Marks Sail-Away Blog

2011-11-15T05:25:00.000-08:00

Cairns (Australia) to Mauritius

Since my previous post when I wrote from Cairns in Australia almost 2 years ago, so much has happened that I am literally only now finding the opportunitty to update my Blog. Anyway it's not such a bad thing - restrospective writing allows hindsight and poetic licence!

I have divided this blog entry into 3 sections each representing a separate cruise:
- Cairns (Australia) to Brisbane (Australia)
- Brisbane to Cocos Keeling
- Cocos Keeling to Mauritius

Cairns to Darwin

As I mentioned in a previous blog, I was flush with family commitments and I had hoped that Rory Cremer (who accompanied me on the leg up to Cairns) would skipper LAD around the north side of Australia, and then onto South Africa. That had fallen through and the new plan involved finding somebody to sail LAD to Darwin while I was fulfilling family commitments and then I would re-join the boat in Darwin and do the legs across to Mauritius with my two sons Stuart and Robin.

I was really fortunate to hook up with Royce Black, a professional delivery skipper, who together with his girlfriend completed the delivery for me. By all accounts they had a wonderful trip and Royce really enjoyed sailing Life's A Dream.

Darwin to Cocos Keeling

I attended Robin and Tatyana's wedding in Hawaii on August 10 and left soon thereafter (August 23) for Darwin. Stuart and Robin arrived 2 days later. LAD was in great shape. Royce had moored her on anchor off the Fannie Bay Yacht Club. A very nice safe anchorage but murder to come to shore by Dinghy. The tidal range is large and going on shore at high tide involved dragigng/ carrying our very heavy dinghy and 15 hp motor about 150 meters before we were at the waters edge. Thank goodness Robin and Stuart are fit, young and strong.

We had only planned to stay in Darwin for a few days to complete provisioning for the long haul across the Indian Ocean with stops in Cocos Keeling and Mauritius. So it was a really hectic time but we did have some time for fun and sightseeing. Fortunately a very kind friend of Royce lent us a spare pick-up (bakkie) during our stay and that made things a lot easier.

Fannie Bay Yacht club was quite delightful and we were somewhat disappointed that we were on such a tight schedule to get to South Africa.

We left Darwin bound for Cocos Keeling (about 2300 miles to go) in a light East North Easterly on September 1, 2010. For the first 5 days the wind did not get above 15 knots with lots of 5 and less. We mostly motor sailed. It was a great time for Stuart to get familiar with boat life on LAD. We played lots of Scrabble, ate really well, caught a few fish and generally had a great time bonding as a family. The only diversion during this time was the regular visit each afternoon of an Australian Border Patrol plane which would buzz our boat and request the same information - Port of Registry, number of crew, where we had come from, where we were going. They would then fly off just to repeat the same process each day. Australia has many problems with boat loads of Sri Lankan "illegals" trying their luck, so the patrol is quite vigilant.

5 days into the trip the wind picked up, the plane stopped it's visits and we settled into a solid routine. The wind blew consistently from the ESE but was a little too variable in strength for my liking. Also the wave action was quite rolly and uncomfortable - thank goodness we were on a catamaran. We had quite a few squalls as well, but unlike what I had experienced in the Atlantic they are generally quite civilized with no high winds.

We caught lots of fish and constantly came into contact with marine life (Fish, birds, dolphins). We hooked a MONSTER marlin. Just after the strike it jumped, and even at the distance that it was from us we were awestruck - certainly the biggest marlin I have ever seen. Not surprising the line snapped within the first 5 minutes much to my relief and Stuart/ Robin's dismay.

18 days later we made landfall. It had been a very slow trip but very enjoyable.

Cocos Keeling to Mauritius

Cocos Keeling is fairly uniques in many ways. It is one of a very few islands in the South Atlantic conveniently situated halfway between Australia and Africa. It consists of a group of 5 land masses in the shape of an Atoll. This means a ring of islands with a channel into the ring where the water is generally calm shallow and perfect for anchoring in the lee. Exactly what we did - in the lee of Direction Island with lovely coral formations lots of fish life and perfect visibility.

Cocos is an Australian territory and the residents are Australian. It has a fascinating history and an old world feel. The residents are a mixture of mainland christians and moslems originally from Malay.

There were a number of boats in the anchorage including the fleet of boats participating in the 2010 ARC rally. This is a round-the-world yearly pilgrimage of cruisers who enjoy sailing in a group They are usually first time cruisers looking for experience and safety in numbers. We also met up with "Stealaway" a 43 foot Cat from South African skippered by Alan Dawson with his delightful wife Kerry-Ann and their two daughters, "Cheshire Cat "(a 48 foot Morris) owned by Michaek Thienenman and skippered by Justin Danby, and "Son of the Sun" a 43 foot Wauquiz skippered by Franz Kroeplien and his first mate Kerry Boe.

We could have spent much longer in this delightful anchorage but as seems to be the case so much during this cruise, we were pressured by time. There had been some bad low pressure systems around the atoll over the week that we were there and it would probably have been better to stay put for another few days, but time constraints just did not allow. We left Cocos on September 25 just behind "Cheshire Cat" and just in front of "Stealaway".

Not more than 1 hour out we caught a beautiful Wahoo but then had problems with our Jib and lost 4 hours sorting this out while Stealaway disappeared over the horizon.

For the next 2 days we ran comfortably under main and jib on a broad reach but then the front caught us and it was siege time! Winds rarely dropped below 30 knots apparent (closer to 35 knots actual) with gusts in the 40 - 50 knot range. The sea state was very uncomfortable. Wave direction from the South West and wind direction from the South East - not nice. For most of the next 6 days we sailed under a severely reefed jib with no main and speeds rarely below 8 knots. Unfortunately the wave direction ensured that we were constantly awash with water. Here is a typical remark from the log "LAD handles shit well. Lots of water Ugh!"

Sometime during this period we passed Stealaway. Amazingly, not more than 30 meters seperated us at one stag. we actuall changed course slightly to avoid getting even closer. They have a smaller boat and had a far worse time of it than we did. In fact, at one stage during those 5 days, Stealaway buried her bows and as Alan relates it "I wasn't sure she would recover - it was quite frightening".

It was nice to have a daily sched on radio with Cheshire Cat and Steaaway, as well as some other boats on the ARC rally who had also left just after us. Unfortunately the weather reports were not too accurate and everyday we were "promised" improved weather which never seemed to materialize.

13 days and 2400 miles later we arrived in Mauritius after an eventful trip. Lots of fish, lots of heavy sailing, and to put the cherry on the top we had problems with the starboard propellor and arrived in a windy crowded anchorage on one engine (not easy on a large Cat like Life's A Dream". As a consolation we had nice winds on the last few days and even managed to fly our one and a half ounce (heavy weather) spinnaker.

We were all happy to be in Mauritius. All in all it was a fitting destination for what had turned out to be one of the most enjoyable legs of the trip. I think that the reason I felt so good about it was the special opportunity afforded to me to have my two sons sailing with me on the long haul across the Indian Ocean.

The ARC rally boats had booked out the complete La Caudan Waterfront marina area which really upset all of us cruisers who had been promised accommodation on arrival. Fortunately I had made contact with Bertrand Hardy of Yacht Management Services in Port Louis and he arranged moorings for all of the arriving yachts in a fairly derelict marina area just outside La Caudan. It turned out to be a really convivial and friendly time as we all rafted up together (Cheshire Cat, Stealaway, and a number of other arriving boats) and many happy parties were managed over the next 10 days.

Robin and Stuart partied like there was no tomorrow. We also managed some sightseeing and we hired a car and travelled around the island.

Once again there were deadlines. Robin and I were meeting Tatyana and her parents in South Africa to travel up to my Game Lodge for a week as part of their (Rob and Tats) honeymoon, and we had scheduled to leave Mauritius on the 18th of October, 2010. I also had to take care of the engine/ prop problems so it was quite hectic between partying, sightseeing, and taking care of LAD. As always seems to happen, it all panned out just right and we managed to get everything into shape to leave. Bertrand Hardy and his able crew were going to watch over LAD which I had now moved into La Caudan as the ARC cruisers had departed. She was a grand sight parked right on the beautiful waterfront and attracted lots of admirers.

2011-11-04T06:30:00.000-07:00

Trip From Bundaberg (Australia) to Cairns (Australia)

As you may remember, my last update included a description of the horrific collision Life's A Dream had with a fishing trawler, as well as an update on the repair which was completed in March 2010. At that time I wrote that I was awaiting the arrival of an American crew member who was to join the boat in Bundaberg Australia. I had planned for the trip up through the Whitsunday passage to Cairns (a distance of about 1000 miles) with stops at a number of the super islands of the barrier reef along the way. I will cut a long story short regarding that trip. There were many good parts: The Whitsunday Passage is truly a breathtaking stretch of water - 150 miles of unspoiled islands stretching from Bundaberg in the South all the way up to Airlee Beach. We had some great sailing and superb anchorages. Unfortunately some of the gilt was rubbed off by a bad crew choice on my part. He turned out to be an excessive drinker who finds it necessary to decorate his exploits with silly lies and (the final straw) who turns out to be a racist of the worst kind. Enough said

The plan was for him to skipper "Life's A Dream" to Darwin and possibly across the Indian Ocean to Mauritius while I took care of the very significant events in my children's' lives. That plan had to be changed when we arrived in Cairns. I asked Rory to leave the boat and we parted on fairly strained terms.

I spent the best part of 6 weeks in Cairns in a super marina, sightseeing, playing golf, and planning the remainder of my year. As always seems to happen, the plan finally came together (yes Colleen, life is a dream!) and everything to date has worked out just perfectly. I arranged for an Australian professional skipper to sail "Life's A Dream" from Cairns to Darwin while I flew to the UK to be with Colleen for the early part of August (3 weeks before the expected birth date of her and Gary's first baby), and then onto Hawaii for the wedding of Robin and Tatyana on the 10th of August. I also persuaded Robin to join me on the sail from Darwin to Mauritius together with Stuart my other son. It just seems to be so fitting to have Rob and Stu on the penultimate leg of my circumnavigation, as crew. Tatyana, thank you so much for assenting to this - it means a lot to me.

Once again the "The best laid schemes o' Mice an' Men, Gang aft agley..." (apologies to Robert Burns, literally translated it means - the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry), and things turned out a little different. Jacob John Dicker was born to Colleen and Gary on August 2nd, 2010, 3 1/2 weeks premature. The birth was natural and the little guy is healthy and happy, and I am ecstatic. How special it was to be with Colleen and to meet my first grandson. It was with a very happy heart that I departed the UK on August 5th to attend Robin and Tatyana's wedding. Stuart was in Hawaii for the wedding as well, and he and I valiantly and ably represented Robins side of the family. Colleen could not attend, for obvious reasons, and Pat was just not well enough to travel from Scotland. The day was just perfect. The wedding was held on a beach close to Honolulu and was attended by many of Tatyana's friends family (who travelled from the mainland of the USA), Robin's friends from California, and many friends from Hawaii (80 people in total).

The wedding over, I have spent the past week visiting the many friends I have in Hawaii (thank you Frank, Sandi, Joe, Eva, Steve, Jane, Warren, Marby, for your hospitality and friendship) playing golf, and getting all my affairs in order for the long trek across the Indian Ocean on my return to Australia. I leave Hawaii on Monday (August 23rd) for Darwin. Robin and Stuart arrive 2 days later, we will spend a few days provisioning and getting "Life's A Dream" ready for the trip across the Indian Ocean and leave Darwin on or about the end of August.

The first leg is to the island of Cocos Keeling about 2300 miles North West of Darwin situated at approximate 12 degrees 10 minutes South, 96 degrees 52 minutes East (if you would like to locate it on Google Earth or a map). By all accounts, Cocos Keeling is a small unspoiled atoll, very remote, and few people. We will stay there for a few days and then onto Mauritius which is a sail of about 2700 miles. I estimate we will arrive in Mauritius around the end of September. I plan to log the boats position onto Winlink as I did previously. I also hope to have limited e-mail (text only and no attached files please). Unfortunately I am not able to guarantee this communication, so there is a fair chance I will be out of contact for the month of September and possibly the early part of October.

Once arriving in Mauritius the schedule continues to be hectic. Robin and I are booked on a flight to Johannesburg on October 16. We will be rendezvousing with Tatyana, her mom and step dad, Pat and Nita (Pat's sister) and other good friends for a trip to my Game Lodge on October 27 for a week. On November 6th I return to Mauritius with good sailing buddies (Theo, Don, and Rudy) for the sailing trip back to South Africa. We will spend just a few days in Mauritius and then depart for the South African coast (Durban or Cape Town depending on the weather). Once back in South Africa I have two further trips arranged to the Game Lodge, then leave for the UK on December 20th to spend Xmas and New Year with Colleen Gary and Jake.

2010-04-01T00:28:00.000-07:00

New Caledonia to Bundaberg, Australia
**Before Reading this post, note that I have simultaneously published two other posts which relate to earlier parts of this current adventure (i.e. Fiji to Vanuatu and Vanuatu to New Caledonia. So if you wish to read chronologically you should first read those two posts. Enjoy!****

There is really not much to be said about this relatively short leg except for the last few eventful hours.

We motored through the western exit of the New Caledonia Northern reefs “Passe de Yande” at 9am on the morning of Saturday September 12, 2009 and once we had cleared the reef we hoisted our jib in 35 knots of wind. We sailed hard on the wind with a reef in the main and our jib to clear some shallows for about 6 hours and once safely past we eased off, dropped the main and continued sailing comfortably and fast on a reach with jib only for the next five days. We made excellent time and it was an easy sail.

At about 6pm on the evening of the 16th of September we entered the shallower water off the coast but still about 50 miles to go to the Bundaberg port entrance. There was a lot of shipping around and it was obvious that this last evening was going to be a busy watch-keeping night. At midnight when Andy came of watch his log entry reads: “Slow lumpy sail. Lots of boats. Beautiful starry night”. I take over the watch and for the next two hours I stay on deck watching the miles tick off. During that time I observe a boat (lots of lights) ahead and slightly to starboard. As we get closer, its position relative to me moves off to my starboard beam. At this stage it’s about 2.15am and the boat appears to be stationary and I estimate about a half a mile to a mile away. Since we have now passed it, I go below to check my position as well as check radar for other boats. I observe on radar another boat about 6 miles ahead and I don’t see the boat we have just passed, however I’m not concerned as there is a lot of “clutter” on the radar for a radius of about a mile (this is normal in lumpy confused seas) and I know we have passed it.

