PICTON CASTLE anchored at Dakar, Senegal at 1630 GMT. We let go the big port anchor at 14°43.1’N 017°24.8’W, about a mile off the yacht club by de Hann beach, and it’s holding well. The watches are bracing the yards square and stowing sail as the call to prayer rings out from the minarets ashore, […]
There was a little more wind today making for exhilarating sailing weather, and evidently good weather for fishing too – Jack caught a tuna for our supper. More dolphins and pilot whales today, and heaps of bioluminescence in the water – this part of the African coast has been truly wonderful for wildlife. As Joni
The wind built a little today to a perfect sailing breeze. It seems almost a shame to be so close to Dakar when we’re just getting into the routine of this excellent sailing passage. Yet more marine wildlife today with a big pod of dolphin playing all around the bow wave for ages before supper;
Gentle easy sailing in warm balmy breezes astern along the coast of the Western Sahara. More whales around the ship this afternoon: we saw them breach and blow across a huge area around the ship, and even a few sets of flukes. From their bulky shape and size we think it was a pod of
We are still enjoying bright warm weather and fair winds as we sail ever south towards Dakar, skirting the coast of Mauritania and the Western Sahara. There’s still heaps of shipping around, so the lookout, helmsman and officer of the watch have to be even more alert than usual, ready to call a passing ship
A great day for marine wildlife: there was a small shark swimming dead astern for a while this morning (you can just see it in the photo), and then spinning dolphins off the port bow in the afternoon. There’s been heaps of shipping too, mainly big commercial ships bound transatlantic and a handful of yachts.
It’s been a gentle start to our crossing from the Canary Islands towards Senegal, starting with a Sunday at Sea. We spent the day sailing slowly past the iconic island of Tenerife until the light wind died completely so we took in all sail and fired up the main engine to make some headway through
PICTON CASTLE got underway under sail from La Gomera at 0830 this morning. We’re bound for Dakar, expecting a passage of around 8 days. The weather is bright sunshine with light airs, we have all square sails set to the royals. Vai is at the helm steering South by West to leave Tenerife astern of
We’re making ready for the next passage: we will depart for Dakar, Senegal tomorrow morning. That means we’ve been busy loading food, water and fuel, getting the bilges pumped and decks oiled, sails bent and everything stowed so the ship is ready to go to sea. It also means making sure the crew are trained
It’s a public holiday for Epiphany here in the Canary Islands. Last night there was a parade through town to the church, complete with the three wise men riding real camels – we saw the camels come across on the ferry from Tenerife! Meanwhile, aboard ship the watch have been switching out our strong, heavy
