Motoring away from the Açores in calm water

Leaving the Açores was hard. We had fallen in love with the islands, the locals, the fellow cruisers, the food, everything. And we were facing a ten day trip to Ireland that could be our most challenging trip ever. Many cruisers had reported lack of wind, with several of our friends’ boats being towed in when they ran out of diesel! Others had rough passages and rerouted to new places to ease the trip. Luckily, we had no firm plans, nobody meeting us at the other end, so we could “go where the wind blows us”.

We had studied so many weather reports from Chris Parker, FastSeas, PredictWind, Spots, Grib files, and many more sites. All reports seemed to vary slightly, but generally assure us that there would be enough, and not too much, wind to get us to Ireland. So off we went with Alexandra V, a sailboat with a Polish couple on board, not far behind us. We had compared notes and planned communication strategies with these new friends. Sailing in the company of others is always comforting.

A Green Flash for our first sunset

The first day was mellow. A light drizzle cleared away to bring bright sunshine, enough wind on the beam to sail, and the most spectacular Green Flash. If you haven’t seen one, keep watching. You need a clear horizon on the water, and a mostly cloud free sky. A bit of cloud actually helps bring out the colors and the last color as the sun disappears is green. Sometimes it is so tiny, you barely see it, while at other times it feels like someone has flicked a switch to illuminate a bright green blaze. This night, it was tiny, but clear, leading the way for a night of bright stars.

That was the end of the peace. By noon the next day, squalls arrived and the winds started playing games on us, varying from 5 to 25 knots and from northeast to west. Our wind vane, which steers the boat relative to the wind angle, had to be constantly adjusted or else our path would have been like that of a very confused drunk. The sails also required frequent tweaking. After taking down the pole, we used the genoa like a throttle, letting it fly when the winds were light, then partially furling it in as the winds picked up. The mizzen sail only needed sheeting in and out, while the main was reefed, double reefed, hoisted back up, and reefed again, as the nearby weather system flirted with our path to Ireland.

The huge waves kept us rolling along

By the third day, the parade of squalls and the variable winds continued to keep us busy. Bill tied in a third reef line so we would be prepared to make our mainsail as small as a handkerchief. Luckily, we never did sail triple reefed, but we did heave to that night for three hours. This requires us to drop all sails except our reefed mizzen and lock the wheel to steer into the wind. The mizzen drives the boat into the wind, and the rudder also tries to steer into the wind. Alembic loses all momentum as it tries to come about and falls off the wind again. Meanwhile, we get to sit back and rest, while the boat just pokes along at about one knot in a direction about 60 degrees off the wind. This is a technique many sailors use to quiet the wild boat motion down. We even know sailors who do this to make a meal, or go to the head!

Our Spot for days 4-9. Reality: double the windspeed and add a meter to the wave height.

After sailing northeast for three days, we turned to more due east to try to get south of these weather systems that were moving north of us. The trick to sailing in this part of the Atlantic is to go close enough to the low pressure systems moving generally westward to take advantage of the wind they provide, but stay enough south of them to avoid gales. While we were in no danger, and the systems were not hurricanes, we were getting tired of the strong winds and large seas.

Switching to the autopilot on the fifth day helped us steer closer to our course and prevent some of the slatting of the sails and gear. This device steers a heading on the compass, so the line is straighter, but it consumes electricity, which we always try to conserve on passages. The wind vane uses no electricity, but the large waves shove Alembic off track, and the vane struggles to stay on course, causing near gybes every few minutes. Alembic looked like a spiderweb with all of the preventers keeping the booms from gybing. When we felt we could maintain a somewhat straight course with the vane, we switched back.

I was always cold on this trip. Staying below, with ski gear on.

Spotting wild life was infrequent on this trip. The seabirds were solo and far between. Random pieces of fishing gear were spotted but too far off to pick up. Usually, we try to grab these and deliver them back to shore where fishermen can reemploy the gear instead of leaving them out here as pollution. The one whale we spotted was dead, sadly, with a gathering of small black storm petrels feasting.

