Passage to Antigua

While on passage to Antigua, we posted daily updates on our progress and things going on to the PredictWind tracker. Since we’ll be shutting down that tracker shortly, we’ve copied those posts here and added photos and videos.

Time to go!
Sat Nov 12 2022

The final pre-departure weather forecast arrived last night at ~3 a.m. No big changes, just details, so we’re making our final preparations this morning. You know, important things like making coffee (and topping up water tanks, stowing gear, etc.). Our first destination is the gulf stream. We’ll head pretty much east from Beaufort and aim to get across before tomorrow morning when a cold front brings strong northerly winds. More on that later.

We’re excited to get going. Antigua, here we come!

Day 1 update – Gulf Stream
Sun Nov 13 2022
Distance travelled so far: 145 nm
Distance to Antigua: 1,249 nm

Minor repairs…
• door latch to the head (don’t want to get stuck in there!)
• shackle on the genoa tack came loose (even though wired). Replaced and rewired

We’re across the Gulf Stream! This was the big hurdle for the first day and getting safely across it was a big factor in determining the weather window when we left. Leaving Beaufort at 11 a.m., we sailed out in brisk SW winds past Cape Lookout and through the big waves that build up near the shoals beside Cape Lookout.

As we got into deeper water past the shoals, the waves settled a bit, but it stayed lumpy, with waves coming from different directions. As the water temperature rose from 21 deg C to 27 C, so did the force of the Gulf Stream current, pushing water (and us) NE at nearly 4 knots. It was amazing to experience and contemplate this huge ocean river of warm water, responsible for so much of the weather on both sides of the Atlantic.

While the current made for a bouncy ride, we were able to move along pretty quickly. With the boat pointed SW, the effect of the current meant our course was closer to due east. By the wee hours of the morning, the current started to ease and we knew we were exiting the stream. The warm water meant we were quickly peeling off layers, and we all struggled to get to sleep… the energy of the first night, the bouncing boat, and the warm temperatures all making it difficult.

The character of the ocean feels different now. Since before dawn we’ve been watching squalls pass by (most have missed us). Delicious home-made bacon and egg mcmuffins made for an awesome breakfast in the sunny cockpit. The waves are still up, but more steady in direction and the motion of the boat is a lot more comfortable. The water colour has changed from grey to a vivid deep blue in the sun.

This afternoon the wind will shift to the north as a cold front comes down bringing a day of stronger winds. We’ll aim to take advantage of them to keep moving SE before the winds ease off on early Tuesday.

Day 2 update – Working East
Mon Nov 14 2022
Distance travelled: 292 nm
Distance to Antigua: 1115 nm

It’s bouncy! We’ve been sailing east / south east since the gulf stream, most of the time with a double reef in the main and just the jib (especially at night). The front bringing north winds arrived and we made our first maneuver of the trip (a gybe) yesterday, onto port tack. Through the night we had 25 knots gusting to just over 30, with pretty big seas.

The boat is rolling a lot, making it challenging to move about, and as John said, with all the bracing and holding on, it’s questionable whether making breakfast consumes more calories than it delivers! Glenda’s hard work preparing and freezing easy to heat and eat meals has really paid off, with an amazing mulligatawny soup the first night and chili last night.

Despite the human-sized washing machine we’re living in, we’re settling into our routine reasonably well – most cruisers we talk to say it’s really not until after day 3 that you’ve fully adapted. So I’d say we’re on track.

Today we’re pushing east with the wind increasingly ahead of us. Last night it switched to the north, and this morning it’s gradually turning northeast. Eventually it will force us to turn our track more southerly, but for now we’re making the most of the good wind to get as far east as we can. By later tomorrow, the winds should ease and we’re hoping life on board gets a little easier.

But at least it’s nice and warm and while we got hit by one very rainy squall yesterday, it’s been pretty much dry weather. Spirits are good, we’ve all be able to get a good amount of sleep on our off watches, and the boat is handling it all well.

