Embedded Videos

Chapter 1

YouTube video up

You can now view the chapters from the DVD we made after Shane returned from the trip with all of the still pictures from the on on board camera.

This link is to the play list of all 21 chapters.

Click on it and they should all play in order. If you want to pick out individual chapters those should be listed on the YouTube page as well.

Craig

Final Google Earth Files

I have taken all of the final GPS data Shane provided from the boat and from the car trips on Madeira and to Marrakech and converted it to the following Google Earth files:


The entire trip, boat and car excursions all together in one file:

GPS_Boat+Car.kmz (125kB)
This file contains boat and wind vectors in addition to the GPS Lat & Long information.



The road trip on the island of Madeira:


GPS_Car_Madeira.kmz (34kB)

The car trips to and from Marrakech:

GPS_Car_To_Marrakech.kmz (18kB)
GPS_Car_From_Marrakech.kmz (16kB)

Just the at sea portion:

GPS_Boat.kmz (56kB)
This file contains boat and wind vectors in addition to the GPS Lat & Long information.

All of these Google Earth files have folders like you see here. The one shown is for the entire trip kml file. If you check the boxes off and on for each sub folder this will allow you to selectively show or hide that portion of the trip.


Craig

The End

We left El Jadida after topping off our fuel tank and refilling our jerry cans.  Refueling was quite the experience because the port did not have a fuel dock.  We had to put our empty cans on a cart that a man pulled by hand to the nearest gas station. 

We’ve decided to make Gibraltar our final port of call.  The boat broker called us today and said that he had a spot for the Gryphon in a marina and that it was easily accessible from the UK where Aerodynes are popular.  Also, a large storm system is forecasted to hit over the weekend and could last for over a week.  So our journey will come to an end at the base of the Rock of Gibraltar, a fitting destination for our trans-Atlantic adventure.

Sailing through the Strait of Gibraltar last night was exhilarating!  We approached at night under a full moon with countless stars in the sky.  Fighting squalls and choppy seas, we did not get much rest earlier in the day.  Nevertheless, we both were alert and on the lookout as we passed through the shipping lanes of the Mediterranean.  We encountered a dozen or so tankers, freighters, and ferries as we crossed.  The winds became steadier towards the evening and by the time we sailed through the strait we were on a beam reach with 20 knots of wind.  Barreling through the strait at over 8 knots was a fitting last passage for our journey aboard the Gryphon. 

We are in the process now of cleaning the boat up and making it presentable.  On Monday, we are going to drive to Malaga to catch our flights.  Walid will be flying to Rome on business and I will be returning to Boston.  We are looking very forward to seeing all of our friends and family.  Thank you very much for sharing with us in what has been the most thrilling adventure of our lives.  Knowing that we were in your thoughts meant a great deal to us as we braved hurricane-strength winds, fought vicious squalls, played with dolphins, and barely escaped from being thrown into a Moroccan jail!

End of the Line

The Rock of Gibraltar gazing upon the Gryphon at rest in port.

More pictures will be up later tonight.

Craig









The rest of the pictures from Shane along with his captions follow. Click on them to enlarge.

A little visitor that joined our sail to Gibraltar

The Gryphon at port in Gibraltar.

Surfing down a wave during the storm

Smiling at the storm.  Is this the best you can do?

On dry land in Gibraltar

The around-the-world bio-diesel boat that we saw in Boston Harbor

Walid at the helm as we filled our fuel tank and jerry cans in Boston

Villages scattered around the mountains of Madeira

A curious seal peered up at us in Boston Harbor

Getting some very much needed rest inside

Saying goodbye to Boston

Fishing boats in the harbor at El Jadid

The port of Funchal in Madeira

Guided to port in El Jadida by the local fishermen

A little village in the backwaters of Morocco

The Berber antique shop in Marrakech

The market in Marrakech

Some things just don't need a translation

Snake charmers in Marrakech

Our off-roading beast of a Ford

Which way to Marrakech?

Camels on the beach in El Jadida

The Portuguese fortress guarding the port in El Jadida

A view from our hotel roof in Marrakech

Night at sea

The Gryphon at port in El Jadida

First sightings of El Jadida

Approaching Madeira after 18 days at sea

Cheers to Madeira!

