Northern Child Passage Log

Day 24 Run - 75nm to Portsmouth Harbour

Northern Child Daily Log - Day 24

After 23 wonderful sailing days, we finally arrived in Portsmouth at 1200 on the 5th May having followed the same sailing routes that 1000's of mariners over 100's of years have done before us.

The final sail across the Channel was very peaceful; incredibly flat seas and although very little wind, with a beam reach we were able to make 8 knots most of the time. It is always amazing, even after a lifetime of sailing to see just how different the sea can be depending on the elements. This Channel crossing is one I will remember; as unbelievable as it may seem, we didn’t have a single splash of water on the deck the entire crossing as the sea was so flat.

The 8 hour Channel crossing seemed like popping out for a Sunday paper from the newsagent on the corner. In fact the crossing was so fast that we decided to pop to Cowes for breakfast. Rudi had asked what the English breakfast was all about, so we decided that the only way to really understand it was to experience it. We arrived in Cowes at around 0800 and wandered to one of the more traditional places who offered a ‘proper’ English breakfast. Both Rudi & Georg enjoyed the breakfast very much especially Rudi who was delighted to be called ‘young man’ by the lady serving us – a highlight of his trip I think!!

Following breakfast, we motored back to Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth to a wonderful welcome from family and friends. Some Champagne and Strawberries and a few nibbles.

Some Departing Comments from the Crew:

Georg and Rudi

“Now finishing our voyage we can say it was a great passage across the Atlantic Ocean from the Caribbean Sea to the UK. We sailed in very nice company with our very experienced and skilled skipper Christian and his first mate Lucy who spoiled us every day with her delicious meals at lunch and dinner time. We learnt a lot from the two of them about handling a yacht on a high sea passage. It was a very great adventure we'll surely never forget. We are a little sad to have to leave the yacht but a last good English breakfast in Cowes on the Isle of Wight will help us feel much better. Many thanks for a wonderful experience to Christian, Lucy and our very nice fellow crew member, Nelson. We would like to recommend every reader of the Northern Child log to come and have a great experience like we have.”

Nelson

"Christian and Lucy are a great couple to sail with, Christians attention to detail in the maintenance and preparation of Northern Child is exemplary. His skill at interpreting the weather downloads together with the way he managed Northern Child lead to a completely hassle free passage when others that left at the same time experienced storm force winds and days of no wind. Northern Child had none of this. Together with Christian, Lucy helped with the running of Northern Child both as an extremely competent first mate but also as a fantastic cook and hostess - I don't know how she managed to act as hostess, cook and first mate and manage to always be cheery on her night watches - really impressive. I must mention the food that she managed to produce even when the sea was quite rough the meals kept coming and the quality never wavered. Well done Lucy and Christian. It has been over 15 years since I last went off shore for any length of time but I don't remember enjoying it as much as I did this time. Thank you so much for such a memorable passage."

In my last log, I would like to thank Georg, Rudi and Nelson for the excellent company, good spirits and able service as crew aboard Northern Child on our adventure sailing across the Atlantic. My closing thoughts on the passage are a response to a question which many people have asked.

Some people ask what it’s like to sail across the Atlantic, others ask why sail across the Atlantic? Rather than use my own words, I feel Mark Twain captures the very essence of what anyone with an adventurous spirit can identify with:

“ Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Best regards

Christian, Lucy and crew.

Day 21 Run - 164nm, 104nm towards Cherbourg

Northern Child Daily Log - Day 22

2nd June 2010 - 182nm to go to Cherbourg



Menu for the day

Breakfast - Freshly Baked White Loaf & Cereal with Coffee & Juice
Lunch - Butternut Squash Risotto with Spinach & Goats Cheese
Dinner - Chilli con Carne with White Rice & Tacos

Happy Hour - Rum Punch

Last night was an exciting night for us all, our first sight of land - Ile D'Ouessant (Ushant) with its many conspicuous lights warning of it rocky shores. Ushant is just off the very tip of North Western France and is the most Westerly point of France (French Caribbean excluded).
For us it marks a significant milestone as we see mainland Europe for the first time since leaving the Caribbean on the 8th May, which seems so long ago in some respects and so fresh in others.

