Horta, BBQ

Went on couchsurfing.org to see if there was any surfers in Horta.
There is a few. I contacted a Silvia. A marine biology student.
She replied within minutes. I was very welcome. I was invited to a bbq Saturday. Awesome. I offered to bring desert. They didn't know how many who would join the party,  somewhere between 8 and 30... I bought a big bag of fruit, cream and chocolate. Easy to prepare/reduce.

Silvias flatmate, Kristine, welcomed me at their flat. A Norwegian girl, also studying marine biology.

They were living in a huge flat in "central Horta". Price: 200€ per person per month. Cheap compared with Danish prices. A little expensive compared with "Horta prices".

5 friends of the flat arrived, and we went with them to a house where the bbq was. At first eyesight the place looked like a junkyard, but behind it was a very cool house at a very green/ nice spot.

We had a fantastic dinner with lots of specialities. My fruitsalat was also popular.
At midnight we walked to the place where the concert was. A Pro-rural farmer sort of thing. Cows and tractors everywhere. Two local bands played. Good fun, and cheap beers, 50 cents!
At around 3am it was over and Silvia drove us home. We did a quick stop at a big beachparty, but I think we were all to tired for more. Or at least I was really tired :-)
In bed, a real bed, at around 4:30am..

Horta, sailor artworks

Woke up at 10am... Everyone were still sleeping. Guess it was needed.

Horta harbour is amazing. Sailors leave a little artwork before leaving. This should bring luck...
There is thousands of artworks everywhere. These, with all the sailors, makes this places very interesting.

There is always sailors chatting about their Atlantic crossing or other adventures.
We have already met lots of fellow sailors. There is plenty of Scandinavians here, also on their easy back.
Ole has worked on the engine all day. Minor fixes, but still time consuming...

We have done some other little adjustments on sails, ropes ect.

Horta

Finally land!
Saw whales on the way into Horta harbour. I shaved, to look just a little civilised.

Sailed into Horta harbour at 9:15am... Or that was what was we thought.
Bjarke won the bet, and got to choose restaurant in the evening.

After getting organised with diesel and water we got a spot in the harbour.
We went straight to town. Found Peter sport bar. Had beer, eggs and bacon.... Mmmmmmmmm.....

The rest of the day was spent on relaxation, internetting and eating.

In the evening Tonny and I was waiting at Peter Sport.
We had agreed on meeting here at seven. At some stage Tonny asked me what time it was. My phone said 6pm, Tonnys Ipad said 7pm. We asked to French sailors next to us. Their watches said 8pm and 5pm....
Truly a place for long distance sailors... The real time was 7pm, so the everyone onboard was one hour behind.

At the restaurant we we're served giant meals on huge metal plates.
We we're all to full to eat desert.

The Atlantic, day 23

Distance: nm (arrived at 11:15am)

Midnight shift for me. Almost nice  to be steering by engine again. Was able to steer with minimum use of compass. Was lining my swimmers (on the sea fence) under the northstar. And with one foot on the wheel, it was easy to steer.

We have experienced big waves the last 24 hours. We're guessing 4-5 metres... They are no problem though. They  are very long, and  therefore very gentle. But still impressive.

Lots of dolphins again. Those animals must have ADHD, they are always moving, fast....

Lea served a wonderful cinnamon cake for afternoon tea. This was after some of us finished cleaning the entire deck.

When we wake up, land is probably visible. Strange after 22 days without.

The Atlantic, day 22

Distance: 104nm

Up at 4am to steer after a turbulent night in the cabin. Not much sleep
When the ship is rocking this much.
Now, at 7am we have changed sails, and it's a lot calmer. Time to catch up some sleep...

And so I did. Got up at 11:24am

First important question: how fast are we sailing?
Next important thing, apart from coffee, how far? 114nm, cool!

So, what have I done today.
Well...
A freshwater shower
A soduko
Reading
Eating
Cockpit Jeopardy
Watching dolphins
Been Fishing
Taken the dishes
Smaltalks
Steering

At 10pm we had to start the engine, no wind...

Changed all clocks onboard with +1 hour. Third timezone we cross on the Atlantic. Now only one hour behind Danish timezone

The Atlantic, day 21

Distance: 114nm

At lunchtime, the 24 hour measurement was ready: 124nm

Very fine distance. Horta is now under 300nm away.

I war steering from 8 to 10am. Five minutes to ten the wind disappeared and changed direction within seconds. We went from 5 knots in the right direction to 2.5 knots 50 degrees of the curse.
We changed sail setting, and after one hour we were back on track.

For lunch Lea made her famous bread. Soooo nice to have fresh bread.

Often, when relaxing in the cabin, I hear some of the crew yell "dolphins", "a ship" ect. 30 seconds later, I'm on the deck as well.

We have seen dolphins twice today, and one ship.

The toilet broke today, but luckily, the skipper, Ole, fixed it very quick. He is a pro handyman, and have brought "u name it" tools and spareparts.

The Atlantic, day 20

Distance: 124nm

Great 24 hour distance. New record!

Woke up at 10:30... Earplugs, eyecover, and a 2 to 6am night shift had made me sleep through three kids waking up ect.

10:07, 11:07 and at the moment 12:07 is a very important time. This is where we measure how far we have sailed the last 24 hours. Everyone make a guess, and hope for something above 100
Today (Meaning from lunchtime yesterday until lunch today) the number was 103. Only with sails, Great!

The first twelve hours today, we have done 5+ knots, so the good result in distance is thanks to lots of good wind for sailing.

We create a little garbage onboard. Glass, metal and paper (without plastic cover) is thrown overboard.
The picture is 20 days of garbage (mostly plastic), including the black bucket.