The single-handed sailor from Düsseldorf, who is taking part in the Longue Route 2018 who, like Wilfried Erdmann once did, set out to sail around the world alone and without a stopover, has, by his own account, sailed through the English Channel and across the Bay of Biscay with relative ease. After having to make a repair stop in Zeebrugge after his actual first start in Bremerhaven, he officially set off on his circumnavigation last Thursday from Brest in accordance with the Longue Route rules.
From now on, Schimmelpfennig will report weekly on his progress on YACHT online. Here is his latest report:
On Sunday, 2 September, I cast off from Zeebrugge to set off on the Longue Route for the second time after the absolutely necessary repairs. After initially light winds, I manage to sail past Calais and into the English Channel during the night. Shipping traffic is moderate, but the Calais-Dover ferry routes still demand my full attention. Later, everything is quiet south of the traffic separation schemes along the French coast, apart from a few fishermen.
One of the fishermen even comes very close to me. A man on the aft deck holds up a flatfish the size of a towel. The fisherman is visibly proud, the fish is dead. Oh well.
The wind generator now supplies a little power in medium winds. But I'm glad that it's producing anything at all. With more wind, it should do the trick. In addition to the even more meticulously sealed hatches and fans, the pump has been fitted with a new impeller. A new reefing line was also needed. I had ruined the old one during the wild ride across the North Sea. But now everything works.
I've also had a visit - from a bat. I have the animal as a guest in the English Channel. In the evening, the bat circles me, obviously looking for shelter. Then it suddenly disappears. When I set the main the next morning, it is sitting at the height of the first reefing track. It had probably taken a rest in the hoisted sail. A little later she has disappeared. I hope she has found her way home again.
My decision to stay south of the traffic separation schemes on the French side has paid off: very little shipping traffic. It's easy to keep track of with AIS and buzzer in the cabin. You even get an hour's sleep here and there. In general, I'm amazed and was already amazed on the North Sea that I manage quite well with the little sleep. I didn't notice any sensory difficulties, as I had on previous trips.
The Bay of Biscay also made it easy for me. On the morning of 6 September, I pass the Ile de Ouessant in fresh winds and choppy seas. However, there is a lot of shipping traffic there and not a minute of inattention is allowed. Then I set course for Cape Finisterre. The north wind helps. I can even use the Parasailor for a whole day. However, sailing single-handed is a complex task and I always think very carefully about whether to set it or not.
In the end, due to the weak winds, especially at night, I need four days to cross the large bay and am moored off Cape Finisterre on the night of 9 September. As I then set course for Madeira, a whale appears about 200 metres away, much to my surprise. Its loud and long blow drew my attention to it. It is significantly larger than my boat, has a shiny, smooth, bluish back and a strikingly small dorsal fin. A blue whale?
I really wanted to see at least one of these large animals live during my trip. I was surprised that I managed to do so at the northern tip of Spain. I hope it wasn't the last encounter.
I'm currently enjoying easygoing in the north-east trade winds off the west coast of Portugal. Yesterday, Tuesday, "Hekla" was a little south-west of the height of Lisbon. The wind varies in strength, but generally always comes from the same direction: north-northeast. Sometimes I sail with reefs in the main, sometimes butterfly, sometimes with cutter jib or genoa, but always in bright sunshine.
So we continue southwards. And then at some point turn left. But there's still a long way to go.
While Georg Schimmelpfennig on his "Hekla" is now apparently in good spirits after initial difficulties, there is still uncertainty about another German single-handed sailor: Peter Conrad. He had initially set off from Eckernförde on a non-stop circumnavigation. Then, after taking on water in the Danish South Sea and subsequent repairs on land, he set off a second time from Cuxhaven.
On this second attempt, he only made it as far as Borkum, as a slipped disc rendered him almost immobile. He has since moved his boat as far as IJmuiden. In the meantime, he let it be known that he wanted to feel his way to England in order to start a third attempt from there - if his back would allow it.
This seems to be the case at the moment. In any case, Conrad left IJmuiden this morning for a trial run after stopping for several days. He wants to take until the end of the month to make a decision. If he feels fit enough then, he will go for the third attempt; after that it will be too late. In this case, he will probably leave his "Timshal" in Holland for the winter and only make another attempt in 2019.
Meanwhile, Susanne Huber-Curphey continues to lead the field of Longue Route sailors. She passed Cape Town a few days ago and is now sailing towards Australia. Her husband Tony Curphey on his "Nicolas Deux" follows the German single-handed sailor and her "Nehaj" at a considerable distance. Other longue-route skippers, some of whom have already made stopovers, are also off Cape Town, while others are still in the North and South Atlantic.
This uneven field is due to the rules of the event, which was created in honour of Bernhard Moitessier and his participation in the first Golden Globe Race 50 years ago. The Longue Route is not a race; all participants can choose their own starting point. It only has to be above a certain latitude. Everyone is also allowed to set their own start date. The Longue Route skippers are simply called upon to sail around the world "in the spirit of Moitessier".
The participants in the parallel Golden Globe Race 2018 initiated by Don McIntyre. The sailors in this event take part in a real one-handed non-stop race around the world, with boats that are all similar and with navigation equipment that was available to the participants 50 years ago. So they have to manage without electronic aids.
The cancellation rate is correspondingly high. Of the 17 skippers who started together in Les Sables d'Olonne, only ten are still in the race. French sailing professional Jean Luc Van den Heede is far in the lead. He is already about halfway across the Indian Ocean towards Australia. In second place is Britain's Mark Slats - at almost the same height and width as Longue Route sailor Susanne Huber-Curphey!
The organiser of this year's Golden Globe Race, Don McIntyre, commented yesterday on the increasing number of cancellations. He writes that in addition to the many technical problems on individual participating ships, the stress of sailing around the world without any contact to the outside world was obviously underestimated by some of the skippers. He claims to have heard this from his weekly phone calls with the sailors via satellite.
McIntyre says: "The sailors who take part in the Vendée Globe or the Volvo Ocean Race can pick up the phone 24 hours a day and ask their mum or their engineer for support. The Golden Globe sailors can't do that."
And anyway, he himself never believed that many, let alone all, of the participants would actually make it around the world.
Here the current positions the Longue Route and Golden Globe sailors:
Pascal Schürmann
Editor YACHT