We reached the ITZ (Inshore Traffic Zone) safely having 'dodged' our way through all the ferries and were delighted with our tactical route planning. We sailed to within 7 miles of Ushant waiting for the wind to swing to the E and ENE tacking when it swung from 50 to 60 degrees.
After tacking the wind started to shift as forecast from 60 through to 90 and even 100 degrees at times - PERFECTION! If you could have written the script you wouldn't have done it better!! We then stayed on Starboard tack for 55nm back out into the English Channel and once again into the shipping lanes, although they were much quieter than before and of course it was also light. The wind then contrary to forecast headed us to between 60-80 degrees so we played another tactical decision to tack back in towards France, in order to hopefully do the same again - wait for the wind to go round to the forecast 112 degrees - if we could pull this off it would be a major win and save us considerable time.

During the 40nm tack back inshore, the wind unexpectedly swung to the NE
(45 degrees) which was excellent news on Port tack but of course meant a big loss when we tacked back out to sea. We kept going and kept going until we were only 3 miles from the coast and were forced to tack but no wind shift - Ahh, disaster? Within 10 minutes of tacking, as if delivered by the hand of God, the wind swung again to the ENE (80
degrees) and we were heading fast towards the Channel Islands. I must admit we felt rather smug, but equally, very grateful and quietly relieved that it had worked out for us.

Even with this epic effort from the crew, our brains focussed on squeezing every last ounce of boat speed and navigational advantage, we realised we would now miss our target of 8 days to arrive in Cherbourg.
Only by about 15 hours though! If we had held on to the wind from the West, if we had stayed out to sea, if we had left a day earlier........
the mind of a competitor whirring away at self set targets!! Then, STOP. Realisation. We are sailing up the English Channel in a near perfect Force 4. Sunshine. Smiles on everyone's faces. Laughter.
Camaraderie and the very satisfying feeling that in just a few more hours we would be in Cherbourg having crossed the Atlantic Ocean, all 3,700 nautical miles of it. See picture of our track with only 70 nm left to go to Cherbourg. Each red flag shows a days run.

The Croissant and Pain Au Chocolat are being prepared for the morning bake right now. See you in the morning La France......

For anyone who has been reading our logs and would like to come and have a glass of Champagne to welcome Northern Child and her crew back into Portsmouth, she will be arriving at Gunwharf Quays Marina on Saturday 5th June at 1200BST. If you feel compelled to bring Pimms, Strawberries, cakes........ just a thought - feel free!!!

Best regards

Christian, Lucy and crew.

Day 22 Run - 141nm, 141nm towards Cherbourg

Northern Child Daily Log - Day 21

1st June 2010 - 323nm to go to Cherbourg


Menu for the day

Breakfast - Toast & Cereal with Coffee & Juice
Lunch - Spicy Chorizo & Tomato Pasta
Dinner - Creamy Pork served with Garlic Mushrooms, Mashed Potato
& Green Beans, followed by homemade flapjack

Happy Hour - Sauvignon Blanc

After finishing the log yesterday we managed to hail the yacht on our Port bow over the VHF. On board was a very pleasant chap called Steve who had been in the Caribbean for the Winter with his wife. He was doing the return Trans Atlantic on his own as his wife only likes the sunshine!! When we identified ourselves as Northern Child, he said "oh yes, I saw you in Antigua and the BVIs and you pulled into Horta the day I was leaving". What a small World? Well really it's simply the fact that today people follow the well established Atlantic Circuit, making use of the Trade Winds and Ocean Currents in order to spend Winter in the Caribbean or West Atlantic and Summer back in Europe - a bit like an Endless Summer I guess!! Anyway, Steve was on his way to Salcombe for a shower and a nights rest before heading on to Ramsgate where he lives.

We are really getting within striking distance now - there are lots of other sea dwellers out there. Overnight as we crossed the Continental shelf there were many fishing vessels appearing with their 'Christmas Tree' display of lights. Normal navigation lights, red, green and white and in addition, 'red over white - fishing tonight', green over white and then the spotlights being used to see their catch. Also Cargo Ships, 6 at a same so once again the AIS (Advanced Information System) comes into its own, helping us navigate safely through them all.

