November 2015

Date: 3rd November 2015

Position:  Arrecife, Lanzarote, Canary Islands

Hi everybody, Captain Bonzo here

First of all, let me welcome the many new names on this Ari B sailing update list – my name is Captain Bonzo – I am the Captain of this vessel and make sure that Alex and Carla get from A to B safely.

Yes, yes, I know – a stuffed dog?? So what, get over it – I bark my orders and the ship and crew respond....

Anyway – I do the sailing updates from Ari B, so you better get used to me.

After a few months in the UK, the crew took a decision and Alex left his work to continue the sailing adventure – they joined me in Madeira were I have been guarding the boat and after a few days of re-provisioning and general boat preparations, the team at the boatyard lifted all 19 tons of Ari B back into the water. Just in time with the end of the torrential rain we endured for a week after the crew got back - -luckily we were nice and dry under the airport runway.

Have I mentioned how BORED I was over the summer.  My stuffed rabbit friend Pip only managed to entertain me for a few weeks and at night, with the dogs patrolling the boatyard, I was properly “out of the job” – let’s face it, any intruder that got past the two massive guard dogs wouldn’t be too scared of me.......

We left Madeira as soon as the weather permitted and had a great crossing to Lanzarote. With winds from broad reach (for land lubbers this is wind from almost behind – very comfy) to close reach (wind coming a little bit from the front so not as comfy but with a calm sea it was great) and typically 15-20 knots, with a following sea, it was comfortable and FAST!! At one point we reached 11.3 knots – now for you landlubbers – this doesn’t sound fast, but if you consider that we are moving  19 tons around and water is not easy to get through...

According to Alex, it was fast – and he promptly declared it a world speed sailing record (albeit for a sailboat called Ari B, on the way from Madeira to Lanzarote and with a crew of two and a skipper called Bonzo.....).

In any case, the trip in June took 56 uncomfortable hours, this time we were here in 40 flat – and promptly arrived in the middle of the night – 01.00 – no issue though, as we know the anchorage very well.

Carla then had to fillet the fish, as the team caught 2 Mahi-Mahi about 40 miles out after biting our lures at the same time– we kept the smaller (about 1m long), as this was enough for 3.2 kilos of prime fish fillets – the other one was much bigger and we let it go to fight another day – we couldn’t have eaten it.

My own observation is that Alex was knackered by the time the fish was on board after 45 minutes and couldn’t have killed him anyway – seems the summer in the UK, with his office job, softened him up a bit.......

Now in Arrecife, we are stocking the boat with all the cheap goodies we won’t be able to find from now on – or if we do , they’ll cost an arm and a leg.

Kieran, a very good friend of ours who has sailed on Ari B many times before has joined  us on the 3rd November and we’ll make our way quickly through the Canaries, having spent the last winter here, there’s not much left to see. Last stop La Gomera for some fresh meat and veg.

Plan is then to head to the Cape Verde islands, explore these and then cross the Atlantic early December to meet up with friends Tim and Gayle from Wild Bird in Antigua. We’ll send a report from the other side J

Meantime we have a new satellite tracking device, which you can use to track us (obviously) and then also send us messages through a sms system via a website. Here’s the link to spy on us:

https://share.delorme.com/AriB

Ari  B out

Captain Bonzo & Pip

Alex & Carla