We are headed across the Atlantic!
With so much uncertainty these days we’ve been hesitant to share our sailing plans. Over the past 6 months, we have been quietly preparing to sail Sargo across the Atlantic to Portugal. It’s finally looking like it’s going to happen: We are departing for Bermuda on Sunday!
Our route will take us from Saint Augustine, Fl to Bermuda (5-6 days) and then Bermuda to the Islands of the Azores (12-14 days), and then from the Azores to mainland Portugal (5 days). Our intention is to spend the winter in Lagos located in the country’s southern Algarve region.
You can track our progress and read periodic updates on our Predict Wind Tracking Page
Beyond the typical logistics of readying a sailboat for a transatlantic voyage, we’ve had to take into consideration additional challenges because of the COVID19 pandemic. Bermuda for example, has strict testing and entry protocols both before we depart from the US and again upon arrival. Despite the fact we are fully vaccinated (yay!), we’ll need to test upon arrival, and then again on days 4, 8, and 14. The Azores has similar testing rules. Lining up testing and travel authorizations with weather windows certainly adds a layer of complexity. But it’s better than continuing the spread of COVID19.
Although US citizens are not currently allowed to travel to Europe as tourists, those sailing to the Azores and beyond are being permitted entry. However, with ever-changing COVID travel restrictions, it’s been difficult for sailors and visitors to navigate the Schengen Zone immigration rules that only allow US citizens 90 days “in the zone” for every 180 days. Under normal conditions, this is a challenge, as nearly all EU countries are “Schengen” and time spent in any of them count toward the 90-day clock. When you add in the border restrictions navigating the complexity of the Schengen rules is compounded.
Since we will be entering the Schengen zone upon our arrival in the Azores it would typically mean a 90 day “race” to a country such as Turkey to spend the winter and reset our 90 day clock. However, given Bjorn’s dad’s involvement with Azorean marine history, we really wanted to spend the summer in the Azores.
In order to accommodate a slower pace, we decided to apply for Portuguese residency. This involved months of paperwork, an FBI background check, and a road trip from FL to the Portuguese Consulate of Boston. We are hoping to hear that our residency visas are issued by June 5. This will allow us to spend the summer in the Azores and winter in Lagos. If all goes to plan we’ll be able to set sail from Lagos in the late spring for a summer exploring the Mediterranean. We’ve promised Toren that we would sail to Greece next summer; if you didn’t know already he’s a bit of a mythology and Greek and Roman history buff.
Beyond that even our most basic plans get fuzzy. But it feels good knowing that we’ll have Portugal as a place of refuge if another wave of COVID travel restrictions returns.
Today is a day for last-minute provisioning, stowing, and data binging. Tomorrow morning we will follow the falling tide out of Saint Augustine Inlet, and head northeast into the Gulf Stream to enjoy two days of fast downwind sailing. Eventually, we will take a turn to the east for our destination- Bermuda!
It’s looking like a light-wind passage but these things have a tendency to change!
Feel free to send us a text or email through our IridiumGO Satellite communication device we would love to hear from you.
Email: sailingsargo@myiridium.net
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