Then the nightmare (only it’s not a nightmare it’s real) begins. I return on deck and there no more than 30 meters off my bow is a large fishing trawler with deck lights blazing and engine on high revs on a direct collision course with “Life’s A Dream”. I turn sharply to starboard and my port bow strikes its side and its extended boom hit my port shrouds and a steel cable comes flying through the air hitting various parts of LAD and narrowly missing me. I turn on the engines and attempt to move off only to find the cable wrapped around the swim ladder on the port side and sawing through the hull. By this time Andy, my crew is on deck and he gets out the bolt cutters and we attempt to cut the cable but with no success. The trawler appears to be still moving. I put the engines in hard reverse and after what seems like an eternity we have enough slack to get the cable free. I won’t go into any further details of what transpired over the next 20 minutes but that we established there was no water being taken on and had an insane conversation on the radio with the Skipper of the boat who was swearing and making accusations in between trading registration info with me.
What I have described above is a short and fairly unemotional account of one of the scariest moments in my life. I find it difficult to write about because it is impossible for me to put in words the range of emotions that I experienced in that short time.
We made it into port under our own power. Miraculously there were no holes below the waterline and the engines and propellers were intact. The damage was significant but fixable. There were a lot of cosmetic items (scratches, gouges, broken lights, etc.) and three structural issues but that could be repaired.
My crew member Andy said it best – we were the luckiest most unlucky two guys in that incident. Unlucky to have been involved in such a freak accident and lucky to get out of it alive unharmed and fairly intact.
I have thought about that moment a lot since and in a very objective way this is my considered post-mortem. What happened was a chance in a billion – at the very moment I went down below having “safely passed” the trawler, it was just about to start its trawling run. That run just happened to be a path that took it on a course which converged with the path of Life’s A Dream, and that all happened in a 10 minute period while I was below. Should he have seen me? I believe so – unfortunately he had all his deck lights blazing so his night vision was zero and there was no way anybody on deck could have seen my navigation lights until it was too late. Should I have stayed on deck longer? Hindsight allows 20/20 vision and had I known what his intentions were and that he was about to embark on a run, I would have. But I didn’t know and I didn’t stay. And that’s it.
Fast forward to the present (April 2010). I left LAD in Bundaberg for the summer (this had always been my plan). During that time I spent a wonderful summer in South Africa and returned early in March with my good friend Theo van der Hoek to do the repairs. I could seriously write a book about all that transpired, but bottom line is we completed the last task on Friday March 26 (new shrouds on the port side) and had a very pleasurable and successful test sail on Saturday.

YIPPEE!!!! I have a sailing boat once more. I really cannot say enough about how much Theo contributed to this incredible feat. We did everything (including servicing props, replacing sea cocks, fixing the gaping hole in the port bow, fixing the kick up rudder system, completely overhauling and replacing the steering system) WITHOUT TAKING LAD OUT OF THE WATER! I won't bore you with the minutia but here are some stats: Estimated 400 man hours of work; we worked 7 days a week for the four weeks; we completed 65 separate important pieces of work, the cost was approximately 10% of what I had been originally quoted; we consumed seven bottles of scotch; Theo needs a new shoulder; my shins are full of scars; but we did it! What a satisfying feeling!

And so on to my plans. They are still much as before. Rory Kremer, a buddy I met in Hawaii and an accomplished sailor, joins me next week for the leg up to Cairns through the Whitsundays. I plan to have the boat in Mauritius by the end of October so that we can sail her to Durban by not later than middle of November. In the meantime I will be attending Robins wedding in Hawaii in August and I want to be with Colleen and Gary in the UK for at least a month sometime after August. Not sure how to achieve it all but it will all happen.

Here is a before and after picture of the hole in the hull from the collision and the repair.

Hole In Hull.

Repaired Hole in Hull

2010-03-31T22:42:00.000-07:00

Trip From Tanna in Vanuatu to New Caledonia and our Adventures through the North Passage.

Having decided on the route and carefully planned it, we set sail from Resolution Bay, round the eastern side of Tanna and then westwards through the northern passage of New Caledonia and then onto Bundaberg, Australia.

I had a choice - either to bypass New Caledonia south of the island group or go north. Going north seemed obvious except that to have a clear passage I would have to go north of the island group by some 80 miles to avoid the reefs extending for a long way out. Now if only there was a passage through the reefs. C-Map was singularly unhelpful and as I did not have detailed paper charts it looked like I would have to bite the bullet one way or the other - south with the extra distance (and a tougher sail) or north with about 100 extra miles tacked on and then a more difficult sail to my destination in Australia.

Just to digress just for a moment. On my previous cruise on Fleur du Cap in the 1980’s I carried with me a set of Pilot books for all areas of the world. These “Pilots” provide narrative information to assist mariners and date back to the 1800’s when maps and charts were not as reliable as today and first-hand experience was embodied in the pilot to assist sailors. I had transferred these books onto Life’s A Dream never thinking that I would ever use them. Would you believe it, the Pilot for the Pacific contains detailed information describing the Eastern passage through the reefs as well as the Western exit. This together with C-Map gave me all I needed! Not only did I have a short-cut but also the possibility of a refuge for a couple of days while we motored through the passage.

After two wonderful days of downwind spinnaker sailing we tentatively entered the eastern passage of “Passage D’amoss” and our New Caledonian adventure started. The plan was to anchor the first night in a little channel marked as “Pam Telegraphe” on C-Map. On arrival at about 3 pm local time the calmness of the anchorage convinced me that we should make hay while the sun shines and move onto the next anchorage marked on the chart, about 10 miles further on. Big mistake! On arrival we discover this anchorage is open to the South Easterly which by this time is pumping at 30 knots. The only way is to continue on to the next anchorage which is on the lee side of the prevailing wind and thus sheltered. By this time I am concerned with the oncoming darkness but as it is only a few miles further I am satisfied that we have enough time. The chart indicates a clear run into the anchorage but just to be safe I instruct Andy to lookout on the foredeck. As I approach the entrance Andy shouts “rock directly ahead!”, I veer off to starboard and no more than five meters off our port beam is a large rock just below the surface. By now I quite freaked out. The final haven before we reach the western passage out of the reefs (which I certainly could not traverse at that time of the day) is another 5 miles further and we have about 40 minutes of daylight left and the wind, by now, is howling. 40 minutes has never gone so slow. After a harrowing sail we turn the corner into the last refuge and I am relieved to find a calm place to throw down the anchor. Never has a sundowner tasted so good!

The one day stay turns into two as the wind continues to howl and then three. Our stay was not unpleasant. We ate well and generally took the time to relax. We also had a nice diversion when two local fishermen came alongside in their little dinghy and traded the largest lobster I have ever seen in my life for dollars and goods.

On the morning of the third day I decided we had to leave. The wind was definitely abating although still quite strong and Andy had a rendezvous with an airplane in Australia. Also the anchorage had become quite lumpy and uncomfortable. On the 10th of September 2009 we exited the reefs uneventfully through “Passe de Yande”.

Australia here we come.!

2010-03-31T21:25:00.000-07:00

Sail From From Fiji to Tanna in Vanuatu and our Short stay in Port Resolution.

In order to clear customs in Fiji we had to return to Lautoka on the big island in Fiji. Mololo where we were is a relatively small island with a few lovely resorts and anchorages and little else. The short return trip to the main island was uneventful (just a few hours sailing). We moored for the night in a secure marina close to Lautoka called Vuda Point. David from “Lady Nada” was there as well and we had a delightful farewell dinner. We we were joined by a Scottish lass and chatted and laughed the evening away.

Clearing customs the next morning involved a short taxi tide into Lautoka, then some last minute shopping and we were on our way. The short trip to Vanuatu would only take a few days – about 450 miles.

It turned out to be a quick but uncomfortable sail. Mostly on a fine reach but with apparent winds of 30 to 40 knots for most of the time and it was quite wet. “Life’s A Dream” has a habit of going quite fast and, when it is into large seas, one has little chance of staying dry while on watch. Certainly not as wet as a mono-hull but the god of water will make sure the unwary watch keeper will be doused at every opportunity!

On arrival at the island of Tanna which is one of the smaller Vanuatu islands we anchored on the South West corner in a lovely little anchorage, Port Resolution. There were just three other boats in the anchorage including “Tin Soldier” skippered by Glen. The highlight of our very short stay in Tanna (two nights) was a bumpy ride on the back of an open truck driven by one of the locals, accompanied by Glen, to one of the few live volcanoes in the world. It is situated atop Mount Yasur, which is some 360 meters or 1800 feet above sea-level. This was definitely one of the highlights of my life (and I don’t say that lightly). The volcano is truly alive, it rumbles continuously and hurls out rocks and lava with an almighty roar, seemingly at will.

We arrived at dusk and had the enormous privilege of watching it from a distance of no more than 200 meters do its “thing”. I was spellbound and could have stayed there the whole night listening and watching. It was a cool evening and at that height the cold wind contrasting to the hot inferno before me together with the pungent smell of sulfur and the roaring sounds, combined to provide a variety of sense-assaulting ingredients, awesome each of them, but as a symphony, simply mind-blowing. I attach a photo just to give you a small taste of what I experienced.

After the night of the volcano we had very little left to see or do on this small island with its delightfully friendly people and we departed for Australia via New Caledonia on March 13, 2009.

2009-09-26T17:50:00.000-07:00

Stay In Fiji August September 2009

My first impression of Fiji on our first visit to the small town of Savu Savu was of a bustling cosmopolitan society consisting of local Fijians and the large local Indian population with a fair sprinkling of English and other European nationalities. It felt vibrant and exciting, certainly the best vibe for me since beginning our adventure in the South Pacific. The fresh produce market was chock-a-block of fruit and vegetables, and the supermarkets had most things one would find in first world countries. Locally produced stuff is really cheap.

After a few days of dining out, enjoying the local yacht club bar, and meeting many cruisers we felt the need to explore the island and decided to wend our way along the southern shore of Vanua Levu fishing, diving, and enjoying the local sights and sounds.

There were a few anchorages that looked really good but had really narrow entrances and, although we had C-Map and GPS for navigation, the charts were not always accurate (sometimes off by as much as 300 meters). I had heard from a fellow cruiser that he had used Google Earth pictures of narrow entrances to get really accurate coordinates. I decided to try this approach. Wow, it really works! The picture of the entrances to the anchorages we wanted to visit was clear and the coral surrounding the entrances was really obvious. Since placing ones cursor anywhere on the Google Earth picture gives totally accurate coordinates I was able to plot a totally accurate track through the coral. Superimposing this onto C-Map confirmed that they were indeed off by a couple of hundred meters.

For the next 5 days we sailed along the coast visiting Fawn Harbour, Ndakunimba Bay, and Viani Bay. All wonderful anchorages but there are two memories that will stay with me forever. The first was a trek along the river at Fawn Harbour to a hot spring. I lay in the shallow water of the spring for 30 minutes in an absolutely weightless state enjoying a perfect temperature with the water quietly gurgling past my ears with a perfectly blank mind – a real hypnotic state that I had never experienced before. The second was our meeting with the village people in Ndukinimba Bay. We presented them with the traditional gift of Kava root and were invited to drink Kava with them which we did for 6 hours straight! Kava is the traditional drink – it is mildly intoxicating, tastes like mouldy leaves, and has the colour of brown mud. Nevertheless spending the time grouped around the Kava bowl, chatting, singing, laughing will remain as a precious memory with me forever. At the end of the evening we were ceremonially accepted as “family” which means that we can come back anytime and stay in the village as part of the community. Oh yes, sometime during the evening Andy and Doug went crayfish hunting with the local fishermen and two hours later returned with 9 assorted crayfish and “bugs” which we later cooked up and had a memorable feast. The next morning I helped one of the fishermen patch his boat before we departed.

On our return to Savu Savu we stayed for as few more days, said goodbye to Doug who was returning to Canada, were happy that Shannon had decided to stay on to accompany us down south to the main island in Fiji of Viti Levu where we planned to check in at Lautoka and then proceed to a small island off Viti Levu called Mololo in an anchorage called Musket Cove which hosts an annual regatta and welcomes cruisers. Our plan was to take a few days to explore the numerous anchorages on the Northern side of Viti Levu before checking in at Lautoka. It turned out to be a wonderful few days – we caught a very large Mahi Mahi (delicioius eating), we had dolphins swimming with the boat, we saw pilot whales, Shannon continued to bake wonderful goodies – ah life was good!

On arrival in Lautoka we wasted little time in clearing in, and spent the day exploring the town of Lautoka (bustling, vibrant, great food, lots of fresh vegetables), but we were eager to get to Musket Cove.

The next day, Saturday August 22nd dawned bright and clear. We said goodbye to Shannon and upped anchor. About 2 miles out of Lautoka we encountered 20 to 25 knot headwinds with a sharp short choppy wave action. David on the Catamaran Lady Nada who was travelling in tandem with us decided to turn back and wait for better weather. Andy and I were keen to continue on to our destination and for the next 4 hours endured the uncomfortable passage.

Entering Musket Cove was relatively easy – the wind was pumping but the visibility was excellent and all of the reefs were clearly visible.

