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Cassiopée W - Log for 12 March 2019 - The Tradewinds
Cassiopée W - Log for 12 March 2019 - The Tradewinds
13/03/2019

Charm - Marquesas - Day 7

The banana bread is gone.The bread, the moment, all of it.The adventure is back in the form of a squall that won’t leave.The day was great.The waves finally calmed enough that we could go on the foredeck and do our PE activities.Cobin and I resumed our boat volleyball.He complained about the unstable footing and risk of falling through the trampoline.I tried to convince him that playing on a trampoline with rolling waves was good for his balance and would make him a better player.But it turns out that kids don’t care that much about their future selves.We had a medium amount of fun anyway.Sunil and John are good sports and are cooperating with my “experiment” to prove to the kids that if they do something for 5-10 minutes a day, they will improve.So we are all learning to floss (the. read more...


Charm - Marquesas - Day 7
Charm - Marquesas - Day 7
12/03/2019

Tintin - A third of the way across

We have just celebrated reaching 1000 miles out, and 2000 to go! Tintinis crossing just north of the Bauer Basin of the central easternPacific ocean, where the water is around 3800 metres deep.At times it can feel a bit remote here, especially in the dark. Butother boats are not far away. On the daily radio net we share ourlatitude and longitude so we can soon see who is close. Today we havechatted to the crews of Cabana and Casiopee who are both within VHFrange. It is so reassuring to hear them. The fleet has spread out asusual but there is quite a group within a 100m mile range of us. Thatdoesn't seem very far out here!The "miles to go screen" on our GPS, attached by the wheel, isprompting us to reminisce as we go...Rob "Jo, we have just sailed through our married life!" (We are at. read more...


12/03/2019

Misto - March 10-12 2019: Misto crosses the equator - again!

On March 12 2019 at 00h23 Misto crossed the equator from South to North. It brought back happy memories of our first equator transit in the Pacific with Chuck and Sharon on board in early 2016 - it seems like a long time ago! We celebrated with a small glass of Amarula, as conditions really did not allow for much more.Talking of conditions, they have been pretty abysmal for the last couple of days.With the wind at around 60 degrees apparent, blowing 17-20 knots most of the time and really lumpy and confused seas, it has made the motion in a catamaran reminiscent of being shaken (and not stirred) like a martini.The current has been really favorable and, even with 2 reefs in the main, we are sailing at 8-10 knots much of the time.In fact we just had a 212 nm 24 hour day.Squalls have been. read more...


12/03/2019

Danica I - Log Day 6 - We crossed 1000 NM mark today

Log Day 6 - Tuesday, March 12, 2019 - Zooming through the High Seas - made our first 1000 NMAfternoon Report - Monday- 12:00- 18:00o Wind: 17-19 knots -SE - sailing 8-9 knotso Sails: Main-1R/Genoa-1Ro 2-3 m waves from the East making the voyage very bumpy and uncomfortableo OvercastNight Watch - 18:00 - 06:00o Trade Wind: 19-22 knotso Sails: Main-1R/Genoa-1Ro One lonely Red Footed Boobie hitched a midnight ride on Danica - Captain approvedMorning report- Tuesday - 06:00-12:00o Winds:20 knots - sailing 9 knotso Very bumpy sailing- 2 m+ choppy seas with an occasional mega waveo Overcast/ few fish on the trampoline o 12:00 winds dropping to 13-15 knotso Sails: Main R1/ Genoa - fullo 12:00 - Distance measured by SOW - 1046 NM (205 NM - day 6) Danica's Best Time. read more...


12/03/2019

Timshel - Brazil to Grenada Day 5

Good winds, current and progress.Reefed in a bit more main before dark, later reefed yankee when wind got up with rain.Timshel crossed the equator again at 0315, going from South Atlantic to North Atlantic. Celebrated with with hot chocolate (the Brazilian blend just opened is quite good) and chocolate - tossed some over for Neptune too.However black dark in the middle of the night so no dressing up this time.Some squalls, wind still coming and going, stopped to deploy shark (towed charger) and to renew anchor lashings.. read more...


