Wind and seas have finally calmed a bit, wind is at 15-20kts and seas have settled to 7-12ft. Still rough, but not crazy.
To start reading about my transatlantic adventure from the beginning (highly recommended) follow this link.
With the increased wind and seas, photos of the next few days were lacking. I will try to add some visual content with stock photos and some of my own photos that were not taken at the time. In addition, my writing time was clipped to mostly short snip-its that I hope still convey the nuances of our adventure.
Days 18 and 19
Tuesday, February 15, 2022, 12:45PM
14’11.045N 46.56.521W 2522nm made good.
6.2kts SOG
Dennis enjoying some light work on the helm.
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It started calming down last night during my first watch, before midnight. Sailing has been very good since then. It is a huge relief to be out of those conditions, the boat and crew handled it extremely well.
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Another one beer cocktail hour last night, olives, hard salami, Manchego cheese and crackers were last night’s hors d’oeuvres selections. Dinner was a bowl of the too thick, underwhelming chili that I made at Villa Azul.
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We are almost out of all of the fresh food. Lots of food still in the cupboards, though.
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We are starting to get excited about landfall in Guadeloupe; 6ish more days. I am looking forward to being able to talk with Colleen, Shane and Cate; as well as checking out the island. I have to see if Guadalupe is someplace that I would want to drag Colleen to in the future.
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I need to do laundry and have a quick boat shower.
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Bilge is still getting water in it, John is bailing it out 2-3 times per day.
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We changed the ship’s clock back an hour today, we were supposed to do it at longitude 37’5, we are now at 46’5, oh well we’re on our own time.
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Day 19
Wednesday, February 16, 2022, 4:40 PM
15’75.099N 49’37.342W 2683nm made good.
SOG 6.5kts
Seas are still quite high, high enough that if the weeknight ‘round the buoy racers were out in this, they would wish that they were at their Yacht Club’s bar drinking god-awful Dark ‘n’ Stormies while clad in their Nantucket red shorts, collar turned up Polo shirt and loafers while talking about their masculine escapades that they have partaken in behind their third wife’s back.
The only good thing about Dark ‘n’ Stormies is the after race schwag handed out at large races by the rum distilleries.
One of my many Rum Race Hats
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The storm jib and trysail down, triple reefed main, staysail are up, with a bit of the jib out, just because we can.
Jens made crackers from some focaccia dough that he asked me to put aside for him. They were great; crispy, olive oily and salty.
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Dinner was Chicken-Coconut soup, for the third or fourth time, a crew favorite. The recipe is in chapter 4.
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I did laundry by hanging the dirty laundry, pants and t-shirts off the stern of the rapidly moving, for a sailboat, boat. No detergent, no fresh water, just salt water. For the underwear and socks I did use detergent and salt water in a bucket, rinsed a few times and then hung them out. The clothes are still drying. I will report back tomorrow on how things worked out.
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Sailing today and yesterday has been spectacular, moderate winds 15-20kts, and moderate, comparatively speaking, seas of 7-10ft.
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Still no motor, wind is our power source, providing just enough power for the fridge and little else..
Avocet on a mooring at Damariscove Island, Maine, in August of ’22, the wind generator is attached to the stern.
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We have moved on to some gawd-awful coffee, something John has had on board since somewhere in the Mediterranean, it’s possibly two years old. The grind is for espresso and we are using a percolator. So, not only does the coffee taste like ass, it has a lot of chunks (well…grinds) in it. I keep drinking as much as I can handle at a time, maybe three ounces, before dumping out the remaining dregs.
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After another round of Steve’s coffee (this time Guatemalan), on the veranda Dennis and I met with John and Jens at the cafe in the marina. Dennis and I had the assignment of getting bottled water for the trip. Avocet already had, according to John’s notes, more than 180 liters stashed on board. It was determined we should get an additional 160 liters. We went to the little market at the marina, which, not surprisingly, because the Canary Islands are a jumping point for transatlantic crossings, had plenty of large jugs of water. The staff there seemed to think it was totally normal for someone to come in and buy 30 each 6ltr jugs of water, for those of you quick with math, yes, we went with 180 additional liters, instead of the predetermined 160 liters; too much fresh water would not be a problem.
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Earlier in the day Jens returned John’s rental car to the airport, Steve would return ours when he went to the airport for his and Victor’s return flight home to Madrid.
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Back on Avocet, we stashed the water, most of it went under the dropped down salon table.
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James, the mechanic, met with John and went through the autopilot stuff. Things are looking good for an afternoon departure.
