Tasty Comida

Though Spain was not a planned stop on our adventure, the food and wine were plentiful and we enjoyed both thoroughly.  Everywhere we went, we had tasty food and we even learned about authentic sangria - to be enjoyed and made on the boat at a later date.  The most difficult part of eating in Spain was the time at which dinner was served...but more about that in another post.

Paella for two

Authentic sangria with vino tinto (red wine), ice cubes, and a variety of fresh cut fruit - strawberries, oranges, grapefruit and limes

A menu for two included pudding and tiramisu

Galicia dark chocolate

In Santiago de Compostelo we enjoyed tortillas espana (more like hash brown casserole) and croquettes (breaded mashed potatoes)

Pappas Bravas - Diced potatoes, baked with a "fry sauce" 

These ice cream cones were enough to make us love Spain.  The cones were dipped in chocolate and then the scoops were huge - included two different flavors (mine was peanut butter in one and almond in the other) - all for 2 Euro each.

Tortilla Espagna - the hashbrown casserole.  I found it in the grocery store and made it for breakfast on the passage to Ireland (on a calm-er morning)

A Day On Passage

Sometimes when we tell people we live on a boat - they don’t really understand what that means.  “Like…live full time??”  “Where do you go?”, “Where do you stop at night”, “Aren’t you scared?”  Oh - and when they find out we have Kala - they always ask “Where does Kala go potty?”

Not all days are passages and not all days are easy.  So, I thought I might try to explain what an average day on a passage is like.  In another post, I’ll try to explain what an average day at anchor is like.  

With three people on board, and relatively stable weather, we each do a three hour solo watch.   That means that each person will be responsible for the boat for three hours and then they will have six hours to sleep, eat and rest before their next shift.  (If the weather gets bad and/or we need a couple people in the cockpit at a time, with three people we’ll do four hour overlapping watches= four hours on/five hours off)

First - you have to have the essentials ready to go.  These include:

Watch schedule - Know when you are supposed to be on watch - set your alarm for 15 min early.  BE ON TIME and BE READY to go.  The other person who is getting off watch is tired and waiting for you to come up and relieve them.

Podcasts - Watches mean hours of you sitting by yourself checking the chart plotter and watching the waves, so it is nice to have entertainment.  I love listening to podcasts (with one earbud so I can hear any strange boat noises with the other ear).  If you know of any good ones, let me know.  I’ll include some of our faves at the end of this post.

Headlamp - You can’t flip on bright white lights at night and wake up the whole boat, and you don’t want to lose your night vision so a headlamp with a red light is mandatory.  Also - make sure you have it before you go on watch.

Harness & tether - Baxter and I have a friend who once said “You fall off the boat, you die” which is very likely.  So one of the main objectives is to stay on the boat.  We wear a harness that is then tethered to different hard points on the boat.  If you go forward, out on deck and out of the cockpit, you clip your tether to the jacklines (described in the pics below) as an attachment point to the boat.

Warm clothes - It can be really bad if you get cold on watch - make sure you’re dressed appropriately, again before you go up.

Cozy, warm bed - Not getting sleep on a passage is more than just annoying, it’s unsafe.  A tired person is less mentally aware and has poor reflexes and agility.  A cozy bed is key to falling asleep.

Good food - In order to be healthy and happy, you have to eat well.  Sometimes you don’t feel like eating, but you still have to get something down just to keep your strength.  Good food makes it easier to eat when you’re not hungry.

Good drinks - On cold nights, hot drinks are important to staying warm and alert.  In hot climates, water is critical.  We try to drink at least two liters per day per person.

Happy dog - It’s been said before and can’t be more true, if Kala isn’t happy - nobody’s happy.  Have.to.keep.the.dog.happy!!

Next - What you need to know and pay attention to during a watch:

Wind angle  - Is the boat sailing to close to the wind?  Is the wind changing direction?  Do the sails have to change as a result?

Wind speed - Is it steady?  Do we need to reef the sails?  Do we need to increase the sail area?

Boats around us - Any boats around us?   Any lights near us that could be boats without AIS?  How close and when will they be a factor to our course?