Our Spot for days 6, 7, 8. Add 10 knots to column 6 and a meter to column 8

Heaving to for four hours on the sixth day gave us relief again from the relentless wind and seas. 15 to 25 knots, with gusts to 38 were the norm and the boat kept surfing up and down the twelve foot seas. We finally dropped both main and mizzen and sailed under genoa alone for the next two days while the winds varied from ten to over thirty with many squalls rolling by.

Bill has a smooth forehead

Not such a pretty stitch job

Back to sleeping on watch in his pre-fall position

The worst night was the eighth when Bill fell in the cockpit. He dosed while sitting on the port side. A wave rolled the boat, and Bill flopped over to the starboard side, hitting his head on the coaming (the seat back). A gash opened up, just above his eyebrow, requiring stitches. Maybe it was because I was sound asleep one moment and staring at a gaping hole in his head the next, but I sure confirmed that night that I would not make a great nurse. First I was freezing (yeah it was super cold), then I was having a full body sweat (did I put on too many clothes?) and the next thing I know, Bill has a mirror and he’s saying “I’ll do this myself”. Not a proud moment for me!! I gathered my wits, smeared New Skin on the gash, and watched as it opened back up like a fish mouth. Stitches seemed like a bad idea in the pitching seas, so I resorted to placing four steri stitches and more glue. This seemed to work and we called it good. I promptly sent Bill to bed and I took over in the cockpit. I certainly wasn’t going to be able to sleep after this incident! Luckily Bill has a gift and can sleep wherever and whenever!

Our ninth day was more of the same weather, with plenty of rain to add to our discomfort. The poled out genoa and mizzen kept us moving along though, so we were generally pleased with our progress. By the end of this day we began to see many boats on our AIS, giving us a lift in spirits as this surely indicated that we were closing in on LAND!

Fog came in to replace the wind on our last day. Family members placed guesses on when we would first spot land. They each picked a time that would be when we first saw a light, a mountain, a building, anything on land. They could see our progress on our inReach tracking online, so they knew exactly how many miles we were from mountain peaks and river mouths. Sadly, we actually entered the river, smelling cows and hearing voices, but never saw land! After carefully arriving with radar guiding us, we dropped our anchor in a narrow river.

And went straight to SLEEP!!

Fort Charles was our first sight of land

Alexandra V came in safely

The next morning we jumped out of bed to look out and see…..fog. Still no land. I went back below to make a pancake feast and Bill shouted “Land!” I can’t even explain the ecstasy of watching the curtain rise to reveal the most gorgeous sight: Fort Charles and glorious Kinsale Ireland and our friends on Alexandra V motoring by. We had arrived safely and on schedule, with full tanks of diesel, no damage to Alembic, and only a small healing wound. Phew, time to thank the Angels.

Now that the fog lifted, we motored in to town

Goodbye Azores

Fly home to Maine from the Azores?? Before the baby is even born?? Yes. Kenny and Jenna were having a Baby Shower and many family members were coming. How often do I get to see all three of my children together? And how often does my Mom come to Maine? Nieces, nephews, brother, brother-in-law, wives, sisters-in-law…they all were coming. Bill knew it was killing me to imagine not being there, and we both feel strongly that we have to make every effort to stay close with family. So off I went, leaving Bill to take care of Alembic.
Horta is no place to leave a boat unattended. Shifts in weather and the arrival of large ships resulted in urgent relocations of Alembic. The anchorage and the wall each had advantages and disadvantages, depending on the day. Luckily, we had plenty of friends in the harbor to assist Bill with moving Alembic a few times while I was away.

Kenny and Jenna prepping for parenthood

So, off I flew to Maine, arriving just a few days before the party. Jenna looked amazing. She is doing absolutely everything right. Between her active job, and her involvement at a fitness studio, Jenna could be the photo model and the exercise coach for all pregnant moms. I remember fondly indulging frequently in my constant hunger while pregnant and succumbing to tent-like outfits. Quite the contrary, Jenna manages to eat in a healthy manner and dress stylishly at all times.