Day 3 update – Another Rally Boat!
Tue Nov 15 2022
Distance travelled: 432 nm
Distance to Antigua: 982 nm

Out of the blue yesterday afternoon the VHF radio crackled to life as a sailboat called a nearby freighter. Arriving towards us from the north was Lyric, a 46’ sailboat and the first Salty Dawg rally boat we’d seen since leaving Beaufort! They were headed more due south (vs. our SE course), and we chatted over the VHF for a little while about the last day and our different weather strategies. We’ve been having a difficult time downloading the tracker data ourselves (we seem to only get boats up to the letter F, none of whom are near us), so we were keen to hear who else they’d seen, and how things had been going. It was a wonderful break from the routine and nice to not feel quite so lonely out here!

“Here”, by the way, included a bit of a milestone for us in the last day. We passed a point where we are now closer to Bermuda than the US east coast. For the next few days, we’ll be moving between Bermuda and the Bahamas, before turning south into the tradewinds. We can see the wind changing as we finally move south of a trough that has been bringing strong northerly winds since later on Day 1. In the last day the wind has veered NE, and now close to East, and our course has slowly changed towards the south. By the end of today the winds will drop. I talked about this being a journey in 3 parts in our departure blog post. Today will mark the end of the first part, moving into the second part: a few days of light to no wind and probably a lot of motoring as we work our way 400 nm to the east, aiming to get into the tradewinds Friday or Saturday.

While we’ve been making good time so far “great sailing!” as John said, the lighter winds and calmer seas will be welcome, giving us a chance to clean up both the boat and ourselves (showers will be on order!), and if it really gets calm, maybe even go for a swim. It will be nice to be rested up because it look like the journey south through the trades will be “breeze on” again next week!

Day 4 update – Visitors!
Wed Nov 16 2022

Note: apparently our blog updates yesterday (Day 4) and this morning (Day 5) didn’t get uploaded correctly, so consequently I’ve lost the distance calcs.

As we worked our way south, the winds eased a bit and progressively turned to the SE. We tacked to starboard and started working due east again. I can hear you saying “uh Mike… Antigua is SE of you”, which is true, but with the winds coming from the SE, we can’t sail directly into them, we have to sail at an angle (hence south then tacking and going east). Secondly, below about 28 degrees north latitude, the tradewinds are blowing out of the east, so if we go south to soon, we would be into difficult upwind sailing against the strong tradewinds. Instead, we’re working east now, probably to around 62 W longitude before we turn south. So, east we go for the next few days, hopefully sailing for the most part, but possibly motoring later in the week.

Today’s highlights were visitors! Just before sunset, as we tacked to start heading east, we spotted a pod of ~15 small dolphins racing towards us, leaping out of the waves as they went. The quickly surrounded the boat and for about fifteen minutes swam alongside and played in our bow wave, darting back and forth. We all quickly scrambled on deck (tethered in) to take in the spectacle. What amazing creatures! And what a memorable moment, with the orange glow of the a beautiful sunset over the ocean behind us.

Later that day, Lyric appeared again on our AIS screen (AIS is a marine beacon system), approaching from the north and ever so slowly gaining on us. We chatted back and forth over the radio, joking about scenes from Master and Commander as their sails closed in from the horizon and we did our best to keep up.

Our third visitor was rather unexpected. Mike and John were sitting reading on their phones in the cockpit after dinner. It was pitch black as the sun set very early and the moon had not risen yet. Suddenly out of the sky something fell on John’s lap. First thinking that something had fallen off the mast, John let out a quick yelp and phone lights pivoted to the downed UFO now laying on the cockpit floor. Looking back at us was one very surprised eye attached to a big fat fish about 18” long. A quick decision needed to be made if we were going to keep it and call it our first ocean catch. Not being ready to have tomorrow’s dinner literally land on our lap we decided to throw the guy back. Glenda passed Mike the silicone oven mitts while John fumbled with a bench cushion trying to corral our flopping friend. After a few attempts of pawing at the fish Mike got a good hold and tossed the guy out of the boat, looking like Julia Childs tossing a fallen soufflé from her oven. We’ll leave it to the readers imagination as to what the fish’s side of the story might be!

