Our yacht, a
Dufour 40, is currently in
Canaries and we intend to return to
Europe next spring / early summer.
I am aware of the principle that the shortest
route is via the
Caribbean but, for various reasons, don't wish to do that this year. Our
current plan is, after a couple of months in the
Canaries, go down to Cape Verdes and then
head up to
Azores in late March / early April. We would
head off NW, beam reaching the
trade winds, to transition into the North Atlantic
weather system expecting to arrive heading NE. While this is not a well trodden
route, from my available sources, e.g. Atlantic Pilot Atlas, this seems to be eminently do-able. Chatting to others, I have received comments from 'unusual, but don't see why not' to 'don't even think about it, you will wreck your
boat and drown'.
The latter comes from folk who have met someone in a bar and got given a scary story or who haven't actually looked at what I'm proposing, but since there may be truth in even half informed opinion, I am loth to commit myself to a potentially unworkable position.
Has anyone done this route and can offer
advice?
Have I missed something? Is there perhaps something about the transition between systems in the area that presents a particular hazard.
Lionel