Windward Voyage: June 2014

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.

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 .

Sunday, June 29, 2014

ENSEADA DO SITIO FORTE : UBATUBINHA & TAPERA .

SACO DA TAPERA . SPOT THE WATER ROCK IN THE ANCHORAGE .

UBATUBINHA BEACH . GREAT FOR A MORNING SWIM .

URS STANDING AT THE SITE OF AN OLD SARDINE CANNING FACILITY .

SACO DA TAPERA . LOVELY ANCHORAGE .

WINTER DRESS IN SOUTH EASTERN BRAZIL .

WONDERFUL RESTAURANT SERVING TRADITIONAL BRAZILIAN FISH DISHES .

UBATUBINHA . WE WOULD WAKE UP EACH MORNING WITH HOWLER MONKEYS CALLING FROM THE FOREST .

THE VERY POPULAR WATER ROCK AT SACO DA TAPERA .

Saturday, June 28, 2014

ILHA DO COTIA : ILHA DO CEDRO : ITANHANGA ISLAND .

SMALL ISLAND OFF ILHA DO CEDRO .

ILHA DO COTIA . ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE ISLAND IS A BEAUTIFUL LITTLE BEACH .

THIS VERY PRETTY SCHOONER SHARED THE ANCHORAGE WITH US .

ILHA DO CEDRO . STUNNING SCENERY .

ITANHANGA ISLAND . WE ENJOYED A WONDERFUL EVENING AT THIS RESTAURANT .

ILHA DO COTIA : ILHA DO CEDRO : ITANHANGA ISLAND .

After the hype and buzz of Paraty , we decided to head for some of the quieter anchorages and sailed for Ilha do Cotia . The perfect anchorage for a bit of R & R , catch up with a bit of reading and listen to some music . We have about two hundred albums on our boat with a really nice sound system , so we are methodically working through them . The anchorage is very sheltered from all winds and the holding is good . We had it all to ourselves for a day and then a very pretty schooner arrived and shared the tranquility with us .

We then sailed for Ilha do Cedro , another pretty anchorage and just before sunset a number of small fishing boats arrived and anchored for the night , leaving at first light the next morning . Providing a bit of protection to the anchorage is a small island with a narrow channel separating it from Cedro with a couple of small houses and a little beach where the following morning we sat sipping our coffee while watching a fisherman repairing his net with his dog lying at his feet , oblivious to the fact that at that point in time there were millions of people sitting in traffic jams or similar stressful situations . How different some people live compared to others .

Our next destination was Itanhanga Island where we anchored off a very island style looking restaurant in a very nice setting . We had no sooner set the anchor when a guy in a small boat came alongside waving a menu in the air suggesting we visit his restaurant and that we should give him a time and he would personally come and pick us up in his boat and then drop us off later after our meal . We were fetched bang on time and arrived at his private dock in front of this beautiful rustic bar/restaurant to find out that he was in fact the owner of the island and a fellow sailor .
He has a magnificent golden retriever who is the official guide on the island and he suggested we first explore the island with his dog before sitting down to a meal . The pooch led us around the island even waiting patiently every time we took a pic and then continuing with the grand tour . He was fantastic , we even started apologising to him for keeping him waiting .
We eventually returned to the restaurant and sat down to an amazing meal with starters and a couple of cold beers to wash it down .
Later we were chauffeured back to our boat with enough food left over for lunch the following day .

This cruising life is all about unplanned events which makes it so enjoyable .

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

SACO DO MAMANGUA .

JOLLING IN THE MANGROVES.

AFTER POPPING A FEW WHEELIES AND A COUPLE OF 360's , URS GOT IT RIGHT.

MOUNT PAO DE ACUCAR .

WINDWARD LYING PEACEFULLY AT ANCHOR .

THIS HOME ALL ON ITS OWN AT THE TOP OF THE FJORD.

WE SWAM HERE WITH NOT A SOUL IN SIGHT .

THE TWILIGHT VAMPIRE HOUSE .

VILA DO CRUZEIRO'S LITTLE CHAPEL ON THE BEACH .

FLEET OF PRAWN BOATS .

THESE PRAWN BOATS COME AND GO AT ALL HOURS .

SECONDS AFTER TAKING THIS PIC , ONE OF THOSE COCONUTS LANDED ON THE DECK .
DON'T STAND UNDER A COCONUT PALM , EVER .

SACO DO MAMANGUA .

Mamangua , considered to be Brazil's only fjord is a place l was really keen to visit . It consists of a long narrow passage of water roughly 5nm(8km) which is flanked on both sides by mountains and is a place of solitude where one can anchor at the head of the fjord and not see another yacht for days on end.