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Dennis and I took one of the coolers to Villa Azul and loaded it with the bags of food that we prepared and froze. Fortunately everything was frozen solid, there was some concern, it did take full 2 days for it to all freeze. With the cooler filled, we grabbed our bags, gave the villa a once over and headed to Avocet.
Villa Azule
Steve and Victor came with us, helped load the last of the goods on board.
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In the mayhem of the last minute preparations, Dennis and I forgot to get more ice. We didn’t have much room for more ice, but we did have some and we should have gotten more. We were going to get it when we got the marina, but we figured there would be plenty of time to get it later, at the last minute…we didn’t, we forgot. Jens didn’t say anything, but you could tell he wasn’t too happy with our forgetfulness. He was right though, we should have prioritized the ice.
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Steve and Victor joined us on the trip to the fuel dock. Victor even got to drive the boat, which I think he enjoyed. The plan was to fill the onboard fuel and water tanks as well as all of the auxiliary tanks that are attached to the lifelines along Avocet’s gunwales. The yellow jugs are for diesel, red for gasoline (generator, dinghy outboard) and clear are for water. Once the tanks were full we would depart.
Full diesel containers and one of our three very full external coolers.
Steve and Victor helped us cast off from the dock at 3:41PM. Our sailing trip of an expected 3100 miles and a time frame of 21 to 26 days has begun.
Our staring point, the fuel dock at Puerta Calero Marina.
For the best reading experience, read the chapters in order.
This is a short chapter about our planning to get to the starting point of our trip across the Atlantic, Puerta Calero, Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain.
Sunday, January 2, 2022
Dennis and I booked our flights to Lanzarote. We will fly out of Boston on Monday, January 24 at 9PM, arriving in Lanzarote on Tuesday the 25th at 1:05PM with a short layover in Madrid. The plan is to meet up with John, who will arrive in Lanzarote on the 20th and do whatever needs doing to ready Avocet for departure. Avocet is on the hard awaiting John’s arrival. He has an insurance survey scheduled, he wants to test out the autopilot and the watermaker, I’m not sure if they are new, re-built or he just wants to test them after sitting on the hard for a few months. We also will use the time to provision the boat.
Saturday, January 8, 2022
Our Brother Steve and his son Victor are meeting us in Lanzarote. Steve and Victor live in Madrid and are making the trip to see us off. Because of COVID, I haven’t seen Victor in almost 3 years. Steve, I saw in October for the unfortunate occasion of our father’s funeral. Steve booked us a 3 bedroom villa in Puerto Calero, Lanzarote, a short walk from the marina where Avocet will be moored. Steve and Victor will be arriving on Wednesday the 26th and departing the following Sunday. So, we should be able to help provision AVOCET and have some quality family time.
Dennis, Steve and I, in Boston
Sunday, January 9, 2022
I am having my daughter, Caitlin, set up a Zoom meeting for tonight to go through any questions, concerns and expectations that we may have for our upcoming trip. I hope to get a grip on what we need to pack, answer questions on expected weather, ascertain what gear and safety equipment we may need as well as get John’s opinion on whether or not I should buy an In-Reach personal SOS communication device.
Monday, January 10, 2022
Dennis, John and I had a ZOOM meeting last night and reviewed the trip. It was a productive meeting, we talked about provisioning, gear, packing and other expectations. John informed us that he has tested positive for COVID. Jens did not take part in the Zoom meeting, John said he was unsure of his status, and he wanted to be sure that Dennis and I were okay with just the three of us doing the crossing. We are.
Update: John texted that Jens is a go, which is great.
2 weeks until our flights to the Canary Islands. The countdown has begun.
Wednesday, January 12, 2022
I am thinking about using the trip as an excuse to get a small laptop. I can use it to write this journal as well as storing movies and music for the trip. I first thought that I would look into a Chromebook, but my son Shane shut me down on that- “they suck, they are like a large tablet with a keyboard”. I thought, well that seems like exactly what I want. After a bit more thought, I do want something with a Windows operating system, not google OS. So the search begins.
12 days until departure.
Tuesday, January 18, 2022
Less than a week until we head out. I am now writing this on my new Lenovo 14” laptop. I’ve downloaded a couple of movies and plan on doing a few more. Music will follow.
I started a list of stuff to bring with me, it’s not too bad, about 70 items, including everything from socks, underwear, foul weather gear, Man Overboard (MOB) device, toiletries, medications, passport, towel, sunblock to proof of vaccination. It all has to fit into a medium sized duffle bag and a large-ish waterproof backpack, I think it will.
