Yesterday morning we were up early to get Kosmos ready to go to sea. At 0900, we went to the marina office to check out. Check out was as easy as check in. Eric filled out one form, the clerk faxed it to the officials, and minutes later the form was faxed back with stamps. Super easy.
Once we were cleared to leave, we pulled out of our slip and went around the corner to the fuel dock. We decided to load up here because Continue reading
Lights from the island were visible in the wee hours of the morning. There weren’t a lot of lights, but there certainly were enough to make the fact that we were approaching land very obvious and very real. Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!
As the sun rose, we eagerly checked out our new surroundings. The land we had seen on the radar last night was the island of Grande Terre, the eastern half of the butterfly. Shortly before dawn, we had approached from the southeast corner of Grande Terre, and were now following the coastline northwest, so the island was on our right. From what we could see, it looks to be very flat and pretty dry. The western half of the butterfly, Basse Terre, was due west, so it was directly ahead of us in the distance. Basse Terre is mountainous, lush and green, which contrasts sharply with Grande Terre. Even though Basse Terre was much farther away, because of its height, both the island and its infrastructure were more visible that the flat Grande Terre. From what we could tell, both islands were dotted with scattered buildings. As a bit of trivia, in French “Grade Terre” means “big land” and “Basse Terre” means “flat land”, so it seems the French misnamed the two islands. However, the names stem from the amount of wind. Grande Terre, being the easternmost island, gets big winds, and Basse Terre doesn’t get nearly as much wind.
Our destination was just south of where the two islands join together, on the Grande Terre side. As we moved deeper into the bay created by the two side by side islands, slowly but surely the ride became calmer and smoother. At 0930 local time we neared the marina in Point a Pitre, and the men brought in the paravanes. By now we were in pretty well protected waters and it was fairly flat. Once the paravanes were secured, we rounded a corner into an inlet where the marina is located. We’re not totally sure what we were expecting, but it was definitely more modern than we had anticipated. The marina was lined with what seemed like endless 3 and 4 story condominium complexes that all had waterfront views. The condos all seemed like they were high end and fairly new, though, honestly, they looked a bit weather beaten, most likely the after effects of some of the big storms that blow in here during the summers. Across the water from the marina is a series of high end, brand new looking and very attractive commercial buildings.
Both photos are taken from the mouth of the marina inlet. The first photo is looking back at Basse Terre. You can see some boats moored in the distance. The second photo is looking forward, and you can see some of the commercial buildings in the front left and the marina in the back left.
We called the marina office on the radio and were pleased Continue reading
Day 19 – 1000 UTC location: 16°52.00’N by 056°34.00’W and 2474 nm from Las Palmas. Yesterday’s average speed was 5.8 knots.
Conditions:
Around 0130, the seas picked up even more, though the wind was still dead. It was still an OK ride, but not nearly as nice as it was. By morning, the wind had picked up to 10 knots apparent and shifted to our nose. The swells were only at 4 6 feet on our starboard beam, but they were coming from two directions, north and northeast. The wind waves were at 1 – 2 feet and choppy. The wave intervals and force had picked up, so it was definitely rougher than yesterday. Eric commented that Continue reading
Day 17 – 1000 UTC location: 17°35.00’N by 051°46.00’W and 2195 nm from Las Palmas. Yesterday’s average speed was 6.0 knots at 1600 RPM.
Conditions:
The wind was erratic today, moving from starboard to port and back again, but the gusts were so light at 5 12 knots that it didn’t matter much. Despite the fact that the wind had picked up some, the seas just continued to get better, though so gradually it was almost imperceptible. Wind waves were nothing, and the swells were 4 6 feet, gentle, lazy, and at long intervals. We are so happy we decided to pick a northern route. It paid off, after all. It was sunny, though heavy clouds moved in later in the day. The moon isn’t going to rise until after midnight, so as of this writing at 2200, it is pitch black outside.
News:
We managed to make contact with the sailboats today. They are also having “good motoring weather”. The fastest of the bunch is Continue reading
Day 15 – 0900 UTC location: 18°18.00’N by 046°47.00’W and 1907 nm from Las Palmas. Yesterday’s average speed was 6.0 knots.
Conditions:
By midnight, the wind speed had slowed down to about 15 low 20’s apparent and spun around to the port aft, which is the direction the wind was supposed to be coming from. By 1000, the wind was down to 5 10 knots from port beam and the seas had seriously calmed down. The swells were about 4 8 feet and waves about 2 6 feet. But more importantly, they were less confused, coming at less rapid intervals, and “longer and lazier” than they had been (quote from Colin). We were still Continue reading