Sailing Zatara · video

What this video covers

Sailing Zatara departs Florida with a crew of seven adults — Renee, Keith, and five younger crew including Jack, Kate, and Remy — bound for Puerto Rico, Bonaire, and ultimately the Pacific via Panama Canal, with a 4,000-nautical-mile non-stop crossing to the Marquesas as the final leg. The first ten days cover the Thorny Passage, the notoriously rough Florida-to-Eastern-Caribbean route where easterly trade winds, opposing current, and short steep waves make for relentless upwind conditions. A Starlink mount works loose in rain and spray and requires an improvised fix underway.0:54 The crew deploys a code zero to hit nine knots on a better wind angle, then drops it when the wind dies and starts the Yanmar engines.11:05 Keith tightens the lifelines mid-passage.13:41 The Victron electrical install is performing well — batteries cycling through their full range, generator use minimal — with four solar panels still to wire in.16:40 Provisioning falls short: all fresh produce and eggs are gone by Turks and Caicos, leaving the crew on frozen meat, dried pasta, and condiments.3:01 Panama Canal wait time for a transit slot is reportedly up to four weeks, prompting discussion of anchoring in San Blas while waiting.17:39 Renee adjusts to relinquishing galley control as adult crew cook independently; Jack, captaining his first Thorny Passage leg, identifies provisioning as the primary lesson learned.3:53

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