I also bought a vacuum sealer. The first couple of days in Lanzarote we are planning on making and freezing as much food as possible. A vacuum sealer will be great, we make, chill, bag, vacuum seal and freeze the food. The sealed bags will take up a lot less space than foil pans, and, unlike the foil pans they won’t leak all over the cooler as they slowly thaw; hopefully this plan works out.
Yesterday I took a Personal Float Plan that Chip Gavin, a longtime sailor friend, sent me to use as a template, and I made it my own. I also sent it to Dennis to do the same. It was a great help, all that information in one easy to read and understand place. Thanks Chip, it was extremely helpful. I printed a copy and emailed Colleen a copy of mine.
6 days until departure and counting.
Thursday, January 20, 2022
John is in Lanzarote, I saw a Facebook post that he has already befriended a couple from another boat. It looks like they are going to delay their departure a couple of days so that we can sail in tandem.
I rented a car that I will pick up at the airport in Lanzarote on Tuesday afternoon and Steve will return it on Sunday morning.
4 days until departure.
Monday, January 24, 2022
The day is here. I’m meeting Dennis at the airport at around 7PM for our 9PM flight.
I’m almost packed, I still have to put my clothes together and put them into my, not so fancy, new, quite large L.L. Bean duffle bag that I bought yesterday. The medium one I was planning on using may have worked, but it would be like putting 50 lbs of stuff into a 30lb bag.
Hopefully the day goes without a hitch. I spent way too much time last night getting the needed COVID QR code from the airline. Just a couple of words on Iberia Airlines’ website, it sucks. There is no excuse for how bad it is. This is not a new revelation, I have been traveling to Spain regularly for 30 years, my brother Steve and his family live there and we have been fortunate enough to have visited him often. Their website is very difficult to manage, I was allowed to go on their site to pick my seats, and do an online check in. After spending 20 minutes filling out all of the forms, passport info etc, you are then told that you have to check in at the airport. This pisses me off, not only because of time lost, but, I paid extra to be able to choose my seats ahead of time. In addition to that, some of the online forms, though translated to English, the drop down multiple choice answers were in Spanish. Fortunately, after many years of DuoLingo, I could muddle through with my rudimentary Spanish.
This is the first chapter in a multi-part blog about me fulfilling one of my life’s ambitions- sailing across the Atlantic Ocean.
I wrote this journal as things unfolded, I started writing at home soon after Captain John’s initial email. I continued writing throughout the planning, while on planes, at the house we rented in Lanzarote, daily on Avocet as we sailed across the Atlantic, in Guadeloupe, and finally at back at home again. I wrote this because I wanted an unedited fresh as-it-happened memory of one of my life long ambitions- to sail an ocean. Read along, I hope you enjoy reading about my experience, parts of which are thrilling, some are boring, many are exhausting and a couple of them are even a bit scary.
Any of several large shorebirds belonging to the genus Recurvirostra, family Recurvirostridae. Avocets have boldly contrasting plumage, long bluish legs, and a long black bill upturned at the tip.
The four species of avocets are a genus, Recurvirostra, of waders in the same avian family as the stilts. The genus name comes from Latin recurvus, ‘curved backwards’ and rostrum, ‘bill’. The common name is thought to derive from the Italian word avosetta.
John Slingerland’s Avocet is a 1988 Oyster 41 Sailing Yacht-
According to the Oyster Yachts website there were 27 of these Stephen Jones designed yachts made from 1980 through 1987. Which is not quite accurate, the placard on Avocet claims that she was built in 1988, a year after the production dates stated on their website. The placard also states that Avocet is hull #23 (of 27), built by Landamores Yacht Builders in Norfolk, England.
Saturday, January 1, 2022
Last week I got an unexpected email from John Slingerland, owner and captain of the sailing vessel Avocet, a 1988 Oyster 41, “I may have a spot open departing Canaries 1/15 to Guadeloupe”. Which I responded- “I will run it by the boss, get a feel for how she feels about it. I will try to get back to you tomorrow”. I did talk to Colleen and kids about it, and they felt, as I did, the timing was perfect. EVOO one of our restaurants was, due to COVID, still closed, we were well staffed and there was nothing too important that I would miss at home. I didn’t have too much going on, I could make this work. I was very excited and hopeful to get the opportunity to cross the Atlantic, WHOOP, WHOOP!
Fuck yeah, I was available! Crossing the Atlantic has always been a dream of mine. I would even call it- as my wife Colleen gives me a “what the fuck are you talking about” eye roll- a “bucket list” item. I, like every other sailor, has dreamed of crossing an ocean.