12/03/2019

Charm - Marquesas - Day 6

Another night, another blog entry!Tonight was poetry night on Charm and I was inspired by one of my favorite poets, Billy Collins, to think about the juxtaposition of me, the writer, and you, my Reader.We are probably both fixated on bright little screens at the moment.For your sake, I hope yours is far larger than mine.And that yours isn’t so bright that it is killing your night vision so you can’t see anything beyond the instrument panel in front of you.Conveniently, we probably both have the same lack of concern about ships on the horizon since I’m going to make a reasonable assumption that you, like me, are not in a shipping lane nor are you particularly worried about other boats of any kind appearing in the middle of the Pacific.Neither of us is greatly preoccupied by fishermen or. read more...


Charm - Marquesas - Day 6
Charm - Marquesas - Day 6
11/03/2019

Tintin - Steady progress

Tintin is making great progress at the moment. The winds have stayedwith us, 18-22 knots on the beam. We have the mainsail and the genoa upand the boat is moving along with a great sense of purpose.With slightly lighter winds yesterday we hoisted the cruising chute,our large blue foresail, and went flying along. It was a bit too muchfor Wendy to cope with so we hand steered - which was fun but prettytiring. With the moderate sea state waves of 2-3 metres height arearriving at our port quarter and nudging the bow up into the wind. Itall gets more exciting then as the apparent wind increases and the boatheels more. For a more relaxed night we switched to the electrically drivenautohelm, which steers according to a compass bearing rather thanrelative to the wind direction (which is what. read more...


11/03/2019

Danica I - Log day 5- More Sporty sailing reached Danica's Best Time of 204 NM

Log Day 5 - Monday, March 11, 2019 - Sporty Sailing in high seasAfternoon Report - Sunday- 12:00- 18:00o Wind: 15-19 knots -SE - sailing 8-9 knotso Sails: Main one reef and Genoa - Fullo 2-3 m waves from the East making the voyage very bumpy and uncomfortableo Overcast, occasional drizzle - gray dayNight Watch - 18:00 - 06:00o Trade Wind: 19-23 knotso Sails: Main-1R/Genoa-1RMorning report- Monday - 06:00-12:00o Winds:20 knots - sailing 9 knotso Very bumpy sailing- 2 m+ choppy seas with an occasional mega waveo Sunny morning/ few fish on the trampoline /making watero 12:00 - Distance measured by SOW - 841 NM (204 NM - day 5) Danica's Best Time. read more...


11/03/2019

Timshel - Brazil to Grenada day 4

No wind so we continued motoring, a couple of times we saw cloud and rain approaching and got sails ready, but there was no wind with it.Motorsailed when we could and wondered if we should chase after squalls?Fortunately we have the favourable current, it must be very difficult to do this trip in the opposite direction.Towards midnight we got a heavy rain shower of biblical proportions, tried to set headsails but wind was so inconsistent in strength and direction, no visibility either.It stopped in time for Steve's watch and we then got reasonable wind from the NE and we have been sailing well on a close reach ever since.Must work out when we are due to cross the equator?There has been some shipping and a few brightly lit fishing boats but nothing close.. read more...


11/03/2019

Charm - Marquesas Day 5

Today started with an absence of water and ended with sugar.We've had good wind for several days but that has also brought larger seas.Joe was having trouble with the water maker pressure, possibly because of the constant up and down movement of the boat which wasn't allowing the water maker to have a steady intake from the sea.Whatever the cause, we were unable to make water for more than about 5 minutes at a time.Before we left, Joe suggested that we should try to only use one tank at a time and then refill the other.That way, we would always have enough water on board to get us to the Marquesas if the water maker failed.This was a great plan except somewhere along the way, it got abandoned.Last night, Joe suggested we watch our water usage and this morning, I used the dregs to clean. read more...


