Daily Logs

Cohiba - Dag 4

I natt så vi masse stjerner på himmelen. Det er fint vær og varmt. Vi sitter i shorts og t-shorte. Onkel Mark lagde middag Igår. Det smakte akkurat som gulasj. Veldig godt. Vi har dusjet idag. Det var litt regn før idag, men det gikk bort heldigvis. Tante Cecilie har laget yoghurt igår. Vi fikk en Blue finn Tuna igår, men vi måtte kaste den. -Sander. read more...

Rhapsody - Rhapsody - Day Two: One pole, no fish

The winds have eased to a consistent 17 knots and with it the sea state has settled, making life on board Rhapsody much more comfortable.Mid-morning we raised the mainsail to Reef 1 and we poled out the genoa.We practised poling out the genoa before we left but, as with all things at sea, it was not quite as straightforward doing it for real. The track that the pole comes down the mast on didn’t run smoothly and clearly there is a knack to that particular manoeuvre that we were missing. Terry and Jac battled away valiantly on the foredeck and eventually we managed to get it down.With the pole in position, our next challenge was to unfurl the genoa and grind it in. Another task that proved to be a little tricky due to the angle of the sheet from the pole to the deck. Lines re-run and a. read more...

Cohiba - Dag 3

Idag har John bursdag. Vi feiret med egg og bacon og kake. Tante Cecilie skjærte opp mango og vi spiste nesten opp alt. Det er veldig fint vær med blå himmel og sol. I går laget Chris middag, noe som var veldig godt. Jeg har vært sjøsyk de siste dagene, men det begynner og komme seg, pga sjøsyk tabletter. Vi har seilt mellom 7 - 9 knop. Jeg fikk se en film som jeg hadde lastet ned fra Netflix. Og vurderer og begynne på en bok. Chris og John leser mye. Tante Cecilie hører på lydbok og onkel Mark har gjort mye forskjellig.-Sander. read more...

Ca Canny - Day 2- Still tumbling!

Position: 25:23'58"N 17:51'54"W   Second day at sea and it's a little rockier thanexpected honestly. Last night after I wrote that last post we had to reduce thesails, taking down the foresail entirely and heavily reducing the mainsail, asthe wind was getting a bit too high and we were going a little too fast. Todaythe wind is down a bit but still a decent swell which is making cooking prettyimpossible, it's just been sandwiches until this evening when Charlie managed toget some frozen pizzas in the oven. Smithy has been rather seasick too, which Iforgot to mention yesterday, but this evening he arose for a little while andmanaged some pizza.  Another positive- we saw dolphins! It was very rough atthe time so no pictures sadly (even though I haven't been able to get pictureson. read more...

Rhapsody - Rhapsody Departure Day: Fruity conditions at race start…

Ahoy from the sunny Atlantic where the crew of Rhapsody are slowly remembering what life at sea is like.A mere 24 hours ago we were motoring out of Las Palmas harbour, on our way to race start, and excitedly going through our very serious pre-race routine (discussing how many items of fruit we have budgeted for each day) when all of a sudden disaster struck. Kitty spotted it first and the horrified look on her face alerted the rest of us to a problem. Following her gaze, we saw it. One of our fruit nets had broken and unceremoniously dumped its precious cargo of oranges and apples into the water. With race start looming we jumped into action, grabbing buckets and nets and deftly adapting our Man Overboard manoeuvres to reclaim as much of our fruit as we could before belatedly heading to. read more...

Falcon Spirit - daily update

2-3 meter seas on our starboard quarter. gusts to 38. steady 26-30. surfing down waves  11-12.5 knots with our best 13.7 Currently we have a double reefed main and double reefed jib.  Spirited conditions to say the least for our first night as predicted.  Crew is happy and getting into the groove.  . read more...

Ca Canny - Day 1- We're off!

Position: 27:14'38"N 15:21'44 W An exciting start to the ARC January 2023! We set off at 12:45pm and had a little trouble gettingthe main sail up but once we had the sails up we were sorted. Now we are makinggood progress south before we turn further west (probably tomorrow). As this is the first blog post it might be a goodtime to introduce the crew: Alan Spence- Skipper, ex-fisherman and general nauticalenthusiast. Charlie Fleming- Oil field sub-sea consultant and verykeen on cars, an interest he shares with Smithy.  David Thompson- Lobster fisherman from the Highlands. Ian Smith (Smithy) - Builder and construction companyowner.  Izzy Spence - Daughter of Alan, not as practical as theother crew members but I'll keep them in line! That's. read more...

