1 Masiphumelele

I am going to start to relive my journey on my little boat when Margie and I spent 4 years sailing. It all started in about 1984 when I bought a bare hull and built a yacht on Kraanshof farm, current day site 5 or Masiphumelele.

2 Simons Town Yacht Club

Launch day. About 3 years of building. A lot of work and sacrifice. It's your ambition, dream and determination that drives you. Earned the money by diving diamonds on the west coast. Melting the lead into ingots for the keel 1500 kg. Next port of call #sainthelenaisland Pacific.

3 Saint Helena Island, Atlantic Ocean Sailing

Off to saint helena island, Atlantic ocean . Self steering packed up 300 miles outside CT. Steered 1400 miles by hand. 2 of us 2 hours on 2 hours off. 24 hours for the next 14 days. Saint helena island an english colony. Most welcoming in 1988. We were entertained and escorted around the island for the next 10 days. Never ate on board. Always put up by the locals. Amazing diving, littered with wrecks and shot huge fish. No scuba allowed, protecting wrecks from plunder. My compressor and air line held in bond till departure. Next port of call Salvador Brazil. Now the party starts.

4 Salvador, Brazil

Saint helena to salvador, Brazil, 1800 miles nautical. 18 days lockdown like in a 7M x 2M room that doesn't stop moving and you have headroom in half of that. You can go up on the roof and check out the storms or go spearfishing in the doldrums. This was before GPS, satnav was around but scarce.. You spent most of the day navigating. With a sextant you take the angle of celestial body above the horizon and with a very accurate time and your dead reckoning position and a pile of tables, you get a position line. You can be anywhere on that line ! You continuously checking gear, at night you tuned into noises of the ocean, sails and rigging. No mistakes are allowed, we won't go there.the 2 of us are very comparable there is only 1 captain on a ship. Arriving in Brazil was great. We spent 6 months here.

5 Salvador, Brazil 2

We had a 6 month Visa for Brazil. This place left an indelible mark on my brain. Coming from a verkrampte boere state, brazil was such fun. With a 400% inflation nobody saves, its like there is no tomorrow. You cash your dollars daily on the street and you are king. We spent the next 6 months cruising north to the Amazon with thousands of rivers and estuaries and venturing deep into the interior.

6 Îles du Salut

After 4 weeks in the Amazon we left Brazil. Stopped of at il du salute or devils island from movie papillon. Off french Guana. We knew this was a hang out spot for yachts and were so pleased to see about 8 boats here. Hadn’t been in contact with westerners for 6 months. Made such good friends and sailed on to the Caribbean with most of them. Now we in cruising mode.

7 Tobago

We left Iles du Salut for Tobago, southern part of the Caribbean. Absolutely beautiful. crystal clear seas after those muddy water of Brazil's estuaries. Now we living the cruising life. Diving, fishing, visiting the numerous yachts chasing the same dream. Eating ashore and visiting the hundreds of bars on the beaches. Was starting to get a bit touristy and believe worse now. They just want your dollars. Next stop #saintmaarteen.

8 Mullet Bay Resort on Saint Maarten

December 1988 we got a job running the dock at mullet bay resort on Saint maarten. Margie ran activities desk, booking paragliding, Yamaha wave runners, jetski, ski boat hire, banana boat rides, day charters on 3 big sailing cats, the waterskiing course was in the lagoon surrounded by one of the top golf courses in the world. There were 8 to 10 flights a day to and from the island, mainly from the states. Americans came here with big budgets and they had to spend it. Everything was laid on, free open bar. I managed the dock and skippered the one trimaran. We worked here for 10 months before moving on to the Panama and Pacific.

9 Lasaves and Curacao off Venezuela

Now we were tired of tourists, Chase Manhattan bank balance was overflowing. Did major repairs and maintenance. Chart draws full of charts for the Pacific. Acquired a GPS. New outboard 2hp. New surfboard and diving gear. Off to the Panama but spent a few weeks on #lasaves and #curacao off Venezuela. Now this is what we looking for, crystal clear water and abundant marine life. Paradise on virgin beaches.

