Daily Logs

Gertha 5 - Barcelona

13.06N 63.21WWe head for Barcelona. Not the one in Spain,to one in Venezuela .Noneed to panic ,at some point we turn west before going aground.Someone somewhere has said best wind is this way.Will report on strategy in a few days.Sun is shining all is good. read more...

Aqualuna - Left Behind but Not Left Alone

Yesterday was not a good day and we were unable to leave St Lucia with the World Arc fleet.The last few weeks have been a high octane roller coaster of emotions, stress - and fear that we might have to pull out of the rally altogether as we’ve steered through an on-going engine problem with conflicting diagnoses and much teeth sucking from “well these 6BY3 Yanmar engines are absolute rubbish - what can you expect?” (not true) to “o without doubt you’re going to need a new engine and we can do that for you for US$50,000” (also not true!)The “total oil pump failure” was in fact a software update that was needed for an engine interface. So over Christmas and New Year (not stressful at all!) we managed to get an updated one sent to St Lucia with FedEx delivering on time (yes!) and getting. read more...

Pat Bon - We’re Off!

14:2.4N61:7.9WWe’re 2 hours into the race and passed all the race marks off Castres and now set the course (260 deg) to Santa Marta in Columbia 800’ish nautical miles away. Perfect conditions - 12kn of wind from the ENE, hardly any swell and lovely and sunny. We have our full mainsail and large gennaker flying and we’re doing a steady 7.5 to 8 knots. Couldn’t really be more perfect. Currently lying 5th in the fleet, which we’re very happy with. As we keep on reminding ourselves, this is a marathon not a sprint. We’ve got 4.5 more days of this, although the winds are due to increase as we approach the Colombian coast. Pat Bon’s crew have estimated our estimated arrival times crossing the finish line off Santa Marta (local Columbia time -5GMT) as:Val: 17:30 WednesdayPeter: 17:59. read more...

Gertha 5 - The time has come

14.4 N 60.56WD DayI have thought about sailing around the world for over 50 yearsLeft UK last AugustNow leaving St.Lucia in company with 30 other boats, World ARC 2025 begins.Destination for this leg ColumbiaPresumably we will be buying CoffeeMauritz does not like the Coke in St.Lucia so hopfully he can get the variety he prefers in Columbia. read more...

Gertha 5 - Australia, we will soon be on our way

4 days to go, Gertha sets sail from Caribbean destination AustraliaMany questionsDo Australians tie kangaroos down?Do men chunder?Are there any jolly swagmen?So many questions, answers to follow in August. read more...

Adrienne - Last entry

12.2024 … Auf zu neuen Ufern – St. Lucia,Nachtrag:…. Heute mussten wir erstaunt feststellen, dass wir eine 8 Person an Bord haben. Vielleicht hat er sich zwischen Kartoffeln und Rüben versteckt. Oder er lag die gesamte Zeit im Rumkeller. Wir wissen es einfach nicht. Jedenfalls ist Peter ein toller Typ und wird so von unserer Crew beschrieben.Teil 6 der Serie „Die Crew 2024“ Peter, der Mathematikprofessor und Co-Autor,Astronavigation, Kursbestimmung, Peilung, Excel, … dort wo alle an die Decke schauen, umgibt Peter eine Aura des Verstehens. Peter ist stets die Ruhe selbst und dank seiner Schnüffelmaske der ruhigste Schläfer an Bord. Es gibt an Bord der Adrienne, Bernd sei Dank, extra eine Koje mit separaten Stromanschluss für Taucher. Wie uns allen schmeckt es Peter besonders gut. Die. read more...

Cleone - ARC SITREP 23

WE ARRIVED IN RODNEY BAY ST LUCIA AT 0000 UTC, all welland love and best wishes to you all!   Rum punches were well received.  James, Francesca, Louisa,Kaya. read more...

Cleone - ARC 2024 SITREP 22

 At 1623HRS UTCcame the longed-for hail of Land Ho! As he heard the answering cry from thehelmsman on deck, there was a break in the voice of the Lookout, perchedprecariously in the Crow's Nest near the top of Cleone's graceful (he meanschunky - Ed) main mast. Soon the rest of the crew were thundering up thecompanionway to check that this much longed-for event really had finallyoccurred. It was 3 weeks and nearly two days since the last sight of GranCanaria, and some of the crew had given up hope (really? -Ed) of ever seeingland again. Now surliness has turned to smiles, jokes are being cracked andeveryone is trying to decide what they are going to have tattooed where (really? Ed).Actually theonly sign that any unusual event is about to take place is that the Skipper hasshaved for. read more...