Things In the Water - This could be fishing buoys, animals, containers - all of which can sink the boat.  If you can’t see the water at night, digital radar can help identify hazardous objects.

Sail plan - What sails do we have out (main/headsail/staysail) and how much?  Any concerns with the sails?

Power consumption - Are we generating power with wind and solar?  Are we using radar (high power consumption), auto pilot?  How low are the batteries?

Course - Are we on our course?  Would we go faster if we sail another angle or would it take us too far off our course?

Current - Is there current and is it pushing us off our intended heading towards our destination?  Do we have current with us?  Is current slowing us down that we could be delayed and then get adverse weather?

Here is an example of one of my days on our passage from Nova Scotia to Newfoundland:

From 1300 - 1700 I was on watch:  Beautiful day; Kala didn’t want to go potty; Dolphins stopped by for a visit; On my watches I listened to On the wind (Andy Schell) with John & Amanda Neal; Across the atlantic; For lunch we had a chickpea wrap; For a snack I had chocolate wafers and a smartie; Listented to another podcast:  Katie Couric interviewing Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa)

At 1700 - went to sleep

At 1800 woke up and made dinner:  freeze-dried lasagne

Back to sleep at 1845

From 2200 - 0200 - Back on watch - wind increasing; fishing boats nearby to keep an eye on how close they were; Made some coffee; Listened to a podcast:  Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin interviewing Billy Joel; 

Back to sleep at 0230

At 0400 we were going dead downwind so we need to pole out the jib.  Baxter and Dan on deck and I was in the cockpit easing out the sail.  Kala decided to go potty

Back to sleep at 0500

0700 - 1100 Back on watch - thick fog; Kept an eye on the wind angle since the pole on the jib is delicate - make sure the wind stays behind the beam; Noticed a current that is pushing our course to port; Then an hour later, a current that pushed our course to SB; With fog, turned on the radar; Made a cup of coffee; Made breakfast of toast with Nova Scotia cranberry and raspberry jam; Had a Kind bar as a snack; shook out a reef in head sail; Listened to a podcast:  Here’s The Thing with Alec Baldwin interviewing Lena Dunham

Went to sleep at 1100

Wake up at 1300 - idea for blog pops in my head; Kala is crying to go up to cockpit and see Baxter; try to read to go back to sleep

Back to sleep at 1400

At 1600 - 2000 Back on watch - lunch with Baxter of tomato sandwich with chips & apple; thick fog; wind has changed and we are close reaching (which means a little more uncomfortable and waves slapping the hull); take Kala on deck to go potty; rain; reef headsail; lentil soup for dinner; 

2100 - Back to sleep 

00:45  - Back on watch

Sunset watch is awesome!  Listening to a podcast but wearing my harness and tether like a good girl.

Sunrise behind the chart plotter...almost to NL!!

Watching traffic on watch.  This guy was only 800 ft away but it was ok since I could see him in daylight.

Got a little chilly on the passage and the heater was ON!

Fog, fog and more fog

Heeled over in the fog - some watches, this is the only view you get - which means you need entertainment from a good podcast

All the essentials

Tether, clipped into the hard point (other end will clip to my harness), iPod ready to go with podcasts, watching the gauges.

Another hard point at the helm, just below the cushion.

The red jacklines Baxter rigs when we go offshore.  If someone goes forward to the bow, they clip their tether to this line (and the other end to their harness).  Hopefully they won't fall overboard but if they do, they will be clipped to the boat.

Log entries at the end of every watch

Passage Stats

I'm all about statistics...and how we performed and what we can do differently next time.  Also - what was going on when xx happened, etc...

Here are the stats for our Atlantic Crossing... one trend that is obvious is the barometer.  Sailors have used them for hundreds of years and they are very foretelling.

Across The Atlantic

We said goodbye to Al and Tess, dropped our mooring and set out from Brigus Bay at 09:30 and started the expected 1700 mile passage to Cork, Ireland.  The first day of a passage is always interesting as you have days, sometimes weeks to go, and you never really know what the days will bring - maybe it will all be smooth sailing (probably not) and maybe we will have a major issue with the boat (hopefully not), what is our plan B?, what type of traffic will we see? - so many questions to be answered.  

