Dinghy Distress!!

Date: July 25, 2007
Location: East River, Mobjack Bay - near Matthews, VA
Position: 37 24.445 N 076 20.308 W

We got back from England at about 1:30 AM Sunday, slept a few hours, then spent the rest of the day running errands and doing some last minute boat jobs.

We left the dock right after high tide on Monday morning to take advantage of the tidal current to help get us out past our friend's boat. Everything went as smooth as butter (no bumps or scrapes, nothing broke, and nobody got hurt - the textbook definition of a successful arrival or departure from a dock) and we dropped anchor about 100 yards downstream. We dinghied back in so Julie could make one last run to Deltaville to pick up some parts we'd ordered and Mark went back to the boat to finish up a few "must do" chores before we could leave for our trip to Maine.

We raised anchor at about 6:30 pm Monday and, with a high tide at 8:30 pm at Smith Point and predicted Northerly winds of 10-15 mph, we looked forward to a nice downwind run to Mobjack Bay. Rachel has been having some drive train vibration issues, so we made an appointment to have her checked out at at a highly recommended boatyard here. Unfortunately, wind was from the south, not the predicted north, at 15-20, gusting to 25 making it dead on our nose the entire trip down the bay. The 66 mile trip ended up being 87 miles with all the tacking and ended up taking just over 19 hours to complete!

Before we left, we tried test hanging the new dinghy from the davits and think it'll work, but it's going to take some refining. We'd had great success towing it from Deltaville to the Coan and on a trip across the Potomac to St. Mary's, so we decided to tow it on this trip with plans to stow it on deck for the passage from Norfolk to Block Island. It was pretty choppy on our way down, especially from about 10pm through about 3 am - even Rachel was pounding on some of the bigger sets of waves. In the morning we noticed some water in the dinghy and decided to heave to and bail her out. Oh my.

There are two bulkheads that bolt together when the forward and aft parts of the dinghy are assembled. Apparently between the pounding and the tow line jerking, the plywood actually tore at these points allowing a couple of seams to open up. By the time we stopped to bail her the bow section was only hanging onto the stern section by the bottom two bolts - the top two were almost completely broken free from the forward section. We managed to tie it all together to stabilize it, bailed her out and finished the trip.

When we got here she was full of water again. Turns out the water wasn't splashed in - it was running in through cracks in the bulkheads created by the same pounding that split the plywood bulkheads. We hauled her up on deck and took her apart to assess the damage. It's all fixable, but will take time. So now, if we want to go to Maine this summer, we have to make arrangements to leave her here somewhere until we get back in September when we'll have time to make repairs. Sad to say, we're thinking she may not be tough enough to be a full-time cruising dinghy. We have a couple of months to cogitate and decide what we want to do with regard to a tender. Good thing we saved our little 8' inflatable when we sold Raven and brought it along "just in case"!

Back home on Rachel

Date: July 13, 2007
Location: Docked on the Coan River, Chesapeake
Position: 37 56.652 N 076 28.883 W

We arrived back to Rachel on July 7th. Wow has it just been a week we've been back?

After a lovely, albeit too quick visit with Mark's family in Maine, we were hoping to get Rachel ready and take off to points North for a month or two.

Unfortunately Julie's mum passed away on Monday after a short hospital stay. It is always distressing to lose a parent, but there is also a sense of relief that she will no longer be suffering from the debilitating Alzheimers with which she was afflicted. The funeral is next Friday, so we'll be flying to England and will be gone until Sunday, the 22nd of July. We are still getting Rachel ready to head North, it just won't happen until we return at the end of next week.

It's been so hot that the half finished awning job has bubbled up to the top of the priority list ! Julie has been down below sewing and up top measuring for a couple of days and the awning is now 3/4 finished - functional and creating a lot of much needed shade, but as always, there's more to go.

Mark is busily preparing Rachel for our next offshore adventure from Norfolk, Virginia to Block Island, Rhode Island and then on to Maine via the Cape Cod Canal. We're rustling up some crew so we won't have to do all the night shifts ourselves, although we are trying to make it sound more attractive than it actually will be .

Apart from that, we're having a great time taking dinghy rides, watching the osprey feed their babies in their nest across the river, watching a spider build it s web on our bimini supports, etc.

Wow! Are we really the same people who just quit our jobs and moved onto our lovely boat 3 months ago?

"No! Get off the computer, stop waffling on, and get back to work !"

"Ow!"

Mark & Julie
s/v Rachel

Farewell Azores!

