Tag Archives: Blue Water Sailing

Doing the Atlantic, Chapter 27, Heading Home.

In the immortal words of another famous explorer, Dora… “We did it, we did it, we really really did it”.

To start reading about my transatlantic adventure from the beginning (highly recommended) follow this link.

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

16’16.13N 61’31.50W 3537km made good.

With a desire to check out Guadeloupe, as well as the need of a few restful days. Dennis and I decided that we would get flights home on Thursday. So we extended our hotel reservations for 2 more nights.

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Of course we extended our stay before looking at flights. When we looked for flights, this was our choices: Wednesday- 1 layover, $360. Thursday- 3 layovers, $570, 15hr flight time. Friday- $1300. We obviously went with Wednesday. I would have liked to spent more time on Guadeloupe, however, a Wednesday departure made the most sense. The hotel was very accommodating and changed our reservations to fit our Wednesday departure.

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John and Jens rented a car so we could tool around the island checking out the local sights.

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Dennis and I had to go to the airport to get our obligatory COVID tests, which ended up being a pain-in-the-ass. We were sent to the wrong place twice before getting the correct information. $50 later, with negative in hand, we were good to go.

We drove to the Botanical Gardens, about a 45 minute mountainous curvy roads ride. We checked them out, they were really cool. Honestly though, the best thing was that we were able to walk more than 40 feet in one direction for a long period of time.

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We stopped at an oceanside restaurant/bar and had a bit of food and a couple of beers before heading back to the hotel to clean up and eat again. 

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We went to the hotel’s dinner buffet, it really sucked! I mean it was gawd-awful. I was belching up the mystery meat, which they called veal, for hours. I just don’t know what they could have done to this meat to make it taste like this, I can’t think of a way to describe it except that it tasted like death, which I suppose it was.

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We finished off the night at the beach bar, which is where we should have eaten, instead of at the buffet. Jens turned us onto some Taiwanese Whiskey, which was damn good, almost good enough to rid my mouth of the flavor of the veal.

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Wednesday, February 23, 2022

Same spot, we haven’t moved.

Breakfast was at the same buffet as last night’s debacle of a meal, and it was adequate. 

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I chilled on the beach for an hour, deleting thousands of emails, reading the 3 emails I found of interest.

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We checked out of the hotel and John and Jens drove us to the airport.

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We’re explorers, just like Dora.
The banner that Shane and Cate made for us, Yup I am very lucky!

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Thanks for reading about my journey, I enjoyed writing it as it happened in 2022 and now finally presenting it in this format. Since our transatlantic I have continued to sail on Avocet regularly, as well as on my friends Tom and Mary Mitri’s boat Glory. I even charted a catamaran in the British Virgin Islands for 12 days in 2023, for a memorable family vacation.

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The fun doesn’t end there though, this year I have planned in June, a 1000+ mile trip from A Coruna, Spain to The Azores. In August, I will sail with John and my brother Dennis on Avocet from St. Pierre, a French Island territory located just off Newfoundland to Halifax, Nova Scotia. And, In November I am planning on sailing on Glory from Norfolk Virginia, first to Bermuda and then on to Antigua. I don’t know if I will write about these upcoming adventures or not, if I do I will share the stories on this blog. Thanks for reading!

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If you enjoyed reading about my transatlantic adventure, please Like, Follow and Share.

Doing the Atlantic, Chapter 22, Making Great Progress.

Sailing is still pretty spectacular. 20 knots on our starboard aft quarter with 6-9 ft seas.

To start reading about my transatlantic adventure from the beginning (highly recommended) follow this link.

Day 20

Thursday, February, 17, 2022, 1:01PM

15’28.133N 51’51.311W 2858nm made good.

SOG 7.2kts 

Still major issues with charging boat batteries, the wind generator may not be putting enough energy into the batteries or it may be an issue with the charging unit itself. We did not run the refrigerator all last night, there are concerns that it is drawing too much power for the batteries to charge. This morning the charge was up to 83%, which is good, so the refrigerator was turned back on again for a few hours. Ice for cocktail hour is doubtful.

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This photo was taken right before I went below and wrote todays entry. 20kts of wind, 6-9ft seas.

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After a night of hanging on the lifelines, most of my laundry is dry, smelling fresh and clean.

Socks and undies are still out there, they are hung on the leeward side, closest to the water and getting splashed whenever they are almost dry. I will move them to the windward side later today.

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Going through our stores yesterday we realized that we still have several bottles of mayonnaise, which is great.  We thought we were almost out of it and have been rationing it for several days. Now tuna salad and coleslaw will be vastly improved with the addition of mayo.

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With the less aggressive conditions we are once again letting out the fishing line during daylight hours.

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Another single beer cocktail hour last night, more because we are getting low on alcohol than for any other reason, the conditions are good. We had crab salad, deviled ham, peanuts and crackers to go with it.

