Our Footprint

You might think, Dear Friends, that we are just lazing around out here. But, in reality, we have been trying to figure out how much energy we use on the boat, how much fuel we consume per mile, how many miles we travel by sail as opposed to miles traveled by motor. This is more difficult than you might imagine. Today, for instance, we had a very brisk downwind sail until we reached a narrow and treacherous spot between Hankin Island and Single Rock. Anticipating trouble, we turned on the motor while leaving the sails full of wind. Just at that moment the Captain's hat blew off, we initiated man-overboard procedures, circled around for the cap, the wind changed direction, and fifteen minutes later, we turned the engine off because we were happily sailing in an entirely different direction, without the hat, sadly. We need to work on that man overboard thing. Now for the calculations: how many miles were sailed by motor, and how many under sail?
This business of the carbon footprint took on a new dimension as I was reading a book about the threatened ocean the other day, and learned that the trace of a fish or whale or seal who has dived under water is called - a footprint. Clearly, our very smallest carbon footprint would be the trace we would leave as we disappeared under water. We have decided to reexamine these calculations.