March 9, 2010

We kept AZURE in Marmaris, Turkey most of 2009. She was berthed at Marmaris Yacht Marine. ln late April and early May, 2009 we spent about 1 week working on the boat. This included changing the coolant in the engine and checking out the main fuel tank to make sure that there was no significant debris in the tank. We also had our freshly cleaned sails put back on the boat. We did take some time to rent a car and explore the surrounding area. We went to Ephesus and Bodrum and enjoyed both areas immensely. The weather did deteriorate somewhat but we finally were able to get in a little sailing. Fortunately, The boat systems checked out well. We flew back to the States and finalized our plans for a group charter with Kiriacoulis that was to take place in June, 2009.

In June we returned to Marmaris and started a 1 week charter. We had a group of 19, which included a hired captain for one of the boats. We had AZURE plus 2 Bavarias. We sailed from Marmaris along the Turquoise Coast to Gocek and Fethiye. Highlights of the trip included our excursion up the Dalyan River to the Lycian Rock Tombs and mud baths near the town of Dalyan plus visiting the ancient city of Caunos. The group also had a great time paragliding from a nearby mountain top. Anchoring near Gemilier Island was also a treat. At the conclusion of the trip we took AZURE back to Marmaris and then flew home.

We the went back to Marmaris in September and sailed her to Levkas, Greece. This included stops in Rhodes, where we obtained our Greek transit papers, and also Crete and Ithaca. We thoroughly enjoyed our few days in Heraklion, Crete. We rented a car and explored a good portion of the island. This included the famous site of Knossos, the epicenter of the Minoan civilization. We then had a great sail from Crete to Ithaca, the home of Odysseus. Thought that the harbour was beautiful. In fact, we thought that the whole Ionian Island group was outstanding. We then motored to Lefkas where we left AZURE for the winter. Plan to go back in May, 2010 and start working our way to Gibraltar.

August 10, 2008

AZURE is currently in Corfu, Greece. About this time last year we were moving the boat from Agropoli, Italy to Tunisia via Sicily and Malta. In June of last year we spent several weeks along the Amalfi coast of Itlay. We sailed along this coast in the company of two other boats that we chartered from Kiriacoulis.We had about 21 in our charter group/. This was a wonderful experience. We then motored and sailed to Sicily via the Aeolian Islands after leaving Agropoli .We passed Stromboli on our way to LIpari. From Lipari we went to Trapani, Sicily via the old Norman town of Cefalu and Palermo. We kept the boat in Trapani for several months and then began our journey to Tunisia. We did visit the Greek/Roman ruins at Selinunite before leaving Sicily. We motored to Malta from Sicily. We also loved Malta.The legacy of The Knights of Saint John permeates the island. We hated to leave but had to get the boat to Tunisia for the winter. Fortunately we were able to sail most of the way to Monastir, Tunisia. The boat was kept in Tunisia over the winter.Tunisia was unexpectally delightful. For one thing, there are numerous Roman ruins scattered throughout Tunisia. The 3rd largest Roman amphitheater is at El Jem. In addition, there is the ancient city of Carthage. Also, the Bardo Museum has an incredible collection of Roman mosaics. In the Spring of this year we had the bottom of the boat cleaned by a diver and then headed to Croatia via Malta and Sicily. We spent some time in Siracusa, Sicily. Siracusa was especially enjoyable, particularly the older part of the city called Ortygia. We then made our way to Split, Croatia. We kept the boat at the Kiracoulis base at Vinisce. We were able to spend some time in Split and Trogir. We especially enjoyed the Diocletian Palace area . In June we sailed down the Dalmatian coast to Dubrovnik. We visited Hvar and Korcula, home of Marco Polo, and Miljet on the way to Dubrovnik. These islands were truly beautiful. We were able to spend several days in Dubrovnik, one of the most beautiful walled cities. From Dubovnik we headed to Corfu where AZURE currently resides. Our plan is to head to Marmaris, Turkey in September, 2008. We plan to leave the boat in Marmaris for about a year.

Harold

May 23, 2007 - Barcelona, Menorca, Corsica and Agropoli

click on map to enlarge

May 8, 2007

We are currently approaching the coast of Italy. We left from Bonifacio, Corsica about 32 hrs. ago. We stated out sailing but have had to resort to motor sailing for the last half of the trip. It is about 270 nautical miles from Bonifacio to Agropoli, Italy, our final destination. We will have to be more vigilant tonight because of ship traffic. The weather currently is fairly mild. We had clear skies with sun all day long. We have 101 miles to go. Hope to arrive late afternoon. Current position is 40 degrees 45 minutes N and 12 degrees and 48 minutes E.

Thanks, Harold

May 6, 2007

We arrived in Bonifacio, Corsica Sunday, May 6th at 7:30 AM. We were promptly boarded by the Corsican Coast Guard. They searched our boat from bow to stern. They were polite but very thorough. We parted on good terms. We found a berth in the harbor and then set out to explore the harbor area and the higher walled city. It is a stunningly beautiful area. The medieval walled part of the city sits on a high bluff overlooking the harbor. It literally sits on the very edge of extremely high limestne cliffs. We ate some great food and did some shopping. The Corsicans seem to be very friendly and courteous. Corsica is part of France. The island is a combination of ruggedly beautiful coastal areas and central mountains. We did not have enough time to drive around the island as we did in Menorca. We had to do some maintenance on the boat and prepare to leave May 7th for Agropoli, Italy.

