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Circe - The Big Off
Circe - The Big Off
05/12/2022

Oceano - Log Day 15 - What are you sailing for?

For some people sailing is a sport. For some - a way to show off their wealth. For others - a lifestyle. For some - an escape. Sailing has a reputation of being a safe space for people who don’t fit it but at the same time is often presented as an activity that shows that you have time, money, ability to move slowly, work remotely or not work at all. It is for the hippies, pensioners and wanderers of this world but also for the rich and famous. It exceeds all social classes but also it is extremely connected with class and race. White Anglo-Saxon male is the classic sailor. He can be crazy, adventurous, Jack Sparrow style or more pragmatic andpractical - but still, when it comes to iconic imagery, it is the man you see behind the wheel and the woman is usually smiling and sunbathing. Is. read more...


05/12/2022

Katy - Sunday 4/12 Day 14 - No Wind

The wind has completely died now. We did have the parasailor up for a time but once the wind drops below 4 knots its pretty much a hopeless cause. We put the engine on at 15:00 to head SW to try and find some wind but its a long way to the 12th latitude where there is steady wind so we're hoping to motor just for a few hours to see if we can pick up at least an F2 wind which can carry us slowly SW. At first it seemed like we got no propulsion from the engine and propeller so brave Larry dived in to do an inspection of the hull under the water. Larry has a fear of deep water so this was a particularly courageous action. I made him a cup of tea when he got out so all was well. The fishing reel also looks to be broken as we can't get an indication of a fish on so this now gets added the the. read more...


05/12/2022

Blue Moon - day 14 blog blue moon

When we started our night shift at midnight, the wind dropped to 2knots. Instead of having a silent night, the waves created a rolling motion where the jib and main sail were protesting and smashing up and down. The next watch had to get the main sail down to protect the rigging and we moved slowly forward with our small front sail. So when we started our next 6 O clock morning shift, the Blue Moon was still rolling about with only the jib out. The sun came out early and already burned like fire. So we unfolded the bimini and installed the solar panels to have some shade in the cockpit. We unfurled the fishing line - we had permission from Sergio to do so - and prayed to Neptune to bless us again with Mahi Mahi for dinner tonight. Then our tasks of the day started. But not before Margo. read more...


Salamander - Looking Back
Salamander - Looking Back
05/12/2022

Salamander - Clothes Choice

Alan is modelling a technical long sleeved shirt, light weight shorts and wide brimmed floppy hat in the sun on the Foredeck. Alan is now available for deckwork andthe catwalk internationally.. read more...


05/12/2022

Bluewater Mooney - 05.12.2022

Guten Morgen!Der Tag bricht an, die See ist bleiern - mit einem leichten Schwell.Ich vergleiche das immer gerne mit der Augsburger Puppenkiste, Jim Knopf und Lukas und Urmel auf dem Eis.Naja, die meisten können damit nichts anfangen. Das war deutlich vor der Digitalisierung und das Wasser wurde mit einer Plastikfolie imitiert. Der Wetterbericht von heute lässt für die nächsten drei Tage für den Sektor Romeo phasenweise, wenn du bis 18 Knoten erhoffen.Das spielt sich jedoch auf einem ziemlich schmalen Sektor ab, Richtung und stärke wären ideal.Unsere DTW (Distance to Waypoint (Saint Lucia) ) beträgt 299 Meilen - es neigt sich dem Ende entgegen. image1. read more...


Bluewater Mooney - 05.12.2022
Bluewater Mooney - 05.12.2022
05/12/2022

Bluewater Mooney - 05.12.2022

Guten Morgen!Der Tag bricht an, die See ist bleiern - mit einem leichten Schwell.Ich vergleiche das immer gerne mit der Augsburger Puppenkiste, Jim Knopf und Lukas und Urmel auf dem Eis.Naja, die meisten können damit nichts anfangen. Das war deutlich vor der Digitalisierung und das Wasser wurde mit einer Plastikfolie imitiert. Der Wetterbericht von heute lässt für die nächsten drei Tage für den Sektor Romeo phasenweise, wenn du bis 18 Knoten erhoffen.Das spielt sich jedoch auf einem ziemlich schmalen Sektor ab, Richtung und stärke wären ideal.Unsere DTW (Distance to Waypoint (Saint Lucia) ) beträgt 299 Meilen - es neigt sich dem Ende entgegen.. read more...