We had been warned by local yachties that it is not the place to be when the fronts move in from down south as strong katabatic winds funnel down the mountains and with the bottom consisting of soft mud , the holding is not very good . In fact while visiting the local sailmaker in Bracuhy the other day , a local yacht arrived that had been caught out in the fjord in just the same circumstances and he claimed that he had experienced gusts of 65kn seriously damaging his bimini and genoa and when he awoke the following morning his duck had disappeared .

So after doing a careful weather check making sure that nothing was heading our way from down south in Patagonia we headed off to check out Mamangua.
We headed straight down to the head of the fjord and dropped anchor in perfect conditions which stayed with us for the following three days .

The following morning we hopped into the duck and went exploring as we had been told that there was a waterfall and mangroves to see and because the water was too shallow for Windward , the duck was the right boat for the job .
The scenery was awesome and just the right conditions for Urs to get familiar with handling the duck .

The next morning we headed to Vila do Cruzeiro , a small fishing village in the fjord with its old chapel right on the beach . A fleet of prawn boats lay at anchor off the village which lies at the foot of Mount Pao de Acucar .
We decided to climb to the top of the mountain as apparently the view is breathtaking . After getting directions to the path that leads up the mountain using sign language , we started hiking through the rain forest at the base . After an hour of walking seemingly past the mountain we arrived at this beautiful home with its own private beach . Somewhere along the line we took a left and not a right which is quite easy in a forest without a view of any outside bearings . We then found out that this particular house was used to shoot scenes for the Twilight movie series which according to my little wife our daughter enjoyed . Vampires were the main feature in these movies so it added a whole new dimension to the walk back through the forest to the boat anchored off the village . That night l could have sworn that l heard screams in the forest , although it could have been a bird .

After three wonderful days we headed out of the fjord and back to the islands.

Thursday, June 12, 2014

SOCCER WORLD CUP BRAZIL 2014 .

Today has been a special day . We woke up this morning and decided it was time to restock the boat with all the good things in life . We set sail for the mainland to the city of Angra dos Reis which is the main centre in Baia da Ilha Grande .
We arrived at Marina Pirata's Mall , Urs's favourite spot which is a shopping mall/marina combined and is very handy for yachties . They have an exclusive dock for visiting boats right alongside the mall which means you literally tie up and stroll straight into the shopping complex . The food court has free wi fi and once you have shopped till you drop, you push your trolleys to the boat and load. They even come and fetch their trolleys once you have offloaded .
For those of you that were not aware of the big event on today , it was the Opening Ceremony of the Soccer World Cup and the opening game between Brazil and Croatia and the mall was buzzing with soccer fever . The Brazilians are soccer crazy and because they have been so good to us , we are rooting for Brazil all the way .
Our Brazilian yachtie friends Pig and Patricia took us to lunch and by the time we had finished it was late afternoon , so we decided to anchor for the night in Angra off a local yacht club . The city surrounds the bay so it is like being in a fish bowl.
We had watched parts of the Opening Ceremony while having lunch and when we motored out of the marina is was close to kick off with big crowds settling into the pubs and restaurants in the mall.
As soon as we had anchored the TV was on and we watched a great game of soccer. When Marcelo nudged the ball into his own goal there was an audible groan across the city . When Neymar scored his first goal the city exploded with fireworks and shouting from all corners of the bay . When the game ended 3-1 to the Brazilians the parties started with major celebrations going on ashore.
We sat out in the cockpit under a full moon enjoying a great bottle of Chilean wine and watched the goings on taking place around us .
It is now after midnight and the music is still pumping and the parties are going strong .
Me thinks that with all the sore heads tomorrow the Brazilian economy is going to take a dive ( excuse the pun ), but tonight they are celebrating their win .
Good for them but now l am going to try and get some sleep .

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

BOURBON BLUES & JAZZ FESTIVAL .

GREAT FESTIVAL .

SETTING UP THE STAGE FOR THE FIRST GIG .

IT WAS HIGH TIDE AT THIS VENUE , NOTE THE FLOODED STREET .

AT NIGHT THIS VENUE WAS PACKED WITH PEOPLE .

ONE MAN BAND BUT VERY GOOD .

THIS GROUP OF GUYS WERE JAMMING IN THE PARK .

GREAT SPOT TO WATCH THE BAND PLAYING BELOW ON THE STREET.

THE PAST AND THE PRESENT . TRUCK OFFLOADING EQUIPMENT BEHIND A PARATY TAXI .

URS GETTING INTO THE SOCCER WORLD CUP SPIRIT .

