Amersham, Bucks, UK

I find myself unexpectedly in England. The Admiral's mother suffered a fall last
week and broke her hip which required some surgery at a local hospital. This 
meant that the Admiral could not leave for South Africa on November 1st as 
planned so I decided to come here to lend some moral support.
It was a difficult to make the change from bright sunshine in Capetown to grey 
Blighty but needs must and the weather so far has been quite mild and pleasant.
Mother in law is recovering well and should be discharged on Monday to begin her 
rehab at home.
Some comments about Capetown. We left Knysna on a sunny afternoon to reach the 
Knysna heads at just before the slack high tide and exit was easy with no 
breaking waves to worry about. The bad news was we had to push into 15 knot 
headwinds for about twenty hours and made very poor progress. The southwesterly 
winds were forecast but we had to leave when we did as the local knowledge 
suggested that due to the south westerlies the heads would be closed for at 
least two days. This was in fact the case and it was just as well we left when 
we did. 
After twenty hours of motoring the wind shifted to the east and we had some good 
downwind sailing around the Cape of Good Hope up to around Green Point. Dolphins 
and whales were there to greet us on a lovely clear afternoon in view of the 
iconic Table Mountain.
We entered into the harbour and on to the Royal Cape Yacht Club and tied up to 
the end of BX dock. The club was having its annual opening day and was very busy 
indeed. We enjoyed a few beers and a good dinner to celebrate the final landfall 
of the long cruise.
Next day Ray and I went to visit the Victoria and Alfred waterfront area and the 
Capetown boat show. The boat show was very small but enjoyable nonetheless. We 
took a look at a fifty foot catamaran, the Knysna 500 which was spectacular. 
Would be perfect for our next circumnavigation!
The waterfront area is the place to be in Capetown with many restaurants and 
shopping. There is a marina there but are no berths available until January 10, 
2015 so that's where we will be in the new year. With a bit of luck, something 
will open up before that date.
Once back at the RCYC the wind was howling from the SE at at least 30 knots. No 
swell but very blowy, whereas the waterfront marina was much more protected from 
the SE winds.
The RCYC is very pleasant with an active racing program but not in the best 
area, surrounded by the docks and no way of getting into downtown without 
getting a cab or the bus. So it looks like we'll stay here until something opens 
up at the waterfront.
Ray and I rented a car on the following day to take a ride around the area and 
visit with Peter on S/V Lady Amber, a 65 foot research boat in Hout Bay. Peter 
gave us some very helpful weather information on the leg from Reunion so we took 
him out for some lunch and a few beers to return the favour. He was a very 
interesting fellow and we spent the afternoon swapping stories and telling lies. 
The marina at Hout Bay was far more exposed to south easterlies than the RCYC 
with wind and swell, so it did not appear to be a useful option to stay there. 
Too bad, because Hout Bay itself was delightful.
I took Ray to the airport on the following morning for his flight to Australia. 
He was excellent crew and I very much enjoyed his company.
I spent the next few days wandering around Capetown, fixing stuff and eating my 
way through the freezer prior to leaving for the UK.
There are lots of facilities for sailboat repair and I took the radar/ chart 
plotters and the GPS off the boat for bench testing and possible repair at the 
Furuno agent. I had the linear drive for the auto pilot serviced and returned 
within 24 hours. Just as well, as the brushes were on their last legs.
The mainsail and genoa are off the boat and at the Northsails dealer. They 
appear to be in remarkable shape after more than 40,000 miles but will need some 
restitching and a new UV cover for the mainsail. I'm also going to have all the 
vertical battens removed and have the leach recut to give a small amount of 
negative roach. I have been having trouble furling and unfurling the mainsail 
and the leach flutters when close on the wind. This modification will involve 
losing about 5% of the sail area but will be worthwhile to preclude a serious 
jam while underway.
I also found a B and G guy who will service the wind instruments and the speed 
log both of which are having some issues.
I need to find a Volvo dealer to service the cooling system and that should 
complete all the maintenance needed for now. A haul out is scheduled at RCYC in 
March.
A long and tedious flight on Air France to England for about two weeks and an 
opportunity to visit with family and friends.
Peter from R/V Lady Amber in Hout Bay








