Captain's Log Page 5

Tideline Yacht Sales
17 Lockwood Drive
Charleston, SC 29401

PHONE: 843.813.3711
FAX: 866.467.8840
Email: glen@tidelineyachtsales.com

      We stayed at the marina of a 5 star hotel, which afforded us all its facilities. There were tennis courts, swimming pools, beautiful beaches, and it was close to the city. The area is best known for its world famous sand dunes, which were fairly close to the hotel. It also gave us an opportunity to unwind, experience a different culture, and get provisions for our next leg.

We were now headed for the Caribbean. We left Fortaleza in the morning, and motored out to sea. Within a couple of hours we had the sails up, including the main. This was the first time we had used the main since leaving South Africa, and was the first time we had water over the decks. Sailing in the trade winds is a very gentle way to go! On the second day out of Fortaleza, we tried to start the engine to charge the batteries. The engine would not start, and nothing we could do would coax it into firing. When out in the middle of the ocean, one has plenty of time, and the situation presented me with the opportunity to become familiar with the manual on the engine. After reading up in the manual, it was concluded that the injector pump had seized, and this was something that could only be repaired ashore. Fortunately we were on one of the fastest stretches of sailing in the world. Between the current and the breeze we saw a 200+ mile day! We were about 60-80 miles offshore, and the water was still discolored from the Amazon River. It was a few days before the water cleared again, and we knew we had passed the region of the mouth of the Amazon.

We were also crossing the equator, which has evoked a lot of fear and trepidation. It is the area known as the Intra Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), or more commonly known as the Doldrums. It has been said by others that when you see your trash from 3 weeks ago drifting past, you might be stuck in the doldrums! Not having an engine, this could have presented us with some serious problems. However, having acquired local knowledge before departing, we had sailed a course that took us through the narrowest band of the ITCZ, and we were never becalmed for more than 2 – 3 hours.

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