Sum Sum

En route for a New Voyage!

About thirty years ago, Martine and Henry designed and built a beautiful wood-epoxy catamaran, before completing their first Atlantic crossing with their three children, which took them to the coasts of Brazil and the Amazon, among other places. The most loyal readers of Multihulls World will surely remember the story. Henry has now retired from teaching, while Martine continues her artistic work. The couple have set off again, this time on a grand tour that will take them across three oceans over the course of three years.

Sum Sum

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Published 26/09/2025

By Gilles Ruffet

Issue: 204

Published: nov. / dec. 2025

Discover this issue

Who: Martine & Henry
Where: Around the world, starting with the Azores
Multihull: Amateur design and construction
Blog : www.polarsteps.com/henrydeBaecque1/16952207-sumsum-autour-du-monde

And just like that, we were off! At sunrise, we took Anatole and Anna on board for a trip to Île Longue, in the Gulf of Morbihan, Brittany, before sailing to Houat, our first stopover. According to Michel Desjoyeaux, two-time winner of the Vendée Globe, “A trip around the world means one problem a day.” But I can confirm that our circumnavigation got off to a good start. The pain in the butt for day one was the padeye for the gennaker sheet, which pulled out of the deck, and we had to (already) get the resin out again. Then we left Houat, with Belle-Île already behind us. Ahead of our bows, exactly 1,149 nautical miles away, the next stop was São Miguel. The trolling lines were put in the water. Quickly, the first tuna figured he was far too big for the two of us, so he broke the line and headed off to show his friends his new piercing. Shortly after, we managed to bring in another tuna, of a more reasonable size. Always a treat when eaten sashimi-style with lemon juice... the rest was vacuum-packed and stored in the fridge. We arrived off the eastern tip of São Miguel at night, then had to sail along the coast to reach Ponta Delgada, pushed by a weakening wind, shortly before sunrise. The marina at Punta Delgada is unique in that it’s moving all the time, the port is completely open to the east, but it is also, fortunately, a pleasant technical (and cultural) stopover. On the technical side, we had to drill holes in the stainless steel thimbles at the tack and halyard points of the new gennaker, and I can assure you that the stainless steel is of very good quality. I also improved the attachment of the tillers, which had a tendency to drop down and jam the steering, which is not good. We also had to buy a new battery, as the previous one had begun to dissipate the electrons supplied by our lovely solar panels. During the crossing, I took naps, prayed in front of the engine, shared some good times, made baguettes, sometimes had a little aperitif, and we also admired the color of the clouds, which was all there was for most of the passage, with occasional drizzle that made us feel like we were sailing across the English Channel. After Graciosa, we set off again for Flores, where we stayed ashore for a while. This final passage proved to be quite unpleasant, with rough seas, too little breeze at first, and then very variable winds. Fortunately, we also had moments of joy, such as the rainbow in our wake, the dolphins in front of the bows, and the beautiful moon above us.