Mistral of Portsmouth - Day 6 - Crossing the finishing line

After our fish catching excitement, we began to get ourselves ready for the finishing line … what excitement after 6 days at sea! Decks cleared, shoes and gloves on, briefing from the Captain on the sail plan for the last 5 miles.I should mention that at the beginning of the passage, we were asked to estimate our arrival time. Chris had guessed at 5pm local time on Thursday … unbelievably, it looked as though we would be close to this. Of course, as this realisation dawned, so did the ambition to make the time across the line as close to 5pm as possible! We turned our last corner around the coast 5 miles away from Santa Marta - all sails out with a small reef taken on the Genoa (power sail that drives the boat). And wow … the wind accelerated from 12 knots to 28 knots … we acted fast to. read more...

Pantiki - PANTIKI photos

PANTIKI testing storm jib 2 Dec 22PANTIKI on stone LP Jan 14 23dolphins on way to Las Palmas Dec 30 22 last item mounting the lightning rod Jan 14 23. read more...

Pantiki - PANTIKI ready for start

It was very hard two years to a) get PANTIKI ready for offshore sailing, b) get PANTIKI to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, app 1500 sm from Volos, Greece, via Kalamata, Patras, Aegio, Ithaka, Crotone (Italy), San Vito (Sicilia), Mallorca, Ibiza, Almerimar, La Linea (Gibraltar), finally Las Palmas on Jan. 1st.The two weeks in Las Palmas were very busy with issues of the generator (PAGURO), chargers (we changed to Victron) and all the details that are mandatory for the ARC. It was sweetened by the welcome-committee of our sons, her spouses and three grandchildren- so emotional after the longest time offshore so far. Now- on the evening before the start - checking last emails, company issues, paperwork for dog and immigration to Saint Lucia. Looking forward to good times.. read more...

Mistral of Portsmouth - Day 5 - Santa Marta is within reach!

Another uneventful night - good, as we are all starting to feel tired by the end of our watches. The wind was a consistent force 4 to 5 (between 12 and 20 knots) and we are back close to the rhumb line. The day promises to be another beautiful one and it started with big excitement at 8.30 in the morning - I saw whales! First sight was lots of activity in the water off the starboard bow and then spumes of water with 2 sightings of bodies emerging … the activity moved down the side of the boat and to our stern … sadly, no pictures as it all happened so fast. Still - we know they were there!The routine of the passage is well set by now. Daily deck checks have revealed some issues that will need attention when we reach land … a bent stanchion, the vang not holding pressure (we think an. read more...

Mistral of Portsmouth - Day 4 - 340 nm to go!

After a delicious paella, we are into our night watch routine. The wind is being kind to us - another quiet night without incident although there is quite a bit of rock and roll going on. At about 1am, we changed sail plan and changed course. We had been slowly working our way west toward the Venezuela coastline - not a safe place to be with a reputation for pirates. So we pulled in the mainsail and headed north west on a reach with the Genoa and Staysail. With only the fore sails out, the boat is not so well balanced - lots of rocking means lots of rolling across the beds and not much sleep! However, my watch from 4am to 7am was beautiful - it was as though someone switched the light on as the moon rose into the starry sky. The fishing line has gone out early today - we’re hoping that. read more...

Maroro - Day 5, Finally Grooving

So far, we’ve had both a lovely crossing as well as one full of small frustrations that have kept us on our toes. In between little shots of anxiety/adrenaline we’ve also enjoyed our family time together: cooking, eating, school work, drawing, paper-plane-flying contests…some of us started the new Netflix series “Wednesday,” (Can’t wait to get to land and download more episodes!)We’ve enjoyed the full-moon light at night, illuminating even the interior of the boat with incredible intensity. When partly cloudy skies clear, they boast a clarity of starlight as well. While the Atlantic crossing was so dark we could see the Milky Way spray against the sky, the stars were slightly out of focus due to moisture particles in the air (bigger seas and waves). This week they are in focus, seemingly. read more...

Renegade - Leg 1, Days 3-4

It's 04:00 on day 4 and I have the watch while Julie and Peter get some rest.I have good wind at 15-20 kts.It's been from the east all day, but there is a rain cloud sneaking up behind me right now and pushing it southeast.Not a problem at all, the boat needs a rinse.There's a big container ship on the horizon that will pass about 2 miles ahead of us, fairly close by ocean standards. We had some excitement yesterday just before sunset.We were sailing wing and wing with the genoa poled out on the opposite side from the mainsail.I wanted to switch sides, moving genoa over to port and main to starboard, so we can make more progress south.This maneuver is complicated by the pole, which has to be taken down and then set up on the other side, and we only had a short time before sunset.Peter. read more...