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As of right now, as the crow flies, we have 560 miles to go to get to Guadeloupe, less than a Newport – Bermuda Race, which is 636 miles, leaving us with 4.5ish days until arrival.

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Chip Gavin, we’re calling him “our Portland office representative”. Chip and I have sailed together several times, mostly on Beausoliel, a Beneteau 456 owned by Richard Parent. Doing at least 1 Yarmouth Cup Race as well as the 2017 Marblehead – Halifax Race on Avocet. Chip introduced me to John when John needed crew to deliver Avocet from Boothbay, ME to Beverly MA, I think that was in September of 2016.

Chip was called into action, using John’s Garmin InReach satellite communicator, to inform the marina in Guadeloupe that we will be arriving, probably on Monday, with no engine and possible electrical/communications issues. Chip found us a tow service that would tow us into the harbor, $750 for the first hour, that will not be happening. He followed up with the harbormaster who said he could tow us from the breakwater to the dock for 80 euros, that probably won’t happen either. The current plan is to “sail to the dock” which I have complete confidence in John and the crew’s ability to do this. If it becomes too hairy we will have the anchor ready to go.

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Our weather updates are all promising, decent wind with the possibility of isolated squalls throughout the remainder of the trip, the max predicted winds in the squalls is 30 knots, nothing to sneeze at, but nothing to over-react about either. Keep a moderate sail plan and deal with it.

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Dinner last night was once again Bolognese, from Villa Azul, still pretty darn good. Canned peaches for dessert, which were surprisingly good, albeit quite sweet, but they were still firm and actually tasted like peaches.

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I am making another loaf of bread today. I doubled the dough recipe so that Jens could have a bunch of dough to make more crackers.

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Sailing under double reefed main, stay sail and a bit of the jib. Making great progress.

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Doing the Atlantic, Chapter 20, Battling the Elements.

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.

Day 17

Monday, February 14, 2022, 4:15PM

14’11.827 44’32.653 2363nm made good.

SOG 7.3kts 

I’ve been strapping myself in at the nav-station to write in this journal each day.

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The waves are mountainous! The ride is precarious! 

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A typical roller coaster is 2 minutes long, this ride has been going on since dusk Friday. 

Comet, Paragon Park’s (Nantasket Beach, Hull, MA) wooden coaster in 1974.

Keep the car on the tracks, go around the corners on two wheels, crawl up and speed down the hills, don’t forget- you’re driving.

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Look at the compass. Yaw to port, turn the wheel to right. Look at the compass. Keep on track, turn the wheel 3 feet left, 5 feet right, spin back left, 6 inches right, a foot left. Look at surroundings, look at the compass. Pitch down the front of the wave, boat yaws hard to the right, wants to breach, can’t let that happen, with all your might turn the wheel hard left, boat rights it course; 3 seconds of reprieve. Sliding down the back side of the wave, feel the keel catch the water under the boat, sliding to port, turn to starboard. Wave breaks over the starboard aft quarter, cockpit fills, everything is wet. Look at the compass, stay on course. Pitch down and to the left, turn to the right. Yaw to the right, turn to the left… That’s about a minute of steering the boat, we will each steer the boat for about 6 hours each day. My hands, arms, shoulders, hips and legs ache. 

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I got soaked on the helm this morning, I am trying to dry out before doing it all over again. 

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Winds are in the upper 20’s, gusting well into the 30’s. Seas are really big, predicted 14 ft, we’ve surpassed that easily. No doubt there have been some 20 plus footers mixed in. Waves are still sporadic, it’s like you’re steering the boat through angry, frothing, 5000 sf McMansion sized moguls that are chasing after you, while they’re trying to knock you down.

Moguls and McMansions.

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Rough weather predicted through tomorrow, Tuesday. Followed by “moderate” seas and winds. 7-12 foot seas and 17-22 knot winds.

I’m looking a bit bedraggled at this point.

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We had a cocktail hour last night. A beer, Serrano ham, smoked gouda, smoked sablefish that Jens brought and crackers.

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Dinner was Villa Azul Tagine with Couscous.

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Finished another book, Code Thief, by Justin Anthony Conboy, don’t bother reading it, lousy plot, not well written.

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Coffee and grinds spilled throughout the galley, somehow finding their way into the refrigerator, a royal fucking mess. While being tossed around in the galley I emptied the fridge, cleaned its interior, and cleaned each item before returning it back to the fridge. The grinds got into every little crack, nook and cranny, we will be cleaning them up throughout the rest of the trip.

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If you are enjoying reading about my transatlantic adventure, pleas Like, Share and Follow.

Doing the Atlantic, Chapter 19, Riding Out Some High Seas.

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. PM 4/22/25

Day 16

Sunday, February 13, 2022, 2:37PM

13’59.987N 41’53.504W 2216nm made good.

SOG 6.0kts

The winds are in the low to mid 20’s, seas- many over 10ft. Still sailing with just the storm jib and trysail, yesterday from about noon until 11pm we also pulled out several feet of the furling jib giving us a little bit more speed without overpowering the boat.

