New Friends from Far Away Places



Clive & Angie on the far left, Dennis & I are holding the flag

One of the best things about sailing is the community of people who share the same love for the adventure. In our four trips back and forth to the Caribbean, we have met a number of wonderful people who have become friends. Like many friends, you may not see them often, but when you do, it is an exciting reconnection. It is fun to hear of their latest adventures and catch up on their travels and learn new techniques for dealing with problems and equipment.

As we shared in an earlier post, we lost the Atlantic Cup Rally from Nanny Cay, Tortola, BVI to Bermuda to an English boat by a slim margin. In fact, if we hadn't forgot that we were "racing", we could have won. We lost a lot of time in the middle of the event looking for some items that went overboard and untangling fishing lines! That is history ...

S/V Trillium crew happy to be in Bermuda

Even though they beat us, we were pleased to host the couple in our home on Lake St. Clair in Michigan! How is that for good sportsmanship! Actually, we had been following Clive and Angie's trip from the Chesapeake Bay up to New York and through the Welland Canal into the Great Lakes. Their goal was to get to Chicago before bad weather sets into the area.

Traveling at 5-8 knots per hour and against the current, you can see this is a long trip. In the meantime, they were flying back and forth to England and Germany for work. Our original plan was for them to arrive here for Labor Day week-end and we would show them some of beautiful Michigan from the land side. Unfortunately Mother Nature and their motor had other plans.



They were able to get into Lake St. Clair and dock at Bayview Yacht Club before dark recently. Dennis picked them up on his way home from work so we had a nice evening with them. I think they appreciated steaks on the grill (which they referred to as an "American thing") and a few other Michigan summer treats. We had good wine and good conversation as well.

Since they were looking at a limited weather window and the need to get to Port Huron on Lake Huron by a specific date so Angie could fly back to Germany for work, they could not stay long. They casted off the next morning. We will stay in touch and probably sail the Great Lakes with them next summer. And they are interested in sailing with us once we start out big adventure! That is what is so wonderful about the sailing community.

Checking Up on Trillium

Saying "good bye" to a great winter of sailing!

I can't wait! We are visiting S/V Trillium on the hard this week-end. After a long and wonderful winter of sailing in the Caribbean, we returned to Herrington Harbor at the end of May to put her away. We prefer to be in cooler Michigan for the summer and enjoy the Great Lakes! I never thought I would miss being on the ocean as much as I do. Note: I didn't say "in" the ocean. I like fresh water swimming!

Since Dennis was facing surgery for a double hernia which he developed on the trip home, we left a lot of things on the boat. Fortunately, one of our wonderful crew, Captain Ron, stayed with us all the way to Herrington Harbor and helped us put her up. So now it is time to revisit and see what we need to do to prepare her for winter.

Setting up a winter home for S/V Trillium

At this time, our plan is to stay home this winter and work! Oh, yes - that W word! It will give us time to prepare for our next big adventure: World ARC 2014. That is the goal, at least! This will allow us time to get ready: the boat, ourselves and a crew. Since it is a long trip with multiple stops, we anticipate crew coming and going at various stops. Interested?

We would love to hear from anyone who has done the World ARC or sailed around the world. We have heard many things, mostly wonderful comments. Helpful hints and best practices for preparing and sailing are welcome.

Atlantic Cup Rally 2012: A great time was had by all!

Of course, we will be participating in the World Cruising Club World ARC Rally. It is the best way to travel out there on the ocean. Even though you rarely see another boat (they drop off the horizon at about 5 miles out), you are not alone. There are a couple of daily SSB chats to identify everyone's location and assist with problems as well as celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, good catches of the day, etc. I always look forward to checking in and hearing the voices of others. And with the World ARC, there are a number of rendezvous points throughout the Pacific and beyond so you do meet up with the rest of the fleet from time to time for fun and relaxation on land. There are already 30 vessels signed up for World ARC 2014!

