1/12/02 17°05N 32º56W On Passage from Cape Verdes to?
Oriole
Sun 1 Dec 2002 16:42
over 30 knots of wind and a big sea and at least two members of the crew
found that in the five days in Mindelo their sealegs had deserted them.
Andrew would like it to be recorded that he was not one of them! We had a
very interesting few days there during which we took the ferry over to the
neighbouring island of Sao Antau. The Cape Verdes in general are very
barren and dry, looking like a series big brown slag heaps, however Sao
Antao is over 1500m high and has lush vegetation above about 1000m. The
rainfall is minimal and growth depends on the moisture from clouds which
shroud the peaks and stream over ridges into volcanic craters where the main
crop appears to be maise grown on terraces cut into the side of spectacular
mountain sides. One false step and the farmer could fall thousands of feet!
The twisting narrow road over the mountains is all cobbled and has some of
the most magnificent scenery any of us had ever seen dominated by steep
ravines and sharply pointed peaks. We had an interesting time restocking
with fresh fruit and veg in the local market which we hope will last well
into the passage. Petty theft is rife and we had to watch our possessions
very carefully. The boat boys on the beach watch the yachts and dinghies
for 5-10$ per day and provide a taxi and portering service. Now we are well
on our way to Antigua with 460 miles covered and 1650 to go and at our
present speed should be there in about 10-12 days time, but anything can
change. We have slightly more wind than we would have chosen, up to 25-26
knots with a big confused sea making the motion pretty lively. We are in
radio contact with several other yachts further north who have been
experiencing stronger winds and squalls up to force 8 but so far we have
avoided them. The weather pattern looks settled like this for the next few
days so we should continue to make good progress. Yesterday was our fastest
24 hour run since leaving home of 163 miles. There are now masses of flying
fish and the nights are punctuated by thuds as yet another lands on deck.
Our next missive should see us within striking distance of our goal.