Once in the anchorage we found one mooring (number 13 – I’m not kidding) unoccupied. I noticed that it was very near an ominous looking reef but felt confident that we would pick up the mooring with no problem just as we have done many times before, in time to enjoy a quite sundowner after the rough passage. I motored up to the buoy and waited for Andy to get the bridle ready to attach to the mooring. How it happened I am still not sure but in what seemed like seconds the wind was on LAD’s beam and we were over the reef. As I “gunned” the engines to regain way, one of the yachties nearby shouted across “you are very close to the reef”. Too late! I heard a tearing grinding noise of glass fiber breaking and all hell broke loose! We had struck the reef. A cold fear gripped me – my life passed before my eyes. I realized we had to get away quickly and I opened the throttles to full. Now time seemed to be an eternity but it was only seconds and we were free. Between all of the expletives and shouting I was trying to come onto the mooring and Andy was trying to pick it up but LAD was not reacting well. I feared the worst and imagined the underside of my beloved boat torn to shreds, the propellers and sail drive irretrievably damaged. Two cruisers had in the meanwhile had raced up and were trying to help us keep LAD into the wind and retrieve the mooring line. Finally we secured LAD on. I raced down below got my goggles and flippers on and dived to see where the hole was and what the damage was. I could not believe my eyes – the undersides were intact, the propellers were undamaged. The awful rending sounds of tearing glass fiber had been caused by the kick-up rudders lifting up on striking the reef thus breaking the sacrificial plates that secure them. The damage to the rudders was minimal – a small amount of surface damage. We had dodged a bullet!

Musket Cove was a very different experience. It was like being on vacation at a posh resort. All the amenities including a large pool, island bar, golf course. Talk about culture shock! Here we were in a first world environment lounging around the pool, playing golf. We met lots of cruisers who had arrived for the regatta and it was a fun time.

Andy and I had planned to stay for the regatta and then leave for Australia via Vanuatu and New Caledonia arriving sometime after the end of September. That all changed when Andy delivered his news. He had always planned to leave the boat in Australia but he would have to leave earlier as he had an interview in Canada on September 22, 2009. My decision wasn’t too difficult – rather than wait for the regatta, we would leave earlier to get Andy to Australia in time to fly to Canada for his interview. Rather than single-hand or get new untried crew for the trip to Australia it was a small sacrifice to miss the regatta.
The decision being made we wasted little time in getting ready for the trip to Australia – a distance of some 1500 miles but with short stops in Vanuatu and New Caledonia to break it up.

2009-09-26T17:41:00.000-07:00

Tonga and Cruise to Fiji July/August 2009

In many ways our arrival in Tonga was the most significant part of my cruise to date. I had spent many hours over the past five years while building Life’s A Dream and then cruising, dreaming about this landfall. Tonga is a cruisers paradise it epitomizes for me the South Pacific cruising dream. I was not to be disappointed.

The Tongan islands consist of three major groups of islands each very different topographically and politically. The most northerly group (Vava’u) consist of many islands clustered fairly closely together with good reefs and majestic volcanic land areas. The anchorages are numerous, spectacularly beautiful, very protected and invariably occupied by some sailing boats. The main island and harbor is called Neiafu and is the charter boat center of the Moorings Charter Company. It was also our first Tongan landfall and the port that we cleared customs and immigration. The central group is called Hapaii and consists of hundreds of relatively unpopulated islands generally smaller and less spectacular than Vava’u but with loads of beautiful reefs, thousands of (also) spectacularly beautiful anchorages and generally devoid of cruising boats. The Southern group is called Nuku Alofa (also the name of the main town) and is the capital of Tonga and the seat of the royal family. It is quite busy with relatively few great cruising islands and certainly the least attractive.

We arrived in Neiafu after a fast uncomfortable sail. However once in the protection of the main island it was smooth and fast and we gunned both engines as well, in order to make the harbor before dark. 6.30 pm saw us safely moored with drinks in our hands and chatting with Kevin Keys on the small 33ft Cat called Tere Hau Nui. The last time we had seen Kevin was in Hawaii where he had stayed for 5 years and then decided to move to Tonga. My crew members, Robin my son and Andy my buddy are the most compatible group and we were all relaxed and happy to enjoy the Tongan way for the next six weeks.

The time just sped as it always seems to when I’m cruising. We did loads of sailing around the Vava’u group, met lots of cruisers and local people, drank loads of Tongan beer, and generally had a fantastic time. Just so that I don’t forget, these are some of the great people we met: Ben and Lisa ex-owners of Aquarium Café, Mike new owner of Aquarium Café, Steve and Tessa owners of Crows Nest Café, Alex and Trish owners of the Balcony Restaurant, Richard and Samantha, Jenny, Vicki, Alia, Shannon, Dave, Gaspar. There were many others as well.

Tatyana, Robins girlfriend was due to arrive in Nuku Alofa early in July to spend a couple of weeks with Robin and cruising with us. The trip south of about 170 miles was fast and tough (going to windward is becoming a nasty habit of mine). “Tats” arrived safely and once she had settled in we spent a leisurely 10 days cruising North back to Vava’u, stopping off at some wonderful anchorages each evening, diving, snorkeling, exploring, fishing, and enjoying some spectacular sunrises and sunsets. Much to Robin’s dismay the time just sped along and it was time for Tatyana to depart. We were all sad to say goodbye to Tatyana, but I was looking forward to my very good friend Rob Fourie and his grandson Brendon to arrive for a week’s fishing.

They flew in 3 days later than expected due to visa issues in Tonga but Rob was undeterred with all of the hassles and he and Brendon arrived eager to get going. Rob also brought a load of spare parts that I needed from South Africa so it was like Christmas for me. The week just flew by – we spent most of the time fishing. Robin was in his element teaching Brendon the “ropes” and catching fish. It could not have been better – we caught a number of Tuna and Wahoo throughout the week and on the last day hooked and landed a BIG yellow-fin Tuna (about 60kg – 130 pounds for my American friends). We ate a lot of fish but sold everything we could not use to the local restaurant.

After Rob and Brendon left, the last 2 weeks was spent doing a lot of cruising around the Vava’u islands, fixing many of the boat issues using the spares that had arrived. We also had an addition to our crew. Doug, Andy’s brother arrived from Canada to spend a month with us. The plan was that he would sail on the relatively short sail to Fiji and leave from there to return to Canada.

Robin had decided that he needed to return to Hawaii to be with Tatyana, set up a land-based life, earn some money and go back to University. He planned to leave at the beginning of August and although I was very sad at his leaving I knew that his decision the right one. August 1st dawned and Robin was due to leave. It was a very sad and emotional parting. But there are always new beginnings and Fiji (our next port of call) was beckoning!

We had a 4th addition to the crew for this leg. We had met Shannon Gentry a young American woman who was working on a two-year volunteer stint with the Peace Corps had been on a couple of short cruises in Vava’u and was eager to sail with us to Fiji for her annual vacation. She is a delightful, bubbly, enthusiastic person and I felt that she would contribute and fit in so I invited her to join the crew.

August 2nd dawned and we were ready to leave, bound for Fiji and embark on the next chronicle of our cruise. The weather forecast was good and, finally, we were going to be sailing with the wind on our backs!

While in Tonga we had met David van Ryswyk an ex South African who was single-handing a 47 foot Lavranos design catamaran for the season from New Zealand. His next port of call was planned to be Fiji as well and we left at the same time. Lady Nada (David’s Cat) is a fast light boat with a big head sail and he was soon out front. We were quite content with this state of affairs as we had the wind on our stern and with just the jib up having a wonderful downwind sail. And so it continued for 3 days, good winds, good food, and a happy crew.

On the last day (3rd day out) we capped off a great trip with a smooth and fast spinnaker run. The total run to Savu Savu which was our planned port of call in Fiji is about 400 miles so, by LAD standards it had been a slow trip (only 150 miles per day!) but absolutely enjoyable.

Savu Savu is the check in port for the northern island of Vanua Levu in Fiji and as we sailed into the river mouth which is the entrance to Savu Savu and picked up a mooring opposite the Copra Shed Marina I knew it was going to be an enjoyable stay. David on "Lady Nada" had arrived the previous evening, and after clearing customs and immigration we joined him for a cold and welcome beer at the local yacht club.

2009-07-29T15:49:00.000-07:00

Suvarov In The Cook Islands to Western Samoa (May/June 2009)

On the 19th of May 1974 Colleen, my daughter was born. Precisely 35 years later our crew left Suwarrow bound for Apia on the island of Upola which is part of Samoa. Our time in Suwarrow had been simply sensational and unbelievable in so many ways and we were really a nostalgic bunch of crew when we finally took our leave of this beautiful sanctuary. The lagoon was starting to fill up with arriving boats and officially we could only stay two weeks. I know that John the resident park ranger would have easily and happily extended our stay but we had other things on our mind – new exciting places, getting rid of Walter M. our mutinous crew member, and the opportunity to stock up on dwindling supplies.

The weather forecast was for light variable winds over the next few days and Apia is only 400 miles due west so we expected a slow motor sail. And that’s exactly as it turned out. Relaxed, lazy, sometimes frustrating but a pleasant change from some of our earlier experiences from Hawaii. Our crew for this leg was the same as before: Myself, Robin, And, Walter M.. Everybody was in high spirits for a variety of reasons and harmony prevailed. Here are some extracts from our log for the trip which took four days:

May 19, 2009 1605hours – Sails up, caught a 25lb Tuna. Life’s a dream!
May 20, 2009 0805hours – Motor Sailing = Blah.
May 20, 2009 1400hours – Spinnaker up.
May 21, 2009 0200hours – Motors on. Stars out in force.
May 22, 2009 1220hours – Wind 15 knots on the beam. Sailing. Lumpy but nice.
May 23, 2009 0800hours – Great morning. Can see Samoa!
May 23, 2009 0915hours – Arrived Apia.

Apia is a large commercial harbor and yachties cannot anchor. There is a port authority marina where all boats tie up. It is reasonably priced and has all the facilities (water, electricity, Wi-Fi internet). What a shock for the crew who had been for the past 2 months in remote islands with no facilities.

Customs and Immigration were closed until Monday but we had itchy feet and dry throats and hit the picturesque and very neat and tidy town with a vengeance. In short order we were eating ice cream, devouring fresh bread, and very soon thereafter drinking beer.

The plan had been to stop in Apia only long enough to provision and bid our farewell to Walter M. but, as so often happens, the days get swallowed up with spontaneous activities, friendships are made, boat work needs to be completed, and when one looks up almost two weeks are gone.

Samoa is a very ordered, happy, society with a strong culture of clan hierarchy. Each area or village has a headman and a council and each village is represented at an area meeting held whenever regional issues need to be discussed. There is a central government which works hand in hand with the clans. All in all a very sensible and successful democratic system.

As a South African I was extremely well received. The Samoans to a person are rugby fanatics and they love talking about the game. As an aside, I witnessed the demise of the Chiefs (New Zealand team) against the Bulls (South African team) in the 2009 Super-14 rugby competition at a get together in a local bar at 4 am in the morning.

Our original plan was to leave directly for Tonga from Apia but my crew convinced me that the next-door Samoan island of Savaii was a must. It’s a very short downwind sail of about 70 miles and sort of on the way. Since we had no deadlines, I agreed. What a good decision that turned out to be. We made for the North West corner of this large island and entered the very protected but remote harbor of Asau. The entrance is narrow and hairy but once inside it is a calm, rural setting with a great secure anchorage just off a resort tucked away in the western corner. It was very uncrowded – we were the only boat! I can only imagine it’s to do with the obscure entry passage as everything else about the setting is wonderful.

As always the people turned out to be just great and we had some memorable encounters with local people. One in particular stands out in my memory – an afternoon that Andy and I spent being hosted in their home by the local clan chief and his family as well as being driven down to the family’s private beach, snorkeling and then being driven back to the resort where LAD was anchored, and sharing a sundowner beer with them.

Finally we felt the time had come to hit Tonga and we left this wonderful island group on June 8, 2009 bound for Vava’u in Tonga a relatively short sail of about 300 miles.

2009-07-29T15:48:00.001-07:00

Sail From Penrhyn To Suvarov In The Cook Islands (May 2009)
May 6, 2009 dawned bright and clear. We had decided to leave Penrhyn notwithstanding that the weather forecast indicated very light winds for the next few days. One seems to know when it is time to depart – we had absolutely loved this first taste of the South Pacific but new islands beckoned and we were now all very motivated for Walter M. to leave and the quicker we moved onto an island which had a commercial airport the sooner Mr. M. would be on his way.

Our next planned port of call was Suvarov (also known as Suwarrow), which is another atoll in the Northern Cook group of islands. One could hardly call it a port as it is uninhabited except for a park ranger who is there for six months of the year. The write-ups on Suwarrow are highly complimentary and it is regarded as one of the gems of the South Pacific. The strong need to reduce our crew by one member as soon as possible was overshadowed by our desire to experience a this unique anchorage .

We cleared customs in Amoka and left at 4.30 pm o a cloudy day. The exit and entrance to the anchorage is littered with coral heads. We had been extremely careful coming in and the recommended route worked out perfectly. Over confident and eager to leave, we decided on a shortcut on leaving. The sun was low in the sky on an already dull day and it was not easy to spot the heads. Almost disaster! Our daggerboard clipped a coral head and I consider us extremely fortunate to get out with no damage. Once through the channel (also quite hairy with strong currents and lots of coral) we were quickly on our way and celebrated/ commiserated our leaving with a welcome sundowner.

The weather forecast proved quite accurate, unfortunately, and the trip to Suwarrow was five days of mostly no wind, sometimes light wind, and rarely anything over 10 knots. We motor-sailed through the day and lay a-hull at night (so that the skipper could get some sleep). The trip was uneventful and we were very happy to make our next landfall, Suwarrow.

Unlike Penrhyn, the entry was dead easy, the chart was very accurate, and we entered the most idyllic anchorage I have ever encountered. You have to try and picture the sight that greeted us – a large calm lagoon with crystal-clear water, sandy white beaches, waving palm trees and a deserted anchorage. Well, there was one boat. “Raven” had arrived a few days earlier and was just getting ready to leave. I had found paradise yet again!

We quickly launched the dinghy and made our way to shore. One dinghy was tied up at the neat little jetty and a tall flagpole proudly carried the Cook Island flag. The beach was a white strip of newly-minted sand - perfect – and the palm trees were heavily burdened with their fruit – yummy! Further inspection revealed a “welcome” sign to the nature reserve of Suwarrow and a path leading into the trees. The whole place seemed deserted except that there were hammocks lazily swinging between trees and the unmistakable smell of burning vegetation. We followed the path to a clearing with a two-story building bearing a large sign “Suwarrow yacht club” with an inviting open area verandah festooned with hanging flags from yachts that had previously visited. It was obvious that cruisers were welcome.