leaving Knysna
dolphins at the Cape of Good Hope
Approaching Capetown with the Table Mountain in view







knysna






more dolphins
the marina at the RCYC. note the "tablecloth" on the mountain. A southeasterly is blowing hard
view from the Knysna YC


more views of Knysna

dinner at the
portuguese restaurant in Knysna

the new salty look. Hemmingway or Castaway you decide

Knysna, South Africa

We left Durban after a very pleasant few days. We were well looked after at the Point Yacht Club and were offered full use of their facilities during our stay there. I met with some old friends, Gerald and Diane from the catamaran Whiskers and Stuart and Sheila  from Imagine arrived from Richards Bay soon after us. It's just as well we got into Durban when we did as the weather turned nasty the day after with a great deal of wind and rain.  I got to look around Durban while Ray and Ted went to visit a game park. Everyone here has been incredibly friendly and I was introduced to a Durban favorite called bunnychow, which is the curry of your choice served up in a quarter  of a hollowed out loaf of bread. Very innovative and tasty. Prices are very good value and I Callisto spruced up with a wash, buff out and wax for less than  $200 USD.
We left last Wednesday intending to go to Mossell Bay but decided instead to go into Knysna, which is about 50 miles to the east. Getting in was a bit tricky but well worth it as the lagoon is quite spectacularly beautiful. The Knysna Yacht Club, were in what appears to be the SA tradition and have been quite wonderful. The weather has again turned and from 80 degrees on Monday to 60 degrees today and yesterday, with quite a bit of wind and rain.
We expect some clearing tomorrow and will leave for the final push for Capetown in the afternoon or Friday morning. Only another 300 miles to go to end this epic.
Photos soon as Internet not good here also some statistics about the Indian Ocean voyage.

Durban, South Africa

We left Mauritius as planned on September 12 and had an easy overnight run to Reunion. We went into the Port de la Pointe des Galets on the north west aspect of the island and tied up to a large catamaran. The clear in was a bit chaotic as no-one was around on the weekend. The problem with this marina is that there is nothing in its vicinity and the nearest town is a 3-4 km walk. There are, however, lots of boat related facilities and one can get most boat related repairs done in the marina. We were berthed outside the local yacht club and they were having their year end regatta on the Saturday and Sunday. We were invited to the festivities and were made very welcome indeed.
After the weekend, things picked up a bit and we got to do some exploring. Mauritius used to be French and they still speak mostly French but Reunion IS France and many of the small towns look just like little, provincial French towns. The people were incredibly friendly and helpful. We rented a car for two days and on the first day took a coastal ride from the northwest of the island to the south visiting all of the beach towns on the way. There is a small marina in St, Gilles. Very pretty spot but much  too small for us. We had a pleasant lunch on the beach and then down to the town of St Denis where they also have a marina. The entrance looked a bit shoal but would have been a nicer place to stay had they had room. Lots of stores and restaurants nearby.
Next day we got up very early to see the central part of the island and the town of Cilaos in a massive volcanic caldera. Getting there was exciting in a small under powered rental car. The road was incredibly steep and winding with terrifying hairpin bends. The views were spectacular and I'll post some photos soon. We had another good lunch and drove through another national park to the east side of the island and then back around the northern tip back to the boat.
The weather was looking good for South Africa and we left on Wednesday, September 17 after a bit of an adventure returning the rental car. We got stuck in traffic and then got lost and had to be rescued by the rental agents. Nonetheless we got away around noon and soon got into breeze once out of the influence of Reunion.
This leg is tricky as the shortest distance to South Africa is about 1400 miles, outside the range of a useful weather window and it is possible to get caught with severe weather conditions approaching the South African coast especially in the Agulhas Current where conditions can be horrendous in a southwesterly gale.
We employed three weather strategies. One was the usual grib weatherfiles downloaded via the sat phone every other day. We also got help from a South African friend of Ray who runs a an exploration boat out of Mossel bay and has a great deal of local knowledge. I also thought it might be useful to use an American weather routing service called Commanders Weather out of Maine. They were indeed very flexible and helpful and gave us 3 very detailed forecasts and routing while underway.
We tried to get all the way to Mossel Bay (170 miles east of Capetown) but this was not possible due to a very strong cold front that we could not avoid without going into Durban.
All in all, we were quite lucky with the weather. We only had to deal with one frontal system which was mercifully mild. We even had to motor for about 20 hours!
We got into Durban on Friday, September 26 and found a very nice berth on the international dock close to the Durban Marina Office and the Point Yacht Club. More to follow.

