F. Hutton and Marjorie Merriwether Post had designed the ship with powerful engines and a state-or-the-art hull for round-the-world expeditions.
Light winds mean more sail, and at 0900 the crew was aloft in the rigging, preparing the rest of the square sails and the jibs. Chief Officer Steve Tarrant, an instructor at the Maine Maritime Academy, gave a “play-by-play” explanation of the setting of the sails, which turned the complex and random lines and rigging into a well-organized and coordinated machine.
And then we were sailing! Even with only a light breeze Sea Cloud sailed gracefully at 4.5 knots, with St. Lucia to port and Martinique off the starboard bow. We spent the day settling into the ship and finding our favorite spaces, lounging in the famous blue lagoon, on the spanker deck, or up the ladder on the monkey deck. Our expedition staff gave the first talks of the voyage—photographic instruction and an overview of the sugar trade that founded the region—and we all marveled at the unexpected romance of sailing on a true hand-sailed tall ship in this day and age.
As the sun lowered in the west, the stunning Diamond Rock on the south side of Martinique took on a new dimension. This is a 600-foot high volcanic plug that the British used as a garrison to harass the French port in Martinique. Eighteen-pound cannons were hauled to the top of the rock, and it was actually commissioned as a British battleship the HMS Diamond Rock! It was hard to know which direction to photograph, as the crew scurried aloft for the furling of the sails and then braced the yards for the overnight run north.
Sea Cloud’s original diningoom and lounge were all abuzz for the Welcome Dinner this evening, as we realized we were just getting started!
