By: Hiten Patel

The 2025 edition of the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers began just a few days ago, the day we published our last blog post. So, the first few days has been all about getting into the rhythm of boat life — daily inspections, watch rotations, and fixing the minor things that need fixing along the way.

Crossing the Atlantic Ocean on Thanksgiving day makes an interesting backdrop to this year’s celebration. As an undergraduate history major, I can’t help but be reminded that hundreds of years ago, The Pilgrims left England in search of freedoms to be found in a mysterious land beyond the knowledge of Western civilization. I am further reminded of the millions more that followed from Africa and Europe, some by choice, many others by force. So, the waters that we sail through are steeped in the unimaginable stories of human struggle and triumph, but often at a very high cost.

Despite my philosophical meanderings, today we are enjoying a day with some beautiful champagne sailing. We awoke to a beautiful morning with calm seas and steady winds. We are each relaxing in our own ways, reading a book, taking a nap on deck, and some of us clattering away on a keyboard checking weather forecasts or writing blog posts. 🙂 I think I speak for all of us when I say we are grateful for a great many things in our lives, not the least of which are our families and friends near and far, our many opportunities to do amazing and unique things in life, and our planetful of wonders which are still left to explore. Special love is sent to Liza, Kate, and Traci for sharing their spouses with us this Thanksgiving. And for Melissa and I, extra love goes to our sons, Graham and Ben, and to my sister, Jyoti, who is recovering from surgery.

Finally, the whole crew is thankful for the fulfillment of our collective Thanksgiving Day wish — a visit from a pod of dolphins!