My blog entries will be sparse over the next few months. Once we start serious preparations, I will share what we are learning. I will check in for your comments and respond when necessary.

At "Home" in Hampton, VA

The sun is rising over the Hampton River
as we docked at BlueWater at 5:20 AM!

Once again we are back at BlueWater Yachting Center in Hampton Roads, VA. This has been our "home" for the start of the Caribbean 1500 Rally and the finish for the Atlantic Cup Rally. In addition, our newest Southern friends, Bob and Pixie, live nearby and are always here to welcome us. They are wonderful!. With true Southern hospitality, they show up with treats, flowers, and keys to their car so we can run errands while we are here! It is fun to catch up with them and have a dinner out.

We had a great sail from Bermuda. The winds were good most of the way so we flew our gennaker which pulled us along at 8-10 knots. That was with a 2.0+ southwest current against us, too. Once we made our turn to the Gulf Stream, the sail came in and we flew wing and wing for awhile. We had some motoring when the wind direction was unfavorable, but it was mostly a sailing trip. Just as we like it-motor off and the sound of the sea!

I just love sailing under this sail!

The approach into the Chesapeake Bay was interesting as there were major storms with lightening strikes all around us, but we missed them. We also had the military playing night war games next us. The Black Hawk choppers came closer and lower than comfortable. Tom F. was on watch so he got the tug boat hauling their target vessel on the VHF to find out what was happening. They promised they would miss us! Thanks, Uncle Sam! It made for an interesting evening.

The challenges of navigating the Hampton Roads flats

Tom F., Dennis and I were up most of the night as we navigated into the bay. Fortunately, the water was calm and it was easy to steer away from the numerous freighters coming and going and anchored in the channel. If Tom had not been so familiar with the area, we would waited until morning to go in. We have been in and out several times in daylight, but never at night. The approach to the Hampton River is tricky so it was nice having two crew with spotlights to find the day makers as I navigated through the winding channel in the flats. A wrong turn means running aground. That would be embarrassing after sailing over 4000 miles!

We met up with the Skippers of Cosmic Dancer V and
Brizio who had sailed with us from Bermuda

After waiting for hours for the Customs and Immigration officer, we finally cleared in. The officer decided that our three apples and one banana required an Agricultural Inspection! The second officer seemed a little annoyed that his colleague called him here for ship's stores fruit! We had to agree that it would be consumed before we land in Maryland. What a waste of taxpayer money.

Ron and Tom F. were great helpers in all area..

Over all, the Atlantic Cup Rally was a fantastic trip with a great crew. I enjoyed having five on board as everyone had more rest. No one was overburdened with watches or tasks. Tom F. and Ron were terrific in their sailing skills and they were so helpful in general: in the galley and all around the boat.They were a perfect example of good crew. Ron stayed on with us to sail up to Herrington Harbor North to put Trillium on the hard for the summer.

Three Swedish Boats Win the Rally

S/V Trillium

The crew of S/V Trillium was hopeful that we had won the Atlantic Cup Rally with the lowest engine hours and crossing the line early in the fleet. There was only one boat to steal our thunder left out at sea. When the double-handed S/V Cosmic Dancer V came in 14 hours after us, we became concerned because they had less than 20 hours of motoring. In the end, they took first place by a mere 10 minutes!

Actually, they deserved it! S/V Cosmic Dancer V is a Sweden 38 with no dodger or bimini, and a smaller engine. They had sailed from Europe, through the islands and now are heading to the USA. Their plan is to sail all the way to Chicago. We have invited Clive and Angie to stay with us when they come through Lake St. Clair. I don’t think I am hardy enough to do what they are doing in that boat. In fact, I know I am not!

Ron and Dennis

As a result, we have a great second place finish and the third place went to another Hallberg-Rassy: S/V Kia Orana, HR 39. Also in the ARC Europe, the Hallberg-Rassy 48 Emilija from Ireland made an early arrival so there may be more Hallberg-Rassys in the winners’ circle! There are nine of us that left Nanny Cay to the trip to Bermuda. Two of us are heading to the east coast on Saturday. The rest are heading to Europe.

