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24/11/2019

Saoirse - The Saoirse Diaries -11- Morabeza

Cape Verde was a whirlwind, a fantastic, colourful, lively, and heartwarming few days.Mindelo, an unexpectedly pretty city, with some beautifully maintained old colonial buildings took us by surprise.It was edgy, artsy and relaxed.A sort of gritty Afro Caribbean vibe.Wolf and I took a walk around the first day and were struck by the warmth and friendliness of the people.Everyone had time for us.Morabeza, the essence of Cabo Verde culture.The notion that everyone is welcome.We were not hounded by people looking for money or trying to sell us something, and despite the obvious poverty all around us people were smiling.Those great broad smiles that reveal the beauty in a heart.One of my most favourite parts of our stay in the Cabo Verde’s was the gathering by drum.We heard them practicing. read more...


Saoirse - The Saoirse Diaries -11- Morabeza
Saoirse - The Saoirse Diaries -11- Morabeza
Mareas - Mareas Team
Mareas - Mareas Team
24/11/2019

Cadences - Energiemanagment // Energy Management

Die meisten Segler dürften schon von "normalen" Törns wissen, daß Strom an Bord ein heikles Thema ist - und die Batteriekapazität eigentlich immer etwas zu knapp bemessen ist. Wenn man nach ein oder zwei Tagen wieder am Landstrom hängt, ist das kein wirklich großes Problem, aber für zwei bis drei Wochen auf dem Atlantik muß man sich ein paar mehr Gedanken dazu machen. Als ich die "Cadences" vor einem Jahr gekauft habe, dachte ich: "Prima, das Boot hat eine Brennstoffzelle, Problem gelöst". Das hat sich dann schnell als Irrtum herausgestellt ... PROBLEM #01Der Stromverbrauch ist zu hoch ... Nur ein kleiner Auszug aus meiner Verbrauchserfassung zeigt das deutlich. 72 AH Kartenplotter (24h x 3 A)72 AH Sonstige Elektronik (UKW-Funk, GPS, Log/Lot, Beleuchtung: 24h x 3 A)96 Ah Autopilot Furuno. read more...


24/11/2019

Salamander - Day 1. We’re off!

Hello Salamander Nation!After some final preparations while on the pontoon, including buttoning down the boat, we’re happy to be off. We took the opportunity to practice some sail maneuvers as a team while waiting for our start time. As it approached, we were in a great position and crossed the line nicely at the gun.  Captain Chris had a sighting of his son who is captaining one of the racing boats, Scarlet Oyster. Chances are we will not see that crew again until we reach St. Lucia.Now underway. It’s quite a sight to see the rest of the fleet under sail.   Everyone is working well together and enjoying our first day as we sail south along the coast of Grand Canary.   Kay and Tim IMG_0126. read more...


24/11/2019

Amari - Pics for day 3

Sent from Iridium Mail & Web.5e6f02e7-2743-46a4-ad8d-a1fe982334266936649349288811501. read more...


Amari - Pics for day 3
Amari - Pics for day 3
24/11/2019

Amari - Day 3: Champagne Sailing and Squiddy Redemption

Today’s weather has been ideal and idyllic. A gentle 16 -19 knots easing in over our stern quarter with very low seas, sunshine warming my pale chicken legs, and sails set on the poles and preventers so my job is simply to enjoy the ride. Nice.As we warmed ourselves on the aft deck in the sun, sharing a glass of white wine, we understood why they call this Champagne sailing. I know, we should all be on dry boats for passage, so I guess what we had was “white not-wine”, wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more! The entire moment was made that much sweeter because we had successfully replaced the Tri-Light switch just this morning, through the bathroom ceiling. Somehow, and this remains a complete mystery to me, it happened without either discovering or causing three more problems that couldn’t. read more...


Mareas - Ready Set ......and waiting for GO!
Mareas - Ready Set ......and waiting for GO!
24/11/2019

Zan - Settling in nicely

Well after a speedy departure from Cape Verde Zan is now getting into a groove sailing under spinnaker , we are into our 4th day out and 2nd night sailing under the new white sail pulling us along at somewhere between 6 and 8 knots. All are happy on board and well fed- prawn curry from Paul tonight, The Radio net is going well with around15 boats participating ; lots of talk about sail plans and the relative size of our spinnakers but no bragging about fish caught yet.Martin, Paul, Dan and Peter.. read more...


24/11/2019

Idefix - day 0: Resting before departure

Saturday 23th, Day minus 1. Everything is supposed to be ready and today was supposed to be a resting day to hangout with friends...In real world: final cleaning, police and Arc clearance, get code0 back from shop, waiting for Sylvie suitcase (lost during flight), adjust code0... doesn't work, will need to go up the mast tomorrow.Get the dingy back in, set up and verify email, talk to family, check out children situation, final food check and pack, etc.Probably the most exhausting day of the last two weeks.It is really time to go!. read more...