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Today’s winds and seas are what was predicted by Chris Parker. We are still trying to stay a bit south to avoid the highest of the forecasted wind and seas. 

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We should be through the shit on Tuesday with favorable wind conditions for the remainder of the trip.

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Jens’ bunk with Jens in it, got swamped. Jens had just gotten off his watch and was in desperate need of some rest, he had just settled into his bunk. In an effort to let some of the dank out of the now shuttered for days sweatbox of belowdecks, the hatch just above his bunk was open, only about a half inch. The wind and seas are following us, so the chances of a wave breaking over the bow into Jens’ hatch were minimal, still existing though. He and all of his bedding got soaked. He closed the hatch, changed his clothes, dried off and moved around his bedding and climbed back into his bunk when we got hit by another wave. Even with the hatch closed and secured, he got sprayed again. The 34 year old hatch seals are the culprit, another item for John to add to his upcoming repair list. Jens went through the process of drying out himself and his bunk again. 

One of Avocet’s hatches in the foreground, not the culprit hatch, that one is difficult to see, located between the mast and life raft. Jens at the helm in the background. This photo is from Boothbay Harbor Races in July 2023.

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We did have a Cocktail Hour last night- Serrano Ham, olives, nasty smoked dried tuna, smoked gouda and crackers. A bit of red wine for John and I, whiskey for Jens and Dennis. Villa Azul Bolognese for dinner.

Serrano Ham, a staple of our Cocktail Hour refreshments.

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All of this hand steering is making my shoulders feel the pain, only about 1100 more miles with no autopilot to go.

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These seas are the kind that would even have Erik Aanderaa of the YouTube channel “No Bullshit Just Sailing” fame appreciate them. They are relentless.

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John is still pumping/sponging out the bilge a couple of times a day. He believes that the engine’s raw water intake through-hull fitting is leaking and being exacerbated by the sea conditions; another item to add to his growing list.

An example of thru hull fittings.

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Dennis threw out some of the chicken breasts we cooked at Villa Azul in Lanzarote, this is an indicator for us to keep a close eye on the remaining Villa Azul food. Fortunately the bottom of the fridge is very cold, keeping a fair amount of that food frozen.

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If you are enjoying reading about my transatlantic adventure, pleas Like and Share.

Doing the Atlantic, Chapter 18, When the shit hits the fan, shit goes everywhere.

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. PM 4/22/25

Day 15

Saturday, February 12, 2022, 1:50PM

13’45.90N 39’21.21W 2067nm made good.

SOG 6+kts

When the shit hits the fan, shit goes everywhere.

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No engine, with heavy wind, the wind generator was kicking in some amps, so we have been able to run the refrigerator, VHF and navigation lights

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Last night was hellish, 40kts of wind, 10-14ft erratic seas. Before dark we lowered the mainsail and pulled up the storm trysail. Until about 9PM we sailed with the trysail staysail combo, at that point Jens and I were called on deck, we were off watch until midnight, to drop the staysail. The plan with the increasing wind and seas was to sail through the night with just the trysail; we were getting battered.

A great picture of John taken after the real shit weather.

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Soon after we started our midnight watch Jens had just strapped himself in at the wheel, and he got swamped. A direct hit with a wall of water square in his back, not only drenching him, but also pushing him forward into the wheel and across the helm seat from starboard to port. Besides being soaked, he was okay. In the immediate aftermath of this ginormous wave, Jens thought we had “gone into irons”, this is when your sails are trapped in the no-go zone, in essence stalling the boat. In reality we weren’t in irons we were in the froth of the wave that broke into our cockpit, the water was so roiled and aerated that it was causing the boat to stall. I had to shine my headlamp onto the sail to show Jens that the sail was full and fine. We were just stuck in the waves’ backwash.

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Did I mention it was a rough ride? I have been in higher seas, easily 20 feet high, on Neil and Ronel’s boat Tiger during a delivery from Bermuda to Antigua. Those waves were rollers, all in the same direction, well spaced apart and we were riding them; more fun than scary. The seas last night were much angrier, no rhythm to them, just bashing us, unsettling. 

Not my photo, but it’s a good representation of the seas we delt with for several days.

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In the wee hours things calmed down a bit, winds 20+ kts, with 7 to 10 foot pissed off waves.

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This morning we unhooked the staysail and replaced it with the storm jib. The storm jib is a very small day-glo orange sail, with the intended use of, you guessed it, sailing in a storm or storm like conditions. To change the sail Dennis and Jens with their harness on, attached to the Jack-lines, crawled to the bow. I manned the halyard from the relative comfort of the cockpit. I lowered the staysail as they gathered it on the deck, unhooked, bagged and sent the sail back to me in the cockpit. I passed up the storm jib and we repeated the process in the opposite order; unbag, hank-on, and pull the sail up, done. This is all done with the boat pitching and yawing erratically and an occasional wave breaking on to the deck. 