05/12/2022

Salamander - Clothes Choice

Did we bring the right clothes?One of the big challenges on a trip like the ARC sailing across the Atlantic is what clothes do you bring with you.For me this has been accentuated because I actually started this trip in the UK in October!We have limited storage and living space so making the right choice is critical.How much underwear? How many shirts? How many shorts? Do you need long trousers? Shoes or boots? Wet weather gear? You can see how it would be quite easy to pack way too much and possibly not the right type for such a trip.Each of the crew on Salamander has their own preferences and of course we have limited facilities to hand wash and air dry our clothes.For shirts, worn as much for sun protection as keeping warm, the technical, light weight tops are popular but also bamboo. read more...


05/12/2022

Salamander - Hand Steering

The Atlantic ARC is a marathon sailing event and this year, as in previous years, Salamander are setting about completing the course by hand steering the whole way. This requires a disciplined watch system and great team work.You'll have seen already that we have six crew on board. None of us have sailed on Salamander before this event. Well that's not entirely true! I did help bring the boat from Lymington in the UK to the start in Las Palmas.We have three watches each lasting two hours and there are two of us on each watch. In our two hour shift we take it in turns to take the helm and hand steer Salamander.On most watches we do half hour stints so that we remain fresh and alert, particularly important at night. If conditions are a bit more challenging we change to doing fifteen. read more...


05/12/2022

Bluewater Mooney - BLUEWATER MOONEY 04.12.2022

Ein sehr abwechslungsreicher TagEs ist jetzt 00:55 UTC Local jetzt hier 09:55 Zonenzeit.Ich sitze am Navigationssitz während draußen die Post abgeht.Abermals haben wir eine Begegnung miteinen Squall.Es schüttet und ist aufgefrischt, aber das ist es dann auch schon.Selbst zu wenig Zeit, um den Wind richtig auszunutzen. Da hatten wir heute andere, bessere, Perioden, mit Wind bis zu 15kn!Und das, obwohl wir in das Gebiet mit Leichtwind eingefahren sind. Wind, der zum Segeln nicht mehr ausreicht.Über die Taktik möchte ich nicht schreiben. Wir sind ohnehin die einzigen, die Informationen von Bord preisgeben.Ich möchte auch nicht über Motorstunden von Emily Morgen oder VAHINE spekulieren. Wir sind derzeit sehr dicht beieinander. Und es kann den Eindruck aufkommen, als würde die Motorleistung. read more...


Bluewater Mooney - BLUEWATER MOONEY 04.12.2022
Bluewater Mooney - BLUEWATER MOONEY 04.12.2022
04/12/2022

Sao Jorge - Blog 4/12 - “A week in politics is a long time

“A week in politics is a long time”…….and it would appear a day in ocean sailing is just as long.Not much over 24 hours ago, Escapado was charging forward behind her spinnaker and reconfigured ‘Sam’s pole”. Despite a decision on the part of the main sheet coupling to part company with the boom (rapid repair under pressure and darkness) and experiencing a significant squall, excellent speed and distance resulted in a favourable position come ARC reports the following morning.Since then we have been making very slowprogress as we labour through a significant wind hole. We’re it not for the fact we are racing, joy could be taken from the beautiful clear skies, almost flat azure waters, captivating long ocean swell, and occasional visits by inquisitive pods of dolphins. The competitive. read more...


Sao Jorge - Blog 4/12 - “A week in politics is a long time
Sao Jorge - Blog 4/12 - “A week in politics is a long time
04/12/2022

Escapado - Blog day 13 - However fantastic to see the team spirit

Blog day 13Imagine 10 People living together in a sauna having 1 m2 each & movingaround, that is the life of Escapado. However fantantic to see the teamspirit. Obviously things breaks down such as the toilet and Bilge pump. ButBig thanks to the Co skipper Sam, he is really a good fixer.Happy to report that we now run with the Genakker and we are under carefullycoaching fromour skippers, with Angela all over the place, we have alllearned a lot Also good to skip the goose wind sailing.Fresh food has gone,so a lot of creativity for tin food is now in place.We have done quite an investment in fishing gear, and have dreams about Tunaetc, but so far it stays with the dreams. But actually we do catch a lot offlying fish, which hit us in our faces etc. and smells quite bad.Thank you for. read more...


