A quick apology for the lack of activity on our blog but unfortunately this beautiful remote island sadly lacks any decent internet connection . We have pics and posts to publish but their internet is so slow it is almost impossible to load the blog .
Briefly we had a great passage albeit we could have done with more wind the last few days and we are having a wonderful time on the island. Super friendly people and a fascinating place to explore , rich in heritage including the grumpy little Frenchman who was kept here by the British until his death . I am obviously referring to Napoleon .
We are sailing for Brazil on Saturday and will probably, depending on wind arrive mid April.
I will update the blog with pics and detail once we have decent internet .
Many thanks for showing interest in our story .
Allan & Ursula Ward: Port Owen, Cape West Coast, South Africa.
Shearwater 39:
- L.O.A. 43ft (13.22m)
- L.O.D. 39ft (12m)
- L.W.L. 34ft (10.3m)
- BEAM 13ft(3.9m)
- DRAFT 6ft(1.8m)
HOW IT ALL BEGAN .
I placed my order on Nebe Boats on the 19/10/1992 for what was initially planned to be a complete factory built yacht that l would sail home to Durban from Capetown once she was completed. Unfortunately due to the demise of Nebe Boats in the early days of her construction it did not turn out that way, so l decided to truck her home to Ramsgate on the KZN South Coast to finish building her in our garden at home.
For many years we could proudly boast that we had the most expensive piece of garden furniture in town, but at the time l had no idea of how massive this project would turn out to be. As anyone who has built a blue water cruiser will tell you, particularly if she is kitted out with all the systems and the equipment that a modern cruiser has onboard these days, it is a daunting task . Looking at the positive aspects of this project, l know the boat intimately in that l designed and installed the systems, so from a repair and maintenance perspective l have no issues carrying out the work that is necessary from time to time.
The big day arrived on the 29/8/2008 when we craned her out of the garden onto a rig to truck her through to Durban for launching . What followed was three months of preparations to ready her for the maiden voyage to our home port in Port Owen on the Cape West Coast.
We had a fast passage down the South African East Coast including a storm off the notorious Wild Coast and arrived in Port Owen in dense fog. Windward had passed her first test with flying colours and since then we have enjoyed some great sailing on the West Coast.
We had a fast passage down the South African East Coast including a storm off the notorious Wild Coast and arrived in Port Owen in dense fog. Windward had passed her first test with flying colours and since then we have enjoyed some great sailing on the West Coast.
The master plan has always been to go cruising, so our plans are to leave for Brazil via Luderitz and St Helena Island at the end of February 2014. So far everything is on track although the “To Do“ list still grows each day.
The purpose of this blog is to record our adventure for ourselves, family and friends. Although it will probably end up being a brief summary of events while we are cruising, we hope you will enjoy and share some of our experiences with us.
LIVING THE DREAM .
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Monday, March 10, 2014
LUDERITZ .
A unique little town surrounded by desert with a strong German influence has been very friendly to us . The historical buildings of which there are many have been well maintained . Rob came up with a brilliant idea of us hiring a car which has enabled us to see the town and surrounds . Our first stop was Kolmanskop which is a fascinating story . Google it for more info . I was hoping to see the wild desert horses but unfortunately the wind pumped and we were advised not to take the ride out into the desert as with the sandstorm that comes about with strong winds, they wisely take cover , where l don't know .
We drove out to Diaz Point to see where the man himself planted his cross and to see the Diaz Point light that we had initially battled to see in the fog.
We also visited the lagoon where all the windsurfer and kitesurfer speedfreaks attempt to break world records .
We tried to sample what is apparently the " worlds best " eisbien but unfortunately the Barrel restaurant along with everything else is closed over weekends . Apparently Friday night is jol night and most of locals do their own thing at home over weekends.
The last two days the wind has pumped between 30 and 40kn even getting the locals miffed with two french cruisers dragging anchor and colliding into other boats causing a bit of chaos . I was very happy to have a Spade anchor on the end of my chain but now Windward is covered in half of the Namib Desert so we have decided to weigh anchor in the morning and set sail for St Helena Island with hopefully so
me rain on the way to wash the boat down .
