A look back at our first year cruising South America
365 days, 7000nm, 3 continents, 5 countries, 3 gales.
We are Lin and Richard sailing on our 1986 Oyster 55 Velvet Lady.
For those of you who don’t know us, this is not our first long trip, or even our longest trip. We’ve been making long trips in the northern hemisphere for the last 20 years.
It is however our longest trip, just us, no charter guests and for Richard his first time across the equator.
We left Mayflower Marina, Plymouth on 20th September 2022, the day after the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II. I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was somehow disrespectful to set off on our dream trip the same day that Her Majesty was buried.
We had been in the UK 3 months. Closing our Adventure Sailing business, emptying our lock up, working on getting the boat ready with the new equipment for South America and visiting family to tell them of our plans.
Like many sailing trips – we were behind the schedule that we set for ourselves. We really wanted to leave UK in August to cross Biscay in better weather but Hey – Ho, that’s how it goes.
I write a blog instead of a diary really, it keeps our friends and family up to date and reminds us of the ‘Headlines’ of our life on board – it paints a better picture than the Log Book, which contains all the technical information. There are links in bold to individual blogs and monthly blogs throughout.
Some months we moved a lot and sailed many miles, others we sailed few miles but explored a lot and a few months we did not move at all but did lots of (preplanned) maintenance work in weather warmer than UK!
You can follow the whole journey on Noforeignland.
If you are already following us, Thanks. If not, why not take a look at the link above. You can see our whole route since leaving UK and all the short messages I send when at sea. We will be adding more as we move.
Prefer an app. You can now get all this info on the no foreignland app too. (Free on Apple and Android)
Sometimes I feel we haven’t done much in the year – then I wrote this and realise we have actually done a lot this first year. What will next year bring?
If you know me, you know I like to tell a story. Here is the story of our first 12 months
After waiting for deliveries held up by Covid, Brexit and Evergreen going aground in the Suez Canal we were finally ready to go when we discovered another hiccup on departure day. We couldn’t get any diesel. The marina hadn’t run out but there was a blockage in the delivery pipe. We would have to come back the next day!
Finally, we left Plymouth, had a lovely sail to Portmellon Cove as a sea trial, anchored for the night and set off across Biscay on the 23rd September. We had the most fantastic sail to the Spanish Rias, fast at first but slower at the end in less wind. 638nm in 110 hours. No head winds.
A month in the Spanish Rias – exploring – visiting old haunts and finding new places – then, as ever, waiting for weather in one of our favourite anchorages Enseada San Simon. Although we sometimes miss the camarardarie of guests, it’s a great feeling to have no schedule to keep to – otherwise we might have been tempted to set off in all this wind and rain.
The break in the weather arrived and we set off for Portugal on Monday 31st October along with a whole fleet of boats who had been waiting in ports up and down the coast. We have done this leg from the Rias to the Algarve many times in the past 15 years and truthfully this turned out to be one of our easiest and fastest passages. We anchored in Sagres one of our favourite spots less than 72 hours later. A week mini cruise in the Western Algarve and we were back in our usual berth in Vilamoura marina. (where we were in the Covid years) 400 nm
7 months and 2,500nm since we were last in Vilamoura - 7 weeks and 1100nm since leaving UK.
After 7 weeks of life at sea and at anchor the first few days were full of marina chores. Hosing the boat down, doing the laundry and topping up the grocery supplies.
The rest of November and December were in the plan for boat chores in the sunshine – mainly the teak decks, sorting out the new dinghy, sewing dinghy chaps and fitting new solar panels.
