End of Season 14

A red sky at night. A sailor's delight (Scarlet Ibis, Caroni Swamp)

After a rest onboard recovering under the aircon, it was time to set about final chores.  Our going home date was nearly upon us, and we all were looking forward to getting back to Aus.  It has been a long 7 months and a very long way from our February start in Deltaville.  Perhaps our biggest issues were lack of internet and mobile phone connectivity.  Aside from Miss WJ3 expecting regular attention from our trusty Cap'n. 

We really like Trinidad. It has character, is self-reliant and industrious. Undoubtedly there are safety and security issues (check SmartTraveller) but on the whole, people are friendly and obliging.  We found YSATT and Trinidad-Cruisers websites very helpful.   Jesse James, Members Only Maxi Taxis, offers regular shopping runs as well as organised tours of the island from our boatyard.  He is also an Ocean Cruising Club (award winning) Host and a designated Agent, offering assistance with clearance preparation.  We should have used his services on entry.  Trinidad now requires Visa entry for Australian citizens.  On presenting to Immigration, we were admonished for not having arranged one beforehand, then thankfully, a costly, limited stay visa arranged on-the-spot.  We were warned not to overstay.  On departure, GS was the subject of two security checks in the hour before boarding.  She blames her backpack, always stuffed too full of computer & boat electronics.

Now that we are home, a quick fact check on SmartTraveller reveals that T&T does not have an office in Australia.  You are thoughtfully advised to travel to the nearest office - in China!  However, not all is lost.  We are officially advised: “You don't need a visa if your visit is for tourism for less than 90 days. However, you'll need to pay a visa waiver fee to Immigration Services when you arrive.”  Let’s see how that goes!  I suspect déjà vu.  So, without further ado, it's time to present our end of season tally:

End of Season 13: Our figures for 2023 came in as follows:

From: Deltaville, Virginia USA Lat/Long: 37:33.116N 76:19.817W Date/Time: 16/02/23: 0930

To: Chaguaramas, Trinidad Lat/Long: 10:40.993N 61:38.029W  Date/Time: 23/08/23: 0915

Time Taken: (this year): 512.5 hrs  Distance: (this year): 3171nm

Distance Total: (since 2008): 28,282nm  

Weather: From skating on ice along the ICW to dodging seasonal depressions in the Caribbean, we had it all again this year.  Really had to keep our eyes on the weather, although predictions often came as forecast.  We used our new Iridium Go. Particularly helpful as we didn’t always have internet or even a phone.  Just in case you think we’ve been moaning about the weather just a wee bit too much, I shall leave you with Noonsite observations for Caribbean weather (3 Mar 2023): “unsettled weather in the Caribbean; unusual, relentless winds and squalls making it challenging to move”. Yep. That about covers it!

Fastest Speed:  We moved with some haste despite challenging weather.  It was not the perfect Caribbean weather for guests, often limiting where we could go & what we could do.  But who could have predicted that – on a boat?  Needless to say, lots of boat gear gasped a last breath under the stress, so too much time was spent fixing stuff.  And guaranteed, always in challenging places! 

Farewell Dinner & Mr Lozza's Birthday Party

Time to Go Home

Deltaville Boat Yard: 28 October

Firing up the BBQ

Firing up the Bagpipes (Nick)

Yes, it’s time to go home.  Overnight temperatures dropped to a low of 10C and we’re scratching to find enough blankets & quilts to keep warm.  Dress of the day for us includes fashionable navy blue thermals.  Locals are out in jeans, cowboy boots and stetson hats (rather like a bushman's Akubra only pushed up on both sides).  We’ve spent the last two days locked down in the marina with solid rain and winds gusting 30kts.  More is on the way.  Today is a good day to be working on the ‘net but the Cap’n is itching to start our final big cleaning effort.  That translates, of course, to ordering heaps from Amazon.  Sigh.

Tomorrow promises a nice day, which is just as well.  Deltaville Maritime Museum have organised an Art & Seafood Fest (with a band at lunchtime) so we might escape for a few hours to catch the last of the season’s crabs and admire local talent.  

Pickin' crabs with Kenny

Just a sample of the daily catch

Old Time Tipple: Sangee (sangria)

Our only real difficulty in leaving will be zipping suitcases closed.  GS has had a spending spree at Wal Mart.  So there's a forecast for tantrums....