Mistral of Portsmouth - Day 3 - 480 nm to go

Another peaceful night. The wind dropped and we moved quietly across the Caribbean Sea at 5.5 to 7 knots through the night. The moon is still quite full so good visibility, a star covered sky and clouds easy to see. We continue with our sail plan of 3 white sails goose-winged so the wind can push us forward.Today is a special day as it’s Jane’s 60th birthday. I managed to deck the saloon with some balloons at 4am after my watch and we had a freshly made lemon drizzle cake for Jane’s birthday cake along with a celebratory drink of Canarian rum - we have marked the occasion and will celebrate in style in Santa Marta. Jane is still not feeling 100% so she’s putting a brave face on it all. The last place you want to be when you’re feeling poorly is the middle of the ocean on a boat!Today we. read more...

Mistral of Portsmouth - Day 2 - 164 miles completed; 680 miles to go

I am pleased to report a quiet night! Chris was SSB radio controller last night - he made contact with11 boats … everyone is still fairly close together and all reported a good first day.Jane had prepared a delicious cottage pie eaten with a glorious sun set as the backdrop. Our watch system started with Tim & Jane at 7pm. We are doing 3 x 3 hour watch rotation. So far so good except that Jane is still feeling poorly and no amount of beechams powders, paracetamol and strepsils are working. Bed rest is the order of the day.The morning boat inspection revealed just one flying fish - sails,lines, bolts and split pins all appear to be in working order - thank goodness! A couple of small rain showers in the night with mostly 13 to 18 knots of wind and a 2m swelll - fabulous sailing and. read more...

Maroro - World Arc Start - Day 1

We are Maroro - a 52S Lagoon Catamaran with a Spanglish family aboard: Annie, Imanol and kids Ander 12, Jokin, 10, Kai 8, as well as our practically adopted Argentine, Simon. We started our journey in June, leaving our home town of Cancun Mexico to fly to La Rochelle France and move aboard our new floating home. After many adventures and a few misadventures, we made our way to Las Palmas in November to join the ARC+ Rally. On the crossing, we decided that our plan to sail around the world would be better done in the company of a floating community and we signed up for the World ARC at the last minute, end of December. Saturday morning started early - last minute errands and goodbyes to be made. And then, like everyone else, we waved said, see you next year St Lucia!, heading into the. read more...

Mistral of Portsmouth - Day 1 - Saint Lucia to Santa Marta, Columbia

The day dawned! We were up early, topping up with water, paying final bills, tying everything down below decks and doing a final check on deck. Lots of activity along the pontoons - the excitement was palpable. We left the pontoon early enough to do some man over board practice before checking out the start line. Captain P did well - we were with the first half dozen crossing the line - what a sight! 20 boats starting with a couple coming on later and several joining us in Panama - we will be 26 in total. We’ve got light winds and have all our white sails out. So far so good!Unfortunately, Jane is under the weather with a cough/cold but is stoic. We’re excited about our upcoming adventure!Karen & Chris. read more...

Jo - Tag 29 - Land in Sicht!!

Um 08:08 Uhr war es soweit, die ersten gaaaanz ganz schwachen Konturen Martiniques tauchten im Dunst des Horizonts auf. Land in Sicht! 50 Meilen entfernt und wirklich nur so schwach sichtbar, dass zunächst nur Paul und ich die typischen Formen der Hügelkette ausmachen konnten, die restliche Crew noch an eine Fata Morgana glaubte und dass wir uns versteuert haben. :-) Mittlerweile sind zum Glück alle davon überzeugt, dass wir auf richtigem Kurs sind. Martinique lassen wir natürlich an Steuerbord (rechts) von uns und biegen hinter der Meerenge zwischen den Franzosen und Saint Lucia (noch im Dunst) direkt links ums Eck. Hier liegt die Rodney Bay Marina, unser Ziel, das Ziel der ARC 2022.22 Meilen noch. Fünf Stunden maximal hoffentlich, bis die Leinen fest sind. Das letzte ETMAL, die in 24. read more...