The wind held up in a Northerly direction last night, although dropped to between 5-8 knots which meant we were motor sailing through the night to try and maintain speed. Fortunately the combination of sail and engine power, gave us a steady 7 knots (our magic speed). There was a spectacular red sunset last night - see picture. The sky for me really is one of the true wonders of being at sea. It is very thought provoking. I often think about the fact that through time, whether hundreds, thousands or millions of years ago, man will have watched the same beautiful sunrises, sunsets and the terrific colours that they display. We are all linked by our planet and by nature regardless of our religions and beliefs, if only man could live with the same balance as nature. Lord, I've been at sea too long I think!!

As forecast we awoke this morning to a NE wind we has meant we are now just motoring. We have sufficient fuel to motor at cruising speed which is 6 knots but currently are against the tide so we are only making 4.8 knots over the ground. I can't bear to write in words what that makes our ETA in Cherbourg look like, but I might think about writing it later when the tide turns! The truth is, in principle what we lose against the tide we should make with the tide, the crucial element being the tide direction as we pass the Channel Islands. Around the Channel Islands tomorrow there will be about 3-3.5 knots of tide running. If we happen to get there at the right time, it will see our speed boosted, so if we could sail at 7 knots, we would be doing more than 10 knots over the ground - here's hoping.......

We are all into arrival mode now. Washing the clothes we want ready for arrival in Portsmouth and making use of the sunshine today, drying them pegged to the guard rails. Lucy and I are continuing with jobs on the boat; Lucy has done some more leatherwork today, I have been transferring fuel from Auxiliary to Main fuel tank. We are also starting to clean the boat where sensible, dusting, hovering, cleaning floor mats. It probably sounds strange to think of us doing these things while at sea, but utilising time effectively now, saves us time later. Also, when we are motoring it is a perfect opportunity to do jobs as we tend to use Andy (the Auto-helm) to steer the boat meaning only 1 crew member needs to be on watch, the other can do jobs.

So with progress slowing, what does the next 24 hours hold? Well, this mornings' forecast still shows the wind veering right round to the ESE.
As a result, we have made the bold move to alter our course to the South by 10 degrees. This means we should arrive at Ushant within 6 miles of the coast enabling us to be in the ITZ (Inshore Traffic Zone). Further out is the TSS (Traffic Separation Scheme) which is for large Ships and Commercial Vessels. When crossing TSS in small vessels, you should always cross at 90 degrees, in other words get across them as quickly as possible. We should probably be off Ushant in the early hours of the morning and have the tide with us. This would be great news. However, with the wind ESE we will not be able to make a heading for Cherbourg - more like Portsmouth. The wind should be up to 10-15 knots by then though so we will be sailing upwind at 7 knots. The crucial thing in the next 24 hours is being fortunate enough to arrive off Ushant with the tide and the Channel Islands with the tide. If we can do that, we may still be into Cherbourg tomorrow night. The meal out in Cherbourg is looking very doubtful indeed, but I still have hope for arrival late tomorrow.

Back on deck, some more leathering, weather observation and a little time to quietly enjoy the sunshine and surprisingly blue sea here.

Best regards

Christian, Lucy and crew.

Day 21 Run - 172nm, 164nm towards Cherbourg

31st May 2010 - 487nm to go to Cherbourg


Menu for the day

Breakfast - Toast & Cereal with Coffee & Juice
Lunch - Spinach & Ricotta Ravioli
Dinner - Fish Pie followed by Fresh Pineapple and Natural Yoghurt

Happy Hour - Carib & Pinot Noir

Finally the gloomy grey skies have retreated and we are sailing in the sun again. In fact the transition from very low grey fine mist to sun was extraordinary this morning. Between 0530 and 0600UT the air from the cold front passed across us at little more than 20m above sea level like a rolling mist. We could immediately see the Sun appearing behind it and the new thin and whispy Cirrus cloud level 16,000ft above with some Cumulous cloud below that. It was literally like 2 different Worlds; grey and bleak, threatening looking off to Port and bright, fresh and inspiring off to Starboard. It was a wonderful and amazing live demonstration of weather which I recorded on video.

