Days pass on the ship?

So I started playing this game about 10 days ago. Tonight I successfully defeated the cliff on islands 1 2 and 3 on day 55. Just as my ship was ready and my crew was aboard on island 3 a blood moon came. I thought to myself I’ll wait out the blood moon on island 3 since there’s no more greed and I’ll take advantage of the day of peace on island4, giving me enough time to repair the damage done to my walls.

So I do exactly that. As I have the builders repairing the walls and chopping trees, my doggo and I set out to go get the gems that I left behind during my first visit to island four. The dog starts barking and I think to myself that can’t be right so I backtrack a little bit and I find nothing other than three dozen greed all masked up heading my way. I lost my crown and I’m now back at Island 1.

Are days lost when you travel? Is there a way to time blood moons and peace time when setting sale?

Separately: what is the suggested mount when doing island 4 and beyond? Will the Griffin have enough stamina or is there a better option?