HOMECOMING

Homecoming

The 3rd of September 2009 Aros More sailed into her home port of Craobh Haven in Argyll, South of Oban after three years away and 10.000 Miles under her keel. It was a strange feeling to be home!

In Kinsale we met two Danish families who were on their way to the Caribbean for a year. One couple was from Vejle in Denmark and were well acquainted with my sister and her family. When you sail under the Danish flag, Dannebrog, you soon become ‘family’. We immediately found other long distance sailors we both knew.

After our landfall in Kinsale we coasted along Southern Ireland and into the Irish Sea. Bangor in Belfast Lough was our last port in the Emerald Island. We headed for Stranraer in Southwest Scotland. Charles, David’s son was to join us here.
The weather had deteriorated and the last leg of the whole adventure became our real endurance.

When we crossed the Irish Sea the wind increased dramatically. We took the main down outside the entrance to Loch Ryan in the shelter of land, as the wind was SE. When we got out of the lee and into the open sea , it was blowing a hooley - force 8, straight down the loch and on the nose. The visibility had deteriorated and rain was flattening the sea. We turned on the radar. Three ferries, two catamarans and an ordinary P&O ferry passed in close proximity through the rain and fog. I was on the helm and the engine was on full ravs. We were hardly progressing at all. David decided to pull out a small foresail in order to tack, and move forward. This action proved a total disaster, as he lost control of the reefing line to the genoa and the whole lot blew out. There was no hope of retrieving it. At this time we had a lee shore of steep cliffs 300 yards away on the northern shore. I was scared! I was fighting with the engine and desperately trying to get the boat into wind. ‘The genoa has to come down’, David shouted and went forward on the deck. The sheets got tangled and caught under the boat, when it came down. ‘Give me a knife’, he jelled. I did as told, and he cut a sheets off the genoa and secured it on deck. All this while ferries were steaming past mon either side, hooting at us. The entrance to Loch Ryan seemed very narrow at that moment. I raved the engine to its maximum, turned the helm round to its absolute stop, and then back. By doing this I managed to get the boat away from the cliffs. It was a nightmare of a situation, and we were really put to our test only hours before being home in Scotland.
Stranraer was impossible, so we changed course, North, up the coast to Troon 30 Miles away. Charles was contacted and met us on the pontoon in Troon Marina.

I kissed the ground when I landed on Scottish soil!

The bad weather kept us in the Clyde and we sailed to Tarbert Loch Fine which was as pretty as ever. The Crinan Canal we did the next two days. Charles was a real asset on this part as the sluices were hard work. Crinan Canal was very pretty and tranquil.
!0 Miles up the coast through the Dorus Mor and we were back where we started in Craobh Haven three years ago!

Photos:
1. Map of route across the Atlantic.
2. Gitte helming in rain and wind.
3. Leaving Kinsale.
4. Tarbert Loch Fine.
5. Crinan Canal.
6. Gitte and David on Aros More back in Craobh.

Arrival to Ireland - We Made it!

We made our landfall at Kinsale in Southern Ireland two day ago. We had done it, crossed the Atlantic Ocean. We have no bruises, no broken bones and no blown out sails. We are here to tell the story!

11 days and nights it took us to do this last 1200 Nautical Miles.
We had quite a slow passage due to the High pressure which was stretching form the Azores to Britain at the time we left. We had fair winds from South and South West for several days and life was quite a doddle. The engine was on each night to start with as the wind died totally and the sea went calm glassy .