As predicted, the wind did indeed veer to the North with the passing of the front and so steadily from last night, the wind went from 230 to 290 degrees. We took a gamble and gybed off North early to try and get the North wind sooner and it worked. With the passing of the front, the wind was now blowing from 320 degrees (NW) at 15-20knots and we were reaching at 8-9 knots - FABULOUS!!! Headsail reduced a third and a reef in the main. The ETA comes right down and things look rosy all of a sudden. That French food in Cherbourg, the wedding, HMS Victory and dinghy sailing - ahhhhhh. However, before we get too dreamy, there is still a long way to go and the Alderney race and Channel tides to deal with, plus the wind going through North to the East and going very light. We still have plenty of fuel, so we can afford to motor without worrying about conserving fuel, so if the sea is flat we will still be able to do 6 knots which will keep us on track.

We are all in good spirits but ready to arrive now. The fridge and freezer are starting to look a little empty, all the tasty stuff like chocolate and sweets have been eaten and the alcohol selection for happy hour is staring to diminish. Having said that, the crew seem happy with anything that has an alcoholic content, regardless of strength, colour or taste. Entertainment material is nearing an end too!! Having read 2 books on this passage (Fatal Storm about the '98 Sydney Hobart and For Crying Out Loud by Jeremy Clarkson), as a non reader I'm full. Ipod selections need updating! Nelson brought his 24 series DVD box set and I watched my first a couple of nights ago and am now of course hooked.
I spent my whole off watch last night (between 2200 & 0400UT) flicking between 24 and AIS/Radar. The selection of books has slowly been read, Yachting Worlds thumbed through - Nelson keeps looking at the boats for sail section - this passage may turn out to be very expensive for him!!!
Georg has continued rehearsing his music sheets for his choir and Rudi is writing a journal about the journey. At home he has a Chart of the Atlantic and has plotted the daily positions of his last crossing, East to West and so has been noting our position from the log each day so he can plot his chart West to East and complete his Atlantic Challenge.

A little earlier this afternoon Georg spotted a yacht on our Port bow and we have been steadily catching them for the last few hours. The Radar reveals they are 2.5 miles ahead so hopefully we will overtake them before dark and get a better look at them. It's great having another boat out here - it immediately makes me do that little bit extra tuning and tweaking to squeeze every last inch of boatspeed. The whip is out and the crew are focussed, not far to go now, the Croissant are in the air...........

Best regards

Christian, Lucy and crew.

Day 19 Run - 174nm, 164nm towards Cherbourg

Day 19 Run - 174nm, 164nm towards Cherbourg 30th May 2010 - 651nm to go to Cherbourg


Menu for the day

Breakfast - Home made Fruit Bread /Rock Cake!, Non-Filter Coffee & Juice
Lunch - Carbonara Pizza with Corn on the Cob followed by homemade Coconut Squares
Dinner - Spicy Moroccan Chicken with Roasted Pepper Couscous

Happy Hour - Rose from St Tropez

Whilst we had another night with limited visibility, I am pleased to report that it was much better than the previous night and the AIS and Radar were more of a luxury than a necessity. On the down side, the wind dropped from the 17-20 knots and was around 13-15 knots - this is significant in terms of our boat speed downwind. We managed to stay above 6.5 knots most of the time, but only sporadically could we achieve over 7 knots. It doesn't sound much difference to you sat at home reading this log, but trust me, when you see your ETA to your destination pushed back by almost a day it is significant!!

Most of the day today has been lighter winds and the crew have all been working hard to try and achieve our magic 7 knots. This is the speed we need to arrive in Cherbourg on Thursday evening, allowing us time to pick up our racing forestay, have dinner and a good nights' sleep before setting off for Portsmouth at first light on Friday morning. This timetable, 1 day ahead of our usual schedule, is being driven by 3 desires; 1) Nelson has a friend's wedding on Saturday he would like to be able to make, 2) Rudi & Georg would like to spend Saturday looking around the Naval Dockyard and the HMS Victory in Portsmouth, 3) Lucy and I are dying to get out dinghy sailing and there is a race at our home club on Saturday evening. So, you could say, the crew are all motivated in their own way to achieve the best progress possible in order to make our Thursday evening appointment in Cherbourg!!