The ranger and his four boys were clearing an area alongside the building and his wife, Veronica, emerged from the thicket with a big welcoming smile. With the minimum of fuss she cleared us in, welcomed us, and said that her husband the ranger would welcome us later. That was our introduction to eight days of absolute delight.

Here are the highlights (I could write a story but will only bore you with a summary of our time on this wonderful preserve of nature):

• John (the ranger) his wife Veronica and their four boys Jeremiah, Jonathan and the twins Augustine and Giovanni, were a hospitable delightful family with whom we spent a number of happy evenings, singing, drinking and eating;
• Fish (and sharks) were plentiful. We ate our fill of lobster, Rainbow Runner, Travalle, Tuna, and more. Literally we caught our food just whenever we needed to;
• The reefs are littered with beautiful unspoiled coral and colourful reef fish;
• The sunsets were unforgettable. The visual splendor was spectacular but the accompanying lowering-of-the-flag ceremony was icing on the cake. One of John’s sons would blow on a conch shell while another would slowly and proudly lower the flag. I was always so busy marveling at the sights and sounds while sipping on a scotch that I never even videoed it! Oh well I have the memory.

By the end of our time there, a number of other yachts (including Coco Kei) had arrived and we were OK with leaving. Our next planned port, Apia on the Samoan island of Upola, would enable us to stock up on much-needed basic supplies, fuel, and propane gas. But most importantly it has an airport and Wally M. would leave us.

It was sad saying goodbye to the wonderful family of John and Veronica and the boys and we left with many many fond memories.

2009-07-29T15:44:00.000-07:00

Trip From Hawaii To Penrhyn In The Cook Islands (April 2009)

I was determined this time to successfully leave Hawaii. Life’s A Dream has now spent almost 2 years in the Hawaiian Islands and it was definitely time to move on.

The previous April (2008), Robin and I made two abortive attempts to leave, both ending in somewhat frustrating returns.

The first problem involved a serious leak in the hull joint between the dagger board case and the hull. This happened just forty miles after leaving Ko’Olina Marina with water coming into the starboard hull at a fairly sedate rate of 2 gallons an hour but still very scary. We made it back without any further incident. After ascertaining the problem in its entirety we decided to haul the boat out to undertake the repair. We spent three frustrating weeks on the hard getting the join between the hull and the dagger board strengthened and rebuilt and then getting ready for our second departure.

The second major problem occurred five hundred miles into our second attempt – this time the steering cable broke and we were once again forced to turn back using the emergency tiller. On our return I took the decision to stay another year in Hawaii and wait until the next season to go into the South Pacific. This turned out to be a really fortuitous turn of events as we picked up yet another serious build issue while participating in a fun race from Ko’Olina (on the Hawaiian island of Oahu) to Nawiliwili (70 miles north of Oahu on the Hawaiian island of Kauai). This time it had to do with the steering and rudders. To digress for a moment - after doing a temporary fix on this problem we spent one night in Nawiliwili and then cruised North up the island to an idyllic anchorage on Kauai called Hanalei Bay (of “Puff The Magic Dragon” song, fame). Here we spent 3 carefree weeks during which time Robins’ girlfriend Tatyana flew out from Oahu to spend some time on the boat and Colleen, my daughter, flew out from the UK for 10 days. I will always have very fond memories of our time in Hanalei.

On our return from Hanalei back to Ko’Olina, I worked out a way to repair the rudder problem with minimal effort and without taking “Life’s A Dream” out of the water. We found a great fiberglass repair guy who did a first rate job on the repair.

I had always planned to return to South Africa for Xmas and decided to leave soon after the repair was completed to spend some time in the USA and then onto Johannesburg and Cape Town where Colleen was getting married. Robin would stay in Hawaii and care take “Life’s A Dream while I was away. He was also attending the wedding in South Africa and would be away for three weeks and our good friend Blue would check on LAD while Robin was away.

Fast-forward to March 2009 and my return to Hawaii. Six weeks of hectic activity (including yet another haul out) and I was satisfied that we were really ready this time to hit the South Pacific. As it was a year later, I decided to give the French Polynesian islands a miss and head directly for the Northern Cooks. We had acquired two new crew members (Andy Paton, a Canadian friend I had met a few years earlier while Scuba diving in Mozambique) and a high school friend of Robin whom I will call Walter M. (not his real name).

We left Ko’Olina at 5pm on Monday April 13, 2009. The forecast was for good North Easterlies and we were looking forward to a fast, comfortable beam reach. Not to be – the wind remained very easterly for the first five days and we were treated to an uncomfortable but fast fine reach. The winds rarely dropped below twenty-five knots and the seas were confused and quartering –the foredeck was constantly awash and any little leak found its way inside.

We all experienced seasickness for the first few days to a lesser or greater degree –Andy and Walter M. spread what little food they ate, liberally across the North Pacific.

I tried unsuccessfully to make position reports and send e-mails using Ham radio through Winlink, but to no avail. This persisted for the duration of our trip to Penrhyn much to my dismay and Walter M’s chagrin (“grumble, grumble, you promised us communications and we don’t have any, etc. etc”.).

Our first problem occurred 2 days out. The Freezer water pump stopped pumping and the replacement only lasted a day, so my hopes of “rocks” for my sundowner scotch during the trip were quickly dashed.

Problem number two was lurking just round the corner. No sooner had we resigned ourselves to not having a freezer when the second reefing line frayed and one of the reefing cringles popped causing a small but ominous tear in the mainsail. Robin and I showed off our previously untested prowess in repairing sails and four hours later we were once again underway. We did however finally solve what had been a recurring problem of the reefing line fraying and we now have a permanent and good solution.

Four days into the trip we were all gaining sea legs, making good progress (200 miles per day), and starting to feel good with life. We caught a really nice Wahoo and the eating was just fantastic. However problem number three was just about to strike. Day five had just dawned when the steering cable parted ways. I’m still not sure how this happened but it appears that the cable somehow slipped off a sheave and eventually frayed on the sheave bracket. This time I was determined not to turn back – if necessary we would use the emergency tiller all the way to Penrhyn! We hand-steered using the emergency tiller for a day until the weather calmed sufficiently for the crew to dive on the cable and twelve hours later we had repaired the cable and were once again underway. The strong winds had abated and we now had steady 15-knot easterlies and a fairly comfortable sail. Just one problem, Walter M. had cracked and I realized we had a bad egg on board – one that I couldn’t toss into the ocean! Robin and Andy understood the situation as well and we agreed to tiptoe round the problem in order to preserve order and sanity.

Our trouble-free sail was short-lived however. Day seven dawned to the sound of our autopilot groaning loudly. On investigation we discovered that the port helm had a problem turning to starboard. The starboard helm seemed to work fine but the port helm was where the autopilot is situated! I estimated we were five or six days out of Penrhyn at our current rate of progress and we had no option but to revert to hand steering. While LAD was well balanced, our point of sail (which was now a beam reach) did not allow her to self-steer well. With four crewmembers, 2 hours on and 6 hours off was quite bearable and the last five days into Penrhyn was enjoyable. We had the wind on our beam and arrived in Penrhyn with no further mishaps. The entrance is very tricky with reefs all over the place and the trip to the anchorage in Omoka Village (population 200) is literally a 3-mile obstacle course.

There was one other boat in the lagoon, a 55-foot Deerfoot, “Raven”, with the owner Mike and his wife Carol and two crew members (Rod – skipper and his wife). Mike has all sorts of electronic goodies on the boat including an Iridium phone, which he kindly allowed us to use to make contact with the outside world. Robin contacted Tatyana who had just put out a “watch” call on the Internet for LAD, as we had not had any contact for 13 days. Colleen was also really worried and Tatyana promised to contact her.

We stayed at Amoka for a day during which time we cleared customs, met some wonderful local families (we will never forget Alex and Christine and their great family including Gertrude the resident police woman on the island – lifts to the Telcom, ice creams, coconuts, breadfruit, gifts of cowry shell necklaces for each of the crew, etc. etc. etc.), but “Raven” convinced us that the anchorage 8 miles across the lagoon at Te’tatua village was the place to be, and that’s where we went.

Their recommendation was spot on. We had found paradise. The village of about 10 families is small and picturesque; the entrance to the lagoon was chock-a-block with fish life (including lots of sharks, mostly black-tipped Reef sharks), spectacular reefs and crystal clear water. Again we met wonderful and generous people – Napa and her family stands out. I used her phone to contact Ron and Lynda in Australia and have an hour chat for $NZ10. Our days were mostly spent fishing, diving, eating, sleeping, and socializing. We were definitely recovering from our trip down, with a vengeance! Our big boat-achievement was to fix the steering. The wheel-turning problem was a combination of lots of little issues. A thorough service of all the parts and a careful balancing of the rudders, plus re-setting two of the sheaves, and our steering was back working really well. As a postscript, I am not happy with the steering system as a whole and am planning a replacement with something less basic, more robust, and more reliable.

All good things come to an end and Suvarov (another little atoll in the Northern Cook island group) was calling. Also we were quite keen to say goodbye to Walter M. and the sooner we get to an island with an airport the sooner he leaves. We had heard really good things about Suvarov, which is uninhabited save for the park ranger (Suvarov is a proclaimed National Park) and they welcome cruisers, and it is en route to Tonga and just a short sail of 380 miles.

On the day of our leaving, Greg and Jennifer and Jennifer’s daughter Coco, arrived on their boat Coco Kai, and they checked in just as we were checking out. I had looked at the weather charts for our upcoming sail and it called for light to no winds. I was very tempted to stay put but I could see that my crewmembers were keen to leave, so at 3.30 pm on May 5, 2009 we upped anchor and departed.
Our first landfall in the South Pacific had more than met my expectations. I will remember Penrhyn forever. Everything was perfect but a special highlight for me was attending the Sunday morning church service in Te’Tatua. Ronnie, the pastor (who also gave us fresh Tuna on our first day) welcomed us to the service. It happened to be the first service of the month and the whole congregation except for Andy and me, wore pure white dresses/ suits. The service was conducted in Maori but every now and then, Ronnie would say some words in English for our benefit. The reading was Psalm 92 and 93 but what really stuck out for me was the singing. No instrument accompaniment and everyone singing in perfect harmony and so true! I just wish that I had recorded it but maybe the way it was is best, as my memory will always be the same thrilling recall.

2009-03-15T20:04:00.000-07:00

So here I am back on LAD and it’s de je vu all over again. Yes, we are once again preparing LAD for the South Pacific. Since I last blogged in September 2008 (and that blog chronicled our various abortive attempts to leave last year), most of my time has been spent off the boat. A brief two weeks in San Francisco playing in the Eagle Cup (which we won), then onto South Africa to visit friends and prepare for Colleens wedding. Everything went off great and the wedding was fantastic. Then a month of R&R with friends and family in Johannesburg and the Cape, then back to Hawaii via San Francisco where I spent four days with my good buddy John.

I returned to LAD was with some trepidation, as I knew that Robin had not spent too much time on her and latterly we had not been in contact. My fears proved groundless and, although there was a lot of housekeeping to be done, everything seems to be in good shape. One of my first tasks was to get the freezer working - the heat exchange water pump had given up the ghost a few months earlier and despite all attempts to get the pump working it stubbornly refused to build up suction. The solution, a new pump, albeit expensive, was painless and we now have a freezer.

I took the decision in South Africa to have the scoop that we had lost on our earlier abortive trip to the South Pacific, replaced. This would entail taking LAD out of the water once more. A helluva lot of effort but, I believe really worth it as it gives us an opportunity to thoroughly inspect the daggerboard, rudders, undersides, propellers, steering system, etc. before the trek into the South Pacific. So my next job was to get the scoop fabrication underway. The solution I have undertaken is to cut the port scoop off and use it as the template for a plug from which we will construct the replacement scoop. We will then attach both scoops on the hard (out of the water). LAD will be hauled out next Monday (March 23rd), and hopefully we can finish everything in four or five days before the weekend. I have two more crew arriving in the next two days and I expect them to make a significant contribution to all the work we have to complete in the yard.

We would like to leave for the South Pacific as soon as possible thereafter. I am however determined not to rush it and to try and enjoy our last few days in Hawaii. Also we still have quite a lot of maintenance and inspection work to undertake before leaving. So a likely departure date is sometime after the first week of April. I also want this to be a pleasant sail so I will try and fetch Tahiti but if we are too close to the wind I will bear off and head directly for the Cook islands which is the most likely plan.
Watch this space for more regular updates.

2008-09-30T14:14:00.000-07:00

Time flies!. Hard to believe that my last post was April 10. Lots of water under the bridge, so to speak, since then.

First off, I and my sail boat Life's A Dream are still in Hawaii! My forecast in the previous post that we would leave by April 20 was indeed accurate however.........

After feverishly getting LAD all prepared for our second attempt into the South Pacific, we (Robin and me) were finally all ready to leave. All systems were "go"and the weather forecast was good. We were headed for the Tuamotos islands in the Society Island group and then onto Tahiti. The wind forecast was a bit too easterly for a perfect reach and we would be quite close on the apparent wind once out of the lee of the "big Island" (Hawaii). I was not too concerned as LAD is a big girl and having fixed the daggerboard leak I was very happy with her condition.

Our leaving was inauspicious and we had a grand first few days. Lots of sea life including a great pod of whales and countless dolphin sightings. The highlight however was Robin catching a VERY large Marlin (estimate between 200 to 300 pounds) about 40 miles out of Oahu. He fought the fish for about an hour and when we finally got it alongside Robin took some great underwater video of the hapless victim (now dead tired) swimming alongside. We were pondering how we were going to release the beast when it obliged by making one last desperate dash for freedom and breaking the line.