Here is what I wrote in my log book for Wednesday 19th of August 2009:
Ireland is now on the radar 14 miles away! We have had a couple of wild and accelerating days! The weather faxes which David picked up each afternoon on the SSB, gave us the strong impression that we were to have light S-SW winds all the way. But, there was a sting in the tail!
Two nights ago we had left the genoa and full main -sail flying. I had wanted to reef the main before nightfall, but, oh no, that wasn’t necessary, said Skipper. Then, when I was down for my sleep in the evening the wind increased to a constant 20 knots. I was told to get up. Now we had to dress I our oilskins and lifejackets, and David had to go forward on deck and put two reefs in the main, while I held the yacht into wind. Afterwards I felt like saying: ’I told you so’. I said nothing.
Yesterday was a lovely day, sunny and mild. The temperature has generally gone down to around 20 degrees C, and you needed a jumper when in the cockpit. We flew all sails during the day, but took the main down for the night. The wind was on our tail but we were still doing 6 - 7 knots on mizzan and genoa. At 03.00 in the morning the dial on the anometer (wind-reader) showed yet an increase in force. We had heard the Irish forecast , which talked about rainy showers and gusts of up to force 7 (=30 knots of wind). On the radar I saw a ship on the bow three miles away. The night was very dark. I saw that small light from the ship on our bow. I got David up and he took the helm. We took down the mizzan and flew a small reefed genoa. We were still doing 6 knots.
The daybreak came and it was gray and miserable, but we were both quite excited that we had managed the Atlantic so well.
Now, the boat is moving in all directions all the time! It is quite tiresome and we don’t get much sleep. You go and lie down just to chill out from the everlasting movements of the boat, but hardly manage to sleep.

Nobody, and I mean NO-BODY would be able to understand what it is like unless you have done it yourself.

We shall stay in Kinsale for a few days and then make our way back home to Scotland. We expect to get home in 10 -14 days.
1. photo: Church in Angra, Terceira, Azores.
2. photo: a whale (dubble click to enlarge!)
3. photo: Atlantic sunset.
4. photo: flying genoa, stay sail and main.
5. Kinsale marina

Around the island of Terceira. Leaving the Azores today!

We are now on our very last here, which is a great shame, but the forecast is right and we have still got 1000 Nautical Miles to Ireland and then up the Irish sea towards home.

We are having a wonderful time and the weather is lovely. The temperature is just right for us 22-28 degrees C, but the locals are unhappy the summer has never come!

Two days ago we hired a car toured all around the island of Terceira, which is circular with a volcano at the centre. We went to see the volcano and got right inside the crater as the actual volcano was long dead, but a few miles from the summit we visited some hot springs. The island is quite small, and the circular tour took a few hours only. Obviously we stopped several times for photo- sections. The country side is really pretty with hundreds of small pastures divided by stone dykes like an enormous tapestry of green, with dairy cows grazing. The villages are mainly along the coast and the houses are all well kept in bright and cheerful colours. We just missed a bull-fight in a town by the name of Santa Barbera. Bullfights are very common on the islands and take place through the main street of the village, which hosts the event at the time. Everybody in the street is game for the bull, which is let loose to run along the length of the town with all houses and gardens boarded up along the route. A pity we missed it!
Yesterday David went and I snorkeled above a wreck in the bay from 1858 outside the marina in the bay. It was very interesting. But, It did give me the shivers to think of that ship coming in to harbour in a storm, not being able to go to port and the anchor not holding. Well, food for thoughts!
Today we leave the Azores for Kinsail in Southern Ireland 1000 Nautical Miles away. The forecast is in our favour with a high pressure area stretching north from here, so if we stay outside the center we should get light SW winds.
We have really enjoyed these islands and I am sure we will be back.

, Angra do Heroismo , Azores

Island of Terceira , Azores.