To that end, we have been making best use of our trustee carbon Spinnaker pole which has been flying boldly since we left the Azores.
However, after 800 miles service on this leg, just after dinner, it was sadly time to take down Chuck (the Carbon pole), as the wind has gone further to the South and we could no longer make our course with him up.
Goodbye Chucky old fella, we'll see you again soon. The forecast for the next 12hrs shows the wind veering right round to the NNW which would put us on a reach (wind at 90 degrees to us) on the other gybe. IF and I say IF, this comes through at the 12 knots forecast, we will have about 24hrs of fast sailing which would be excellent - here's hoping.

Right now, we are motor sailing as the wind, contrary to the forecast has dropped to about 10 knots and our boat speed was only 5 knots.
Guess what, with the engine we are back up to our magic 7 knots - I just hope the cold front comes across early and we get this NNW wind sooner.
Looking further ahead into Tuesday evening and Wednesday, the wind is due to go further round to the N then NE and finally E. This of course means on our ENE course we will inevitably be beating at some point. At this stage our plan is to sail slightly further North so that as the wind goes round to the NE we can still point at Cherbourg and then as the wind comes on the nose as it should only be about 8 knots, motor through it until it goes E and we can sail again. Sounds cunning, but the reality may be different!

Computer currently says Thursday evening arrival, but it doesn't know what I do about the Alderney race!! Go to go, Dolphin display on the bow..........

Best regards

Christian, Lucy and crew.

Day 18 Run - 180nm, 163nm towards Cherbourg

29th May 2010 - 813nm to go to Cherbourg


Menu for the day

Breakfast - Cheese and Ham Toastie, Coffee & Juice
Lunch - Caramalised Onion Tart with Melted Goats Cheese
followed by a White Chocolate Magnum
Dinner - Lasagne with Garlic Bread

Happy Hour - Carib

Last night provided some of the most challenging conditions we have had on the passage yet. By about 2300UT, we had a thick sea fog known as Advection Fog, rather than Radiation Fog which you get over land. At its worst we had visibility of only about 50m and that lasted most of the night. It's time like this when we are eternally grateful for technology and our AIS (Advanced Information System) which is picking up information from ships in our vicinity. We had 4 ships within a few miles of us and one which passed to Port under a mile away. We use the trustee old Furuno Radar as a back up to the AIS to ensure that what the AIS says is correct - which of course it is, but you can't be too careful when you can't see much past your bow and you're over 400 miles from the nearest land. Needless to say most of the night for Lucy and I was swapping seats at the chart table monitoring the chart plotter and radar.

We awoke to a much better day, although still cloudy and were starting to think we may never see blue sky again. Of course it did return and by late afternoon we had hot sun and some more favourable breeze. We gybed yesterday evening before dark to head further North and then back again this morning when the wind backed further South, all the time trying to make best use of the wind angles bearing in mind the weather forecast. We are now 50 miles North of the Rhumb line (the straight line between Horta and Ushant) and happy that we should stay in the best of the W/SW winds until about lunchtime Tuesday when the wind is due to go NW.

Much of todays activity has revolved around the galley starting with me 'helping' Lucy make bread!! What this really means is that I cover the work surface in flour and rub the dough which at this stage is resembling a rubberised cement mix, into the flour on the side, then repeat, and again and again...... End result, something that resembles bread and me looking a little like Casper (the friendly ghost). As I send this log the bread has yet to be baked so verdict tomorrow. The next galley caper reminded me of the old Norwich Union advert - 'we won't make a drama out of a crisis' - except really we did. On the hunt for a strong coffee after his shift, a nameless crew member unfortunately smashed the Cafetiere. Now in itself this is completely un-important although broken glass on a boat is always bad news and
oddly this WAS the only glass item on the boat!!! However, with a
couple of serious coffee drinkers onboard this was bordering on needing to put out a MAY DAY to the next nearest vessel to deliver a Cafetiere.
After we had reduced our disaster status from DEFCON 5 to DEFCON 2, said individual started to clear up the mess, only to block the oven on it's gimble (swinging arm) causing the Lasagne for dinner to volt off of the oven top, do a perfect summersault and land upside down on the floor!!!
Still, fortune was on our side as Lucys Lasagne was still semi frozen and had tin foil covering it, so with one swift surgically precise swipe, between us we picked it up, turned it over and laid it proudly back to rest on the oven.

