Even if it’s a long way from Cuba, 27 days, it din’t seemed long for us. We din’t stop at the Bahamas, nor at the Bermudas, we don’t have any hidden money in the “tax heavens”, but it was more because the weather was good to pass North of Bermudas and then heading East. A lot of fine weather, days without touching the sheets, wind from the beam, a lot of gulweeds too, then no fish, and a few days before arriving at Faial, the meeting of 4 blue whales that we cross very close, a big feeling. We will sail together for a time with Jean Louis Clémendot, but as he stopped in the Bermudas we will be waiting for him at Horta, in front of the roasted pork offered by the Peter Cafe sport, who celebrates also its centenary. Just a jump to Graciosa we didn’t yet know, and there, we fall in love with this island. All these islands are different, and at Graciosa we apreciate the calm of the port, the quietness of the island, the long walks, the traditional feasts.
It was planed, Stephane joins us at Horta with Enzo and Louison. Naturely Manon is here too. We have a straight program : the caldeira, meeting with the whales, visit of the Peter Cafe Sport with “Peter”Jose Enrique Azevedo, the renewing of the painting of Skøiern on the jety, and, for the men only…the climbing of the Pico, 2351 m, the Azores’s roof ! A revenge on the first trial in 2007, a promise done. It was gorgeous, and thanks to our guide Luis, not too hard. Horta it’s also the “Semana do Mar”, where the Captain, “Capi”, will be invited to row on a whale boat for the fishermen procession of Nuestra Senhora da Guia, whales boats regatas, parades, folk groups….Back to Graciosa with Manon, we visit the boiling bowels of Furna do Enxofre, meet Catherine, from a long time stranded sailor in the small village of Luz, more feasts, touradas…
Of course we think of the way back, then we go closer and we sail to Praia da Vitoria we love so much. No weather window, but a huricane that decide us to take shelter at Ponta Delgada, then, for the same reasons we went to Santa Maria.
At the end of October, as the weather is still in the same patern we take the decision to winter at Vila do Porto, well sheltered in this small island, our families and friends will have to wait some months more before we could meet again. Santa Maria is really beautiful, few populated, we can walk for hours in full nature, without cars, with our dog free for running and teasing the cows or Yann’s mule… The climate is better than in the other islands, more mediterranean, more aside the track of the big storms of the North Atlantic. We take also the opportunity of this wintering to do the works we had planed, the small yard in the port is very useful for us, and when you need something you don’t find on the island you just have to order, it takes some time but the parcels comes, and every time it’s like Christmas !
At spring we will sail for Britany, make a big feast for our boat before sailing for Grimstad and again make a big feast.