Harold

May 4, 2007

Since we finished the trans -atlantic sail we have been moving AZURE about the Med. gradually. Initially, in Sept. 2006, we moved her from Gibraltar to Barcelona where she spent the winter. We loved Barcelona. The boat was berthed at Port Vell. This is a great marina located ajacent to the historic Gothic area of the city. Went back in Jan. of this year to do some minor work on the boat and now we are moving her to Agropoli, Italy. The first leg of the trip was to Mahon, Menorca in the Balearic Islands. Had an exhilirating overnight sail from Barcelona to Mahon, the capital city of Menorca. This is a beautiful island. It is less developed than Mallorca and Ibiza, the other two main islands in the Balearics. It has a pastoral quality with rock fences dotting the rolling countryside. There are numerous prehistoric rock structures scattered about the island. Some are thought to be burial mounds or watchtowers. Others are thought to have existed as homes. In addition there are numerous calas or coves along the shoreline that are simply spectacular. Mayonnaise, incidentally, has its origins here. They also distill their own brand of gin that is only available locally. The harbor at Mahon is one of the better natural harbors in tre Med. Admiral Nelson apparently berthed his fleet in the harbor at one time.

We are currently en route to Bonifacio, Corsica. From there we will head to Agropoli, Italy. This city is part of the Amalfi coast. Hope to arrive in Italy in about one week.

Our currrent position is N 40 degrees 19.5 seconds and E 005 degrees and 36.5 seconds. Have a full moon but little wind. Motororing at present. We did sail earlier today.

Thanks, Harold

July 5, 2006

June 21, 2006

We have been extremely busy since arriving in Gibraltar. We arrived 6/20 at 3:30PM Gibraltar time (6 hours ahead of US time). We covered 1100 miles in about 9 days. We literally flew through the Strait because we had a westerly wind and a very favorable current. We favored the extreme north side of the Strait to stay away from ship traffic. It took awhile to get the boat tied up at Marina Bay in Gibraltar. Once we cleared customs it was off to the showers and celebratory toast to a successful Trans-Atlantic voyaqge. We then explored the central part of the city. This part of the city is very european with quaint narrow streets and numerous outdoor cafes and restaurants. Surrounding this area are the remains of old fortifications. The "Rock" , of course, is a very dramatic backdrop for this inner city area. That evening we watched world cup soccer. England was playing Sweden. The european excitement and enthusiasm for world cup soccer is probably greater than what we experience for the NCAA football or basketball or even the Super Bowl. The rivalries are tied to national pride. We are extremely grateful for an exciting and successful trip and wWould like to thank everyone who supported us during this endeavor. We would particularly like to thank Alex Alexander, Justin van Staveren and Don Mundy for their very important roles and Tony Wall for his expert leadership as Captain. I need to thank Gijs for his incredible moral and financial support as half owner of AZURE. He has been incredibly patient with the whole outfitting and planning process. He is a tireless worker and took any watch without the slightest hesitation. His attitude has been incredibly positive. I would also like to once again thank our wives who have continued to encourage us in regard to the "Crossing". Will send more pictures as soon as I can get to an Internet Cafe.

Harold

June 19, 2006

We finally got some warm sunny weather and we are about 24 miles south of the southern tip of Portugal (Cabo De Santa Maria). We are 104 miles from the entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar. Gibraltar itself is another 20 miles. Hopefully we will arrive at our marina early tomorrow afternoon. We are currently motoring 6.1 knots in light wind and with a little luck we could catch the current in the Straits right and get a 2 to 3 knot boost in speed. Last evening was a little difficult because of the number of freighters around us. One passed very close to our stern. Very grateful to be enjoying flatter seas and the warmer weather which has brightened everyone's outlook. Our current position is 36 degrees 34 min. N and 7 degrees 37 min W. We have just passed into our last new time zone. We are 5 hrs. ahead of you.

Harold

June 18, 2006 - Happy Father's Day!

We are about 239 miles from Gibraltar. We are looking forward to landfall. Our current position is 37 degrees 16min N and 10 degrees 8 min. W.

Gijs has some thoughts regarding the trip...

