It’s finally happening. We’re going home to New England, an 8,000-mile journey, on Horizon, our new Atlantic 48 catamaran. We are leaving tomorrow, Monday, April 20, 2009. We’ve been in Cape Town since October 27, 2008, getting Horizon ready for sea. Here we are on one of the sea trials, just outside the Cape Town […]
Author: Kristin Zhivago
LEFT APRIL 20, 2009. VERY BUMPY, VERY FAST
We left Monday at noon, Cape Town time. Winds were strong; 35 to 40, for a couple of days after we left Cape Town. Seas were very bumpy. It’s better now, three days later. The winds are more in the 18 – 20 range. When a wave comes from the side of the […]
CODE ZERO DAY
Hi. We are currently at S 26 degrees, 32 minutes and E 6 degrees, 36 minutes, still on our way to St Helena. We figure it will end up taking us 11 days to get there, from Cape Town. We are about halfway there. The wind is now holding steady at about 10-15 knots, which […]
BECALMED, ALMOST
We are now at S 21 degrees 24 minutes, E 4 degrees 32 minutes. The wind died this afternoon – almost – on the way to St Helena. It’s “blowing” 2 knots. What is amazing is that this boat, with one sail up only, in these light conditions, sails at wind speed! It’s blowing 2.1 […]
CLOSING IN ON ST HELENA
We are about 800 miles from St Helena (S 23 degrees 23 minutes, E 4 degrees 11 minutes). The wind came up today and we were zooming along for a while, but now it’s easing again on a bumpy sea. It’s also pretty squeaky at the moment. The steering system uses stainless cables that connect […]
ZOOMING ALONG
Hi there. Another day at sea, another day learning what the boat wants in order for her to zoom along. The wind can get light out here – 5 knots or less – but most of the time it’s 7 to 10 knots. Right now the wind is 9 knots and we’re sailing between 7 […]
BOAT STUFF, AND MUSINGS
Hi. Life gets pretty simple out here. There’s the boat, the people, the food, the garden, and our work. One thing you do is pay constant attention to what the boat needs, because if the boat get what she needs, you get to where you’re going – as efficiently as possible. You also keep bad […]
CLOSING IN ON ST HELENA, STILL
Well, I guess the admiral has been promoted. I’ve been fussing with sail trim and wind angles and I can get the boat to do 8 knots in 9 knots of wind, which is a sweet spot for her. I took a few pictures to give you a taste of what that really means, in […]
ST HELENA COME AND GONE
We are currently speeding away from St Helena, which was, as everyone said, “Not to be missed.” What a pleasant place. We anchored – first time we’ve anchored the boat – in the small harbor, after arriving there in the late afternoon. We had to resort to engines the last few miles; the wind just […]
RIDING THE WILDCAT
Position: South 11 degrees, 37 minutes; West 10 degrees, 02 minutes It’s 2:30AM, and we’re riding a wildcat over the ocean. Actually, it’s the ocean that makes it a wild ride. I’d always imagined what it must be like, but being in the middle of it, day after day, I’m finding out for myself. It […]