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The good news is today, tonight and tomorrow morning the winds are predicted to remain reasonable. The bad news is that last night’s drama is predicted to only be a prelude to what tomorrow night through Tuesday is expected to bring us. 25kts of winds with higher gusts and 10-14 foot seas for 2 days. Argh!!!

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Jens is a galley god, during the early part of last night’s mayhem he made some rice and heated up some chicken-coconut soup.

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I haven’t showered or changed my clothes since Wednesday, Yuck!! I am planning on making that a priority later this afternoon.

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Cocktail Hour was postponed yesterday, due to foul weather.

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Food stores are still plentiful, fresh items remaining include a few apples, 3 bulbs of garlic, ½ a head of cabbage, 5lbs of potatoes, 6 tangerines and a dozen limes. With the wind generator going strong, it should keep the remaining Villa Azul vacuum sealed items fresh for a few more days. We also have a vacuum sealed pork loin that Jens is going to cook soon, weather permitting. After that we do have lots of canned and dry goods, I won’t be making any bread until at least Wednesday.

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It may be windy and cool on deck, however with the wind and sea conditions we have to keep all of the ports shut making it a musty sweatbox below deck.

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Doing the Atlantic, Chapter 17, The Engine Won’t Start!

To start reading about my transatlantic adventure from the beginning (highly recommended) follow this link.

Day 14

Friday, February 11, 2022, 2:08PM

13’64.56N 37’35.43W 1928nm made good.

SOG 7.5 kts 

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. PM 4/22/25

Lot’s to report, The shit has hit the fan, no power, no motor!

AAGHHH!!

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Last night at about midnight we were running the generator, John wanted to use the gas generator to charge the batteries, saving the diesel, for the main engine. The generator stopped having a load on it, and had a noticeable drain of power. The batteries were not charging and the motor would not start. John worked through the night trying to figure out the problem to no avail. 

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No power means- no autopilot, no charging of boat batteries, no refrigerator, no lights, no instruments etc. The battery power we have remaining is being conserved for navigation and compass lights.

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We set up the windvane, a mechanical backup to the autopilot, and it is also not working properly. I got to hang over the stern of the boat to replace a couple of lock washers on the windvane. I was harnessed to the boat, however it was still a bit unnerving to be hanging over the water with no land in any direction for nearly a thousand miles. Without the autopilot or a properly working windvane, it looks like we will be hand steering the last 1400 miles.

An example of a windvane.

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We changed our watches back to 2 man shifts, I’m now with Jens and we trade off at the wheel every thirty minutes. 

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Last night before the electrical issues we hung out in the cockpit and I learned how to play the card game Hearts.

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Dinner was baked potatoes filled with Villa Azul chili, cheese and onion, not bad.

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Vodka and Tonic equals Gin and Tonic without all the flavorful parts, we suffered through them during last night’s cocktail hour. Jens served up Spanish white anchovies, Serrano Ham, hummus and crackers.

A Boothbay G&T, enjoyed well after our transatlantic sail, a night before we sailed Avocet in the Boothbay Harbor Regatta races.

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I am amazed at how many birds there are out here in the middle of the Atlantic.

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Decent winds out of the northeast at about 18 knots, boat speed is good. 

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Doing The Atlantic, Chapter 14, Fish Tales and I Clogged the Toilet.

Day 11

Tuesday, February 8, 2022, 10:15AM

15’49.817N 30.42.742W 1462nm made good.

SOG 5.2kts

We just deployed the spinnaker again, it looks like another day of light winds. Yesterday we were able to fly the spinny for about 6 hours before the wind diminished too low to keep it up. We ended up motoring throughout the night. We are hoping for more wind, not too much, just more. Seas are flat, it’s amazing that everything is so calm even though we are hundreds of miles to the closest landfall.

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The big one got away! At twilight last night we hooked another fish. This time when Dennis called “fish” we all came running. This baby was much larger than the one we caught 2 nights ago. Dennis reeled it in close to the boat, but the rod was still tied to the rod holder. We do this to keep it in place in rough weather or if a fish was to pull the rod out of the holder. I reached in between Dennis and the aft-lifeline to which the rod holder was attached and untied the line. Dennis handed off the rod to me so he could position himself a little bit forward where there is more space to maneuver. All the while this large iridescent bright blue Mahi Mahi was splashing away at the surface in a desperate attempt to escape our stomachs. John freed his newly purchased gaff, a big ass hook on a long handle used to bring fish from the water’s surface onto the boat. 

Dennis reeling in the big one!

Dennis grabbed the gaff and gaffed our potential dinner at the gills, just where you are supposed to, right below the gills. As he was lifting PD from the surface to the deck, the big fucker thrashed it’s way of the gaff, fuck.

