BRAZIL TO THE CARIBBEAN .

This is a passage that l have looked forward to sailing for many years after hearing fellow sailors who have completed this route talk about strong North West setting currents and favourable trade winds all heading in the right direction with the end goal of arriving in the Caribbean .

The reality was a little different in that although there was plenty of current it wasn't always favourable and at times it was a little forward or aft of our beam causing our heading and course over ground to be very different as our autopilot compensated for the effects of the current . When it was in our favour we clocked good daily runs without even pressing the boat too hard with our best 24 hour run of 220nm ( 407km for the landlubbers ).

With the mighty Amazon River and other large powerful rivers off our port beam the influence that they have hundreds of miles off the coast is quite remarkable.

At one point during our passage we were sailing along nicely when we noticed what initially appeared to be a reef dead ahead of us . For miles across our bow a line of small wavelets and disturbed water stretched for as far as the eye could see and once we had entered this strip of troubled water the effects of a very powerful current at 90 degrees to our course were felt prompting our autopilot to change our heading to keep us on track . Visually there is a distinct change in the colour of the water and the water temp within an instant changes by up to 3 degrees Celsius . Bear in mind this is hundreds of miles off the coast in seas that are kilometres deep .

The best way to describe this scene is to imagine yourself standing on the banks of a large river in an open plain . We came across these “ rivers of current “ on many occasions during this passage .

At one point we started seeing rafts of vegetation streaming past us and later we found out that apparently the plant species is Sargasso Weed which is now spreading rapidly being swept along in these strong currents . I am told that if you take a clump of this weed and shake it many small crustaceans and small living organisms fall out and apparently these rafts provide protection for small fish that hide in their growth .

After rounding the North East corner of Brazil we headed virtually in a straight line for French Guiana . One night while doing the “ graveyard watch “ l noticed a glow off our port side which after checking the charts turned out to be the city of Fortaleza . Nothing amazing about that except that we were 78nm off the Brazilian Coast . I would never have believed that the artificial light generated from a city at night would extend that far offshore .

We were now in an area called the ITCZ commonly referred to as the doldrums . It is a belt of low pressure that circles the earth near the equator and it is characterized by erratic weather . Large cumulus cloud banks which lead to powerful rain squalls , generating torrential downpours accompanied by strong gusting winds . These nasties keep you on your toes and keeping a sharp look-out , mainly on radar at night is key in preventing being caught out unawares with too much sail up . The standard rule onboard is two reefs in the main every night at sunset and with our genoa being on a rollerfurler it is relatively easy to reduce our foresail area quickly . One night we were nailed by a biggie with winds gusting into the top forties and rain being blown horizontal to the surface. During the day these squalls are easy to monitor and at night they appear as large yellow shapes on our radar screen always with that menacing , angry look. The only good thing about them is that usually they don't last that long before they overtake you and move on although our biggie stayed with us for longer than we would have liked because we were slap in front of it's centre and it moved straight over us headed in the same direction as we were going .

But of course the highlight of this passage would be my first crossing of the Equator at sea behind the wheel of my own boat . A big moment in my life that we had to film using a GoPro camera because a squall chose to accompany us up to the line that separates the Northern and Southern hemispheres . Another large tick off the “ bucket list “.

This is also an area with a very interesting seabed . Huge seamounts ( mountains ) rising up from the floor of the ocean to just short of the surface .

One named Banco Canopus on our chart rises from 3000m ( 3kms ) to just 50m from the surface with its one face almost sheer to the bottom . It put a new perspective on how submarines would have to navigate to avoid colliding with one of these obstructions hundreds of miles at sea .

During the entire passage flying fish were in abundance , thousands of them with some unfortunate enough to land up on our decks and even in our cockpit . The special moments were when we had dolphins popping in for a visit as they almost seem excited to see you . Generally we spot them from a distance jumping clear of the surface while taking a good look at us , but once they reach our boat they tuck in and surf our bow wave . The best seat in the house is on the bowsprit and although l have enjoyed many contacts with dolphins over the years , seeing them that close turning on their sides and making eye contact is something to be cherished .

Finally Trinidad came into view and we sailed the length of the North Coast of the island heading for Boca de Monos the passage that leads into the Gulf of Paria and our final destination Chaguaramas where we tied up to the Customs Dock and checked into the country .

Our 2200nm voyage had gone really well and my good mate Philippe Gouffon turned out to be an excellent sailing companion , treating the boat like his own and always up to the task . He played a big part in making this passage a success .

What lies ahead is a number of seasons of cruising and exploring the Caribbean Islands , a mouthwatering prospect .