The Program: It seems so long ago, on June 10th, that 22 students and three faculty met to begin S-287 Protecting the Phoenix Islands (aka: PIPA – Phoenix Islands Protected Area). That evening after a number of introductions and orientations it was explained to the students that the cottages were much more than accommodations.

At this point it is T- 2 days until we arrive back in American Samoa and the past day and a half has given me a somewhat odd chance to compare where I started to where I am now. For the past 48 hours we’ve been dealing with some of the roughest seas and conditions since the beginning of our voyage.

Not everyone wants to be woken up at 0100 to hear that there’s a major thunderstorm outside and they are going to stand in it for the next six hours, but that was the fate of B Watch this morning. Items you might want during a thunderstorm include, but are not limited to: rain boots, rain pants, rain jacket, hat, gloves, and a midnight snack, preferably consisting of marshmallows, chocolate, and a little bit of love from our awesome stewards (Marie and Cody).

We woke up well rested on the Corwith Cramer, after just finishing a night of hourly anchor watches. A yummy breakfast of over-easy eggs, bacon and potatoes was waiting for us on the table in the main saloon, and then B watch took control of the boat for the next 6 hours.

A Watch started the day off with only a few hours of sleep due to being on evening watch and being relieved at 0100. We were all exhausted but got to see some pretty neat bioluminescence and a stunning night sky! Upon waking up, many of us were fairly shocked to discover that we could finally see land (Cape Ann) from the deck.

B Watch got a lazy start to the day after a night watch from 1900 to 0100. Many of us slept through breakfast and woke up with a little time to hang out on deck together before going to lunch. We finished off a very delicious lunch of couscous with sweet potato and tahini sauce and grabbed our harnesses to go on watch.

There has been a photo of the Corwith Cramer in my room for the past 11 years. It has had a place in my childhood home, college dorm room, and even my current house. The form has changed overtime – at one point the 8x10 framed photograph was replaced by a 2ft x 3ft poster print, but the image has remained the same.

We have entered Junior Watch Officer (JWO) phase, meaning that we get a chance to essentially take on the role of a mate for a watch.  It has been really exciting to see how much we now know about the boat, as well as all the stuff we still have to learn.

Happy Passover! Tonight is the first night of Passover.  In my family that would mean that either my parents, sister, and I would be getting ready to go to my aunt and uncle’s for seder, or my mother would be cooking all day and we would be getting ready to have everyone at our house for seder.