Sailing News
All the latest news from the world of sailing and stories from experienced sailors.
Hurricane Pablo started off as an innocuous looking low pressure system on 23 October that no one was paying much attention to. As this system began to develop, our annual voyage from Portsmouth to the Canaries was looking to cross the Bay of Biscay. The plan was to cross ahead of the incoming system, but as… Read more
Gates of Hercules: Day 8-9 Biscay ’19
Passing through the Gates of Hercules From ancient mythology through to the Romans (perhaps even later) the Gates of Hercules held a special place in the folklore of seafarers. They were the place beyond which unknown hazards lay and monsters awaited. Today we passed outside rather than through the Gates, which we now know as… Read more
Champagne Sailing: Day 6-7 Biscay ’19
Champagne sailing Many sailors would probably say their very best experience on the water is sailing fast, downwind, with the headsail poled out surfing down the waves, in bright sunshine. Without doubt a fair definition of champagne sailing. Today, after more than a week of hard sailing, with the wind on our nose, past France,… Read more
Riders Of The Storm: Day 3-5 Biscay ’19
With a storm to ride out, the crew weren’t able to keep sending in a blog each day. So, we’ve collated the skipper’s daily logs into one blog to give an idea of what it’s like to be in a storm. Bracing for the Storm – Day 3 Skipper’s Log Date : 02/11/19 Time :… Read more
Magical Dolphins & Cheeky Birds: Day 2 Biscay ’19
A magical dolphins sighting greets the crew of Challenger 2 this morning, before some cheeky stowaways are spotted. Cheeky Birds & Magical Dolphins For a long time this morning was had shoals of dolphins swimming alongside and jumping out of the water, truly magical scenes and now memories that will never be forgotten. We are… Read more
A Race Against the Weather: Day 1 Biscay ’19
And they’re off! Challenger 2 is already in a race against the weather The crew of Challenger 2 set sail from Portsmouth yesterday making the most of an easterly wind to take them across the Channel to towards the west coast of France. Overnight the winds have been variable, but that seems set to… Read more
The Atlantic Rovers Return to the Sea
Having filled their boots ashore the FCS crew have returned to the sea, or in this case the English Channel and have their sights on Portsmouth. Still time to blog and also regale us with a ditty they composed during said boot filling sessions… Day 23 Friday February 2018 Date: 2nd February 2018 Time:… Read more
Wind! Gale! Action! Mother Nature’s Welcome Home
No mention of the FCS crew getting the Channel jitters – a known phenomenon that sees people go slightly loopy as excitement of land builds! However the Chain Locker in Falmouth gets another mention… Date :31 January 2018 Time : 12:00 GMT Position : 49.37.82N 5.37.62W Destination Falmouth ETA 31 January Morning all At… Read more
Goodbye to the Atlantic and Hello to the Chain Locker
Bishops Rock lighthouse, The Chain Locker Pub, fish and chips; having crossed the Atlantic how much will these British landmarks mean to the FCS Crew as they land at Falmouth? Will they miss the whales, 45 degree living, the everlasting horizon, the donkey, the tinned sweetcorn? Find out below…. Date :30 January 2018 Time… Read more
Atlantic Rollers and The Many Ways to Describe Them
As usual the FCS crew have provided us with a variety of interesting posts, with almost all of them having a go at describing Atlantic rollers – those friendly giant waves that… well, we’ll let them put pictures into your mind’s eye. First up is the midday report from Nick the Mate, who also… Read more