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I go to visit my sister Bobbie in Malaga, Spain for a weekend and the weather turns rainy slowing down our boat projects. A good excuse to watch a lot of the world cup and also get into the Christmas Spirit. Once the sun comes out we get on with the boat chores again
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The sun came out and we managed to make steady progress with the teak decks, sort the new solar panels, finish the dinghy chaps and start on sewing courtesy flags. The end of January it was time to put the boat back into sailing mode ready to head south to Lanzarote. 0nm
The only deadline in our schedule, we have a lift out booked in Lanzarote for 20th February and a surveyor for the 21st February. To allow us to go to the deep South – 50S and further the insurance required us to show them a recent (within the past 5 years) rig survey and a hull survey. All Spars did the rig survey in September 2022 and this hull survey in 2023 will allow us to go to Cape Horn!
We have spent 12 of the last 15 winters in Lanzarote so this 600nm trip from the Algarve is not new to us. We watched for a weather window and were disappointed in the lack of prevailing Northerly winds. It turned out to be one of the hardest trips we have done on this route, – only outclassed by the trip where we had to turn back after 200nm because of 60 knot winds!
The forecast was for a Force 5/6 from the South East which would make it a lively close reach but at least fast, what we got was a steady 35 knots from the South a good solid Force 7 on the verge of 8 with gusts up to 50 knots. Uggh. It was wet and wild for 48 hours only dying down as we approached Arrecife. The only good thing is that it is not the first time we have been stuck in this much wind and it will probably not be the last. Velvet Lady is a good solid ocean crossing boat and we can rely on her to look after us in these kind of conditions as long as we remember to reef the sails!
This was the first time we have ever arrived in Lanzarote without a group of guests to look after. What a feeling to be able to take off lifejackets, strip off oilskins and head straight for the bar.
February 2023 – The lift and on the hard for the rest of the month
Dismantling the backstay and reversing into the lift bay is always a nervous time, but it went without a hitch and soon Velvet Lady was on the land and it was time for the work to begin. First a wash and scrub off – we went away for a cup of tea and when we came back we immediately spotted a new job to add to the list. There was some rust in our P bracket which needed inspection and attention and to do that we had to remove the propellor and shaft. Better we found it now than later.
The surveyor arrived the next day and it was great to have another opinion on the overall condition of the boat and the repair work to the P bracket. He spent all day doing a good and thorough job poking at everything – looking for jobs to add to our list – but that was it, the only thing that needed attention before we could go to the deep south was the P bracket. We were nervous when it was removed.. We spoke to Oyster and delivery time would be about 6 months for a new one. Fortunately the yard at Puerto Calero were brilliant - they found a stainless steel welding specialist to inspect it, and then weld it and we were only out of the water 5 days longer than intended. We splashed back in on 1st March.
After the launch we needed to reconnect the backstay – clean the boatyard grime off – and rerig the sheets to be back into sailing mode. Then, ahh, time to chill out and relax with a few nights at anchor – we seem to have been on the go since we arrived in Vilamoura 4 months ago.
We needed to test out a few things, especially to check the re-alignment of our prop shaft. After a couple of days sailing locally we decided to head off south to Fuerteventura for a bit of exploring and then make a long beat back.
Once back in Lanzarote we needed to stock up and prepare for our long trip to Brazil. We aimed to stop in the Cape Verde islands on the way – but apart from hoping to be able to pick up some more fresh fruit and veg, we wanted to be fully stocked for about 8 weeks. We also wanted to fill our freezer with pre-prepared main meals – so anticipated a lot of cooking!
We had an unexpected bonus in Lanzarote - we met up with my cousin David and his wife Karen who were there on holiday.
April and May 2023 – Final preparation and Passage Making.
We were finally ready to leave Europe on the 2nd April – but the weather was awful, so it was not until Good Friday, 7th April that we actually slipped our lines and said goodbye to Lanzarote. There was not much wind so instead of motoring all night we spent one more night at anchor just south of Fuerteventura and then Easter Saturday, we were on our way.
Although we had already sailed 1700 miles since leaving UK, we had been visiting old haunts. This departure was different. From now on it is new, totally new. All landfalls will be first time. One of my favourite sayings is you can only arrive at a place for the first time once – the next time you go you have preconceptions of what it will be like. For me, one of the best things about cruising is arriving into a new place and we intend to make the most of these experiences.
