Time 04NOV2018, 05:30 local
Latitude N 35° 26.9’
Lon W 75° 07.2’
Wind: NE, 19, gusting 25
Course: 160°
Speed: 8.3 knots
Water temperature: 74.3°F
Nautical miles from Chesapeake Bay Bridge/Tunnel: 104NM
Nautical miles to Port Everglades, Florida: 616NM

The first glimmers of dawn are showing as we leave Cape Hatteras behind, and approach the edge of the continental shelf where the water drops from a hundred feet deep to over a mile. The weather has so far been running as predicted with wind changes in speed and direction running as we had expected. We’ll likely have the roughest water of the trip in a few hours as we cross the Gulf Stream.

After a spectacularly clear afternoon and night, a few scattered clouds are spreading across the sky. The moon rose just before dawn so we were treated to a beautiful dark sky spread of stars. The bioluminescent plankton put on a competing show in the disturbed water in Harmonie’s wake. Not just there either. As Karen announced after coming up on deck for her night watch, “The twinkles are back!” She was revering to the plankton lighting up the toilet bowl with the seawater flush!