Arrival Mindelo Cape Verde

Diatonic
Anthony Warr
Sun 27 Jan 2013 10:55
 

Sunday, 27th of January 2013

 16 53.1N 24 59.4W

 

It’s time to leave Mindelo, Cape Verde and set sail for Barbados. Before we depart, here’s a quick update on what we’ve gotten up to since we arrived.

 

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The 22nd was a day of great sailing coupled with some minor technical issues, such as a lack of electricity, water and refrigerated food. With land so close we could smell it, we pressed on, hoping that the scent of the land masked the odor of the unwashed crew.

 

We arrived very early in the morning on the 23rd and navigated our way through an unfamiliar harbor with extremely spotty navigational lights, unlit boats at anchor and unmarked wrecks. We anchored for a well-deserved sleep while we waited for the marina to open.

 

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We awoke to a beautiful view of Mindelo and the stark mountains of Sao Vicente, along with a strong offshore breeze to make getting into our berth an adventure. With the assistance of a couple of mariñeros, some helpful Germans and many well placed fenders we parked the boat so we could get down to work on repairs.

 

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Our pontoon buddy was this little boat, sailed by a French woman attempting to circumnavigate single-handed.

 

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Tony was cheerful and chipper as he made sure that Diatonic wasn’t too soggy from the over-exuberant water maker.

 

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The fault in the generator was found to be a blown capacitor, and luckily we were able to source a replacement so that we can keep our various iProducts fully charged for the trip across the pond.

 

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With repairs to the hydrovane, refrigerator, generator and water system complete we were set loose on the town. Mindelo surpassed all of our expectations and a planned two day stop soon stretched into four, so we could set sail with bleary eyes and foggy heads.

 

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Club Nautico is  warm and friendly establishment with great live music and a well stocked bar, including the island’s local spirit, grog.

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Having replaced our depleted gin and ice stocks with grog, we are fully prepared to brave the upcom