Jenna’s first cake

Erica helps Karen with the watermelon

Karen, Jenna’s mom, had organized everything. Food was coming in with many guests, borrowed middle school tents were already in the garage, and all the supplies were stuffed in the back of her car. I figured out a few items to add to the food list, pushed the vacuum around the already immaculate home, and enjoyed my time visiting with Kenny and Jenna and a few friends.

Da boys

Cathy, my dearest friend, came to York for a visit, and Mel was available for a wonderful get together as well.

I always enjoy time with Mel

More visits would have to wait for a longer stay. I was reveling in family and getting ready for the party!

Dave, Lindsay, and Erica

Lindsay, David, and Erica arrived to help us set up the tents and arrange the food to prepare for the large number of guests. Those tents came in handy, as the day heated up to near 100 degrees. Watching the kids in the kiddie pool was a treat as well as a preview of this yard when the baby arrives and begins to fill the space with adorable energy.

KBear practicing

We all had a great time throughout the day, especially with so many family members and then late into the night around the fire pit with those who lingered on.

Catching up with Lindsay

I was too busy socializing, and didn’t take any pictures. Now I regret that. But the conversations with everyone filled my heart while I managed to catch up with many people I hadn’t seen in a while.

My daughters. Can’t get enough

The next day was another scorcher so we went off for a boat ride. Kenny and Jenna have inherited our much loved Happy Ours (so well named, as the whole family just loves this 19 foot MaritimeSkiff) and jumped in the freezing Maine ocean. Too cold to swim, and too bumpy for Jenna to stay out there too long, we came back and had ice cream and cold drinks to finish off our play.

Cool refreshments

This visit home was too short, as expected, but a perfect snapshot for me to experience Kenny and Jenna preparing for parenthood, and for me to touch base with them and a bunch of other loved ones. I’m so grateful for every moment I can have with those who fill my heart.

The baby is now overdue!

PS I am posting this two months after the events and the baby still hasn’t arrived! The due date was last week!

Rallies are fabulous opportunities for sailors to enjoy the camaraderie of a passage and share the enjoyment of a new place. This rally, the Azores Pursuit Rally, organized by the OCC (Ocean Cruising Club), was unusual, as it had no specific starting place. Unlike most rallies, it was a bit of a race, with an ending spot and time. You “won” if you crossed the line at the Horta harbor entrance at exactly noon on July 18th. Some of the rules included having traveled at least 500 miles, and using no engine power for the last hour. Since we all had traveled so far, the timing of the endpoint was hard to pin down, resulting in many boats arriving days, even weeks, in advance, and some boats arriving days late or not even making it all. At least one boat turned around due to lack of wind and flew to Horta instead!

We came to Peter Café Sport soon after landing

The peak of Pico was our daily delight

Tie up on the wall was crowded!

We arrived two days early, and chose to take a berth on the wall rather than wander around in the ocean for the proper arrival time. This gave us a chance to clear customs, find the Peter Café Sport (where much of the Rally would take place), hang our fathers’ day flags, go for a swim, do laundry, explore the town, and rest before the festivities began.

We hung our Father’s Day flags. One letter for each of us

A local concert with children and senior citizens

Fabulous tile work on all the sidewalks

The crazy winds here caused this shape!

And what festivities! A full five days of dining, biking, hiking, busing, whale watching, and making new friends was organized to fill each day.

I carried the Rally flag to welcome the Rally boats arriving just on time

We cheered the boats coming across the finish line at the proper time and feasted on a classic Azores BBQ at a castle the first day.

Traditional Roast

9 new OCC members. 1000 mile sailing requirement was met

The second day we all worked on our paintings on the wall

Our last boat was Wings and my Dad’s name is Gus. This gave me goosebumps

A fabulous story here

A sad outcome for this boat after it sailed away from the Açores

before enjoying a special dinner at Peter Café Sport.