We are sitting out a major rain storm here in St. George’s harbor. Originally we were to have left today, but now it will be a Saturday departure. There are five of us going to Hampton, VA and then to various places in the Chesapeake Bay area. 

Three others are headed to New England. The ninth boat in the Rally took a different route. They planned to go west and catch the Gulf Stream north, but they are holed up in Marsh Harbor, Bahamas now.

We can't complain about the rain since there has been no rain here for weeks. They really needed the 15 hours of downpour!

Crossing the Finish Line!

Trillium crew at the Rally dinner before the Start:
Tom F., Tom B. Sherry, Dennis & Ron

We set sail from Nanny Cay, Tortola, BVI on Thursday, May 3, 2012. The Start of the Atlantic Cup Rally to Bermuda was at noon and there was very little wind. In fact, the wind was so light that it took two hours to go two miles with a asymmetrical spinnaker up! Even the two catamarans in the Rally couldn't get enough speed to move!

Putting up the gennaker just before the Start 

   
After two hours at the helm, I asked the Captain if we could drop the gennaker and put on the Iron Genny (i.e. motor). There is a penalty for the time motoring, but we were going to be a day getting out of Sir Francis Drake Channel! A couple of the boats turned on their engines as soon as they crossed the Start line. Since we had nearly 900 miles to go, who cares if we motor a few hours to get outside of the islands!

Trillium at the Start

              There were only nine boats in the Rally this year. The ARC Europe fleet was to leave the dock two days after the Atlantic Cup Rally. The boats ranged in size from a Discovery 55 to a Hallberg-Rassy 39. Since we have never done any racing, we don't really understand the handicapping system. We did know that we should sail and not motor everywhere possible as there is a penalty for hours motored. In the end, we came in with the least number of hours: 34 hours and 37 minutes. That should help us in the final calculations.

Ron with the first catch: Tuna

We have a great crew. Ron was constantly finding things to fix. Tom F. has great sailing skills and even dove under the boat to free the three fishing lines we managed to wrap around our prop! Tom B. kept us entertained with toys: many gadgets and he even flew a kite off the stern.

Of course, another past time while sailing is fishing. Ron caught a tuna the first day out. So they had seared tuna for lunch the next day. Since I like my protein cooked, I passed on it. We had several mahi mahi on the line, but only got on into the boat. So dinner was determined by the catch of the day.


Dennis & Tom B. with mahi mahi dinner!

We celebrated Cinco da Mayo with a Mexican dinner. We also had a "thanksgiving" dinner of turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes with gravy on our final night before crossing the finish line. It is nice to have a crew that is appreciative of my cooking and menu ideas. My corn chowder was a hit with this crew as well as previous crews.

Tom B. flying a kite off the stern

Trillium really loved the winds once we got through the lulls in the Horses Latitudes. She loves a close haul so we were flying most of the time. I had to admit that I was getting tired of living on an angle! There are only so many things you can grab at one time in the galley when they are flying at you. I am bruised all around my hip area from slamming into the galley rails!

Dennis and Tom F. motoring in the Horses Latitudes

All in all, it was a great sail. Everyone had fun. It was a good race to the finish. We were racing against one catamaran who claims we beat him by 30 hours. I don't have a clue as to how he calculated it, but he was running a spread sheet and hoping that we would turn on our motor. We didn't! We were also watching him and recording their hours. We knew were only had two hours on him and were not going to give in to motoring until we heard that he had done so. I never realized how competitive we could be! It was fun!!!

Now we can have some time to clean the boat and catch up on our rest before continuing on to Hampton, VA for the final leg of the Atlantic Cup Rally.We are looking forward to another few days of good sailing. We will leave on Saturday after the storm passes through Bermuda Friday night.