Fast forward to the fateful day 4 days and about 500 miles out of Oahu. It's about 4pm and I heave-to to do our daily inspection. Wind is about 30 knots out of the East with moderate but choppy and uncomfortable seas. Robin makes the first nasty discovery - the starboard stern scoop which attaches to the kick-up rudder has sheared off. In itself not a major problem but quite disturbing (how did this happen, what caused it to shear, is this an indication of a bigger problem?). After completing all upper deck inspections I take the decision to continue on. No great issue that the scoop is gone. As I haul on the wheel to bring LAD on course I realize there is another and far bigger problem - the steering is very sloppy and barely turning the rudders. Once again I heave-to in order to locate the problem. By this time it is getting close to sundown and I'm edgy. we discover that the steering cable has come off one of the sheaves just under the starboard helm and the steering cable is trailing in the water. I take the decision to stay put for the evning and investigate further next morning. Both Robin and I are dead tired and needless to say not happy at all.

After a very restless night we investigate further the next morning. Robin dons a life jacket and life line and dives under the bridge deck to understand what has occurred and whether it can be repaired. Now the seas are really lumpy and confused and the conditions under the bridge deck are not good. After an extremely harrowing (for Robin and me) 10 minutes Robin returns on deck with the news that he cannot get the cable back on without us dismantling a large part of the steering apparatus. I make the decision that we need to return under emergency steering (I carry a tiller for emergencies which can be attached directly to either rudder). It's almost as though LAD is happy to be returning. She sails beautifully for the next 5 days with the emergency tiller lashed, on a direct course back to our base in Oahu and we arrive back intact and safe.

At this stage I was not sure what had caused the cable to jump off the sheave and whether this was in anyway related to the scoop shaearing off. A post-mortem reveals all. The two problems are unrelated. The scoop shearing off has been caused by a serious build error which had passed the scrutiny of the designer John Shuttleworth. It is probably fortunate that it sheared, as further hard sailing would have undoubted manifested in far more serious problems. The cable jumping off the sheave was an AMAZING chain of events which, even as I recount them now, boggle my mind. Imagine this: a small lock screw comes lose from the starboard steering system, it falls through a gap in the bridgedeck which is there to allow the cables to run freely, it somehow lodges in the sheave on which the cable runs thus causing the cable to jump off the sheave. How do we know this? The set screw is still lodged in the sheave when we inspect it back in Oahu. Now, I am not sure what are the odds of this little screw bouncing through the gap and somehow lodging nto the groove of a sheave which is constantly turning as the rudders turn, but I bet they are greater than predicting the winning numbers in a lotto draw. Are the sea gods telling me to quit sailing? Am I the victim of incredible bad luck (bear in mind previous incidents and problems I've experienced)? Are thes incidents things that I could have avoided or obviated? As of today I don't have an answer.

The die was now cast. New and significant repairs had to be effected before we could leave. It was getting later in the season, and quite frankly, I was so pissed off that I took the decision to delay our departure until next season (April 2009).

lots was achieved in the following 5 months. We repaired LAD, I played a lot of golf, and we had a great sail (we took part in an organized race) up to the island of Kauia where we stayed in Hanalea Bay (of "Puff the Magic Dragon" song fame) for 3 weeks. Colleen joined us for 10 days. What a wonderful place! There was some drama on the finish line of the race - another steering problem manifested itself (the streak of bad breaks continues) which has since been repaired. Another design/ build problem - I'm getting used to them by now!

So that's where we are at. The steering problem is repaired, Robin is looking after LAD, I am on my way to South Africa for the next 5 months. Lots going on when I return. Firstly I have a golf trip arranged with my American buddies, we will also be going to the Injatimi, my game lodge. Following this my whole immediate family (Colleen and her fiance Gary, Stuart, Robin and his girlfriend Tatyana, Pat and her sister Nita) plus many friends from overseas and Johannesburg arrive in Cape Town in December to attend Colleen and Gary's wedding.

Watch this space for more exciting adventures, trial and tribulations of Mark, his boat, and his family.

2008-04-10T22:46:00.000-07:00

It’s a long while since I updated my blog and the enforced down time I have now (the reason will soon become apparent) allows me to take a leisurely stroll through the events of the past few months.

Our arrival in Honolulu on July 19 2007 was a very welcome landfall after the time pressures we had set ourselves to get to Hawaii in time for Jess and Theo to catch their flights back to South Africa. These had already been extended due to the issues we had with the starboard engine prop and other sundry problems (including two “encounters” with Parks Board boats) in the Galapagos.

The sail from Galapagos was as near to perfect as a blue water cruise can be. We literally flew from the Galapagos in winds rarely dropping below 15 knots and rarely exceeding 25 knots. We flew the working jib and the mainsail on a port beam reach for the first half of the trip, then 36 hours of motoring to get through the doldrums, and finally a beam reach on the starboard tack all the way to the Hawaiian islands. We completed 4500 nautical miles in 23 days – some sail. For a few days I was concerned about hurricane Cosme, which seemed to be following us to Hawaii. It was a few hundred miles north of us but rapidly converging as we approached Hawaii. Fortunately it blew out before arrival and the resultant tropical depression over the islands gave us a great wind and a robust sail during the last two days of the voyage.

The few days before Jess and Theo left were a whirlwind of tourist activities, and when they left I settled down to a routine of boat maintenance, golf, and social activities. The marina we happened on, is on the west side of the island of Oahu, and turned out to be perfect - close to the boatyard, next to a golf course, and four idyllic man-made lagoons to snorkel, swim and hang out.

I had always planned to leave the boat in Hawaii and return to South Africa for a few months via a short stop in San Francisco to meet friends and play in the annual Eagle Cup tournament which I have been part of for the past nine years. Robin, my son, joined me just before I left, and he took care of “Life’s A Dream” during my absence.

On my return to the boat in early December, the next few weeks was hectic preparing for the arrival of my family for Xmas and New Year. I decided to rent a condo for the period. We had a super time over the festive period, and when the family left in early January 2008, it was time to get down to the serious business of preparing the boat for the next adventure into the South Pacific. We needed to haul the boat out to do a number of fairly significant repairs and to give the boat a new coat of bottom paint.

The haul-out was as bad as I imagined. Dawn to dusk work in a grimy boatyard, eight hours of exhausted sleep, and then the same thing the next day. Ten days later we went back in the water, and I believed all was fixed. One of the important jobs I needed to complete was a small leak in the daggerboard casing, and I really believed we had it licked. Imagine my disappointment when I found that the problem was still there. Nevertheless, it had not caused any major issues, so I resigned myself to finding the leak on the next haul-out sometime in the future.
We were now gung-ho to leave Honolulu for our trip into the South Pacific (first stop Tahiti) and the planned date was set for the end of March. We conducted sea-trials to test all of our fixes. Other than the daggerboard leak, it all looked good.

The last few days of March were a hive of activity taking on provisions, last minute gear checks, and a myriad of other tasks needed to get ready for a long trip. We had four crew on board when we left Oahu – myself, Robin, Blue (a good friend who lives on a boat in the Marina), and Meryl (Blue’s mother, a person who had previously undertaken long ocean passages as crew). The plan was to spend a week cruising down the islands, stopping at a number of anchorages on the way, with a final stop in Kona, which is a little town on the most southern island of Hawaii. Blue had planned to leave the boat at that point and fly back to Oahu. The three of us would continue on to Tahiti (about 2000 miles).

The first leg of the trip was a short sail (75 miles) to the island of Molokai, which is due East of Oahu. Since the wind in this part of the world typically comes from the East we knew it was going to be a fairly robust upwind haul. I decided on a night sail – it was a full moon and the forecast was fair (20 to 25 knots of wind from the East with moderate seas).

Life’s A Dream seemed really happy to be back at sea and we were cracking along at a lively pace, tacking on an hourly basis into the wind but making good progress. I had just finished my watch and was dozing off down below when I heard a new and unfamiliar noise emanating from the area of the daggerboard - a loud deep creaking and groaning. On investigation I discovered that the small leak, which had dogged the boat for so long was now a significant leak (about 10 liters an hour). I decided to continue on to Molokai as we were more than halfway, to see if we could assess the problem and undertake a temporary fix to continue the planned voyage.

On arrival Robin and I dived on the daggerboard case and it became apparent that we needed to return to Oahu – there was severe delaminating at the junction of the case and the hull and we just could not assess how bad it was. We attempted a temporary patch to slow the flow but that did not help at all.

Ironically sail back was superb – 25 to 30 knots of wind on a broad reach and we were back in the marina in record time. As a small compensation Robin caught four wonderful eating fish (three dorado and one tuna).

So here we sit, still in Oahu, once again on the hard. This time we have got to the real problem and the fix is underway. The outboard hull had separated from the daggerboard due to below par workmanship and deviation from the plan. My builder did such a great job on most of the boat but this is one area that was not done well.

I hate to make new forecasts but I do expect to leave by not later than April 20th.

We are philosophical about this enforced stay and we are very positive and looking forward to our next voyage and its idyllic landfall!

2007-09-03T19:06:00.001-07:00

It’s the 3rd of September, 2007 in Honolulu, Labor day (a big long-weekend holiday in the USA) and I’m getting ready to depart for the mainland. The past month and a half in Honolulu has passed by in a flash. Jess (my niece) and Theo (my South African buddy) who were my crew for the remaining leg from the Galapagos stayed for a few weeks and then departed back to South Africa. While they were here we did the tourist bit and it was really great to stretch our legs wandering around Honolulu, driving through the countryside, taking long walks along the shore. Jess left first and Theo and I concentrated on the myriad of jobs that had to be undertaken after fairly intense cruising (12,500 nautical miles/ 14,000 miles/ 24,000 kilometers) since leaving Cape Town on March 19, 2007.

Before I catch you up on current affairs, let me summarize the last few legs of our trip after saying goodbye to Robin and Devon in Bonaire (by the way if you would like to read the delightful newsletters written by various members of the crew from Bonaire to Honolulu, I have published these on my personal web page http://www.markvanniekerk.co.za/. (they give a little more detail):

Bonaire to Colon (entrance port of the Panama Canal) about 600 nautical miles

We left Bonaire on May 16, 2007 with good winds and lots of excitement. After the first day the wind dropped and the remainder of the voyage was a succession of squalls with some wind for a while followed by the dreary sound of engines as we motor sailed for most of the way to our destination.

After 5 days of fairly uneventful sailing we arrived in Colon and moored at the Panama City Yacht Club in the heart of the port, dirty and uninviting. After the blue waters and clean streets of Bonaire this was somewhat of a culture shock. There was complete agreement amongst the crew (which, at this stage, included Shirley, Theo’s wife) that we should try and get through the canal as soon as possible as, in addition to the desire to leave Colon, Shirley had a flight out of the Galapagos that could not be changed. Imagine our “despair" when we discovered that it was taking yachts upwards of 2 weeks to get a space for the transit. An option was to throw money at the problem and book a pilot (normally reserved for large commercial boats) that would ensure an immediate transit. This we did, and 2 days later we were on our way.

Canal Transit

What an experience! A lot easier than I had imagined and just fabulous. It’s a two-day experience. The first three locks are transiting into Lake Gatun which is the fresh water lake that feeds the water for the locks. An overnight stay on the lake and then the remaining locks going down to the Pacific side.

Two memories that I want to share with you:

1. Fresh water is lighter than salt water and I was quite disturbed to see how much lower in the water Life’s A Dream sat in Lake Gatun. The normal waterline disappeared below the water and took me a while to calm down and convince myself that LAD was not sinking.

2. One of the yachts that was doing the transit with us was a catamaran as well, and the owner had a “contact” in the lock authorities whom he asked to aim the web cam which operates at one of the locks, at his catamaran as the transit took place. This was duly done…except the web cam was aimed at the wrong cat resulting in the great shots of Life’s A Dream beamed in real-time around the world. Jess’s mom Gail in South Africa was talking to Jess on the telephone (cell phones are wonderful devices) and watching the web shots as we were transiting. I was beside myself with excitement (as were the crew) as we transited the lock with Gail giving us a commentary as the pictures came through and us waving a gesticulating like Banshees towards a stupid piece of equipment atop a pole taking out mug shots. People in the restaurant overlooking the lock were waving back, thinking we were addressing our madness towards them!

Balboa (exit port from the Panama Canal) to the Galapagos about 800 nautical miles

After spending an enjoyable few days in Balboa (what a difference from Colon) we left for Galapagos on the 27th of May, 2007. I was expecting a motor sail with no winds (typical for that leg). Well, I was in for one helluva surprise. For the first 6 days we had 15 to 20 knots of wind right on the nose. A very uncomfortable sail into steep waves and the engines droning 24 hours a day.

And then a day out….disaster! We lose the propeller on our port engine. No warning, no reason, no explanation, it simply fell off. I was devastated. We still had one engine and losing a prop is hardly dangerous to limb or life, but after a tough 5 days, it was just so disheartening. The way things work though convinces me that life is indeed a dream – all of a sudden the wind shifted and we had a delightful last 24 hour sail into Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz island in the Galapagos and we arrived on the morning of the 3rd of June, 2007.

Our Stay in Galapagos

We had originally planned to stay about 2 weeks – enough time to tour, dive, explore. However the best laid plans often come to naught, and it seemed as though there was some invisible force driven by a bunch of bananas that was preventing us from leaving.

Before talking about the series of mishaps, a general impression of our time exploring and enjoying Galapagos:

1. I had this childhood dream of sailing into Galapagos, the mysterious group of islands with the incredible flora and fauna. This childhood dream had grown into a minds-eye picture of the islands, which was a romantic vision of mystical uninhabited areas abounding with birds, marine animals, and spectacular wild vistas. My bubble was burst on arrival in Puerto Ayora, a bustling, overcrowded, busy, noisy harbor typical of a tourist-infested Caribbean island.
2. After the initial disappointment, I decided to discard all of the pre-conceptions, and take a fresh look….that done I proceeded to thoroughly enjoyed a very unique place.
3. The climate. How weird to be right on the equator and have to wear sweaters at night. The influence of the cold Humboldt Current dominates the climate. It was wonderful after the hot humid experiences in Panama. The water is positively cold with temperatures ranging between 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees C) in some currents and 65 degrees Fahrenheit (19 degrees C). SCUBA diving requires 7mm wet suits and even then one comes out of the water with teeth chattering.
4. The food. Scrumptious and inexpensive.
5. The flora and fauna. Once I had readjusted my preconceptions, I couldn’t get enough of exploring the many unique/weird/strange specimens abounding.
6. The islands face a real challenge in the future to maintain their distinctive character. It’s a vicious circle. Those who travel to the islands to experience this priceless environment are the ones who threaten it. Tourism is changing the islands and the environmentalists are really worried. They are concerned (with some justification) that the authorities are killing the goose that lays the golden egg.