Port Louis, Mauritius

At last, a post from Mauritius. As you may have read we arrived in Port Louis last Sunday afternoon after 13 days and a few hours from the Cocos-Keeling Islands. This was a long run of over 2300 nautical miles and even though it was quite bumpy at times, it was quite rapid.

We had  winds of force 6-7 and sometimes gusts to Force 8 for much of the time and some quite lumpy seas.

Port Louis and Mauritius itself has been a very pleasant surprise. The dock area is a bit confusing but we hid find the appropriate place to tie up and do the clear in procedure. Once again, it seems odd to find non-white people speaking French but in a very good way. Every one here is courteous and well turned out and the infrastructure is well maintained.

After clear in, we moved over to the "marina" and tied up on a concrete wall (tidal range is about 15 inches). It's very sheltered in here and we even have water and electric for about $20/ day.

We have spent the last few days cleaning up and wandering about the island.

We leave today for La Reunion and we will stay there for a few days waiting for a weather window for the tricky bit to South Africa.

Here are some photos and I'll post some details in a days or two

Karakatoa in the Sunda Straits on leaving Indonesia

a very sad looking genset impeller This one had lost all of its blades.

Direction Island, Cocos-Keeling Islands very windy while we were there

angry Indian Ocean

One of the frequent line squalls encountered in the Indian Ocean. Sometimes wind, sometimes rain, sometimes both

After the squall comes the rainbow

port louis, mauritius

Black River Gorge

view to the south Mauritius

port louis

Callisto in Port Louis marina

local dudes doing their morning exercise 

Mauritius

Enroute to Mauritius

Callisto and crew left Cocos keeling 15 days ago and should arrive in Mauritius any day now.
Good sailing for the first 12 days averaging 180 mile days, then the wind died for 24 hours ,so they were motoring and wishing for wind,but as they say 'be careful what you wish for,as the 'winds came back ranging from 25 -33 knots with a swell of 4-5 m with squalls,so a rather bumpy ride. Believe it or not all the crew were in foulies, trying to keep warm and dry!So they put up the cockpit weather cover,so they are back in shorts and feeling more toasty. They caught a 10 LB wahoo after a week out this was the first fish on this leg,reported as delicious. A 50 LB fish was hauled aboard a few days later ,but it got the better of the crew and flipped back into the ocean!

The photo on the previous blog is of Captain Mike,Ray and Ted just in Singapore before they set of on this voyage.

Arrived in Cocos

We are here on Cocos tucked up out of the swell off Direction Island on the north east corner of the Cocos group and its still blowing like mad. Quite comfortable in the anchorage, though. The water is crystal clear and there are lots of coral and fish. We had a visit from the Oz customs and immigration yesterday and apart from a lot of forms there were no problems. We are having a nice rest here. I don't know if there is any wifi here but we are going on a ferry ride today to home island and then to West island to do so looking around and perhaps some shopping. The supply boat allegedly came in yesterday so there should be something to buy.