José’s hospitality here continued all week and beyond

The third day we rode bikes down from a volcano, all the way back into Horta.

1Biking downhill is easy

This fern was gigantic

Horses and cows mingling

Another fabulous church

Mossy home

A few of our marina from afar

Cutie

Windmills now have no paddles

Part of our bike group. Blue Yonder and Indulgence

The fourth day was a ferry ride to the nearby island of Pico and a hike to the top. This is the highest point in all of Portugal, and quite challenging, so many chose to stay on the bus and enjoy a tour of the island instead. A fancy dinner was a lovely conclusion to this day. The final day was an exciting whale watching tour.

Our whale watch boat

We saw many breaching whales and came close enough to feel like they were playing with us. On the return trip, we entered some caves where birds nested. For our last evening, there was a grand dinner at an elegant club and prizes for all sorts of reasons were delivered to great rounds of applause.

Our final dinner with the large crowd of participants in the OCC rally

Final speeches were delivered to thank all of the people who pulled this large group together so thoughtfully. José Azevedo, the proprietor of Peter Café Sport, was properly thanked for his tireless hours of organization (and reorganization when things went haywire!) and his generosity with many meals, tours, gifts, and time. Jenny Crickmore Thompson was also thanked for her excellent leadership from the initial organization, through the final festivities.
When the rally was over, we remained in Horta for another hike up Pico

Soccer players on the ferry

A view from the top of Pico

Our hiking companions Bill and Laurie from Toodle Oo

, more exploration of the welcoming town, and the final touches on our painting on the wall.

It’s awkward to paint at this spot

Bill’s Mom, the artist, would be proud of his design

We also helped a rally member sew his torn genoa.

Taping the long tear

It took the three of us to jam it through my machine!

The local sailmaker was so busy with repairs from the many arriving boats, causing the queue to be many weeks! This particular captain was in a hurry to get to the UK to visit his mom who was unwell. How could I refuse to help him??
We bid farewell to many boats who left, and were grateful that we were not in a hurry to depart.

One of our favorite boats and crew!

I had a flight home to Maine in a few days, so Bill was lucky enough to enjoy Horta for another week. I half wondered if he would purchase real estate here; we could see calling this fabulous island our second home.

The view from the home

Note how we are always tethered!

We left Bermuda on Saturday evening, June 2, soon after saying tearful goodbyes to Lindsay, Anne, and Sarah. Most of our buddies in the harbor had left earlier this day and the day before. We would be out there with Antares, L’Aventura, Camomile, and Blue Yonder (all bound for Horta with the Açores Pursuit Rally), as well as Tigger (a large catamaran) and Calcutta (with our Russian friend Igor aboard). Even though we couldn’t see these boats, we found comfort knowing that they were close by.

I think Liz read 9 books!

Overall, the sailing was perfect. The trip was 13 and a half days, four of which we had to motor. The highest wind we recorded was only 30 knots, and that was in a brief squall. We had plenty of company for this trip, sailing beside Blue Yonder for many days and in company with others with whom we checked in with every day on the single side band radio.

Navigating and using the SSB radio

We never realized that squid jumped aboard too

Also keeping us company were hundreds of birds, whales who gave us a show of breaching one day and a parade of welcome as we entered Horta, jumping schools of large fish, and endless viewings of Portuguese Man-o-War. These Man-o-war are spectacular to watch. Displays of purple and pink iridescent membranes rise above the water as if sailing, while their tentacles stream up to 160 feet behind.

