Presently we are in Canal Brecknock, Patagonia. For now, the weather is on our side — 14 knots on a broad reach with just the jib unfurled, and more than two knots of current carrying us forward. Last night brought clear skies, an alignment of planets, and a near-full moon. This morning: steady wind, rainbows, and leaping sea lions. After weeks of pushing, it feels like the ocean itself is offering a small gift.
Cape Horn is within reach.
A few days ago, exhaustion had its grip on me. We’ve been in overdrive, racing south before the season shifts. Every port stop has come with long, relentless to-do lists. In Chile, a Zarpe from the Armada is required to move between regions, and any crew change means another round of paperwork. Add the southern Pacific swell — making it nearly impossible to work on computers — and we started falling behind.
The weight built quietly. Sleep deprivation. Shoulders creeping toward my ears. That constant hum of pressure.
And yet — what a crew.
We recently had a female-dominated team onboard, and I’m deeply grateful for Tess and Grace. Their dedication, creativity, research, and sheer brilliance have shaped this project in ways that can’t be overstated. This expedition carries their fingerprints.
Navigation through Patagonia is both beautiful and demanding. Twisting canals. Powerful currents. Williwaws that barrel down without warning. It requires timing, math, constant recalculating — and knowing your safe “duck-outs” if conditions turn. I love this part: the precision, the strategy, the quiet chess game with nature.
Still, we’ve been running hard.
Mark reminded me recently that we are nearing the Mt. Everest of this expedition — the summit push. The moment to be tired and focused. He has a way of grounding me, of shifting my gaze from what isn’t done to what has already been accomplished. I admire his big-picture thinking and his refusal to get lost in the bog of endless to-do lists. With a project of this scale, it would be easy to stay stuck there — or easier still, never leave the dock at all.
I’ve learned a great deal from Mark. I’ve also learned that I can truly trust my instincts.
The spark for this project began years ago. Sailing with Herb and Mark aboard Dancing Bear around Haida Gwaii felt serendipitous. I listened to their stories of the 2009/10 expedition and the moment they rounded Cape Horn — even being inducted as pirates by a rotary group. They showed me pictures of the event from the book, One Island, One Ocean, by Herb McCormick, and I remember hearing a very clear voice in my head (yes, Tess, I suppose I do hear a voice) that said: herstory.
I knew then I wanted to be part of the Around the Americas team. I also knew that one of my life goals was to become a pirate. I promised Mark that if I became Project Director, I would make that dream come true — and thus began the wild pace of making it happen.
Now, as we approach the Horn, I feel a small breath of relief. Not because I underestimate these waters — conditions can change in minutes — but because the frantic push to “get here in time” has softened. We are here. Present. Ready.
Yes, I’m behind on communication, research, fundraising, receipts, and all the responsibilities that come with being Project Director and Co-Captain. But right now, my focus is ahead — because this is some of the most demanding navigation we’ve faced (Arctic ice aside), and because this is what dreams are made of. I want to absorb every second.
We would not be here without an extraordinary community behind us. Volunteers. Friends. Family. Sponsors. Crew. The people arranging flights, driving to remote ports, offering financial support, sending messages at exactly the right moment — the invisible scaffolding holding this expedition upright.
It makes me emotional thinking about it.
When we round Cape Horn, we’ll go live on social media. And as we do, I will be thinking of all of you — the ones who believed in this wild idea, who believe that education and research matter, and who trusted us to carry this mission forward.
Thank you -The Horn awaits.