After the rough few days that began the trip, the vistas and visitors of the last day reminded us all of why we’re out here and what an amazing experience this really is.

Day 5 update – Simple Things
Thu Nov 17 2022

Distance travelled: 729 nm
Distance to Antigua: 824 nm
(due to blog post issues, distances are updated at 1:45 p.m. instead of 11 am)

The winds have kept on swinging around, first to the south and are now from the southwest. The easing breeze and calming seas were really welcome, and gave Innisfree a real chance to stretch her legs as we push east at 6.5-7.5 knots with 14-15 knot southerly winds. We’re making good time towards the turn into the tradewinds, hoping to reach them by Saturday morning.

The better conditions also allowed us a chance to enjoy a few simple things on the boat. First up, showers! After four rough days at sea the better conditions allowed us all to wash off a layer or two of salt and sweat, and put on some fresh clothes. It’s still a bit tricky to shower on board, however. We have hot water, a seat, handholds, and it’s pretty easy to brace yourself, but the boat is still moving… I’m trying to think of a good analogy – maybe: imagine taking a shower in a phone booth sitting on a bouncy castle! Definitely worth it, though, and sitting up in the breeze in the sunny cockpit afterwards was wonderful. Later we fired up the watermaker to refill the main tank.

Lunch consisted mostly of a series of snacks, but Glenda pulled a surprise out of the fridge, chopping up a fresh avocado and tomato for some delicious salsa and taco chips. With the rougher conditions, the last four days have been all pre-prepared meals, so the change to some fresh food was such a welcome treat.

And the calmer conditions also allowed us to open up the windows on the boat for a little while. When the seas are up, we regularly have waves splashing on to the decks, so we have to keep our vents and windows tightly closed. With temperatures around 30 Celsius during the day, and 80% humidity, you can imagine that it been more than a bit stuffy down below. Opening up the windows for a little while and allowing the fresh breeze to flow through the cabin was a little bit of mana. Simple things, but boy do they keep us in a happy mood!

This morning the winds are still good. We actually have a line of squalls ahead of us, and as the wind built up we were gearing down a bit thinking we would soon have them overhead. But they’re actually moving east about as fast as we are. With the boost in the wind, it’s like we’ve hitched our chariot to the team of squalls and they’re towing us east.

More days like this, please.

Day 6 update – Good Eats
Fri Nov 18 2022

Distance travelled: 854 nm
Distance to Antigua: 740 nm

The days are starting to blend together now… asking Glenda and John about thoughts for the blog this morning prompted a number of “no, that was two days ago, no, that was three days ago” laughs.

Since yesterday afternoon the winds and dropped to the 8-10 knot range, out of the southwest (so we’re on a broad reach). Conscious of our need to get east ahead of the trades moving north, we’ve been motor-sailing to keep our speed over 5 knots.

With the easier conditions, the windows are open again this morning. Everything on board feels coated in salt, either just sticky or actually feels a bit crusty. Can’t wait to wash it all down with fresh water.

[WE INTERRUPT THIS PROGRAM TO GO BRING IN THE FISH ON THE LINE… MORE ON THIS DEVELOPING STORY TOMORROW]

The calmer conditions again let us make dinner last night involving a bit more prep. Yummy baked gnocchi with fresh zucchini, tomatoes, and olives. Awesome. And this morning we made “4 hands coffee” (TM), which means using the coffee maker. The name comes from the fact that it’s a two-person job to fill it without spilling and then hold it steady on top of the gimballed stove while the coffee brews (to be clear, the stove is off, just using the gimbal to keep the coffeemaker level). Much nicer than the instant we’ve been drinking up to now! But the best to come was Glenda’s breakfast surprise… fresh cinnamon buns!

Today is “halfway day”, as Antigua is now closer than the miles we’ve travelled already, and we think we’ll arrive mid-next week. In addition to the cinnamon buns this morning, we’ve planned to celebrate a bit this evening while the seas are nice before we hit the trades tomorrow.