The trip was fairly easy, and much like the router had predicted. Sailing downwind in light to moderate wind, occasionally motoring when the sails started slapping.
We eagerly awaited our first landfall and expected we might be able to see something within about 25nm but were a mere 6 miles off when we finally spotted the island of Sal, hidden in an orange haze of Sahara dust. We had made good time, despite quite a lot of gybing and light airs, 1000nm in 7 days and 3 hours. We anchored for the night in a bay just south of Palmeira – it was the weekend and we didn’t expect to be able to do the formalities until Monday. You can read full trip details here.
We went ashore on Monday for the formalities and to look around. As soon as we landed the dinghy it was clear that we had left Europe and entered Africa. What a vibrant colourful place. Music, multicoloured buildings, ladies with bright clothing carrying baskets of wares on their heads, shops with African momentos. It all reminded me of my childhood growing up in Zambia. I felt right at home. We spent a week here, looking around the island, resting and preparing for the Atlantic crossing.
South – through the doldrums to the equator and beyond.
We set off on Sunday 23 April having cleared out the day before. Like kids at Christmas, Richard and I were both awake at the first sign of light filtering in through the cabin window. By 0800 the anchor was up, deck cleared away for sailing and final checks complete We were off.
This time the visibility was great and we only lost sight of Sal at 22nm, saw Boa Vista on our port side and San Nicolau on our starboard bow . At dawn the following morning Fogo appeared out of the haze, its 2000m peak only just showing above the cloud. By the evening of day 2 we were clear of all the islands and settling into the trip. We quickly settled back in to the watch routine, with one of us always on watch and the other resting we hardly saw each other. We spent 10 or 15 mins chatting together at watch change and about an hour at lunch and dinner.
We had one breakage on the trip which was a real pain – the clew pulled out of the mainsail due to UV damage to the webbing that held it in place. Annoying really – we deliberately had all the sails valeted and serviced in UK to look for just such issues.
It took both of us to construct a reasonable temporary repair, Lin balancing on the boom in rolly seas – and Richard steering - either by hand or with the autopilot to keep the course steady. We did it over 2 days catching up on rest the night in between. The sail would have to be dropped and the job done properly when we got in.
Otherwise the trip was typical of any long ocean passage. Watches were spent enjoying the peace and quiet. Long hours gazing at the sea mixed with periods of frantic activity winding winches. Watching sunrises and sunsets, studying the clouds and stargazing. No matter how often I do it I never get bored. There are also special moments of sheer joy or unusual occurrences which stick in your memory for years to come. This trip there were pilot whales, dolphins, occasional minke whales, lots of ships – dramatic clouds in the doldrums and of course Neptune made an appearance for the equator crossing.
After 23 days, 2688nm on the clock, 65 hours motoring and NO GALES we arrived in Salvador Brazil.
Atlantic crossing details are here
Stern to in the marina was a novelty. We hardly ever go stern to and certainly not in so much swell. It took a bit of getting used to leaving the stern lines slack and keeping well away from the dock until you wanted to go ashore and then pulling yourself in on a winch.
The rest of May was spent in the marina, exploring Salvador, doing chores, having our engine looked at because it wouldn’t go above 1500 rpm, learning how to make the traditional Brazilian drink Caipirinha and making new friends on the boats around us.
The task of the month was repairing the mainsail – we were not going sailing until it was done. We needed to be head to wind so we could take the main down so we left the marina and anchored in a very peaceful spot between Ilha do Frade and Ilha Bom Jesus dos Passos to do the job. We then discovered we could leave it on the boom and the clew just reached into the cockpit.
It was not complicated just long – sewing through 6 - 8 layers of dacron and up to 4 layers of webbing by hand. I bent and broke many needles even after drilling new holes. Each of the three strips of webbing had to share the load evenly so the positioning of the new webbing and holes had to be precise. Then the UV sacrificial strip had to be replaced because it clearly wasn’t doing its job! It took nearly 3 weeks from start to finish, moving the boat, taking the sail down, building a den in the cockpit, sewing and putting the main back up again. Details here
Once the repair was complete it was time to pump up the dinghy and head ashore to explore.