And so back to invisible forces and bananas.

Before relating the events, a short digression – In Bonaire we had bought some bananas and Robin (my son) voiced his concern regarding a story he had heard about it being bad luck to sail with bananas on a yacht(!!??). Being the skeptic that I am, I scoffed at the story and thought no more of it until Galapagos.

After our arrival, I immediately contacted the propeller supplier to get a replacement prop sent to Galapagos. The prop was promised to arrive within the week. Two weeks later we were still waiting. During this time we had gone to the local market and bought lots of fruit and veg including a large bunch of bananas that hung resplendent in the cockpit. As the delays mounted I would stare at the ripening bunch and think of Robin’s words but immediately dismiss them.

Then the next disaster befell. 10pm at night, a large 70 ton Galapagos Parks Research vessel lifts its anchor alongside us, fails to engage its propeller and drifts onto us removing our bow striker and damaging our forward cross beam. Chaos is about the only way I can describe it – people shouting, and the awful sound of LAD being hit. Finally the crew of the Parks boat managed to get her away from us. Literally another meter and we were toast, so maybe we were lucky! Nevertheless the damage was bad enough and it was going to involve more delays. Parks Board admitted liability and undertook to fix the damage.

In the meantime the prop had arrived, so at least that was going according to plan. We fitted it with very few problems in a very quiet anchorage in the next bay and things seemed to be on the up. Against my better judgment we decided to return to our original anchorage at dusk. After dropping our anchor in what seemed to be a very uncrowded area, we somehow managed to hook our anchor around the anchor line of another yacht. By this time it’s dark and a big surge in the anchorage is making a collision with the yacht that we are now attached to, seem inevitable. Cut a long story short, I don SCUBA gear and dive on the mess to try and unhook out anchor from the line. Try this sometime if you are stupid enough to attempt it – night vision underwater in very poor visibility with a heavy surge, with anchor and tangled line swirling around you. Definitely not nice. Don’t know how, but eventually I managed to get them untangled and the third potential disaster was averted. At this stage I was really starting to get freaked out.

Two days later, we arrange with the Parks board to take the boat to another island so that they could effect the repairs to the cross beam and the bow striker in calm waters. After an uneventful trip we dropped anchor in a great anchorage and the following day the repairs began on LAD. I decided to tie up stern-to behind another Parks boat (“will he never learn” I hear you say) so that the glass fiber work on the bow could be carried out without strands being blown back onto LAD. Two hours into the work, the weirdness begins. I am on watch to ensure that we keep our distance from the Park boat we are tied to, when the guy doing the repairs asks me for a tool. I go below to fetch it and at this very instant, the wind (which has been absolutely steady over the past 24 hours) does a 180 degree switch and I hear an awful crunch. I literally jumped up the stairs and into the cockpit to find LAD being pushed repeatedly into the Parks boat as the changed wind direction took effect. Again chaos, again damage, this time on the starboard beam - a big gouge almost a hole. I was devastated.

The bunch of bananas just had to go.

We decided to get a temporary repair done and to depart Galapagos as soon as possible. Early the next morning we left…without the bananas.

Galapagos to Hawaii about 4500 nautical miles

We finally left Galapagos on June 27, 2007. Funny enough, I just somehow knew that there would be no more disasters on this leg and we were all in very high spirits (just 3 of us now – Theo, Jess, and me).

What a great sail it turned out to be. We averaged just less than 200 miles per day and the trip took 24 days only. We arrived in Honolulu on July 21 after the most glorious weather with favorable winds all the way.

Current Affairs

Since beginning this project starting from the conceptualization of Life’s A Dream in April 2005 I have created a pressure environment which culminated in the launch in December 2006 followed by three months of intense preparation for the cruise, followed by a tight sailing schedule to reach Hawaii by July 2007.

The past month and a half in Honolulu has been great. Theo and I, and latterly me on my own have been working at a sane pace on getting the many jobs that needed to be completed on LAD. It has been a very cathartic experience. It is the first time for many months that I can truly relax at the end of the day knowing that I have enough time to do what I need to do without having a time pressure imposed on me.

The plan over the next few months is to leave the boat here (a lovely marina 23 miles west of Honolulu called Ko’Olina), spend a month in San Francisco playing golf and visiting friends, 7 days in the UK spending time with Colleen (my daughter) and then a month in South Africa. I return to Hawaii on 12th December, 2007 to get the boat prepared for the arrival of my immediate family to spend Xmas and New Year together (an annual tradition). I’m not sure what the New Year holds but the general plan at this stage is to leave Hawaii in March 2008 and take LAD into the South Pacific.

Robin (my son who lives in San Francisco – actually Berkeley just down the road from SF) arrives here tomorrow, and will stay on the boat until I return, which makes me very happy. Robin loves LAD and I know he will take care of her in my stead. I leave for the San Francisco by air on Thursday.

As always I will update my blog as the plans unfold. Looking forward to seeing all my friends and family over the next few month

2007-05-14T15:20:00.000-07:00

Update May 14 2007

Hi to all my friends and family. Life has been so hectic since leaving Cape Town on March 19. We had a fast sail across to Trinidad (5000 miles) stopping briefly in St Helena and Ascension. New crew joined the boat (Jess - my niece - Shirley and Theo - good friends - and Nikki (a good friend too) and her husband Aron in Trinidad and since then it's been a whirlwind ride through a bunch of wonderful Venezuelan islands arriving in Bonaire (in the Netherlands Antilles) today. We stay here for two days and then depart for the Panama Canal. Yes, I agree, it's a crazy schedule. Sadly Robin and Devon are leaving the boat (they have commitments in the USA). Thank you so much Rob and Dev - you have been fantastic and will be sorely missed. Nikki and Aron are also leaving as they want to spend more time in Bonaire. So, the crew will now be myself Theo Shirley and Jess.

My frenetic schedule does not allow any more blog writing - it's happy hour and my crew are calling but fortunately Jess is a much better blogger than me and here is her site - please enjoy the wonderful pics and commentary with my compliments (aka plagiarizing Mark) http://jess-travelling.blogspot.com

2007-02-16T03:31:00.000-08:00

If December and January were hectic, February is frenetic! We are busy with lists, lists, and more lists. Lots of items get ticked off every day but others just add on. Some days I feel really good about progress and others I wonder if we will ever finish. It looks like March 15 or thereabouts will be the departure date but we are working really hard to bring that forward.

Here are a list of highlights (and some lowlights) of the past month:

As we get more familiar with her, Life’s A Dream becomes more of a special boat in so many ways – comfort, ease of handling, incredible speed and responsiveness;

Took part in our first Wednesday Night race at the yacht club and were quite quick and we raised some eyebrows in the local fraternity;

Had a person from SA Sailing magazine on the boat for a “test drive” and he seemed very impressed. We will have a write-up in the April edition so keep a look out for that;

Hit a sunfish (really gigantic and slightly stupid brutes) while sailing and damaged out dagger board (keel), fortunately it is built like the proverbial brick s--- house so the damage was small In case you want to read up and see pictures of these gargantuans (up to 2 tons in weight here is a link http://www.earthwindow.com/mola.html:

Have had a steady stream of visitors (family, friends) on the boat which has somewhat relieved the tedium of work but also takes up time.

My crew are a bunch of stars and from being mere rookies a month ago are now able to comfortably handle the boat, sails, mooring lines, etc.

The weather has been quite strange – very few howling South Easters and some unseasonably cool and rainy weather.

Robin can now park and drive this huge craft much to his and my delight.

We plan to take part in a two day regatta up to Saldanha Bay next week which will be our first major off-shore trip. No, it’s not that we have the time to enjoy ourselves – it’s part of the preparation and sea-trials.

Not sure whether I’ve mentioned it in previous blogs but our future plans have changed a bit. Instead of proceeding to San Francisco once we get through the Panama Canal we will take a 2 week detour to the Galapagos islands and from there head up to Hawaii where I will keep the boat until early next year.

I will continue to update my own web-site with pictures but I couldn’t resist placing this one in my blog as proof that she does sail rather well.

Also I have had requests for videos of her under sail. Robin took a short video which he has on his MySpace site – here is the address if you would like to view it http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=1792423614

Must get back to work now!

January 2007 Update

2007-01-07T10:35:00.000-08:00

Hi to everyone, It’s been a VERY hectic Xmas and New Year with the whole family here but very enjoyable. They have all left now except for Stuart, Robin and Devon (Robin’s girlfriend) who are my crew.

We have had some great times over the past two weeks including a great trip to the game lodge (I saw my first leopard at a kill and a fight between a leopard and a hyena!). Also, some great sails on Life’s A Dream. She performs even better than I had hoped and certainly better than John Shuttleworth (the designer) had promised.

Now that the family has left it’s down to the serious business of getting the boat ready for our voyage. It is still planned for early March but there is a lot of work between now and then. The “To Do” lists are endless but it’s all so enjoyable and we are really looking forward to getting it all done.

Cape Town is great and the weather for sailing has been unbelievable. I have updated my website (http://www.markvanniekerk.co.za/) with some really great pictures of the sailing and the views. I have even got some shots of the interior (galley and saloon). Watch out for some more interior pictures in the near future.

AsI write there's A Big Grin On My Face.

2006-12-19T08:16:00.000-08:00

As I write this I am sitting on Life’s A Dream in the V and A Yacht basin. We moved LAD here today and we will stay until the 26th of December then sail her back to the Royal Cape Yacht club which will be our base for the next 3 months while we get ready to depart for the South Pacific via the Carribean and Hawaii.

The last few days have been momentous. Since the launch it seems that I have lived a lifetime. Stuart, Robin and Devon have arrived (Stuart arrived the night before the launch so he was present on THE day). John Shuttleworth (the designer) was in Cape Town for four days after the launch and we had some incredible sailing. She performs above my expectations and John is really happy as well. I was gob-smacked to say the least and John was as pleased as punch. All the sailing was great but here are some highlights: We achieved 18.4 knots on a beam reach in 28 knots of wind and she felt very comfortable (for non-sailors 18.4 knots is VERY fast); She sailed close-hauled very easily on an apparent wind angle of 31 degrees off the wind (for non-sailors this is VERY impressive for a catamaran).

John has now left and we are getting down to learn all of the other (non-sailing) things on LAD – it’s mind boggling how much equipment, electronics, electrics, plumbing, etc., etc, there is that has to be mastered. But it’s great fun and my motley crew are enjoying it as well.

I have taken a few pictures of LAD moored at the waterfront which I have published on my personal website (http://www.markvanniekerk.co.za/). I have been asked to put on pictures of the interior. I will get round to those within the next few weeks.

By the way I still have not managed to wipe this silly foolish grin off my face. It’s an expression of pure delight and happiness!

Finally The Day Is Almost Here

2006-12-07T13:30:00.000-08:00

Today is the day Life’s A Dream leaves the boatyard and she will be put into the water tomorrow. Hard to believe. As I have said ad nauseum, I am “over the moon” and she looks stunning. I have taken a number of pictures and videos. I will be putting up the new pictures on my own web site, which is http://www.markvanniekerk.co.za/ and I have uploaded a short video clip (the first!) onto YouTube of some profiles of the boat and hulls taken just this morning. The web address at which you can view this video is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqAiY5LdBnI. I have done a short clip of the view looking from forward from behind the boat – this web address is http://www.youtube.com/v/X2btg34AV3k. You will probably need a connection speed of at least 1000kb per second otherwise it will take a long time. I encourage you to post comments, as it is nice for me to get feedback.

At Last...Pictures!

2006-11-30T12:05:00.000-08:00

I have finally posted some pictures. You will find them on my website at http://www.markvanniekerk.co.za/. I am embarrassed to admit that I took a bunch more (cockpit, interior, me) and I deleted them in error before posting them. As it turns out, it’s not a bad idea to delay pics of the inside as most things are covered with protective material and there is still a lot of finishing going on so it looks pretty raw.

We are still aiming for a launch on Tuesday however, if I were a betting man, I would say that Friday December 6 is much more likely.

I am spending the weekend and Monday in Saldanha Bay trying to complete my Yacht Master practical exam so it’s a pretty busy time at the present.

Delay in Launching - Maybe!

2006-11-28T06:40:00.000-08:00

Yeah yeah I can hear the comments already regarding the lack of pictures - “Lazy b----r doesn’t even make the time to take pictures”. Well I am waiting for all the windows and portlights to be installed and some have been delayed. In fact as each day goes by it gets tighter and tighter as scheduled deliveries fail to arrive. The latest delays are the front lexan windows (it seems that the supplier is having a problem getting the curve, which is 3 dimensional, exactly right) and the doors (final few should arrive on Friday). I spoke with the project manager today and they have tentatively scheduled a later launch for next Friday in case the Tuesday date cannot be met. He assures me that they are still hopeful for Tuesday but “just in case”. I’m not too fussed as I’d rather have it done properly and not hurried, and handover to me is still scheduled for December 15.

The good news is that the propellers have arrived and they look great. The propeller boffin assures me that they are the greatest thing since sliced bread and my boat is probably the first catamaran in the world to have Seahawk 3-bladed folding props. I’ve always wanted to be a guinea pig and I’ve now got my way!

There are going to be lots of little bits and pieces that we are going to have to sort out in the New Year but generally speaking it all looks great.

Watch this space for pics quite soon!

Short Update

2006-11-24T06:10:00.000-08:00

I am so jazzed! I have just returned from the boat yard and Life’s A Dream has had her colour stripes painted on the outside and her beautiful lines show spectacularly. I am over the moon. I will be taking video and pictures on Monday so hopefully you should get some idea of what I’m raving on about, quite soon.

