08/20/2026
The final leg of our Northeast passage training season is complete! ⛵
We departed Sandy Hook early and pointed the boat south toward Myrtle Beach. Unfortunately, the wind didn't cooperate much, and with only a couple of hours of favorable sailing, we spent most of the day motoring.
As darkness approached, so did a long line of storms. We were only about seven miles offshore, so we dropped the sails and slowly motored toward shore, hoping to keep the waves from having enough distance to build. The plan worked. The seas stayed relatively small, but the storm still gave us quite a show—winds reached 45 knots with lightning all around us.
Once it passed, we continued south, eventually stopping in the Norfolk area for fuel and some well-earned showers.
Next up was one of the biggest milestones of the passage: Cape Hatteras. Thankfully, rounding Hatteras was completely uneventful—which is exactly how you want it!
Unfortunately, the turn around Hatteras put the wind back on our nose, so the engine went back to work. We continued south until reaching the Frying Pan Shoals buoy off the North Carolina coast.
And finally, the sailing gods gave us a break.
We turned to starboard at Frying Pan Shoals, raised the sails, and had a wonderful sail toward Little River Inlet to finish the trip.
Like every passage, this one came with its own challenges. There were long hours underway, changing weather, plenty of stories and laughter, and a crew working together as the miles passed beneath us.
That's what passage training is really about. You can't recreate a 45-knot storm, an overnight watch, rounding Cape Hatteras, or making decisions underway in a classroom. You have to get out there and experience it.
A great crew, a memorable passage, and a fitting end to our passage training season.
Sandy Hook to Myrtle Beach—and another adventure in the books. ⛵