Waiting in the Marina for Hurricane Dorian

End of Season

Our figures for 2019 came in as follows:

From: Deltaville, USA Lat/Long: 37:33.116N 76:19.817W Date/Time: 3/05/19: 1500

To: Deltaville, USA Lat/Long: 37:32.966N 76:19.805W  Date/Time: 23/10/19: 0935

Time Taken: (this year): 62 hrs  Distance: (this year): 367nm

Distance Total: (since 2008): 25,111nm  

Weather: From basking in famous Southern swelter to dodging hurricanes.  We've had it all this year.  Really had to keep our eye on the weather as predictions didn't often go as planned. 

Fastest Speed:  This was the year of OWM (Other Woman’s Makeover).  Fairly substantial “surgery” in the mechanical and electrical departments, with some head-scratching still needed to resurrect the generator. 

Lighthouses traditionally mean "keep away"
Aren't we a wee bit close?

Birthday Bash

Some days were just perfect 

And a final Farewell rings out over Jackson Creek

End of Season Fin & Tonic

X-ing File #6_A Gulf Stream Crossing & the Atlantic ICW

Norfolk to Deltaville

By the time we got tucked in to Deltaville Marina's snug dock, we too badly needed a (very) large Fin & Tonic.  WJ3 deserved one too, having grown a healthy moustache!  Indeed we were so happy to arrive we almost forgot that we had achieved quite the milestone.  There indeed, we will have "crossed our wake" of an Atlantic circumnavigation!!  Who'd have thought!

Finally at home in Jackson Creek, Deltaville VA

Let's not get ahead of ourselves though, the voyage back to Deltaville resumes.

Our departure from Norfolk went awry with the engine overheating – thankfully not in front of those vast, grey Navy warships where anchoring is NOT permitted.  Security staff have big, nasty guns mounted on the front of their boats (as do the Coast Guard).  We crept back to the anchorage and the Cap’n put to work on finding the culprit.  At least the early morning downpour had cleared somewhat.  After our Cap’n Resolute crawled all over the engine, cleaned sea creatures from water filters and took a dip in less-than-appealing river waters (to check drains), off we set again.  Only to watch the temperature gauge rise steadily again.  Oh dear, back to the anchorage and time to consult those (many) manuals.  By the time we found the culprits – two not-so-tight hose clips allowing coolant to leak into the bilge, it was too late in the day to start off for a 50 mile run up the Chesapeake.  Pity really as the next day conditions were worse; wind and swell on the nose and lots of rain.  

So, for our last 'leg" of this long, long voyage we geared up in now standard attire – thermals and wet weather gear.  We’d even taken to wearing beanies...warm yes, but flattering, no.  We waved goodbye to Warship 64 wondering if she’d remembered our 2011 encounter mid-Atlantic, then negotiated our way passed all the commercial traffic and out this busy port.   

Conditions began to improve slowly as we inched our way up Chesapeake Bay.  By the time we had reached our cosy anchorage in Jackson Creek, the sun was out, the temperature (and barometer) was up and there was hardly a ripple on the creek.  Deltaville is such a magic place and we were so happy to be back!  And content to have survived the 6,460nm journey to get there.  

A nice quiet crossing of the Turks Caicos Banks

Our figures for our 2017 & 2018 Atlantic Crossing marathon, came in as follows:

From: Lagos, Portugal Lat/Long: 37:06.60N 8:40.53W  Date/Time: 01/12/17: 1130

To: Deltaville, USA Lat/Long: 37:32.921N 76:19.772W  Date/Time: 07/05/18: 1555

Time Taken: (2017-18): 1122 hrs  Distance: (2017-18): 6460nm

Distance Total: (since 2008): 24,744.5nm  

Longest Open Ocean Distance: (2017&18): 2181nm (Cape Verdes to Antigua, Caribbean)

Weather: Challenging weather throughout with the Caribbean unexpectedly blowy too.  Lots of wind action off the US east coast kept us pinned in the ICW; at least we had a good run there.

Fastest Speed: We didn’t set any speed records but had good winds to sail (no motoring) across the Atlantic.  This was followed by a mixed bag in the Caribbean with some really great sailing weather then motoring when things weren’t going our way.  We bumped along the ICW doing the standard 5 - 6.5kts with the occasional burst from tidal currents.  