Our first visit was to Ilha Bom Jesus dos Passos. It was like going back in time. This tiny island is home to 1500 people and as soon as we turned inland we discovered how. It was a maze of narrow cobbled streets colourfully decorated. The locals were enjoying a Sunday afternoon beer in the sunshine and they all smiled and said hello and I practiced a bit of Portuguese. As we expected the shops were all shut but there was a fruit and veg man selling from a handcart on the street. We bought a selection of what he had and he told us that Thursday (quinta-feira) is delivery day so we would go back then.
It rained and rained Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday but fortunately the sun came out on Thursday and we set off ashore for another leg stretch and also to top up our dwindling supplies. We had been 3 weeks at anchor, no shopping, had run out of lettuce and our lime supplies were dwindling. I hoped I had understood the Portuguese correctly!
Itaparica was our next island. 20 miles away. It is much bigger than Bom Jesus – but when we went ashore we found it almost deserted. The anchorage is at the tourist end of the island and even though we find it hot, it is still the middle of winter and not many people are on their holidays!
We didn’t really expect to spend so much time in Bahia, and were ready to head further south except occasionally the realities of life get in the way of cruising. We still had to wait for one more parcel.
It seems to me sometimes that during this past year we have done a lot of waiting. Waiting for engineers, waiting for dentists, waiting until the sail is fixed, waiting for packages and lots of waiting for weather.
Finally the package – Starlink (which is Elon Musks internet via satellite) – or as we now call her, Starry, arrived and has become a most valuable member of our crew, giving us unlimited connection to the internet for less than we previously paid for 15GB mobile phone data.
It really is time to head further south, but if we had gone any sooner we would have missed this
What a fabulous send off.
Our trip south from Salvador to Cabo Frio was a dodge between weather systems. We set off motoring in a big swell left over from the previous system expecting to get some North Easterly winds. These would increase and give us a fast run towards Buzios which would shelter us from the upcoming SW Gale. We had to get our timing right – if we got to Buzios too soon then it would be exposed in the NE wind and swell, if we got to Buzios too late it would be a long beat to get there but at least the swell would die down.
It was great to get back on the ocean again – We took a route well offshore to avoid the shallows and coral reefs and the fishing boats that liked to fish there. We went well offshore of the Abrolhos Islands – we would have liked to stop but they would not provide any shelter in the gale that was forecast to come soon. However it didn’t stop us seeing humpback whales – we had many sightings from Abrolhos south, including 2 surfacing so close to the boat that you could hear them breathe.
As it was the timing worked perfectly, we spent the last 4 hours beating into the ever strengthening wind, the swell had died before we got there and we anchored before the real teeth of the gale set in. We shared our anchorage with a huge tanker. Different vessels, same problems with wind and swell!
It would have been nice to go ashore in Buzios, but immediately after the gale finished there would be a short weather window before the wind went northerly again and making the anchorage exposed. The SW wind stopped and we took the opportunity to motor 22nm to the enclosed anchorage at Arraial do Cabo Frio. The only thing that would harm us there would be an Easterly wind. What – Oh no, there is one of those in 3 days!
The anchorage in Arraial do Cabo Frio was idyllic, turquoise water, golden sandy beaches and many many birds. Fortunately the weather was nice enough for us to go ashore and take the trail over the hill to the colourful holiday town. What a fabulous couple of days we had here but the weather forecast said move on.
It is only 120nm from Cabo Frio to Ilha Grande but the sail was eventful. Submarines, Albatross, Whales, Gales and rain. The fog rolled in at the end – thank goodness for radar and AIS – we eventually arrived after 32 hours a bit bedraggled and very tired.
I hope you haven’t run out of steam reading yet – we are just getting to the best bit!
