Laniakea - Thanks to Covid, we made a return Transat…

Who: Nicolas and his family
Multihull: Wharram Pahi 31
Where: Around the world
Facebook: French Boheme

Covid again! We had hoped for an improvement regarding the sailing restrictions linked to the pandemic, but in the end, it was not to be. This year, we only saw Martinique. We did consider going down to the Grenadines, but between the tests - necessary of course - and the mandatory quarantine buoy, it would have cost us € 600 for our little family, just in fixed costs, without having set foot on the beach yet. As for the Pacific, it remains closed. During the outward journey, we had spotted a fairly cheap shipyard in Porto Santo, Madeira. So, we decided to take the route back via the Azores. But following the old route, towards Bermuda, because our Wharram has a short fuel range - the standard route to the Azores today usually requires a third of it to be completed under motor. So, we set off towards Bermuda, to hug the edge of the high-pressure system. The first days were quite wet. Fortunately, the experience gained so far on our journey had led us to build a small doghouse, which greatly improved our comfort while sailing. After having considered for a while going as high up as Bermuda, a few days of good weather allowed us to dry everything out. We decided against a stopover and continued towards the Azores, where a small depression accompanied us for three days, followed by a few days of calm. We then sailed to Horta with a light breeze, with dolphins, dolphinfish and even a sperm whale that came within touching distance of the boat. After two weeks of rest, we learned that the crane in Porto Santo had broken down, making it impossible to put the boat in the dry dock, and we finally left our catamaran in Hierro in the Canaries, waiting for better days.