We are still on track to launch on December 5. It’s going to be tight. For example the front lexan windows will only be installed on Wednesday and they take three days to do, there are still lots of electrical fitting to be installed, flooring and furniture is not yet complete, portlights have only just arrived, painting will only be completed next Saturday. I could go on and on but it scares me to think of all the things to do before then.

I don’t reckon I’ll be sleeping much over the next week.

18 Days And Counting

2006-11-16T23:22:00.000-08:00

I remember as a kid asking mom each year from about mid November “how many more sleeps before Christmas?” and then carefully ticking off each completed sleep. Well it’s happened again – I’m counting the number of sleeps before launch – it’s 18! The original planned launch date was Friday, December 1 but due to unavailability of the crane this has been changed to Tuesday, December 5.

Looking at the amount of work to be completed it is hard for me to imagine how this will be achieved but Mark Delany assures me that the work is doable, and there is a constant feverish hive of activity around the boat. It is probable that there will be interior bits and pieces to be finished on the water over the following week or two before the yard closes down for the December holidays.

Stainless steel appendages (pulpits, pushpits, stanchions, handrails) are currently being fitted and I am transitioning my image of the pure lines of the hull to include the ugly (dare I say it) addition of steel. Believe me when I say that it’s quite an adjustment. I’ve lived with that shape sans steel everyday for 18 months. Imagine if your wife (say) all of a sudden grew a large pimple on the tip of her nose!

Regarding the launch date – this is not the official launch with champagne bottles breaking and their contents flowing – that will happen sometime in the New Year.

Also still no new pictures. They will start happening over the next few weeks.

2006-11-03T02:41:00.000-08:00

November 3, 2006 Update

Madly Busy with lots of boat stuff. It's all looking great and Two Oceans are working diligently to achieve the November 30 launch - 27 days to go and counting!

I am now living in Cape Town - a lovely little flat in Seapoint which I have rented until the end of the month - and spend my time making decisions, sorting out issues, deciding on finishes tec. Time seems to go in a whirl. I visit the boat yard most days and it it is amazing to see changes from one day to the next. Lots of people working on the boat.

At this stage no updated pictures but that will be rectified as soon as the hull is painted and the interior finishes are installed.

Took a momentous decision on propellors today. I was going feathering but have decided to use the new Seahawk "Slipstream" 3-bladed folding prop. It performs really well and the testimonials are all positive.

I'm sure there is lots of other things to say but I must dash.

2006-09-06T02:14:00.000-07:00

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It's been a long while since my last post but hopefully it's worthwhile.

A lot has happened over the past seven weeks and I'm pleased to report that it's all good news! We are on schedule for a launch sometime between the 15th and the 30th of November. The original schedule was November 15 so it's just about on schedule. Thanks to Two Oceans Marine (the builders) and John Shuttleworth (the designer). Construction is 99% complete and most of the built-in furniture is done. Now comes the next phase which is installation of electonics, electrics, plumbing, kitchen equipment, deck gear, etc, etc, etc. I have made decisions on all of the gear, equipment, sails, etc, and it's all being built and/ or delivered as I write.

I cannot begin to describe how beautiful she is. I don't use the word "beautiful" loosely or colloquially - she really is stunning! Like no other Cat I have ever seen. Her lines are are breathtakingly shaped and she looks powerful and awesome but at the same time just gorgeous. I know it sounds like I'm gushing but you have to see her to appreciate what I'm saying. I have posted a number of pictures on my web site http://www.markvanniekerk.co.za which give a sense of her size and beauty but really don't do her justice.

I have just returned from Cape Town. John Shuttleworth came out from the UK to check on progress and he succeeded, as he always does, to convince me to spend some more money on some item. This time it was the mainsail. Seriously though, I know that John works absolutely in my interests and every suggestion he makes is to make her sail better, safer, and faster. He was interviewed by The Cape Argus and they published a very nice article on him and his background and experience with a picture of "Life's A Dream" in the background. I've posted it here for all to read. Well maybe the writings a bit small to read but it is a very complimentary article about John, his experience, and background.

I am planning to move "permanently" down to Cape Town at the end of this month so that I can be really close to the boat yard for the last two months of work - electronics, electrics, plumbing, galley gear, other equipment, deck gear, finishing and painting. At this stage we are definitely on track to launch at the end of November followed by about 2 weeks of factory trials and then I will move on board on or about December 15.

The official launch and part will be around that time as well. All of my friends and family will be invited and I will publish the date in theis blog as soon as it is firmed up.

As you can imagine I am madly busy at this time but I will attempt to update my blog more diligently, particularly over the next few months when so much will be happening.

2006-07-10T01:30:00.000-07:00

July 10 2006 Update

************************************************************************************************ ****Reading my Web Log****

If this is your first time reading of my Web Log you may want to start at the first entry. Please scroll down for earlier entries. ************************************************************************************************ It’s hard to believe that almost 2 months has gone by since my last update. Needless to say there has been lots of progress on ”Life’s A Dream” and I am very satisfied with where we are. In summary this is the current status quo:

The name “Life’s A Dream” has been officially registered. No longer will I call her “the boat”!
Interior fitting and construction has started.
The cabin top is still to be joined. For the time being this is being left off, as it is easier to work on the interior, for the moment, without the cabin top in place.
I am in the process of taking decisions on deck gear, galley equipment, and electronics, etc. The nice part is the process; the not-so-nice part is the inevitable budget overrun. EVERYTHING costs more than we estimated.
Bottom line is we are on-track for a November launch (yeah!!).

I am planning to move to the Cape in early October to be right there for the last few months before launch.

I’m not sure I mentioned it in earlier blogs – in order to get boat insurance for Life’s A Dream and generally be “legal” I need to have an international skippers sailing licence which involves a number of fairly onerous pre-requisites. These are: A specific number of logged sea miles; A VHF operators certificate; A first aid certificate; A safety at sea certificate; A fire fighting certificate; and finally I have to pass a very comprehensive practical and theoretical skippers examination. The sea miles were relatively easy (I have more than enough), the VHF operators, first aid, safety at sea, and fire fighting have just been completed, and I will be doing the skippers certificate in October. Sounds easy doesn’t it? Try it sometime, particularly when you are on a hectic time-table already! Also, I wouldn’t wish the last fire-fighting practical test on my worst enemy. I have a newly found appreciation for the fitness, braveness, and level-headedness of fire fighters. Maybe I’m getting soft but it was one of the most strenuous physical activities I have ever been subjected to.

Many people have asked me “when are you leaving Cape Town”. Hard to say but I am aiming for the end of January 2007 but, depending on how the sea trials go, and getting all of my other planning and preparations completed in time, it may be as late as early March.

Besides having two full-time crew members (still to be identified and employed) on board when I leave, I am delighted that both of my sons, Stuart and Robin, as well as Robins girlfriend Devon will be crewing for me on the first leg to Brazil. I have room for 2 more but it will have to be a really good motivation because 6 sounds more than enough!

I have updated my personal web site with one solitary picture taken at my last visit to the factory. I actually took a number of pictures but they really weren't worth publishing (too detailed, too vague, too dark, too light). I will make a concerted effort at my next visit to get some good meaningful shots. If you want to look at the solitary picture (it is worthwhile, as it is a nice shot of the cabin top being built) the web-site's address is www.markvanniekerk.co.za.

May 23rd Update

2006-05-23T16:19:00.000-07:00

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This is a very short post as I am currently in the USA and working really hard at having fun. However I wanted to provide a short update as we had a meeting in Cape Town on May 11 to check out progress on the boat. John Shuttleworth, the designer, was there as well.

Bottom line is things are going really well. John is delighted with the hulls, which are now completed and joined together with the main beam and the main bulkhead.

I am breath-taken! Everything is a bit bigger than I had envisaged and she is beautiful.

Lots of decisions to be taken over the next month with respect to furniture, gear, equipment, so I am running around like a blue-bummed flea.

I have updated my own web site with some new pictures – please go to http://www.markvanniekerk.co.za/ for the latest and greatest.

Watch this space for further updates!

March 2006 Update

2006-03-30T07:46:00.000-08:00

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There are lots of exciting developments. We have ordered the engines – Two 40 horse power Yanmar saildrives. There was quite a lot of discussion regarding the propellors. Because of the shape of the underside of the hull the propellor blades will stick out below the hull thus increasing the draft. This is not a major issue, what is more problematic is that in the event that the boat grounds or hits shallow water there is a potential for the props to be damaged as the are not protected by the hull. At this stage we have not come up with a solution but the brains trust are working on it. Construction of the second hull begins in a few days time, the bridge deck is just about completed, and all of the bulkheads are well underway. I have just returned from Cape Town and the work completed is looking great. We are still a couple of weeks behind schedule (the second hull should have been completed) but the project plan has been rearranged to enable cath-up, and Mark Delany of Two Oceans Marine is confident that by next month we will be all but caught up. I have taken a few pictures and you can see them on my website at http://www.markvanniekerk.co.za/. As always comments are welcomed.

Time Flies When You Are Having Fun!

2006-03-03T00:49:00.000-08:00

“Time flies when you are having fun” as the saying goes. It was with some surprise that I saw that the last log entry was more than a month ago. Anyway there have been lots of developments and progress on the boat since my last entry.

Firstly the not-so-good stuff: Approximately three weeks ago there was a fire in the factory where the boat is being built. The good news is that my hulls were not damaged at all. The bad news is that there was some peripheral damage which has had the effect of delaying the schedule. Furthermore there have been severe power cuts in the Cape due to (dare I say it) gross inefficiency and lack of foresight on the part of Eskom – our local electricity supplier – which is likely to continue through April. Two Oceans have indicated a possible three-week delay although they are pulling out all stops to get it back on track.

The good news is that the starboard hull, which is currently being laid, is looking wonderful. John Shuttleworth, the designer, was at the factory with me earlier this week for our monthly meeting and is delighted with the product. It’s still very early days but she is looking prettier even than I had imagined! You can have a look at the latest pictures with some commentary at http://www.markvanniekerk.co.za/. Click on the link for Catamaran and then on the Picture Gallery link. This web site is still being constructed so I make no excuses for the layout and the mediocre copy – the pictures are good!

As always comment are welcomed.

Start Construction - First Pictures!

2006-01-21T02:17:00.000-08:00

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No sooner had I sent out my previous log entry when I received these first pictures from Two Oceans Marine. These are two views of the start of construction of the plug which, when completed, will be used to construct the hulls. It shows the lines quite clearly.

January 2006 Update

2006-01-18T06:41:00.000-08:00

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January 2006 Update

Boat construction has started. Well that’s a bit of an exaggeration. Before construction begins, the “plug”* for the hulls has to be built and this is presently being constructed. Nevertheless it is all on track and by next month this time, laying of the fiberglass (i.e. construction of the actual hulls) will have started so some pics will be forthcoming.

I had my first construction meeting with the builders in Cape Town three days ago, which went well. A number of little (but important) details were discussed. These included water tank capacity*, propeller specification*, and winch size and specification* decisions.

* For anybody who is interested in a more detailed explanation, read on!

Plug – This is the mould for the hull. Technically it is called a plug as it can be used only once (for my boat) and this construction mode is usually used for one-off boats as it is less expensive than building a mould which can be used over and over to build many hulls.

Water Tank Capacity – in the construction of catamarans (particularly nice fast ones like mine!) weight is of paramount importance. However, not unusually, I want my cake and eat it! So what I have requested of my designer is to make a third large water tank available which I will leave empty while sailing, but can be filled and used while at anchor which is when my fussy guests will need a lot of water for showers etc.

Propeller Spec. – the decision is between a sail drive (very nice and easy to install and maintain) or a prop shaft (allows a shallower draft). I have asked John to come up with a solution that incorporates a shallow draft solution with the sail drive!

Winch size and specification – I had originally specified manual winches on the deck. I have now decided on electric winches. More money of course but will certainly make life easier and increase the resale value.

A Blast From The Past

2005-12-12T08:04:00.000-08:00

My Sailing Plans For Next Year

2005-11-25T05:20:00.000-08:00

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As I stated in an earlier Blog entry, the boat completion is planned for November 2006 and launching will take place very soon thereafter. I plan to move onto the boat permanently at that time and start preparations for a departure date from Cape Town sometime in January 2007.

As you may well imagine it will be a busy time during that period. Sea trials, shakedown, provisioning, planning, etc. etc.

Set out below are my initial current plans but they may well change:

Overall objective is to get “Life’s A Dream” into the South Pacific within 2 years. At this stage I plan to skipper the boat to San Francisco and then hand over to a delivery skipper to take her into the South Pacific. Once in the South Pacific, I will re-join at a later date and spend some time (6 months, a year, two years, forever?) sailing the South Sea Islands doing a lot of Scuba diving and (hopefully) doing this with friends and family.

More specifically, I plan to divide the trip to San Francisco into four separate legs. Leg 1 will be Cape Town to Bahia Salvador in Brazil. We will probably stop off at St. Helena for a few days. The total trip across will be between one and one and a half months. Leg 2 will be Bahia Salvador to the Caribbean (probably St. Thomas). This will be a trip of about 2 weeks. The third leg will be St. Thomas through the Panama Canal. This will take between 2 weeks to a month. The final leg will be up the West Coast of the USA to San Francisco (real sailing!).

Now here’s the deal. The crew will be myself as skipper, the first mate (this is the person who will eventually take over as skipper in San Francisco), and the second mate/cook. That leaves 4 berths open for friends and family on each leg. I have already had a number of takers for each of the legs. If you are interested or you have already secured a berth please contact me either to confirm your berth or to express interest. All that you need is to arrange for transport to the departure point and from the disembarkation point plus a modest contribution to cover food and drinks on the voyage. I can promise you a trip of a lifetime!

In subsequent Blogs I will keep you updated on building progress as well as pictures.

3D Renditions of "Life's A Dream"

2005-11-17T01:52:00.000-08:00

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Here are some 3d renditions of what “Life’s A Dream” will look like when built.

As always comments are welcomed.

November 15 Update

2005-11-15T09:17:00.000-08:00

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I said in my previous Blog that I would, in the next entry (i.e. this one), detail my sailing plans for 2007.  However, today was a significant day in the build schedule.