23/11/2019

Y Knot I - Opening ceremony

Laurence, proudly representing Canada at the opening ceremonyIMG_2423. read more...


Y Knot I - Opening ceremony
Y Knot I - Opening ceremony
Fish Pie - Pre-Rally trials
Fish Pie - Pre-Rally trials
Fish Pie - Pre-Rally trials
Fish Pie - Pre-Rally trials
Fish Pie - Festive Flag Friday
Fish Pie - Festive Flag Friday
Fish Pie - Festive Flag Friday
Fish Pie - Festive Flag Friday
Fish Pie - Provisions stowed!
Fish Pie - Provisions stowed!
23/11/2019

Mareas - Important Provisioning Completed

Come and get it! Ready to Share. image0. image1.. read more...


Mareas - Important Provisioning Completed
Mareas - Important Provisioning Completed
Mareas - Important Provisioning Completed
Mareas - Important Provisioning Completed
Salamander - The Three Amigos: Kevin, Jimmy and Tim at Casa de Colon
Salamander - The Three Amigos: Kevin, Jimmy and Tim at Casa de Colon
23/11/2019

Agua Dulce - Agua Dulce Pre-Departure Day

We are just about as ready as we will ever be. We’ve been cleaning and doing laundry, touching up caulking, lashing the drogue and parachute anchor to the deck, and stowing all loose items. We’ve put new 80lb test line on our fishing rod, and I’m determined we will not be skunked this time across the Atlantic! We’ve received deliveries from the butcher, the produce stall at the market, and the supermarket. We have fruit hanging from nets in the main saloon and have stowed all the provisions. For the next three weeks, instead of going to the market, I’ll just go to the port side cabin lockers to get fresh eggs, milk, snacks - you name it, we’ve probably got it. We’ve reviewed emergency procedures and checked our pfd life jackets to make sure everything is in working order. We’ve planned. read more...


Agua Dulce - Agua Dulce Pre-Departure Day
Agua Dulce - Agua Dulce Pre-Departure Day
23/11/2019

Moin Moin von der Meltemi

Vielleicht interessiert es ja den einen oder die andere. Wir, das sind Beate als Skipperin, Dye als Schassi (Assistent der Schiffsführung), Achim, Holger, Klaus-Dieter, Thomas, der Marcel und Wolfgang als Crew, haben uns zusammengefunden, um in diesem Jahr die SY Meltemi über den Atlantik zu bringen. Mit der ARC 2019.Unser Schiff ist eine Beneteau Oceanis 54, Baujahr 2010, unseres Vereins DHH, Deutscher Hochseesportverband Hansa e. V., in dem wir selbstverständlich alle Mitglied sind (und auch schon bei einigen anderen interessanten Törns dabei waren). Länge knapp 17 m, Breite knapp 5 m, Tiefgang 2,35 m, Motor von Yanmar (neu!), 108 PS.Eigentlich wollten wir ja über die Kapverden in die Karibik segeln. Aber dann kam ein defektes Ruderblatt dazwischen, und wir mußten alle umdisponieren.. read more...


23/11/2019

Sam - TheFinalCountdown

Crew all prepared and raring to go...Follow our great adventure here.. read more...


23/11/2019

Mabetica - SMS from [email protected]

23.11.2019 - Leg 2/Day 3 - wonderful downwind-sailing since yesterday afternoon - weather is fine and the crew is fine :) Bettina. read more...


Amari - Pic for Day2
Amari - Pic for Day2
23/11/2019

Amari - Day 2

Weather weirdness. The temps are warming as we nudge off the African coast and head West. Not sure why it’s bucking the whole north=cold south=warm thing. I’m SO not complaining though, having gone from fuzzy jams and long sleeves to bathing trunks and a Soggy Dollar t-shirt. Where’s my pain killer?!?!The winds are perfect, at 15-18 kts from our stern quarter. We have the ginny poled out to starboard and every inch of our main out to port. This it toally a set-it-and-forget-it sail for the next 1816 miles!Fortunately (sarcasm alert), the dang tri-light on top of the mast, which we turn on at night to make us visible to others so we won’t get plowed over by passing Russian tankers or whatever … no longer works. Great.We’re pretty sure it’s not the bulb, but instead the stupid switch in. read more...


23/11/2019

Cadences - Finding the "perfect" sail-Set for sailing in the trade winds?