The lighthouse guarding the eastern edge of Madeira

Our patched mainsail

Arriving in Madeira

Amazing Adventure is Over

Shane called this morning to say the amazing sailing adventure is over. They are in port at Gibraltor in the Mediterrania. Walid is leaving the Gryphon in the hands of a boat broker in a British run marina. He said boats such as the Gryphon are very popular in London, and Walid thinks he'll do well there. Shane is packed. They'll clean the boat today. They will spend a night or two on the Gryphon, then Walid and Shane will part company. Shane will drive to Malaga, Spain and take a flight to London, then head for Boston. He should be there by 7 p.m. Monday. Walid will fly to Rome, and then New York. (Hope I have all my facts correct!)

Well done, young men, well done! I, for one, will be glad when they are back on American soil! But it was fun living vicariously through them since November 9.

Boston MA to Gibraltar

So it's Gibraltar instead of Valencia. Shane just called and the adventure is over. They have finished their trip in Gibraltar. Apparently Walid's boat agent thinks it will be easier to sell the boat their instead, plus a large storm is coming as well so Gibraltar.

They are safe and sound and Shane's said it was the adventure of his life. He will be heading to a cafe tonight with Internet access and getting me a large post of pictures for everyone. I'll update the blog as soon as I get them. I will also have all of their final GPS data to update the Google Earth files, apparently they will have the data from their car drive through Morocco as well.

Shane plans to fly back Monday to Boston. He will have the 1 Terabyte hard drive in hand that is full of the high definition pictures taken from the on board camera once every second. Seth and I will in the coming weeks work as quick as we can to get the time lapse movie made of the entire voyage. I'll follow up with Shane for a list of everyone who wants a copy of the DVD.

Craig

Mobbed in Marrakech

Where to begin?  After leaving Madeira we set sail towards the coast of Africa.  Our plan was to stop in Casablanca to refuel and then follow the coast towards the Strait of Gibraltar and into the Med.  At least that was the plan…

 

Although we had maps of Africa’s coast, we did not have any detailed charts of the port areas.  After Craig emailed us satellite images of Casablanca and doing some research ala Blackberry, we decided that its port was primarily commercial and was not favorable for smaller vessels.  In addition, given our current wind conditions we would not arrive until dusk.  We noticed a couple of smaller towns south of Casablanca that were a bit closer and so we decided to change course.  We had no idea which one was more suitable so we headed between them.  As we approached we saw that the southern-most town was more industrial with billowing smoke-stacks and tanker traffic, but the village to the north seemed pleasant.  Not even knowing where the port was, we hailed one of the tankers to ask for directions (yes, two guys actually stopped to ask for directions).  We headed towards the coordinates they provided but became very concerned when we saw very large rolling waves breaking very far offshore.  We almost turned back until we saw a small wooden fishing boat ahead.  We waved at them and they came over for a closer look.  Walid began speaking to them in Arabic, but quickly realized that due to their dialect, French was easier to understand.  Even then communication was very limited and confusing, usually involving pointing and gestures.  They indicated that the harbor was nearby, and so we bartered a bottle a wine for a guide into port (evidently they liked the wine because they threw a bag of fish into the deal as well). 

 

The fishermen guided us past the break wall and into the harbor.  A medieval Portuguese castle stood guard over dozens of wooden fishing boats of all sizes lashed side-by-side.  All the fishermen stopped and stared at the Gryphon as she traveled through the narrow channel into the port.  We were the only non-local vessel.  We tied off to a large concrete wall and came ashore to clear immigration and customs.  I think that we were the first visitors by sea this town had seen in weeks based on the old date that was set on the immigration officer’s stamp.  After clearing customs and speaking with the local police, we hired a “guardian” to watch over the boat and to make sure that nothing “happened” to it. 

 

With the boat in safe hands (or so we thought) we headed into town to find a place to stay.  We checked into a hotel, got cleaned up, and headed downstairs for a celebratory beverage.  At the bar Walid began a conversation with an older gentleman who turned out to be the Minister of French Culture in Morocco.  After a few drinks, he invited us to go into town for a tour.  He took us to a very dingy and smoky bar full of the locals.  Something I ate that evening didn’t agree with me, so I walked back to the hotel and spent the rest of the night worshiping the porcelain goddess.  Walid stayed and the story that I am about to tell is his.  After many drinks and packs of cigarettes, Walid, the Minister, and several of his friends go upstairs to a disco.  Interesting thing about this club was that it was all local…men.  Walid started to catch on when the owner of the club asked him if he was the Minister’s lover.  Walid explained that he was definitely not and that he had a beautiful, wonderful, and intelligent girlfriend back in New York.  Chalking it up as a cultural learning experience, he ended up closing down the club and having a great time dancing hand-in-hand with an Arab Liberace. 