Day 7 update – Halfway Day
Sat Nov 19 2022

Distance travelled: 970 nm
Distance to Antigua: 677 nm

Yesterday we celebrated “halfway day”, as we passed the point where the miles ahead of us to Antigua were fewer than the miles behind us from Beaufort. Motor-sailing across the calm before the trades, we made the most of the gentle conditions in a few ways.

We caught a fish! Before we left, everyone who had sailed on these passages told us how we had to try and catch fish while underway. None of us really have much fishing experience, and Glenda and my efforts over the years have been minimal and generally unsuccessful. While in Beaufort, John dutifully read up on fishing from the sailboat offshore and made sure we were properly equipped with a hand reel and the right lures. So yesterday we hauled out and rigged the hand reel and after a few minutes getting the right amount of length out, and jerry rigging some weights to hold the lure a little below the water, we had the line out the back, and I went back to blogging. Less than 15 minutes later, Glenda called out “we have a fish on the line!”, and we scrambled to dig out the fish net, fish knife, a bucket and cutting board while we slowly hauled in our catch. It was a good one… a Mahi Mahi, about 2.5 ft long.

Glenda worked the fish net while I hauled him in, and once on board Glenda made sure to avoid the key mistake we had made when we’d caught fish in the past that resulted in us throwing them back: this time Glenda didn’t give it a name. Instead, onto the cutting board where John “euthanized” it with a heavy dose of gin in the gills, and we then set about to fileting. After I butchered the filet on one side, Glenda took over and showed the family fishing DNA, cleaning off the whole side into a perfect filet in two quick cuts. A hearty meal’s worth of fish in hand, the rest went over the side and we began looking forward to dinner.

Later that afternoon, we paused to do something we’d hoped from the beginning we’d have a chance to do: with the wind nearly gone, we dropped the sails, stopped the boat, and went for a swim. What a unique experience, with over 4 km of water underneath us. Crystal clear, when you ducked your head down the blue colour of the depths was incredibly vivid and rich. We laughed and delighted in the chance to cool off. Hopefully the drone footage turns out!

The fresh fish made a great dinner, but Glenda had one more treat planned for halfway day, baking up some brownies for dessert. It was calm enough to sit with the cockpit table up for dinner, and we even celebrated with a small shot of rum each.

I should note as I keep talking about some amazing treats Glenda makes, that we’re sharing all the cooking and cleaning galley duties between the three of us. But Glenda did all the hard work planning and provisioning, and so the special treats she has planned (that we do or don’t know about) are all her.

Overnight we the stars shone brightly above the glassy seas. Mars rose in the east and reflected in the water. Standing out on deck it felt like we were a little ship travelling through the cosmos, like you could reach out and touch the stars above.

Towards midnight, we started to see the first soft winds blowing from the east / south east… the beginnings of the tradewinds. This morning they’ve continued to build and will shortly see us finally turn off the motor after a couple of days, turn right and start sailing mostly south.

Another rally boat, Act Three, has joined us and is visible in the distance, and we chatted this morning about our plans for the days ahead. Another tanker/freighter is passing nearby (we see freighters 1-2 times/day). Of the three phases of the trip, this marks the end of phase two and the beginning of phase three, and what looks to be a breezy, fast sail south to Antigua.

Day 8 update – Into the Trades
Sun Nov 20 2022

Distance travelled: 1088 nm
Distance to Antigua: 558 nm

Conditions are different now! Yesterday we turned south, shut off the engine, and started sailing. The conditions were pleasant, with ~12 knot winds and as planned we were still able to working our way a little bit east as we went.

Glenda spotted a breaching whale! For those who don’t know, Glenda loves whales, a lot. I can’t really overstate how much she loves whales. As in, “obsession” is probably not too strong a word (in a good way).

And Glenda is by far the best eagle-eye spotter of all life aquatic when we’re sailing, frequently scanning the horizon for signs of a distant blow. Since we had that magical dolphin encounter a few days ago, Glenda has been heard frequently calling out “whaley… where are you, whaley?”. While yesterday the whale was in the distance, that didn’t stop Glenda from spotting what was likely a breaching humpback, kicking up a huge splash (sadly, I looked up in time to see only the splash). Unfortunately, it was a “blink and you miss it” encounter, where we didn’t spot him again. Still, a nice highlight to see the big life in the ocean.

