Month: November 2011

Not many photos were taken during the crossing. Why? I have spent many years at sea and have many already. An other reason. Impressions of the mind comes from several senses simultanius. The feeling of the warm trade wind on the skin, the rytm of the boat heaving, the gorgling sound created by the water as it flows along the hull. These  impression worked on my mind which unlike the modern civilised mind was not overstimulated by other people, electronic devices, signs everywhere.

Todays impressions work on the mind like strong spices. When you stop using them food is tasteless for a long time. Finally the bodys senses creates more sensors and can start to feel the real taste of food. Should spices be avoided. I think so. Vine destroys the taste of water.

Its a bit like a blind person. He can orient himself amazingly well without seeing compared to an ordinary person which suddenly finds himself in darkness.

The same thing at sea it takes a long time many weeks before the senses have adapted. When you give a photo of what you see to an other person it does not make the same impression.

The sea has to be experinced to be be able to make a true impression, experienced through a long time, not just raced through.

Anyway here are a few pictures. Click on them once or twice to make them bigger.

Leaving Porto Santo behind.

The day after I left Porto Santo 150 or so Minitransat Solo Racers left Funchel for Bahia Brasil. Here is one I saw at down.

Typicall trade wind good weather cloads. It did not always look like this but often enough.

A few minutes before it was hewy rain and me having a one of the few freshwater shower of the crossing. As a farewell he sent me two rainbows. Thank you freindly claoud.

Regards Yrvind

The human body is designed to live ashore, but it is extremely adaptable. This ability to adapt decreases rapidly with age. I am now close to 73 years old and I was qurius how my imuno defens system would stand up to months of saltwater enviroment with no possibilitys to clean my body with freshwater and soap. Would I develop salt water sores?

To my satisfaction my skins bones and muscles was still functioning as they were meant to do. The only mistake I made was when leaving Kinsale to stock up with Irish scones which I like. This is nothing my stomach is used to, but I liked them and I kept eating them.

At the same time the wheather was awfull, the boat to heavy taking water over her all the time, and of course there is no bathroom aboard. I had planned to hang on the outside but the aft deck was constantly under water. I said this can wait untill tomorrow. When tomorrow came the wheather had not improwed. I said to myself there is an other tomorrow. Finally it had to be done. Now it was rock hard. It was impossible to mowe it. But it had to be done. My one and only spoon was a teespoon. With it I started to dig. Piece by piece I got the shit out. It took me three days to clear the passage and it was painfull. The operation had to be done from a rocking boat with me hanging on with one arm handling the spoon with my other, but fianally I could clean the spoon to use for musli and sardines again. Luckily one is imune to ones own bakteria.

On the passages from Madeira to Martinique I did not make the same mistake. Everything worked to perfection.

I arriwied in Martinique in perfect health happy in the knowledge that my age had not coused any problem, becouse being at sea is such a wonderful thing.

Regards Yrvind

I do not have electric autopilot or windvane. Most of my voyages have been done without them.

What I have done is to lock the rudder in a fixed position and balance the sails. It worked well for me on many previus boats.

On my voyage to Florida 2007 with a young adept on a 27 feet production boat a Swedish Vega we used a for me new system, “sheet to tiller” it gives more possibilities becoause you got feedback from the sails. Its a cheap and reliable system a few strings and flexible rubber and blocks is all you need plus the knowledge to make it work.

When I left Kinsale Irland there was headwinds for the first days. It only took me a few secounds to find the rudder position. From previus experience I know that its very delicate a question of centimeters or even millimeters on the rudderlines. Still it only took me a few secounds to find .

Later when I got following winds I used the sheet to tiller system down to Porto Santo.

My experience from Duga and Bris and other boats have told me that the further back the center of gravity is, the easier she sails downwind steering herself with the rudder locked. In Porto Santo I added 15 liters of water I moved my 10 kilo Spade anchor back also at sea I mowed 2 of my six 14 kilos lead weights to their aft position. I knew that statistically I would get much downwind sailing in the trades.

From Porto Santo I sailed all the way to Martinique  using only locked rudder, no sheet to tiller.

I do not know why this works, but works it does. Maybee it creates more resistance turbulence in the aft end of the boat. Anywhy the boat went like on tracks for nearly seven weeks.

What is also very interesting is that the periods of extremely weak winds when the sea surface looked like oil when the wind was so weak it would not have made an unshielded candel fickle she still keept going steadily downwind. In such light wind sails on bigger boats start to flog and flap not so on Yrvind all was nice quite and enjoyable. I think sailflapping is a scale effect, taller mast gives more perific speeds.

Regards Yrvind.

Finally I am now in Martinique. My latest ocean crossing has been an fantastique experience. After a few weeks the civilisation lets go of its grip an you are back in nature as you were meant to bee. I did not recive any information from the outside world. No radio or anything.

I am very tired and it is not so easy here as in Poerto Santo to get access to internet. A special antenna is required.

I hope I can afford to send the boat back to Sweden.

My two main occupation has been reeding and designing a new boat. I am very pleased with my drawings.

Well just to let you all know that once again I am safe ashore with fantastic memories of the wonderful ocean

Regards Yrvind