Our last 24hr run was less than hoped but we had as little as 9 knots of wind at times during the night and we lost ground towards our target in our strategic move North, so all in all ok and we are still just ahead of our 8 day plan for the passage. Fingers crossed that the wind holds up over the next 24hrs for a solid run putting us within striking distance of our target and planned arrival in Portsmouth on Friday evening.

Best regards

Christian, Lucy and crew.

Day 17 Run - 198nm, 187nm towards Cherbourg

28th May 2010 - 1000nm to go to Cherbourg


Menu for the day

Breakfast - Cheese on Toast, Cereal, Coffee & Juice
Lunch - Chevre Salad with Lardons
Dinner - Pork Tikka Masala, followed by Peach & Rasberry Melba with Creme Fraiche

Happy Hour - Rum Punch (They're all missing the Caribbean now!!)

The wind has been kind to us for another great 24 hours sailing. Blowing consistently from 230-240 degrees at 17-22knots, we have been able to make good distance in the right direction. We are having a dilemma around how far North to head. We know that there will be better winds to the North but that requires us sailing further out of our way. It is a balancing act between wind and distance sailed and we have decided to play it in the middle. We are trying to steer a course of 060, while our heading to Ouessant on the very most North West tip of France is 070 in order to balance our course between where we actually want to go and where the best wind will be.

After the Whale Close Encounter yesterday, seeing Dolphins on the bow seems a little under-whelming, not that we aren't grateful to see them. Today has been very misty with poor visibility and a very low cloud base, but the wind is still there doing it's thing blowing us home. I feel as though we have been very lucky with the timing of our passage. Currently blowing through the area we sailed to get to Horta from Antigua there is a big low pressure system and Southerly Gales. Over the next few days this will head North and East, passing over us some 600-800 miles to the NW. The winds at the centre will be over 40 knots and the waves are predicted to be 10m high. It really makes you realise how lucky we are with modern weather forecasting, giving us the ability to choose weather windows and even sail around some weather systems.

Although this leg is 1350nm, it feels fairly small compared to the last leg and each day we can see big chunks of mileage racking up. We hit a big milestone at dinner time with 1000nm exactly left to run after 48 hours. That meant that in the first 48hrs we have covered 340nm which is 2 days of 170nm and the magic number as 170nm per day would get us there in 8 days which is our target.

As we cover the sea miles there are times when all the crew just drift off, whether into a book, listening to their IPOD or just staring out at the Ocean deep in thought. A long sea passage is a great time to switch off your mind from 'normality' and escape for a while. For me now, thoughts of seeing family and friends after 6 months away from home and dinghy sailing, bike riding, golf and squash are the things I'm looking forward to. We have the Summer planned out carefully with a maintenance program built around our charters, allowing some time off for us after a non-stop year from last June when Northern Child got home.

Dinner tonight was absolutely sensational. Lucy's Pork Tikka Masala was truly wonderful - let me get your taste buds going.... Soft tender pork diced, with cherry tomatoes, spinach and butternut squash - a masterpiece of culinary excellence! Followed by Peach & Rasberry Melba (yummy homemade sponge cake for the not so culinary types) with a large dollop of crème fraiche. Rudi who has a very healthy appetite after seconds of the curry had to say nothing for his dessert seconds - he just looked at Lucy with puppy dog eyes and another square of the melba was served. I'd love to have done it all over again but I would have been sick!!

A fantastic 24hr run, the best in fact since we left Antigua - a whopping 198nm at an average speed of 8.25 knots and 187nm towards Cherbourg. We gybed this evening after dinner when the wind veered further West and are now taking advantage of it, sailing at 055 and slightly further North to stay in the stronger wind.

