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Saoirse - Saoirse Diaries - moonlit finish



We crossed the finish line of leg one to Cape Verde, which lay between a lighthouse and headland, at 21.36 on Friday night November 15th. When we first picked out the lighthouse in the distance it was still daylight. By the time we crossed the line, the sun had long since set and it was pitch black, but for the moonlight. The wind had eased to about 12 knots and the time between the first sighting and finally crossing the line passed beautifully slowly. We really had the perfect conditions for that last stretch, everything quiet but for that most soothing of sounds, wind in the sails and lapping water as Saoirse slowly surfed down the waves. Cuisle and Oisin both sleeping and the rest of us sort of lost in our own thoughts, enjoying the peace and beauty of the moment. On the one hand it was so exciting to be closing on the finish line, we had done it, sailed over 900 nautical miles together through all kinds of weather, yet on the other hand there was a part of each of us that didn’t want to stop. We just wanted to keep sailing.

The moon had been brilliant in the sky for the whole passage making the night watch much more pleasant and rising 45 mins before we crossed the line gave us some much needed night vision. We hadn’t purchased the electronic charts for the Islands as we have the paper one and we figured we were only coming in the once. As it turns out, the paper chart was about as useful as a chocolate fire guard when it came to detail and to keep things really interesting there are absolutely no navigational buoys marking the channel. We’re not in Europe now Toto!! Thankfully there were a couple of boats that finished just in front of us, so we kept our eyes intensely trained on them to try to figure out where on earth we had to go.

When we finally made it to the pontoon a couple of hours later, having had to wait in line to be called in, we were met by two yellow shirts (the champions on the ground for the ARC plus) who greeted us with big smiles, helped us with the lines and most importantly pointed out the floating bar at the end of the pontoon with free wifi and cold beer!! There isn’t much that beats the taste of your first cold beer after a 5 day passage I can tell you.
Once we had seen to the basics, getting rid of the rubbish, securing the lines, we sat in the cockpit for a couple hours enjoying a few beers and soaking up the atmosphere as more and more boats came in and the marina started to fill up. Although after midnight the air was warm, and despite being tired from the passage none of us wanted to head down below to end the day. The beers gave us a happy sleepy little buzz and everything seemed right with the world as we sat there reminiscing about the trip trying to savour every moment of it until eventually we simply couldn’t keep our eyes open any longer and bed was calling.

One could be fooled into thinking that we are still at sea, the floating pontoons here being all connected and fixed only in two places (I think) the boats sway and rock as if still riding the waves. Each time I woke that first night (Oisin ensures that a full nights sleep is an unattainable dream) my first thought was to get up to the cockpit quickly to relieve Wolf until I remembered we had arrived and were in fact securely alongside in the marina. The constant fairly extreme movement should at least ensure those who suffer with seasickness don’t lose their sea legs over the next few days, not to mention it disguises quite how drunk people stumbling home from the floating bar are, which our crew member Mike particularly appreciates!

When we woke the next morning we realised the marina is almost entirely full of ARC boats. It’s an awesome sight to see all the ARC flags flying. The buzz in the air is tangible with the pontoons a hive of activity and increasing by the day. Plenty of boat work underway, from minor to major repairs following equipment failure on the passage down, or changes to the rig, upgrades, improvements not to mention all the cleaning and reorganising that needs to be done. There is no shortage of stories being told and swapped with everyone on a high enjoying the adventure and camaraderie. It’s something special. Something really special and we look forward eagerly to what the next few days ahead will bring.

Saoirse crew out until the next time.

Stay tuned.

By: Aisling Fenix



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