Escapado - Blog day 13 - However fantastic to see the team spirit
Escapado - Blog day 13 - However fantastic to see the team spirit
04/12/2022

Amandla Kulu - SUBJECT: D14_ Light Weight Kites

 Captain’s Log. Star Date 04 Dec. Day 14. Fifteen day on the water.2223 GMT.2023 Local.12º 58 N048º 43 W///transgressor.geisha.equippinghttps://w3w.co/transgressor.geisha.equippingA glorious day, with a little bit of everything.  Before sunrise gybe, failed fishing, sunshine, light air sailing, RCC MIAMI, MRCC UK, fresh salad and plenty of water.  This morning had a close quarters flyby a fellow St Lucian bound vessel. Would have been useful if had been woken a little earlier, as we would have gybed earlier. As it was, we realised that our red aspect light had failed at some point during the night and that we were running dark to 1/3 of our port aspect.  It has been light airs today, a steady 6-10 knots of wind. This morning we sailed under Code. read more...


04/12/2022

Jo - Tag 14 - Atlantikdusche (+ Crew Special, Teil V) und ein Rätsel

Wir hängen weiterhin in dem Flautenloch fest, voraussichtlich auch mindestens noch die nächsten 24 Stunden. Aber wie heißt es so schön: "Nichts ist so schlecht, dass es nicht für irgendetwas gut ist." In unserem Fall für ein kleines Schwimmerchen mitten auf dem Atlantik. Immer wieder faszinierend und ein besonderes Erlebnis. So haben wir dann heute Vormittag der Crew pünktlich zum 2. Advent das "open water swimming" verkündet. Zur Freude aller, denn seit gestern brennt die Sonne unbarmherzig auf uns nieder. Es geht kaum ein Windhauch, die Schattenplätze sind plötzlich sehr begehrt, die Luft steht... Bei 33 Grad Außentemperatur ist eine Abkühlung (die Wassertemperatur beträgt "nur" (?) 26,5 Grad) da mehr als willkommen. Natürlich wie immer unter Beachtung einiger Vorsichtsmaßnahmen. Erst. read more...


Jo - Tag 14 - Atlantikdusche (+ Crew Special, Teil V) und ein Rätsel
Jo - Tag 14 - Atlantikdusche (+ Crew Special, Teil V) und ein Rätsel
04/12/2022

Lomvi - Day 17 - Slow sprint

Dear celebrators,We are cruising into the last night on the Atlantic. Its 2ms wind, the ocean is glassy. Motoring in 5 kn towards the goal! We expect to be in Grenada tomorrow morning. The most spectacular sunset so far was enjoyed on deck. Big moon and millions of stars to end the evening. Looking forward to anything with ice cubes in it! Love,Team final step. read more...


04/12/2022

Navasana - Day 15 Our Code 65 gets us sailing again

We found 5-6 knots of wind on the beam which was enough for our North Code 65 to give us 4-5 knots of boat speed! She is a thing of beauty as you can see from the photo below of us sailing today. Beautiful light air sailing in picture perfect conditions. Dan has been moping around because we lost a mahi mahi as we were reeling it in close to the boat. Instead of fish tacos I made a kidney bean curry which hopefully made up for the loss. Looks like we will be back on squall watch the next couple of days as a bunch of them come up from the ITCZ. Saw some more whales in the distance!More on sailingnavasana.comimage1. read more...


Navasana - Day 15 Our Code 65 gets us sailing again
Navasana - Day 15 Our Code 65 gets us sailing again
04/12/2022

Avventura - Log Day 15: Giorno di bucato

Light wind, almost no waves and a lot of sundominate this sunday. While we quietly sail westwards, we have time to relax,and to wash our clothes. And after the rolling of the boat in the last days, itis nice to have a stabler "living room".   Position at 22:00 UTC (15:01.95N46:56.49W)  . read more...


Avventura - Log Day 15: Giorno di bucato
Avventura - Log Day 15: Giorno di bucato
04/12/2022

Sunbeat VI - Day 15 - drifting across ithe wide wide sea

Day 506 - Steve tripped over his beard today.Ate Drac.Bit hairy and chewy.Down to last last choc biscuits.Desperation setting in.A quiet and slow night averaging 2-knots.Moments of hope that soon faded with the wind.First flight of the asymmetric before resorting to polled-out jib once more.However a new forecast late in the day - delivered by a little egret looking for a perch - seems more positive.Suffered a blow back on the holding tank.Had a team meeting and immediately elected the admiral ( aka Steve) to deal with it.Setting to work with enthusiasm, Steve quickly suffered from what may be described as a touch of suntan lotion on his left shoulder…. All sorted now - thankfully!Wind has come round to the beam just as little egret predicted.Positive thoughts ahead as we hopefully move. read more...