 

Afterwards, he goes down to the port to check on the boat with his new found friends.  Our guardian greets them plastered out of his mind.  He starts yelling at one of the Minister’s friends (the local baker) and would not let him into the shipyard because he was a Muslim.  After several minutes of heated debate to no avail, Walid parted company and went down to the pier by himself.  He ended up staying the night on the boat instead of walking back to the hotel.

 

After taking some antibiotics and Pepto, I felt much better the next morning.  We rented a car and planned to drive north to Casablanca.  Walid was told, however, by the Minister that the south was much more scenic and interesting.  So we headed south to the Moroccan countryside to see what could be seen.  The roads were terrible, (although only slightly worse than those of Cambridge, MA) often with just a single lane.  We shared the road with mule-drawn carts, rickety motorcycles, dilapidated trucks, and the occasional pedestrian.  Given the conditions, Walid switched into third-world driving mode, i.e. driving like a bat out of hell.  Big mistake.  We soon found ourselves pulled over by the local smoky.  We played the stupid tourist routine of “we didn’t know any better, honest officer.”  In the end, we were able to talk our fine down to about ten dollars and promised never ever to do it again.

 

Our rental was a compact, front-wheel drive Ford Fiesta.  Why not go off-roading?  Scattered throughout the hills were these small towns with buildings made entirely of mud bricks and thatched roofs.  We headed off the “main” road into the hills on what appeared to be a donkey-cart trail.  The town was something out of a movie.  Chickens and goats were roaming between the houses.  Eyes peered out at us behind the dark windows.  They did not know quite what to make of us.  The trail we were following soon ended and we saw the main road in the distance.  We headed towards it through a rocky field and down a very steep embankment.  With just a few scrapes we managed to get back onto the road and continued our journey south.

 

After exploring the countryside further and visiting several small villages, we arrived in Marrakech to find it a bustling cosmopolitan of old and new traditions.  We checked into a wonderful hotel that used to be an old courtyard-style mansion.  It was gorgeous!  Every room in this three-story palace overlooked the courtyard and was intricately decorated with colorful tiles and mosaics.  The roof deck overlooked the city’s skyline of spires and towers. 

 

The streets of Marrakech were narrow and filled with vendors selling everything imaginable from lamps to livers.  At the center of town was an enormous marketplace and bazaar.  Snake charmers mesmerized cobras and vipers as they swayed to and fro.  Merchants sold carpets and other wares.  Smoke from grills cooking lamb, beef, and chicken filled the air.  We happened to arrive during an international film festival and a giant screen and projector loomed on the far side of the square.  With my blonde hair and blue eyes, more than once I was asked if I was from “ollie-wud,” here for the festival.

 

After eating a wonderful dinner of lamb tagine we set off to explore the city.  We found a very eclectic shop selling antiques and other local goods.  After a few minutes of haggling, we purchased a couple ornate rifles and some antique jewelry.  We had interest in so many other items that the owner invited us back the next day to have lunch with him, claiming that his wife made the best tagine in Morocco.  He was right.  It was absolutely delicious!  With several more hours of negotiating and bargaining we procured an antique engraving, a backgammon table decorated in mosaics, an ornate Berber sword, a glass table with engraved bone legs, candlesticks made of ram horns, and much more.  The merchant was very comical, insisting that we just “close our eyes and give him our credit cards.”   We must have gone through five rounds of “final” prices over several hours of heated negotiations before closing the deal.  After we had paid, he wanted our sunglasses and insisted that as a gift we should buy him a Dell laptop.  We politely excused ourselves and went about our way.

 

If we had thought the market during the day was colorful, the night-time experience proved to be much more intriguing.  Upon a suggestion by the merchant we went to a very shady and seedy cabaret with belly dancing and hookah pipes.  What a sight!  Smoke filled the air as scantily clad dancers jiggled to exotic music encouraged by drunken hollering.  Kuwaiti oil sheiks threw money into the air as the dancers gracefully seduced them.  We were the only non-Arabs in the establishment.  Walid’s Lebanese heritage allowed him to blend in relatively well.  I, on the other hand, was a lost cause and stood out like a sore thumb.  We smoked pipes while watching the dancers and listening to the enchanting music. 

