Atlantic Circle Advice

[mct]

Originally Posted by szymk

Great to read your discussion here, guys! I'm not really doing an Atlantic circle, but I was indeed hoping to cross from Florida to Portugal this year. Like Gordon_A, I'm not very experienced but motivated (it seems to be a keyword here!)

What I found interesting, is the possible advantage of heading directly to the Azores, rather than passing by Bermuda. I'll be leaving Florida around the 20th of June and I planned to pass by the Bahamas (just the edge); then Bermuda and finally Azores. It was mostly due to provisioning problems - despite the fact that my boat is bigger, I still can hardly fit enough water / diesel in it to guarantee safe passage for more than 2 weeks. Of course, there are several more or less desperate measures to solve it (desalinator, elastic water tanks, etc...)

Do you think it's better due to the wind / current situation to skip Bermuda? Sailing in July, I fear the lack of wind, especially when nearing the Azores high. What do you thing would be time I need to do the Florida -> Azores passage around that time?

Hi, i think June20th as very very late as you should leave ("July- standby")- i'd leave sooner this year, atlantic is warmer than normal and hurricanes forecast is above average. So have a good look, and get moving asap maybe?

[Palarran]

No, I always try to go to Orient where the girls don't wear bikini's, if you know what I mean
I'll PM you the rest of the message.

[elhix]

Originally Posted by Gordon_A

We have countless books on all aspects of sailing, cruising and boat maintenance. One I especially enjoyed was "Atlantic Crossings" by Les Weatheritt.

If you've not got it already The Atlantic Crossing Guide by the RCC Pilotage Foundation is very good. I must admit I found Les Weatheritt's book of limited use although quite entertaining.

[goboatingnow]

I would recomend Lagos in portugal, nice close to the town, good services, ( good yard), better then portimao, Villamoura is a flashy mobo marina IMHO)

Also given the very tight timescales, consider sailing on down to the Canaries , very good marinas, cheap fuel, best and cheap food, good facilites. Its also a very nice sailing ground with nice runs to the outer islands. Very good air services. The other things that tha avoids is a late season run down from europe, whoch can catch you with bad weather off the straits.

PS in a 29 footer, get in as much heavy weather as you can, The azores europe run can often generate bad weather at any time of the year.

[Gordon_A]

Thanks 'elhix', we'll look for the guide.
Thanks 'goboatingnow'. We'll take your advice on the stops.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Gordon_A

First Post. Thanks for looking.
Planning a year-long Atlantic circle in 2012-2013. 2 aboard an Alberg 29. Considering Mid-May from NYC area, south-east toward lat 40, east to the Azores (June) then Portugal. Returning via Canary Islands (January 2013) through the Caribbean (March-April) and back to NYC for May.
Would appreciate advice from anyone with experience about (1) our timing/schedule (2) Safe and reasonably-priced mooring in Portugal or nearby (my buddy will fly back while I stay with the boat to wait out hurricane season). Thanks.

Hi.. some good cautionary advice here so will chuck in my ditzzy views and experiences for you to consider.
I've made one crossing from the States(NC) but two departures in a37ftr, the first in early April passing north of Bermuda where I got hammered and had to turn back due to gear failure and hull concerns(Groundless) when a bulkhead was punched out by big wave dumping on me. Second attempt the following year May(same boat) was sucessful but still got some heavy weather and ended up hand steering for 1300 miles following Autopilot failure... crossing took 40days, water turned foul in tanks after 17 days and was filtering/boiling with only 1 litre out of 3 useable... not nice.
The St Martin-Azores-Portugal run I've done twice,
1st time(31ftr) I left June 14th 01, and took 24 days to reach the Azores... 3 days of calms after the Stream then good S-SE's the rest of the time.
2nd time(34ftr) I left St Martin April 12th 08, took 21 days to reach Horta with only 1 day of calms... worst weather on these runs was F7 gusting 8's for short spells during some line squalls but nothing troubling.
All crossing were solo so no watchkeeping problems...lol.
In the Azores Horta is the usual stop and well worth the experience but no anchoring unless Marina's full then they'll let you hang on the hook till a space comes available... Terceira's got a nice anchorage on its NE where you can hang out and its an easy days run from Horta.. great spot to wait for the time for the run to Portugal... they also have several bull runs in the streets every year which are a great laugh and good party fiesta's...
As for Portugal.. I'll disagree with Lagos as the best... Portimao now has great facilities, an good anchorage and a friendly Marina and does not involve entering a canal to reach it.. bigger and better Supermarkets and not as expensive. Boats have sat at anchor there for months with no worries tho the ocassional SW can force you into the Marina for comfort.. but holding is very good.. should warn you its now a Cruise port so watch out for big ships. Another great place to wait is the Faro/Olhau lagoon to the east just past Villamoura.. lots of choices for anchoring and two different types of towns.. Faro touristy and expats... Olhau more old Portugal and with fantastic fish/meat/veg market on the quay... lots to see and do if you've a good dinghy to get you round. The favourite spot used to be just off the sandbar village of Culatra but they've now built a marina for the local fishing boats but further east are some great quiet spots you can reach on a rising tide..
Another possibilty is going up the Guadinana.. get a taste of Spain on one bank and Portugal on the other... the big advantage of this is fuel/food etc is cheaper in Spain.
Water needs are dependant on how many crew.. how often you shower... try salt water bathing with a fresh water rinse of from a solar bag in the cockpit.. you dont get dirty out there so unless you suffer from a glandular BO problem... once a week is plenty...
If you want to explore the towns of the Algarve there's a cheap regular coastal railway that'll get you to most places worth a visit... Portimao to Lagos 4euro return last time I used it early in 09... runs from Lagos to the Guadiana... Enjoy and dont stress out to much.. its not that bad... just be carefull with needless water wasteage... fresh is for drinking... not for laundry and washing plates and pans...

[boatman61]

Oh... I should add that my approach is a bit different from the bulk of folks on here who seem to press on regardless to meet their "crossing times"...
Its not unusual for me to heave to for a couple of days for a 'weekend off' when I just laze about, swim, read, sunbathe, feed up on nice meals etc... in mid ocean... the change of pace/motion is magic...
Guess thats the advantage of single handing...
www.magicseaweed.com www.windguru.com www.meteo-marine.com are my fav sites...

[svHyLyte]

FWIW Don Street has a good article in this months Cruising regarding a trip to Europe and back in a season with an outbound route that only requires about two weeks off-shore, from St. Johns Newfoundland to the Southeast Coast of Ireland--about 1600 N. Miles.

[Gordon_A]

Thank you 'boatman61'.
Greatly appreciate your notes on anchorages/harbours. I'll definately heed your advice on water conservation. We also plan to bring a small watermaker, just in case. It will be stored in the ditch bag. We will not be on a tight schedule, but we don't plan to heave-to unless it's necessary. Don't want to tempt mother nature by over-staying our welcome out there.
Thanks 'svHyLyte'.
A local couple did a similar crossing from Newfoundland, but they went to France (Larochelle). The did fine, but the 4 things that concern me about such a Northern route are; the likelihood of heavy fog when leaving, the higher winds on that route, the colder temperatures (unless you leave in hurricane season) and the possibility of ice.
Gordon_A

[boatman61]

Funnily enough the US is the only place I've watered up and had it turn bad in my tanks with big gloopy growths... but then again its the only place I've come out of the shower smelling worse than when I went in..
In Oriental/New Bern I smelt like I'd swum in the Neuse for an hour..
and in New York State I ended up smelling like a really bad fart...
Dont you guys have water purifying plants.. or is it a deliberate ploy to maintain the bottled water industry...