Best regards

Christian, Lucy and crew.

Day 16 Run - 194nm, 182nm towards Cherbourg

27th May 2010 - 1182nm to go to Cherbourg


Menu for the day

Breakfast - Pain au Chocolat
Lunch - Warm Tuna Baguettes with Tomato
Dinner - Prawn Stir Fry

Happy Hour - Tropical Rum Punch

Some extremely varied conditions in the first 24 hours of our passage, having left Horta in 25-30 knot winds from the SSW to as little as 8 knots from the SW requiring the engine for a couple of hours. Since then the wind has been extremely steady at 17-20 knots from the SW meaning we have been averaging a steady 7.5-8.0 knots for most of our passage.

We are again sailing under full mainsail and poled out number 1 genoa (our largest headsail) and Northern Child is roaring across the Atlantic on her way home. We have had mainly grey skies overhead since we left with a small amount of rain as we are in the warm sector, with a cold front chasing down behind us. Hopefully the cold front will bring some more wind which will set our afterburners alight and get some more of the 10 knot plus surfing going.

We have missed the Sun during the day for its warmth, but the greatest loss with cloudy skies is the loss of the stars at night. It is sad to say, but I think on our last passage we had started to take the stars for granted as they were shining brightly every night. Of course, now with a full moon, the stars will not appear as brightly as before, the consolation being that we now have an illuminated sky making the sea easier to sail through at night. Once the cloud has gone we will have some great moonlit sailing which is some of my very favourite time on the sea. Sailing fast across an Ocean at night is a wonderful feeling of freedom, exploration and adventure - it literally takes you to another World.

We are now settled right back into our watch pattern of 4 hours on, 6 hours off and after 2 nights everyone is able to sleep well again. To start with most people find it hard to sleep, but I think you just reach a certain point of tiredness and then you can sleep well even with a little rocking and the noise of the water rushing past the hull. Having done quite a few miles on NC now I can estimate the speed through the water fairly accurately based on the noise of the sea on the hull.

Possibly the most exciting 'Close Encounter' we have ever had happened this morning at 0815UT. Nelson was on the helm and with Rudi in the aft cockpit while Lucy was eating breakfast in the centre cockpit. Nelson spotted a Whale about 150m ahead on our Starboard bow. Within about 15 seconds the Whale was within 100m and the 3 saw a water spout from the Whale. 30 seconds after the initial sighting, the Whale was within 10m of Northern Child it's whole back in view. It appeared the Whale was sleeping and once within 10m it awoke rather surprised to see a 50'
yacht right next to it, so much so that it went into an emergency dive manoeuvre, leaving a brown trail behind it - seriously!! The crew estimate that the Whale was at least 50' long - as big as the boat - and that it was within 2m of our stern as it dove into the depths. After a quick look in the Atlantic Almanac, it was identified as a Sperm Whale which are known to be up to 60' in length. Nelson, Rudi and Lucy were all buzzing for some time after the 'Close Encounter' - Georg and I were disappointed to have missed it!

A fabulous run in the last 24hrs with 182nm towards Cherbourg. We are sailing on a heading of 050, slightly to the North of the direct Rhumb line, in the attempt to be further North in 2-3 days to stay in 15-25 knot winds as opposed to 10-15 knots winds forecast to the South.

I'll leave it another day or so before we start talking ETAs, but currently things are going to plan!

Best regards

Christian, Lucy and crew.

Day 15 Run - 171nm, 158nm towards Cherbourg

26th May 2010 - 1340nm to go to Cherbourg


Menu for the day

Breakfast - Pain au Chocolat
Lunch - Tuna Nicoise Salad
Dinner - Spaghetti Bolognaise with Angel Hair Pasta and Garlic Bread

Happy Hour - Cabinet Sauvignon

We were in Horta for almost 3 days which was plenty of time to rest, explore and fettle Northern Child ready for the next leg of our Atlantic Adventure.

On the morning of the 23rd we awoke to a pleasant sunny warm day. Lucy and I went to customs and immigration to check in while the crew took the sheets, towels and other laundry to be washed. They were delighted that the washing facilities were in a small complex at the end of the marina which had outside seating and served great coffee.