 

And then the night became very interesting.  Walid had a bit too much to drink and wandered off in a drunken stupor while I was in the bathroom.  I came back to our table with him nowhere to be found.  As I was looking for him around the club, it became very apparent that I was no longer welcome without my Arab sponsorship.  I tried to explain that my friend was still there but I was told that I was not allowed to wander around the establishment by myself.  Evidently they didn’t like Americans…hmmm…I wonder why?  I was escorted back to my table somewhat forcibly, asked to pay our bill, and then directed to leave.  Not to cause a scene, I complied and went outside.  Luckily, Walid hadn’t wandered too far away before falling asleep on a bench.  I flagged down a taxi and managed to communicate to the driver (barely) where we were staying.  I’ve traveled to many places in many foreign lands, and never once had I felt so unwelcome.  Nevertheless, all ended well and it will make for a great story!

 

In Route to Strait

I got the following e-mail from Shane this afternoon:

We are about a day’s sail from the Strait of Gibraltar right
now. The winds are not very strong so we are running the motor.

No Pirates! Safe and Sound!

Shane called me this afternoon and again tonight. He and Walid are fine -- Just having the adventure of their life. They didn't realize everyone would be so worried about them. They had no e-mail and the antenna on the sat was broken. He said he was sorry for scaring us! They will get the boat prepared to sail again in the morning and will set sail tomorrow afternoon for the Strait of Gibraltor. He will post to the blog tomorrow and tell us all about Morocco. Judy

Voyage of the Gryphon

Voyage of the Gryphon

Where are Shane and Walid?

Everyone is wondering where Shane and Walid are. If you haven't seen Brent's message in the comments, here it is below. This is the last anyone, that we know, has heard from Shane. Craig and I have called the satellite phones to no avail. Craig knows the boat is still in port.

Phone Call from Shane to Brent: I spoke with Shane on Sunday at around 5 PM EST. The phone reception was horrible but it sounded like they had arrived in port and found security to watch the boat. They were planning to hire a cab for the following day and tour the city. He said they would be there for about 2 days. Brent

El Jadida

Shane and Walid seem to have taken port in El Jadida South West down the coast a bit from Casablanca.

Craig

Questions

We received the following email from Kari, Jordan, and Seth asking us some questions about the trip. Seth is a friend of mine back in Kansas City. He was the one that put together the real-time Google Earth tracker for this trip. Because we’ve been asked similar questions by other people, we thought that we would share our responses with everyone:

-------

For Shane and Walid, Questions from Kari, Jordan and Seth:

Do you have to "file a flight" plan to cross the ocean?

If so, with whom?

You don’t have to file a sail plan to cross the ocean. It is recommended that you tell someone about the trip, though. You’ll come and rescue us, right? If we were staying within U.S. coastal waters we would have given our intended route to the Coast Guard. We do have emergency radio beacons that would communicate via satellite if something should go really wrong, however.

What's the longest sailing trip you've taken before this?

This trip is by far the longest time at sea for either of us. We have both sailed around New England, the Caribbean, and the Mediterranean for a week or two at a time. Walid also sailed the Gryphon twice to Bermuda and back in large off-shore races.

Do you wear some sort of tether when you’re outside the cabin?

Yes, we have tethers that connect to our life-jacket harnesses. We wear them whenever we go outside at night or during stormy seas.

Hey! That's one big steering wheel!

Yup! If you are going to have a boat, it better look cool! Actually, having a large steering wheel gives you additional leverage as well as allows you to be on the high side of the boat when it is heeling.

Did you get seasick? Do you normally?

I usually don’t get motion sickness, but I felt very queasy at the beginning of trip for a day or two. After awhile your body gets used to the motion of the waves. In fact, after you’ve been at sea for an awhile, you’ll get sick when you step back onto land. During the first day on Madeira I had really bad vertigo. It was especially bad at night when I tried to sleep. I continually felt like the bed was uneven and that I was falling out of it because I had been sleeping at an angle on the boat for weeks!

What do you miss the most?

Shane: dry land

Walid: his girlfriend Colleen

What do you not miss the most?

Shane: the daily grind

Walid: bills and daily tasks

Are you sailing the boat back to the US?

No, Walid is planning to sell the boat in Europe.

Would you do it again? Perhaps it's too soon to ask :-)

I would definitely do it again! Next time, though, I would do it earlier in the year and make more stops along the way.

Did you take pictures? Movies? Can we see those dolphins?!

Yes, but due to our limited internet connection we have a hard time sending pictures from sea. Once we get back on land, I’ll post more pictures. We have some great movies of the dolphins! Also, Craig is going to put together an awesome, hi-def movie using pictures from the camera mounted on the back of the boat.

Did you know you sailed right by the Titanic? (+/- a few km)

We were on the lookout for icebergs the entire time!

You guys are amazing, have a great rest of your voyage!