All hope for another Mahi Mahi meal was not lost yet, the hook was still in its mouth. I still held the rod keeping the fish at the surface, ready for another attempt with the gaff. Which Dennis made it look like a Brady to Gronk pass late in the fourth quarter to sure up another win. This time Dennis got our 12lbs of blue food porn on the deck, the fucker was on the deck!! However, it gave one last mighty thrash jettisoning itself free of the gaff and the hook, sending the lure flying. The lure quickly found its way into Dennis’ sock. We all thought it was his leg, stopping us all dead in our tracks. No one wanted to move the wrong way, possibly helping embed one or more of the lure’s nasty hooks further into Dennis’ leg. While we all stood there looking at Dennis’ leg, which was fine, but we were motionless, the big one flopped over the side and took off like a bullet. Another day, another fish tale.

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During our nightly ritual, cocktail hour, we came up with a procedure of what needs to be done next time- Make sure the rod is secured with a one pull release knot- Fish on line, yell fish. Start reeling it in. Put the engine (if running) in idle. Lower the solar panels. Move the rod forward, so there are less obstructions while boarding the fish. Since we don’t have a net we will have a large handled grocery bag available to use as a net if necessary. With this thought out procedure, hopefully the next one doesn’t get away.

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Speaking of fish, well mammals; most days we have had visits from dolphins. They typically swim alongside or in our bow wake, once, so far, they did a few jumps out of the water right on our starboard side. They do look really cool, like they are having fun. I hope they stay away from our fishing lure.

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There is concern that the “house batteries’’ may have been compromised. Most boats have house batteries, used for just about everything except starting the engine. The engine has its own dedicated starting battery that is wired separately to insure that you will always have the juice to start your engine. Unbeknownst to me, if you run your batteries too low, to 55% or lower, they will no longer hold a charge as well as they did before the low discharge. A few days ago the batteries got down to just under that 55% number, so we are keeping a closer eye on them making sure we don’t let that happen again, as well as seeing if the batteries were truly compromised.

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I just took a break from writing to use the head, and…I clogged the toilet! Fuck! We are figuring out the best way to resolve this situation. Currently, I have salt water on to boil to see if a bit of hot water will soften things up. 

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Late yesterday afternoon, we decided, in an effort to keep the spinnaker full of air, to drop the mainsail. The thinking was that with the wind behind us, the main was blocking air more than it was capturing it. When we dropped the main we noticed that one of the battens, a semi-rigid membrane used to help a sail keep its shape, was missing the set screw used to hold the batten in place at the luff (front) of the sail. The battens typically go into a cloth sleeve stitched laterally into the sail, though I have also seen vertical battens as well, they just aren’t as common. John was able to find a replacement screw and the fix was in, done in about 10 minutes.

The batten on Avocet’s mainsail is circled.

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Before leaving home, in Arlington, my kids, Shane and Cate slipped notes into my duffle bag for me to read during my trip. On the outside of Shane’s he instructed me to open it “after we were aboard for a while”, “when I was homesick” or “just feeling lonely”. I decided that I would open them at the approximate half way point of our trip, we are not quite there yet; with this light wind it may still be a while. I am very much looking forward to opening those letters and thinking about my kids. I love’em.

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How I was feeling at the time.

Back to the toilet- I made a shitty situation even worse. I tried forcing the pump handle to push the clog through. For a moment I thought I was successful, the handle moved freely, but it wasn’t moving any water; I blew a gasket, on the toilet, not me personally. John has a spare pump on board which is great, however, useless until the clog is cleared. I shut the through-hull fitting, which allows water into and waste out of the toilet before I tried unsuccessfully, to unhook the waste hose to clean it out; nope not happening. Shitty getting even shittier. I also started to remove the old pump, when I took the pump off the base it looked as though the flapper mechanism which separates the water and waste was installed upside down and was stuck at an awkward angle. This may have caused the handle to move freely without discharging water. So, I flipped the flapper and put the pump back on its base. When we clear the clog we will find out if the flapper was part of the problem or if we have to replace the pump itself. It was just mentioned that we have a snake on board. After lunch I may take a crack (intended) at the clog using the snake.

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In the early hours of this morning we saw, on AIS, our first boat in 4 days.

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Last night’s dinner was Bolognese with Penne, Parmigiano-Reggiano, EVOO and more of my boat made Focaccia. The Bolognese is part of the bulk food that Dennis and I cooked and froze at Villa Azul in Puerto Calero. It was quite good and got rave reviews from Jens and John. This morning we ate the last of the Tortilla Espanol and Chorizo. Jens is in the galley putting together some chicken salad wraps for lunch.

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Overall our food supplies are good, we have put a huge dent in them, but the fridge is still full and we still have John’s canned goods from his $200 checked bag to fall back on, if we need to.

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Gin on the other hand is getting low. What will we do? We still have some beer, vodka and rum, we’ll have to see where each cocktail hour takes us.

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The winds are currently very light, we are flying the spinnaker, with winds so light we are only moving about 4 knots. Winds are supposed to remain light through tomorrow night, then should pick up for our tack westward.

If you are enjoying reading about my transatlantic adventure, please Like and Share.