10 San Blas Islands

19 December 1989. We on our way to the Panama. Gale force wind nicely on our stern. Fully reefed main and a small little storm jib. BBC announce Panama canal closed. America had declared war on panama. America had a 99 year lease on the canal zone, they built it. Noriega the president wanted to control the canal for drug trafficking to the US. We changed course and had to hole up in the archipelago of the San Blas. The British admiralty charts just said uncharted. Inhabited by the Kuna Indians, only access by sea, no roads. All we did for 3 weeks was dive everyday. I was getting to 60 feet and working there. Every day was a different fish. Dived mostly with the locals, they dived crayfish. We also enjoyed company of 2 American yachaties who were also holed up waiting for the clear.

11 Panama canal

Transiting the Panama canal is an exciting time for any yachtsman. We hung out at the colon yacht club while we organized paperwork. This place is the crossroads for drugs, cash and organized crime into the states. It is an extremely strategic waterway from american east and west coasts. This is why they are so possessive over this place. With Noriega interfering, they brought in 27 000 marines. helicopter gunships blew up police stations and government buildings. The city was a wreck. GI's had a girl under each arm. Imagined this was like Vietnam.

12 Panama City

Now we in Panama City, pacific side. We have been travelling with yacht Cedilla since San blaas and made good friends with the Frazers, an American family. We organized visas for Ecuador. 4 day sail to Esmeralda, an Ecuador fishing town, prawns galore. Excellent wind for 2 days then the doldrums 2 days. Oceans teeming with fish. Dorado and flying fish big enough to eat. They land on the deck at night. We then fly to Quito and spend 6 days in the andes. John was a wall street stockbroker and Cedilla an investor broker. Back to the boat and we stocked up for a year suppliers. Beers $ 0.32 cents. Tahiti $ 7.00. Next stop #Galapagos.

13 Ecuador to Galapagos

Ecuador to Galapagos 696 miles, 9.5 days. We on the equator, doldrums, no wind, open skies and you can see the squalls coming very strong gusts will flatten you or tear up your sails if too much canvas is out. Driving rain then it's all over. Sea is full of flying fish as Dorado chase them. Galapagos was great. Met up the charter boat we met in Ecuador. They were Ecuadorian living on the island. They entertained us for 3 days. Cleaned bottom of boat and antifoul . Prepared for the biggest crossing in the world 2800 miles to #marquesas.

14 Pitcairn Island

Leaving Galapagos We on our way to Pitcairn island. For 11 days we bashed against a headwind and made very slow progress. We then adjusted the wind vane and headed for the marquesas, a magnificent group of islands in the French polynesia. 29 days later or 3055 nautical miles +/_ 5400 km, 2 of us on a 28 foot yacht. We are in the heart of the Pacific the most beautiful islands and atolls. The best surf, virgin waves accessible only by boat. Crystal clear warm water for diving. Abundant fish and sea sealife. Lived a high protein diet. Fish, crayfish, seabirds and eggs, coconuts in every possible way.

15 French Polynesia

We spent about 6 months in French polynesia. Most of the time was surfing, as conditions were ideal. 1 foot tide difference, trade winds stead from the S - SE. And you surfing close to the coral reef with little fetch on the water so you get smooth waves. No crowds, maybe a few of the other yachts you with. When there is swell it's all day, crystal clear warm water, no wetsuit. All waves are found in the passes #Mopelia one of our favourite surf spots. Spent a month here. About 4 other yachts here we raft together, home brew and home grown from the island. 1 restaurant and bar. Locals are surf rats, that's all you can do and dive and fish. Eventually had to leave, kissed the reef and got 5 stitches under the chin, knew I was going to get into the water before stitches out. 6 to 8 foot perfection every wave the same, barrels after barrels . Off to Bora Bora.

