Columbia was fantastic. There were rivers to swim in…
Coffee to drink,
Fresh pineapple,
and some pretty serious spiders.
But it’s not all fun and games. We had a few repairs to sort out from our crossing from Grenada which was pretty rough.
Unfortunately, on our last day we were a bit ill, and couldn’t leave the heads*, let alone the marina. So we were a day late starting the next leg.
*that’s toilets for you landlubbers.
And while we were sorry to be leaving Columbia…
we were excited about our next stop – The San Blas Islands.
These are a group of nearly 400 islands, just off the Panama coast. If you imagine a typical tropical island, with turquoise waters and silver sands and palm trees, that is the San Blas.
They are mostly uninhabited, but a few are home to the Kuna Indians,
who live pretty much as they have done for centuries, fishing and harvesting coconuts which they sell on the mainland.
It really is a little bit of paradise.
Porvenir is the capital, where you check in at immigration.
and if you fancy a night off the boat you can always check in to the hotel.
go to the museum,
buy some molas,
or just enjoy the view.
It’s really very nice.
And I think we can all agree that Ju is looking pretty ripped.
We finally made it to South America. Santa Marta in Columbia to be precise. And it is well worth the trip – even though it was quite a tricky passage.
We managed to get our MDI unit fixed, but it was a bit touch and go. Nico came along to install it…
All was going well, until we tried to start the engine. A new fault had developed. The temperature alarm was beeping and the engine still wouldn’t start – but for a different reason this time. So either the new MDI box was duff as well, OR the temperature sensor was faulty, OR…..it was something else.
Grrrr…
Nico eventually decided it was the temperature sensor, so the best thing was to put in a new one and see if that worked.
They didn’t have one in stock.
It would take a week to get it delivered.
There was one in St Lucia.
AaaaaaaaH!
I don’t think he could bear to see a grown man cry any longer, so he thought he had better swap the sensors over from one engine to the other to make sure that was definitely the problem before sending off for the new part.
Which he did..and lo and behold the engines started! Just like that. There is no explanation for it. The identical sensors worked one way round and not the other.
This is not mechanics. This is witchcraft.
No matter. the engines were working so thank you Nico, thank you Grenada Marine, and thank you Island Dreams who sorted it all out for us.
So by three in the afternoon we were off. Two days behind the rest of the fleet, but there was still a chance we might get to Santa Marta before the cut off time on Saturday.
There were high winds, and plenty of squalls.
This one was almost as big as the radar screen.
and when a squall hits, you get drenched.
Though luckily on a catamaran you can come inside for the worst of it.
One night we seemed to have squall after squall with lulls in between, so we were doing the sailor’s Hokey Cokey all through the night.
and so on till you either run out of sails or you’re seasick.
Pulling the sails in quickly when a squall is approaching needs both of us, so when it’s like that you don’t get much of a night’s sleep. But on the plus side, having high winds does mean you go fast.
That big 46 is the wind speed. It actually got to over 48kn at one point which according to Ju’s Beaufort Scale Mug is officially a storm.
We managed our first 200+ mile day (212 miles to be exact) and once saw 18 knots on the log (speedometer for the landlubbers). OK, so that was surfing down a wave and it lasted about 3 seconds, but still – pretty impressive stuff.
We were romping along, and just as everything was going right – a very unusual state of affairs for a sailor – Lyn noticed something trailing behind us. Perhaps we’d caught a tuna? It seemed unlikely as we haven’t got a fishing rod, but we needed to take a closer look.
We quickly stopped the boat, which is not that quick when you’re barrelling along at nine knots with a screecher out one side and a genoa the other. Ju then climbed down to the transom and at last we could see the problem. There was a whole bundle of fishing ropes and netting and buoys tangled around the rudder. What a mess.