-s

Swimming?

I received this e-mail from Shane today:

We are underway, although very slowly at the moment. The winds are very calm, but the sea is very quiet. We are motoring right now to Casablanca. I’m very excited about visiting Morocco. It is very warm here. In fact we almost went swimming today!

Judy

Mutiny on the Gryphon?

Below is an email from Colleen’s dad Mike. We thought that it was hilarious. For those on Shane’s side of the adventure, Colleen is Walid’s girlfriend.

--------------

Hello Walid, After careful reading of the Mutiny on the Bounty--I see some dangerous parallels:

• Shane is quite taken with the beauty of the island stopover (just as Fletcher Christian and his band of mutineers were)
• the Bounty had some problems with rotten sails--and technical problems that demoralized the men.
• the naked Tahitian dancing girls are tempting Shane to stay---just like the crew of the Bounty.
• Shane has resented the 12 lashes you handed down as punishment for losing iBoat satellite contact during the storm.
• reading between the lines in the blog, Shane states--"at first chance I put Walid over in the rescue dinghy--and I'll take control of Gryphon myself--return to Madeira and the king size bed, real food and demon rum!"

As you can see--things are slow here on shore! Happy sailings to Africa and Spain--and the beautiful Med

Mike

Underway Again

Shane and Walid are underway and headed to Casablanca, Morocco.

Ottawa Herald Newspaper Article

Shane's mom Judy sends along these pics from an Ottawa (KS) Herald newspaper article. Click on them to enlarge (that goes for any picture on the blog actually)

New Pictures

With better net connectivity in port Shane got me a number of pictures to share with everyone. They are below as well as in some of the previous posts:

Running with the Big Boys

So Long and Thanks for all the Fish!

A picture of the boat with spinnaker flying

Land Ho!

We’ve arrived in Madeira! I had trouble sleeping the night before even though the seas were comfortable. I felt like a kid at Christmas, eager to wake up the following morning to open his gifts. When I finally did fall asleep, I was out like a light. Upon awakening, I saw a mountainous island covered in tropical vegetation shrouded in the mist and clouds. Try putting that into a stocking!

We pulled into the harbor at Funchal on the south side of the island. Taking my first step onto land was very disorienting. I could not walk in a straight line and had to hold onto the railing. I bet the immigration officials thought we had hit the rum one too many times! After clearing customs we sat down at a little restaurant in the marina and had our first fresh meal in weeks. The first bite of lightly toasted garlic bread dipped in olive oil was beyond description. We had a meal of fresh (just caught an hour ago by a local fisherman) fish, shrimp, fruit, and vegetables. Simply amazing!

After stuffing ourselves until we could eat no more, we wandered into town and checked into a hotel. Washing away more than two weeks of filth and grime never felt better! I slept so well that night in a warm, clean, king-size bed with cotton sheets!

The next day we rented a convertible and drove around the island. The tropical landscape and rugged terrain was just breathtaking. The roads were very narrow and curvy, switching back and forth through the mountains. Driving was such a pleasure!

Gluttons for punishment, we will probably leave port tomorrow after making a few more repairs. The storm appears to be calming down and we should have light winds on our way to the Med. It will be very hard to leave such a beautiful island, though.

Landfall?

Has anyone heard from Shane or Walid since they made landfall in Madeira? It looks like from the tracker below they made it to port in Funchal. If I had been them my first orders of business would have been to :

1) Check into a nice Hotel
2) Take a long hot shower
3) Hit the Snack Bar O Garrafao and have a nice tenderloin steak (Shane's Fav)
4) Back to the hotel for a soak in the hot tub
5) Retire to my soft bed for 12 hours uninterrupted of sleep

If anyone has heard from them post a comment.

Craig

click on map pic to see the Snack Bar O Garrafao! :)

Wave data

Per Shane's request here are some of the latest wave height maps...

Google Earth with overlay:




Here is a link to an animated GIF file that shows the wave height forcast for the next three days. Nov. 26 to 29th. With the legend/key below.

Almost There

We are about 14 hours away from Madeira. We will be docking at the port of Funchal for a few days to wait out the storm and make repairs. Our propane stove sprung a leak today. Add that to the list...

Today was a many shades of gray kind of day. The sky was overcast and we could see squalls on the horizon. Luckily they seemed to mostly miss us and we were able to make steady progress. The highlight of the day came when we were visited by a school of dolphins. These Portuguese dolphins looked very different than their brethren in the Grand Banks. They were a little smaller and had grey freckles. They sure liked to jump, though! They exploded through the waves with remarkable force.

