16:52N 24:59W

 

We dropped anchor in the spectacular Porto do Tarrafel on the island of Sao Nicolau in the Cape Verdes at 4pm, having had a swift trip across from Sal.  We had hoped to sail out of the gloom that enveloped Sal but it wasn’t to be – we only saw Sao Nicolau when we were a mile off and it too was clouded in the dust desert storm that must surely drive locals mad.  As we rounded the southern tip of the island and headed to our anchorage on the west coast it did clear a little allowing us a glimpse of this magical spot.  With a backdrop of mountains swirling in mist, sheer ravines and bluffs and a black sand beach, it looked stunning. I set about cleaning the dust from Bandit while David dealt with the fantastic mahimahi he caught en route before being enticed to dip in the crystal clear waters. After a wonderful meal of fresh mahimahi we crashed early but were soon woken by winds roaring down the mountains and blasting Bandit who tugged and graunched at anchor.  We had gusts of up to 40knots which meant little sleep but the good thing was they blew the dust away and we woke to clear blue skies.

 

We had intended to explore this mountainous island but with the winds unrelenting we weren’t prepared to leave Bandit at anchor and, not wanting another sleepless night, we decided to head on to the protected anchorage of Mindelo on the island of Sao Vicente.  It was a hard slog for the first few hours, with wind forward of the beam and a big lumpy swell.  We had three reefs in the main and our staysail out and Bandit flew along while we huddled in the cockpit to avoid getting wet – we took a few greenies onboard!  I’m hard to please – I moan about the roll when we are going downwind and today I did nothing but moan about getting wet while going upwind.  Surely somewhere we will strike a happy medium.

 

Once we cleared the island the wind eased and the seas calmed but we still had a constant 25knots with swells up to 3m at times.  It was the one day I hadn’t prepared any lunch, and I certainly wasn’t going down below to do so, so we dug into the grab bag for the special “One Square Meal” muesli bars David bought in New Zealand.  They went down a treat, and, along with the muffins I’d made the day before, that was morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea all in one go. 

 

David couldn’t help himself and once the conditions settled it was out with the fishing line and we immediately hooked a tuna.  When you are flying along at 8 knots it’s pretty hard to reel in a fish.  I usually turn into wind to slow Bandit down but this time we decided to have some practice at heaving to, which is a safe and comfortable way to ride out storm conditions.  It worked reasonably well and allowed David to get the tuna on board.   The fishing on this part of our Atlantic trip has been fantastic.  With fresh mahimahi and tuna on board and consistent winds what more could a sailor want?  This one just wants a peaceful anchorage and a quiet night’s sleep!

 

We sailed into Mindelo just on dusk avoiding dozens of anchored and abandoned ships.  The Cape Verdes are surely spectacular with a dramatic landscape of rugged mountains, sheer cliffs and sandy beaches.  The anchorage was again full of cruising boats flying flags of all nationalities, mostly Dutch and French but we did spy an Australian flag.  Tomorrow we shall go exploring.  We plan to be here for a few days to provision before setting out on the next leg of our adventure.  On our morning net we heard fellow Kiwi boat Cutty Hunk (ex Picton) had only 70mls to run to Barbados and the yacht that lost its rudder is making fair progress at 4knots with lots of other yachts diverting to pass nearby to give support.