‘Deafening roars of thunder coincided simultaneously with mammoth bolts of lightning hitting the sea all around us’

I’ve all the time discovered native winds fascinating. One yr in France, whereas racing a Q Class in a classics regatta, an entire fleet of spinnakers blew up forward of me as a waterspout ripped via the course with the Mistral – a wind so infuriating that it was written into outdated French legislation that if it blows for over 9 days a cold-blooded homicide merely turns into a ‘crime of ardour’.

Cruisers hoping to take pleasure in a relaxed summer season within the Greek Islands are sometimes shocked by the Meltemi, a wind that jumps from 12 to 40 knots with little prior warning. And in a distant atoll in French Polynesia we discovered ourselves in boat lockdown while the Maramu raged via – a robust persistent sou’wester that may usually final over every week.

The winds and storms that dominate the summer season skyline in Panama and Columbia have been named the ‘Caleo de Pollo’, or in different phrases winds so highly effective that they make the branches of a palm tree slick straight again to resemble ‘Feathers of the Rooster’.

The treacherous concoction of Atlantic climate accumulating into this scorching melting pot has earned the sail from the north coast of Columbia to Panama a spot on the highest 5 most harmful passages on the earth – and, with a purpose to make our Panama Canal slot, we needed to do it on the worst potential time of yr.

We – my companion JP and I – met 4 years in the past engaged on the celebrated 55m trendy basic ketch Marie and the racing maxi Leopard 3. Quickly after, our mixed dream of circumnavigating grew to become a actuality after we purchased a yacht to name our personal.

Since then, we’ve break up our time between working and racing yachts professionally and crusing our yacht Jacqeau all over the world. After an intense refit in Newport, Rhode Island, we sailed Jacqeau right down to the Caribbean, the place we ran an Oyster 575 for the season, earlier than crusing (the fallacious method) dwelling to discover the gorgeous cruising grounds of the UK.

The next yr, we recrossed the Atlantic, then picked up an Oyster 72 in Antigua to run for the season.

So, having delivered the Oyster to the US, it was early June by the point we flew again to Jacqeau’s shipyard in Antigua. The journey raise, which had been put to mattress for the summer season, gave a hydraulic sigh because it was powered again up.

Jacqeau was lifted and punctiliously manoeuvred via the maze of boats which had been strapped down for the hurricane season. If there was ever an indication that we shouldn’t be crusing, this was it. Nonetheless, it was the earliest alternative we had and earlier than we knew it, we had been on passage in the direction of Colombia.

Sturdy and constant commerce winds mixed with present had us off to a flying begin and spirits had been excessive as we had been finishing 200-mile days at a time. These spirits had been shortly dampened, nevertheless, as we reached the northern coast of Colombia from Antigua.

Crusing the Caribbean Sea between Santa Marta and Cartagena presents sailors with such a myriad of difficulties that the favoured route is to maintain nicely offshore and keep away from this hazard zone. For us, this is able to have meant two days of beating upwind, into three knots of present, to get into town of Cartagena, so we determined to go coastal.

Reefed for the upwind passage on the strategy to Cartagena. Picture: Mission World Sail

River’s mouth

Forty-eight hours into our passage and the day had turn into blisteringly scorching. And whereas the night provided a refuge from the warmth, the smattering of flashes that appeared with the night time sky had been worrying. What began as distant sparks grew to become an increasing number of prevalent with each mile that we drew nearer to our vacation spot.

The ultimate 24-hour strategy to Cartagena proved difficult. We had been crusing previous Barranquilla which, for vacationers, is known for its flamboyant carnival and native tradition. However for sailors it’s identified for the mouth of the Magdalena River. The biggest river within the Northern Andes, this river flows at a fee of as much as 420 cubic toes a second, making its native impact on the encompassing sea unpredictable and intensely hazardous.

To make issues much more intense, June marks the time of yr when the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) causes the predominant easterly commerce winds and currents to battle it out with a south-westerly developing from Panama. And naturally, this mêlée of climate hit us at 0400 – a time which, though not statistically confirmed, many sailors will inform you with absolute conviction is when the worst issues occur.

The enjoyment and reduction of a golden sundown and a transparent night time sky. Picture: Mission World Sail

Simply earlier than sundown the earlier night the easterly wind had dropped considerably, making the obvious too low for crusing. Dripping with sweat we dropped and flaked our primary sail, then turned the engine on. This turned out to be our saviour within the night time that adopted.

As darkness fell, the gently rolling Caribbean swell changed into quick, sharp waves coming from each route. The surging river mouth creates a major change to the density of the water forming complicated currents, oceanic eddies and a steep improve in velocity.

Article continues under…

We’d be browsing down a wave concurrently getting soaked by one other hitting us beam on. The wind dial pranced from 4 to 40 knots and sleep grew to become out of the query. Nature’s firework show commenced for the night time as shiny yellow patches popped up on the radar, so opaque that, in case you didn’t have charts, you would be mistaken for pondering they had been land.

