Crew Arrival
February 26, 2025 | Prep-days in Cartagena
One might have thought that Cartagena would stand in stark contrast to the thrilling last few hours of our previous passage, providing us with calm and serenity after somewhat of a wild ride. But that would have been a vast underestimation of the exciting city that is Cartagena. Indeed, as we approached the harbour, we were overtaken left and right by what one could only describe as party boats. Loud music converged from different boats, crowds—small and large—dancing on the foredecks, twerking on the bow, raising glasses, skyscrapers and a sunset in the background.
After tying up on the outermost berth of our finger pontoon and getting ready to raise our own glasses to our passage, it soon became apparent that there was no such thing as a no-wake zone around here. So much so that in the busy hours of the day, we are experiencing a sea state that can only be described as smooth to, yes, slight. Walking on the floating pontoons becomes a real act of balance at these times. The occasional slap on Falken's stern from the bigger wakes makes the whole boat shudder and is usually met by some loud oohs and aahs, followed by some sailor's jargon emanating from the bow, where Adam has been working on replacing our windlass motor.
Adam arrived on Falken on Saturday morning, with a few important missions in mind. First of all, we had to replace our windlass motor, an essential piece of kit that we will need for cruising and anchoring around the San Blas islands. Maintaining a boat to the highest standards in distant locations sometimes requires a real group effort. In this case, two crew members gracefully accepted to each travel with a separate windlass motor, weighing no less than 20 kg. Big thanks to Susan and Håkan, without whom we'd have to operate our big chunk of steel at the bow manually. Of course, let's not forget Adam—it has been a joy watching him take care of his baby, Falken.
After a few days of maintenance, passage planning, and provisioning, our new crew finally arrived on the boat yesterday early afternoon. It must have been the hottest day for us in Colombia so far, as we were slowly working our way through our different pre-departure briefings. The evening always provides us, if not with fresh temperatures, at least with slightly cooler temperatures, which we enjoyed thoroughly, going out for dinner in the old town.
And as we are today going through all of our remaining safety briefs and POB training, I feel that everyone is getting ready to head out to the fresher air of the open sea tomorrow, first thing in the morning.
- Manot, FALKEN’s mate
ManotBerger
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HMS Night Watch Party
Wing on wing worked well until the wind shifted then the helm became the cone of despair for our night watch crew of three (H, M and S) Alex made the decision to drop the pole, shifting wing on wing to a close reach. Wind increased to low teens and speed picked up to a flying pace. Day spent wandering toward Ensenada. Alex, Adam and David got us into port under another starry night.
No Kitemares Today
After a night marked by sudden wind accelerations peeling off Point Conception, and a vibrant, pulsating sky blistered with shooting stars, the off-watch woke to commotion on the foredeck. The wind had gone light and the swell had tapered just enough to raise the spinnaker. The sail filled with an urgent pop, the sheet strained and Falken charged down the face of the next wave. By mid-day, we doused the spinnaker and set our minds to the more precise task of safely punching through a gap in the notorious Cortez Bank. The border to Mexico looms ahead.
The California coast
We had a very lively first day of sailing with steady winds between 25 and 30 kn gusting to mid 30s. All of the crew got experience at difficult downwind helming as we covered 200 nautical miles in the first 24 hours. This morning brings winds in the teens and calmer seas. The sun is still shining, and the green monster has been slayed by those afflicted!