Figuring out the best way to set up a watch schedule as a couple has as many variations as there are cruising couples. Like any relationship or working team with equal partners, you just work it out together. For Rosie and me, we learned we like a regular predictable schedule so we can organize our day around it and make sure we have time for good REM sleeps. We have dinner and then I go on watch at about 8 pm for four hours while she gets a good deep sleep. She comes on at midnight for three hours while I sleep and then I take over again at 0300 until about 0700 when she takes over again. If we’re doing morning communications or downloading weather files, I’ll stay up for that and then hit the bunk from 0800 til noon. I know couples who stick to the traditional four on, four off sched around the clock and some who prefer the three on, three off plan through the night from 1800 til 0600 with each getting six hours off during the day. One couple we have sailed in company with prefers to take long shifts without a set schedule and wake up their partner when the on watch gets too tired to keep a good lookout. At night, we’ll keep the radar on with a guard zone set at 15 miles and the AIS keeping track of ship traffic. And we do scan the horizon visually every 15 minutes or so just to be sure that the electronics are not missing anything. We have headlamps with red and white light bulbs and high and low settings which help maintain night vision in red mode and help with sail trim in white mode. And we both have pocket flashlights with white beams and a large searchlight in the cockpit locker. If we are far from land and out of the shipping lanes, we read in 10 to 15 minute increments or listen to music or high seas radio such as the BBC World Service but napping is not allowed. We consider ships and unlit fishing boats to be the most dangerous encounters you can have at sea in a cruising boat. This system has worked well for us over many years and many miles at sea. If you want to share your experiences and ideas on watch systems for two people going to sea, email them to me at george@bwsailing.com.