Once back on board we all set about washing, cleaning, hoovering and polishing and by early afternoon Northern Child was looking properly ship shape again. That evening we all went off ashore to explore, but not too far from the Marina and shortly after dinner we were all back on board taking advantage of another still night of sleep.

We hired 2 cars between us for the 24th; Nelson, Rudi and Georg heading off early to explore, while Lucy and I headed to the Super-market for more provisioning and supplies. Once we had completed the shop and re-stocked NC, we headed out into the Island to have a look around. Immediately, the Island has a very peaceful and welcoming feeling. Extremely lush and green and in spots the plants look a little tropical although there is none of the tropical heat. Cool breezes blow in off the Atlantic which temper the warm sun in a fine balance - not too hot, nor cold either. Faial is only 10x7 miles and so in a car it doesn't take long to get around. As you drive through some of the small villages there is evidence of buildings that are clearly a few hundred years old and a real sense of community within these small villages. They all have churches and a kind of 'community hall' together with very interesting and practical communal BBQ facilities (see picture).

If not just by the shape of Faial's land mass, there are signs everywhere of its volcanic origin. Old lava, ash flows and black sand are visible all around the Island, but the real highlight of Faial is the Caldeira at the centre. It rises up to 990m above sea level with the base of the crater 300m below the rim. It's easy to imagine the volcano being pushed up through the sea bed millions of years ago with lava cascading from the Caldeira down the side of the volcano creating what today is Faial. At the Western end, the Island is still bare rock and the picture shows a 10-15m strata of volcanic lava flow.

The Azores are the best place in Europe to go whale and dolphin watching and if you ever visit I would recommend it. We had seen a Whale broaching on our final run into the Azores and as mentioned in previous logs we had multiple Dolphin encounters during the last few days. In summary, last year when I looked into flying to the Azores, it was about £250 from London and it would make a great place to visit for a long weekend if you like nature and the outdoors in a very unspoilt part of the World.

Our last task before leaving was to give a fresh face to Northern Childs wall painting. As I mentioned, in Horta all around the marina are hundreds of paintings, remembering boats that have passed through the Azores on their way back to Europe. The oldest wall painting we saw was from 1984 - must have been dulux!! NC's was looking a little tired and unfortunately some of the names of previous crew had rubbed off and were unidentifiable, but we meticulously re-painted the logo and replaced what history we could. All the crew got involved in the painting and after just over an hour it was complete - bright and smart again - see picture.

Having completed the logo, we went to Pete's for our final meal in the Azores, before departing at 1830UT.

Best regards

Christian, Lucy and crew.

Day 15 Run - ARRIVED IN HORTA AT 0400hrs ON 23rd MAY

23rd May 2010 - 65nm to go to Horta


Menu for the day

Breakfast - Cereal, Toast, Coffee and Juice
Lunch - Salami, Onion, Pepper and Cherry Tomato Pasta bake
Dinner - Burger and Chips!

Happy Hour - Beer, Wine & Rum (Not mixed!!)

Just after dinner and with daylight disappearing, Nelson spotted land.
Faial is 990m high so we were able to see it from about 45 miles away even with limited light. Horta is on the South East corner of Faial and as we got closer to the Island in the dark we could see an array of red lights that were coming from the airport on the South side of the Island.

Sailing into the lee of the Island the wind dropped, so we started the engine and dropped sails ready for our arrival. Taking a very slow path into the Harbour we arrived at the outer sea wall and were tied up by 0355UT. I always take a fairly slow run into ports at night with someone watching on the bow as you never know where there might be a little mooring bouy or lobster pot. Imagine fouling your prop on a line with your marina berth in sight after over 2000 miles!! The crew had a celebratory Rum to toast our fast and safe passage and then everyone tucked in for the night - a night with no rocking or rolling, a novelty!

Well sure enough, the last 237nm flew by and after 14 days, 9.5 hours at sea we arrived in Horta, Azores at 0330UT, having averaged a very respectable 6.97knots for the 2408nm passage. All crew happy and well and ready to do some exploring in the Azores.

Best regards

Christian, Lucy and crew.