Growing up in a sailing family, one dreams of the romance of sailing in far away places. Over the years I have been able to get to sail in places like the Caribbean, The Cost Of Maine, The Great Lakes, Newfoundland, and The Mediterranean Sea. Story book adventures that birthed from a handed down love of the sea by my father and love of travel from my mother. In fact it was the goal of my father to sail across the Atlantic Ocean that eventually became transferred to me. A trip my father is unlikely to complete now that he is 87 and his sailing is now limited to warm afternoons along the coast of Nova Scotia.
This whole adventure started when I was asked by a neighborhood friend to help race his 78 foot sloop across the Atlantic Ocean from the Canary Island of Tenerife to St Martin in the eastern Caribbean. The owner hand selected twelve sailors including three seasoned sailors like myself. He also included some younger talented sailors to help with man handling the sails as sails on a 78 footer weigh in at several hundred pounds each. To round out the crew he added a couple of professional sailors who have made several trips across the Atlantic. When upon the high seas a sound vessel well equipped with the best in safety equipment is only part of the requirement. No Yacht should set out on such and adventure without a talented and experienced crew.
The yacht had spent the past two years sailing in the Mediterranean and it was time to take her west again. To make this a true Atlantic Crossing I sized the opportunity to get aboard the yacht in Gibraltar for the delivery to Tenerife. This passage in itself is a wonderful sail of 780 nautical miles through the straights of Gibraltar and along the coast of Morocco to what I call an island paradise.
The yacht race to St Martin is 2800 miles of blue water sailing. There is no jumping off point in the mid Atlantic Ocean. Once the lines are let go there is no going back. Well, until this trip. On the night of the third day at sea an expected small low pressure system packing 35 to 40 knots of wind was to move through the zone we were sailing in. The skipper made the decision to head south to miss the brunt of this blow and be back on our way west the following afternoon. The storm grew as it moved into the warms waters of the mid Atlantic and blow it did for two and a half days. 35 to 40 knot winds and rain that at times was coming sideways. All this wind resulted in very high seas that brought on the challenge of trying to keep the boat from pounding into the very steep seas. The wind was also blowing from the direction we were headed.
Not a good position to be in when there is 1800 miles to our destination. Our on board weather man informed us the storm was officially behind us but two more days of light headwinds followed by two to three days of doldrums were before us. This weather report had created challenges that put continuing on to St Martin at risk. The storm had forced us to consume allot of diesel. We needed to run the generator to operate the winches and water makers. What was to be a nine to twelve day trip was now looking to be sixteen or even seventeen days and food would also be in short supply. What we needed were the South East Trade Winds to kick in. The South East Trades are but most accounts a friendly warm breeze from astern looked and it looked to be a week or so away. The owner after much deliberation and discussion with the crew felt in the interest of safety to head east to the Islands of Cape Verde some 750 miles to the east. A four to five day sail with the wind astern expected for the first three days.
To make this passage more enjoyable and interesting the owner switched up the watch crews so there would be, Fresh Conversation. It was a delightful sail with the weather as predicted. Tropical warm breeze, fishing, sleeping, reading,sharing stories of past voyages and yes even good political debate. Daybreak the morning of the sixth day we were in the Channel between Santa Antao and St Vicente. Our adventure was soon to go dockside. We tied up at the marina in Mindello. Twelve days at sea leaves for much work to be done putting the yacht back to cruising status. This a days work for twelve crew and in 95 degree weather. But all was worth it as a few cold beers followed by a night on the town awaited us.
The next day the owner had arranged for us to take a tour of the island of St Vicente which was climaxed buy a trip to the top of the mountain along a single lane road cut into the side mountain. Breath taking would be an understatement. The Islands of this young African nation became independent from Portugal in 1975. It's future looks to be in tourism as the wonderful beaches and friendly people make it's place as an African Nation that's free from famine and dictatorship. So a missed bucket list item became an adventure not ever forgotten and one more continent off my bucket list. Just Asia and Australia remain. You ask if I will eventually make a completed passage across the Atlantic Ocean? Well, it's still on the bucket list.
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