Charm - Marquesas Day 5
Charm - Marquesas Day 5
Charm: Crew of John and Sunil
Charm: Crew of John and Sunil
Charm - Marquesas Day 4
Charm - Marquesas Day 4
11/03/2019

Charm - Marquesas Day 4

Photo is fish from yesterday - forgot to send.We are starting to enter that blurry phase when the days blend and it seems like we have always been and will always be, on a boat in the Pacific Ocean. I'm getting a full night's sleep and I'm still tired most of the time.We have had "confused seas" for the past however many days.I don't exactly know what the seas are confused about but it makes me tired.We didn't catch any fish today or find any sea life in our beds (at least not any that anyone is willing to talk about) and boat life is pretty good.I made zucchini bread and cracked open a watermelon- it sounded just like the spinnaker shredding so now I have another analogy ready to go.Our produce is holding up well and the meal plan is going according to schedule.The only snafu is the. read more...


Charm: Marquesas Day 4
Charm: Marquesas Day 4
11/03/2019

Charm - Marquesas Day 3 - Death and Destruction

It was an interesting day!If you look at our track, you can probably see some nice, straight lines and crisp turns when we had wind and then, around 4 to 10 pm, more meandering s-curves with a defined c where our spinnaker lost a battle with a small but fierce squall.We were in the middle of a calm patch of wind but confused seas and the spinnaker was difficult to manage.I heard John tell Sunil, "Well, now you have plenty of wind" and then I heard flapping and the winch spinning and saw John on the trampoline, gathering in piles of yellow sail that was trailing in the water.I ran to wake up Joe and, well, we picked up the pieces and pulled out the gennaker.Conveniently, after that point, the wind shifted forward so we wouldn't have been able to use our spinnaker anyway.But we will miss. read more...


Charm - Marquesas Day 3 - Death and Destruction
Charm - Marquesas Day 3 - Death and Destruction
11/03/2019

Charm - Marquesas crossing - Day 2

My watch just ended with a sail change so just a quick note and then off to bed.Another nice day with decent winds and reasonable seas.Tonight has been a bit bouncier with variable winds so we dropped the spin Amy and put up the gen baker.Still doing about 8.5 knots with 13-18 knots of wind.Waves are picking up but it's still in the mostly comfortable range.Cobin made yogurt from a store-bought yogurt with live culture and was very pleased with the results.He doesn't like yogurt but tried it and decided he would eat it again, especially with sugar and vanilla.The girls were resistant to the restart of Charm School but eventually did the bare minimum so they could immerse themselves in their pretend play that involves mothers, babies and royalty with skirts, scarves and wigs thrown in for. read more...


11/03/2019

Charm - Marquesas crossing - Day 1

Greetings Charm fans (both electric and conventional).We have begun what will be our longest sea passage on our circumnavigation with the World ARC.It is just under 3,000 miles to Hiva Oa in the Marquesas island chain and we have 2,872 left to go.Oops - the wind shifted a bit and I let a curl in the spinnaker become a fold which made the sheet-line go slack which made an awful flappy noise which woke Joe and gave him valid cause for concern.I guess writing while driving a boat is also a bad idea.For those of us that actually enjoy sailing in ideal conditions rather than conditions that make us stronger, today was, and continues to be, very pleasant.We had a great start - first across the line again due to Joe's great guidance and the rest of the team's (me, Sunil and John) ability to. read more...


Charm - Marquesas crossing - Day 1
Charm - Marquesas crossing - Day 1
Charm - Marquesas crossing - Day 1
Charm - Marquesas crossing - Day 1
Charm: Crew of John and Sunil
Charm: Crew of John and Sunil
11/03/2019

Charm - Marquesas Day 4

Photo is fish from yesterday - forgot to send.We are starting to enter that blurry phase when the days blend and it seems like we have always been and will always be, on a boat in the Pacific Ocean. I’m getting a full night’s sleep and I’m still tired most of the time.  We have had “confused seas” for the past however many days.  I don’t exactly know what the seas are confused about but it makes me tired.We didn’t catch any fish today or find any sea life in our beds (at least not any that anyone is willing to talk about) and boat life is pretty good.I made zucchini bread and cracked open a watermelon- it sounded just like the spinnaker shredding so now I have another analogy ready to go.Our produce is holding up well and the meal plan is going according to schedule.  The. read more...