Liz just chillin

Our only gear failure was the roller furling bushing which fell out after two days at sea. Luckily, we found this on the deck before it washed overboard. The roller furling genoa still operates without this bushing, but we have no idea what type of damage we would have sustained if we carried on sailing without it. We dropped the genoa on deck and tried in vain to jam the bushings back into the drum while the boat pitched around in a large sea. We raised the sail again, rolled it in partially to lessen the load and carried on. When the seas lessened a few days later, Bill cut the bushings in half, dropped the genoa on deck again, and managed to wedge them into place. We decided to wait until we arrived in Horta to drop the genoa and the headstay to properly insert the spare bushings.

Liz had the vee berth, but found the main cabin more comfortable

Helen’s nest in the aft cabin

Calm enough to chop veggies again

Perhaps the best statistics of all were that no one got seasick on this passage! We can’t say the same for the trip to Bermuda. For our sailing friends who are always looking for the sailing statistics, here is a day by day journal synopsis:

Beautiful sunset

Saturday night was a strong downwind sail after a gorgeous sunset. Jib n jigger (Genoa and mizzen).
Sunday was excellent sailing downwind with reefed main and mizzen and the poled out genoa.

Quiz: What are the nautical names for all of these nine different lines?

Monday morning the winds died and we motored with our main and mizzen sails hanging limply.
Monday by noon the winds picked up and we were sailing again with genoa, main and mizzen.
Monday evening we found the bushings to our roller furling on deck. They had fallen out!
Tuesday winds and seas built and we were back to a reefed main and poled out genoa.

Raising our gennaker

Wednesday the winds lightened again, and we raised the gennaker. By evening, the wind was on the beam and we enjoyed an excellent sail.

I was the lucky one to get doused during the squall

Thursday we had a squall with lightening so we doused the genoa and put all electronics in the microwave. By noon the winds were excellent again for a nice beam reach. Fifth ship.

Dolphins!

Dolphins!

First Satellite call ever. Bill asks George to book a flight for me to Maine

Drying our foulies

Friday we motorsailed all day
Saturday we motorsailed till 4 pm then sailed with reefed main, mizzen and poled out genoa. Blue Yonder is 30 nm north.

Bill enjoys a peaceful turn on watch

Sunday we got as close as 2 nm to Blue Yonder, so we gybed the main, went wing and wing for a bit to give them more space. It’s getting cold! Gybed downwind to stay on course. Dead downwind is too hard on the gear with the rolly seas and banging sails.
Monday was an excellent speed day (168nm). We saw whales breaching, our 8th ship, and lots of birds.
Tuesday we had strong winds and excellent speed, but also more spray with the 30 knot gusts. Tenth ship
Wednesday winds were a little lighter but the seas didn’t abate. We saw fishing gear and almost a green flash.
Thursday winds were still lighter. We spotted dolphins, turtles, and many fish jumping (Tuna?)
Friday we motor sailed all day in light winds. Land Ho! Pico could be seen at 9pm 90nm away!

Liz is capturing the sunrise

Raising the Q flag

Saturday we came through the breakwater at 9am after being escorted by a parade of small whales.

Whale parade lead us in to Horta

Horta!

Peter’s Logo on the hill

Alembic is sailing in in very light air

Dwarfed by the cliffs

At the finish line two days early

Alembic rests in St George Harbor Bermuda

Finally, we are off! So many projects, charts, guidebooks, equipment, spares, and provisions. Bill and I have spent oodles of time planning and preparing for our transatlantic crossing; you might think we were traveling to the moon. But, as they say: “Better safe than sorry”. We felt ready.
Liz Riley joined us and felt ready too. This was her first offshore passage, and she arrived the previous day, so she may not have known what ready means! What a brave young lady to hop aboard a sailboat and commit to this adventure.

No wonder we held so well through all those strong winds!

First task was to raise the anchor. Simple. We’ve done this countless times before. So why was it so hard this time? Was someone trying to keep us here??? NO! Our anchor snagged a huge fisherman anchor and the windlass (winch for the anchor) struggled to bring up the weight of BOTH anchors. With our anchor aboard, and the fisherman back on the bottom, we maneuvered over to the nearby dock for final fuel, water, and food supplies.