Happy Father's Day to all of you Daddies out there! A collection of loose thoughts,observations and reflections: Where do I start, what would be appropriate, what kind of mood am I in? I could kick off with an 18thy. century aphorism: " They who would go to sea for pleasure would go to hell for pastime". (sounds like a DeMeyer comeback to me) or "Being in a ship is like being in jail, with the chance of drowning". It really has not been all that bad so far, and we're almost there! Spending 4 weeks on a boat with 3 other males, in confined surroundings does not sound all that appetizing, especially for someone who appreciates his own private space. Using the head (bathroom) in a boat that is moving at 8 mph, rolling from side to side unexpectedly is quite a challenge. Maybe I should have brought the urinal that our recovery room nurses so thoughtfully provided before I left! It is almost impossible to do a good job, balance oneself, anticipate the boat's next move, aim at the right spot at the right time. You need four pairs of hands! Oh well, so what if your left knee or foot feels a little damp or wet when you come out, who is going to notice, who even cares. I am getting better at it slowly. There is no CNN out here, no Fox Sport News, no taped Soprano's, no World Cup Soccer in HD. Most of the books have been read. There are no telephone calls, no beepers, flies or mosquito's. There are times where you are caught up with your chores (very few) and there is absolutely nothing else to do! That is very hard for a person like me. Nowhere to go, kind of scary. It does provide plenty of time for daydreaming, reflecting (past,presence,future) staring at the ocean, thinking about your next meal, gin & tonic, the next port you are sailing towards.....how lucky you're to be doing what you are doing! It is a whole different lifestyle and I am beginning to get used to it. Many afternoons we have enjoyed dolphin shows: they arrive out of nowhere, in the middle of this vast ocean, dance around the bow, only to suddenly dissappear into nowhere, they are always smiling it seems. The seas have been cobalt blue, as flat as a mirror when the sun is out; they have also been grey-brown, angrily chasing the stern of the boat, never catching us. Until now, the ocean has been very kind to us, the same thing can not be said for some of the other boats making the same trip. The early am sunrises, the full moons as bright as the afternoon sun in the middle of the night, the sunsets all have been spectacular. Watching the island of Fajal slowly rise out of the morning mist, after 14 days at sea, seeing it's Ireland-like green pastures and it's red-tiled, white-stuccoed houses was a feast to the eyes. Drinking that first cold beer at Cafe Sport did not hurt either... I spent one fortunate afternoon in happy, Heineken induced exstacy, watching the Dutch soccer team play Serbia, surrounded by a bunch of fanatic orange clad Dutchmen. Surrounded by so much familair humor, it was as if I had never left the old country, they still behave the same ways, still have fun the same old way, how reassuring! And yes, Holland won! More than 30 years ago, just out of high school, barely 20 years old and married on the day of departure, I made this same voyage only East to West, on my way to my New World. Full of ideals, expectations and questions with very little $$$ in my pockets. There have been plenty of times since then that I have felt ambivalent about the decision to leave, never quite able to shake those nostalgic feelings about the country/continent of my birth. I believe that the plan to one day sail back, do it the hard way, completing the circle, was conceived as a result of those ambivalent feelings, my private little pilgrimage. I am very glad and fortunate to have had this chance. I quess I really believe that just about anything is possible, the impossible just takes a little longer!

Gilberto ( just call me Columbus) de Staverino.
PS. Tomorrow could be a SPEEDO day!

June 17, 2006

We are 380 miles from Gibraltar and should be able to arrive there by June 20th. We have been averaging about 6.5 knots today and the wind is coming out of the NNW at about 12 to 17 knots. Our current position is 37 degrees 47 min. N and 13 degrees 13 min. W. Saw a freighter at close range today. I imagine that the ship traffic will start picking up fairly soon. The sky is still overcast and fortunately the sea isn't too rough. We actually are only about 214 miles from Portugal. Gibraltar is further east. Many sailboats make landfall in Portugal but we wanted to go onto Gibraltar so that when we come back in the fall we would be at the gateway to the Med. Spirits higher today because we are closing in on our destination.

Harold

June 16, 2006

We have 556 miles to Gibraltar. We are currently averaging almost 7 knots of boat speed. The wind has stayed steady out of the N at 15 to 20 knots. We are on a beam reach. We hope for a mid-day June 20 arrival. The seas are not as rough as the past few days. The more uncomfortable conditions that I reported yesterday were in part due to the 8 to 10 foot seas that we were encountering on our close reach. The were left over from a low pressure system that has gradually been breaking up. We have seen several ships in the last 12 hours and as we approach Gibraltar, we will probably encounter lots of ship traffic. Our challenge will be to maintain a safe distance from the ships as we try to take advantage of the currents. There is a designated ship traffic pattern for the Straights which we may have to adhere to even though we are obviously a small boat. The sky is presently overcast and our position is 38 degrees N and 16 degrees 55 min. W. Everyone doing well.

Harold

June 15, 2006

We are still hving NNE wind at 15 to 20 knots and our boat speed has been averaging almost 7 knots. The sky is overcast and no other boats in sight. If we were to keep this speed up, we would be in Gibraltar the afternoon of June 20. We fortunately are making great time but the tradeoff is that we are going upwind (called close reach or beating). This means a much more uncomfortable ride. The boat is doing great but for us it is a little like being inside a washing machine. The boat is heeled over so that nothing is levell and it takes a great deal of effort just to move around the boat. The simplest tasks are difficult and take forever. It probably took me an hour just to take a shower and get on clean clothes, because the boat lurches occassionally from a big wave and you have to be fairly compulsive about using the available handholds. If you get careless you could be thrown across the boat suddenly and sustain a fractured rib or upper extremity. I know this does not sound like fun and it isn't. We do not have much of a choice since our destination is requiring some upwind sailing. This is the only leg of the trip that has required us to go upwind for sustained periods of time. We think that the wind is going to shift more to the NW later, which would put us on more of a beam to broad reach. The boat flattens out more on these points of sail making the ride much more comfortable. The old adage is that gentlemen never sail to weather. Another saying is that gentlemen never beat their wives or their boats. When I have planned shorter trips in the past I have usually tried to sail downwind. These have generally been much more comfortable experiences than what we are currently going through. I am glad that I am doing this trip at my current age rather than waiting a few more years. You need a fair amount of agility and both upper and lower body strenth to maintain you balance when sailing upwind. I just hope our NNE wind shifts to the NW sooner than later. Our current position is 38 degrees 6 min. N and 19 degrees 48 min W. We are about 430 miles east of the Azores. Since leaving the Bahamas we have traveled a little over 3,000 miles. I need to add that Tony cooked a delicious pasta meal last evening under trying sailing conditions. He was ably assisted by Gijs and Justin and I basically just cleaned up.