This is the third of the islands we are visiting in the Azores archipelago, and it is getting better by the minute!
After Flores, which was really beautiful and tranquil, we sailed 138 miles of SW winds in record time of 22 hours to Horta, the capital of the Island of Faial. Horta is nice and small. It was a big whaling centre in times gone by. It has a large natural harbour with good protection. A big wind breaker of a mole and the dead volcano, Calera Inferno, makes it an obvious stop- over port for Atlantic crossings yachts. The facilities in the marina are brilliant. Electricity and water are on the quay side and diesel at the reception quay. Laundry is easily reached by walking and within the marina.
The whole area of the marina is like a huge artistic pallet crowded with colours and paintings done by the yachties who have stopped over here. Being a bit of an artist myself I had to do one as well, just to show coming generations and other fans that Yacht Aros More from the Clyde Cruising Club, skippered by David and crewed by Gitte were here in the year of 2009. (Sorry for sounding a bit pompous, but why not blow your own whistle!).
The first week in August the town of Horta hosts a festival to the seas. All visiting yachts were given an invitation from the Mayor of the town. The invite included a bunch of Hydrangeas, A large piece of local cheese and a jar of local honey. A very kind gesture from this remote community, we thought. A vast program of all sorts of different watersports was produced. Other activities including concerts, dances and typical gastronomic art.
We took part in some activities but left early on Sunday 1st August for the island of Terceira, and the main town of Angra do Heroismo. It is a distance of 70 Miles and we motored all the way, as there was absolutely no wind. As we started out before sunrise we saw the volcano of Pico on the island of Pico for the very first time. The volcano could be seen from the marina in Horta but was covered in clouds all the time. We sailed along this magnificent sugar cone of a mountain of 7000 feet up Canal do Sao Jorge. En route we had several visits from dolphins and saw a lot of seabirds.
The city of Angra do Heroismo was in 1983 declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site after a devastating earthquake in 1980. The city is an absolute jewel. All the houses are beautifully kept in many pastel colours all with terracotta roofs. Being the most important town in the Azores due to its superior natural anchorage many explorers called in here for centuries. A lot of history is connected to the town.
The city is buzzing with life and you will always find a nice breezy parasol and a cup of expresso.

From the Marina in Horta, Azores

Photos from The quay iin Horta Marina.
Look closely and you'll see a mountain in the background on one of the photos. That is the volcano, 7000 feet, on the island of Pico across the strait. I have just started painting on the quay, as you are meant to do as a long- distance sailor.

Flores, the Blue Island in the Azores.

Hydrangeas on Flores!

Flores is called the BLUE Island, and not without reason. The Hydrangeas bushes are every-where!

Island of Flores, Azores July 2009.

We arrived early morning Thursday 23rd to this little pearl of an island in the middle of the Atlantic.
We put down the anchor in the harbour bay at the village of Lajes das Flores in the south east corner of the island of Flores, which is the most north- western of the Azores .There is 138 Miles west of the central group of islands. It is supposed to be the most beautiful, and its people the most friendly. Well, I can believe all that now that we have been there.
The Quay area is small and the swell and the tide would have made it uncomfortable to be lying along side. Three other yachts were also anchoring, one British, one Canadian and one South African yacht. Two French yachts were along the quay but one were later asked to move out as an inter-island ferry were due to arrive. Uppersite the quay is a big cliff, lush in vegetation and full of nesting birds who chirp away all through the night.
We ventured up in the village which stretches itself charmingly up the hillside on the south east side of a mountain. Very pretty whitewashed houses in lush well kempt gardens gave us the impression of prosperity and tidyness. Everywhere beautiful wild flowers grew in abandance. Especially Hotencia, which bordered fields and pastures.
Unfortunately we don’t speak Portuguese but everybody were very friendly and helpful. A little lady, by the name of Florence was happily letting us use her internet from a bench in her very pretty garden. She also gave us tomatoes, couchettes and herbs from her garden .When asked she would take a very nominal fee only. She was just extremely friendly and helpful. She even offered us a lift to a festival in a neighbouring town.
We didn’t take the lift. In stead we took our bikes, which we bought last year, and which normally live in the forepeak of the boat all folded up. The bikes were transported in the dinghy to the pier and we then pushed them up through the town and much further up hill to the top of the mountain along the road, in baking heat (Mad dog an Englishman!). It was very beautiful with the views all over the countryside to the sea. We could see two crater lakes from the top of the road. The water was green and it was very scenic. Every where we found blue Hotencia growing all over the hills. We took hundreds of photos as one view was prettier than the previous one.
Yesterday we lighted ancher at Flores at 10.00 and in light SW winds we sailed to the island of Faial and the capital of Horta. The distance is 138 miles and boat went like a dream doing 6-8 knots all the way so that we arrived in a speedy time of 7.15 this morning. We are in the marina along the quay-side. For the first time since I arrived on the boat about a month ago is the table flat- horisontal without rocking and rolling all over the place. It is a strange but lovely feeling.