A gorgeous sunset the first day out

We always carefully watch the weather and consult our weather expert, Chris Parker, before departing for any trip. The winds and seas were running strong lately and there was no sign of the tradewinds abating, so we headed off, knowing that the first few days would be a wild ride, with no storms in sight.

Liz chillin on her watch

Alembic can handle much more than the three of us. Twenty-five knots of wind, with gusts into the thirties, and the ten foot seas to match, were typical tradewinds, allowing us to sail at top speeds, but we chose to run with only a tiny headsail and double reefed main to keep the spray and boat motion to a minimum. These conditions continued for three days, making it hard to cook, eat, sleep, or even maneuver about the boat. We all managed in our own ways and remained optimistic about our excellent progress toward Bermuda.

Bill is checking the water intake. Some seaweed must have gotten in there

Finally, the conditions lightened as we exited the trade wind belt, granting us more comfort. By the fifth night, the wind fell to below ten knots and we switched on the iron jib (motor).

Passing Igor a chart

At dawn the next morning, while still motoring, we heard “Sailboat, me sailboat too” on the VHF. Sure enough, the rising sun revealed a sailboat nearby. We motored over to the boat and met Igor, a Russian sailor who claimed he had no charts or functioning motor. Being eighty miles to the harbor, we knew we couldn’t tow Igor, but we could offer charts. He had three sails up and was moving along nicely, albeit slowly. I tore a page out of our new book, which gave details of the depths and buoys to enter St George’s Harbor, and passed this over to our new friend. We promised to alert the Bermuda locals, and assist him when he made it to the entrance.
Our arrival was simple, even though it was well past sundown. Usually we don’t enter harbors at night, but we had been here in November and remembered the easy access to the customs dock. Clearing customs was quick, so we were on to our anchorage within twenty minutes for a quick toast to our arrival, and then immediately to bed for a blissful night of sleep.

Staffan!

Seeing Staffan the next day was a highlight of our arrival. We had sailed with him and his lovely wife Kikki for many months two years ago. Kikki had flown home to Sweden, so we didn’t get to see her, unfortunately.

We arrived a day before Bermuda Day. Parades meandered all over downtown

Bermuda Races

A lovely day at Hannah and Capt Paddy’s home on Trunk Island

Finally, the girls arrive!

Lindsay (our daughter), Sarah (our niece), and Anne (Bill’s sister) flew in a few days later for a few days of hilarious entertainment. I think Anne’s incentive was to be the last human to see her brother alive, knowing he would soon be sailing much further east, but was pleasantly surprised to witness the preparedness of both the crew and the boat. With her fears alleviated, we proceeded to frolic around Bermuda.

Just after we all jumped off the cliff

In the 4 short days of togetherness, we managed to sail, ride buses, jump off cliffs, dine outdoors, and visit a few beaches.

Annie has learned that Alembic is a seaworthy vessel

Bill sharing the outline of the novel he is writing!

Taking a seat

Enjoying a fancy lunch

Rum Punches at the beach

Sharing our landfalls with family is definitely the most special aspect of our travels. I look forward to having more family visits in foreign lands. Tears were shed when we parted ways, the ladies off to the airport, and Alembic off to sea. Açores, this time.

After a fabulous trip to Puerto Rico, we focused on our last preparations for the Big Trip. Every sailor should prep for such a trip, just to get their boat in order. For that matter, every person living should prep for a big move, or other such event, to tie up loose ends and finish lingering projects. There’s a satisfying feeling to knocking things off the To Do list.

Post Parade ladies

I never sent Bill to this Day Care

So, we mixed up fun with tasks for the next week. The St Thomas Carnival at night was a treat. Although we missed the parade, we enjoyed meeting this wild lady who was still in costume.

