Sorry for the delay everyone.
Here are some pictures of the crossing…….hope you enjoy!
- Day 7
Our morning whale visit.
You could hear them singing when you went below decks.
Do not worry, if you are a whale lover, video to follow!
- Day 7
Some more whale shots to hold you over until I get the video done and posted.
- Day 7
Then the fishing really turned on. We got several tuna and Dorado including this nice 6 lb fish.
Too bad they loose their brilliant blue fin colour once they are landed.
- Day 7
The fishing only got better.
You can see I am looking forward to a taste of this 13 lb tuna
- Day 7
Then this ship came out of the sandy mist and we had to wake them up so they could alter course around us.
- Day 7
Atlantic Spotted dolphin
We had a couple of visits along the crossing. Do not worry dolphin lovers, video on the way!
- Day 8
We filed ourselves on fish and then used our 12V vacuum packer to seal up the rest for our little freezer. It will not last long!
- Day 10
The davits broke. The cross bar that supports the solar panels could not take the violent rolling any more.
- Day 10
Our ‘Magiver’ rig to support the broken davits. Still working today.
After that it was A LOT OF OPEN SEA!
- Day 10
Lots of sea
- Day 11
More sea
- Day 11
Even more sea
- Day 16
Guess what we have today….more sea
- Day 17
And, in case you did not know we crossed and ocean, here is some more sea
- Day 17
I just bore you with one last shot….of the sea
- Day 12
Not a lot to do at sea.
The human’s had to take turns letting me sleep on their laps because the boat was too rolly for me to stay on the cockpit seats alone.
- Day 13
The flying fish occasionally broke up the monotony by launching them selves over our mesh guard rails.
- Day 15
Of course the human’s were crazy enough to have a mid Atlantic dip in the water
- Day 15
Do not try this at home kids!
Remember to fix a long drape line to the boat if you go for a swim at sea. With all the sails down we still had a 2 knot drift. You had to swim hard to keep up with the boat.
- Day 15
If you have no wind to sail….you might as well do a little laundry. Wash and rinse in salt water followed by a final fresh water rinse.
- Day 16
Me barking at the dolphins. They like to play around the bow, and it is my job to keep them in their place.
- Day 17
We were very glad we fitted a cockpit shower and very lucky we had enough fresh water to have regular washes. The mesh side screen, in the back ground, really helped to keep the sun off but allowed the breeze through.
- Day 21
You could smell land all night, then a glow and finally the islands lights. By dawn we could see it’s shores.
- Day 21
We had made it across the Atlantic in 3 weeks.
- Day 21
Martinique is a volcanic island, but lush and tropical.
- Day 21
We took an anchor ball in the bay Grande Anse d’Arlet
- Day 21
First thing the human’s wanted to do was go for a swim in the Caribbean sea. (25’C water)
- Day 21
Now that we had stopped rolling, all I wanted to do was take a nap
- Day 21
The beach had a ‘dingy’ dock and we all went ashore to check in.
No officials. Just a computer in the back of the first bar. Very trusting.
Here is a picture of the beach with the anchorage off to one side.
- Day 21
View of the beach form the dingy dock. Not a wide beach, but they have almost no tide here. We arrived on the weekend, so the beach was very busy.
- Day 21
So we did it. We were finally in the Caribbean MAN!
I am sifting and slicing tones of video.
I got whales, I got dolphins and of course I got rolly seas. Quinney Quinnster Productions will have them up ASAP.
For fellow sailors, here are some informational shots of the twin head sail arrangement. You will get better views when the video is up.
- Day 9
The boom (poor man part) is used as a pole. The main sheet and a preventor are used to hold it static. The foresail sheet runs through an ‘opening’ block on the end of the boom. The sheet can run freely so the foresails can be reefed but the boom stays static.
- Day 9
The pole is set up as usual. Clipped onto the foresail sheet with a halyard used as a topping lift, a foreward and stern preventor line to hold the pole static. As with the boom, the foresail sheet runs freely so reefing can be done.
- Day 3
The wind was not co-operating so we needed to put both the fore sails on the same side to sail abeam
- Day 3
You can see that the outer working sail, the working sail, is secured to the end of the spinnaker pole. The inside sail is just resting on the working sail.
- Day 14
Try to keep plastic wrapping to a minimum. Store waste plastic in a large water bottle and it will not smell at all. This bottle is holding 2 weeks of plastic rubbish.