He managed to cut the worst of it away, but some of it was still tangled out of reach under the boat. Even though we were stopped the boat was still bobbing up and down, so the normal thing of going over the side and cutting it all free wasn’t an option. The transom can easily come down and whack you on the head, which would definitely spoil your day. Besides, even if he could clear the ropes, it didn’t seem like it would be that easy to get back on the boat afterwards.
So what next?
It’s amazing what you can do with a boathook and a knife. It took a bit of doing, but eventually he managed to cut some more away, grab one of the buoys and pull the rest on board.
What a hero!
But after four days, Columbia came into view.
Is Ju getting a bit of a hunchback?
Nearly there.
The final stretch was really rough,
…but we managed to get in just as the sun set.
…and before the steakhouses closed.
First impressions are that Santa Marta is fantastic. This is a city that never sleeps – there is an amazing buzz here.
Ahoy Boatbloggers!At 1200 on Saturday, they sounded the starting signal for The World ARC 2020 St Lucia to St Lucia, and we were off. It was a pretty damp and squally start to the whole thing - a bit like the Solent but with palm trees. But at least when it rains, it’s warm rain.The reason you can see so many boats and they are so far away is because we’re in our usual tactical position. The back. Fools them every time.Now - an explanation. Those of you following us on the tracker will no doubt be very impressed with our amazing high speeds, of anywhere between eight and ten knots. “They must be among the leaders,” you will be thinking. “If only they were going in the right direction.”
Perhaps you suspect we have some cunning Ben Ainslie style plan; head south then pick up a favourable current, or an unsuspected wind, and then nip in at the front right on the finish line to rapturous applause.
Alas, dear reader, the truth is far more mundane.
Our Voyage Around The World was all going really well. Right up until the first day. Well - to be precise, the first second of the first minute of the first hour of the first day of the first leg of our first circumnavigation.
It was just as we came to cast off our lines to go out into the anchorage ready for the start the next day, that we found one of our engines wasn’t working. The landlubbers amongst you might think, they’ve got two engines - why don’t they just use the spare? But unfortunately in a catamaran it’s not that simple. If you only have one engine you just keep going round in circles. We want to go round the world, not just round the bay forty three times.
So...we needed to get it fixed - and fast. The rally was going to begin in less than 24 hours!
We found St Lucia’s number one engineer, and it wasn’t long before we had a diagnosis; a duff MDI unit.It doesn’t matter if you haven’t got the foggiest idea what one of those is. All you need to know is that the engine won’t work without it. In an emergency you can climb down into the engine compartment and hot wire it with bit of old cable, but you can’t go round the world doing that every time you come into port. The only solution was to get a new one.
But unfortunately It turned out that in the whole of St Lucia there were no Mega Dodgy Interface units. Everyone else with a Volvo engine had already taken them. It’s a common fault. But what was worse is that It might take weeks for one to be delivered. It looked like we weren’t going to be able to start - a bit like our engine.As soon as Ju had stopped wailing and thumping the cushion, we sprang into action. Many phone calls and emails later, at last we tracked one down in Grenada. So that is where we went.And hopefully they can fit it first thing on Monday morning. We will be sat on their doorstep at eight when they open.
And then - fingers crossed - we can start heading in the right direction. Considering it’s all gone a bit Pete Tong, having to divert to Grenada is not the worst thing that has ever happened to us.To Santa Marta and Beyond!
Here we are in St Lucia with the crews of the other 35 boats joining us on our Voyage Around The World.
See if you can spot us!
(Clue: Ju’s the good looking one in white, kneeling down about five in from the left. Lyn’s just next to him)
We have been issued with our official race number. Not that it’s a race of course. It’s a rally. (Unless by some remarkable fluke we actually win, in which case it’s definitely a race.)
The kind people at ARC Rally Control have issued us with the same number as our boat length, so that’s one less thing to remember.
Which at our age has to be a good thing.
So our first stop is Santa Marta in Columbia which is just over 800 miles away as the flying fish flies. All being well we leave tomorrow (Saturday) and it should take us 5 or 6 days depending on the winds.