Boat mess

One of the chainplates

Alembic was torn apart in order to inspect the chain plates. Each shroud is attached to the hull with these oversized plates which can corrode or crack over the years. Luckily ours looked fine and we only saw the need to remove and reseal two. We also remounted the whisker pole, varnished the cockpit, fixed two leaky stanchions (water makes its way down the bolt holes), sewed main cabin sheets and a cover for the aft companionway, and rebuilt the instrument enclosure. Whew! The list is getting shorter!

Necker Belle

Charlotte Amalie, the largest harbor on St Thomas and in the USVI, was full of action. Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Belle was one of the many famous yachts sharing the harbor with us. This boat was used to ferry supplies to some of the hardest hit areas after the hurricanes Irma and Maria. Planet Waves was also here, actually beside us in the anchorage, and we “took care of Johnny” while Shelley flew back to Miami for a few days. Then we enjoyed both of them when she returned. We surely will miss them when we part ways again. They plan to sail north to New York when we sail east. Luckily, we never say Goodbye, just “See you next time!” as there will certainly be a “next time”!

Petroglyphs

Sugar mill plantation

Next, we sailed to Christmas Cove again, and briefly met Jody, a former Whitby 42 owner. We also fit in a fabulous snorkel at Honeymoon Beach. Moving the next day to St John, we took a Safari (a very small bus) to the mountains and hiked to see the Petroglyphs, a private beach, and a sugar plantation.

Another very sad situation at Water Lemon Cay

Annaberg Sugar Mill

Very impressive inside

The following day, we hiked along the shore to the Annaberg Sugar Plantation Ruins and snorkeled Water Lemon Cay. We wished we had our camera here, as we saw a huge barracuda, lots of lobster, a snake eel, an elusive Drum, stingrays, and a huge turtle who small along with us, staying only six feet away!

WWS Captains and First Mates

Our final excursion was to Road Town Tortola to join a Women Who Sail group. They were beginning a one week charter with 8 boats and 43 women! Bill was the only guy at this lively first night dinner in town, but he seemed to enjoy being surrounded by women, and grateful to get back to Alembic that night, where he only had to deal with me!!

Broken boats are carried away on a barge

One of the gorgeous boats still unattended

The harbor was filthy, and filled with so many wrecked boats; I was grateful that this bunch of women had arrived to bring a shine to the island!

Getting wifi

Winch maintenance

A quick downwind dash back to Charlotte Amalie for last minute tasks was energizing. Final emails at our favorite wifi spot, and a few more projects (do they ever end??) occupied our last hours. Going online connects us to all that we have left behind, which brings me to tears often, while it also allows me to feel more free to carry on with our travels. Ironic. Missing our kids and our families tops the list of heart wrenching realities. Luckily, we have super supportive families; our own children, as well as our siblings and my parents. While I try to be involved in my parents’ moves and other big events, my sister and brothers do a fabulous job taking care of them always.

Brothers helping Mom move

Here are four of them, Dan, Al, Charlie, and Paul, helping Mom move. And they keep me up to date on the important events that I miss, like my Dad’s 82nd birthday.

Mom and Dad celebrating another birthday!

Sometimes I wonder how my heart can conjure up so much joy, while also trying to keep in check the sad longings for more time with those I’ve left behind. For certain, I am always grateful for all that I experience with Bill, Alembic, our families, and all the dear friends we have made along our lives’ journeys.

Bill with his brother Ben and sister Anne

Missing our kids: Kenny, Erica, Jenna (Kenny’s wife), and Lindsay

Helen, Steve, Jayanne, and Bill together again, Finally!

Knowing we had a month to ourselves before we embarked on our trip to Bermuda, the Azores, and beyond, we focused our attention on boat projects and visiting Jayanne and Steve McLaughlin in Puerto Rico. Some of our most fond memories of our cruising days back in 1988 and 1989 were with this wonderful couple. Bill and I were sailing on our beloved Wings, a Westsail, and Jayanne and Steve were sailing on Tashtego, his father’s Tartan. Together, we sailed, snorkeled, feasted on the fish the guys speared, and learned a lot about the priorities of life. Eventually, we all sailed back to New England, babies came along, and our lives became too busy to cross the miles for visits.