11/03/2019

Endo 2 - 11. März 2019

Nachdem die letzten 2 Nächte sehr dunkel waren, ich hatte das Gefühl ins Nichts zu segeln, war es letzte Nacht richtig gut. Ich konnte sogar für eine kurze Zeit den Mond sehen und die ganze Nacht den Horizont. Gleich fühlte ich mich nicht so angespannt.In der Nacht leuchtete der Ozean geheimnisvoll - als wenn ab und zu unter Wasser Taschenlampen angeschaltet werden. Dieses Leuchten ist nur ganz kurz und bis zu 30 m vom Boot entfernt - Meeresleuchten -ein Phänomen.Ansonsten geht es uns gut und wir hoffen endlich den Wind nach Polynesien gefunden zu haben. Allerdings ist es längst nicht so sonnig wie erwartet? oder erhofft?, denn gestern war es den ganzen Tag über grau und regnerisch. Nun, bei 28 Grad ist auszuhalten, doch nicht besonders angenehm. Außerdem herrscht eine hohe. read more...


11/03/2019

Danica I - Day 4- Sportsy Sailing in Trade winds

Log Day 4 - Sunday, March 10, 2019 - Sporty Sailing in Trade Winds and High wavesAfternoon Report - Saturday- 12:00- 18:00o Wind: 15-19 knots -SE - sailing 8-9 knotso Sails: Main one reef and Genoao 2-3 m waves from the East making the voyage very bumpy and uncomfortableo Overcast, occasional drizzle - gray dayNight Watch - 18:00 - 06:00o Trade Wind: 17- 19 knotso No sail changesMorning report- Sunday - 06:00-12:00o Winds:13-16 knots - sailing 8 knotso Partially cloudy skies o 12:00 - Distance measured by SOW -637 NM (195NM - day 4). read more...


10/03/2019

Endo 2 - Auf dem Weg nach French Polynesien

Galapagos liegt nun bereits hinter uns. Da wir nur die Erlaubnis für 3 Inseln hatten, haben wir natürlich eine Vielzahl gar nicht gesehen. Dorthin gelangt man nur mit organisierten Touren und diese sind nicht gerade günstig zu nennen. Die Inseln sind natürlich das reinste Taucherparadies, für alle anderen bleiben nur die Schnorchelerlebnisse und das Wandern.Nun sind wir also auf dem Weg nach Hiva Oa - French Polynesien. Der Weg ist mit fast 3000 Meilen eine lange Strecke. Heute haben wir die 4. Nacht zu fassen --- es werden noch viele folgen, ganz sicher! Wir hoffen Ende März auf Hiva Oa einzutreffen, kurz vor Deadline. Noch sind wir auf der Suche nach dem richtigen Wind. Dieser ist leider noch nicht stetig und auch die Wellen hatte ich mir nicht so kappelig vorgestellt. Doch nun gibt es. read more...


10/03/2019

Timshel - Brazil to Grenada day 3

Good sailing overnight, we gybed then got a wind shift to NE then E so found ourselves fast reaching with 15-20 kts of wind and maybe 2 knots favourable current so 7-8 knots or more over the ground, but by morning back to SE so going wing and wing then unfortunately it died away completely.So we are motoring just now but still have at least 2 knots current to help us along.Apparently (as discussed over SSB) the YB tracking system has gone wrong so the position reports are not accurate just now.Hopefully they will fix it soon.. read more...


10/03/2019

Misto - March 8-9 2019 On the way to Grenada

We departed Cabadelo at 17h00 on March 7 after receiving our clearances and waiting for slack water at high tide. This meant that by the time we exited the river that it was dark and the wind picked up far beyond its forecast level to over 20 knots. That has been the trend for the last two days - the wind has been much higher than forecast and the direction more southerly.We expected some squalls but last night we ended up in a really vicious one packing a punch of 42 knots.Luckily we had brought the gennaker down for an earlier squall, but were lulled into thinking that the wind would not be too strong and so left all our main sail up.So when the big one hit we ran off for a while, but with increasing wind decided to put in two reefs - just before the really high wind came through.Not. read more...