Doing the Atlantic, Chapter 13, Heading Further South, Mahi Mahi 3 Ways.

Day 10

Monday, February 7, 2022, 10:40AM

17’38.136N 29’38.555W 1295nm made good.

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SOG 5.0 kts

A mellow sunrise.

I had the 5AM ’till 8AM watch, which was quite pleasant, light breeze, full sails, reading and watching the sunrise. Very serene. Just after sunrise John got up and made us coffee. Fortunately we moved on from the last coffee, which was crap, way over-roasted and kinda rank. It did have a nice caffeine punch though, which once you got past the taste it was very helpful during the wee hours of a late watch. Each time I begrudgingly swallowed down a half a cup, dumping the rest of the cup. With this latest coffee I happily had a second cup. John said this coffee was one that he and Marcia got in Sardinia.

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Yesterday afternoon Jens called me up on deck to check out this bird that was soaring around the boat. Jens said that it has been doing it for about half an hour. It’s a cool looking bird, Long gray/blue beek, the top of its head is yellow, most of its body is white with gray fading to black wings. It was really interesting to watch it soar effortlessly all around the boat, as though he was checking us out as much as we were checking him out.

I toke a lot of photos of this bird, none of which turned out well.

That bird stuck around us yesterday for at least 3 hours. And, the coolest thing is that when John came on deck and saw the bird, after a bit of discussion with Jens, they ironically determined that our new, short-term, mascot was indeed an avocet.

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Also yesterday afternoon John received another weather update from Chris Parker. Chris highly recommended that we head another 300 miles south in an effort to avoid a situation of no wind followed by too much wind. We obediently obliged, changing our heading from mostly west to mostly south. We should be on this tack for 2.5ish days before heading back to our desired westerly direction.

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The winds dropped to the single digits, so, once we were all up and properly caffeinated, we pulled up the spinnaker. After a bit of figuring out, it went up without a hitch. The spinnaker itself is made from lightweight magnificently bright blue cloth with the depiction of an avocet screeching through sky, smack-dab in the middle of the sail. Our speed immediately increased from 3 to 5 knots, and a little while later the wind stepped up just a tick and our speed went to over 6 knots.

Avocet’s spinnaker.

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While I sit here writing at just after 11AM I am enjoying a Heineken. Yes, I did just use the words “Heineken” and “enjoy” in the same sentence. Jens “chilled” them in the ocean to about 70’. I have never liked Heineken, still don’t, urine would usually be thought of as an upgrade, but there is something about a semi-cold beer after physical exertion in the heat that is quite satisfying. I am looking forward to some hometown New England IPA’s, until then I will make peace with Heineken.

Writing at the Nav Station, while “enjoying” a Heineken.

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Yesterday, Dennis, like an obedient little brother, finished our laundry, hanging it to dry on the lifelines. This morning it was dry, so I folded and put it away.

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Dinner last night was on me. Mahi Mahi 3 ways. Sashimi with Soy, Lime, Chili Oil and Crystalized Ginger; Ceviche with Lime, Tangerine, Garlic. EVOO and Cayenne Pepper; Blackened with Cumin Scented Basmati Rice, Carrots, Mushrooms and a big squeeze of Lime. It was all really good. The only way to make it better would be if we caught a bigger fish…The line is out.

Blackening up some of the Mahi Mahi that we caught on Avocet’s stove.

~

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Doing the Atlantic, Chapter 12, Making Water and Catching Fish

Day 9

Sunday, February 6, 2022, 12:04

19’45.531N 28’53.730W 1161nm made good.

SOG 6.1kts

It’s officially the longest sail I have ever been on, second was the delivery of Tiger from Bermuda to Antigua with Neil and Ronel Holtzhausen on their C&C 41, in November of 2007.

A sistership to Tiger and Bermuda to Antigua map with distance.

~

We had a very busy day yesterday. After I showered, a boat shower, using very little water. It was determined that we needed to make water, not an easy task, though well worth the effort.  

To run the watermaker we had to set up the generator; the other boat charging systems, including the boat’s diesel engine, do not produce enough power to run the watermaker. We emptied out the “pit”, where the generator is stowed of enough stuff to access it. We pulled out bags of clean linens that we weren’t using and a couple of duffle bags. Once we had clear access to the generator, we pulled it up on deck, filled its gas tank and lashed it onto the poop deck. It started right up and was attached to Avocet’s power, producing the necessary power.

To run the watermaker, which is also locaed in the “pit”, it is a multi-step process, first we have to open the thru-hull fitting allowing saltwater into the watermaker. I climbed into the pit so that I could increase/decrease the pressure of the water going into the watermaker. John handled the switches at the Nav-Station, turning on the power, priming the system and then turning on the pump that forces the water through multiple very fine filters and a reverse osmosis thingy, to desalinate the seawater. Within seconds of John powering the pump there was a POP, then there was a loose hose with water pouring out of it. I yelled to stop the system, which John did. The problem was obvious and I caught it within seconds. We didn’t open the discharge valve for the excess water that was being desalinated to escape overboard. I yelled down for a screwdriver and in about two minutes we were back in business. Discharge valve is now open, we restarted the process, it went off without a hitch. In about two hours we had a full tank of fresh water. We kept the generator running for another hour to recharge the house batteries.