04/12/2022

Sabine - daily blog update for ARC boat Sabine (118) 4 Dec 2022

Hello interweb friends, Captain Stape on sail boat Sabine right here (///gloomiest.amplified.rhinos)It’s Sunday morning and I’m tired as I was awoken several times during the night by the sound of Maria. (yes, we’ve officially changed Jenny’s name as she is a bit of a drama (faff) to turn on. There’s a 2 sided piece of A4 explaining how to turn her on, and that’s not even fully up to date since it was written by Richard back in May and additional steps have been added since). It seems we can get 3hrs motoring per 1hr of running Maria. Maria is positioned on the starboard side of the boat, near my perch and John and Richard’s cabin. All three of us didn’t get much sleep… I wonder if I can get parrot sized noise cancelling headphones? I saw Richard wearing his and was quite jealous. As we. read more...


04/12/2022

Endeavour III - Endeavour III - Day 15

The day started bright and early at 03:00 for my watch, and the sky did not disappoint! A waxing moon illuminated a silver road across the ocean’s surface that Endeavour III faithfully chugged along. I say chugged because sadly the motor had to be on all night due to a distinct lack of wind. Perhaps the sea took pity on us, as the night brought with it a little present in the form of a small Dorado caught by Dave on a rod that was accidentally left out from the day before. That’s Tash’s dinner for tonight sorted!The motoring lasted into the morning as we plodded along at 5 knots whilst chomping on Hugh’s homemade sourdough cinnamon rolls. As well as having little to no wind in the sails, the lack of a breeze has made Endeavour III into a floating sauna…I honestly did not imagine it would. read more...


04/12/2022

Skyelark 2 -

It seems a while, since we reached half wayWe are now at sea for fourteen daysNot many lows and lots of highsWe are happy here, and loving life!We glide along beneath the sun and starsSeen the southern cross, the plough and MarsWe’ve Gybed our pole, and reached a bitRead some books and landed fishWe fill our days with lots of chatMeal times and cheeky napsBetween our shifts and the chance to showerIt never seems long until happy hourNow, we have sailed well, still first in ClassBut ask some crew and you’d think we're last!We want more speed, they like to whineBut now the motors on, and life is fineLands not yet in sight, but were planning lunchIt will be a juicy steak, and a large rump puncha Keg of beer, and a barrel of rumWe will be in Spinnakers and having fun!(promo alert)Its two for. read more...


04/12/2022

Charisma - SY CHARISMA | Tag 14 - Troubadix SPEZIAL

Ein Mensch, der eine Drohne startet,worauf er lange schon gewartet,sieht sie, mit steuerfingerbebenaus Starters Hand sich stolz erheben.Schwitzt noch ein wenig übungsarm,der Flieger freut sich, macht Alarm,und driftet noch durch Funk gebunden,voll Eigenwill die ersten Runden.Wie‘s auch der Fliegerin beliebt,„Bei Fuß“ - scheint nicht genug geübt.Derweil das Drohnenauge blitzt,und Frauchen Bilder schickt verschmitzt.Im Anflug- Auge auf Gesicht -prüft‘s Dröhnchen Fängers Gleichgewicht.Und surrend unterm Baum entschwunden,geht weiter sie auf eigne Runden.Und schüttelt los sich von den Teilen,die ihr den Freiheitssinn verkeilen.Derweil am Kommandostick,der Frohsinn schwindet - Stück für Stück.Und mit dem Display letztem Winken,sieht man die Drohne tiefer sinken.Der Akkustand wir mau. read more...


04/12/2022

Mairmade - Day#15

Our 24 hour distance at 1pm UTC today was a predictable 145nm.Predictable because we motored all of those 24 hours at a steady 6 knot average!We also passed the 75% mark, and have less than 600nm to go as I write. 🙌Today felt like any other coastal cruising day on the boat.The weather is beautiful with full sun and a light wind (most of which we create with our 6 knots of boat speed!), so what better thing to do than go for a swim!We stopped the engine, opened the stern door and jumped in the water for 30 minutes; pool toys included.And although the the wind and waves have subsided, the swell remains; challenging any standing activity (e.g. showering on the stern platform 😛)#BoatLifeFr. Russ was the responsible adult that stayed on board should anything unexpected happen, and also to. read more...


