Moonlighting

It must have been the anticipation of the upcoming Head of Charles race this weekend, a feeling of not having prepared enough for the race and seeing the sun while driving up north on 93 that caused a chemical reaction at 4pm on a beautiful fall day.

Initially, I was planning on adding a hot yoga session tonight but there was an energy that put only one thought into my mind: ROW. Thanks to smart-phones I was able to check wind and wave conditions as well as time of sunset while sitting in traffic. Not sure if I really would be able to make it I finally ended up at my house at 5pm before continuing to Little Harbor. There, the water looked perfectly and unusually calm. Realizing that the temperatures dropped quickly and the sun had less than 40 minutes before setting I quickly launched the Dolphin and off I went.

Since I did not know for sure how long I could row before darkness would catch up with me, I decided to turn right towards MHD Rock. I figured the twilight might be brighter slightly longer in the wide open compared to the shade of the land line. The water was peaceful and only one sailboat crossed my path to return into the harbor while the sun got ready to set.

After MHD Rock I turned east towards the red wind chiming bell buoy and then headed back north. Having rowed at a steady pace for 20 minutes I started with my 10 minute "hard and full out" training row. The incoming tide seemed to push me even faster than the thoughts of wanting to get back to Little Harbor before total darkness kicks in.

After finishing my "all-out" training sequence it turned out that the twilight still gave sufficient light to row even further. Yet, since this was my first experience in moonlight rowing I decided to go back to Little Harbor. The colors turned out to be spectacular and the surface of the water blended seamlessly with the sky. The calmness of the water made me aware of the cormorants diving and re-surfacing around me.

Compared to all my previous rows of the season this turned out to be the shortest one. Yet it was an awesome row that brought me closer to nature and our HOC race. It also showed me that even though the days are getting shorter the season is not over yet and there is still time for more beautiful rows.