~

We are constantly adjusting the sails. The wind speed and wind direction determine which sails we use and how we adjust them to best capture the wind keeping Avocet moving in the right direction at decent speed.

My feet, while I was chilling on the foredeck looking aft.

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John set up a Jockey pole for use with the stay sail, it’s to be used in the same manner as the whisker pole, same thing only smaller, adjusting the foresails’ clew, keeping it where we want it.

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On the Thursday before our departure we went to three stores looking for cornstarch, and we struck out. Going through the galley cabinet I found an unopened box. John had brought a third checked bag at a cost of $200, full of food. My first thought when he told us about his $200 bag was- y’know they have stores in Lanzarote, right.  My second thought was you paid $200 to bring $40 worth of food with you, why? So far out of that bag I have used bread flour, whole wheat flour, yeast and when I heat up the chicken coconut soup I will use that damned cornstarch to slightly thicken it. 

~

We opened the cooler that Dennis and I filled with vacuum sealed meals that we froze in Lanzarote. It was just as we expected it to be after a week- nothing was frozen, though it was all still cold. Dennis emptied Avocet’s drop-in refrigerator and I passed him down, through one of the deck hatches, most of the food that was in the cooler. He layered as much as he could in the refrigerator, leaving just mashed potatoes, carrots and mushrooms in hopes of using them before they became fish food.

The photo of the cooler full of hopefully still frozen vacuum sealed bags of food we made in Lanzarote that I have used several times already.

We are down to the onboard refrigerator as our only way to keep food cold. There is no more ice except for the few cubes that are made each day by the refrigerator. Those cubes are necessary for crew morale…cocktail hour. We are using one of the empty coolers for storage and another has mine and Dennis’ laundry in it with detergent and water, the boat’s movement is agitating it. A little later we will rinse with salt water and then with fresh water before hanging it to dry.

~

Just before cocktail hour we hooked a fish, Dennis yelled “fish”, John responded and went on deck to help if needed. I was filling my water bottle and did not hear him, Jens was in the galley with headphones on and did not hear him either. As I climbed up on deck through the companionway, I saw Dennis lifting a small Mahi Mahi into the cockpit. It flapped a bit and got some blood splatter in the cockpit sole, Dennis dispatched it of its life and we went on to enjoy our Cocktail Hour. Sliced tomatoes, Parmigiano-Reggiano and boquerones drizzled with EVOO. Washed down with gin and tonic for Dennis, John and I; Jens as usual opted for some Irish whisky and soda.

~

Cocktails out of the way Dennis went below to finish putting dinner together: Tagine with shrimp and chicken served over couscous.

Dennis reeling in the Mahi Mahi.

While Dennis was below, I filleted the fish, throwing the head, bones, guts and skin overboard. We were left with two nice, yet small fillets, I think it will be just enough for tomorrow night’s dinner. We gave the cockpit a good cleaning and we were ready to go on to tonight’s dinner, with a second round of drinks and a half a gummy to wash it all down.

The small Mahi Mahi that Dennis caught bloodying up the cockpit.

Dennis served up the tagine, we ate, listened to music and chatted until about 9:30PM, which was great because I had the first watch, which was now half over.

Nothing happened during the rest of my watch and at 11PM I went below for another solid 7 hours of sleep.

~

Chris Parker

During the night John got an updated weather report from Chris Parker. Chris is the Chief Forecaster at The Marine Weather Center and has been helping mostly small private boats with weather forecasts and routing advice since 2010. He told us that we should head south for an additional three hundred miles before heading west again. This was so we could avoid a couple of days of very light winds followed by a day of heavy wind and seas. Going south should provide more consistent wind and smaller seas. This is all good, at some point we were going to have to go further south in order to line up on Guadeloupe’s latitude.

~

I am in the process of making another loaf of focaccia, this one with some whole wheat flour, green olives and rosemary mixed into the dough.

I also made some chicken apple salad to eat whenever.

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Doing the Atlantic, Chapter 11, Watch Changes and Baking Bread.

Day 7 and 8

Friday, February 4, 2022, 12:26PM

21’40.535N 24’42.881W 850nm made good.

SOG 5.7 knots

Sails are set wing on wing.

~

This morning John decided to change our watches, based on forecasted fair weather nights, from 2 people for 4 hours to 1 person for 3 hours, which will give each of us more time to sleep longer at night. 

~

While I napped the others cleaned out the pilot berth, a single berth usually at the widest part of the boat, up high, tucked just under the deck. The berth is designed to keep its occupant snug, well protected during rough sea conditions as well as within close access to the cockpit. On most of the boats I’ve been on, the pilot berth is either used for storage or has been converted to cabinets, bookshelves or a combination of the two.