09/03/2019

Cassiopée W - Log for 08 March 2019 - 3rd Night at Sea

March 08 - 3è nuit à bord....Le dernier douze heure a été bien mouvementé à bord de Cassiopée. Les vents n’étaient jamais assez fort ou constants pour pouvoir ajuster les voiles et laisser le bateau faire le reste du travail. Le courant, la houle et les vagues refusaient de collaborer et nous bombardaient de toutes directions rendant le mouvement du bateau inconfortable et projetant une partie du souper sur le plancher. En bref il nous a été impossible de trouver la bonne combinaison de voiles même après mille et un essais. Toute la journée a été passée à essayer des modèles mais rien ne fonctionnait. Nous allions toujours dans la mauvaise direction ou bien le manque de vent faisait claquer les voiles si fort que la résultante aurait puendommager le gréement ou les voiles. En dernier. read more...


09/03/2019

Tintin - Back in the Doldrums

We knew it was too good to last!The lovely breeze from yesterday has died and left us with aslightly confused sea, leaden grey skies, grey sea and intermitentrain. After an unsettled night of sail changes/engine on/engine off weare feeling a bit in the doldrums today. Tintin is motoring along andblending well into the greyness. A painted ship upon a painted ocean. But there is good news; boats further south and west are reportingconstant SE breezes of 10-15 knots: the SE trades. They seem to bestarting from 5.5 degrees south; we have about 40 miles to go. Asweepstake has been set for arrival time.I can see no boats on our limited horizon, but Tumi is about 6 milesbehind and we have chats with Paul and Deborah on the VHF radio: haveyou got the found the current yet? how about wind? any. read more...


09/03/2019

Danica I - Day 3-Danica Reached Trade Winds in Pouring Rain

Log Day 3 - Saturday, March 9, 2019 - Danica is Sailing in Trade Winds under cloudy skies and rain" Afternoon Report - Thursday - 12:00- 18:00o 12:30 - Connecting shackle between the Main Sail and the Boom failed - we reefed the Main and will sail like that until calmer seas allow for the repairo 14:30 - Furled Genoa- the winds have dropped - we started motoring" Night Watch - 18:00 - 06:00o Motoring through the squalls o Wind: 5-8 knotso 23:50 - We reached trade winds, turned off the engine and started sailing through the raino Winds: 13-16 knots - sailing 7-8 knots" Morning report- Saturday - 06:00-12:00o Winds:13 knots - sailing 8 knotso Cloudy skies and drizzleo 12:00 - Distance measured by SOW -442 NM (135NM - day 3). read more...


09/03/2019

Timshel - Brazil to Grenada Day 2

Everyone had a great day sailing yesterday - sunshine, good wind from behind 2-3 knots of favourable current.We had dolphins all round the boat just before dinner time.Wind was forecast to go down overnight, but instead we got squalls (guess we are getting to the doldrums), Steve got rather wet and Anita got woken up every time she went for her watch down below, but we reefed the sails in time and avoided damage.Some of the fleet have less spinnakers (or perhaps smaller ones than before), some broken battens and a broken traveller but everyone is OK and sailing on.Some of course took down their coloured sails before dark.Apart from a brief calm early morning (with heavy swell remaining) we have been sailing well winds from 12 to 20 knots, so all good.For a change we are not last in the. read more...


08/03/2019

Danica I - Log Day 2- Happy International Women's Day to all the Ladies in the World ARC

Log Day 2 - Friday, March 8, 2019 - Happy International Women's Day to all the ladies in the World ARC" Afternoon Report - Thursday - 12:00- 18:00o Sails: Full Main and Code 0o Wind: increasing from 13-18 knots - Current of 1.0 to 1.5 knots in our favour - SOW 8 knots" Night Watch - 18:00 - 06:00o 18:00 - Changed sails: Full Main and Genoa - o Wind: 15- 18 knots, current from 0.5 to 1.0 knot, SOW 7knots o Dodging squalls - dozens of flying fish and small squids ended up on Danicao One squid got squashed and she inked our beige cushion in the cockpit for a long-lasting impression " Morning report- Thursday - 06:00-12:00o 08:30 - Winds dropped to 6 knots. We started motoring and making watero Squalls are chasing us, maybe the wind will increase as we are heading straight southo 12:00 -. read more...