Firstly John Shuttleworth (designer) completed the first set of detailed plans (hull lines) and delivered them to the builders Two Oceans Marine.
Secondly I received 3D renditions of “Life’s A Dream” which I thought you might find interesting.  I was certainly excited to get them because, even though she looks much like I had envisaged, it was really something for me to see her not only in my dreams!

There will be changes and no deck gear and lines are shown but it nevertheless makes it all a little more real.

****I'm having technical problems in posting these renditions. I will insert them as soon as this is resolved***

My next entry will set out my sailing plans when I leave in January 2007.  In the meantime if there is anything you would like to know about or get more info on, please leave a comment.

I Finally Decide to Build My Own Boat

2005-11-08T01:05:00.000-08:00

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“Once a sailor always a sailor” as the saying goes. It had been a long 13 years since my last sailing adventure when I decided, three years ago, to go sailing again. This time to build my own “dream” boat and once again hit the high seas. Saying it is easy; doing it is a little more difficult.

At the time my prospects did not look good. The company I had invested my life in and which I had hoped would provide me with the wherewithal to follow my dreams, stubbornly resisted the desire of all of its shareholders (including me) to provide the golden egg. For a long year I dreamt about The Boat. Dreaming is good but eventually the time arrives to wake up.

One day I did just that. Carefully I went through all of my assets and even more carefully calculated how much money I could raise and how much I would need to build my boat. It was an incredibly liberating experience – throwing caution to the wind and making a decision. That night, for the first time in a while, I slept soundly.

A new day dawned and the enormity of my decision hit home. Notwithstanding the careful manner with which I had conducted my life on the previous day, the fact was I really did not have enough money to do it and the prospects of the company selling appeared really bleak. My somber reverie was interrupted by the beeping of my cell phone indicating that a text message was waiting to be read. The contents were mind blowing “SPL has been sold for $6.88 a share Best Regards Max”. Max Moss a friend and colleague at SPL for many years was giving me the news I had been waiting to hear for so long, just the day after I had made up my mind to go for it and damn the consequences!

Lots of events took place thereafter in short order. The easy decisions were appointing the designer – John Shuttleworth, a long-time friend and a well-known and accomplished multihull designer; and the builder – Two Oceans Marine, a relatively small but extremely reputable boat builder in Cape Town. Much more difficult was getting the high level design (study plans) completed. This started in April 2005 and was finally completed on August 14, 2005. John and I actually worked really well together but it is tedious working with a designer who lives in the UK and most conversations take place via e-mail. Also John seems to spend a lot of time sailing in the Caribbean or gadding about in some exotic European location with his delightful partner Tania. Seriously though, it was great fun and we have come up with something really special. I have relied on John heavily for the hull lines and sailing design. My contribution was really only the layout and gear.

The first set of detailed plans (hull and bulkhead lines and materials list) will be delivered to Two Oceans Marine on November 15, 2005 so that the materials can be ordered. Construction is scheduled to commence in January 2006 when the factory re-opens and the completion date is planned for November 2006. Sea trials will take place from November through January 2007 and I plan to set sail in January 2007.

I am currently constructing my own personal web site, which should be up and running within the month. This web site will contain drawings, plans, and pictures as the project progresses, which will be linked from this Blog. In the meantime I attach the cockpit and interior plan for you to try and make some sense out of.

(I know this is a small picture on screen. If you want to make it bigger, right click on it and save the picture on your own PC. You can then use your own picture viewer to zoom in)

In summary the boat has a large cockpit with a great diving platform and room for 10 SCUBA dive tanks, a spacious saloon (lounge) and galley (kitchen), one owners cabin and two guest cabins (all doubles with shower and toilet en-suite), two additional berths for crew, a navigation/ computer station, and a large workroom which will house the compressor (for SCUBA diving), SCUBA gear, in addition to tools, spares, etc. It is a lot bigger than my previous boat Fleur du Cap”. Even though both vessels are 47 foot long, a catamaran has loads more room because it has two hulls and is VERY wide.

My next entry will set out my sailing plans when I leave in January 2007. In the meantime if there is anything you would like to know about or get more info on, please leave a comment.

2005-11-03T02:22:00.000-08:00

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The Second Adventure on the beloved "Fleur du Cap"

2005-11-02T06:42:00.000-08:00

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Soon after completing my sailing adventure on “Unbound”, I married Pat in 1973 and in short order (actually a span of 6 years) we produced three delightful kids – Colleen, Stuart, and Robin (the youngest). When Robin was three I decided to broach the idea with Pat of one day owning our own ocean-going yacht and go sailing across the seven seas as a family. Pat’s reply was “not over my dead body”. Not to be deterred I finally persuaded her that we could begin a little more modestly and buy a small boat and sail on the Vaal Dam which is close to Johannesburg. This was easily accomplished, as a business colleague (Trevor Winer) was selling his 26-foot Flamenca design keelboat called “Thunder Guts”. We acquired her together with a slightly disheveled caravan parked down at the dam.

I will never forget our first sail. We decided to leave the kids with my sister. It was a fairly windy day and as Pat and I rowed towards “Thunder Guts” which was moored on a buoy about 20 meters from shore, I could feel the fear and apprehension radiating from her. After arriving and settling down in the cockpit I carefully detailed the plan of action to one very anxious spouse. “Our first sail will be using the mainsail only. I will attach the mainsail to the mast and raise it while the boat is still tied to the buoy. There will probably be lots of clattering and noise while the boom swings from side to side but this is normal so don’t be concerned. I will then ask you to make your way up to the bow (front of the boat) to release the line attached to the buoy, and as we drift backwards the boat will start turning off the wind. At this point I will haul in the main sheet (a main sheet in sailing parlance is the rope that is attached to the bottom of the main sail), and we will start sailing”.

Plans don’t always come together but this one did and it all worked perfectly. I will never forget those few seconds as Pat slowly made her way forward with an abject look of terror on her face accompanied by a fearsome clamour from the flogging mainsail as it swung madly from side to side. She released the buoy line exactly as instructed, quickly returned to the safety of the cockpit and gazed anxiously at me (“does he really know what’s going on, are we going to die?” were unsaid questions plainly etched on her very pale face). And then the look of relief and wonderment as all noise ceased except for the sound of water lapping at the side of our boat, as we gently accelerated ahead under sail. Pat was hooked!

Three fun-filled years followed and most summer weekends were spent sailing. Pat and the kids were quick learners and soon I had an excellent and enthusiastic crew. The boot was now on the other foot. Pat was the one who nagged me about sailing the seven seas. My dream became her obsession. And her obsession became our reality.

In 1981 we took the decision to realize our dreams and obsessions. From 1981 to 1984 we spent most of our waking and non-working hours preparing for the adventure. Believe me this is not something to be taken lightly. Preparations included acquiring a well-found sailing vessel! We were so lucky to “find” “Fleur du Cap” - a 47-foot cutter rigged (this means she can fly three sails - a mainsail, a foresail, and a smaller sail tucked between the main and the foresail, known as a staysail) Compass 47 designed by Angelo Lavranos, and a finer cruising boat built in that era you will not find!

So many people played significant roles during that time in helping us through the morass of minefields (awful mixed metaphor but extraordinarily onomatopoeic!). Marius Aggenbach (the person who sold us the “Fleur”), Theo van der Hoek (a good friend who spent weeks on the “Fleur” with me getting her ready for the adventure, and Dave Abromowitz (well-known Cape Town sailor who helped me choose the right boat) just to mention a few. And then of course we met so many fascinating people as well, but Willie “Bakgat” Botha was unforgettable (too long a story t chronicle here but one day I will write a book and Willie “Bakgat” Botha will be in it somewhere)!

Preparations included selling our house, learning about diesel engines, acquiring sailing qualifications, becoming ham operators, attending paramedic courses, having our appendixes removed, including the children (seriously!), just too mention a few.

We finally departed Cape Town on January 21st 1985. “We”, being myself (skipper), Pat (first mate), Colleen (ten years old), Stuart (seven years old), Robin (he had just turned five), Lynda (my niece who would be providing teaching services for the kids) and Grant (a nephew of Theo van der Hoek) who was a delightful young man and an accomplished sailor.

What followed was three years of sheer bliss for our family (Lynda and Grant left after the Atlantic crossing). Many sea miles and wonderful adventures later, we arrived in the USA and sold the “Fleur” in Newport Rhode Island. At that time I was ready to resume a more “normal” existence but Pat had to be dragged screaming and kicking off the boat.

Our adventures are chronicled in a series of newsletters written by Pat (which I know have already been read by many of you). Pat has kindly agreed that I can make these available for reading if any of you are interested. As soon as I have my web site up I will upload the newsletters to that site and put in the web link on this Blog.

That brings you almost up-to-date with the very formative events that have taken place in my life leading up to the decision to do it all again but this time with a boat built specifically for me.

My next entry will bring you up-to-date with the current project, my plans, and anything else regarding “Life’s A Dream” (that’s not her official name yet but I hope to be able to register it) that may be of interest

Here are two pictures of “Fleur du Cap” – one as we sailed out of Cape Town on our big adventure and the other under sail in a good wind.

How it all started

2005-10-27T05:34:00.000-07:00

How it all started.

Before catching you up on this current project it is worth briefly relating some of the sailing experiences that have been such an enjoyable part of my life and which have brought me to this latest planned adventure.

My first introduction into sailing was in 1973 when I met a slightly crazy Australian, John Murray, who was in Knysna, South Africa on his 36 foot trimaran called “Unbound”. He was getting ready to sail down to Cape Town and had recently acquired a crew member (a young Canadian – although we were all young at that time!) who was going to accompany him to the Caribbean. Always looking for another way to make a quick buck he invited me to accompany him and his “crew” as a paying guest. After some lively negotiating and a number of beers, John and I agreed on a fee for the 2-day trip. I had never been on a sail boat before and was really looking forward to what I imagined would be a 48 hour jaunt relaxing on deck with a glass of wine in my hand while the “crew” sailed, caught fish, and looked after my every need.

A new day dawned and sporting a severe hangover I stepped aboard “Unbound”. I clearly remember my first thought, “Hmm it’s a little smaller than I imagined”. However I didn’t have much time to ponder, as I was bustled by John into my very small cabin and told to get up on deck “pronto mate” to assist with the embarkation. Assisting with the embarkation consisted of grabbing lines, hoisting sails, and generally getting involved in a lot more strenuous activity than I had imagined. Finally we were sailing – this was quite cool I remember thinking (second coherent thought of the day).

My memory of the sail down the lagoon is blurred but I do remember the hectic action when we tacked through the Knysna “Heads” (a narrow gash of water bounded on both sides by towering cliffs forming the entrance to the lagoon). We were dead into the wind, the passage is no wider than 200 meters, and one tack lasted no more than 2 minutes before the shore loomed ahead and we had to tack back again to the opposite side. Progress was painfully slow and my arms were painfully tired. Good grief I thought (incoherently this time) this is hard work, I’ll never last 2 days.

Finally we were through the “Heads”, John turned the boat South and gradually we fetched off the coast. It was a spectacular evening, the sun was sinking below the headland, we were clipping along at a rate of knots, the sails were full of wind, and life was good. John had entrusted me with the helm and I was intently concentrating on keeping a true course when abruptly I heard a loud splash behind me. I turned just in time to see the Canadian crewmember disappearing in the wake of “Unbound”! The next 30 minutes was a blur – I shouted, John who was down below at the time appeared in a blink, grabbed the helm from me and ordered me onto the forward deck. He turned the boat about (I have no recollection whatsoever of how the sails were managed but I guess I must have assisted), and hey presto, in what seemed like an instant, there was the “crew” thrashing about in the water directly ahead. Somehow I wrestled him aboard. He looked like a wet noodle and was patently in distress. We later learnt that he had wandered to the stern of the boat to relieve himself of excess food and drink as the awful malaise of seasickness settled in, lost equilibrium and toppled off the stern (turns out the poor guy had never been to sea before even though he was an experienced sailor). By this time darkness was falling, and he was in dire need of a dry set of clothes and a warm blanket.

The rest, so to speak, is history. I was elevated (?) to first mate, the Canadian was relegated to his cabin, and the next few days turned into one of the most exciting time of my life with lots of adventure, fun, and hard work. I was hooked on sailing and I knew then that it would be a big part of my life forever.

When we arrived in Cape Town, John invited me to join him on “Unbound” for a trip across the Atlantic to South America and the Caribbean. It took me about seven seconds to decide, and what followed for the next year was an adventure I will forever cherish and remember. During that time I met John Shuttleworth who joined “Unbound” as additional crew in South America. When we eventually parted company in Barbados, John and I maintained a sporadic communication over the next 25 years. I was very aware of John’s success as a multihull designer but little did I imagine that one day we would collaborate on a project to design my very own catamaran!

My next entry will briefly describe my next sailing adventure on the beloved “Fleur du Cap” which was my first venture as skipper on my very own (well actually our whole family owned it) deep water cruising sail boat. And which decided me that one day I would not only own, not only skipper, but actually build (or commission the building of) the sail boat of my dreams.

Before closing this blog here is the URL of John Shuttleworth’s web site if you would like to see the sort of boats he has and is designing. http://www.john-shuttleworth.com/

PS Just received the above picture from John today of him and me standing on the beach in Hout Bay trying to imitate penguins (seriously), taken during his recent trip to South Africa to meet with Two Oceans Marine, the builders http://www.2oceans.co.za/
(John has a picture of us on “Unbound” when we were buff and young - hard to believe. I will see if I can get hold of this and publish it in a future blog)

2005-10-25T08:50:00.000-07:00

Hi to all my friends and others!. This is my first post on my Blog. The main idea behind this web log is to keep you all updated on the progress on my BIG NEW ADVENTURE (apologies for shouting but it really is exciting for me - I'm totally stoked!)

Overall plan is to go sailing in about a year - January 2007 to be exact. Construction of my boat has just started. She is a 47 foot sailing catamaran designed by John Shuttleworth (I'll post his URL shortly) and being built by Two Oceans Marine in Cape Town.

Watch this space for lots of updates, pictures, musings, etc. Please feel free to post your comments, questions, musings etc.