Since coming back to civilisation life has been busy. I’ve been working on a Somerset cider apple farm and in a South London general practice, as well as playing the occasional gig.
Having said that I’ve decided on a route and have started on the work needed to get Tarka ready for a summer of Subpolar North Atlantic sailing.
I had imagined an Atlantic circuit by the clockwise trade-wind route to be the best next step, but a rapidly weakening desire to sit in crowded marinas and a feeling that the the only added complexity and difficulty of that route, as a progression of my last, would be the bureaucracy it would inevitably involve, led me to rethink.
The idea arose on one of the great days we had on approaching Rockall:
I intend to sail across the Atlantic against the prevailing winds and currents towards Newport, Rhode Island, before returning to the UK via the Viking Route.
The plan is: Falmouth (UK), Newport (Rhode Island), St John’s (Newfoundland), Qaqortoq (Greenland), Reykjavik (Iceland), Falmouth (UK).
The Atlantic crossing is at least 3000nm, and is expected to take between 40 and 60 days. It will be almost entirely upwind sailing, and will feature the frequent passage of low-pressure systems. Off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland we’ll experience dense fog, congested shipping and potentially icebergs. It’ll finish with some coastal sailing down the east coast of the US to Newport.
I’ll then backtrack along the US coast up to Newfoundland before pushing out into the Labrador Sea towards the southern tip of Greenland. Here icebergs and katabatic winds will be the name of the game.
From Greenland I’ll cross the Denmark strait to Iceland, and from there make the last jump back to the UK.
I’m planning on having Tarka in the water in late April, sailing her down to Falmouth and waiting there for a good window to shoot out in early May. I intend to be sailing back from Iceland to the UK no later than September.
The weather windows involved are: leaving the UK late enough to miss the winter depressions, arriving in Greenland late enough to miss the peak iceberg season, and getting back to the UK before the autumn gales start rolling in.
It’s a massive undertaking, a big step up in scale, duration and risk, so the preparation needs to be at least proportional.
The list of requisite equipment and jobs onboard is summarised below, most of which will be undertaken in the new year, though I’ve managed to get started on a few:
- Sails cleaned, chafe patches fitted. New heavy weather jib made.
- Spare Windvane rudder and light and heavy weather vanes.
- Loads of spare sheets for chafe redundancy.
- Boom brake
- New spinnaker pole/refit existing one.
- Survival suit.
- Chart portfolio for intended passages and ports of refuge.
- More thermals, warm salopettes etc.
- Dry bags for inside storage of food, tools, charts, everything…
- Radio with SSB receiver.
- More: batteries, spare blowtorches, waterproof matches, elastic bands…
- Better rustproofing of tools.
- Expand capacity of cockpit drain.
- Fit more cockpit and deck grab rails.
- Put secure safety latches on cupboards.
- Make drawers I never got round to making.
- Reinforce battery box.
- Fit watertight covers on vents.
- Remake lee cloths.
- Make and fit more cabin insulation.
- Make covers for berth storage.
- Make Lee cloth style straps for Vberth sail storage.
- Re-bed leaking deck fittings.
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