Yesterday was the last day of sailing, and we went out with a bang. It was quite cold, and there was another small watercraft advisory issued by the National Weather Service. However, our XO (Executive Officer) decided we would sail nonetheless. So,in 30+ knot winds and 6-10 foot seas (doesn't sound like much, but when you're in a 14 foot sailboat that isn't really stable at all, it's like a borderline Tsunami) we took to the seas. Honestly, sailing yesterday was a stupid move. It wasn't safe, and none of us were comfortable sailing in those conditions. In addition to the maritime conditions, it was in the low 40 in temperature, which is extremely cold with a windchill and sea spray on top of that. It was fun...I sailed with a buddy from Annapolis, MD and we went out and had fun in the waves. We found out that if you tack at the right time and instead of jiving just run with the wind you can literally ride the waves...like surfing to an extent. Two of my friends got their main sheet rigged wrong and the out haul got tangled up in the mainsail line and then they capsized. The boat then turtled, which means it became fully capsized with the mast straight down. When a sailboat turtles, it is extremely difficult to get back upright because the sails create so much resistance while underwater. While my buddy was trying to get the boat upright again, the other Midshipmen in that boat was floating further away and was being weighted down by the sweatsuit she was wearing. It was a pretty bad situation, but eventually the sailing coach got over and pulled 'em out. The waves were calm in the inlet that the boathouse is in, but as soon as we got out in the ocean it got very rough very quick. In the end though, nobody was hurt and it was great sailing experience for us all. Here's a couple pictures of the sunset yesterday (It gets dark around 4:45 here, and so we sailed quite a bit in the dark).

 (My camera's setting were on high lighting, but yes...that is the moon in the sky,not the sun.)