Olympia's Tigress - Olympia's Tigress - Blog 7 - Approaching St Lucia and taking stock

Blog 7 - approaching St Lucia and taking stock We have been swiftly and safely guided to St Lucia by warm winds fluctuating around 20 knots for the last 4 days or so. The swell has kept at around 3m, allowing us to surf westward on wide, deep blue rollers, rocking this way and that, mostly predictably. But as with all ocean adventures I'm swiftly learning the sea is never predictable. The odd rogue wave will smack us out of nowhere, a few soaked yelps from off-watch as cool salt water pours over the bow and into the bunks, usually accompanied by comically delayed "wave" warning by the helms-person. Many of us have taken to sleeping on deck as the temperature rises; which has of course been a little perilous with the rogues and rollers. A peacefully snoozing Marty has performed several. read more...

Olympia's Tigress - Olympia's Tigress Blog 5 - birthdays, birds and all the sail changes

Olympia's Tigress Blog 5 - birthdays, birds and all the sail changesSo we continue to head westwards and are now officially on the Rhum Line. Temperatures are hot, as is the humidity, and it's now common to find at least one of our boys spending their off-watch sleeping on a sail like a beached sea-creature to escape the 'saunas' of the aft cabins. The wind's been variable, resulting at times (and usually at night) in a rather comical number of sail changes. Last night's attempt to swap the J3 for the code zero, and then for the S2, and then for the number 1 head sail were all executed in full, except the actual hoist, within a 30 minute window, much to our poor bowman's dismay. It didn't help that he was then pelted with two flying fish for good measure. We also managed to take in a. read more...

Olympia's Tigress - Olympia's Tigress blog 4: Flying fish sabotages mid atlantic gybe.......Of course it did..... (To be read in David Attenborough style voice)

Olympia's Tigress blog 4: Flying fish sabotages mid atlantic gybe.......Of course it did..... (To be read in David Attenborough style voice)The beautiful days are beginning to blend - a series of sunrises, cloud-spotting, sunsets and star-gazing. Gentle house music guides us through the tasks of helming, trimming and easing. As day turns to night, the watches cycle with more predictability now. If one looks very closely onboard Olympia's Tigress, a vast array of wildlife may be found. Take the saloon bunk on the port side for instance. Here, if one times this rare sighting correctly, one may spot a perfectly peaceful slumbering female Tigress as she recharges her batteries from a long day protecting her pack. And in an aft cabin, one may find a lesser spotted crew member or helmsman,. read more...

Olympia's Tigress - Olympia's Tigress - blog 3: There's a Great 'Right angle" Route..... Of course there is...

Rhum lines, wind holes and great circles... a novice sailor like me could be right in thinking we were in an episode of Dr Who. And yet, I'm swiftly learning the significance of these terms. Namely of this so-named large wind hole lying directly between the Canaries and St Lucia - essentially the entirety of the mid-Atlantic. Marvellous. Our options, it transpired, were to 1) stay north, or 2) go overtly south for seasonal winds. After a four day passage in big seas and driving rain (note to self - my waterproofs are indeed NOT waterproof), Olympia's Tigress decided to go with option 2. To stay north would risk us becoming becalmed in the mid-Atlantic, less than ideal, from a fresh water standpoint, but also making us all the more vulnerable of meeting a building depression. And so the. read more...

Olympia's Tigress - 25/11/2016 Olympia's Tigress throw all the spoons out with dish water, of course we did........

25/11/2016Olympia's Tigress throw all the spoons out with dish water, of course we did........So Team Tigress has been sailing for 6 days now and we are well and truly 'becoming boat,' as we say. Washing dishes on deck we managed to throw out all the spoons with the dirty water. Soup with a fork is certainly interesting. The sea air has made us a little funny headed and we've begun to rhyme in true hip hop style. Read out loud in an obligatory Honey Gee rude-girl accent, here's a snippet for your entertainment...I'm sailing on my boat,And the wind's begun to rise, I'm here with my watch-mates,And the sun's rising in the skies.I'm sailing up and down, And easing in and out,I'm surfing up and down them wavesOlympia's Tigress is about.Long dark nights staring at nav lights,Sometimes the. read more...