Location: Air Sato, enroute to Boston
Position: High above the Atlantic

The highlight of the festival on Terciera for us was a parade re-enactment of a year in the life of a grape. During the day on Thursday, several sections of the parade route were dressed up with grape vines, leaves, low walls, etc. We couldn't figure out what the parade was going to be that night other than recognizing the word "vinho" in the program.

What a great parade! Locals dressed in traditional clothing sprayed, cultivated, propped up and finally harvested the grapes. The acting was great with old guys twisting kids ears, to make them work. Sitting and eating lunch in the fields and sharing grapes, olives, wine, and bread with the parade attendees. A fake fight, interupted be a "bystander", who was then made to drink more wine. An ox cart, a donkey cart - both left little surprises on the pavement for further entertainment as following parade members and attendees stepped in or barely missed them. A drunk sitting under a vine with his jug. We love this place, have we mentioned that?

The following afternoon we managed to catch up with one of the folk groups that performed in the parade a couple of nights earlier. They were playing music at a gazebo in the park. After their performance Mark bought a CD of their music and asked (in Portugese) if the vendor spoke English. This was followed by a request, in English this time, for an explanation of the costumes we'd been seeing. Much discussion ensued, ending with a "talk to her - she teaches English at our school". Once we established communication with the school teacher, we were in. They clustered around us and every question was answered. Those not understood were discussed and an answer was eventually forthcoming. You learn that, even though you don't need to know Portugese in the Azores, a little effort goes a very long way!

The last night of the festival we saw what was arguably the best firework display we have ever seen directly overhead. Ever. Really. And to top it off, we had ring side seats lying on Liberty's bow. It was synched to music similar to that played at "Cirque De Soleil". Mark, being a "fireworks purist", didn't think he'd like that at the beginning, but by the finale he was sold! It helped that the display was absolutely (in Mark's words) "fan-freaking-tastic". We have no idea how an island with a population of about 16,000 was able to afford it!

This morning, our last day, we sadly said goodbye to our wonderful hosts. We couldn't have asked for more welcoming, friendly, and supportive hosts for the trip.

We rented a car with another couple we'd befriended (the "Hobnobers" if you recall) for a last drive around the island and were not disappointed.

Cows in the road. Cow shit all over the car. Riotous hydrangea, lily, rose blooms. Biscoites ("Biscuits") bathing, lava, and grapes.

One of the most intriguing things we saw was a fountain in the shape of a lady with a duck on her head. We have no idea what the significance is, however. The guide book had a picture with a caption "famous duck fountain" or somesuch, but no explanation of what it represents or why it was built. The strangest part is that it's sort of in the middle of nowhere - a small picnic area has been built around it.

Our stay in the Azores ended when our friends finally dropped us at the airport for the flight to Boston. On arrival, we've rented a car and will drive up to Harpswell, Maine for a few days to visit with Mark's family.

Mark & Julie
s/v Rachel

A bunch of Bull!!!

Location: s/v Liberty, port of Angra Do Heroismo, Terciera, Azores
Position: 38 32.039 N 028 37.525 W

Back when we were getting ready to leave Flores for Faial, we mentioned to a local that were going on to Terciera for the festival. He said "Oh - Terciera - they love their bulls. They do everything with their bulls!"

We now know what he meant. During the 10 day festival of St John almost every day has an activity related to bulls, sometimes two! As well as the usual bullfights in the ring, we could not bring ourselves to attend any of these, they also have a 'sport' which involves a bull attached to about 100 feet of thick rope. At the other end are 7 or 8 men dressed in grey pants, white shirts, and black hats. It looks like the guys with the rope try to control the bull a bit, but it honestly seems like more of a "suggestion" than any kind of control!

An area of the town is blocked off by buildings, trucks and sheets of plywood and the bull runs around, being taunted with umbrellas, blankets and waving arms. Anyone macho enough to try it can run with the bull. The rope guys get dragged around while the bull goes after whoever he sets his sights on. Once in a while the bull turns, looks at the guys with the rope, and goes after them. They drop the rope and scatter, then when the bull gets distracted by someone else running across his field of view, they run back and grab the rope again.

During the festival there were 3 of these events, two of them were located on a town street that was blocked at both ends by trucks. We missed the first one involving adults. We translated the second one loosley from the festival program using our trusty Portugese - English dictionary to something like "Procession of the Bulls and Children". This turned out to be young bulls and adolescent boys. The macho culture here obviously doesn't approve of females participating in this sport.

Or, Julie interjects, "could it just be that females just have more sense?"

These events in the street are not too easy to view as the only way to see what's going on involves standing on the bed of the truck at either end or hanging from one of the balconies that line the streets here.

