With fuel and water tanks full, bilges bulging with produce, and with the arrival of the NE’ly winds, we were all set for departure from La Palma on 24th November. We sailed South for a week (until the butter melted), turning westward once we’d reached 20ºN, approx 250nm to the NW of Cape Verde. Rather than risk Christmas at sea, an idea embargoed by the boys, we opted to bypass Cape Verde and instead head straight for the Caribbean.

Unusually strong trade winds, combined with a large cross swell from a weather system to the north, made for a ‘challenging’ crossing. Zoe had crossed the Atlantic on three occasions previously and 2021 was without question, the gnarliest. We were not alone in having a tricky crossing with the ARC rally fleet also taking a thrashing (with one fatality and two boats abandoned).

Our Atlantic Crossing in numbers:

• Departure date from La Palma: 24^th November 2021
• Miles sailed (as the crow flies) : 2,850 nautical miles (1nm = 1.15 mile)
• Days at sea: 18 days, 19 hours
• Engine hours: 5
• Fastest speed recorded: 12kn surfing off a wave
• Strongest wind gust (knots): mid 30’s most days for the first ten days
• Squalls encountered: enough to keep us on our toes day and night
• Average wave height: 3-4m
• Waves taken into the cockpit: 2
• Nights at anchor: none, there is approx 4000m of water below the keel, we sailed 24/7
• Watch system: 3 hours on, 3 hours off, and repeat….
• Packets of Stugeron consumed: 2
• School hours completed: precisely zero – staying upright consumed ALL of our energy
• Low points: See average wave height and strongest wind gusts above…
• High points: making to Martinique with Mowzer intact, and crew all still on speaking terms
• Flying fish smacking Angus around his head: one
• Whales and dolphins spotted: None! Presumably, they had better weather forecasting and opted for more civilised conditions elsewhere
• Other boats sited: only one in the 19 days – a sailing boat called Bikini 
• Chess games played: several zillion (almost exclusively won by Barnaby)
• Temperature on arrival in Martinique – a glorious 28C 

Breakages…

• It wouldn’t be a proper ocean crossing without racking up an assortment of gear failures! Nineteen days in very hostile conditions took their toll on Mowzer, as well as her crew, though thankfully none were too serious.
• Busted vang (thinamajig that holds the boom down) – but amazingly we had a spare.
• Our wind instruments became temperamental, not ideal when sailing dead downwind in 35knots, being regularly whacked by squalls.
• Our Hydrovane, mechanical self-steering system began to work itself loose (try tightening bolts hanging off the stern in 4m waves…). 
• Our gas solenoid failed 10 days out of Martinique – thankfully successfully bypassed as otherwise, it would have been cold tinned food for the rest of the trip. 
• Our whisker pole (used for poling out our genoa when sailing downwind), partially failed during a squall when one of the blocks exploded.
• Our satellite communication system developed an intermittent fault, meaning that we were unable to receive weather forecasts.
• Our resolve (almost!)….

A short interview with Zennor as we approached the end of our trans-Atlantic journey, here

On the morning of 13th December, just under 19 days since leaving La Palma, we sailed into Martinique and dropped our anchor off the town of Sainte Anne. Surrounded by palm trees and white sandy beaches, on arrival we were greeted by a turtle, surfacing alongside the boat. Exhausted and relieved, we were ecstatic to have made it safely to the Caribbean. We are ridiculously proud of Barnaby and Zennor, for rising to the challenge of such an ambitious undertaking with enthusiasm, grit and with their senses of humour intact. Cheers boys! x

We made a last-minute detour to visit the island of La Palma; in part, because it is a bit closer to the Caribbean and we were keen to minimise sea time, but also because we were studying volcanoes for geography, and with the recent eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano,  it seemed the perfect opportunity for some real-life schooling. 

We booked into the marina in Santa Cruz de la Palma for 2 nights and hoped to then depart off across the Atlantic via the Cape Verde islands.  At least that was the plan, but as always with sailing, it never quite worked out like that…

Our planned two days on the island rolled into over 2 weeks as we waited patiently for the NE trade winds to develop.   With its intensely green banana plantations and rugged landscape set against the bluest skies, the prettiest towns with magnificent architecture, cobbled streets and tapas bars all set against the backdrop of an erupting volcano; La Palma became our favourite destination to date.

Witnessing the Cumbre Vieja volcano erupting was an incredible, humbling and unforgettable experience. At night aboard Mowzer, we could hear the rumbling from the chamber and in the daytime, we could see the giant plume of smoke rising above the island. Depending on the wind direction, we would sometimes be forced to wear masks and glasses as the air became so thick with ash, whilst Mowzer’s deck became thick with black ash. 

Aside from the volcano, we were blown away by the lush, rainforest interior and Caribbean-like banana plantations lining the coast. We had some incredible hikes, to the top of (inactive!) volcanos,  through dense rainforest, under immense waterfalls, and to stunning natural pools carved into the rocks. We had a memorable trip to visit salt flats, learning all about the production of salt. Another favourite outing took in the museum of volcanos where the adults learned all about the creation of the Canary Islands and about its recent seismic activity whilst the boys spent their time being convulsed in the earthquake simulator!

By late November and with the delayed arrival of the NE’ly winds, our tanks filled with water and diesel, and our bilges bursting with fresh produce, it was time to untie the lines. Next stop the Caribbean!

With our trans-Atlantic passage looming and our boat job list growing exponentially, we booked into the Rubicon marina in Playa Blanca, Lanzarote for a two-week visit to catch up on chores. With 4G, electricity, and water on-tap, plus a laundrette, supermarkets and chandleries nearby, we were able to crack on with provisioning for our trip ahead, and to make a dent into our formidable job list.

