Arriving in Faial

24 days after we left Bermuda, we finally arrived in the Azores. Our first landfall was on a small island called Faial, in a port town called Horta. Horta is apparently the 4th busiest port in the world, and the way the boats were stacked alongside each other made it apparent! Horta is the first “Port of Entry” into the Azores, so you should make it your first stop in your crossing, as they have the full customs office to check into the island chain. 

Aside from the paperwork and beauty of the volcanic islands, we had some special visitors as we made our way towards land: Dolphins.

We had gone such a long time without seeing them out in the ocean, only to find them in massive numbers around these islands. 

It was impressive, and a little nerve wracking, to become so close to land without turning on our depth sounder. The islands of the Azores are volcanic and therefore are just the tops of mountains in the middle of the ocean. The steep cliff sides continue into the water at that same rate, and a few hundred feet from shore will be hundreds of feet of water depth! All you need to do is stay away from the land mass and you will find yourself safely situated in water that is over 4,000 feet deep! 

Making landfall in the Azores truely was a wonderful experience, for it signified the fact that we had made it across the Atlantic Ocean. When we set out in October 2017 from the Chesapeake Bay, the Azores was our destination. Now, (after many detours which included the Bahamas and Bermuda) we arrived in the Azores in early August 2018. 

We made it across and we made it safely. While 24 days is considered a long passage time from Bermuda to the Azores, the winds in 2018 had been rather weird. Most yachts felt the need to motor almost the whole time and averaged around 20-24 days, where usually people plan the voyage to take between 15-18 days purely under sail. We suddenly felt really good about our time as we did not motor across the ocean, since we have an electric motor. 

It is important to know how to sail when you set out for bluewater cruising, as you might not always be able to rely on your mechanical propulsion source. Another yacht in the harbor, of similar size and vintage as us left Bermuda and soon had engine failure. His diesel was dead and apparently he couldn’t sail very well because it took him 40 days to make it across! If you have a sailboat, it would behoove you to know how to sail, as your motor is considered an auxiliary power source and not the primary (which are the sails).  

Sailing to the Azores was a huge goal in our voyage, and now that we are here, we are going to enjoy the wonders that these islands have to offer and tackle some much needed boat projects. 

Civilization!

After being out at sea for almost a month, seeing the presence of other humans is oddly comforting, even for an introvert. What makes it special is when the civilization you are exposed to looks drastically different from the one you left at your stern. 

When we arrived in the Azores, the architecture was severely different from anything we had seen before. The houses all had terra cotta roof tiles and the faces of the building were either black and white or wonderfully colored. 

The homes were all very quaint and neatly kept, real estate is a premium on these small islands so homes tend to be maintained and passed down rather than being destroyed and rebuilt. That being said, some homes do fall to decay, and are rebuilt, but in a manner that accentuates the towns architectural styles rather than clashing with it. 

And speaking of architecture, European cities are known for gorgeous architecture, and these small islands are no different. When we got off our boat at the marina, these are the stairs (and fountain) that lead you into the base of the town. Everything is interesting, gorgeous, and new; all of which are much needed after the deprivation of culture that you had endured while crossing the ocean required to reach this port. 

How to make Dolphins Bow Ride

Dolphins are incredibly intelligent animals. Often, you hear people compare their intelligence to that of Humans, but I feel that dolphins are intelligent enough to be insulted by such a comparison. 

They are social animals and they seek out special ways to entertain themselves. This often means that you will see dolphins playing around your yacht as you sail, and most famously: bow riding. 

When you are sailing along at a good speed, dolphins will swim up and jump around just ahead of your yacht. You will be cutting through the waves and they will be jumping around inches from your hull. 

Thankfully, this epic display of marine mammal swimming prowess is not an uncommon sight, and dolphins seem to seek you out as a source of entertainment. Since they are intelligent and are doing this for their entertainment as well, it seems that bow riding is a two way street which requires input from the crew of the yacht to make happen.

We have found that dolphins will only bow ride if certain events occur. If any of these events fail to occur, then they will simply swim by and go on to other waters. 

First, the dolphins will spot your yacht in the distance and swim twoards it from the stern. As they approach, they will begin jumping out of the water as if you get your attention. 

Second, they will come up next to your cockpit and display their presence with amazing jumps from the water.  This is when input from the humans on the yacht becomes relevant for the game to proceed. If the humans fail to comply, the dolphins will swim on. If the humans comply, the dolphins will then proceed to bow ride.

The humans on the boat need to point loudly and shout with excitement and joy at the presence of the dolphins. It greatly helps if more crew emerge from the cabin and come out into the cockpit. This seems to excite the dolphins and more will begin to emerge from the depths. 

Third, at least one human needs to walk forward to the bow, but the more people that walk forward, the more likely the dolphins are to bow ride. 

Fourth, as the humans walk forward, the dolphins will also begin to move towards the bow of the yacht. When you are forward of the mast, the dolphins will then begin swimming inches from the bow and jumping around in the waves as your yacht cuts through them. 

Speed helps in motivating the dolphins, but if you are slow moving, the dolphins will still hang around for a while, just in a much more sedate manner. It seems that the faster you are sailing, the more the dolphins find joy in bow riding. 

Fifth, just because the dolphins began bow riding doesn’t mean they will stay around for long. To keep them there it helps to shout with joy and excitement at the different tricks the dolphins display. Cheers seem to motivate them more and will cause them to jump higher, faster, and in synchronized groups. 

Innevitably, the dolphins will tire and will move on to new waters. Your little island of a boat will once again be alone in the ocean, that is until more dolphins descend upon you. 

We have found that if you fail to carry out any of these steps, the dolphins will simply pass by and move on without putting on much of any show. Dolphins are amazing creatures, and it seems that bowriding is as much a form of entertainment for them as it is for us, so if you want to be entertained by them, you must offer some form of entertainment in return! 

Dolphins

Seeing dolphins never gets old! Cruising in the Chesapeake, we would often see pods of dolphins. As soon as we went offshore, the number of dolphin sightings decreased dramatically. Then we cruised down the ICW and saw dolphins at least a few times per week! Once we left the ICW at Florida to head to the Bahamas, the dolphin sightings dwindled away to nothing. 

We had given up on seeing dolphins as they seemed to only be living in the intracoastal waters of the United States, and not out in the open waters where you would imagine them to be! We didn’t see any dolphins around Bermuda and we figured that our dolphin days were over.

This all changed when we got really far out to sea. Hundreds of miles from any landmass, we were descended upon by a massive pod of Spotted Atlantic Dolphins.

We were just sitting around in the cockpit waiting for the impressive sunset that would occur shortly when all of these dolphins began swimming and jumping around our boat. For so long, seeing dolphins was a treat for us, but it seemed that out here, seeing humans was a treat for them! 

How Calm Can The Ocean Be?

When you imagine the ocean, you probably think about endless waves that extend out and beyond the horizon. This may be the case on windy days, but the ocean can vary in surface topography just as much as dry land can. 

While out in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, we were becalmed for four days in a row. By the second day, the ocean had calmed down and the true beauty of being out there unveiled itself. 

My favorite times during these days were definitely sunrise and sunset. The sun at low angles would create a multitude of colors around you. Any slight ripple would glow with golden hues and the ever-present Portuguese Man-O-Wars around us would illuminate on the water.  

Having an electric motor meant that we didn't move very far on these four days, but had we had a diesel, we would have missed the magic of the ocean as it would have been drowned out by the roar of burning fossil fuels. 

Corssing an ocean should not be something you do in a rush, but instead it should be an experience that you can cherish and remember for a lifetime.