Six o'clock in the morning in the Seychelles. The plane descends and the temperature suddenly rises. To a tropical 30 degrees. The first breath on the gangway is reminiscent of an exotic-flavoured infusion. The sweat pores open as you walk into the acclimatised terminal to collect your entry stamp and sail bag.
On Saturday morning, Mahé, the main island of the Seychelles, lies dormant. The charter base on Eden Island is still closed. Even on "Maui", the Lagoon 450 S catamaran that we hope to take over soon, people are still slumbering - and snoring. On board is a crew of ten from Russia, who regrettably leave the ship in a desolate state: unfinished washing up, rubbish and general devastation. A cooker that has been so badly damaged that it needs to be replaced. In other words, the first day gets off to a tough start: waiting, sweating, drinking.
Anchoring in the national park
Towards evening, the time has finally come. The crew can set sail. A quick trip over to the Sainte-Anne Marine National Park before it gets dark. And it does so quite punctually and quickly in the tropics. The main thing is to drop anchor somewhere where there is a breeze and the shaken crew can be rocked to sleep on deck. An idea that all the charter ships from the island's capital Victoria seem to have, as the 40 to 50 anchor lights around us reveal.
Night falls, day comes. And with it two rangers who moor alongside and collect the parking fee. Like an entrance fee for an open-air cinema. As soon as you have the receipt, the show begins: a spectacular sunrise, beyond the European colour spectrum. A flaming inferno. A quick swim, then off we go and set sail. The only question is where to steer and with what wind?
Presumably, all the other cats will head straight over to the other islands: Praslin or La Digue - the classic small charter round. The south of Mahé is also very beautiful and wild. In the west of the main island there are magnificent beaches: Police Bay, Anse Intendance, Anse Takamaka. And at this time of year, mid-March, the prevailing wind direction means you should actually be sheltered there.
Set sail
But is the gentle breeze that blows here and now in the generally light winter season enough for sailing? We give it a try and set the sheets to force the breeze. It's a good thing that the distances between the inner islands of the Seychelles are not particularly great.
It's a topic of sailing tactics in the Seychelles: From October to April, the weaker north-west monsoon blows, the water is clearer, but it is often hot. From May to September, the more constant south-east monsoon prevails, which brings tolerable temperatures but also sends swell into the anchor bays. Which sides of the islands can be used depends on the time of year.
No matter what you decide to do, you will never be travelling for more than five to six hours at a time. The next destination is always in sight. Which is a good thing, considering that it's already dusk again by 6 pm. The motto is: Carpe diem - seize the day!
Another piece of wisdom that is not entirely new is that two knots downwind is not enough if you have only chartered the boat for a week. What's more, it's pretty hot even in the shade. So there's only one thing to do: motor on! The main can stay close-hauled for the time being. As we all know, hope dies last. And the crew is grateful for the self-made airstream.
After the swell comes a dream beach
To the east, there is a reef almost along the length of the main island of Mahé, which allows us to keep our distance. The higher mountains remain astern, the buildings become sparser. We pass the airport on the starboard side. As soon as we have rounded the cape, the Pointe du Sud, also known as Cap Malheureux (French for unhappy), we get an idea of what the name might mean. We are met by swell from Madagascar. A long swell from the southwest, which, however, rolls good-naturedly under the two hulls of the "Maui" and breaks not 200 metres further ashore in the purest white and turquoise on a dream beach.
The very first bay, Police Bay, is so fantastic that you can't drive past it. Unfortunately, it is not possible to land because of the surf. Nevertheless: drop anchor, marvel, listen and take a dip. Enough for now. These colours alone: total turquoise!
Provisions on board an advantage in the Seychelles
Baie Lazare is a good place to spend the night. The bay is cut a little deeper. There is still considerable surf breaking on the reef. However, the steady rumble in the distance has a calming effect when you know that the anchor is well embedded in the finest sand. And the slight rocking caused by the swell cannot harm a catamaran - which is why there are significantly more multi-hulls than monohulls for charter in the Seychelles. Only the shore leave has to wait again. It's a good thing we have provisions for two or three meals on board. Because marinas are nowhere to be found in the Seychelles.