BOURBON JAZZ & BLUES FESTIVAL .

During our stay at Marina do Engeho , l popped into the local dive operation to organize a couple of o-rings for my dive tanks .While chatting to the guys one of them in his broken English enquired " you lika da music ". Hey man , is a sharks bum waterproof , l love my music . He proceeded to tell me that the annual three day Jazz & Blues Festival was taking place in Paraty and that l had timed my visit perfectly as it was well worth going to.
We had hired a car so staying out late was no problem . We headed off to check it out .
Paraty had been transformed with various venues set up in parts of the historic town and everywhere there were street bands and buskers playing various genres of music with solo acts performing tricks on the sidewalks all attracting their own audiences . Food and booze vendors were dotted around all over the place and there was a real festival buzz around the town . The restaurants and pubs were doing a roaring trade and although the weather did not come to the party , that did not dampen the spirit of the visitors enjoying the atmosphere . Urs and l discovered a local delicacy called a churro ( not those Durban fellas .) Walking around with a churro in one hand and a cold beer in the other was great .
There were the big names in Brazilian music circles and a couple of international artists including Patti Austin and Shemekia Copeland who has performed with the likes of the Stones , BB King , Buddy Guy and Eric Clapton .They even featured a blues guitarist who goes by the name of " The Legendary Tigerman " although having seen the likes of Dan Patlansky and Albert Frost playing on a number of occasions , personally l think he is a legend in his own mind .
All the same , everyone enjoyed the music and the vibe and it was well worth staying on for the extra couple of days in Paraty .

Sunday, June 8, 2014

THE HISTORIC TOWN OF PARATY . PART 2 .

MARINA DO ENGENHO .

PARATY ACROSS THE BAY .

EACH HOME HAS ITS OWN DISTINCT CHARACTER .

STREET SELLERS WITH THEIR HANDMADE JEWELLERY ON DISPLAY .

MAIN CHURCH OFF THE SQUARE .

CANALSIDE RESTAURANTS .

THE CANAL WHICH RUNS THROUGH THE TOWN .

HISTORIC CHURCH ON THE WATERFRONT .

THE AMBIANCE AT NIGHT IS WONDERFUL .

ON THE HIGH TIDE THE SEA FLOODS THE STREETS .

LET'S CHECK WHERE THIS LANE LEADS US TO .

Saturday, June 7, 2014

THE HISTORIC TOWN OF PARATY . PART 1 .

PARATY . NOTE THE LAMPS OVER THE BALCONIES .

PARATY . COBBLED ROADS.

PARATY . WE SAT HERE ONE NIGHT AND HAD A GREAT MEAL IN THE ROAD .

PARATY . TOWN SQUARE .

THE HISTORIC TOWN OF PARATY .

Lying at anchor a few hundred metres from a marina did not last long , so we decided to check into Marina do Engenho and treat ourselves to their facilities for a while and restock the boat . The marina is situated across the bay from the historic town of Paraty with a long walk between the two , but we decided we needed the exercise so off we went to town.It is one thing looking across the bay at the town in the far distance but walking there in the heat of the day around the shoreline took a lot longer than we had anticipated.
As it was our 32nd wedding anniversary , we decided to celebrate it in style and after a long night out , walking back to the marina soon lost its appeal.
We walked into the first car hire outlet we found and a few minutes later we drove out in a brand new little Chevy straight out of the box . It took a few kms to get used to having a gearstick in my right hand, turning right instead of left and going around circles anti-clock instead of clock but soon we arrived in the historic part of Paraty.
We fell in love with the place immediately with its narrow cobbled roads , unique architecture and at night it has an incredible ambience with people milling about its streets with more restaurants and shops per square metre than l have ever seen. There are no cars allowed in the town , so you either walk or go by horse and cart .
Up until 1976 , the only way you could reach Paraty was by boat . One unusual feature of the town is when the tide is high the sea floods the streets and the water table normally is literally just below the surface . Instead of me going into huge detail about the history of this amazing place , Google it as it has a very interesting story to tell about its past .
That evening we found a very quaint restaurant/pub/club place with a great young Brazilian band playing wonderful jazz/blues music and settled in for the night . When they found out that we were from South Africa they played a beautiful number called Mama Afrika and when it ended the guys had beaming smiles on their faces while the young woman on vocals blew kisses at us . Eish , that gave me a lump in my throat . It was one of the nicest wedding anniversary's that we have ever had , great music , great food all washed down with too many caiparinis .
We really enjoyed our time in Paraty and will definitely head back there before we sail for Northern Brazil.