Back in Blighty – The Long Version

Having now spent nearly a week in Falmouth we can be said to be back in Blighty for definite now. It still feels very strange, not least since we will not be moving into our house till the middle of October.

A last sight of the night scene in Horta

Keen eyed readers will remember that we intended to set out from Horta on 09 August. However, the wind was blowing pretty hard and we didn't fancy a very rough first night at sea so we diverted to Velas on Sao Jorge and actually left the Archipelago on the tenth.

The passage from the Azores was a rather slow affair and took fourteen days in all. As expected, we had to motor for a fair bit to get clear of the islands. We passed quite close to Graciosa and it looked extremely enticing. Thankfully however the wind filled in from there and we had a good few days heading north east till we were off the middle of the Bay of Biscay. There a ridge of high pressure built and took all our wind away, we motored as much as we dared and managed to pick up a bit of wind to keep on the move until we were about five hundred miles out to the west of Brittany where the wind abandoned us completely.

By this time fuel was getting low so we were left with sails in whatever zephyr we could catch. We did catch a bit of wind as we crossed the continental shelf but then had nearly two days of calm until about 30 miles west of the Isles of Scilly. From there an Atlantic low started rolling in to give us a thrilling last 100 miles or so. At dawn we were still west of the Bishop Rock on Scilly but we still tied up before sun down in Falmouth. Our first sight of land – appropriately enough – was Lands End but we were able to pass quite close to Lizard point which we class as our landfall. Arrival was enlivened by being welcomed by my Brother, Matthew with a supply of Betty Stoggs beer!

Landfall around lunch time with a force 6 to 7 from the south.

While off the Lizard, a gray boat passed west. I assumed it was a bit of Navy but it came round and turned into the Eborders boat who tried to board us in what was effectively the tidal race! They did not manage but proceeded to ask us the standard questions over the radio! We fully expected to be boarded in Falmouth and they were tied up there but we were roundly ignored! All quite exciting in its way.

Falmouth is very busy at the moment with their annual regatta being supplemented by a visit by the tall ships fleet. We are still struggling to come to terms with the weather though. We have appreciated the good beer though.

A few pictures of the classics and tall ships

I'll update as we move on. We do want to visit Plymouth so as to “close the circle” given that we departed the UK from there in August 2011.

BIB - Back in Blighty

Greetings everyone.

We have arrived in Falmouth and have effectively finished the cruise. We actually arrived on 24 August but have had trouble getting hold of electricity and wifi to first charge and then use the laptop.

The passage from the Azores was a rather slow one but we are more or less pleased to be here though not really ready to finish cruising yet. I will update with a longer description of the passage and such like soon.

Departure of Mini 6.50s

Well, just a day before our own planned departure, the mini 6.50 Les Sables-Azores-Les Sables boats started their return leg.

I went out to watch with our current neighbour on Kasira. The start was quite dramatic with a good breeze blowing. Sadly, the pictures are not that spectacular as the photographer was not really doing a very good job!

We impressed with their speed but also slightly alarmed by the number of near broaches on the start line. Good luck to them all of course. They should be back in Les Sables D'Olonne in six or seven days for the fastest. We hope to be half way to Falmouth by then.

Last Lap

We are getting ready for our last long passage back to the UK. After a small change, we are now leaving direct from Horta on Faial rather than heading to the island of Terceira first. They are celebrating their Semana do Mar this week and we felt like staying for that which meant we have been unable to take in Terceira. It has however been fun and we do not regret it despite being very crowded on the wall here.

This morning saw us doing the ritual large food shop in the supermarket with a lengthy list of staples and some luxury snacks to tide us over long night watches. This is a strange passage to be preparing for. It is only half the distance of our passage from the Caribbean but is in much more northerly lattitudes and so the weather is much less predictable. It will also be getting colder as we get north as well. However, there is really an end of cruise feeling now. We are, most likely, ready to move on from the Azores but not really ready to stop cruising and pick up the threads of a shore based life yet.

The local band marches by after the official opening.

A local laser sponsored by Dunkin Donuts! Not sure that it would be wise to over indulge before heading out for a race though.

The Semana do Mar is a lot of fun though the bands can be a bit noisy at night. Still, they are nothing compared to the racket we had to try and sleep through in English Harbour Antigua. We were favoured by a visit from the Mayor of Horta giving all the visiting cruisers a gift of local produce (cheese), hydrangeas and a program of events. The cheese was delicious. There have been various processions and as I write this there is an informal racers for single handers though they call it the lonesome sailors regatta. A bit of a mistranslation from Portuguese I suspect. The Mini 6.50 boat head back to Les Sable D'Olonne at 1300 tomorrow. This has dictated our planned departure for Wednesday so as not to have to tangle with them.

The food stalls have been excellent and Audrey went into ecstasies over the local sausage.

We had a "black helicopter" fly over our head this morning!

As usual, we will be out of touch while at sea of course but hope to be arriving in Falmouth around 19-21 August if anyone is in Cornwall and would like to help us drink some Betty Stoggs. Audrey has expressed a longing for a pie though. I have to say that real ale is the only thing I have seriously missed about the UK.