We actually want to cross over to La Digue the following day. But unfortunately that doesn't materialise. Not only the crew is hot, but also the engine. An alarm signal sounds. The usual checks don't help, and we don't get any further with the base manager Jude by remote diagnosis. He orders us north to the touristy Beau Vallon Bay. There, a simple loose contact in the control panel turns out to be the root of all evil; the problem is quickly rectified.
At least there is a sailable breeze afterwards. Albeit from the front. We tack a little, but the further we get away from the island, the weaker the wind blows. And the turning angle of the catamaran is also rather modest. It is all the more astonishing that we will only encounter a single monohull this week.
Tropical and exotic ahead
We decide to spend the night in the Baie Ternay Marine National Park. Two friendly, underemployed rangers are waiting for us. Unfortunately, the water is too choppy for snorkelling on the reef, they say, and visibility is simply not good. Instead, we share the small beach, Anse de Riz, with just a few beach or ghost crabs and can land with the dinghy. It could hardly be more tropical and exotic. I can't help but think of the James Bond beach scene with Ursula Andress.
We then make the 25-mile journey over to La Digue, escorted by dolphins and flying fish. Even from a distance, you can see the yachts anchored in front of the small harbour, all of them catamarans. La Digue seems to be the most popular destination for charter yachts. No wonder, as it is home to the most famous and most photographed beach in the world: Anse Source d'Argent.
Shore excursion
When we moor the dinghy very early the next day in the small but busy harbour of La Passe, a ray circles our boat. We forgo the obligatory hire bike and prefer to stroll around the largely car-free island. First through the town, then along the beach past the La Digue Lodge and a jacked-up and overgrown wreck. It's worth being one of the first to arrive in the morning if you want to see and photograph the beach at Anse Source d'Argent without countless visitors. And that's what you want. Absolutely. The early bird takes the better picture. But a beach simply doesn't get much more beautiful than this.
Round the island by boat
Or is it? La Digue has even more top-class beaches - which even oligarchs fleeing sanctions seem to appreciate. We circumnavigate the island by boat in the afternoon. As the crew sets course for Anse Coco, the superyacht "Nord" is moored there, looking martial, almost military. Built by Lürssen in Bremen. Value: 500 million euros. Running costs of around 50 million euros a year. The owner is the billionaire Alexei Mordashov. The encounter awakens a strange feeling, clouding the idyll. You've never been this close to kleptocracy before. And what's with the bouncy castle at the stern, or whatever it is? A privacy screen, an artificial iceberg? Decadence knows no bounds.
The Seychelles' greatest asset
Let's get away from the neighbourhood. On to Praslin before it gets too dark. As I said, this happens unusually quickly in the tropics. And as already mentioned, the colours are spectacular practically every day. We anchor in Anse Volbert and sail into one of the most beautiful bays on Praslin the next day: Anse Lazio. There, at the latest, you have to admit that the Seychelles' greatest asset is probably the most beautiful beaches in the world. Which is why they are accessible by law, even on private islands such as North Island. Ownership only begins where the first palm trees grow.
There are exceptions. Nature reserves such as Aride, for example. The island is protected. Anchoring is permitted, but individual landing with a dinghy is prohibited. This is one reason why the wildlife in the Seychelles is so uniquely beautiful. We spend the night in the immediate vicinity of a gigantic colony of birds. Anyone who thinks it gets quiet after dark is mistaken. The sooty and fairy terns seem to be real night owls. Or is it the full moon? In any case, all hell breaks loose in the sky, so that you almost need earplugs to sleep outside in the net, as some crew members have got into the habit of doing.
Guided tour with rangers in the Seychelles
The next morning we are picked up by the rangers with the dinghy. A lesson in surf landing follows. "Everyone hold on tight, please!" We hit the beach with the first wave and get out dry. Shortly afterwards, the photo rucksack is inspected to make sure that no rats or cockroaches are dragged in, which have already decimated the local fauna and flora in so many tropical paradises and have become a plague.
