The last official leg of the World ARC Rally was from Recife in Brazil to Grenada, via the marine park islands of Fernando do Noronha.
It was a staggered start, with some boats choosing to leave earlier and others staying longer in Recife. With decreasing winds forecast, we decided to leave the day before the official start.
Heading off on Wednesday 5th March 2025, this passage was a shock to the system. Instead of the usual downwind sailing that we had become accustomed to, the wind was from the side. A beam reach with steady winds of Force 4 (11-16 knots), occasional squalls with rain and gusts of Force 5 (17-21 knots). Escapade loved it and it was a speedy trip: 300nm in just over two days.
We also had our first catch of the new fishing competition!
Fernando do Noronha is a national marine park with 21 islands. It is a very popular holiday destination with its wild landscape and beautiful beaches.
Our few days here were not quite paradise, as it was wet, windy and the anchorage was very rolly. It was so wet that we even had to resort to wearing our foulies for the dinghy ride ashore. They have not been out of the cupboard for a while. The other restaurant guests thought the fire brigade had arrived!
While on the island, we took a day tour. The stopping points consisted of numerous beaches and views points. Very pretty, but not wildly exciting!
The diving too was disappointing. The visibility was superb and the gulleys and rocky swim throughs were interesting, but there was not the variety of underwater life that we usually see. Unfortunately, I think that we have been spoiled by the truly amazing dives we have done in other places around the world.
On Tuesday 11th March, we set off again. Heading for the northern coast of Brazil, we hit the ITCZ (Intertropical Convergence Zone). This is a region near the equator where the north east and south east trade winds converge. The convergence creates an area of low pressure and rising air, leading to light winds, heavy rainfall and often thunderstorms. With almost no wind, the engine was on and the going was slow. The only thing in our favour was the current of 2 knots pushing us in the right direction.
After motoring for almost three days, we started to pick up the trade winds. Steady winds of Force 4 (11-16 knots) from the N/NE and we were back sailing on a beam reach of speeds between 6 and 9 knots.
Making good progress to the north, on Sunday 16th March we crossed equator to be back in the northern hemisphere. This would normally warrant a tot of rum for us and also one for Neptune, but as it was 0130, we delayed it until the next day. Then it was a double celebration, as we had also reached our half way point.
Neptune must have enjoyed the offering, as we were rewarded with another three fish.
The great trade winds continued and Escapade was loving the beam reach. With the current of up to 3 knots continuing to help us along, we were reaching speeds of up to 10 knots and recording record days of 190 to 203nm. The miles were falling away fast. Unfortunately, this was not to last…
While on the rally and independent cruising, many boats chose to buddy boat with boats of a similar speed. Those of you who having been following our adventures, know that our buddy boat is Tam Lin of Gloucester. We first met Tony and Katy in St Lucia at the start of the World ARC and, since Australia, we have never been more than a couple of days apart. Buddying is great socially, but also supportive when things go wrong. On this leg, it was our turn to help Tam Lin.
Approaching the half way stage, Tony had spotted that he had three broken strands on his D1. This is one of the cables holding up the mast, so is pretty important. As it was on the downwind side with less load, Tony rigged up dyneema support and continued to sail, albeit very conservatively. We slowed down and agreed that we would ensure that we stayed with 24 hours of them. This turned out to be a good decision as, several days later, Tony noticed that more strands had broken. At this point, sailing was not an option, so on went the engine. This decision then created a new problem: Grenada was too far away to motor to without taking on more fuel.
We had some spare and another nearby rally boat, Sea Monster, had some too. We changed our courses to meet, so we could carry out a fuel transfer. By the time we met, it was dark and a little rolly. Martin had to drive Escapade to within 8m of Sea Monster, so I could catch a line from them. We then used this and our man over board system to transfer jerry cans of fuel from one boat to another. It was a tricky manoeuvr as Martin had to maintain a constant distance between the boats to avoid snapping the line. After a nerve-racking couple of hours, and only one broken line, we had successfully transferred 100 litres of diesel from Sea Monster to Escapade. Once it was all over, we broke our dry boat rule and had a beer.
The next day was a calm, relaxed day where we hove to and drifted along to wait for Tam Lin to catch up with us. Travelling together, we headed for Tobago and a sheltered bay to transfer the fuel to Tam Lin.
By the time we were approaching Tobago, more strands had broken due to the rolling of the boat, so Tony and Katy decided they did not want to complete the final 90nm to Grenada. Taking mooring buoys in the beautiful Man O´War Bay, we passed over the fuel and Martin helped Tony to remove the broken D1. We then bid them farewell to head for Grenada, taking the D1 with us.
Our last 90nm had NE winds of Force 4 (11-16 knots). We made good speed and arrived at St Georges at 5am just as it was getting light. Despite this early hour and the pouring rain, the World Cruising Club yellow shirts, Andrew and SWade were there to take our lines and welcome us ashore with the traditional rum punch.
What a momentous occasion. Our first stop in the Caribbean had been Grenada in December 2021 when we completed the ARC+ across the Atlantic. Here we were back again having completed our circumnavigation and arriving on Martin´s 60th birthday! Huge celebrations!!
Congratulations on your circumnavigation and for your rescue mission to Tam Lin.
ps. Beam reach always gives the best sailing.
Well many Happy returns you old Sailor you, nice Fish (tuna)? Martin being the star he is assisting Tam Lin well done mate, will you be repairing the D1 (technical description) and returning it to owner?
So what’s the plan now you have circumcised the planet eh?
Sade travels
Well done. You guys are amazing. Happy birthday Martin!