Mairmade - Day#15
Mairmade - Day#15
Mairmade - Day#15
Mairmade - Day#15
Mairmade - Day#15
Mairmade - Day#15
04/12/2022

Betelgeuse - Saturday 03/12/22 DAY 13

Dear Myrtle is being very demanding requiring running repairs with replacement down haul line and now constantly requiring her ‘bottom wiped’ to remove the floating seaweed (Sargasso) which is constant. Saw one floating blanket of Sargasso covering a good double tennis court! Richard’s determination to catch a Mahi Mahi is impressive; sadly all that was dragged in was a skimming hedgehog of; yes you’ve guessed it – Sargasso!Spinnaker cleanly raised at ‘sparrows’ (need some military terms – quietly sinking in naval terms) by new foredeck monkey Richard and Will. Light winds generally all day meant for challenging conditions to keep her flying – well worth the effort giving us a few cherished extra knots. No squalls anywhere near us today.The day was hot, with much washing of cockpit,. read more...


Betelgeuse - Saturday 03/12/22 DAY 13
Betelgeuse - Saturday 03/12/22 DAY 13
04/12/2022

Lothlorien - Fw: Tag 15 auf See - Wir suchen den Wind

Wir haben unseren Code Zero - ein sehr leichtes und empfindliches Segel - hochgezogen und können damit sogar 3,5 kn Fahrt aufnehmen. Mit ca. 3 kn geht es dabei in Richtung St. Lucia. Es könnte also deutlich schlechter sein. Wir erwarten, dass der extrem schwache Wind bis Mittwoch anhält - wahrscheinlich auch bis Donnerstag. Unsere Ankunft innerhalb drei Wochen in St. Lucia könnte dann gefährdet sein. Es ist aber sehr schwierig zu kalkulieren, wie wir in den nächsten Tagen vorankommen werden. So planen wir erst einmal von Tag zu Tag. Heute haben wir zwar schwachen Wind, aber diesen aus einer günstigen Richtung.Der Motor bleibt aus - der Diesel reicht bei weitem nicht für die verbleibende Strecke.So genießen wir die ruhige Fahrt, holen tagsüber Schlaf nach und freuen uns über Sonne pur.. read more...


Salamander - The Big Blue Hole
Salamander - The Big Blue Hole
04/12/2022

Jadamama - Blog day 14 Jadamama

ARC Ditty for my grandkids (with apology to Edward Lear) We Went To Sea In A Catamaran We went to sea in a catamaran, In a cat we went to sea.Our friends all said ‘Take care, take care,We don’t know how you dare!” On a sunny Sunday we left the CanariesAnd waves goodbye, goodbye.With a hundred boats we all set sailFar out in the blue North Atlantic.The very next dayAll the boats disappeared!Were they stolen by the fairies?And a flying fish flew onto our deck,‘Oh silly fish, what in the heck?’ We went to sea in a catamaran,In a cat we went to sea.Two hundred miles the very first day,And the dolphins tried to race us!‘Where are you going? We’ll show you the way!’But on we sailed, not a backward glance,And they couldn't keep up their dance.But a flying fish landed on. read more...


Jadamama - Blog day 14 Jadamama
Jadamama - Blog day 14 Jadamama
04/12/2022

Circe - The Blue Blues

The Blue Blues Before we left for our passage, multitudes of friends and family members wished us “fair winds”. That’s what we hoped for as well, so we uploaded the PredictWind app on all of our devices so we we’re armed with the tool needed to see the winds. I imagine many of us use PredictWind. The beauty of PredictWind, and I mean literally the beauty, is the colors used in the map display to indicate the various wind speeds. The warmer the colors, the better. We want to sail enveloped by greens, yellows and deep oranges, indicating winds of 10 to 25 knots. Comfortable sailing. What PredictWind is indicating is in our path is exactly what we don’t like to see - blue of any shade. The blue of the sky, the blue of the sea, the indigo of dead calm - all dead ahead. What a game changer. read more...


Circe - The Blue Blues
Circe - The Blue Blues
04/12/2022

Blue Moon - day 13 blog blue moon

We sailed into the weekend with our very first wobbly day and a working engine! We got up with the sun in our faces and tried helming the Blue Moon in very light winds from 8 to 12 knots. Quite the challenge to make sure the boat is not squeeking and rattling and not to overtire our rigging. Each watch team took their turns and when off duty, bikini‘s , sun hats, sketch blocks, magazines and buckets of salt water appeared. Well, sailing across the Atlantic is also this! After some heavy weather days, stressful situations and not much sleep we welcome them with open arms. The boat is heating up in no time, and we all know what happens when hatches are open for fresh air(read our blog day 10).. so outside is the place to be. We even played our first UNO game outside on an open folded. read more...