Yesterday, the third bull event was held right at the marina. When we arrived by water in our dinghy there was a solid wall of boats - these Tercierans really ARE crazy about their bulls. The walls were lined with spectators, the roofs of all the nearby buildings were covered, it was standing room only and really something to see. We didn't think we'd be able to see anything, but then two fishing boats right in the middle of the raft saw us and started yelling at us to join them. They grabbed poles, pushed their boats apart to make room for us, and we slid on in and had front row seats about 80 feet from shore!

Crowds of guys would come into the "ring" when the bull was at the other end, and as soon as he started toward them, would run away and climb the barricades. Some who were more brave (or more professional?) than others actually managed to get the bull running around in circles chasing them with one hand on his horn! Luckily no-one got badly hurt. The bull scuffed his knees, a man got bounced off the horns of the bull and over it's back, but he jumped up and ran off, and a dog got tossed up in the air.

We don't really understand the finer points of the "run in, then run away" theme or the role of the "string handlers", but the bulls put on a pretty good performance.
One local told us that last year a bull broke through the plywood barrier that had been erected in front of a butcher shop and totally trashed it before it was removed. Ironic, eh?
Mark & Julie
s/v Rachel

Festival

Location: s/v Liberty, port of Angra Do Heroismo, island of Terciera, Azores
Position: 38 32.039 N 028 37.525 W

We really like the Azores - at least what we've seen of them so far. They're not widely known to Americans (yet) as a "destination", but they're really high on our list of places to revisit!

We left Horta at 7 am yesterday and sailed and motored just over 60 miles to Terciera in light winds. We saw several more pods of dolphin and Julie spotted a small whale - we're not sure what kind it was yet, but we're going to do some more research. We anchored at the harbor in Angra Do Heroismo (Creek of Heroes), spent the night, and moved into the marina on Wednesday.

Angra has been designated by Unesco as a World Heritage City - here's a link if you'd like to learn more about this program: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Heritage_Site. It's a beautiful city with cobblestone streets, white and black stone sidewalks, and wonderful architecture. It was of great importance during the opening to the new world, and arguably the largest fortification ever built by Spain still stands from the 16th and 17th centuries. More on Angra: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angra_do_Hero%C3%ADsmo

It's been festival time here for the past week. The Sanjoaninas (celebrations in honor of St. John) start on the Friday closest to 24 June and run for 10 days through the second Sunday. It's full of historical and religious events, running the bulls, folk music, and lots of other events.

Friends we met in Flores were already here and stopped by in their dinghy Tuesday evening after we arrived to give us some pointers, tell us what they'd found and seen so far, and to talk us into going into town with them at 9:30 pm to see the parade. We were pretty tired from the trip over, but decided to suck it up and go. We are really glad we did.

Since none of us know Portugese, even though we had a copy of the schedule and a Portugese-English dictionary, we still didn't really know what to expect. It turned out that the parade consisted of several groups of folk singers and musicians in traditional garb all arranged in a similar order. First, a flower girl or two and a couple of boys with wooden thingys - we don't know what the significance of them are yet. Then came the peasants, the farmers, the rich people - landowners, merchants, etc., and most of them had a woman in black that looked a bit like Darth Vader - we discovered later the she was 'a woman in early settler costume'. The musicians brought up the rear of each group.

They all sang traditional songs - men one line, women another line, then all together. Many of the spectators sang along, too, the men and women singing their parts. They have wonderful voices, sang lovely harmonies, and gave us a wonderful welcome to this island. Apparently all the songs are the same but each village has their own troupe and the dances are all different, some dramatically so.

The parade was followed by individual performances by each group on one of several stages set up around town. They did some complex country dancing, much like contra dancing, to music provided by the group's musicians and singers. What a great evening's entertainment, we stumbled into bed around 2am.

Mark & Julies/v Rachel

Horta

Location: s/v Liberty, port of Horta, Faial, Azores
Position: 38 32.039 N 028 37.525 W

We had a nice, uneventful overnight sail from Flores to Faial and the port city of Horta. We've been here for just under a week and will leave for the island of Terciera tomorrow morning.

We just heard yesterday that, despite the cruising season being only a couple of months long here, Horta is one of the busiest yachting centers in the world. Seeing the number of boats that arrive and leave every day, we can believe it. It's a primary destination for West-to-East Atlantic crossings, and is also a very popular sailing destination for Europeans on vacation. When we first pulled in here we saw a boat we know from Deltaville! Unfortunately, they left before we had a chance to stop by and say hello.

