Pacific Bound

Our stopover in Bermuda was getting extended because of weather - that combined with our late departure out of Fort Lauderdale was eating into my summer boating plans in the Pacific Northwest. As a result, I decided to bid farewell to Moana Kuewa and her crew and fly back to Seattle. My purpose for joining this adventure was to learn as much as possible about the preparation and outfitting for a blue water crossing, and in this first stage to Bermuda I got my degree.

The seminars given in Ft. Lauderdale by the tour organizer were invaluable, as were the days spent getting the vessel prepared, inspected and provisioned. The leg from Florida to Bermuda was also quite enlightening - the first few days we encountered 5 to 8 ft seas and 30 kts of wind. Seeing how well the Nordhavn 55 sliced through the seas was a tremendous confidence builder. The crew was quite capable, a combination of experience from offshore power, offshore sail, and a US Navy submariner. I made lots of new friends, learned something from almost everyone, and enjoyed hearing the stories and experiences that were so freely shared. To my new friends of the MedBound gaggle, I wish them fair winds and following seas.

Other Medbound Atlantic Rally Site...

I would also recommend following the log reports posted on the official MedBound Atlantic Rally site. They have the itinerary, very up to date log reports, photos, weather reports, and much more.

I'm anticipating news from Marty today, they should be arriving in Bermuda today.

Arrival in Bermuda

After five and a half days at sea, we arrive in Bermuda just ahead of a storm. Our first order of business is to go ashore, grab a sandwich, and washed it down with a "Dark and Stormy" the local rum drink. Hamilton Bermuda is a very clean city, with shops (closed on sunday), modern apartments and condo. We are guests of the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club - one of the oldest in the "New World" going back to 1844. It was from here the British Navy launched their attack against the US in 1812.

We are all quite pleased at the toughness of the Nordhavn 55 - the main propulsion, the stabilzers, autopilot, generator and air conditioning all operated flawlessly around the clock during the entire trip.

We'll spend 5 to 6 days here cleaning, provisioning, refueling and sight-seeing, and then heading out on the next leg to Horta in the Asores - a 12 day leg.



Sorry I've been unable to post updates while at sea, the internet connection from Moana Kuewa is real slow. The fleet leader has much better connections at sea and he posts daily. Try logging on to the Nordhavn site:

http://www.nordhavn.com/medbound/index.php

Halfway To Bermuda

Marty's halfway to Bermuda, and he has mentioned that they should be arriving there on Sunday.

I would also recommend following the log reports posted on the official MedBound Atlantic Rally site. They have the itinerary, log reports, photos, weather reports, and much more there.

Other than that, I don't have much else to report for my dad (Marty).

Setting off from Ft. Lauderdale

We have some fantasic photos of the beginning of the 2007 MedBound Atlantic Rally, courtesy of David J. Shuler Marine Photography.

About to shove off

We just came from the Capt. briefing, were we discussed the trip ahead, we will be getting underway at about 1430 local. Hopefully I'll get a few photos taken from the helicopter of our departure placed on this site in a few days. . For pictures, I'll be out of range until we get to Bermuda, but will try to get a few posts up along with our position. Thanks for tuning in.

Marty

Fueling Up

In between the shopping for parts and other chores, we've been attending some really good work shops like diesel engine maintenance, and damage control - enclosed is a shot of how to patch a broken hose. Such tricks are very helpful to keep the sea water on the outside of the hull.




In all, there were some 9 boats leaving Ft Lauderdale, all needing lots of fuel. The diesel oil is delivered in a clever fuel barge that pulls up along side and drops these two steel pilings into the mud. He's about a foot away from us and he hands us the hose - no tie-ups, no fenders.



You can see here what happened when Chris fueled up the starboard side first.



Thursday night we had our bon voyage party, our group is made up of an interesting collection of personalities.

Arriving in Ft. Lauderdale

Here we are in Ft. Lauderdale, doing our "Team Building" at the Coral Ridge Yacht Club. Weather has been great, though they are still working some bugs off the "Moana Kuewa" - We should be getting underway on Thursday May 24.

Skipper: Chris
Crew: Dave, Mary Ann, Bernie and me.

The adventure begins.

Follow the MedBound 2007 Atlantic Rally. Marty, on the "Moana Kuewa," will be posting photos, positions, and stories as internet connectivity permits. Browse the Google Map to see where we've been and what we've done. Also, subscribe to our atom feed or fill out the email subscription form on the right to get notified when Marty makes a new post.