04/12/2022

Salamander - What Now?

In the immediate aftermath of deciding to retire from the race we are faced with a long motor all the way to Rodney Bay, St. Lucia.We are making just over 6kts on a course of 290 degrees, clawing back the miles we diverted in an attempt to find and keep some wind.The sea is so calm and not in the slightest matching our expectations of large swells and mountainous waves!It's clear already that we made the right decision and, furthermore that no matter what route we had chosen we would have found ourselves in the same situation.Some of on board are already conjuring up plans for future trips and maybe even doing the ARC again at some point. The draw of the sea is quite powerful!We now have plenty of time for reflection on what the future holds. For now we are just enjoying being at sea.Tim. read more...


04/12/2022

Salamander - The Big Blue Hole

We've been using a series of wind prediction forecast models to help with our sailing strategy and decide which course to steer in order to benefit from the strongest winds. Salamander is 30 tonnes unladen and likely a good deal heavier with all the fuel, water and provisions on board. With all this weight we need the magic ingredient of wind to make us go. The more the merrier!These wind predictions have led us to make a decision to head south, approximately 350 nautical miles further south than the rhumbline, in search of wind.Last night we realised all wind searching had been in vain!The wind charts are colour coded for strength of wind. Blue means little or no wind going through green, yellow, orange and red as the wind speed increases to 25kts.We now had a very large blue area ahead. read more...


04/12/2022

Skye Blue - Skye Blue "To motor or not to motor, that is the question"

Well hello there ARC fans. You read this as we enter our third and hopefully final week. Throughout the journey we have shared our new experiences and musings but we would now like to share some of the more quirky, mundane and otherwise more repetitive activities and conversations of a transatlantic crossing. But before we do, a few hot off the press news items. News Bulletin 1 - We have a new nickname for Neil (formerly known as Flashheart). Borne out of his insatiable appetite and ever willingness to finish off the team leftovers. Yesterdaysomeone described him as being like a "wheelie bin", only for someone seconds later to chime in -"more like a Neily-bin!". Sometime this stuff writes itself. Sorry Neil we know you loved your Flasheart moniker but the crew's word is final. News. read more...


Skye Blue - Skye Blue "To motor or not to motor, that is the question"
Skye Blue - Skye Blue
04/12/2022

Katy - Saturday 3/12 Day 13 Unlucky for Some

The wind has died now to 5-6 knots so not a lot of progress today. Also cloud cover so no solar charging to speak of. Not the best day but we're plugging along. Tomorrow first thing we'll get the big parasailor sail out but its a bit swelly here and also heading towards night so don't want to hoist now. We really need to get to the 12th or 13th latitude for some wind but that is some way south for us still and I don't want to lose too much westing for southing but may have to bite the bullet and compromise on this. To be honest it is very comfortable sailing now which is a true rarity this year on Katy so we should just enjoy it. It feels like the average since leaving Plymouth is a force 6 so stuck in a force 1-2 should be enjoyed before it all goes to sh*t again!. read more...


04/12/2022

Oceano - Log Day 14 - Navigare necesse est

We have this running joke among the crew that our catamaran is a love boat. Remember the cult tv series? The theme song ( the looooooveee boaaaat..) the great cruising ship filled with people and their complicated love lives, dangerous liaisons between passengers and the crew, dramas, comedy, thrills, lots of fashionable clothing, alcohol, very bad seamanship and even worst acting? I used to adore it. Our vessel is not great in size, but our personalities are larger than life, that is for sure. And we spend our days moving around the deck, the cabins, exchanging glances, remarks, getting sincere, playing dumb, joking, cracking up, singing, crying, suggesting, flirting, behaving like little brats bored to death, we wind each other up, we console, we have therapy sessions and silent. read more...


04/12/2022

Salamander - A Tough Call

From my circumnavigation with wife Sue, daughter Hilary and son Jules, 4 previous ARC Atlantic crossings and 2 ARC Europe crossings, through to today, my 12th Atlantic crossing I have used the GFS weather model as a guide to what might like ahead.Since the advent of Iridium I have gone on to look at other weather models as a basis for making daily, or sometimes twice daily, decisions as to where to point, either to reach a destination directly, or to find wind to assist in going in the general direction of the destination.I am a lucky and proud dad to have both our son Jules and daughter Hilary sailing "alongside" us in the Atlantic this year. Both are now already experienced Atlantic sailors and indeed ARC Atlantic sailors.On the same day, 29th October, unexpectedly, I received an email. read more...