Different uses for a pilot berth.

The purpose of the berth cleanout is with the new watch system we would each have our own berth. Dennis and I have been sharing a berth, now we will each have our own. The cons of the pilot berth are that it’s located right in the middle of the salon, so it’s noisy and active, as well as it’s a pain in the ass to climb into and out of and I’m not as spry as I used to be. The pro is that you have your own berth.

~

Jens out did himself with last night’s dinner, Date-Walnuts-Manchego Stuffed Baked Pork Tenderloin with Broccoli and Basmati rice. Cocktail hour was shrimp with the Canary Island Red Sauce, quite good store bought guacamole, tortilla chips, manchego and crackers. It was really good.

~

I made some focaccia dough this morning, I will bake it later today.

~

We still haven’t opened the cooler with all the food that Dennis and I made in Lanzarote. We figure even if it’s not still frozen, it should at the very least still be cold. We’ll see.

Hopefully everything is still cool.

Day 8

Saturday, February 5, 2022, 9:13AM

20’51.871N 26’51.007W 990nm made good.

6.0 knots SOG

Later today will mark the first week of our crossing complete, after a rough start, it’s been fairly mellow.

~

The fuel tank still leaks a little. The leak is on the top of the tank where there are three see-through windows that Gary the mechanic at the marina in Puerto Calero “fixed”. Yesterday John applied another bead of Phil Swift’s Flex Seal around each window. That combined with keeping the tank no more than three quarters full has made a big difference. John has diligently sponged out the bilge of diesel each day with less to mop up as we progress. 

~

When I dragged my ass out of my bunk after 7 hours of fitful sleep, thanks to the new watch system, which I did from 11PM until 2AM, John and Dennis pointed out the obvious, our clocks were wrong.

According to yesterday’s time it was getting dark close to 9PM and getting light a little after 9AM. I made a half-hearted argument that we should keep the time the same to enjoy cocktail hour and dinner during the light hours and who cares if it’s not light until 9 AM. I was debunked, we switched our clocks to the correct local time. We will now have to start our evening festivities a bit earlier each night.

~

We officially made our turn to the west yesterday, as of this morning we have a tick under two thousand miles, as the crow flies, to reach the waypoint outside of Guadeloupe’s main harbor. 

Our GPS shows we are a couple of hundred
miles north of the Cape Verde Islands

~

Each day, during all daylight hours we have been fishing, well, we set up the rod with a lure and let it out. The only catch so far was a piece of plastic on Wednesday afternoon. We will make the same effort each day, however the probability of catching something before we close in on the Caribbean is highly unlikely.

~

I’m halfway through reading my fourth book, which is about double the amount of books I’ve read in the last 6 months. Fortunately I downloaded my Kindle with several books before departure. Here is what I’ve read so far:

In Her Tracks, by Robert Dugoni

Invisible, by James Patterson and David Ellis

Boy Underground, by Catherine Ryan Hyde

I’m half way through- The Last green Valley, by Mark Sullivan

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The sky was incredible last night. The stars were right there, so bright, you could reach them, it felt as though we were sailing through them.

Someone else’s night sky photo.

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Looks like today will be shower/laundry day. Dennis had the great idea of turning one of our empty coolers into a clothes washing bin. Load it with clothes, salt water and soap; lash the lid down and let the boats motion do the work, rinse in freshwater, wring them out, hang’em to dry. Avocet will look a single-wide on a summer afternoon, when mom’s not too hungover.

~

We are planning on opening the cooler with the pre-prepared meals in it today, I’ll let you know how that works out later.

~

We have made a few sail changes, nothing major. During my watch, with a following breeze of 17-25 knots. We were flying a double reefed mainsail and a reefed furling jib. We were moving along great 6.5+ knots without too much movement. The only issue was the jib, being blocked by the main, was flapping quite a bit. I debated my choices- turn up 20’, filling the jib with the change of wind angle. Turn down 20’ and put the jib out on the starboard side keeping the mainsail out on the port, wing on wing. The third option, which John pointed out when he checked in with me, was to just roll up the jib and be done with it, which is what we did. We lost less than .5 knots of speed, we also lost the noise of the jib and its accompanying gear flapping around and gained the comfort of a flatter boat.

~

Once again we didn’t suffer with our dinner last night-

Cocktail Hour- Shrimp with Crunchy Chili Oil, Guacamole with Tortilla Chips and Smoked Cod with Crackers. 

Jens was once again our dinner chef- Soy Marinated Pork Medallions with Tangerines, Baked Potato, Coleslaw and Corn, along with some of my homemade Focaccia. 

My first batch of focaccia.

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John is now running the engine three times a day to ensure that we have the needed power, especially for “Iron Mike ” the autopilot and the refrigerator which has the ability to make a couple of trays of ice per day, the perfect amount for our cocktail hour.

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