Unsurprisingly, our log entries had been restricted that night time, though a 0600 remark learn: ‘Keep away from all lightning – CHECK’. We’d spent a tireless night time weaving our method via the maze of foreboding blobs on our radar so the slim line of orange showing on the horizon introduced us hope for a brand new day.

The Caribbean present that had labored so nicely in our favour in the beginning of the journey continued flowing east as we turned to port and headed down the coast. We had been now working towards each wind and present. Immediately, one thing caught my eye within the water forward: one thing large. On nearer inspection it was an enormous floating log, a minimum of half the size of our boat and a few metre throughout.

Jacqeau’s elegant Germán Frers-designed strains had been in-built Brazil. Picture: Elevate Drone Media courtesy of PWS

With the robust present pushing it in the direction of us this might simply have damaged a gap in our hull. I scanned throughout to see a military of comparable tree trunks heading in our route – Jacqeau was below assault.

We weaved via the impediment course, straining our already drained eyes to make sure we averted all of them. Apparently it’s commonplace for particles to be swept out of the river right here, we even heard reviews of an entire home flowing downstream, so felt fortunate to not have encountered any worse.

It’s just about unimaginable to not have an upwind sail to Cartagena at the moment of yr so we spent the day slowly however certainly pushing our method nearer to town. Regardless of a small boat entrance with a chart depth of two.6m we had been advised by the Coastguard there was completely no chance we may make it via with our draught of two.3m. The longer route spherical added one other arduous eight miles to the journey and we ultimately crept into town anchorage at twilight.

The route

Colombian color

Arriving in Cartagena was a shock to the system. We’d spent the summer season earlier than exploring abandoned anchorages in Scotland and the winter in sleepy Caribbean bays. Now, after six days at sea, we had been met with towering skyscrapers, speedboats blasting out music and the redolent odor of a metropolis.

Once we set off on our circumnavigation from New England in 2022 we’d imagined uninhabited islands and white sand seashores. However the novelty of anchoring in the course of a thriving metropolis needs to be up there with our greatest moments.

Jacqeau was designed by the legendary Germán Frers in his dwelling nation of Argentina after which in-built South America’s most prestigious shipyard on the time in Brazil. She was a part of a small fleet of ‘Quick Yachts’ (certainly one of which Frers designed for himself) and has been the one one since to have left the nation.

Bringing her again to Latin America felt like bringing her dwelling and he or she sat in the course of the murky brown metropolis anchorage trying simply as spectacular because the metropolis that surrounded her.

As for town itself, we fell in love. We spent our time in port exploring the colourful alleyways of the outdated city that teemed with scrumptious meals, drink and tradition. We’d sit in rooftop bars at sundown and watch the lightning roll in over the ocean, blissfully ignoring the truth that it was precisely what we must face at sea in a few days.

Then, with bellies and hearts full, we pulled away from what had been certainly one of our favorite stops to this point and set off once more into the night time. Our subsequent meant vacation spot was the Guna Yala Islands, San Blas – a mere 200-mile passage that ended up being certainly one of our worst but.

Electrical storms are an ever current hazard in South American waters in June. Picture: Holger Leue/Getty

A recreation of luck

There’s completely no avoiding lightning right now of yr. The fact is, in case you’re crusing at night time, there might be lightning round and positive sufficient, like turning on a change at sundown, forks of electrical energy started to crackle round us as quickly as darkness fell.

Within the lifeless of the night time two small dots popped up on both aspect of us on the radar. Inside 20 minutes that they had turn into colossal thunderstorms. We checked our velocity and heading towards theirs and it seemed like we had been going to get forward of them.

However then we skilled one thing neither of us had ever seen earlier than; the thunderstorms on both aspect began to maneuver in the direction of one another as in the event that they had been homing in on a goal and that concentrate on was us. Earlier than we knew it that they had merged and we had been straight within the coronary heart of the tempest.

The whole lot was pitch black, 30-plus knots of wind and heavy rain pounded us as we leapt to manage the sails.

Deafening roars of thunder coincided concurrently with mammoth bolts of lightning hitting the ocean throughout. Nothing can put together you for a way loud the thunder and the way blinding the lightning is once you’re that near it. Jacqeau crashed up and down towards the steep floor waves making excruciatingly gradual progress. We had been getting nowhere and each time we seemed on the radar the storm was solely getting bigger.

JP keeping track of the ever-changing circumstances. Picture: Andreas Müllner courtesy of PWS

We spent the next hour battling via extreme circumstances. With every lightning bolt we couldn’t assist however assume ‘that is it’. Crusing with a 20m aluminium pole within the sky amid such a storm makes you’re feeling exceedingly weak.

If we had been hit, at greatest we’d lose our electrics, whereas at worst it may breach our hull. Ever so steadily, nevertheless, the lightning moved behind us and we watched in reduction because it ripped mayhem via the empty waters in our wake.

Exhausted, soaked via, and with our nervous programs wrecked, we made the choice to take a detour and search refuge for the next night time. The solar introduced a literal mild on the finish of the tunnel because it appeared on the horizon and weaved its method via the darkish, dense squall strains. Beneath its heat, we couldn’t assist however really feel an amazing sense of reduction. We had by no means discovered ourselves a lot within the fingers of nature than we had in that storm and it was sheer luck that we didn’t get hit.