Hassel Island

A gorgeous sailboat getting a lift

Scuba gear?

Bill plays horseshoes with the locals

Before setting off for Puerto Rico, we had a few more days of enjoying St Thomas. Hikes were always in the schedule, while visiting with other boaters and locals ashore was part of our evening routine. Being April, with the summer and threat of hurricanes coming, many folks were making plans to move their boats to safer cruising areas. For those heading to Europe, some chose to ship their boats rather than sail there.
Sailing to Puerto Rico was a breeze, literally! It was a downwind ride with plenty of wind and large rolling seas. We knew that heading back to St Thomas in a month would be much more challenging as those same winds and seas would be on the nose, and make for a slow and very wet ride. Alembic is always up for a good romp and so were we! But first, we wanted to make a quick stop in Culebra to see this lovely little island that we visited almost thirty years ago.
It was nice to see that the hurricanes didn’t devastate this area nearly as much as nearby islands.

Jardin

Christopher Robin is getting fixed

We found the people to be welcoming and creative, as seen in the garden signs. And finding Christopher Robin was a treat! Our dear friends, Angie and Peter, had owned this Westsail and sailed it from Maine, across the Atlantic as far as Turkey, and back through the Caribbean. They sold it to a Canadian couple who owned it for the last thirty years, putting huge amounts of love and care into it. Unfortunately, it dragged during the hurricane, suffered damage that they felt was beyond their abilities to fix, and was sold to a local friend. We met this young man and his lady, who were fixing it up for more years of adventures! Sail on, Christopher Robin!

Motor mounts were in need of replacement

Bill is finishing the rerigging of the mizzen mast

Arrival in Puerto Rico was delightful. Helpful marina workers and sailors were always ready to lend a hand with the tricky dock landing and our list of projects.

One of the many pets Jayanne and Steve lovingly care for

But the grand delight was seeing Jayanne and Steve!! Many years have passed with so many experiences shaping our way of life and our paths, but there’s something about good friends…hearts sing when reunited. We spent nearly every evening for a week with these two, catching up on all we have missed. They have two fabulous adult daughters, many gorgeous homes, and more boats than I could keep track of. When their girls were very young, they built a business, East Island Excursions, which has huge boats of all types to take folks out for day tours or longer. Jayanne has continued to work for them even after they sold the business. Hopefully, they will soon untie the lines and head off for more cruising!

Some of the gardens in which Lindsay worked a few years ago

This is the waterfall, a short walk from the home, where Lindsay bathed daily

After many complicated projects were completed, and we had a chance to visit the lovely spot where Lindsay had stayed, we made plans to sail east again. We were so sad to depart from Jayanne and Steve and this island. Goodbyes are very hard for me.
Kenny’s lifelong friend, PJ Saltzman, had lived in Vieques for a few years, and we were curious about his connections there. So we sailed to Vieques to explore before heading further east. PJ was back in the States, visiting his parents, when Hurricane Maria struck and devastated so much of this quiet island. The owners, Dan and Maria, of Al’s Mar Azul, remembered PJ fondly but were seriously struggling from the aftermaths of the storm. They have since sold the restaurant after many years of ownership.

Isabel II was our second anchorage in Vieques

A bit rugged on the edges

This man was enjoying his ride!

Maria and Dan remembered PJ well

One more quick stop in Culebra, the north harbor this time, broke up the sail to windward, back to St Thomas. Here, we relaxed in the tranquil harbor and hiked up to the ancient lighthouse. The island might be small, but the caterpillars are huge!!

The quiet harbor on the north side of Culebra

Yes, the caterpillars were huge!

Coming back to St Thomas was bittersweet. Goodbyes to all of the Caribbean, especially to the dear people we met and reunited with, left me with a heavy heart. But the excitement of crossing the Atlantic was enough to keep my mind engaged on grand plans and high hopes.