Then the guided tour begins for just under 45 euros per person. While the crew can't stop gushing and marvelling, the young volunteer from the national park counts every day. And not just bird eggs. She is homesick, she says. And misses her family. She still has six months to go. Only one is over. People try to understand her. But it doesn't quite work. In the middle of a paradise branch. Full of wildlife. And with a house shark called Bobby, as Martha says. Have we already seen him while snorkelling?
The crew say no and are not at all sad about it. The marvellous sea turtles do too. The beautiful, ancient banyantree, the frigate birds, the elegant white-tailed tropicbirds, the swallows, the flying dogs, the flying fish and so on and so forth. The whole experience of nature is hard to put into words, it's what makes the area so special.
On the other hand, if you want to sail in a robust manner, you are better off in the Caribbean with its stable trade winds, at least in the European winter months. In the Seychelles, the boat is more of a comfortable travelling companion. Also beautiful!
Precinct information
Journey: Fridays with Condor direct from Frankfurt from 800 euros. Flight time: ten hours, arrival: 6 am. There is only a three-hour time difference.
Charter: We were travelling with a Lagoon 450 S from VPM. The week costs from 5,600 euros in the European summer and 8,750 euros at Christmas/New Year. Skipper and cook can be booked for 320 euros/day. Individual bookings/couples can take part in so-called sailing yacht cruises on larger catamarans. Prices: 1,330 to 1,750 p. P./week. Bookings: Barone Yachting, tel. 0761/38 06 30, barone.de.
The precinct: The 115 islands of the Seychelles lie between 4 and 6 degrees south. A distinction is made between the inner and outer islands, whose territory covers a sea area of 390,000 square kilometres. Charter sailors are only allowed to sail to the inner islands. These include Mahé, Praslin, Silhouette and La Digue as well as a number of smaller islands - enough for a two-week cruise.
Navigation & seamanship:An area suitable for families; navigation is by sight. The passages from island to island are easy to manage during the day. The tidal range of just under 1.50 metres creates some current in narrow places. Once you have left the marina on Eden Island, you usually anchor. If you need to bunker water and don't want to return to the VPM base, you can do so for a fee on Praslin at the Dream Yacht Charter jetty.
Wind & weather: The rainy season lasts from October to April, the dry season from May to September. On average, the wind strength fluctuates between 10 and 25 knots. We were travelling in March and had to deal with an average of 2 Beaufort and very few showers. The north-west monsoon prevails from December to March. After a rather windless transitional phase in April, the windier period of the south-east monsoon sets in from May to September. Temperatures then drop to more pleasant levels, but many bays become unusable as anchorages. The Seychelles lie on the other side of the cyclone track.
Books & Maps: On request, Barone Yachting can provide you with a PDF containing information about the area. For shore leave: "Seychelles", Dumont, 23.95 euros.
Cruising tips for the Seychelles
- Anse Takamaka/Mahé: If the swell is disturbing, continue into the shallow Anse à la Mouche. Keep to the centre! You can land here with a dinghy. On the beach you will find the "Lunch Box", a takeaway offering inexpensive Creole curries.
- Baie-Ternay National Park/Mahé: The rangers allocate the anchorages. With a bit of luck, you can lie here alone, watch the flying foxes in the evening or go on a dinghy trip to Anse du Riz. There is a reef for snorkelling nearby.
- La Digue: Anchor off the main town and get to the island early in the morning, when it's cooler and not too crowded. Anse Source d'Argent is a good half hour's walk away. The entrance is via the grounds of the Union Estate, a coconut plantation with an old colonial house and turtle enclosure.
- Aride: Less frequented alternative to Cousin Island. Anchor there overnight. In the morning you are picked up by dinghy. The 45 euro entrance fee is worth the visit. Take your swimming gear!
- Anse Lazio/Praslin: Probably the most beautiful beach on the island. You can often spot sea turtles while snorkelling. The "Honesty Bar" with its rustic jungle atmosphere is a little out of the way.