Atlantic crossing to the Azores July 2009

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Atlantic Crossing from Rockland ME., USA to the Azores from July 4th to 23rd July 2009.

We have just arrived to the Island of Flores the most western island of the Azores Islands. We have had the most exciting and great sail you could possibly image. We started out from Rockland ME. And have been at sea for 19 days and nights. Most of the time the wind has been very favourable. Every Day David has communicated with the weather-gods via weather fax and single side band (SSB) radio and his labtop and has managed to make the most of the wind patterns of highs and lows of the Atlantic Ocean. We have sailed 2100 Nautical Miles, just the two of us in this little wonderful boat named Aros More, and we are still speaking!

The fog was like pea soup when we left Rockland on Saturday morning of 4th of July, but the weather-forecast was good and we got SW winds as we had been promised. Soon all sails were up and ’Adolf‘, our wind- pilot was happily steering. When leaving the last islands belonging to the US behind we got a quick taste of what was to follow as the wind suddenly gusted to 25 knots. We quickly lowered the mizzan and reefed the genoa. We both put on our lifejackets and David went up on deck hooked on to the lifeline and put two reefs in the main.

During the crossing we have had beautiful sunrises and sunsets and seen beautiful seascapes. We have had visits from schools of dolphins, seen whales, many Portuguese man of war(poisonous jellyfish), birds such as petrols, sherwaters, and tropic birds. We have tried to fish but with no luck.

One day’s entry in my logbook I add to this so that you get some idea of what it was like :
14th of July 11th day at sea.
I was on watch from midnight till 4am, and it was a lovely night. Nice and cool, 27degrees C with light winds force 2-3 giving us 5 knots of boat speed on a broad reach. The moon was in his third quarter and there were millions of sparkling stars in the sky. I slept in between doing the hourly log, and overslept the last one to wake up at five am to a lovely cool morning - the best time of the day. Dolphins were playing around the bow, and as I gave David his early morning cup of tea at 6.00, I saw the back of a whale through a porthole -only 20 feet off to startboard - wow! We both rushed up on deck. I think the whale was sleeping, as he was lying very still giving an occational blow. Another whale blew out water a couple of hundred yards away. How exciting!
If it wasn’t for:
the bilge-pump giving up,
problems with David’s pc and printer to get weather fax,
the boat batteries being drained due to a loose connection,
and last not least the toilet pump was blocked, it was another boring day of 35 degrees C in baking sun in the middle of the Atlantic.
David was working solidly all day. Afterwards he did get his well deserved sundowner.

There is always some sort of problem to deal with. A skipper has to know his boat and his stuff. He has be ready in all situations and be prepared to deal with it. I am really pleased that my skipper is just the tops.

Last night we saw the looms from the lights from island of Flores. We were so, so excited. This morning at 05.00am we lying outside the harbour of Vila das Lajes, Azores, at the south point of the island and waiting for daybreak o we could go in. We had done it!
I was really quite relieved. Two days ago the winds and waves were terrifying me. I started worrying that something should happen. Now we are here in this wonderful little island in the middle of the Atlantic. We still had our sea-legs when we ventured out to explore.

Leaving Rockland, Maine USA.

Tomorrow we are leaving Rockland. 3th July 2009.
David and I left Bev and Ted Cowan's house yesterday and are now living afloat again on Aros More. We enjoyed great hospitality from the Cowans and hope to be able to repay them when they one day sail across the Pond in their Schooner or even in their Endurance, which sits under cover in their back yard.
We are now ready to leave. We have done all the shopping we possibly can, includingbuying knitting wool and fishing tackle ( to be used when as the wind demands!) , and filled up with water and diesel. Now we just hope the forcast is correct and the wind will weer to S- SW which is the favourable wind for us. We hope to reach the Azores in 15-21 days time.
We need some sunshine and to get out on the ocean wave!
All the time here in Rockland the fog has been down........a very depressing Summer, so far.