Fogo Island
Scot Free III
Frank & Anne
Sun 24 Sep 2023 17:05
49:36.45N 54:09.71W
Decided to leave Bonavista with 3 possible destinations in mind. Ideally wanted to get to Fogo Island, leaving two further shortish hops to Lewisporte. About 75 miles if you can sail straight there, so envisaged a long day. The weather routing app predicted an arrival time of 9:30pm ish, leaving at 7. Would be doable as the harbour has easy access and a straightforward anchorage for arriving in the dark.
Saw a dolphin feeding frenzy as we left, with several jumping right out of the water- a real treat.
The winds were up to 24 knots and biggish seas of 2-3 metres, sailing went according to plan for the first half, a fast reach across the bay, making good progress. Made sense to carry on but round Cape Freels we were close hauled, sailing much closer to the wind, which the boat doesn’t do well and is much slower, then the wind dropped significantly. Suffice to say 9:30pm became 1 am by the time we were tucked up safely in the anchorage, 17 hours of sailing. Astounding that we didn’t encounter a single vessel on the way.
Approaching the harbour, named Seldom Come By, A did her impersonation of Kate Winslet in Titanic, arms wrapped round the forestay, looking out for hazards in the dark. She didn’t sing though, would have deafened F. The wireless headsets come into their own on occasions like this, a normal conversation can be held without any shouting!
Woke up, somewhat jaded, to lovely sunshine and views.
Weighed anchor and motored into the harbour to go to the highly recommended Fishing Museum, also the wharf for leisure craft, but closed for the season. Tied up anyway, will have to climb over fences to go anywhere. A very short season here.
Given that the weather has a been unusually dire for September, think businesses have chosen to close early. Thanksgiving, the second Monday in October in Canada is usually the day when they close for the season.