There was plenty of activity on the docks this morning as boats started
to get ready to slip lines and make their way to the start of Leg 2. At 1100am from inside St George's Harbour yachts had a
staggered start, with multihulls being first across the line followed by
cruising class A, B & C at 5 minute intervals. This is to allow for a steady flow of boats for the mile or so in the harbour and then out through the Town Cut. Even two or three abreast yahcts all made it out of the harbour safely and were soon out into the Atlantic Ocean leaving the turqouise waters of Bermuda behind.
The light south westerly winds were just enough to keep the boats moving and are forecast to fill in over the next few days giving the yachts a good begining to their 1800 mile passage to the Azores.
36 ARC Europe boats sailed out from Bermuda, however Gozwoz were delayed and hoping to be just a few hours behind the fleet and Intrepid Elk delayed until the weekend. In their Outremer 51 they too hope to catch up the fleet and join us in the Azores to see the islands.
Everyone has really enjoyed their time in Bermuda finding it quite a unique place and a great destination to visit during their Atlantic Crossing. Ahead of them lay the Portuguese islands of the Azores, which is another isolated destination best visited by yacht. A small ETA competition was set up to see when boats think they might make landfall in the Azores. With guesses ranging from 10 to 16 days we shall see who is closest to the mark when they arrive.
Safe sailing and best wishes from everyone in Bermuda, enjoy the Atlantic.