Type II fun.

Brian reefing the sail on passage to the Caribbean.

Wise men say there are three kinds of fun. Type I:-the activity is fun at the time it is happening; Type II fun- it is fun looking back on the activity from some point in the future; and Type III fun, which is not actually fun….ever. We do not plan on having any of the latter, but Type II does feature quite a bit in the sailing and cruising lifestyle. But more on that later.

After launching we sailed south to Deltaville and met some friends from a couple of years ago, the crew on Django, a young Swiss family; Stephanie, Joffrey and Valentine. We shared our first passage down to Antigua with them in 2020 and anchored alongside for a couple of weeks as we all recovered and took stock of the new surroundings in the Caribbean.

We also visited new friends, Bill and Chris, OCC port officers who have a home and dock just south of Deltaville. We tied up to their dock and spent a lovely day walking in their woods, visiting on Helacious and to cap it all, a wonderful meal in their home. Thank you so much for your hospitality.

We were watching the weather, and wanted to be a little closer to the entrance of the Chesapeake, should a break in the weather permit a departure. We untied from their dock and moved to the south side of the Mathews peninsula and anchored in a favorite spot on the East River. Here we waited for 10 days for a suitable weather window to make the passage from USA to the Caribbean islands. While we waited we watched the leaves turn golden and the sunsets become more dramatic. We were gifted 2 dozen home-grown oysters by a couple who lived across from our anchorage. We enjoyed them over a couple of days, trying different ways to prepare them. Thanks, Tim and Ruth!

Finally we got a forecast from our weather router service that we could sail with. The deciding comment was, “it is not perfect, but it is not going to get any better”. We were so ready. Midnight Thanksgiving eve, as all those turkeys were being brined, we pulled up the anchor and washed off the Chesapeake mud, pointed our bow south and set sail for Martinique.

Wrapped up, thermal layers to the 4th level we set off. We negotiated our way past all the tankers and container ships waiting at the entrance of the bay for a chance to unload their cargo. As we exited Chesapeake Bay downwind in 25 knots gusting to 30, the sun began to rise.

The strategy on this passage was to head down the coast of Virginia toward Cape Hatteras then cross the Gulf Stream at that point. The wind was forecast to diminish. The effect of the north wind contrary to southerly strong Gulf Stream current, making steep waves, should be reduced. We monitored the water temperature, watching it increase from 64°F to 83°F as we entered the stream, the track of the boat in the strong current began to veer off, the heading and COG (course over ground) diverged by as much as 20°. Twelve hours later we were through the stream.

It was a rough ride - too rough to fish, which was a big disappointment to Brian. We emerged on the other side of the warm waters of the stream and now the strategy was to make as much south as possible to escape the oncoming lows that were sweeping down from the NW. We pulled out all the sails; Main, genoa and staysail and sailed hard. It was a rough and rolly passage. The seas were confused (if you have ever been in a confused sea, you know exactly what I mean), and we had a lot of green water over the deck. There was also the rarer breaking wave that crashed over the whole boat. We spent most of our watches sitting on the floor, wedged in next to the Nav station. It was low, secure and less energy was involved in bracing against the boat’s constant movement. After the third day even our Starlink satellite dish had had enough of the constant motion. It went into “stow” mode, and would not come out. We had to manage the remainder of the trip using the IridiumGo satellite, much slower and certainly no movies.

And so it went for many days. The weather got warmer, the layers were quickly discarded and T shirts and swim trunks came out. The boat continued to move around a lot and although neither of us got sick, we did not have a huge appetite. Eating was something we did, not something we enjoyed. We turned and headed east, aiming for a point south of Bermuda. It was critical to get as far east as possible before we encountered the Trade Winds. These classic and reliable winds blow from the east, constantly. If we did not make our mileage to the east before encountering them, we would be in serious trouble. We would end up in the Dominican Republic, and not the southern Caribbean we were aiming for. After several days we achieved our goal of longitude 62°W, then turned right and started our trek south.

The seas continued to be large, although finally they were more regular. You could anticipate the movement, rather than having to always react. As we got in warmer waters the chance of squalls and rain showers increased. A squall is no fun on a sailboat, the sudden increase in wind strength and change in wind direction can be very dangerous. We closely monitored the squalls as they popped up on the radar screen, sometimes changing our course to get away from the worst of the winds. Toward the end of our passage we managed to get the fishing lines out. Brian was rewarded with a tasty Yellow Fin Tuna. Not a record breaker, but good for at least 3 meals.

Dawn of day 12, with 175nm to go, the morning forecast for the next 24 hours was not looking good. If we continued on to Martinique we would be facing high winds and 10ft waves on the beam with a lee shore getting closer and closer. We decided to turn and head in to make landfall in Guadeloupe, 75nm to the southwest. Unfortunately it was dark when we arrived, but we had visited the Deshaies anchorage before so knew the lay of the land. We dropped anchor at the back of the pack, and after a couple of attempts, it held. We had arrived.

View over the anchorage in Deshaies, Guadeloupe.

Within 10 minutes of dropping the hook, our phone lights up. “Are you in Guadeloupe? Deshaies?? We are here in a rental house!”. Friends we made in Madeira last year happened to be checking the internet and saw our position. The crew of Nansen had since sailed to Morocco, Senegal and Guinea-Bissau, crossed the Atlantic and sailed the coast of Brazil. They spent a few weeks exploring the Amazon river, and now were here in Guadeloupe! Quelle bon chance! We spent the following afternoon enjoying the view from their cabin, eating crepes (thanks Naïline) and catching up on past adventures, and plans for the future. I am sure we will cross paths again down the way, the adventurous are drawn to each other.

For now, it was time to sleep, wash the boat and the sheets. A couple of baguettes later and already the memory of the rough passage was fading. It was definitely Type II fun.

Blog of our friends on Nansen, an inspirational read if you seek adventure. https://sergezlesamarres.wordpress.com/