Sailing in the trade winds - all I knew before, this should be a dreamful and simple experience: Leaving the harbour, putting up two genoas/headsails, one to port and one to starboard. Attach the tiller in the middle of the boat (or: switch on the auto-pilot, tomorrow more about this!) and: relax! Two or three weeks later, after reaching the other side of the atlantic, just get the sails down again. Smile and be happy! For us, this seems to be a bit different. We are still trying to figure out the "best" configuration. A compromise, between relaxing and "active sailing". You want to know a little bit more? First of all, "Cadences" doesn't have a "double forestay" and only one genoa and one spinnaker pole. But we have a cutter rigg, so a second (smaller) headsail for heavier winds. This. read more...


23/11/2019

Cadences - Optimale Besegelung im Passatwind?

Segeln im Passatwind - nach allem, was ich vorher gelesen habe, eigentlich ein Traum. Und ganz einfach: Ablegen, zwei Vorsegel hochziehen, jeweils eines nach Backbord und eines nach Steuerbord ausbaumen, die Pinne mittschiffs festlaschen - und zwei oder drei Wochen später die Segel wieder runternehmen, wenn man auf der anderen Seite des Atlantiks angekommen ist. Entspannung pur und nix zu tun für mehrere Tage.Bei uns scheint das irgendwie anders zu laufen, wir sind immer noch am experimentieren. Oder am "aktiven Segeln", je nachdem, welche Sichtweise man bevorzugt. Warum das (zumindest bei uns) nicht ganz so einfach ist? Zum einen hat die "Cadences" kein doppeltes Vorstag und zwei gleich große Vorsegel, so daß diese eigentlich optimale Variante mit zwei gleich großen Vorsegeln schon mal. read more...


Salamander - Tim and Kevin in the Mountains
Salamander - Tim and Kevin in the Mountains
Salamander - Famous Dogs of the Canary Islands in Old Town
Salamander - Famous Dogs of the Canary Islands in Old Town
Salamander - Salamander in Las Palmas Harbor
Salamander - Salamander in Las Palmas Harbor
23/11/2019

Salamander - Pre Departure on Gran Canaria

Hello Salamander Nation,Departure day is fast approaching! Hailing from the U.S., the U.K., and France, our crew is excited to learn about our future home at sea.  We’ve been busy learning about Salamander’s layout, our communication system and the safety measures in place.  The seminars have been excellent and were capped Thursday with a demonstration of a helicopter rescue at sea.    We are getting to know each other while still on land, with crew sundowners, and dinners.  We have also explored beautiful volcanic mountains and the coastline of Gran Canaria. Fittingly, we took time to visit Casa de Colon, where Christopher Columbus once stayed and in whose wake we will soon be following as we cross the Atlantic.  We learned. read more...


Salamander - Pre Departure on Gran Canaria
Salamander - Pre Departure on Gran Canaria
22/11/2019

Layla - Fleet Sailing :-) 22 Nov 19

The loneliness and simplicity of our leg 1has been replaced with a more interesting environment but one that requires a lot more vigilance. It was great to hear the VHF active and with a few maneuvers around slower boats needed, it kept us all occupied in the small hours.Today after yesterdays hectic turnaround and the excitement of the start and first night we have all realised that we did not get quite enough sleep. We are now settling into the new 4 person rota with the usual "when do I" questions flowing freely.Today we have tested our sail plan, one that can be changed easily even at night.... as I write I can smell dinner being prepared in the galley (with some head scratching over the recipe) and we are looking forward to smooth and relatively quick nightLayla out.. read more...


22/11/2019

Zan - Cracking start from Cape Verde

After 5 days of R and R in Mindelo team Zan are back at sea heading for Saint Lucia. We could not have had a better start and led the fleet away from the islands in 20 knots of wind. The Saint Vincent fleet started 30 minutes before us and it wasn’t long before we were overhauling boats. By the following morning we led the multihull division and second boat on the water. We put our good progress down to favourable winds, not bad navigation and the power of a good supper, last night chilli by Peterand tonight Dan’s delicious chicken surprise. Our sail plan is constantly changing but tonight we are sailing under spinnaker at 8 knots heading West. Here’s to a speedy passage.Martin, Paul, Dan and Peter. read more...


Zan - Zan and Martin making a fast exit from Mindelo
Zan - Zan and Martin making a fast exit from Mindelo
22/11/2019

Albatros - DAY 0 - Vorfreude !!!

9 Männer, 8 Schüttelbrote, 7kg Hirsch, 6kg Schokolade, 5 Zahnbürsten, 4 Wachgruppen, 3kg Speck, 2 Piloten, eine Frau und unzählige Witze. Albatros ist bereit für die Atlantik-Überquerung. Für Manfred Kerstan (Skipper) ist es die 25. ARC-Teilnahme. 1986 segelte er das erste Mal die Rally und siegte bei 5 Regatten in seiner Klasse. Die Vorfreude ist bei allen riesengross!. read more...