As the day went on, the wind stayed stubbornly with a bit of south-east in the direction. That has meant for close reach or close-hauled sailing, where we have the sails in tight as we point the boat as close to the wind direction as we can. We’re on the longitude of Antigua now, and really don’t want to give up ground by sailing west. Ideally, we want to continue to make progress east and buy us flexibility to head away from the wind for a little while if the conditions get difficult. Being close to the wind means the boat is heeled over more and we sail into the waves instead of with them, and so life on board is back to careful maneuvering, simple meals, and ear plugs to drown out the noise of the bouncing/creaking when you’re trying to sleep.

Overnight, we allowed ourselves to slip west a bit in order to make it easier to sleep, but with winds continuing to persist from the east-southeast (instead of a forecast east-northeast), we’re determined to regain our lost easting and are now motor-sailing on a close-hauled course towards the southwest. The forecast for the next few days has the wind building especially on Tuesday and Wednesday as we approach Antigua, so we really do want to “put some miles in the bank” to the east (as sailors say) and be able to sail a more comfortable southwesterly course when the stronger winds and waves arrive. All the while, we’ve been making good progress south, and it looks like we’re on track for a Thursday arrival in Antigua.

Day 9 update – Tradewinds Routine
Mon Nov 21 2022

Distance travelled: 1208 nm
Distance to Antigua: 444 nm

There really isn’t all that much to report from the last day. We had more luck yesterday afternoon regaining our easting and are trying to hold on to it this morning as the winds have frustratingly yet again developed a southeast component. Tradewinds sailing is one of those things experienced sailors talk about in positive terms – days of rolling along in the sun and the breeze. But in those cases they usually travelling with the wind behind them, not working across the tradewinds like we are. In our case it’s more of a struggle, with the boat heeled a fair bit and having to push into or across the waves, instead of moving with them.

It’s also pretty darn hot now. The ocean water temperature is 28.6 Celsius, the air is over 30. All together, it makes it difficult to be very active for long. We have developed a good routine. Working through our watch rotation at night is getting everyone a pretty decent amount of sleep. Meals during the day take time to prepare and eat, and the heat of the stove makes it pretty oppressive in the galley. With no one really feeling like the planned hot meal last night, John did a great job conjuring up some chicken salad wraps for dinner. “Catch as catch can”, as he says. We chat away in the cockpit during the day, and we have all been making good progress on the books and podcasts we brought with us as the miles go by. Talk of “when we get to Antigua, I’m looking forward to…” is creeping into conversations.

We’re seeing more and more flying fish around the boat. These amazing little creatures, maybe 8” long, have 6” fins on each side they use like wings, leaping out of the waves and flying across the surface of the ocean for up to 100 meters. We even found one (sadly dead) on deck, no doubt having accidentally landed on our boat and then being unable to flop back to the water. Lots of hope we’ll see more wildlife in the days ahead as we approach the islands.

The winds are building gradually as we move south. Yesterday they were 11-14 knots, today 16-18, and we know they will continue to get stronger as we approach Antigua. All the more reason we are motivated to hang on to or increase our easting so we can turn and run a bit down wind when we are on approach.

Day 10 update – Big Waves!
Tue Nov 22 2022

Distance travelled: 1343 nm
Distance to Antigua: 313 nm

We went into our watches last night with the winds building, and (finally) turning away to blow a little more from the northeast rather than east-southeast. That put the wind a little more behind us, and definitely reduced the amount of slapping/pounding while we were sailing. The moon is almost new – the small sliver that rose after midnight barely provided any light, so the night was very dark. It’s hard to see the horizon or the clouds around or the waves as they come. Our radar, however, does a good job of picking up any rain within 30 miles, showing us where the squalls are and giving us a bit of notice if we need to adjust course or reduce sail.