When we first left, our weather router suggested that we try to outrun the first LO pressure system by maintaining a 6 knot average speed.  So we left the coast of Newfoundland to our stern, motor sailing to maintain speed and the fog settled in for what would end up being a week.  As it grew darker the first night, the wind continued to increase over 20 kts and we finally were able to turn off the motor.  

Though the fog hadn’t lifted, the wind continued to increase over day two and three and the squalls arrived.  We couldn’t see anything past our bow so we turned on the radar and would reef the sails as the squalls inched closer.  We emailed our weather router who suggested that we wouldn’t be able to reach the east side of the gale (200 nm) so it would be better to slow down and let it pass to the north of us.  So we slowed to 1.2kts and though the waves were a bit rolly, it was better than sailing into a gale.  We were actually going so slow, that a Russian freighter hailed us on the vhf to make sure we were okay.  Why would you be in the middle of the Atlantic only making 1 knot?  Just waiting on weather...

The barometer continued to drop and we were sailing via instruments as the fog still surrounded us.  By day six, the weather router confirmed what we learned from the weather forecast we had downloaded that another gale was due to arrive and we probably couldn’t avoid this one but the further southeast we were able to get, the lighter the winds, relatively speaking, would be.  So we sailed as fast as Terrapin could go without beating her up.  At one point, we even motorsailed for maximum speed.  By time the gale went over, we had 45 knot winds sustained, categorized on the Beaufort Scale as a STRONG GALE, and a 12-hour average of about 35 knots.  The gale passed overnight so we couldn’t see the waves but as soon as the sun came up and the gale had passed, the conditions had settled to approximately 15-18 foot waves so one can only guess what they were during the front.  

Though the following day was overcast, there was a bit more light and the fog was starting to lift.  Since Terrapin had been “stirred” around in the gale, there was water that had found its way into every possible crevice - ports, chainplates, hatches, etc..  We spent the next day drying out anything we could to make things more comfortable down below.  Also, during the gale, our starboard flag halyard and rigging lines that run from the mast, had wrapped around not only the mast but the port side spreader and the top of the reefed mainsail.  So Baxter had no choice but to go up the mast while we were underway.  If he didn’t go up, we would not be able to use the mainsail.  Dan winched Baxter up as I tailed and we were all very cautious to ensure that our fatigue and the rolliness of the 5 ft waves would not lead to any careless mistakes.  

Since we were 300 miles south of our intended route, we were looking for the opportunity to turn northeast towards Ireland.  Days 10 - 12 were spent going from 35kts sustained to 20kts back up to 30kts and waves from 8 ft to 18 feet as we watched gales come and go.  Our opportunity for turning to Ireland kept getting smaller as we moved along a course of 090 degrees (east).  The next day as we downloaded the weather, a huge gale appeared in the forecast - right between our position and Ireland.  Our dilemma became do we continue moving east to Spain on a more conservative route or sail into a gale forecasted to be near Ireland as we make landfall.  As this would be a new harbor with big tides and we were still tired, we opted for a more conservative decision to head to La Coruna, Spain.  Another factor was that if we went to Ireland,  speed would be critical to limiting our exposure in the gale.  If we were slower than an average of 6.5kts, we would be in the stronger part of the gale for a longer period of time.  If we went to Spain, we could rest, dry the boat, and then look for a weather window to Ireland.  

Because the gale near Ireland was so large, it took the wind near the Bay of Biscay and our course to Spain required motoring for 2 days.  We took the opportunity of a flat boat to cook decent meals, watch movies, eat popcorn, dry things out more, watch dolphins from the bow and make chocolate cake for dessert.  I definitely prefer to sail than motor - but it was pretty nice to be spoiled before we made landfall.  

On the morning of day 15, with an amazing sunrise, we were able to spot the tops of the mountains in Spain.  Of course, Kala could smell land long before we could see it.  When we finally spotted it, she looked at us as if to say - “that’s what I have been telling you!”  Throughout the entire day, pods of Atlantic common dolphins were numerous and bobbed, weaved and jumped all around Terrapin.