We discovered an applicable port of refuge due south and anchored off Isla Fuerte for the night time the place we dried out, caught up on sleep and ready for the subsequent stage.

A cracking begin to the passage doing 200-mile days out of Antigua. Picture: Mission World Sail

Earlier than we set off once more, we spent a while de-briefing the night time earlier than. We knew we’d expertise extra lightning for the subsequent couple of weeks at sea, so we needed to study as a lot as potential to minimise the danger. These are our primary takeaways:

Prediction – Whereas forecast instruments like ‘thunderstorms’ on Windy can provide a tough indication, actual places and durations are hardly ever correct. We seemed intently at CAPE Index (connective out there potential vitality, ie the quantity of potential gasoline out there for a growing thunderstorm) and made ourselves conscious of what was thought-about excessive or low for the a part of the world we had been in. We additionally used stay satellite tv for pc imagery to provide us a greater indication of what’s occurring at that second.
Avoidance – The wind shear and downdrafts produced by thunderstorms trigger them to maneuver in numerous unpredictable instructions. Thunderstorms can lengthen as much as 15km vertically, and due to this fact some are being pushed alongside within the higher ambiance and transferring in a totally completely different wind route to the decrease ambiance. We made positive that we had been wind predictions for a lot larger altitudes to see if there have been any tendencies we wanted to pay attention to.
Preparation – If lighting got here near us, we ready by making certain we had a non-electronic communication supply (handheld radio or sat cellphone), unplugging any electrics, carrying rubber soled footwear, maintaining the engine working (starter battery wouldn’t work if struck), making certain the boat was correctly grounded, and shortening sail to anticipate excessive winds.

Good reward for a demanding passage: a personal anchorage in paradise. Picture: Mission World Sail

Guna Yala

Fortunately our second try on the similar passage was way more profitable. Regardless of watching cumulonimbus clouds develop twice the scale of Everest through the day, the worst of it handed behind us for the night time and we noticed the lightning from a protected distance as we glided eastwards at the hours of darkness. Simply over 24 hours later we caught our first glimpse of the extremely anticipated Guna Yala.

This 365-strong island archipelago has lengthy since been a part of the ‘Milk Run’, with many contemplating it a real paradise. However for us, it felt like an entire new world. After contending with the perilous Magdalena river mouth and nerve-racking lightning-filled nights, to see an ideal copse of palm bushes spring from an azure blue sea felt like a mirage.

We meandered our method via the net of reefs to a spot between three excellent miniature islands. Because the anchor dropped, two pleasant nurse sharks swam as much as our stern as if to welcome us to this much-needed protected haven (they ended up staying with us at some stage in our time there, and we fondly nick-named them Simon and Garfunkel). We spent the subsequent few days dwelling an idyllic lifetime of catching fish, exploring reefs and assembly the few passing locals as they gracefully sailed from island to island of their wood boats.

Charlotte and JP’s Jacqeau within the crystal clear waters of San Blas. Picture: Andreas Müllner courtesy of PWS

Crowd avoidance

Our remaining spot was Bug Island, often a crowded anchorage frequented by the varied world rally fleets. Being so late, nevertheless, we had been left with ample room to choose a spot within the flawless turquoise water.

That night time we visited Ibin from the self-named ‘Ibin’s Seaside Restaurant’. Weeks had passed by since his final customer and he greeted us open-armed like outdated associates. His wood platformed bar is delicately perched over the water’s edge, clad in a whole bunch of yachts’ flags, every frayed edge telling a unique story of a life lived at sea.

He provided us a tot of his best Panamanian rum and cheerily advised us how this time final yr somebody bought so badly struck by lightning within the anchorage that it blew a gap of their hull and began to sink. Chuckling away to himself he crammed us up with pizzas and beers and despatched us away with the biggest do-it-yourself focaccia I’ve ever seen.

We may have spent many extra weeks exploring the numerous islands of this archipelago however sadly our Panama Canal slot was just a few days away.

As we joined the visitors jam of towering cargo ships heading in the direction of Colón I mirrored on the previous two weeks at sea. Would I like to recommend crusing although Colombia and Panama in June? Completely not. The reward, nevertheless, was fairly exceptional.

We left grateful for our likelihood to share this indigenous land with solely the locals and a few pleasant nurse sharks. Experiencing the contrasting energies of the colourful, dynamic streets of Cartagena with the spectacularly lovely, abandoned islands of the Guana Yala was value its weight in gold.

In case you loved this….

Yachting World is the world’s main journal for bluewater cruisers and offshore sailors. Each month now we have inspirational adventures and sensible options that will help you realise your crusing desires.

Construct your information with a subscription delivered to your door. See our newest provides and save a minimum of 30% off the duvet value.

Notice: We might earn a fee once you purchase via hyperlinks on our web site, at no further value to you. This doesn’t have an effect on our editorial independence.