Tonight was very calm, nothing like last night. We slept very soundly as we slowly drifted along with the staysail and the double reefed main hove to. Since we were still relatively close to shore, I was getting up every hour to make sure we were fine, do a watch, and then go back to sleep for another hour.
The AIS proximity alarm only went off once to alert us that a ship was going to pass within 2 miles of us. The captain was very courteous over the radio. I alerted him to our position relative to his, he spotted us on his radar, I explained that we were a sailboat adrift, and he adjusted course to keep us a safe distance.
I much prefer to sleep hove to over anchor. You never have to worry about the anchor dragging, or tides and winds. The boat will stay steady and upright, gently riding through the seas as it lulls you to sleep. The boat will never ride over it's anchor rode while taking waves on the stern as in a wind over tide scenario, or lay beam to the seas tossing you about during the night. It always stays the upright with a gentle motion. The best sleep ever!
