September 30, 2019
Return to the South Pacific
No, you didn't read that wrong but it doesn't quite mean that we're setting a course back eastwards either. A number of [...]
June 16, 2014
The unpredictable child
Sometimes having a baby feels like damage control. You can easily spend a whole day consoling your howling infant from their latest fall, pre-emptively snatching away all the tempting unsuitable objects that they manage to get their sticky hands on…
June 7, 2014
When no news is good news…
I planned for this to publish while we were most likely out of all contact. Why? Because we are off exploring the Tuamotu Archipelago. This is the largest chain of atolls in the world and one of the most extreme places we've gone to with the boat.…
March 22, 2013
The Pleasures of Passage Making
A frigate bird wheels overhead as the hazy dawn light is mirrored back by the water. The sea is absolutely still, more like a lake than an ocean, blurring the horizon so that the sky bleeds into the water. Slowly, gently, a large, old leatherback…
July 1, 2012
The Mouths of the Bull
Sod’s law that after covering nearly 8,000 miles in the last 8 months we would have our worst ever weather just 5 miles from our last major Caribbean destination: Bocas del Toro, Panama. I don’t think our families were particularly concerned about…
March 14, 2012
Uncommon courtesy
You may have noticed that there are several photos of flags dotted about the surroundings pages. Our boat is British registered so we fly a large red ensign on the stern. But, what those of you not part of the boaty world may not know, is that while…
January 9, 2012
Not your average milk run
The crossing of the Atlantic ocean from East to West is known among sailors everywhere as the ‘milk run’ primarily because it is supposedly straightforward and simple if approached at the right time of year. The instructions for sailing from the…
November 22, 2011
Pedra Amareta, Punta Umbria, Chipiona and Puerto de Conil
The trip upriver was lovely but we had an ulterior motive in going. We had lost the wind. Our experience of this side of Portugal and Spain (the Algarve and the Costa de la Luz) has been very all or nothing in terms of wind and weather. Normally, if…
October 24, 2011
Vigo – Viana do Castelo – Peniche – Sines – Praia de Arrifana – Lagos
Yup, I'm becoming a master of geography, not to mention my Portuguese pronunciations! I have fallen head over heels in love with the Atlantic coast of Portugal and urge anyone reading this to plan any future holidays there. The people could not be…