We have just completed the second leg of our second Transatlantic! Now this isn’t going to be a huge long blog, because as you know we did the Atlantic in 2014 and to be honest, it hasn’t changed that much.
This is the view from the front…
…and this is the view from the back. Or to use the correct nautical term, the patio.
We only put the mainsail up once, before quickly realising it was a mistake and pulling it down again. Most of the time we used twin headsails – the screecher out one side, and the genoa on the other.
We call it “goose-winged,” but for once the Germans are more poetic and call it “The Butterfly,” which we’re going to use from now on.
It doesn’t feel like sailing. Basically you just put them up and are more or less blown across The Atlantic. But it’s very comfortable, and very easy, so what’s not to like.
Of course there are the usual mega sunsets…
Some amazing clouds…
A squall or two…
Which look even worse on the radar..
And one night we sailed by the light of Jupiter, Venus & Saturn.
OK, so it looks like a little white dot, so you’ll just have to take our word for it. That is Jupiter. And it was pretty amazing.
It took us 14 days and 11 hours from Mindelo, and we came 38th arriving just before midnight.
This is crossing the finish line. Ju looks like he’s just been beamed down.
And so we set sail for the first leg of our trip across The Atlantic.
900 nautical miles to Mindelo, Sao Vincente in the Cabo Verde islands. It took us about six days. The first two days were quite rough with strong winds…
True Wind Speed of up to 86 knots – hurricane force – but at least it meant we went fast at over 33 knots, which should put us in the running for the Americas Cup. Either that or there was something wrong with the instruments.
But by day three it had calmed down a bit..
…and we were able to start collecting the flying fish that kept landing on deck overnight.
Five in one night! Not quite big enough to eat, but not so small that they don’t make a horrible slippery mess where they land.
Land ahoy! – We arrived at Cape Verde just after sunrise.
So time to send the crew forward to sort out the ropes.
While the captain attended to more important matters.
Pretty soon we were moored up in Mindelo Marina.
And while it was nice to be back on land, Mindelo Marina is the windiest marina with the biggest swell we have ever been to. The pontoons were rolling all over the place – walking along them felt like you’d had ten pints. We were more seasick on the pontoon than ever we were at sea! Three people along from us actually fell in – and these are experienced ocean navigators. Still, at least it meant we kept our sea legs for the next stage of the journey.
Sao Vincente is a beautiful island and the people are really friendly and welcoming. We did a little island tour – first stop, the beach.
Where we tried the local grog.
Strong enough to knock out a camel. So up into the mountains to the tea bar to sober up.
One day we took the ferry to Sao Antao, another of the Cape Verde Islands, where we tried the traditional food…
Saw the traditional cottages…
And watched farmers collecting yams in the traditional way.
Next we got in a minibus to go up into the mountains. We went at breakneck speed up these little cobbled roads with sheer drops either side.
It was quite terrifying. This is Ju trying to not look scared.
Not doing too bad a job of it, but he’s holding on to that wall with both hands. What you can’t see is that behind that wall is a thousand foot sheer drop. It is all unbelievably high. We’ve been in many minibuses, but never one where we’ve had to worry about turbulence.
But once you dared to open your eyes, the views are spectacular.
The photos of course don’t do it justice.
But here’s a few more anyway.
You’ll just have to come and see it for yourselves.
But back to Mindelo, where Lyn enjoyed the street art…
…and Ju enjoyed the cultural events.
Some of the wall art is amazing. This picture is not painted on the wall, but chipped out of the plaster.
We had a great social life with the ARC while we were here in Mindelo. Here we are with the crew of Zan eating the bruschetta (which they serve by the metre.)
Just time for the arty farty prize, which has only one entry called “Street Scene,” and that is from Ju – so he is the winner!
And of course it wouldn’t be a proper Boatblog ® without a gratuitous sunset. Though actually it’s a sunrise.