Always on the lookout for new ideas, we've enjoyed walking the docks and looking at how other ocean cruising boats are set up. Invariably, we've been met with cheerful good will whenever we've knocked on a stranger's boat to ask questions. Most of the cruisers seem to speak at least some English, and we've met several very helpful folk who have given us some great ideas and even tipped us off to some local knowledge we hadn't heard yet.

Horta is quite different from Lajes, although still not as metropolitan as one might expect from reading the tourist guides. We had expected it to be quite touristy and were surprised that there were hardly any souvenir shops. Most of the businesses we've found so far occupy a single street, a block back from the sea. The sea front is mainly houses with a wide cobbled promenade.

We had to get a slip at the city marina because anchoring out is not allowed unless the marina is full. The harbor is fairly small so that is understandable. We're rafted up 4 deep (that means there are three other boats between us and the bulkhead and we have to cross all of them to get ashore). On the one hand it's a bit of a pain to have to walk across the other boats, but on the other hand, we don't have a bunch of strangers walking across our boat, either.

We had a nice walk yesterday. All the way around the harbor and then around a spit of land to a lovely beach and some old fortresses and an old whale processing works built into a cliff. We then walked back through the back streets of Horta.

There's a well-known international sailor's hang out named "Peter Cafe Sport" that's been in business here since the early 1900s. Some of the most famous boats in cruising history have stopped there and left a burgee or an ensign or some kind of memento tacked to the walls or ceiling. Of course we had to go and have a few drinks while checking out the decorations, an added bonus being free wireless internet access.

Another requirement when passing through Horta is to paint your boat name on the sea wall, to ensure a safe passage home. We have spent quite a lot of time walking around admiring some very artisitic and unusual paintings. we have seen an anchor, several T-shirts and other pieces of clothing, and some burgees epoxied to the stone and concrete. We also recognised the names of some boats we have met. John & Carter will add Liberty to the wall after we leave, but have assured us that they will add our names along with theirs (and send us photos to prove it ).

Mark & Julie

s/v Rachel

Lajes Redux

Date: June 20, 2007
Location: s/v Liberty, port of Lajes, Flores, Azores
Position: 39 22.9 N 031 10.0 W


We've spent a lovely few days in Flores (Portugese for "island of flowers"). We have been very impressed by the unassuming simplicity and friendliness of the island. Flores is covered in flowers, mainly hydrangias, cannas and lilies but many other varieties abound. Yesterday we went for a walk out into the countryside and today we rented a car from Paula, and drove around the whole island.

It's volcanic and is only 7km wide and 15km long. The scenery is spectacular and the roads very steep and wind around the volcanic masses. We saw huge waterfalls, volcanic craters filled with water creating beautiful lakes, and dramatic coastal cliffs. Tomorrow we leave this wonderful island and sail overnight to Horta on the island of Faial, 130 miles away.





Mark & Julies/v Rachel

Landfall

Date: June 19, 2007

Location: s/v Liberty, port of Lajes, Flores, Azores

Position: 39 22.9 N 031 10.0 W

Sunday, June 17th was a day of fast sailing. We had 20-25 knots of wind and were on a broad reach making 8-9.5 knots all day. At about 17 miles off, Mark won the "first to sight land" prize of free drinks for one night ashore with a hearty "Land ho!". Julie refused to concede, calling his sighting "clouds" until we could actually see the rocks on shore. Our passage from St Martin took 14 days. We made good time and we are all still talking and enjoying each other's company, so you can't ask for more than that!!

The wind picked up to 30-35 knots for the last couple of hours on our way in, but we managed to tuck in behind the seawall and drop the anchor at last light. On approach in those winds and with night falling, the island looked quite foreboding.

The cliffs surrounding the harbour are thickly populated by some kind of tern. They are very chatty birds whose sound reminds us of hyperactive portugese munchkins on crack. The entire crew was treated to a full night of uninterrupted sleep - no watches! We had also set up a pool to guess the day and time we would drop anchor. John won it, the prize being 2 bars of chocolate and a bottle of port. We had all chosen times on Monday but his was the earliest so he won when we arrived earlier than any of us expected.



Lajes (pronounced "lahdge-ess") is one of those "special finds". We immediately fell in love with it. It's a wonderfully picturesque small town with whitewashed concrete and stone buildings and terra cotta roofs built on terraces and steep hills. Everyone we've met so far has been friendly, helpful, and gracious, and seems to enjoy helping us with our nearly nonexistent Portugese. Mark did his part and listened to language tapes on his night watches but "Where is the customs office?" didn't seem to be part of his programme.

We met up with some friends of John and Carter's from another boat (Doug and Shanna from "Hobnob") and had a wonderful walk through town including a visit to the local grocery.