Squalls, Squalls, and More Squalls

We are heading south to Madeira to weather the storms and to swap out our shredded mainsail. The seas today remained turbulent, but Bud (yes, we were so impressed by its performance that we named our drogue) and Bob kept us on course. Although the winds were not as strong as yesterday, we were constantly bombarded by squall after squall. We would unfurl the big jib and then moments later have to take it down when 40+ knot gusts hit. All day long we tended to the sails, constantly trimming and changing them. Finally as the sunset, the seas calmed down and we pulled Bud back on board. The winds continue to shift to our front and fade as the low pressure system falls on the Azores. We are making slow, but steady progress towards Madeira. We'll probably arrive early Monday morning at this pace. We are really looking forward to stepping onto solid land.

95 knots!

What a day! We woke at the crack of dawn with the tell-tale beeping that Bob, our trusty auto-pilot, had been overpowered. Sure enough, the winds were howling above 40 knots and the seas were swelling to over 20 feet. We scrambled to put on our foul-weather gear and headed outside to manually steer and adjust the sails. Just as we brought the situation under control, a squall came out of nowhere. Winds gusted above 95 knots (that's right...over 110 miles per hour!) and the seas churned with 30-feet breaking waves. I've never been in such gusts in my life! The howl of the wind alone was a deafening, high-pitched shrill, let alone its extraordinary force. With our harnesses jacked to the deck safety lines, we held on for dear life until the squall calmed. Even after conditions quieted, waves were still over 30 feet and winds above 40 knots. Squalls continued to overtake us every half an hour or so. An enormous wave even twisted our camera rigging mounted on the stern (don't worry Craig, we were able to get everything back into place). Flying just our small trysail, we hove-to until we could further evaluate the situation.

When we went below we found that the cabin was in disarray with several inches of water sloshing out of the floor boards. Because the boat was heeled over at an angle, our bilge pump could not remove the water. We cut a garden hose and rigged a makeshift wet-vac using the bilge pump and removed most of the water from the cabin. At this point, we called our weather service and asked for their prognosis. It wasn't good. The storm wasn't forecasted to dissipate over the next a few days. And even if it did, another storm system will likely take its place. They recommended heading south as quickly as possible to avoid the second storm.

Unfortunately, the waves were just too strong to get any steerage under sail or motor. The back of the boat would get tossed around by the waves, and the boat would become overpowered as we tried holding it downwind. We were in utter despair of the thought of heaving-to for a week to wait out these storm systems. Wet, cold, and tired we gave up and went down below. After a brief nap, we woke up refreshed to tackle this problem.

We began reading our heavy weather sailing books for tips and suggestions. We knew that we had to drag something to keep the stern from slipping out from under us as we crested the waves. But what and how? The answer was on page 77: we needed to rig a drogue system. We waited for the winds to die down below 30 knots, and then sprang into action. I grabbed the helm and took us downwind to begin surfing the waves. Walid ran to the bow and unfastened our anchor chain and line. We tied the free end of the anchor line to the other end of the chain to form a gigantic loop. We then fastened the side of the loop opposite of the chain to the stern docking cleats. Pushing the chain overboard, we began dragging this loop of anchor gear behind the boat. The results were immediate and remarkable! The drogue acted like a stabilizer against the waves, keeping the stern of the boat under control. We now were able to make way under sail. The give and take of the stern lines kept us pointing straight as we rode the waves.

We are now heading south as fast as possible to the small island of Madeira, just off the coast of Africa near the Canary Islands. If the storm continues to develop as forecasted, we will take shelter there and swap out our mainsail. If it dies down, we will likely continue to head east towards Gibraltar.

Today was an exhausting and trying day. We went from a state of pure exhilaration, to complete despair, to one of renewed hope all within a matter of hours. To celebrate the conclusion of this difficult day, we broke out the chocolate truffles that Manolis and Gergana gave to us the night before we left. Ah...a little bit of heaven in the midst of the tempest!

One Sea-sick Turkey

Happy Thanksgiving! We give our best wishes to everyone as they gather with their families and feast to their heart's content. People have asked if we had any special plans for today. Well, the turkey that we've kept cooped up in the cabin is pretty sea sick, so I think we'll spare him. Unfortunately, we couldn't find any freeze-dried turkey, mashed potatoes, and gravy when we were provisioning. But we will give thanks as we're eating our pickled eggs and spam tonight. In fact Walid and I put together a top-ten list of what we are most thankful for at this very moment. Drum roll please...

