Mon Reve - Part III

On the 21st of November we hoisted sail again leaving Mindelo astern and a journey of two-thousand and one-hundred nautical miles across the Atlantic ahead of us. There was excitement in the air and the ARC+ fleet was a spectacular sight when we all left together the natural harbour of Mindelo. The dramatic volcanic mountains rising in the background and the vast eternity of the sea set as our destination, programmed in the autopilot and marked on the compass.Although it was sad seeing Cabo Verde sinking in the ocean after a few hours of sailing in light winds between the islands, I was also happy to start the second leg of the adventure and return to life at sea after all.The most frequently asked question by most people not familiar with the matter of ocean passage sailing, is. read more...

Mon Reve - PART II MON REVE

Arriving in the Cape Verde Islands during the earliest morning hours was a further highlight of the ARC+ experience. For a while we were uncertain, because we did not spot the lighthouse and the fire on top of Don Louis, but then we realized that we were entering between São Vincente and Santo Antão in the very sector with no signal light. The day was slowly rising up as we crossed the finishing line around 7am, when the sky turned from blue to purple and the volcanic islands emerged from the dark. The large creature like silhouettes of the jagged mountains slowly turned into impressive landscapes and if there is such a thing as the “Smell of the Land”, then I might have caught it that very moment, when cooler and dryer air flew down from the mountains into the bay of Mindelo.I remember. read more...

Mon Reve - Blog Part 1

I counted twenty-two-thousand-five-hundred-thirty-eight flying flags in the forest of two-thousand-three-hundred and twenty-seven masts and beams laying orderly in the Muelle de Portivo des Las Palmas, from where we all depart for our transatlanticadventure in a few days ahead of us.But before we can hoist the sails and catch the winds we all need to prepare our ships and fit them to our offshore homes. I am sure, to some of my new neighbours on pontoon 17 this is ”Business as usual”, but for me the idea is as novelas the thought must have been for Columbus’s friends, that sailing into the setting sun will prepare the arrival in the Land of the rising sun. However, the quest for novelty is the foundation of any enterprise and adventure that I have been on and therefore I remain curious. read more...