Practical Boat Owner - July 2018

EBAY TO RODNEY BAY

under full sail we made headway towards
Porto Santo.
I discovered we’d taken on water, so we
bailed out the rear cabin bilge. I soon
traced how the water had worked its way
in and, with the aid of a little silicone
sealant, stopped up the offending gap.
As the wind shifted we poled out the jib
enjoying some downwind sailing – perfect
practice for our Atlantic crossing. Gradually
the wind died, becalming us, and our
engine became the only propulsion. We
motor-sailed to within 50 miles of Porto
Santo before we could switch off the
engine giving us some peace and quiet as
we prepared to make landfall. Although
we’d had another roughing up by the wind
and waves, we didn’t feel it was such an
ordeal. Our experiences so far had proved
we could cope, each time stretching our
boundaries and giving us confidence.
Porto Santo is a wonderful place. We did
the customary painting of the boat’s name

on the port wall and toured the island on

an open-top bus.

We stayed much longer than

anticipated, fitting our second wind vane

and repairing the old masthead unit. Once

repaired with new bearings it gave a far

more accurate reading. I dread to think

what the actual wind speed was during

our various passages – it was reading at

least 10 knots below the correct speed.

I’m not sure I like being so well informed.

With quite a few of the items ticked off

the list, we sailed the short distance to

Madeira and came across a few ARC

boats flying their flags, giving us the

chance to meet other excited and

apprehensive sailors.

Madeira to the Canaries

It was again time to set sail, a mere

291NM to Las Palmas. We were still

experiencing areas with no wind, so

plotted a long sweeping curve south

towards La Palma then east past Tenerife,

where we enjoyed a mesmerising view of

Mount Teide bathed in the sunset. We

hooked a couple of tuna for the evening

meal – a perfect end to a perfect day.

Our long approach to Las Palmas, Gran

Canaria, tested our night navigation skills.

What could be seen on the plotter bore ➜

Repairing the wind-vane unit

Jan treads the washing while steering –

keeps you cool and cleans the smalls!

Sailing novices Pete and Jan Dearden

bought Twenty Twenty on ebay... and

took her across the Atlantic

Tim Wright/photoaction.com

Mindelo

Rodney Bay SÃO VICENTE

SAINT LUCIA

MOROCCO

PORTUGAL

CANARY

ISLANDS

AZORES

MADEIRA

PORTO

SANTO

CAPE

VERDE

Cabo de

São Vincente

Tropic of Cancer

60°W 30°W

AFRICA

Nor

th^ A

tlant

ic^ Oce

an

VENEZUELA

Portimão

Dakar

N

kilometres

0 1000

Twenty Twenty sailed the ARC+ from

Gran Canaria to St Lucia via Mindelo