Atlantic crossing complete
30 April 2012 | Fortaleza, Brazil
Francina
At 7h00 on Sabbath we left Fernando de Noronha island in low winds. Luckily the wind changed to approx 10 knots for the day and we were able to listen to some teachings by Doug Batchelor. At Sabbath closing we got very good winds between 14 - 18 knots and it stayed like that for the rest of the voyage. The current was approx 2 knots which caused very favourable sailing. Our fellow yachties at de Noronha agreed that it will take approx 4 days to reach Fortaleza, 360 miles away.
On Monday at approx lunch time, Johan started seeing buildings on the Brazilian coast. I was unable to spot the buildings and Johan then took a bearing to see if it was for real. He identified that it was Morro Branco, a town south of Fortaleza. He was like a kid, identifying more and more buildings and land as we approaching Fortaleza. We were very surprised with the city and the landscape. There are no mountains or high hills, but there are very tall buildings and lots of them, the one on top of the other.
Whilst looking at the approaching continent, I realised that we completed our ocean crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. It is interesting how differently we react to the same event. Johan was very excited about the accomplishment, whilst I was very sad about the event. I have sailed a bit more than 4000 miles, a quarter of the total distance. The remainder of the Atlantic Ocean is more coastal cruising.
As with the previous passages, we had to have something that is not working before we reach our destination. I really thought that 2 plus a bit days do not warrent anything to go wrong. We were about 4 miles from the hotel when the wind meter stopped working. We definitely needs to sort this out before we can leave again on the next trip. Whilst going through the waters at high speed, I through out the line and within a few minutes caught a nice sized silver fish. It looked very attractive for dinner. Unfortunately we lost it whilst bringing it in.
The mooring in Fortaleza is in front of the Marina Beach Hotel. It is a very nice hotel with lots and lots of rooms and we are moored right in front of them. We are moored Mediterranean style - throw out the anchor in the middle of the 'channel' and then reverse the stern to the jetty. Luckily there were two French guys at the boat next to us who helped us catching mooring lines and tied us up. We were safely moored for the night at 17h00.
We walked to town at 18h30 and they told us that it is safe to do so, even though it was getting dark. By the time we reached the Mercado Centre (arts and crafts, fruits and nuts), it was already 19h00 and the shops were closing down. The good food that we expected was therefore not available. We settled for 2 cheese croissants at R$3.50 each, whole corn on the crop at R$1.50 each and water at R$2 per bottle. R$1 = approx R4.60 This centre is very big with 6 levels where the locals sell their products. There are hand crafts, clothing, food, nuts, dried fruit and jams (or rather dried fruit jelly) for sale.
Getting off Ntombi is quite a treat. We use the mooring line to pull ourselves towards the jetty and climb off at the stern. When the tied came in on the first day, we almost bumped against the jetty. Johan had to make changes to the mooring lines to secure us in place again and prevent us from bumping at the stern.
I must admit I feel a bit like a spoilt brad. Since we left South Africa on 14th March, we were always in the ocean sailing or anchored on a swing mooring. This time we are however moored against a jetty with running water and even electricity. The first thing I did this morning was to wash the boat on the outside, but also inside. It is so nice to have running water that you can use freely for washing the boat, the dishes and washing. The cost of $90 for 3 days is worth it.
Fortaleza is a major city on Brazil's northeast coast, and the capital of Ceara state. Fortaleza is one of the largest cities in Brazil and certainly one of the most vibrant. They have a population of about 2.5 million. The city is perhaps the most popular domestic package tour destination, and Europeans are following suit. There are hundreds of sky skraper buildings. Public transport is readily available and the people very friendly and helpful. The language is a stumbling block to us. We however met a French couple (Brigitte and Serge Challiol Megret) in yacht Kallima, a 43 ft catemaran. Brigitte went to the Fruit and Vegetable market with us. It was very helpful because her French, knowledge of Spanish and the bit of Portuguese she picked up during their 3 month stay in Brazil helped a lot. She was able to ask directions and which busses to take.
The Fruit and Veggie market was very reasonably priced. What was strange to us is the fact that almost all items cost the same per kilo - R$2.00. There is no distinction between tomatoes, potatoes or guavas, all the same per kilo. There is a small food stall at the market where they sell traditional Brazilian food. Johan bought a plate consisting of something that looks like raw course mealiemeal, pasta and rice with beans, green salad and roasted beef on the side. The plate of food was only R$5.00, which was very cheap considering that both of us feasted on one plate of food.
Johan saw a shop selling pots and pans to professionals across the street from the market whilst waiting at the bus stop. We quickly went to the shop and found a new pressure cooker for R$112. It is pricy considering that I actually only needed a pressure weight and pressure ring that I lost overboard with the wash water!
It was hot on our return from the market and we therefore took a quick swim in the hotel swimming pool. After we cooled down a bit, we decided to use the bus service to go to the Supermarket to fill up our reserves, especially tomato paste and meat products. The bus stop is across the street from the hotel and a local waiting with us assisted us to get onto the correct bus. The conductor and bus driver was very helpful, showing us where to get off the bus when we eventually arrived at the bus stop close to the supermarket. All the passengers in the bus were very friendly and greeted us heartely when we left the bus. The language barrier did not affect the affection shown.
The Supermarket was a bit of a disappointment because we expected lots of tinned food which they did not stock. We suspect the reason being that this supermarket is mostly used by holiday makers and tourists, staying in the hotels in the area. When we left the shop, it was time for the locals to go home. The bus stop was very busy and we again asked the locals for help to identify the correct bus. One lady got on the same bus as us, but this time round it was a very small bus intended for approx 24 passengers. At every stop (and there were plenty) more people got onto the bus, but nobody got off. The bus has two rails (hanging from the roof) on either side for people to hang unto, standing sideways. The bus was eventually so full that we were standing hip to hip and bum to bum and still people were trying to squeeze in. Again, the staff and the locals were very friendly and greeted us with affection when we left the bus at the hotel. Maybe they were just relieved that somebody (two big South Africans) is getting off the bus! We are a bit big compared to there posture.
We met a delivery skipper, Louis van Wyk, and crew member from Pretoria in the harbour. They are delivering a power cat to the new owner in America. They took in 1000 liters of diesel in Salvador, 1000 liters in Fortaleza and will refill again in Trinidad. The price of diesel in Fortaleza is R$2.03 (R9.34) compared to R$3.60 (R16.56) in Fernando de Noronha.
There were two Dutch guys, Martin and Peter, in a very big yacht next to us. Martin's wife flew in for a 2 week visit. Peter is a construction worker whilst Martin is a designer jeweller. His speciality is diamonds and he has never worked for more than 6 months in a year. Martin's yacht, Marcia 2 is a once off build and weighs 50 tons. She was build for Arctic conditions. They sailed her to Fortaleza and plan to take her back to Netherlands where she will be on the hard to apply all the necessary changes/fixes that they identify during these two passages.
The wind forcast predicted heavy winds in Fortaleza and surroundings for Friday and Saturday. The recommendation was therefore to either leave on Thursday or wait for the wind to pass. We decided to leave on Thursday instead. Originally we wanted to go past French Guiana, but decided against it. If there is no good reason for us to go into the harbour, we would stay on course for Trinidad, another 1400 miles away. Johan went up the mast 3 times to try and fix the wind meter. When we were a few miles off the coast it started working by itself. We suspect there were interference with the radio frequency the wind meter uses.
We arrived safely in Fortaleza with very good winds to cover the 360 miles in 2 days 9.5 hours.