We are loving springtime in Uruguay, and we’ve made the time to reflect back on winter in Uruguay with our new Cubic Mini Cub wood stove. We hope you enjoy the video!
Thank you Chuck for bringing us the wood stove, and for all the tips on birding!
We repaired our integral water tank a few months ago, here in Uruguay. This video is a recap of the build project from two years ago, and details of the recent repair. Overall, the integral water tank has been a vast improvement. It is easy to clean and fill. We are happy to make use of the space below our cabin sole that was filled with foam. The 65 gallon water tank makes long term cruising much easier.
We recently sailed from Juan Lacaze to Piriapolis in the Rio de la Plata in Uruguay. This is the first step towards getting moving after a summer spent dockside.
We move about the world at an irregular pace. Occasionally we sail fast and appear to be on track to girdle the entire globe in a year. Other times we seem stagnant, as if we have arrived to our destination and our journey is over. Of course neither is true for long. No matter how fast we sail, we will slow down sooner than later. Dawn Treader, Debbie, and I can only pretend so long before we reveal our true slow natures. But when we seem most stuck, we are actually purposefully moving to rest ourselves, prepare our boat, and wait for a season to arrive. Continue reading Video: Refinishing the Bowsprit
Brazil is ENORMOUS! 2000 miles and 7 months later and we have still only seen a minuscule fraction of this fascinating, beautiful, energetic country. In the maps of our minds, we have now illuminated the coast of Brazil from Salvador to Rio Grande do Sul. Continue reading Video: Brazil to Uruguay
Our blogging hiatus is over! We have new electronics and a new video!
Early this year we had an great passage from Brava, Cape Verde to Salvador, Brazil. The first minute of our new video shows clips from day one of an 18 day voyage. We set sail on a very wavy day, and had fresh winds for three days. Continue reading Video: Sailing from Cape Verde to Brazil
World cruising is challenging and difficult, but we have tools to avoid struggle. Mentor and good friend James Baldwin has generously given us his invaluable advice, and the simple insights that have echoed most in my mind are “keep the boat driving,” and “it doesn’t have to be a struggle.” To prevent or reduce struggle we adapt. To adapt we endure and adjust. Over time we are becoming stronger and smarter.
We are currently adapting to some new circumstances, Continue reading Brazil! Baia de Todos os Santos
Our time in Cape Verde has come to an end. We cleared out with immigration, left Mindelo, and sailed to Brava for a short visit before the Brazil passage. Brava is hard to bypass. It is a quiet Island with friendly residents. Farms dot the mountainsides on steep terraces.
Approaching 4 weeks in Mindelo and fully recovered from a stomach bug, we decided it was a good time to move. After scrubbing below the waterline and filling the water tanks, we checked out of Mindelo to sail 130 miles to Tarrafal on Santiago. The passage was short, under 30 hours, but proved to be exciting. Continue reading Fishing in Cape Verde
Saturday-December 3, 2016-Sao Vicente, Cape Verde
The sun is shining on Mindelo! After nearly two weeks of mostly gray skies and intermittent drizzling rain, our battery bank is now beginning to claw out of a deep solar deficit. At the dreariest times we were regularly seeing daily energy productions of only 4 amp hours. This is just enough electricity to power a single 100 watt lightbulb for 30 minutes, or an angle grinder for a mere 2 minutes. Typically we need 10-20 amp-hours in a day to meet our consumption levels. During the last 4 cycles, we have seen over 25 amp-hours/day generated. We are still a few cloudless days away from being fully recharged, but we can now loosen our miserly grip on energy conservation. Hence, the computer is now charged!
Once I fully recovered from a stomach virus, It was Debbie’s turn to be sick. Our staggered illnesses meant we have spent the majority of our time in Mindelo resting aboard Dawn Treader in the anchorage. This has given us plenty opportunity to observe the harbor traffics’ comings and goings.
Mindelo has a special sailor buzz much like Horta, Azores or St. George’s, Bermuda. The vast majority of sailboats had to make an 800 mile passage to get here and will be making an 1800 mile passage from here to the Caribbean. This must be a particularly busy year because the usually rock steady trade winds have been fickle, causing a bottle neck of weather waiting voyagers in an already crowded harbor. For example, many ARC boats embarking on non-stop passages from the Canaries to Caribbean, diverted to Mindelo to wait for stronger winds. Standing room only crowds at the floating marina bar/dinghy dock discussed chiefly their speculations of the wind’s whereabouts.
Now, with the sun, the winds have returned! Good strong NE’ly trades, predicted to continue through the run of the forecast, have eager sailors queuing their yachts in front of the fuel dock to top off their diesel and water tanks. The harbor is clearing out fast as cliques of voyagers informally organize into mini-regattas. Yesterday we watched the small boats leave. The day before it was the catamarans. This morning saw many french yachts depart, and some Brits are weighing anchor now, our friends aboard SY Florence amongst them.
We are thankful to have been a part of this caravan of camaraderie as we watch friends and almost friends disappear over the western horizon. Joining the European sailors in Porto Santo we became familiar with many boats as we transited the East Atlantic Islands. Even crews with whom we never spoke, felt like travel companions. Our divergent path is now apparent, they are westbound in a quest for longitude, and we are southbound in search of latitude. We wish them all safe passage. Perhaps we will meet again out there.