Leaving the grocery, a man wearing wellies (Wellington boots) drove by on a cart he had attached to a small two-wheel garden tractor engine - much like a Graveley mower or a rototiller w/o the tiller. In the cart with him were two calves, and tied to the back of the cart were two milk cows. He putt-putted his way on past us, gracing us with a toothless smile. If only we'd had our camera with us!

Paula's Place is the local cruiser hangout. We stopped there for beers on our way back to the boat and ended up staying until 5pm! We hadn't had any luck at the grocery finding fresh vegetables, but later in the afternoon Paula drove up and offered us fresh locally grown lettuce and vegetables. She's a real go-getter who speaks fluent English and is very helpful to all the transient cruisers.

We liked Paula's so much we decided to come back for dinner. Another exceptional experience. We sat outside and enjoyed listening to the locals and watching the kids play. Kids always seem to play in the same language wherever you go - it was great fun - it looked like several rounds of red light green light, giant steps, etc. An added bonus was free wifi so we all downloaded our email to check after returning to the boat. We must have spent more than 3 hours there, sipping wine, grazing appetizers, enjoying a slow, unhurried and absolutely delicious dinner out.

Mark & Julie

s/v Rachel

Day 13 - Eating our way across the Atlantic

Date: June 16, 2007
Location: s/v Liberty closing the Azores
Position: 37 23.651 N 034 48.552 W

The opportunity to crew on Liberty fell into our laps and we are glad we took it. The good company and easy atmosphere, the private en suite cabin, and the opportunity to learn a lot from some experienced cruisers who are eager to share their knowledge about all facets of cruising have all contributed to making our innaugural ocean passage pleasant and educational.

But the food.... oh my.

What can we say? On a passage, when the horizon looks much the same from one day to the next, and watches tend to run together, one tends to look forward to mealtime with the rest of the crew to provide a break in the day. It's generally "catch-as-catch-can" for breakfast but we all usually eat lunch and dinner together in the cockpit.

Lunch is often a salad, sandwiches or wraps, or some delicious creation made out of leftovers.
Dinner is always delicious. We have mainly eaten Carter's pre-prepared meals - chili, ham, chicken and peas, piccadillo (a yummy concoction of meat, spices, peppers & raisins), meat loaf.
When it's not too rolly, she'll cook something a bit more daring such as sauteed wahoo, fish salad, or her scrumptious wahoo stew.

We are quickly closing in on Flores, the Westernmost island of the Azores and our landfall. Today the wind gods are with us allowing us to beat a straight path to the island. Barring unforeseen wind shifts we may arrive tomorrow.

Mark gets the wildlife prize for the day: several pods of dolphin and a big turtle. Julie got to pilot through her first squall and wins the coveted floating carpet scrap sighting prize.

Mark & Julies/v Rachel

Days 8 to 12 - Lows and Lee cloths

Date: June 15, 2007

Location: s/v Liberty, nearing the Azores

Position: 36 07 N 037 26 W
Miles to date - 1739.1 nm ( about 350 left to go )

We have spent the last few days trying to miss fronts, lows, ridges, troughs, and convection. Sometimes we aren't always sure which we are avoiding when, but we do know we have been trying to detour around them for the past couple of days.

We've had mainly rainy and cloudy days, sometimes stormy and almost all of that time has been spent 'rocking and rolling'. We luckily have not been sea sick but our time has been spent on watch or in our berths, the only place that you don't get flung around. Our meals have consisted of anything we can quickly retrieve and eat without it or other stuff going flying. Cereal, peanut butter, bread and cheese etc. One day we were really brave and actually warmed up some chili and managed to eat it without spilling it all over.

A boat at sea is constantly moving. Walking around below requires prolific use of handholds, non-skid carpet, and things to lean against. We all look a bit like a bunch of drunks as we crab, pull, and scoot ourselves around down here.

Sleeping presents its own issues. It would be fairly easy for an errant wave to boost one out of bed in the middle of the night and into a pile on the cabin sole. Far back in maritime history some enterprising soul (named "Lee"??) devised a way to prevent this - lee cloths.

A lee cloth is simply a piece of material (canvas, denim, whatever) that is fastened to a berth below the mattress (so it can be folded away when not in use) and attached by lines to hard spots at either end - in essence, it forms a soft partition between the edge of your berth and the outside world.

Lee cloths are pretty much essential to getting sleep in a seaway, especially if you've been bouncing around like we have for the past few days. Hats off to Lee.

Charlotte and Alex: we saw your dolphins this afternoon and thought of you! Five or maybe six of them swam along with us for a few minutes. It was hard to tell how many as they kept switching sides.

Mark & Julies/v Rachel