Harold

June 14, 2006

We are about 810 miles from Gibraltar and the winds have picked up to 20 to 22 knots out of the N. We are sailing about 6.5 knots and averaging about 135 miles per day. The wind is supposed to pick up to about 25 to 30 knots tomorrow or Friday. We are currently sailing under reduced sail. We have double reefed the mainsail and have the jib out about 50 percent and also have the staysail out. If the wind gets much stonger we will roll the jib in. The waves are 4 to 6 ft. in height. The forecast is for lighter winds as we get closer to Gibraltar. I don't think our routine is going to change over the next few days. We basically take our watch at night and then try to get a little rest during the day. Our time is consumed with meal preparation, cleaning up, reading, listening to music, sail trim and daytime watch. We also toast the sunset each day. We usually do the log at night. We also try to call our wives on the satellite phone late in the evening (there currently is a 4 hour time difference). Our current position is 38 degrees 9 min. N and 22 degrees and 9 min. W. Hope that our link with Google Earth on tracking has helped folks keep up with us better. If you go to the View tab and add the Grid overlay it really makes it easy to pinpoint our position. As you move the cursor you will see the lattitude and longitude change so you can really be extremely accurate in terms of positioning the dart. Thanks for everyone's support and do appreciate the e-mails.

Harold

June 13, 2006

Have had good winds from NNE at about 15 to 18 knots. Boat speed has been 6 to 6.5 knots. We covered about 135 miles in the first 24 hrs. Today has been clear and slightly overcast. The weather forecasts seem reasonably encouraging. The wind is going to pick up over the next few days but it is going to continue out of the N to NW. This will allow us to continue with a beam to broad reach. Tony has been teaching Justin some basic sailing. So far Justin has adapted real well. Saw one freighter and a sailboat last evening. The freighter did not get any closer than 1.5 to 2 miles but the sailboat probably closed to within 200 yards. The sailboat was probably going to Horta. Our current position is 38 degrees 21 min. N and 25 degrees 40 min. W. I hope everyone will try the Google tracking link above. Justin tried it before he joined us and said it worked well. He put "Azores" in the search box and then fine tuned it with the co-ordinates I have been sending. He was then able to put a "tack" on our position.

Harold

June 12, 2006

Left Horta about 3:30 today. Got away without too much difficulty. We had to finish painting the boat name on the famous "Horta Wall". The wall is actually the concrete breakwater around the marina. It is quite long and just filled with very creative art work that usually depicts the boat name, its crew, date of arrival and sometimes the home port. Justin arrived about 1 pm so we were then able to clear customs and immigration. Once cleared we headed out. Gibraltar is about 1,160 miles to the east. The weather forecast looks fairly decent for several days and the there is the possibility of another front. We hope good weather prevails, however. Our current position is 38 degrees 28 min. N and 27 degrees 47 min. W. We are under full sail at this moment. The wind is coming out of the North at about 10 knots. Our boat speed is about 6 knots. There is a beautiful full moon. We just passed between the islands of Pico and Sao Jorge heading for Gibraltar. We are 4 hours ahead of you. Hope everyone enjoyed the few pictures I sent plus Tony's narrative.

Harold

June 11, 2006 - AZORES Bound

Plan to leave Horta on June 12. Went to the supermarket today to reprovision our food. Have already taken on water and fuel. Alex left this AM and Justin is supposed to join us later today or in the AM. After we finish some boat chores in the AM, such as changing oil, etc. we plan to head out to Gibraltar. The trip should take about 10 days with good weather. We have really enjoyed Horta and the people are extremely friendly. The environment is beautiful and the food has been excellent, including the local wine. Really have loved the old world charm. Also have very much enjoyed talking to other long distance sailors. Gijs and Tony have been watching world cup soccer at some of the local establishments and Portugal plays tonight. Since the Azores are Portuguese, I am sure that Tony and Gijs will have plenty of company when watching the game this evening.

Harold

June 10, 2006

We arrived at Horta in the Azores about 12 noon. We took on fuel and water and then cleared customs and iimmigration. We next rafted up against several other sailboats. The marina is packed with sailboats from all over the world. It is trully a crossroads for long distance cruisers. Almost every language is spoken. It is a beautiful environment. Not only do you have the multicolored and multinational sailboats you also have a dramatic volcanic backdrop. The islands are volcanic in nature with occassional very high peaks. We are on the island of Faial. We can see the island of Pico which rises dramatically from the sea to a towering height. The islands seem very verdant. The islands are Portuguese and have always been a maritime center.The islands were also involved in whaling at one time. Unfortunately, we are going to have to start getting ready for our sail to Gibraltar. We are going to reprovision at a supermarket tomorrow and then get our laundry done. We have some boat maintenance to take care of and then will try to head to Gibraltar on Monday. Alex will be flying back home tomorrow . Justin, one of Gijs's sons , will be joining us for the trip tp Gibraltar. It was pretty awe inspiring to wake up this morning and see the Azores looming ahead. Gijs was on watch when Fail was first spotted. This was the first land we had seen in 14 days.

The following is an account of what it feels like to go through one of the fronts while on watch.
It is composed by our captain, Tony Wall.

