Brazil to Caribbean

[B4A]

Hi all,

we crossed the South Atlantic ocean from Cape Town to Ilha Grande, Brazil, where we are having the time of our life cruising around the green coast.

I'm starting to make the itinerary for the sail up to Trinidad and Tobago, planned around May. So far I have the following stops:

Rio de Janeiro
Cabo Frio
Buzios
Vitoria
Abrolhos
Porto Seguro
Santa Cruz
Santo Andre
Ilheus
Itacare
Camamu
Salvador
Barra de Sao Miguel
Maragogi
Santo Aleixo
Itamaraca
Cabedelo
Fernando
Fortaleza
Sao Luis
Ilhes do Salut
Trinidad

The goal is to make short legs when possible and see as much as we can of Brazil.

Is there any other place that I should stop (or avoid to stop)?

Any recommendation will be greatly appreciated.

[Nelsons]

Hi, I will sail the same route next year. If you mean Fernando de Noronha, it’s a must.

However how was your sailing from CT north, did you stop in Namibia? And how was the leg to St. Helena and further to Ascension? I can’t wait to go and I dare to hear from your experiences.

[conachair]

Can't comment south of Cabadelo/Jacare (which was great fun ) , but north from there has a great current, best day was 70Nm from current alone. With sailing so good I did Isle De Salut in one hit from Jacare.
Suriname worth a look IMHO, up the river to Domburg then 4 days up to Tobago.

[Blackie Swart]

Originally Posted by conachair

Can't comment south of Cabadelo/Jacare (which was great fun ) , but north from there has a great current, best day was 70Nm from current alone. With sailing so good I did Isle De Salut in one hit from Jacare.
Suriname worth a look IMHO, up the river to Domburg then 4 days up to Tobago.

Go past Domburg to Waterland Marina and Resort. Really great place and people. Domburg was really disappointing and so were the people at the "yacht club"

[B4A]

Originally Posted by Nelsons

Hi, I will sail the same route next year. If you mean Fernando de Noronha, it’s a must.

However how was your sailing from CT north, did you stop in Namibia? And how was the leg to St. Helena and further to Ascension? I can’t wait to go and I dare to hear from your experiences.

You have to stop in Namibia, it's beautiful. If you are interested in learning more about the crossing, go to https://sailingoroboro.com/https://sailingoroboro.com/

You will also find an excerpt of my logbook here: https://sailingoroboro.com/2019/02/1...tlantic-ocean/

And yes, Fernando de Noronha is a must.

[B4A]

Originally Posted by conachair

Can't comment south of Cabadelo/Jacare (which was great fun ) , but north from there has a great current, best day was 70Nm from current alone. With sailing so good I did Isle De Salut in one hit from Jacare.
Suriname worth a look IMHO, up the river to Domburg then 4 days up to Tobago.

What month of the year and can you show your track?

Thanks!

[B4A]

Originally Posted by Blackie Swart

Go past Domburg to Waterland Marina and Resort. Really great place and people. Domburg was really disappointing and so were the people at the "yacht club"

Thanks! We'll check it out!

[Nelsons]

Hi B4A, thanks for your feedback. We plan to leave CapeTown around Sept15 in order to arrive in the Caribbean mid Nov. Following Jimmy Cornell’s wind charts it seems to be the appropriate time.

[B4A]

Hi Nelson,

watch the weather in Cape Town. Stop in Luderitz and Walvis Bay in Namibia if you can. There is a ghost town near Luderitz that it's worth visiting. Also, leaving from Walvis Bay you'll get a better wind angle.

If you can, visit Southern Ropes in Cape town, it's a great place to upgrade or replace your sheet. You will never find better price and quality anywhere else in the world.

Where do you intend to make landfall in Brazil?

[Nelsons]

Thanks for your thoughts. Indeed I have planned to stop in both places in Namibia. Isn’t it smart to keep first northerly after leaving Walvis? I saw some underwater mountains on the straight way Walvis-St. Helena and had the idea that it might cause rough seas. What do you recommend? In Brazil, I only want to stop in FdN. I know the lovely coast on Brazil already but I don’t to get involved in the current fuss.

[daletournier]

Originally Posted by Nelsons

Thanks for your thoughts. Indeed I have planned to stop in both places in Namibia. Isn’t it smart to keep first northerly after leaving Walvis? I saw some underwater mountains on the straight way Walvis-St. Helena and had the idea that it might cause rough seas. What do you recommend? In Brazil, I only want to stop in FdN. I know the lovely coast on Brazil already but I don’t to get involved in the current fuss.

I left from Luderitz and stuck fairly close to the rhumbline to St Helena, no problems, uneventful sail.

We went to Salvador then Capedelo. Fast run up Brazil coast due to current.

[Nicholson58]

B4A. Do you plan to arrive in Trinidad in June? That is the beginning of hurricane season, June through November. Many sailors hang out on the southern end of the islands or leave their boats in Chaguaramos, Trinidad. Land Tour the islands from Power Boats in Chaguaramos with Jessie James at Members Only tours.
Taste of Trinidad
Scarlet Ibis
Humming birds
Steel Pan
Weekly runs to the mall and fresh markets

We launch in November along with many others. Great community in the yard. Great street food outside of the fence. I bicycle to a national park most mornings before it gets hot.

[B4A]

Originally Posted by Nicholson58

B4A. Do you plan to arrive in Trinidad in June? That is the beginning of hurricane season, June through November. Many sailors hang out on the southern end of the islands or leave their boats in Chaguaramos, Trinidad. Land Tour the islands from Power Boats in Chaguaramos with Jessie James at Members Only tours.
Taste of Trinidad
Scarlet Ibis
Humming birds
Steel Pan
Weekly runs to the mall and fresh markets

We launch in November along with many others. Great community in the yard. Great street food outside of the fence. I bicycle to a national park most mornings before it gets hot.

We are planning to arrive mid October. Can you recommend a place where I can haul out to have the bottom done? I also need to replace a floor panel (under warranty).

[B4A]

Originally Posted by Nelsons

Thanks for your thoughts. Indeed I have planned to stop in both places in Namibia. Isn’t it smart to keep first northerly after leaving Walvis? I saw some underwater mountains on the straight way Walvis-St. Helena and had the idea that it might cause rough seas. What do you recommend? In Brazil, I only want to stop in FdN. I know the lovely coast on Brazil already but I don’t to get involved in the current fuss.

You are referring to the Valdiva sea mountains? Those are more south. When you leave Walvis, you keep northerly to get to St Helena. You can't skip that!

[DawnTreader]

We liked Santo Andre, but the entrance is tricky. You will probably be ok with a shallow draft cat. There was a local there screaming and jestering from the beach with directions. We did not run aground, but another boat did as we were leaving. It is best to enter when there isn't a big swell running.

Camamu is a great place, one of the best we found in Brazil.

Pete Hills guides in e-book format are the better than any of the other guides. They are on Amazon for cheap.

Be very careful North of Camamu. We were boarded and robbed at gunpoint in Maragojipe.