Author: Ulrich Fingscheidt

On my way to Cape Town I round the Cape with the sun setting.

On our trip from Richards Bay to Durban we met a pod of whales in the morning hours.

I am motoring towards the not so friendly cold front with lots of rain. Hopefully no thunderstorm, not too strong gusts, just some wind to get me to Richards Bay.

No wind, I’m motoring and making water. The expected max. wind in the front will be between 20 and 30 kn, just for a few hours. Not long enough to build up big waves.

Only after the last tree has been cut down / Only after the last river has been poisoned / Only after the last fish has been caught / Then will you find that money cannot be eaten. Alanis Obomsawin in “Who is the Chairman of This Meeting?“, 1972
My photo shows the Indian Ocean between Madagascar and South Africa, which is plastered with fishers.

My day has been as pleasant as this sunset. Enjoy the vibe.

What a crazy night! Low #2 passed me with winds up to 48 kn for some 20 min. This is equivalent to force 10 on the Beaufort scale, storm. The first front (max. 36 kn) I hove to, the second I ran downwind under bare poles with the windvane steering. I was lucky to be far enough off the southern tip of Madagascar with it’s chaotic waves.

This fellow developed next to me, time to change course and get away!

Heavy rainfall and thunder and lightning kept me busy all night, just 150 min of sleep in 3 fractions.

The wind has gone. I had a frightening thunder and lightning before midnight, got soaking wet while retrieving the tow generator and the windvane, and taking down the sail. My electronics survived. I kept my spirits up with hot herbal teas. So now it’s motoring in confused seas against the current. Some stars made it through the clouds.