22/11/2019

Oyster Moon - News from Oyster Moon: Day 2 - Cape Verde to St Lucia

News from Oyster Moon:Day 2 - Cape Verde to St Lucia Fishing Success!We decided to head in a Southerly direction overnight to avoid the dead wind zones of the islands and to reach a latitudinal line forecast with the best winds over the next week.Many of the fleet turned Westwards before dark, so we woke up with dampened spirits at the rear of the fleet.Jess was also sick. A magnificent this sunrise, followed by our first fish catch of blue fin tuna (just a small one) has improved the general mood on board.Now to cook a fish supper!. read more...


21/11/2019

Sweet Dream - Monday November 18, 2019

Today we had signed up for a boat cruise with lunch included. One thing about SA, you always get more than your money’s worth! We had a fabulous boat cruise with lots of entertaining hippos, a crocodile, and perfect weather. Then we did the Elton John thing called the crocodile walk...then a jeep safari where we were bedazzled by zebras, kudus, impalas, red dikkers, nyalas, water buffalo, white rhinos, and even an Aussie Bear! Lunch was at a campground, dodging monkeys, eating flame grilled “steak”( it was delicious!), baked beans, bread, fizzy fruit drinks and utterly delightful to all of us crunchy-green-thing deprived sailors; iceberg lettuce salad with cubes and tomatoes.We arrived back at the boat at 18:00, tired and happy. image1.. read more...


Sweet Dream - Monday November 18, 2019
Sweet Dream - Monday November 18, 2019
22/11/2019

Oyster Moon - News from Oyster Moon: Day 1 - Cape Verde to St Lucia

Day 1: Last minute repairs!We have learnt over the past few months that even though we make our best efforts to be prepared on departure days, there is usually something that doesn’t go to plan.Cape Verde was no exception to this.High winds and a full capacity marina placed a great deal of pressure on the pontoons, which were only chained to the seabed inseveral places.Unfortunately, we had been pinned between two larger boats at the far end of the pontoon.The immense amount of pressure placed on our ropes resulted in one of our fairleads being ripped off!As the rest of the ARC+ Rally fleet set out, our repairs were still underway.Starting behind the fleet we rushed out the marina trying to keep up.We then had bide our time until we’d passed the acceleration zone before setting up our. read more...


21/11/2019

Sweet Dream - Tuesday November 19, 2019

04:45 we boarded the bus for our big five safari. Out past the eucalyptus trees growing for paper pulp, past the rondel houses inhabited by the elders who don’t want to give a snake or an evil spirit a corner to hide in, on to the game reserve. Here we had a rest stop before boarding the safari JeepsEek! Big black scorpions and giant fuzzy beetles inhabiting the facilities. Turns out we hit SA in the midst of the most rain in 12 years; subsequently, the bugs are all being washed into places they don’t usually come. We met Nathan, our guide, and had a wonderful day bouncing along the bush roads spotting wildlife. At the second rest stop, a giant wolf spider sat down beside me in the jeep! Oy vey! THIS is why I don’t do safaris! But the animals WERE amazing. We even spotted a giraffe! We. read more...


Sweet Dream - Tuesday November 19, 2019
Sweet Dream - Tuesday November 19, 2019
21/11/2019

Sweet Dream - Sunday November 17, 2019

We spent the morning defrosting the refrigerator and freezer. Oh what a joy to have dock power! The galley was gone over in fine detail, little projects were accomplished on the exterior. At 17:00 we went to the Charm School program with the talented youngsters from Niobe and Charm reciting poetry, singing songs, sharing nature reports, doing gymnastics, and even serenading us with great flute tunage! Just as the kids program wrapped up, Footloose came in escorted by the Richard’s Bay rescue boat! The entire party moved to the dock. What fun to help another of our fleet land! After the Footloose landing we had the first ever production of the WARC players doing a skit spoofing our SSB radio net. Really fun times! image1.. read more...


Sweet Dream - Sunday November 17, 2019
Sweet Dream - Sunday November 17, 2019
21/11/2019

Sweet Dream - Wednesday November 20, 2019

Mad day of scrubbing and tidying and stashing stuff out of the way. Nothing like company coming to get the boat in shape. The guys from the yacht club waxed the outside, so our girl is looking fine for family coming to visit on Friday! We had a wonderful show, supper of ostrich, and prizegiving. The best prize of the night was to Chao Lay for sailing the most number of miles on this leg of the journey. We are so happy to have them here. Babsea arrived as well, and Helmut only stayed one night before taking off south. Now that we are in free cruising status, the fleet is spreading out for awhile. We are focusing on projects and adventures, and there is no shortage of either one!image1.. read more...


Sweet Dream - Wednesday November 20, 2019
Sweet Dream - Wednesday November 20, 2019