16 Huahine, Bora Bora

We left Huahine, a 6 day stop at Bora Bora . Our last stop in French polynesia, was Mopelia, an atoll 100 miles away. We were the only yacht here. There were 3 families all living about 2 km apart. Marcello, wife and 2 kids, they were coconut copra farmers. The pearl divers / farmers in the middle and Simon and Andrea in the south. Completely isolated, visited once every 6 months by the French navy brought vital suppliers and collected copra. We spent our time with these guys. They taught us so much on how you survive on atol. Catching seabirds, collecting eggs, crayfish, fishing, coconut crabs. Favourite as poison cru or raw fish. Best is with a blue parrot fish, soak fish qubes in lemon juice half hour, fish will turn white, marinate in coconut milk half an hour. Absolutely delicious. After 3 weeks we had to leave the atoll as there was starting jealousy and infighting between the families on how our time must be split up between them. Next stop Cook islands.

17 Mopelia Atoll/ Aitutaki, Cook Islands

We left mopelia atoll were going to do a quick stop over on #aitutaki northern part of cook island 380 miles away. We needed dry goods as we shared all with the families on mopelia. Looking back at my diary I see we had 3.5 L of drinking water on board. No water on atolls, only rain water. Beautiful SE trades to cook islands. Half a day away, the wind turns into the N, very unusual. Heavy rain filled all tanks and containers with fresh water. I made the whole deck a rain catcher, dammed off all outlets on gunnels. This was the start of a mother of all storms. A stationary low .the wind changed quickly back to the S. Blown off course at the mercy of the ocean, winds at 70 knots. Surfing down huge waves touching 18 knots the little yacht vibrates. At night its pitch dark the noise is frightening as the waves wash over the whole boat and overtake you in the troughs. Only light is the small red compass light and you can see the compass turns 90 degrees in a second, the sails and rigging go crazy as the wind vane battles to get us back on course. For a full 3 days we never or we couldn't open the hatch. Only a storm job, the size of a small windsurfer sail. We arrived in tonga 17.5 days, 1530 miles. Rhumb line 1280 miles. Tonga was great about 1.5 months here. No surf or we didn't look for surf. A lot of Australians and more kiwis. Spent a lot of time with them.

18 Tonga, Fiji, New Caledonia, and Lord Howe Island then the Mainland of Australia

We spent the next 5 months in Tonga, fiji, new caledonia, and #lordhoweisland then the mainland of australia. One of the nicest things about cruising is the other people sailing. This was before internet and cellphones. There was single sideband radio SSB, which we didn't have. There was always huge celebrations when you met up with old buddies and shared stories. You then spend the next week or so exploring the surrounding islands. Surfing, diving, fishing and eating on the beaches.

19 Australia

We spent a year in aussie. 6 months I worked on a commercial fishing vessel.

20 Australia 2

4 months Visa left in aussie. From Sydney we make our way north along the new south wales coast. Aussie are great water people, cruising yachts it's a way of life and wherever you go you are welcome. Invited to their homes and their farms and barbecues, they privileged people spoilt with natural beauty. Barrier reef was amazing. Places like Cook Town, named after Captain James Cook. Up north to Cape York and fantastic fishing and diving in Torres strait. We end up in Darwin where we prepare for our Indian Ocean crossing. There is a whole flotilla of foreign yachts on the same crossing . What fun when we all on the same wavelength speaking different languages.

21 Cocos Keeling Island

We found a little gem in the Indian Ocean cocos keeling island. A feat on its own. 1980 miles or 3680 km or 17 days . We had a most pleasant trip steady trade winds all the way. We hung out on direction island for a month. 23 August to 21 Sept. No one else but about 8 yachts coming and going all the time. It had everything. Most beautiful diving and abundant fish. Great company. Some of the best surf and all to myself, easy accessible from Anchorage by dingy. Main island about an hour motor was the Australia quarantine island so well stocked and inhabited by Aussies.

22 Rodrigues Island

Cocos keeling to #rodriguesisland was also a distance and no turning back. 1960 miles and a record time of 16 days weather and current I our favour. We were in a convoy of 6 boats, dancing diamond 28 foot surprised them all. We won the coveted prize for the fastest boat with a brewery on board. We then spent 9 days on Rodrigues. Mostly in the company of the flotilla and all the crew, every possible nation you can think of. Part of the Mauritius group and very isolated. Locals uncomplicated and polite. Privileged to visit such unique places.