There are no more Teaclippers but there is a Rumclipper! With a cup of tea standing on the roof next to the wheel, the helmsman stands easy, steering to the following sea, while the ship logs 9, 10, 11 knots like nothing. It’s Sunday, some people of the watch are dancing on the middeck to […]
The first two stun ‘sails joined our beautiful rig today and were celebrated with cinnamon rolls out of our French cuisine. At the first sign of the Tradewinds we took down booms and blocks from the starboard side and mounted everything on the windward side, heading more or less south in search of more wind […]
For the past few weeks I have felt like the luckiest woman in Ireland… or more precisely, the luckiest woman out of Ireland, as I managed to escape both the northern hemisphere winter and the global Covid pandemic in one fell swoop, by jumping on board the Tres Hombres when it pulled into Cork harbour […]
Now for the people that understand my surname and know a little about growing up in Holland, there might be some indication of a past spent on the side of one of the many canals. Leisurely staring at an orange dot bobbing away on a wind rippled surface of a pond trying to catch what […]
The swell is getting big. The sun tries to appear with rainbow touches. The sea is wearing an undescriptive ocean blue and the foam is whispering after our passage. We passed some cargo ships sailing through Gibraltar. Two of them actually told us they wanted to alter course without knowing that we are a sailing […]
After a bright moony night, in which we cut all the kilos of pears we still had from Den Helder, the morning was sunny. Just before daylight we had to jibe. Bracing from portside beam reach to starboard beam is an operation. The one who has to ease the braces must follow the sail above […]
The departure from Baiona went smooth. The harbor puller dinghy was not ready when we were, so I decided to go on our own propeller device with the anchor ready as a plan B. Mikael turned the ship around in the harbor and pushed the transom to get some forward speed for maneuverability. The bay […]
Overnight we got what we are used to. 25 knots or more in the butt. Top sail and top gallant braced square, inner jib and forestay sail tight and Yallahhhhhh riding, surfing down the waves 11 kts. What a ship, just going… I’m sorry for the two watches who stood in the rain, but well […]
They never towed and moored a sailing ship before. With a bit of ferm organization, we went up and down with the tide moored to the wall for 3 days. The cargo is on board, about 8000 bottles. The truck drivers never had to deliver 7 pallets to a boat, they couldn’t believe it. No […]
We can all feel that this day is a special one! After 3 months in the harbor, the water is moving under the hull again and the sails are de-dusted. The super refit crew Charly, Mikael (who became 2nd mate), Hanjo, Virgile, Clement, and Baloo are not in the vicinity of big tools. Their tools […]
