Journey with Bark Europa

Day 1)    Monday 24th February 2020 – Boarding in Ushuaia

Boarding is at 5PM but we are allowed to bring our stuff on board already in the morning. Packing with the emotions rising, breakfast avoiding all seasickness-helping ingredients (uffa, including also coffee!), I leave one bag for sunny Brazil in my Malvinas Hostal and I am heading for the boat with the first load of luggage. Att 5PM we are boarding Europa. My cabin is 7, bank C on top.

Day 2)    Tuesday 25th February 2020 – Beagle Channel

Breakfast at 7AM and 9AM we leave the anchor. Last call to my mom to say good bye for 3 weeks. Beagle Channel has calm waters and there is time to get accustomed with the ship, make lectures as well as try to learn how to climb the masses. Everybody has to make it to the level of the 1st watching area above the 1st yard. Actually, it is easier than it seems, but the tricky part is the inclined ladder up the small platform. To navigate in the Beagle channel one can only with Argentinian pilot …. After we are at its end, the motor boat comes to pick him up and we are free to set up the sails.

Days 3-6)        Wednesday 26th February 2020 – Friday 28th February

With entering  the Drake passage the waves are getting bigger and I am getting really sick. I am in a circle of vomiting and sleeping. I am in a white watch (we are red/white/blue) and we have a duty to alternate between the helm and lookout. The helm was nice, lookout was killing me and at some point I did not make it at all. The night of 27th was pretty rough and in some way I am really sorry that I did not make it to the watch to get that experience of darkness and waves. I took than the plaster of Scopolamine 15mg that helped and got me to sleep for hours again. Last day the waters got calmer and before going to sleep I put it down. During the passage we have seen albatrosses, cape petrels, dolphins and fin whales.