It is 02.45 in the morning on a dark (but not yet stormy) Atlantic night, and it's time for the "Graveyard watch"-03.00-06.00 a.m. I pull myself up with an effort out of the leeward berth-18 degrees of heel makes your body feel twice its normal weight. We are 250 miles from Horta in the Azores on a Transatlantic crossing from Fort Lauderdale and West End, Grand Bahama via Bermuda to Gibraltar. The wind, as forecast, is 25 knots (Force 6 "windy!', gusting over 30 with the possibility of gale force. Pulling on the foul weather gear takes some co-ordination between the pitches and rolls. I make my way aft in the darkened vessel, two crew members softly snoring, held snugly in place by the lee sheets I look out the companionway and see the ghostly spokes of the wheel correcting jerkily one way and then the other-he's ok; he doesn't need any help-stay down there. We named the autopilot after our departed crew member Don (he din't die-he had to leave the boat in Bermuda after a sterling spell from Fort Lauderdale to Bermuda). As I approach the steps, every 30 seconds or so there is a huge swooooosh as AZURE the Pacific Seacraft 40 surfs over the occasional 10 foot waves, which look like they are coming to devour our boat.. Timing my steps, I notice the roaring swoooosh is followed by a great roar from the stern-mounted wind generator as the wind gusts over 30 knots. Don is up to the task though, and after a slight heading up (not a good idea), he corrects us back to course. Snapping on my tether, the first task is to monitor the wind speed- 22-26 knots true from the South West. It's 1,760 miles from Bermuda, and we carried about 100 gallons of fuel-enough to motor for about one third the distance. Good winds and mostly favorable current have been essential, but yesterday we poured in the penultimate tank of reserve fuel, as we sat in a calm in the middle of the ocean. The weather forecast on the single side band radio promised us southwest winds building to 25 knots later that night (late on June 8) As the wind filled in slowly up to 15 knots, we were sailing wing and wing with a poled-out genoa. Before dinner we took down the pole and turned onto a broad reach with a single-reefed main , staysail and 50 per cent jib. At 23.00 hours the wind is 18, gusting 23-24, but the problem is the boat feels hard and the waves are feeling more forceful. This would be okay for a race around the cans in the daylight, but at night-time with a potential gale coming, a little disturbing. Balance is critical, but the real worry here is safety margin if the winds continue to build through the night...We double-reef the main, and an hour later, the wind is 25, with frequent gusts to 30. Charging through the North Atlantic at more than hull speed, occasionally 9 knots-quite a speed for a "floating hotel" like Azure, I am sitting alone in the cockpit, listening to the swooosh and roar, gives one a lot of time for contemplation, thinking of my wife Carie who I will be meeting up with in England, and my other sailing friends, many of whom who have shared an ambition to "sail across the pond". Then there is the notion-I have sailed many tens of thousands of miles and never been seasick-yet there is always the nagging thought-will this be the first time? The next thought is "how much stronger will this become"- can I handle 15-20 seas for an extended period? The voice in the back of your mind tells you there is no escape from here-the remorseless waves and swells are your destiny for the foreseeable future...Then a calm-but no, not really-the wind is down to 17-18 knots, and its time to check the instruments, warm up the GPS and make another log entry, counting off the miles to Horta. After the third hour, hopefully feeling tired and heading below to fall into the sea berth, and go to sleep quickly. Another watch, another rest, then a new day, breakfast and coffee. See, we survived just fine-now enjoy the ride!

Harold

June 9, 2006

We are about 60 miles from Horta. Should arrive about noon on the 10th. The distance sailed from Bermuda to the Azores was about 1760 miles. Because of the front we have been able to keep the sails up at the end of this leg and make good time. Our boat speed has been about 6 to 7 knots with wind speeds of 12 to 16 knots. We are currently on a beam reach, which is one of the faster points of sail. Today was overcast until just about sundown. The sun finally came out and once again we had a beautiful sunset. It was just about this time that the dolphins graced us with their presence and they were very acrobatic. Judging from the number of seabirds following the dolphins I assume that the dolphins were feeding. We did not see any freighters today, however. Our current position is 38 degrees 51 min. N and 29 degrees 42 min. W. Hope to send the next e-mail from Horta. Will try to get some pictures to you. Incidentally, the highest wind speed in the front was 30 knots. Fortunately the boat handled the sea conditions quite well.

Harold

June 8, 2006

Had a fairly active day. Finally finished motoring about mid-afternoon. The wind picked up from the west and we ran wing on wing for about 3 to 4 hrs. doing about 6 to 7 knots. The wind freshened to about 17 to 25 knots so we put a reef in the main and rolled out the staysail. This gave us a smaller sail plan for the stiffer wind. It is much safer to sail with the reduced sailplan in the evening especially when the forecast calls for gradually increasing wind. We were extremely grateful for the wind because our fuel supply was getting fairly low. We have to keep some fiel in reserve to allow us to motor into the marina at Horta. Did see another freighter and the dolphin once again started frolicking around the boat in the late afternoon. Gijs thought he saw some whales in the distance but this was not confirmed. Tony celebrated his 55th birthday. We didn't have any cake or ice cream so we made do with fig newtons and fruit cocktail. We did toast another sunset being thankful for the good weather we have enjoyed. We just hope these conditions last. We do know that the wind is going to build but we hope it will not get much beyond 30 knots. The strong wind is pushing us faster towards Horta in the Azores and we are about 200 miles from Horta. If we maintain our current speed and do not hit a whale we should be in the marina possibly by Saturday afternoon, June 10. Our current position is 39 degrees 35 min. N and 32 degrees 51 min. W.