Cleone - CLEONE ARC 2024 SITREP 21

 Today was a dayof proper Trade Wind sailing. I almost wroteperfect. The perfect day would have been with steady wind, full sails and 6knots on the clock leaving us 144 miles closer to St Lucia. As it was, we had aday's run of 122 miles, which left us 119 miles closer to St Lucia with 190 orso miles to go. The Skipper has sent a guarded Estimate Time of Arrival to RallyControl, and has been walking around with his fingers crossed ever since. Youwill have to wait in a state of tension and expectancy until the reveal, thetime of which is also a closely guarded secret. The Crew have also sealed theirguesses selecting the time that we cross the finish line, and they too will berevealed in due course. I suspect that they will all be provedwrong!The rest of theday had its usual challenges. read more...

Cleone - ARC 2024 SITREP 20

It has beenanother routine day at sea on our epic voyage, with a modest day's run of 118miles. However, for the first time there are no missing miles, and we are now118 miles closer to St Lucia with only 310 miles to go. Modest trade-winds withthe occasion squall have kept the crew busy, and a claim for a sail-changerecord has been lodged. In other news, the fridge is back online and the Skipperhas owned up to a 'procedural error'.The Port Watch'sclaim for a record six sail changes in one four-hour watch has been sent to theAuthorities for ratification, and has not yet been officially recognized.However, a check by the Scrutineers has revealed that as of 0500UTC on13th December the crew of Cleone had notched up over 90 sail changessince leaving Las Palmas, and the forecast squalls. read more...

Adrienne - Angekommen!!! Final Destination St.Lucia

13.12.2024 … Auf zu neuen Ufern – Tag 20 auf See…10:47 Uhr Ortszeit im Ziel !!!; knapp über 19 Tage; mehr als 5200 kmDie letzte Nacht auf See.Der Nachthimmel scheint nochmal alle Reserven zu mobilisieren und schenkt uns einen wunderschönen Blick nach oben. Der Motor läuft, die Crew ist ruhig und in Gedanken versunken. Was mag jeder einzelne denken. Ich (Sören) empfinde besondere Ruhe, Freude über das Erlebte, Neugier auf das Bevorstehende und eine Traurigkeit, dass dieser beeindruckende und riesige Ozean bald hinter uns liegt.Der letzte Morgen auf See.Am Horizont im Westen tauchen erste Lichter auf. Es sind noch 30 nm bis zur oberen Landspitze der Insel. An Backboard kann man St. Lucia und am Steuerbord Martinique erahnen. Der Nachthimmel wird nun langsam vom Sonnenaufgang im Osten. read more...

Ingrid - Framme! 13 december

Kl 13.04 den 13 december korsade Ingrid mållinjen.Då har vi avverkat runt 2800 sjömil över Atlanten.Vi är så stolta och nöjda. Nu säger jag, Alexandra som skrivit den här bloggenOVER AND OUT! Hoppas ni tyckt om att följa vår resa.. read more...

Cleone - CLEONE ARC 2024 SITREP 19

I may haveconfused the SITREPs (SITREP 17 accompanies this one) but this has been nothinglike as confusing as the weather!During the last24 hours, we have been through the longest and hardest deluge of persistent rainthat any of us have ever experienced, accompanied by the longest and most vividlightning show that any of us have ever experienced. During these storms, thewinds have randomly switched direction, boxing the compass as they did so, andvaried in strength from less than five to gusts of more than 40 knots. Atvarious points thunder has accompanied the almost continuous lightning.Throughout it all, the crew have remained calm, cheerful and enthusiastic, andCleone has dealt with it imperturbably. The storm, (or was it a continuous seriesof squalls?) started at about noon. read more...

Cleone - CLEONE ARC SITREP 17

As far as I canmake out, I have not sent this SITREP. So  here it is: oday itrained, we are planning to refuel at sea and we are in a state of doubt aboutthe weather forecast.We might just aswell have stayed in England, except that the rain was warm instead of beingfreezing cold. It was 5am UK time, ie 3am ship's time, duringFrancesca-the-Mate's watch. Kaya and the Skipper were sound asleep in theirbunks. We had enjoyed various rain showers up to now, and I do mean enjoyed,because they had never been hard, driven rain and they have provided coolingrelief from the tropical sun. At 1am and for the next two hours, we had beentreated to a spectacular display of lightning and the odd rumble of thunder.This had caused us to turn off our radios and the AIS, and to check that thespare. read more...