A couple of days later I received another email from John- “In regard to the January 15 planned departure, one of the other planned crew had to bow out, and another is only 50/50, and in a watch and see mode. All understandable, all COVID related issues. This is a tidal wave that is lifting (or sinking) all boats in hopefully only the short term”.
I thought- Sucks for them, great for me!
With the all of the previously planned crew bowing out, John needed to shore up his crew for the longest leg of his “North Atlantic – Western Mediterranean circumnavigation”. He reached out to Jens Bergen, a longtime Avocet crew member, who had already done several of the other “circumnavigation” legs with John. He also asked me to see if my brother Dennis was available; which I did. Jens was in as long as we left after January 24. Dennis, after work and family consultations, was also available. I am elated to not only do this trip, but to have the opportunity to do it with my brother and long-time sailing partner Dennis will make this trip even more special.
Before we got to 4 committed crew members, John had floated the idea of going with 3, we were all so amped about crossing the Atlantic that we readily and ignorantly agreed, if that was the case, to go with it.
Now with the crew set, we now had just over three weeks to mentally and physically prepare for the trip.
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John is in the process of bringing Avocet back to the U.S. after a stint of sailing and exploring the northern Mediterranean; Portugal, Croatia, Greece, Montenegro, Albania, Italy and Spain were some of his ports-of-call. Avocet spent a year “on the hard” in Montenegro due to COVID-19. As soon as the travel restrictions were lifted John spent the summer and fall re-fitting Avocet. And with the help of various crew, including his wife Marcia and Jens Bergen, he began the trip from Montenegro back to his home port in Boothbay, Maine. He made stops in Sicily, Sardinia, Mallorca and Gibraltar before, in October, Avocet made it to Lanzarote, where she is once again “on the hard” getting a few minor repairs and an insurance survey.
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I have sailed with John before, a delivery from Blue Hill, Maine, to Beverly, Massachusetts, in 2015. The Marblehead – Halifax Ocean Race in 2017, as well as the first and probably shortest leg of his trip to the Mediterranean in 2017 from Beverly, Massachusetts to Newport, Rhode Island. I have found John to be a very knowledgeable, passionate sailor, a solid captain, an affable watch companion and an inspiration to my sailing aspirations.
In my opinion Avocet is a gem, she is well laid out- with wide teak decks, a solidly built typical ’80s racer/cruiser hull design- wide beam, small transom, shortish waterline and a low free-board. Below decks she is all class, teak everywhere, a sea-berth, handholds where they are needed, 2 heads, ample storage and a feeling of seaworthiness. All in all, Avocet was made to do exactly what John was using here for- long distance ocean passages, with some coastal cruising to quiet anchorages or to hip lively marinas.
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When John sent out emails looking for crew for all of the different legs of his Mediterranean excursion, I tried to join in. Unfortunately, for my sailing life, I was way too busy with the other aspects of my non-sailing life to be able to figure out how I could get some time onboard during the first half of the trip from Maine to the Mediterranean. I did get myself on as part of the crew for the last leg of his trip from Bermuda to Maine. That trip is still scheduled for May, 2022; hopefully I will still be able to make that happen.
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When I got John’s email, because of COVID 19, my current work situation is very different than it was 3 years ago when John was initially looking for crew members. I, with the help of my wife and business partner, Colleen, own and operate 3 restaurants, Which due to the pandemic we have temporarily closed one of them and drastically changed how we do business in the other 2. These actions, though they suck in many ways, have given me more free time than I have ever had as a working adult, and it’s blissful; I hope to never go back to 70 hour work weeks again. In my free(r) time I have not only spent more time with my wonderful family, which I would never give back, we have had a great couple of years. I also have upped my sailing, this past summer I sailed quite a bit on my friends’ and neighbors’- Tom and Mary Mitri’s boat, Glory, a 1988 Mason 44, which like Avocet, is a well built, ocean capable, late 1980’s boat. We sailed around Buzzards bay a few times and did a delivery up to Camden, Maine. I also Sailed on Alliance, a J-122 out of Newport, Rhode Island, doing several practice sails as well as the Stamford-Vineyard race, a 240 mile race from Stamford Connecticut to Martha’s Vineyard and back. So, John’s email came at the right time, I can take the time off. Colleen, knowing my love of sailing and my ocean crossing dreams, quickly gave me her blessings to do it. Keep in mind she and our kids will lovingly give me shit for abandoning them for a month for the rest of my life; I’m thinking it will be worth it.
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