Harold

June 7, 2006

Today was very similar to yesterday. Sunny sky with very little wind. We are still motoring. Apparently the front is going to come in about noon tomorrow. This should provide us with enough wind to sail into Horta. Horta is about 333 miles to the east. Our current position is 40 degrees N and 35 degrees 29 min. W. Spent most of the day doing some boat chores and reading. Everyone trying to get some rest in prepatration for the upcoming front. Should have a fairly vigorous sail the next few days. Did see one freighter in the distance and also saw a few dolphin. Currently have almost a full moon lighting up the horizon. Had a great Lasagna meal this evening. We toasted another beautiful sunset prior to dinner. Tony Wall, our captain, celebrates his 55th birthtday tomorrow and Gijs has a birthday, I believe, on June 10. Tomorrow is my 38th wedding anniversary. Called Roxie's on the satellite phone and ordered flowers for Lucy. I need to mention how understanding and supportive our wives have been. Their major request was that we take a licensed captain with us to keep us out of trouble. This has worked out really well because Tony is such a great teacher and so easy to get along with. Looking forward to getting some wind for the final push to Horta in the Azores.

Harold

June 6, 2006

Not much to report. Have had to motor the entire day. We are presently in a large high pressure system that is just west of the Azores. Should be getting some light wind late Wednesday or Thursday. A front is expected later this week. This should give us stronger wind to sail into Horta, hopefully on Sat. Did see another freighter and some more dolphin. Fortunately the moon is out tonight. Have almost a full moon which really lights up the horizon. Our current position is 40 degrees 18 min. N and 37 degrees 58 min. W. Have about 300 miles to the western edge of the Azores.

Harold

June 5, 2006

We had to resort to using the engine early on because of diminished wind. Have only been averaging about 4 to 5 knots of boat speed today. Our current position is 39 degrees 51 min. N and 40 degrees 27 min. W. We have 541 miles to go to get to Horta, our port of entry for the Azores. Did not see any ships today. We were visited by a pod of dolphin, however. Mostly did some boat cleanup. Watched the CAPOTE dvd this evening. Will start my watch soon. We generally adhere to a 3 hours on and 6 hours off watch. This is less formal during the day, however. Hope to get some wind by tomorrow afternoon. We have enough fuel to motor about 300 miles, so we definitely are going to need some wind. There may be a front coming through later this week. It may have more wind than we want but at least we would have some wind to push us into Horta.

Harold

June 4, 2006

We are about 650 miles from Horta, our port of entry in the Azores. In the last 48 hrs. we have gone almost 300 miles. We have been going about 6 to7 knots under full sail during this time. The wind has remained out of the NNW at about 12 to 16 knots. Our current position is 39 degrees 28 min. N and 42 degrees and 49 min. W. Most everyone rested some today. We did have to inspect the main halyard, however. There has been some chafe in the line near its attachment to the head (top) of the sail. Apparently there is something inside the mast rubbing on the halyard. I talked to the company that made the mast. They want me to call them on the satellite phone tomorrow and speak with one of their engineers. We probably will not have time to get the problem solved until we get to Gibraltar. Fortunately, we do have a spare main halyard in case our current halyard chafes through. As one might expect, there is tremendous wear on the sailboat rigging on a trip like this. Constant maintenance is usually required. We already have had to repair or replace several items. I hope that for the rest of the trip equipment failure is minimal. Did see one freighter today, but it was not in our path. One positive is that the moon has been shining brightly from our stern. It is almost like having a luminescent highway behind the boat. Currently we are sailing about 6 to 7 knots. Hope the wind holds.

Harold

June 3, 2006

Today was a little overcast. The sun did come through intermittently, however. Had great boat speed today. We were able to krep the boat going about 7 knots with the jib out to one side and the main out to the other side (called wing on wing). This is a traditional set up for the sails when going dead downwind. The wind was primarilly out of the WNW. Have a little over 700 miles to go before getting to the Azore island group. Our current position is 39 degrees 4 min. N and 46 degrees 27 min. W. Had another pod of dolphin visit us late in the afternoon. I think Gijs may have gotten a few pictures. Gijs has been doing a great job helping set up the whiskerpole for downwind sailing. This is a carbonfiber pole that helps keep the jib in position on the opposite side from the main when going downwind. He also has prepared a number of our meals. Still no luck with the fishing, however. We tried our hand with clothes washing today. We used a bucket with salt water and detergent. We let the boat motion act as an agitator and then rinsed with fresh water. Getting the clothes dried in this humidity is a problem, however. On a humerous note is a caption that we saw on a shirt in Bermuda. It said that if a man is in the middle of the ocean without a woman and makes a decision is he still wrong. This very likely could apply to us. Our biggest decsions relate to positioning the boat for the fastest and most comfortable passage. This means trying to be on the correct latitude for the prevailing westerly winds and the west to east ocean current. So far we have been fairly fortunate. Just hope our luck holds.

Harold

June 2, 2006

We are about 900 miles east of Bermuda. We have reached the half way point. Had another sunny day with the winds coming out of the WNW. Had a delightful encounter with a pod of dolphin. They love to ride the bow wave of boats. They probably rode our bow wave for about 20 minutes. I was able to get some fairly good pictures. We saw them in the morning and then they came back later in the afternon. Alex thought he saw what looked like a pilot whale, but the sighting could not really be confirmed. I have to give Alex a gold medal for his watch because he actually stayed in the cockpit all evening. Fortunately he was able top get some sleep during the day. There is another sailboat called RELIANCE about 30 miles from us but we have not been able to raise thelm on our VHF radio. We know of their presence because of the weather broadcasts that we have been monitoring. Each boat on the meterologist's list gets contacted personally. Their latitude-longitude position as reported to the meterologist is very close to ours. So far we have been able to dodge the bad weather fronts. Hope our luck holds out. Right now there is a low pressure system over the Azores that is producing fairly significant winds. This should dissipate before we get there. At this point we have a reasonable fuel supply left in case we have to use the engine a lot. The watermaker is still working, fortunately. We think we are OK in regard to our relmaining provisions. Hope I can get some pictures on the website when we get to the Azores. Our current position is 38 degrees 47 min. N and 49 degrees 50 min. W.