We are planning a full circumnav – that’s circumnavigation for you landlubbers; sailing round the world. So once we’re across the Atlantic, it’s through the Panama Canal and then to….. Infinity and Beyond. Well – Darwin anyway.
We have just signed up to do the first leg of the World ARC, which is very exciting.
We were sorry to leave Madeira, but all good things must come to an end.
It’s two or three days sailing to get to Gran Canaria and we had a pretty good run, though we arrived in the middle of the night and it was quite scary manoeuvring among all the massive ships and oil rigs when we got there.
It was great to be back in Las Palmas. We’re doing the ARC+ this time which is Las Palmas to St Lucia, but it calls in at Cape Verde instead of going straight across like the regular ARC.
We spent our time there doing last minute repairs, stocking the boat up with provisions, spare parts and tools and everything else we could think of that we might need for a round the world trip.
One thing you really have to have on board is an angle grinder…
…just in case we ever need to cut away the rigging in the event of a dismasting. Now those of you who are aware of my DIY skills will probably be horrified to think that I would ever be let anywhere near such an awesome power tool.
Do not worry.
I’ve never used one before and I don’t want to use it for the first time in an angry sea and accidentally cut my leg off, so I found the time to practice.
It’s actually really good fun.
Though once you get started it’s quite hard to stop.
WARNING TO OUR YOUNGER READERS. We are trained professionals. Do not try this at home.
We also needed a new drill, which came with a fantastic selection of gadgets.
I wonder what they’re for.
And we had SSB installed.
SSB stands for Single Sideband Radio. It’s the big radio type thing with the microphone attached that you can see underneath the computer screen. It’s quite a miraculous piece of kit. By bouncing radio signals round the globe you can talk to people in Australia or Tokyo or anywhere in the world from right out in the middle of the ocean. It doesn’t use satellites or anything so fancy, but it just bounces the signal off the ionosphere, back to the ground and up again, right all the way round until it gets to where you want. It’s quite amazing.
Though it’s a bit weird because whenever I hit the transmit button, the lights come on and the electric winch goes round. But you soon get used to that. It reminded me of Nick’s house in Cape Town. The electronics were incredibly sophisticated but didn’t quite work, so every time someone rang the doorbell the toaster popped up.
But apparently that’s quite normal with SSB. The power that the transmitter puts out is massive, so its bound to interfere with the electrics. There’s not much you can do about it apart from switch everything off before you use it.
So far all I’ve really heard people say is things like…
Hiss crackle FX
“Hello this is Mike Echo India November Niner, do you read me? Over”
More hiss crackle FX
“Mike Echo India November Niner, this is Zulu Tango Yankee Bravo Fower, you are a bit faint, but I read you. Over”
Hiss crackle FX
“Thank you Zulu Tango Yankee Bravo Fower. This is Mike Echo India November Niner. I read you loud and clear. Over”
Hiss crackle FX
“Thank you, Mike Echo India November Nine. Over”
Hiss crackle FX
“Zulu Tango Yankee Bravo Fower out.”
And that’s about it. No one seems to have actual conversations; they just ask each other if they can be heard. And then move on to see if someone else can hear them as well. But I expect it will come into it’s own when we are at sea.
Jan and James (Lyn’s sister and brother-in-law) came to visit with their daughter Lizzie.
I did try to find a photo of us all that wasn’t eating, but we don’t seem to have one. I think eating was all we did.
And very nice it was too.
But enough of this messing about. We’ve got a rally to do.
Ahoy there Boatbloggers ® and welcome back to another exciting episode in the life of the good ship Domini and her good looking crew.
In the last episode we left you on the coast of Portugal in a beautiful anchorage called Culatra, somewhere near Faro.
And much as we loved this little bit of the Caribbean in the middle of the Algarve, it was time to move on. Next port of call, Madeira – or more accurately Porto Santo which is a little island just to the North East of Madeira. It’s about 500 nautical miles from Culatra, so a bit of an ocean passage which took 3 or 4 days.