08/03/2019

Danica I - Log Day 1- Departure Frenzy

Log Day 1 -Departure Frenzy - Thursday, March 7, 2019 - Pacific Ocean - From Galapagos to French Polynesia" Morning report- Wednesday 06:00 -12:00o Sunny morning with Puerto Ayora anchorage buzzing with water taxis transporting people to the shore and back o Minor meltdown on Danica occurred when I discovered a completely flooded sail locker just before 10:00 am. We were planning to retrieve and raise our second Genoa for the Wing- on -Wing sail configuration in trade windso We are guessing the latch got loose when we put away the spinnaker weeks ago and we ended up bailing out endless buckets of sea water which came through a not fully sealed portal.When Glen was cleaning Danica's bottom in the morning, he noticed that the starboard side was low in the water but he blamed my shoe. read more...


08/03/2019

Tintin - Easing in to the rhythm

We are easing in to the new routine as our body clocks become adjusted.It will take a few days, but it will become a lot easier to hop out ofthe bunk in the wee small hours and present oneself, awake and alert,ready to take over in the cockpit. I'm not quite there yet! I'm struck by how different it felt preparing for this ocean crossingcompared to the Atlantic last November: much more low key. Much of thatmust be because we have come this far already and the boat is doing sowell. And we have Steve with us, brilliant. For me, the Atlantic was myfist ocean crossing and I didn't know how I would find it, so was alittle apprehensive. This time, I think we all felt well prepared and ready to go, off onanother adventure. Added to that, we are due to meet Lizzie, James andBridget in the. read more...


08/03/2019

Timshel - Brazil to Genada Day 1

We crossed the start line at the entrance to Cabadelo at 18.23 last night.Unfortunately the gate start was delayed due to delays getting the customs etc clearance through and of course the time it takes to get all the boats out of the stern to berths at the marina, but it was good of the marina staff to stay late to get us out.So far we have had good sailing on a broad reach then wing and wing and a favourable current.. read more...


08/03/2019

Cassiopée W - Log for March 06, 2019 - 1st night on our way to the Marquesas

06 Mars 2019 -1ère nuit en direction des MarquisesL’anxiété du départ s’est finalement levée. Le vent par contre reste calme et nous voyageons seulement avec un fragment de la grande voile et le spinnaker. À cause d’un courant favorable venant de l’est, le bateau réussit tout de même à atteindre une vitesse moyenne de 8 noeuds. Combien de jours passerons-nous en mer? Est- ce que les vents augmenteront? Quand?Quelle routine sera adoptée à bord? Tellement de questions passent et repassent dans ma tête. Vivre dans le moment présent, mantra qui doit être répété afin d’alléger l’amplitude de ce segment de 2980 mile nautiques. Après le rituel stew du premier soir, nous avons tous les trois pris une minute pour admirer la quantité incroyable d’étoiles dans le ciel. Ce soir, la voie lactée est. read more...


08/03/2019

Tintin - Just how big is the Pacific?

We've had a great day for the first full day out from the Galapagos tothe Marquesas.The wind, which was predicted to go light, has held upquite well, but we did get a chance to run the engine to chargebatteries and make water.The real bonus, however, is the current.Itis adding the best part of 2knots - sometimes more - to our moderatesailing speed to greatly flatter our progress.It all counts!Ourtask, for which we have enlisted the help of my brother Paul, is tofollow a route that maximises the use of the conveyer belt.To give a sense of scale to the Pacific.. Lizzie is currently diving inFiji - about 3/4 the way across the Pacific. We were in the Galapagosislands, 900miles into the ocean.We were still nearer London thanFiji.We've got a lot of sailing to do!. read more...


07/03/2019

Cassiopée W - Delayed Log for Feb 28 2019 - Isla Isabela, Galapagos

Late posting for February 28th 22h30 A few hours ago, we left Santa Isabela for our last destination, Santa Cruz. The four of us agreed that Isabela is the most beautiful island of the Galapagos. Even though the navigation around its bay is very technical with coral heads and reefs hidden through shallow water, its scenery is spectacular. Only the local water taxis are able to navigate through this maze eyes closed, and bring you to shore for a grand total of two dollars. We would have not entered this anchorage by night as eye navigation was the only way to find the right location where to drop the anchor. Our first day on the island was spent familiarizing ourselves with surroundings, walking the streets under the scorching sun. For the second day, we opted for a long walk on a. read more...