Harold

June 1, 2006

Had to use the engine quite a bit today. Very light winds from the north. Tried to use the cruising spinnaker but did not have enough wind to keep it flying. Did have an exciting moment when the spinnaker halyard abruptly separated from the spinnaker and retracted to the top of our 55ft mast. Tony got the spinnaker out of the spreader bar on the mast and then I had to go up the mast to retrieve the halyard. This obviously took awhile to accomplish. I was very relieved when the ordeal was over since I am generally afraid of heights because nothing good comes from a fall from high places. I have treated too many patients who fell from a rooftop, which is probably one quarter the mast height. Except for that exciting moment the day was fairly quiet. We have been blessed with sunny days. The nights are fairly cool since we are pretty far north. According to the weather reports we shoulld be getting some windfrom the NNW in about 24 hrs. I am glad we are not too close to the Azores because there are gale force winds just west of the islands. We have about 950 miles to get the Azores island group. Our current position is 37 degrees 31 min. N and 51 degrees 38 min. W. Have seen sveral freighters which we have tracked on radar. Fortunately, they have not been much closer than about 5 to 6 miles. Gijs has continued to fish and catch up on some reading and Tony has been piecing the weather information toghether. Alex has continued to help at the helm. Hoping for more wind.

Harold

May 31, 2006

Had about 26 knot winds from the NE last evening. Fortunately the boat handled the winds fine. We are still making pretty good time towards the Azores. Today the winds have continued out of the NE at about 12 to 17 knots We are still experiencing sunny but cooler weather. We have shifted from sailing a downwind course to more upwind or close reach course.We slowed the boat down by heaving to, which allowed us to eat dinner without getting knocked around too much. Gijs prepared dinner tonight. We toasted the sunset and another day at sea prior to dinner. Looking forward to getting the first week of the Bermuda to Azores leg under our belts. Our current co-ordinates are 37 degrees 5 min. N and 53 degrees and 26 min. W.

Harold

May 30, 2006

Still have SW wind that is supposed to shift briefly to the NNE in about 12 to 14 hrs. We have been sailing dead downwind with the jib poled out to oneside and the main on the other side. This technically is called wing on wing. Still experiencing sunny weather with wind speed of about 10 to 14 knots. Alex has been doing a great job managing the helm. Tony has continued to help us with technical improvements in regard to sail trim. We all have been helping out with the night watches. The most encouraging aspect is that we have not had to use the engine very much. We have used only about 20% of our fuel supply. If we completely lost the wind we have the ability to motor about 500 miles. Still have not caught any fish. This has been a little discouraging. We are encouraged by the weather conditions, however. Just hope we can keep up our momentum. Current position is 36 degrees 57 min. N and 56 degrees and 4 min. W.

Harold

May 29, 2006

We are about 400 miles northeast of Bermuda. Had a beautiful daywith plenty of sun and a clear sky. The winds were light so we used our cruising spinnaker most of the day. Without this light air sail we would have had to motor since the wind was only about 8 knots. Tried our hand at fishing again, but still no luck. Listened to our SSB long range radio this afternoon to get a weather report for our area. This is provided by Herb Hilgenberg, a meteorologist in Canada, who enjoys helping offshore sailors stay away from dangerous weather. We expect another 24 hours of SW wind followed by a weak, we hope, cold front. The wind is supposed to shift to the NE and then to the NW. The NW wind would give us a pretty good push towards the Azores. Our current position is 36 degrees 21.5 min N and 57 degrees and 44.1 min. W.

Harold

May 28, 2006

Weather has remained fairly stable. Still have SW wind that has remained strong enough to enable us to sail. Has also remained reasonably warm and sunny. Saw a large freighter today that was apparently heading North. Fortunately it wasn't very close to us. No other boats sighted so far today. Have seen a number of Portuguese Men of War floating on the wave tops. No other wildlife sighted other than a few birds. Gijs tried his hand at fishing but hasn't caught anything yet. Have mostly just been enjoying the beautiful weather. Hopefully we will have another good day before the front comes through. The wind is supposed to shift to the NNE at that time and then become somewhat variable until about Thursday at which time the wind is supposed to shft back to the SW. Everyone in good spirits. We all have been doing some reading and working on our navigation. We have covered about 250 miles since leaving Bermuda. Our current position is 35 degrees and 23.7 minutes N and 60 degrees and 11.6 minutes W. Have about 1400 miles to go to reach the Azores.

Harold

May 27, 2006

We left Bermuda about 6:30 pm yesterday. The weather has been quite good so far and experiencing winds out of the SW at about 14 to 16 knots. We have been able to sail for about the last 18 hrs. Our current position is 33 degrees 50 min. N and 62 degrees 27 min. W. We are about 120 miles east of Bermuda heading to the Azores. We saw some sailboats yesterday, but none today. Did see a large sea turtle but were too far away to identify the type. So far everyone is holding up just fine. We usually are able to get 6 to 7 hrs. of sleep after coming off a watch. The weather forecast looks fairly reasonable. A front is expected in the next 36 to 48 hrs. Hopefully the winds will be moderate. We do need fairly constant wind, however. We do not have the ability to motor more than about 650 miles. This means that we should not use the engine more than once every three days. Only 1537 miles to the Azores.