We arrived too late in to the marina to check into the country and the rules are that you cannot get off the boat until you have been cleared by customs.  Kala did not understand the rules and was not happy with us - at all.  She thought 15 days of being on the boat was definitely enough, we must just be torturing her.  Nonetheless, we uncorked the champagne and celebrated a well-traveled adventure across the Atlantic.  

Boat speed = mileage per day = how many days across

Beautiful Brigus Bay

Dropping the mooring in Brigus Bay

Rounding Cape St Francis heading to Ireland

Baxter fixing leaks during a squall

Keeping Kala company in a snuggy bunk

Quick pic the morning after the 45-knot Strong Gale

Baxter trying to fix the rigging without going up the mast

Salt crystals on the winch means waves crashing into the cockpit

Daddy...how much farther?

The LO that helped us decide to route to Spain instead of Ireland

Finally spending a day in the cockpit

Sun came out for a quick sunset shot

Dead downwind with Jib only

Relaxing in 8 ft waves

Traffic in the separation zones off the Iberian Peninsula

Pods of dolphins welcoming us to Spain!

Conception Bay

We untied from our multi-way tie up in St John's harbor and headed north.  Al and Tess had just returned home from the winter in the Caribbean and had plans to meet up with a group of friends - and they invited us to come along.  Who can say no to a good Newfoundland party?

As we motor-sailed up the east coast of the Avalon Peninsula, we saw whales and puffins and it was a beautiful day.  We rounded Cape St Francis and headed to Middle Arm.  The water was mirror calm and the scenery - unbelievable!

As we arrived in Middle Arm, Al and Tess had several friends who were already on moorings and we all either rafted up together or grabbed a mooring and the party began!  We ran Kala to shore and then joined Ruthanne and Gary on their boat, Alibi, for drinks and appetizers.  Ruthanne and Tess had made food that looked beautiful and tasted even better.  Afterwards, the party moved to Wayne and Crystal's boat house that they generously share with cruisers in Middle Arm.  The party continued past midnight and Baxter and I were still lacking sleep from the passage from Halifax so we said goodnight and left Dan, Al and Tess to discuss the universe (literally) and all that goes with it.

The next day, Al and Tess generously borrowed a car to go get their car from Tess' house.  They drove us around Newfoundland provisioning at Costco, fueling jerry jugs full of diesel and refilling our propane, and stopping for a picnic on Signal Hill - the first location a radio signal was sent across the Atlantic Ocean.  Once we were back in Middle Arm, we were worn out.  We had one more round of sundowners aboard Terrapin and called it a night - still trying to catch up on sleep.

The next day took us to Holy Rood for the Squid Fest.  The same group of friends from Middle Arm had headed to Holy Rood the day before and all rafted up again.  It was another great party and so many wonderful Newfoundlanders to meet and share rounds of stories.  We felt so grateful to have hosts like Al & Tess who shared these great people with us.

After Holy Rood, we headed to Brigus Bay.  The scenery in Brigus was unbelievable!  The granite rocks, the bays that are hidden until you're right next to them...we could have stayed for a week.  As we checked the weather, it finally looked like the next day would be our weather window to leave for Ireland.  We messaged our weather router who confirmed the weather looked good and we prepared to leave for our 1700 mile passage.

Mirror calm water as we made our way to Middle Arm.

Kala watching the scenery 

Middle Arm - Wayne & Crystal's boat house that they rent out as an Air BNB as well.  

We made shingles to add to the collection

Inside the boathouse - shingles hung on the rafters

Signal Hill - high above St John's harbor

Newfie sayings.

The east coast of St John's looked like this a couple months earlier

Beautiful anchorages

Beautiful mornings on our mooring

Holy Rood - short dinghy ride to land

Al, Tess & Gary (Alibi) welcoming us to the party

Newfoundland Provincial flag

Brigus 

So glad we made it here to see this 

Kala enjoying a nice relaxing time in the grass.

Fun pub with good wifi!

Are you sure you don't want to come with us?  Last night with Al & Tess before heading to Ireland