The weather was predicted to be good, but even so, it’s important to prepare properly for long trips…
and to wear a silly hat.
It was a pretty easy crossing with calm seas…
…and Homer’s clouds.
I’d like to say they are called that because of some literary reference to the epic Greek poet, but no. It’s because they look like the opening credits of The Simpsons.
Land Ahoy!
Eventually we arrived at Porto Santo and anchored off the beach.
Intrepid explorers that we are, we set off to discover the island…
and as luck would have it, we soon came across a delightful little Caribbean Bar.
Though we wouldn’t want you thinking it’s all boozing and enjoying ourselves.
Even if it is.
It’s all very pretty…
But basically it’s just a great big lump sat somewhere off the Atlantic Ocean.
Jokes on a ten pound note please.
It was time to head off to Madeira, only about 30 miles away. There aren’t many anchorages in Madeira because it’s volcanic and the seabed tends to drop away very quickly, so we headed for a marina for the first time in months.
…and for a few days it was actually quite nice to not have to get into the dinghy to go anywhere.
Legend has it that the pattern in the rocks…
…was the inspiration for Munch’s famous painting, “The Spaniel.”
Madeira is famous for it’s hiking, so we donned our boots and set off into the unknown.
It’s knackering…
..but worth it for the views.
We discovered that it’s much easier to get up the mountains in a cable car.
To come down again, against all the advice, the Madeirans invented the sledge.
They didn’t seem to realise that sledges need snow.
But it’s all good fun.
The entries for this blog’s arty farty prize are “Cool Rocks,” by Lyn,
and “Cool Cactus,” by Lyn.
And the winner is…
LYN.
So that’s Madeira M’dears.
Watch out for the next installment the Boatblog ®, as we head to The Canaries and get ready to cross the Atlantic.
We found this in a field somewhere outside Canet en Roussillon…
So we made an offer, and in the space of a few months the nice people at Catana turned it from this…
into this…
and then to this…
and this…
And finally to this…
It was bloody cold when we picked it up, but we still celebrated.
You’re meant to break the bottle on the side of the ship, but we didn’t want to put a dent in it so early on. Besides, why waste all that lovely French champagne?
But it’s not all just boozing and enjoying yourself. Well it is, but moving onto a boat is about the same moving into a house,
…except you have to walk the plank every time you bring something on board.
But it wasn’t long before we had everything Shipshape and Bristol Fashion, and we were off to sunnier climes…
First stop down to Barcelona, then Menorca and Mallorca, up to La Grande Motte and Toulon on the South coast of France, then back down to the Balearics, over to mainland Spain and following the coast to Gibraltar, through the Strait to Cadiz, before ending up on the Algarve coast.
Doesn’t she look great! (All together now) And the boat’s not bad either. Here we are moored up in Gibraltar.
Gib, as us sailors call it, has everything you need. Duty free fuel, duty free fags, a Morrisons selling black pudding, bacon and Melton Mowbray Pork Pies and all the other things you miss when you’re away for a long time.
And this…
What more could you want? Curry and Sushi in one place. Though it turns out it’s a bit difficult eating curry with chopsticks.
One of the great things about having a superyacht in the Med is that it turns out that you have a lot of friends. OK, so technically it might not be a superyacht, but we it’s pretty darn super. So we have had lot’s of visitors…
James & Emma
Nick & Shelagh
Paul & Selina
Martin
Carol &
Simon
Jo
Jane & Ian
And of course – this bunch…
And Mr Nick Cursi came all the way from Cape Town to see us – but we didn’t get a picture. Oh no! You’re just going to have to come again Nick.
When Joe arrived he had come direct from a wedding, which is why he turned up half sailor, half usher.
…But we soon got him into the proper gear.