07/03/2019

Tintin - Galapagos out of sight

The islands are over 50 miles behind as as dawn is breaking thismorning, and the other boats in the fleet are now beyond our limitedhorizon too. It's us and the Pacific, stretching on in every direction,a sight we will be getting well accustomed to.10 knots of gentle breeze over our left shoulder is pushing us along,and together with around 3 knots of westbound current we aremanaging to make decent progress in the right direction. The strengthof this southern equatorial current is amazing. It stretches in arelatively narrow band with no obvious land formations to guide it, andgives us the bonus of a good walking pace's worth of extra speed.Paul,thank you for advising where to find the best of it.We have started our watch system devised by Steve of 3 hourly shiftsfrom 6pm to midday,. read more...


Misto - Olinda ready for Carnaval
Misto - Olinda ready for Carnaval
07/03/2019

Misto - February 22-March 7 2019: Cabedelo and Carnaval in Recife

Departing Salvador we made our way slowly up the coast to Cabadelo and the Marina at Jacaré Village.The passage was slow and the waters were littered with fishing vessels.They were well lit at night but could appear out of nowhere during the day, sometimes seeming to place themselves to guard their nets that were marked with small bouys. We dallied outside the entrance to the river until daybreak and motored up to the marina where everyone was very welcoming.We had booked a couple of nights in Recife to go to Carnaval there.There was quite a big group going but we booked too late to get into the same hotel and so we had booked a small apartment with Air BNB, just a couple of blocks away.The first day we went to Olinda. The old town is quite delightful and we walked up the narrow, steep. read more...


07/03/2019

Charm - Marquesas crossing - Day 1

Greetings Charm fans (both electric and conventional).We have begun what will be our longest sea passage on our circumnavigation with the World ARC.It is just under 3,000 miles to Hiva Oa in the Marquesas island chain and we have 2,872 left to go.Oops - the wind shifted a bit and I let a curl in the spinnaker become a fold which made the sheet-line go slack which made an awful flappy noise which woke Joe and gave him valid cause for concern.I guess writing while driving a boat is also a bad idea.For those of us that actually enjoy sailing in ideal conditions rather than conditions that make us stronger, today was, and continues to be, very pleasant.We had a great start - first across the line again due to Joe’s great guidance and the rest of the team’s (me, Sunil and John) ability to. read more...


03/03/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 49 March 2, 2019

Another sleepless rolly night ended and we enjoyed coffee and breakfast in the cockpit watching sea lions and turtles. Karen and Dave packed up and we took a water taxi to shore. After a bit of last minute shopping we saw them off to the airport. We went to the grocery market to pick up some fresh stuff, but then Lars found out we would have a couple of hours, so we left the grocery store and went in search of the fresh veggie market. To no avail, no one we enquired of knew where it was. Time was ticking on the fuel delivery, so we just headed back to the boat for lunch and fuel. The rest of the day was spent on more laundry and tidying tasks, while Lars tackled the problem of our fresh water pumps’ inability to get water out of the starboard tank. We were back to the cruising. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 49 March 2, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 49 March 2, 2019
03/03/2019

Sweet Dream - Day 48 March 1, 2019

After a very rolly night at anchor we awoke to a pleasantly windy day.Lars, Dave, and Karen took a land tour to see giant tortoises and crawl through lava tunnels. I organised the rubbish for pick up, did some tidying up on the boat, and after three days of rain, finally accomplished some of the laundry, and enjoyed watching the big sea turtles surfacing between our boat and Nica. In the afternoon we saw a boat go by with Park City, Utah as its home port! In all our years of sailing it is the only other vessel we have seen that shares our home port. In the cool of the evening we walked through town, did a bit of souvenir shopping, ate a delicious meal at Bahia del Mar, and enjoyed the live music and traditional dancing in the square. When we grew weary of slapping at, and stepping on. read more...


Sweet Dream - Day 48 March 1, 2019
Sweet Dream - Day 48 March 1, 2019