10) GPS technology; Even though Columbus did it first using the stars, we'd much rather have Garmin covering our backs.

9) Dog-bowl technology; We eat all of our meals out of them. Nearly indestructible and they do not tip over.

8) Long-lasting deodorant; Although Walid seems to prefer au' natural.

7) Sticky-back tape...even better than the original! If only they could make entire sails out of this stuff!

6) The quarantine chamber that is now keeping the stench of Walid's socks out of the main cabin.

5) The untippable, indestructible, incredible mugs that we almost didn't buy.

4) Staying afloat; Only a thin layer of balsa wood and fiberglass keeping us above five miles of ocean.

3) Our "Heavy Weather Sailing for Dummies" handbook; Never leave port without it!

2) Bob; Our faithful auto-pilot that keeps us on course and braves the storms.

And the number one reason we give thanks on this day is...

1) Our loving families and friends; We are very fortunate to have the support and encouragement of our wonderful families and friends. We love reading your emails and the fact that you are keeping us in your thoughts.

Thanksgiving Waves

I've included a plot of the current wave conditions. Looks rough. I've not heard from them today and assume dealing with 20+ foot waves takes precedence over emails.

It looks fortunate they got past the Azores Islands before those 35-40 foot waves moved in, that would have been 8 times as bad. I'm assuming here "badness" to be a cubic function of the relative difference in wave height. ;-)

The Last Straw

The winds continued to build over night. We woke up from our slumber to place another reef in the mainsail. But winds gusting above 40 knots and 15 feet seas were just too much for our battered, triple-reefed main. The trailing edge of the sail shredded just above the third reefing point. The bad news is that unlike the previous tear, I don’t think that we will be able to repair this one (oh, our previous repair held up just fine!). The good news (depending on your perspective) is that the winds are forecasted to blow above 25 knots for the next week. Because the tear is along the trailing edge, we can still use it for a downwind run. If the winds shift to a beat, however, then I think it will shred. Nevertheless, we decided to take it down completely and put up our small trysail.

Taking down the main and rigging the trysail was quite an ordeal. A squall came out of nowhere and we did the swap in 35 knot winds and 20 feet seas with a torrential rain pour. It felt like the rain was coming at us from the side. Waves crashed over the bow and the side of the boat. We successfully rigged the trysail and lashed the main to the boom, however.

The weather has calmed down for the moment, but the forecast does not look good. The low pressure system has strengthened, but still remains far north of us for the time being. It is likely to move east and then south over the weekend, just about the time we are approaching Portugal. At that time our weather service is forecasting 50+ knot winds and 20+ feet seas. We might have to heave-to or try to take shelter at port if these conditions arise.

First Picture from Sea

Shane and I have had some challenges getting a picture uploaded from the on board highdef video camera but have finally met with success! They look happy, healthy and amazingly beardless. I was expecting more facial hair by now :)

Second Reef and Staysail

The low pressure system has moved down a little earlier than expected. Its center is approximately 400 miles north of us at the moment. We are catching the tailing winds of its southern edge. The seas and winds have steadily increased throughout the day. We just woke up to take down our large jib and hoisted a smaller staysail in its place. We've been running all day at 8 to 10 knots with our main reduced down to its second reefing point. The winds are now gusting above 30 knots and the seas are swelling over 10 feet.

Yesterday, the bolt that we replaced to keep the mainsail in the mast sheered off again. We've been on the same tack for several days now and the lines and sails are showing some signs of wear. We've been adjusting them and changing course every now and then to keep the wear even.

Forecasts are calling for the low pressure system to follow us east for a few days before heading south. We are currently setting a pace that hopefully will allow us to outrun it (as my mom asked, "It's a racing boat, isn't it?"). We should reach the Strait of Gibraltar just as it falls down behind us. We have our storm jib and trysail ready, though, in case we have to weather it.

Hello to Mr. Haas' Math Class in Liberty!

Greetings from the North Atlantic! We are cruising along at a steady eight to ten knots trying to evade a storm system coming at us from the north. Our sails have torn; we've been buffeted by gales; and almost run over by tankers. It's been quite an adventure so far!