Katy - Saturday 17/12 Day 27 - Crapped on from on high

Its certainly getting a lot livelier out here with a big swell kicking in which I'm lead to believe will only get worse tomorrow, great. We can hardly stand up as it is without being launched in to some very hard and painful innard of the boat. I actually make coffee on my knees whilst strapped in as there is no no other way.Anyway whilst having said coffee today I was delighted to spot a bird following us for some time. I don't know what they are called but they are white, torpedo shaped with a very thin tail. We've seen quite a few of them. After 10 minutes it flew purposely over to the boat and I thought maybe he'd come to say hello, sing a song but how wrong I was, he deliberately crapped on me. He then flew off back to his original course. He actually made a point of diverting to do. read more...

Jo - Tag 28 - Nachtgedanken und schöne Nachrichten

Wenn nichts Unvorhergesehenes mehr passiert, bricht nun die letzte Nacht auf See während dieser Atlantiküberquerung auf der Barfußroute an. 113 Meilen haben wir - nur - noch vor uns. Ein guter Moment, um zurückzublicken, auf die Meilen, die hinter uns liegen, auf die gemeinsame Zeit, auf die vergangenen Monate. 2.948 Meilen zeigt aktuell der zurück gelegte Track seit Start in Las Palmas auf Gran Canaria an. Der Start, der mit Verzögerung begann und 28 Tage her ist. Ca. 3.050 Meilen werden es insgesamt sein, wenn die Maschinen aus und die Leinen fest sind in der Rodney Bay Marina auf Saint Lucia. Die Uhr wird ungefähr bei 29 Tagen und 6 Stunden stehen bleiben, wenn auch nicht mehr in der offiziellen ARC Zeitwertung, so doch zumindest auf unserem Plotter. Als wir im Mai/Juni auf der. read more...

Katy - Friday 15/12 Day 26 - Maintenance Day

I had a full on day with maintenance today. I had to change the 5V batteryin the heads water freshener thing. I started by locating the battery and the tools for the job, a flat head screwdriver. I did this soon after breakfastand once ready it was time for the morning coffee break. When I returned tomy screwdriver and battery the battery was no longer there and had, like mycoffee mug previously, flung itself somewhere in the cabin. I found thelittle bugger in the end and got to work unscrewing the case of its onescrew. I then removed the old battery and put it on the shelf above theheads, then came another swell and it too flung itself (with the new one)across the heads. Now I didn't know which was the old and which was the new,ah its a fifty fifty choice. I put one in (the wrong one). read more...

Jo - Tag 27 - die Skipper (Crew Special, letzter Teil)

Wer aufmerksam mitgezählt hat, wird feststellen, dass in der Crew Vorstellung bis auf zwei Personen mittlerweile alle mal vorgestellt wurden. Fehlen nur noch wir, eure Skipper, Katrin und Peter. Ein bisschen was habt ihr vielleicht schon hier im Blog über uns gehört oder gelesen. Für einen weiteren Eindruck haben wir einfach mal unsere Crew gefragt, was ihnen spontan zu uns einfällt. Hatte ich schon erwähnt, wie nett und höflich alle sind? :-) Das kann ich aber wirklich nur noch einmal bestätigen. In der ganzen Zeit ist nicht einmal ein böses Wort gefallen. Natürlich gab es auch zwischendurch mal Situationen, die angespannter waren. Das bleibt nicht aus. Nicht grundlos sehen wir in einer Atlantiküberquerung weniger eineseglerische Herausforderung, auch wenn wir den Naturelementen immer. read more...

Jo - Tag 26 - Fischers Fritz fischt frisches...

...Seegras. Heute Nachmittag waren wir mit vereinten Kräften knapp vor einem Fisch. Paul, normalerweise unser Seegras-Flüsterer (er erkennt dieses mittlerweile schon am Vibrieren der Schnur und Reling) hatte die Angel fest im Blick. Das markante Geräusch, wenn die Leine durch die Rolle rauscht, ertönt. Doch statt der üblichen Seegras-Reaktion heißt es plötzlich: "Da ist was dran." Roller und Skipper Peter springen auf, verschwenden keine Zeit, schmeißen sich in ihr Sicherheitsgeschirr (wer angelt, ist immer angeleint), während Paul schon die ersten Meter Leine einkurbelt, übernehmen die Angel, während im Hintergrund Gaff (eine Metallstange mit scharfer Spitze zum Aufspießen), Knübbel (für die hartnäckigen Brüder... Ja, Angeln kann brutal sein) und Fischtöter (80prozentiger Rum für eine. read more...