In September 2018 we will start our circumnavigation with our beautiful historic Vessel, well equipped and well prepared for great adventures.
We, meaning Tania and Wolfgang and our friends and guests.
Over a period of approx. ten years we will take a look at the health of our oceans, visit paradise as well as polluted areas, to document what we experience.
Therefore we started the campaign “sailing4livingSeas” in close cooperation with the marine debris Projekt of Sea-Shepherd und Deutsche Meeresstiftung.
Everyone who works for the health of the oceans or want to support our campaign, is welcome to sail with us!
We would love to give a lot of people the chance to get that unbelievable feeling of freedom and devotion being a small part of the greatest wonder our planet has to offer! Afterwards everyone changes their view on our planet, I promise!
In this Blog we will report how we build up our vessel, the first expierence on the English Channel and our soon starting tour!
You can get information, where we are, where we want to go next, about our living aboard, who’s sailing with us and what we see.
And maybe sometime in the future YOU may wish to sail with us!
Tania und Wolfgang
Early morning September 1st; 2 female crew members arrived at our home in Krefeld, we left home as planned around 10am Nieuwpoort bound. First stop in Ostend where we picked up the 3rd girl and carried on to our home marina in Belgium where the fourth crew member was waiting for us. Crew complete: Wolfgang plus 3 gals and 1 further guy. Because of various reasons I cannot accompany my hubby on the first leg of moving our Blue Pearl to the Caribbean. This first leg is Nieuwpoort Belgium to Lisbon Portugal.
Today , September 8th our Blue Pearl and crew left Guernsey, France bound. Originally planning to reach Brest by early tomorrow morning, it now looks as if it will be Roscoff they reach first. No wind, no wave and a calm sea seems to be forecasted. Engine power and a lot of patience is was they will be needing.
3 weeks in 2013 were spent sailing throughout the BVI’s with friends and my wife, who had never sailed before then, which we all enjoyed so very much;
I decided to take a shy look for our own Yacht. What kind of sailing-boat should it be? What position should this yacht take in our lives? What does life have in store for us ?
After 4 weeks (!) I found her near Cologne at a yacht builder. There, she had sat quietly for over 5 years, and was remarkably, having been originally built in 1984, neither been finished nor had she ever sailed !! I don’t know much about her history prior ’84, I guess she could tell a story or two – maybe he even whitnessed a tradgerdy.
She was exactly what I had been looking for. Solid steel, build by a famous german werft in Hamburg, not ready, so we could build the inside like we wanted to, and work on her for the next few years, I thought.
Saying this, we had absolutely no idea how much work was awaiting us, and even less of an idea what the whole thing would cost. … if we had known what was in store at this stage, we probably wouldn’t have bought this ship.
Never the less we started the project! Beginning anything new, ideas had to be made visual – I began to draw my dream sailing vessel.
Whilst we were at the French port, we were searched for hidden refugees. We have a large boat; plenty of space for run-aways; even the underside was inspected to see if we had deepened the vessel to transport people under water…. They found no-one, and we were given the “all clear”.
Crossing the traffic zone we were on collision course with a Nigerian tanker. Wolfgang radioed him, he corrected +2 dg and we sailed past his heck on our starboard sides- a perfect manoeuvre.
It must have been between 2 and 4 am. Mr S was on watch, Mrs S poked her head up for a quick briefing as to where we were and there she found me, having a quiet panic attack in the outer cockpit. I was an absolute nervous wreck. I was cold, shivering, white as a sheet and quietly crying big tears. I told her I couldn’t do this: this wasn’t what I wanted out of life; I hate it; if we ever make it to land alive I´m getting out !! Ill take a train to Heathrow and get on the next available flight home. But I was so scared of telling Wolfgang. He had put so much confidence in me, he loved me for loving his passion and taking on the challenge. I was letting him down ! How could we stay together after I hate the way of life he wanted for our future? Oh god…. Mrs S cuddled me, warmed me up, wiped away my tears and listened to my complaints. She is a brick !!! and I love her dearly. But I still had to tell Wolfgang. And I did. a few hours later he was on watch – I plucked up my courage and opened up.. He was marvellous. He hugged me and said he still loved me. But told me ( like a Dad tells his small child) NOW GET SOME SLEEP !!! And I did.
I finally fell asleep on the couch in the main salon, fully clothed, being rocked “to and fro” by the highest waves ever. Goodness, was I exhausted.
The lock master at Eastbourne made us very welcome, gave us a large slip with loads of space. Once parked, lined up, we ate, drank, and all took a few hours nap. As lunchtime came around we were all up and happy. the sun shone, the air was warm and the warm breeze stroked our skin. had I reached a turning point ?? had sleep made me come back to life ? What ever it was, it worked. I didn’t leave. I stayed on board for the full 14 day trip. And guess what ?? We did a 2nd over-nighter.. well planned this time round, provisioned, planned shifts and watches, dressed adequately and generally had the correct attitude. 7 Days later I realized I hadn’t even left the boat to go ashore.