Rory taught us to windsurf
Joe even caught a fish…
…though Lyn doesn’t look too impressed. We were going to use it as bait to catch something bigger, but unfortunately Joe dropped the rod over the side. Doh! However, this was not the end of our fishing triumphs. One night, a wave broke over the trampoli…sorry – I mean the nets, and we caught a squid!
Though it was a bit whiffy by the time we found it.
It’s always good to have guests, as their help is invaluable when crewing the boat.
* Editor’s Note:-Simon is rather pleased with the picture of him and Ju by the dinghy, because he thinks it makes HIS stomach looks smaller than Ju’s. Our readers can rest assured that this is in fact nothing other than a trick of the light caused by a highly unusual camera angle. For those Boatbloggers® who wish to get a more accurate impression please scroll to Appendix A at the end of this article.
One of the things that has struck me as we have sailed down from France, is how many things you aren’t meant to do. There are little signs put up all over the place banning this that and the other, so for one blog, and one blog only, please welcome…
THE BOATBLOG® SIGN COLLECTION
No Cars
No Horses
No People
No Dog Poo & No Stealing Trees
No Climbing
No Trilbys
We’ve told you about that dog before
No Drowning
No Anything
And you definitely mustn’t do this…
(That’s enough signs. Ed)
Ju thought it was time to get with the zeitgeist, and follow the fine example set by Ben and be a bit more vegetarian. It didn’t start well.
TOFU
RIBS
It’s nice to socialise, and enjoy a few quiet sundowners in the evening. Ju and Martin went to an All You Can Eat Argentinian Steak House. Unfortunately Martin thought it was an All You Can Drink Argentinian Steak House.
Ben struggles to reach his glass…
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And Lyn enjoys a piscine of rosé.
But it’s not all just boozing and having fun. (Hmmmm. Ed)
There’s work to be done.
(Editor’s Note:- That’s Simon in the yellow shorts helping to put the bridle on. His stomach may be smaller, but who’s got the best bum? Answers to the usual address, and the first person with the correct answer gets to take the Captain out for dinner. )
Keeping fit is vital for the international sailor, so we have yoga…
Swimming…
And acrobatics…
This week’s blog competition is called, MATCH THE WALL. This is an advanced technique used by the Urban Warrior to blend into his or her surroundings.
RORY
LYN
JU
And the winner is ……Ju. With his wonderfully garish orange and black combo. He’s not called The Chameleon for nothing.
His “sun-bleached” hair even matches the window frame. Splendid attention to detail. Well done Ju.
And now we come to the Arty Farty Prize. And this blog has a number of very strong entries.
“Misty Sunrise” by Lyn
“Sails” By Paul Miller
“Boat” by Ju
All excellent contenders, but the winner is…. Rory with “Spike Leaves.”
And in a new category called “Sailor’s Delight,” we show off some of the Red Sky At Nights we have seen – no filters used…
And this last one – just to prove that we do use an anchor ball.
Sometimes.
And finally a random bunch of photos from our travels, in no particular order…
Africa Through The Mist
Cave boat – The Caves of Drac
Exploding Clouds
Nice Buildings
Green Flash (For James)
Lagoon
The Red Duster
Cat in the Middle
Don’t like the look of those clouds…
A View From The Bridge
Adios for now amigos. And thanks to all our friends who came to visit us, (and let us use their photos)
Welcome back Boatbloggers – or should I say BoatVloggers…
We’re sorry for the long radio silence, but until recently we have been boat-less, so we haven’t had that much to Boatblog about. And The-2-Bed-Flat-In-Brentford-Blog just didn’t seem as much fun.
But that is all in the past. At last we have taken delivery of the all new improved Domini, so the Boatblog is back!
It wasn’t long before the family came to visit…
And this month’s Boatblog Competition is…
Can you name the type of boat?
Entries on a €20 note, and the winner gets to take the Captain and First Mate out for a slap-up Michelin star meal.
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Domini 