See you there .
We drove out to Diaz Point to see where the man himself planted his cross and to see the Diaz Point light that we had initially battled to see in the fog.
We also visited the lagoon where all the windsurfer and kitesurfer speedfreaks attempt to break world records .
We tried to sample what is apparently the " worlds best " eisbien but unfortunately the Barrel restaurant along with everything else is closed over weekends . Apparently Friday night is jol night and most of locals do their own thing at home over weekends.
The last two days the wind has pumped between 30 and 40kn even getting the locals miffed with two french cruisers dragging anchor and colliding into other boats causing a bit of chaos . I was very happy to have a Spade anchor on the end of my chain but now Windward is covered in half of the Namib Desert so we have decided to weigh anchor in the morning and set sail for St Helena Island with hopefully so
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| ROB AND MY BABE'S CHILLING. |
See you there .
PASSAGE TO LUDERITZ .
After a benign start Mother Nature decided to put us to the test and on the first night out we experienced windspeeds in the mid thirties , gusting to 40kn.During the graveyard watch with a big swell running and the boat surfing down big waves , Hlameni ( our autopilot ) decided he had seen enough and handed the helming over to me . Great opportunity to brush up on helming skills particularly on a pitch black night .For the rest of the passage the winds were a steady 25kn and we enjoyed a fast downwind run all the way even having to slow the boat down to afford us an early morning arrival although it ended up being in thick fog so we sailed in under radar .
One of the best pieces of equipment onboard is our AIS system which proved to be very handy with a lot of southbound shipping traffic allowing me to call up the vessels that were a little too close for comfort . A supertanker that was definitely going to be a problem very politely offered to alter course by 5 degrees and l was even able to watch to see that he was good for his word . Fortunately l did not need to remind him that power gives way to sail . Every interaction with the vessels that we called up was very polite and seamanlike .Radar is great , but a yacht at night in breaking seas is difficult for ships to pick up until you provide her with your co-ords .
If you can afford to install AIS do it as it provides great piece of mind .
Sadly my mate Billy who apart from suffering from seasickness , fell down below while
coming out of his cabin and injured his arm and he decided to call it quits and has flown home to be with his family .
One of the best pieces of equipment onboard is our AIS system which proved to be very handy with a lot of southbound shipping traffic allowing me to call up the vessels that were a little too close for comfort . A supertanker that was definitely going to be a problem very politely offered to alter course by 5 degrees and l was even able to watch to see that he was good for his word . Fortunately l did not need to remind him that power gives way to sail . Every interaction with the vessels that we called up was very polite and seamanlike .Radar is great , but a yacht at night in breaking seas is difficult for ships to pick up until you provide her with your co-ords .
If you can afford to install AIS do it as it provides great piece of mind .
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| ROBBIE SNUG AS A BUG. |
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| LOOK WHO FLEW IN DURING THE NIGHT. |
FANTASTIC SEND OFF .
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| My little star . |
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| GOOD FRIENDS. |
Sunday, March 2, 2014
READY TO GO .
It is now almost midnight and this is our final post before we set sail at 7.00 tomorrow morning . Windward is loaded and ready to go and it has taken a lot of work and effort to get to this point in time . Our dear friends Rob and Billy who will be doing the crossing with us , have been living onboard for a week now and they have been a great help in loading and packing our provisions to see us through the next two months .
Ursula and l have been truly humbled by the wonderful wishes and the goodwill shown to us by our friends in Port Owen . The farewell gifts and eats have been amazing and we are very grateful to call you friends .
The forecast is for good southerlies for our passage to Luderitz which means we will have a great downwind run all the way . Can't wait as l have been dreaming about this day for as long as l can remember .
The next post should be in Luderitz , see you there .
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| THERE MUST BE SOMETHING ELSE TO DO . |
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| OUR MAATS . |
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| TROUBLE . |
The forecast is for good southerlies for our passage to Luderitz which means we will have a great downwind run all the way . Can't wait as l have been dreaming about this day for as long as l can remember .
The next post should be in Luderitz , see you there .
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