This is the cruising ground every one talks about – one of the reasons so many boats come to Brazil. A huge bay, roughly 60 miles long by 12 miles wide with a reported 365 anchorages. Some of those are way too small for us tucked into nooks and crannies. Some are just not deep enough but that still leaves plenty of others to choose from. The popular ones get busy during the day with big motor yachts and their guests – they don’t disturb us in fact they entertain us as we sit in the cockpit and enjoy people watching. They leave at sunset and then we are left in peace to enjoy the jungle sounds.
It is all just fantastic and to be honest so unexpected. Every place we have been so far has been unique and seems better than the last.
It’s a little bit like the Spanish Rias – golden sand beaches appear as you round headlands.
A little like Norway with tall mountains in the background and small rocks and islands scattered haphazardly in the foreground.
A little like Scotland with oil tankers, tugs and drilling rigs anchored and waiting.
The water can be cobalt blue or turquoise green but so clear you can see your reflection in it, and when shallow enough you can see the anchor on the bottom too!
The one thing that is everywhere and reminds us that we are not in any of the above places is the foliage. It is so different to anything we have seen before. We are surrounded by green. Tall trees, one above the other everywhere. The scenery is simply stunning. No wonder they call it the Costa Verde. How do the trees grow like that. I spend a lot of time just watching fully expecting jungle animals to leap out at any moment. There are noises too, just after sunset, it reminds me of Africa.
One thing we were nervous of before we travelled to Brazil was its reputation of being dangerous. We should not have worried so much. We use good common sense and haven’t felt intimidated yet.
Anchoring all along the coast is extremely good holding in mud or sand – allowing us to sleep well at night – but rather messy when raising the anchor and chain – it is a good job Richard installed a deck wash.
If you follow our track we have cris crossed our way around Ilha Grande Bay. Partly because of changes in wind direction – but also due to the need to keep visiting Angra dos Reis.
When we arrived from Salvador we had changed states so we had to check in at Angra dos Reis . Our visas were only initially for 3 months so after 3 weeks here we had to return to Angra dos Reis to extend them for a further 3 months. We then went to the west of the bay to visit Paraty and the surrounding area – but before we could exit the bay to carry on along the coast we had to check out – and come back to Angra dos Reis to do it.
Having checked out at Angra dos Reis, we had 72 hours to leave the state, so as well as heading west to get out of the Bay, it also gave us time to visit the Paraty region for a second time.
Paraty pronounced Parachee by the locals and spelt Parati on the chart is described as an enticing blend of colonial architecture and natural beauty. Without fail, every Brazilian sailor we’ve met have said you have to go to Paraty.
Parati is situated at the end of a shallow bay – anchoring as far out as we would need to, we felt too exposed to sleep so we found the perfect stepping stone anchorage at Ilha do Cotia. Close enough for us to nip around with the boat and anchor and visit the town – then come back. Visiting the town was a wonderful, colourful experience. Anchoring at Ilha da Cotia was peaceful and perfect.
We have moved 'just around the corner' into Sao Paulo state still on the Costa Verde. We made stops on the way at Picinguaba and Ilha Couves before anchoring in Anchieta bay.
We will be here for a few more days- to explore the island of Anchieta and the rest of the Ubatuba region – before heading further south to Ilhabela.
The Costa Verde is beautiful - but isolated in terms of facilities. We hadn’t realised quite how hard finding a supermarket might be – there are no corner shops for bread and milk. Many places there is no mobile phone signal so we become more and more pleased that we bought the starlink and specialised marine parts are quite hard to come by. I still haven’t found anywhere to buy sail needles to replace the ones I broke repairing the mainsail although I hope I might be able to get some from the sailmaker in Ilhabela.
We have just over 7 weeks left on our visas with 700 miles of coast left to run. There are quite a few anchoring opportunities between here and Ilhabela and then the distances between ports increases. Looking forward to visiting more beautiful places and sailing longer passages as we head further south.
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