Harold Kernodle

May 24, 2006

We arrived in Bermuda on May 24 and had very good weather for the trip. Had no problems coming into St. George's harbour at dawn. Anchored for about 2 hrs. and then cleared customs. Don flew back to the states. Gijs and Alex came aboard for the Azores leg. We have been very busy with usual boat chores such as refueling, doing laundry and reprovisioning. We are also getting a new main sail halyard replaced. Our original halyard chafed almost completely through. We did have the engine cut off briefly during our approach, but we got it restarted. Hopefully it won't give us too much trouble later. We have enjoyed Bermuda but obviously need to keep moving since we are about 2 days behind schedule. We are going to try to get back underway this afternoon. One highlight was watching the ARC boats head out to the Azores yesterday.The boats were under full sail and were absolutely beautiful. The ARC is an organized flotilla that sails Trans-atlalntic from west to east. Our departure will be one day after the flotilla and we should see the flotilla in the Azores.

Selected Photos from the Bahamas to Bermuda
(Click on the photo to enlarge)

May 23, 2006

We are about 50 nautical miles from Bermuda and anticipate an early morning arrival on the 24th. The weather has co-operated so far. We did not have to use our auxiliary diesel very much yesterday since we had good wind. We have been sailing or motor sailing on a broad reach with SW winds for most of the trip. The wind speed has been about 12 to 16 knots. Today the wind shifted more to the WNW, putting us on a close reach. Crossed paths with several large freighters earlier in the trip, but have not seen any commercial traffic recently. We have not seen any other sailing vessels the entire trip. We know from monitoring the SSB radio that indeed there are some vessels nearby, but too far away for us to visualize. We have had the moon with us most of the trip making the night watch a little more tolerable. We each take 3 hour watches at night and then are off for 6 hours. For the most part we have been able to get some reasonable rest.

We do have a watermaker on board so we are able to take showers on the boat at regular intervals. Basically it desalinates sea water so that we can drink it. This is the first time I have had a watermaker on a boat I have owned or co-owned, and believe me it makes a huge difference. I just hope it holds up. We also have a freezer, which has been a terrific convenience in terms of meal preparation. Again, this is an item that I have not had before. These two items in particular plus improved satellite communication and GPS have really improved the quality of life on offshore passages. I just hope the equipment continues to hold up in the marine environment. Still have not seen much marine life. Did have one flying fish land on board. I do hope to do some fishing on the Azores leg.

I am sorry about the tracking problem and I am hoping to get this fixed when we get to Bermuda. Gijs and Alex Alexander have flown to Bermuda. We will be changing crew tomorrow with Don Mundy flying back to N.C. Don has been a tremendous heip. He has worked diligently with our Monitor self steering windvane. He got it to work so well that on many occasions we have used it instead of the electronic self-steering unit. He also made pancakes one morning, which is hard to do on a boat that is moving around because of the wave action. Our current lat/long co-ordinates are 31 degrees 51 min. N and 65 degrees 43 min. W.

Harold Kernodle

May 22, 2006

Had a good day sailing. We had 14 to 16 knot winds. We primarily were on a broad reach most of the time. The sky has been cloudless with plenty of sun. Sighted several large freighters. Fortunately they were several miles from us. So far the extended weather forecast looks fairly favorable. We should have SW winds for several more days. We made about 140 miles today. We are about 280 miles from Bermuda. We should be there late Tuesday. We used the Monitor windvane most of the dayto steer the boat. We used the Monitor instead of the electronic autopilot to conserve electrical power. Everyone in good spirits.

Harold Kernodle

May 17. 2006

We are about 700 miles from Bermuda. We have gone about 120 miles since we left Bermuda yesterday. Currently enjoying sunny weather with light WNW winds, we have been using a cruising spinnaker to allow us to sail in the lighter airs. We have also been motorsailing some. In the next few days we should be getting heavier winds from the Southwest which should make the passage a faster one. Have not seen much boat traffic, just a few commercial vessels. Saw a few beautiful birds that I think are called Bermuda Longtails. The on deck watch last evening was made more pleasant because of an almost full moon and he seas were calm and the stars vividly beautiful. Hope tonight is similar.

The tracking link is still not working and the log will NOT be updated until Tuesday, May 23rd, as the webmaster is on vacation. Thanks for all the emails.

Harold Kernodle

We departed on May 17th at 4:00 pm without too much difficulty from West End, Grand Bahama and headed across the Bahama Banks towards Bermuda. The front moved out and we are sailing behind the front where the skies are clear and the sun is shining.

Harold Kernodle

Old Bahama Bay

May 16, 2006

We had to delay the start of our trip for several days due to an incoming weather front.We are hoping to leave on May 17th in the afternoon if the front has moved out by then. We have gotten the boat provisioned and have also been setting up our route to Bermuda. I need to mention that the staff at Old Bahama Bay Marina at West End, Grand Bahama has been tremendously helpful and extremely friendly. We also encountered the same attitude in Freeport where we went to get some supplies. We had a heavy rainstorm last night, but this has temporarily cleared, which was part of the front. There is a fair number of sail and power crafts in the marina. A number of the sailboats are heading to the Abacos.

Hopefully, we will be heading to Bermuda tomorrow.

Thanks for all the emails from Burlington. We really appreciate the interest and support but we cannot thank each individual via email because of the limitations of the satellite situation.

Thanks, Harold