 
We will be “readjusting” to our regular cruising schedule in 2019, all things being equal, so there will be little to report until about April/May next year.  Yes, a long break but it really does snow here in winter and ice skating’s not for us.  Besides, we’ve paid our winter dues having just completed two, repeat two, winters in a row….  We (or should I say certain crew members) also need time to get over all that blue water excitement.  So, it seems fitting to end with this quote: 

“Once you have travelled, the voyage never ends, 

but is played out over and over again in the quietest chambers, 

that the mind can never break off from the journey.”  

Pat Conroy

Amen, and a couple of Stugeron to that!

Unforgettable blue waters. WJ3 on a mooring at Warderwick Wells, a land &
sea park in the Exuma Cays, Bahamas. We did have some good weather days!

Back to the Start: 2016

We sadly bid farewell to Jumping Fish Bay in Greece

The Windjammers have experienced our shortest season yet, cruising in an area with few places for us Aussies to “run & hide” given Schengen’s time limitations of 3 months max.  Still “weather” experiences kept us on our toes too and ensured a modified float plan.  This sadly entailed excluding Southern France (the Mistral consistently blowing with regularity & some ferocity this year) although we managed time in Corsica before taking a familiar route through the Balearics back to Lagos in Portugal.

Discovered style in Barcelona,
architect extraordinaire, Gaudi.

And hunky types in Naples
(Yes, it's Hercules)

Italy’s west coast made good its promise of few anchorages so our travels were essentially moving from marina to marina with longish stops to take in major historical sites.  Somehow, we still never seemed to have sufficient time for our “must do” list.  At least we managed to see (but not climb) some seriously interesting volcanoes and enjoy one or two bottles of local plonk (I'm not sure there's an Italian equivalent for this word).  The history was fascinating, the art incredible, people generally friendly and scenery, especially along the northern coast, quite unlike the “Med” we had grown used to.

The view over La Spezia was too good to miss

So, this blog and photo fest is due for a long Mediterranean lunch break with the possibility of a further delay before the start of next season as our vague plan is to cross back to Trinidad.  This requires avoiding hurricane season (June to Nov) and some big steps to get to a Canaries or Cape Verdes springboard.  So our timings will need to be adjusted and we just may have to experience a winter...brrrrrr!

And Italy kept us very busy;
too much to do, so little time!
Pisa. Is this really a quiet day? 

In summary, the 2016 season started in Preveza, Greece with a very short stop in Sarande, Albania.  Thus began our weather experiences and first change to the float plan… At least the weather gods were kind to us as we slid across to Sicily.  Nicely ensconced in Syracuse, we learned of Italy’s transport shortcomings but managed to make the crossing to Malta for a most enjoyable land break.  

Historically, the Messina Strait has been a sailor’s nightmare so we shouldn’t have been surprised to feel its wrath.  Swordfishing locals though, gave us a farewell salute as WJ3 battled steep waves generated by wind against current - Charybdis at play!.  At least we weren't rowing, like Odysseus, Jason (of the Argonauts) or Aeneas. (This is your history test....)  Then our anchor wanted to stay in Vulcano but after some wrestling and with a much improved weather outlook on offer, we convinced it to join us in crossing to Italy’s west coast to begin the slow crawl northwards. 

Colourful towns, festive moods

We took longish stops in Torre del Greco (Naples area), Rome, and La Spezia (Tuscany) before modifying the float plan again to include Corsica for a few days sailing down its eastern coast. Sardinia's tip provided shelter before striking out for the Balearics and back to Spain. 

With long strides along the Spanish coast we quickly made Gibraltar, where the weather gods again smiled giving us the right winds and tide to sail through notorious Gibraltar Straits.  Another interesting weather system from the far NW (UK) threatened the Atlantic coast but we made Lagos, Portugal before it took its toll.  Tucked up in the marina we hardly even noticed it! 

Our yearly figures confirm yet another distance marathon and come in as follows:

From: Preveza, Greece Lat/Long: 38:57.09N 20:46 .04E  Date/Time: 03/06/16: 1745

To: Lagos, Portugal Lat/Long: 37:06.45N 08:40.27W  Date/Time: 23/09/16: 1045
Time Taken: (this year): 383 hrs  Distance: (this year): 2248.5nm
Distance Total: (since 2008): 18,278.5nm  
Weather: Challenging weather this year, mostly Mistral generated, kept us on our toes
Fastest Speed: We had a mixed bag with some really great sailing weather and some really dreadful conditions too.  But it’s the Med!  And mostly motoring continues at a sedate 6 - 6.5kts.

We will post as plans for 2017 develop, so keep tuned to this space!

And a few stray volcanoes on our way.  A busy year indeed!