Even though we couldn’t really see them, the rolling of the boat suggested that the seas were growing while the winds gusted into the mid-20 knot range. And this morning at dawn we could see the result… big 15+ foot waves, with the crests 100 feet or more apart, rolling along – it really is an impressive sight. The waves aren’t breaking, though, so our boat generally just rolls up and over them as they pass. Sometimes a smaller wave will splash against the hull and send spray into the cockpit, or maybe roll us a little more than the others, sending us all quickly reaching for handholds, while carefully guarding our coffee in the other hand.

The sun is out, and despite using only our double-reefed main and staysail we’re making good time down the track. We’re seeing some small sea birds more frequently now (small white birds that look like some kind of tern). No need to push the boat; as one of the experienced cruisers pointed out before the rally… “The islands have been there a long time. They’ll still be there whenever you get there.” Slow and steady is our plan, making sure we all stay rested and take care of the boat. In fact the forecast suggests that the waves may decrease a bit tomorrow, and both the winds and waves will decrease further on Thursday as we get in.

Day 11 update – Breeze On
Wed Nov 23 2022

Distance travelled: 1483 nm
Distance to Antigua: 180 nm

Well, the winds have certainly not let up, and as sailors say, it’s “Breeze On” conditions. The underlying winds are in the high teens, but with squalls in the area, they frequently gust higher. Last night’s watch began with a line of squalls moving across our track. Though we were lucky and managed to sail through the line between two squalls, the breeze was up.

With no moon now, it’s difficult to pick out the dark shapes of the clouds against the stars, so the cockpit feels a bit like the inside of a black box, lit by the glow of the instruments and the chartplotter. It’s interesting how your senses deceive you at night. In the dark, the sounds of the waves and boat moving through ocean seem louder, and the light of the surf deceives you. It’s hard to anticipate the waves and the motion of the boat (because you can’t see them coming). And you feel like you’re going incredibly fast, only to check the instruments and see that, often, things are pretty tame!

While all of us were dodging squalls at times, Glenda certainly had the most fun on her watch, as the winds built to over 30 knots and the boat surged along at up to 9 knots at times, under only a double-reefed main and partially furled staysail. At times the winds moved southeast, but the easting we gave up overnight was quickly regained this morning when they moved back northeast.

So we’re now surging south; fast, fun sailing in the sun, into the final stages of the trip. If all goes well, tonight will be our last night on passage, with arrival into Antigua probably sometime before midnight tomorrow.

Day 12 update – Landfall!
Thu Nov 24 2022

Distance travelled: 7591 nm
Distance to Antigua: 42 nm

Barely visible 30 nm to the southwest, Glenda just spotted the hills of Antigua rising out of the horizon. We’re presently sailing south towards the southeast corner of Antigua. Barbuda is about 10 miles east of us, but it’s a low-lying island, so (despite much staring and gazing through binoculars), we can’t see it. But Antigua is more mountainous, and that makes all the difference.

Land Ho!

Today, however, we’re enjoying some of the best sailing of the whole passage. We’re flying along in 13 knots of wind with full main, jib, and genoa on a broad reach. Sun is out and the waves are more gentle than the last two days. It’s Champagne sailing (which is appropriate, since we have a bottle of bubbly in the fridge to celebrate our arrival later). We’re trying not to get too excited as there are still a lot of hours to go, but let’s face it… with landfall we all have pretty big smiles on our faces right now.

We should round the corner of Antigua before sunset, but unfortunately it looks like it we won’t make it into the anchorage in Falmouth Harbour until a couple of hours after sunset. It’s a big harbour and well marked, and we have excellent charts, so we’re not worried about coming in after dark. We can’t wait to open up all the windows on board and let the air flow through to take the stuffiness out of the boat, jump in for a swim, and of course celebrate with a drink (or two).

We’ll post another update later once we’re settled in the anchorage.

Arrival!
Thu Nov 24 2022, 5 p.m.
Innisfree has arrived and is now sitting happily at anchor in Falmouth Harbour, Antigua.
Total distance: 1665 nm
Time taken: 12 days, 6 hours
Average speed: 5.66 knots
Time to celebrate!
Mike, Glenda, and John