Perks of marina life included unlimited, hot showers ashore, access to a fab pool, crazy golf, new cat friends, and ice cream on tap!

Without doubt, our Lanza highlight was a visit by our very favourite family, the Birchenough-Browns, aka Auntie Katie, Uncle Mark and Cousin Monty. With their villa nearby, we settled into a routine of ferrying ourselves (and our laundry) on electric scooters to theirs for days spent beside the pool whilst being fed delicious meals and playing umpteen matches of table football.

Katie & Mark treated us all to an incredible evening stargazing atop one of Lanzarote’s 300 volcanoes, guided by the fabulously knowledgeable and enthusiastic astronomer, Elina. After watching an especially spectacular sunset, with views of Mount Tiede, Tenerife, over 100nm miles away, Elina plied us with rum miele, whilst helping us to identify planets and constellations, and to spot meteors and shooting stars.

A volcanic island, located 2nm off the NW coast of Lanzarote, Graciosa provided us with stunning vistas and ample peace and quiet to recover from our passage from Porto Santo.

With its stark, desert-like landscape, sublime beaches and crystal clear water, Graciosa feels a long way from the fish and chip resorts we associate with the Canaries.

With no real roads and a small fishing village 3km away, we enjoyed chasing Geocaches atop the wildly windy volcano Montana Amarilla, harvesting samphire from the beach, shell collecting along the shore, snorkelling off Mowzer, and best of all, catching up with our sailing buddies and playmates, the Bubbs, aboard Quickstep Too.

A further 270nm to reach Graciosa in the Canary Islands. Consistent 15 knots from the NE made for an easy 2-day passage without any dramas.

Arriving in the Playa Francesca anchorage felt like a colossal achievement. The Canary Islands represents the end of the first ‘leg’ of our journey, a destination that seemed so distant when we panned this journey on our kitchen table many, many moons ago. 

We are proud to have arrived with the boat (almost) intact and with two happy and healthy boys who have established their sea legs and who are turning into accomplished, savvy sailors. As for their parents, we are tired and could really do with a shower, but we are happy that we’ve made it this far, that we’re still talking to each other and that we’re all still keen to venture further.

Time now though to catch up with visiting family and to prep the boat for the big passages to come.

It is traditional in Porto Santo, for crews to paint their boat names on the harbour wall. We watched a video on Warhol and Pop Art and called this school. If only our other ‘lessons’ were met with such enthusiasm!

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Stats: Country #2, distance sailed so far – nm; glorious sunsets – lots; Pastel de Natas devoured – too many to count; port tasted – one or two; rags lost over homeschooling – umpteen!

Over the past few weeks, we’ve sailed south from the spectacular rias of Galicia over the border to the Atlantic Portuguese coast. We’ve pootled down the coast, visiting Porto, Cascais, Alvor and Portimao, thankfully dodging the menace of the unruly orcas ( Orca attacks: Rudder losses and damage as incidents escalate – Yachting World). 

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Highlights included an epic day out at a water park; a long-overdue catch up with lovely Birchenough family (and red dogs), travelling on vintage trams and cable cars, listening to fantastic fado and visiting deserted anchorages with golden sand spits.

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Our lowlight involved another gennaker failure; this time the snuffer failed and we found ourselves in 35 knots of wind and unable to douse the sail – (much like this (194) The Big Spinnaker Fail Compilation! – YouTube).
After a week in a marina catching up on overdue boat projects, we’re heading nearly 500nm to Porto Santo, a small island neighbouring Madeira.  More on that soon. x

Galicia, Spain delivered the Mowzer crew an incredible 4-week intro to live-aboard life. We were very lucky to get to spend time with Beaumont cousins in A Coruna, who generously chauffeured us around town, fed us, entertained the boys, and took us for the best tapas.

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In Camarinas, we met other fabulous sailing families, had dolphins swimming amongst our anchorage at sunset and had BBQs on the beach where the boys learnt ‘interesting’ techniques for starting fires from fellow squids (boat kids).

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In the Rias we had perfect, empty white sandy beaches with lots of swimming, a bit of running, SUPing and even a bit of knee and foil boarding.

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Later, in Baiona, we explored the city’s medieval relics, geocached with wild views and had fabulous tapas & Albarino. With the wind swinging into the north it was time to head South, next stop Porto, Portugal….

A Coruna – Camarinas – Ria de Muros – Ria de Arousa – Illa de Ons – Illa de San Martino – Illa do Faro (Cies) – Baiona

With boat jobs complete, medical dramas resolved and tins stowed we sailed away from mainland UK on 14th August. After a bumpy rounding of Land’s End we made for the Isles of Scilly where we anchored for a couple of nights and explored Tresco whilst waiting for the wind to swing into the North.

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Biscay’s formidable reputation proved not without merit. Our first 24 hours out from Scilly were pretty miserable, with very confused swell making for challenging conditions and unhappy boys.

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Conditions over the following couple of days were much kinder; the sea state calmed, the wind eased, the sun shone and we were regularly joined by pods of dolphins at our bow and once even buy a pod of pilot whales.

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On our third night we had a bit of excitement off the coast of Spain when a halyard jammer on our mast exploded releasing our gennaker (massive downwind sail) into the sea. We then spent a very rolly couple of hours in the darkness, trying to retrieve our sail from beneath the hull, which thankfully eventually emerged intact.72 hours after leaving Tresco, we arrived in A Coruna, in NW Spain – relieved, exhausted and excited at what further adventure awaits.

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