Bermuda to Horta, Azores, Portugal

David Butcher

We left Bermuda with little wind heading northeast. We found enough wind after a few hours to set sail and continued for about a day. The forecast changed and the northern route was looking like winds of 40 knots from the NE. Luan decided he didn’t want to beat against 40 knot winds so turned us SE. We continued with light winds to 30° N, also known as the horse latitudes. They lived up to the reputation and we had little or no wind for most of the trip. For a few days we had a following wind and flew the gennaker. That is until the wind picked up one night and we had to wrestle it down. It suffered a small tear in the process but that was the last time the wind was at our backs. One day was particularly light wind and we went for a swim. We also toed a fender to a halyard and used it as a swing. Lots of fun! After catching Mahi Mahi every day on the last leg we were surprised to catch none on this leg. We did see dolphins, pilot whales and a turtle and caught 3 small fish a few hours before arriving in Horta. All in all a good trip. Lots of celestial fixes, reading and games. I won’t be continuing from Horta. It’s time to go home. A few days exploring Horta then Ponta Delgada and I will be returning home to my loving wife who I miss dearly.