My brother asked me to convey to you some applications of mathematics and why studying it is worth your time. You might notice when you look at our course on iBoat Track that it seems we've gone much further north than we needed to on our voyage to the Strait of Gibraltar. Why wasn't the shortest path a straight line? Now look at our track using Google Earth. Does it make sense now? Many problems arise when trying to project a three-dimensional surface such as the Earth onto a two-dimensional surface like your screen. Although a line is the shortest path between two points in general, if you are constrained to travel on a sphere the shortest path is along a great-circle route, i.e. a course that divides the sphere into two equal halves. All the maps of the world that you've seen have limitations in representing long distances. Some maps preserve distance better than others, but distort other features in the process. Can you name three ways of representing the three-dimensional Earth onto a two-dimensional map?

In the mean time, listen to my brother. The math that he is teaching you will take you far. Perhaps across the Atlantic, to the moon, or even beyond!

Running with the Big Boys

Today we passed within a mile of a very large American freighter heading west. I think it was scared of us because as we drew nearer to check it out and take pictures, it kept on veering away! Our little boat can be pretty intimidating I must admit.

We have been making excellent progress on beam/broach reach these past couple of days, averaging just shy of 200 miles a day. The storm system that we are trying to outrun is providing us with very cooperative tail winds. A low pressure system currently off the coast of Newfoundland is forecasted to join the low pressure system hovering over Ireland in a couple of days. It will then most likely proceed south along the coasts of France and Spain and meet up with us about the time we are passing through the Strait of Gibraltar.

We saw sea birds for the first time since we left the Grand Banks. The Azores are just a day’s sail southeast of us at the moment. A high pressure system typically resides in the Azores that we can duck into if the weather gets too bad.

Half Way To the Med

The winds were perfect today, allowing us to cruise along at a steady eight to ten knots. After making a small touch-up last night, our sail repair is holding up nicely. We flew the spinnaker for most of the morning until the wind picked up to around 15 knots. We are slightly behind our intended schedule, but with the forecasts looking favorable over the next few days we should make up a lot of time.

We approached the half-way point of our 3000-mile voyage from Boston to the Strait of Gibraltar today! If we continue to average eight knots we should arrive in little over a week. A low-pressure system is coming down the coast of Ireland from the north, however, and we are expecting some rough weather (40+ knot winds and 20-feet seas) as we approach the Med. We have our storm jib prepared and tri-sail ready if we need them. The more distance, however, we travel over the next few days, the more likely we will be able to miss the storm. The race is on!

Posted for Shane by Craig

Almost Road Kill

The sunset today was spectacular, followed by full complement of stars. I was sitting below writing some emails when I glanced up at the radar above the nav table. Usually empty, I saw a speck about eight miles straight in front of us. We couldn't see much of anything on the horizon when we looked outside the cabin. After hailing several times to an unknown vessel without avail, this half-asleep voice with a thick Russian accent crackled across the VHF. We identified ourselves as a 38-feet vessel under sail, and they responded that they were a 500-feet bulk freighter heading our direction. We pleaded jokingly for them not to squish us and they considerately obliged. We passed starboard-to-starboard several miles apart. It's a big ocean, but evidently not that big.

Sail Repair for Dummies

Today was a very productive day! The winds died down last night to a stand still as we entered the Gulf Stream. What a difference in temperature between the cold Labrador Current and the warm Gulf Stream, though! In fact, we thought about going swimming today (we could definitely use baths). Instead, we tackled the daunting task of repairing our torn main sail.

I knew my junior-high, home-economics class would come in handy some day! The rip wasn't as bad as we previously thought. The tear was a little over a yard long, but very clean along the trailing edge of the sail. First, we buffed the area around the tear with sandpaper and then cleaned it with acetone. We cut out several circular patches of sticky-back tape to secure the ends of the tear. Next, we placed long, rectangular patches along the length of the tear to hold the two edges together. We then added circular patches to the seams of the rectangular patches. Finally, we laid large rectangular strips over the entire tear and smeared the seams with epoxy. I don't think she'll win any beauty contests, but we have confidence that other parts of the sail are likely to give way before our repair comes undone.

While the main was down and the winds were calm, we decided that it was a good time to refuel. In planning for the trip, we were concerned that we would not have enough storage space for the diesel required to make a trans-Atlantic. We budgeted running the engine to recharge the batteries for four hours each day, consuming roughly two gallons of diesel a day. We provisioned 62 gallons to last a thirty-day trip. To our pleasant surprise, the RPM required to recharge our batteries was much lower than we had planned. Instead of using two gallons a day, we have been using only one. So, we actually have enough fuel for a return trip if we so desired (don't worry, I don't think we're that crazy)!

The winds for the next three days are going to be terrific. They will be a steady 10-20 knots from behind. With our repaired main back in action, we have resumed averaging eight knots of speed.

Red Sky at Night...Sailor's Delight