How many tasks do you think the average Joe has to focus on every day? There is the dirty business of work to attend to and all the meetings, conference calls and emails that entails; there is the perpetual thought about kids, where they are, when to get them and when to pick them up; and there are hobbies to entertain you, to perfect and practice. All this plays on the mind and complicates life. Onboard Ruffian all we have had to do is focus on the simple task of sailing, the natural activity of sleeping and the social activity of eating. Life here is simple and life is good.

Our departure from Las Palmas to tackle the 900 mile sail to the Cape Verde islands could not have been more different from our last departure from the port. In 2008 we had the fanfare of the ARC, steel bands playing and 1000’s of people propelling us on our way, this time we simply untied Ruffian and quietly headed out to sea whilst a single chap on the boat opposite whistled ‘Singing in the Rain’ to us. Gran Canaria was clearly not happy with this form of exit and the local wildlife gave us a show as within moments of setting sails we had dolphins, turtles and even a pod of whales bidding us farewell.

The focus on board was now the simple act of sailing and removing all the complication from our lives. We started to notice the amazing things that usually pass us by everyday, the phases of the moon and the time it rises and sets, the satellites that blink their little lights as they pass overhead and the shooting stars that light up the sky and make you feel oh so lucky. We are also truly alone at sea for the first time. We can see that there are no ships, no people, and no sign of civilisation for hundreds of miles around and so we have come to appreciate how special this place is and how few people get to experience what we are seeing.

Although life is simple it is not to say it was not without its challenges. With the addition of Dominique to the crew of Ruffian and his outstanding culinary skills we seem to be eating like kings and every meal is destined to be improvement on the last. There is also the challenge of the eggs. Iain and Fiona packed 40 eggs on board before they left and then, as a last minute gift, another dozen made their way onboard. We now have the question of what to do with these little packages of protein. Iain is voting cakes, but has yet to produce anything, whilst Dominique is turning out the goods with crepes for breakfast and Fiona creates mean carbonara for dinner. With all this food Ruffian is not going to be a weight loss boat.

All the hard work and preparation from previous weeks is now paying dividends. The stress of getting the sat phone to work in port has now given Iain great satisfaction as he can download weather everyday to keep us safe and confirm that Dina2, with Kent & Liz onboard, is still snapping at our heels, the towed generator is keeping up with all our needs and some, and all the provisioning that Fiona prepared for is keeping everybody full to the brim. Ruffian has clearly appreciated all this love and care as she’s rewarding us with fast easy safe miles and speeding us towards our destination.

The intrepid team before the 900 miles to the Cape Verde.


Leaving the marina provided more anxiety than the thought of spending 8 days at sea.


Goodbye land. That’ll be the last time we see you for a while.


Dominique shows that sailing is all stress, stress, stress.


There is plenty of time to play with cameras at sea.


Fast easy mile eating sailing.


All the toys deployed and working in harmony. 4 days in 0 engine hours.


Getting into life at sea.


Iain finally catches a 200 pound, that’s sterling and not weight, Mahi Mahi.


Another beautiful sunrise.