Our journey back home took us a good month and a half. After the two days spent in St Helena, Celandine sailed for ten more days to reach Dakar. It was an uneventful trip as there was no wind, and thankfully no swell. The lack of wind also meant that we had to be very economical with our energy use. We caught 3 beautiful yellow tailed tunas, a total of 50 kg of to keep us going throughout the cruise. We had plenty of time to innovate our tuna recipes and we are now consider ourselves to be experts! The next refueling stopover was in the commercial harbour of Dakar. From there, it took us eleven more days to reach Gibraltar where we stopped for 24 hours, just enough time to celebrate our return to Europe. Four days later, on 23rd March, we arrived in Antibes, the port where our world trip started two years ago. It was an emotional welcome that awaited us with friends and family who had made the trip to Antibes to moor us back safely to the dock.

Celandine completed her world cruise in 854 days. During that time she covered 32 000 nautical miles, and visited a total of 23 countries. We are all very proud and happy to have accomplished this amazing and unforgettable voyage aboard SY Celandine, a truly remarkable yacht.

After 3 months of rest in Cape Town Waterfront Marina, Celandine took off on 16th February, heading St Helena. We started our journey back home with a good wind (average of 30 knots) which enable us to turn off the engine for 3 days. Then, the wind died, and it took us 5 more days to reach the small British island. This piece of rock which lies halfway between Africa and South America is well known for being the place of exile of Napoleon Bonaparte. The main and only town is Jamestown and the total population of the island is 5000 Inhabitants. A two day stopover, will enable us to get some fuel, fresh provisioning and to visit Napoleon’s last home.

Celandine sailed into Durban on 2nd November, seven days after leaving Mauritius. We stayed there to recover and wait for a good weather window for our trip to Cape Agulhas and the Cape of Good Hope. This came earlier than expected on 4^th November and we set off for Cape Town. We had only just left the Marina when we ran into rough weather that lasted for several hours. Luckily shortly afterwards we picked up a good undercurrent that pushed us to the mighty Cape Agulhas on the 7th. At 21h35 we left the Indian Ocean behind us and entered the Atlantic Ocean. The day after, another undercurrent slowed us down to a record low of 4 knots. It was a long day, but on the positive side we had lots of time to observe the dolphins swimming around us and playing in the boat’s wake. The following morning we were treated to a fabulous show from a family of whales who spent the whole day jumping, and playing with their calf. It was definitely a day to remember!

We arrived in Cape Town on 8th November under heavy rain. What a shock it was for us to get back to civilization and the crowded Waterfront with so many shops and restaurants! What a surprise as well to meet our new neighbours: there were seals, all over the pontoon, sun-bathing and sleeping all day long!

Our boss and his friends joined us for ten days to visit Cape Town and the surrounding areas. He took us out for a day to watch great white sharks. Laurence and PM went diving in a cage to get an even closer look. It was unbelievable and pretty scary to see these legendary fish at such close quarters. Those we saw were around 4 meters long, really impressive!

Another highlight of the trip was when the boss took Laurence and PM on a safari close to Port Elisabeth in the Shamwari Game Reserve. This beautiful lodge is hidden right in the middle of the reserve. They saw a group of elephants who came right up to the car and a serval catching a bird. They also followed two cheetahs for several hours and watched them hunt and catch an antelope at night time. On the last day they went on a trek to take in the wildlife and experience the thrill of coming across wild animals in their natural habitat without protection.

We are now based in Victoria Marina in Cape Town, where Celandine will stay for two months before embarking on her homeward journey!

After spending two months in Eden Island Marina in Mahé, Celandine left the beautiful Seychelles archipelagos and headed to Mauritius.

Prior to our departure the French Embassy had informed us about a serious threat of piracy between the Seychelles and Madagascar. This was surprising as the normal “piracy season” had not yet started but there had already been reports of yachts being hijacked near the Tanzanian coast. We followed their advice and hired two former soldiers to protect us during the crossing to Mauritius. After sailing for three days and covering 1000 miles, we received a message saying that a fishing boat had been attacked by Somalian pirates close to Tromelin Island, just a few miles away from us. We spent a very worried next couple of days until a second message arrived to say that in fact it was not a pirate attack, but a mutiny…what a relief!

We arrived in Mauritius on 10th October. This densely populated island has 2 millions inhabitants and is also called the rainbow nation. Four communities co-inhabit the island in a happy and colorful melting pot: Indian/ Bengalese, creoles from Africa, creoles from the European colonization, and Asians. Our boss rejoined us on board to visit Mauritius, and we sailed around the island, enjoying the beautiful lagoon.

On the 26th, we left Port Louis Harbour, direction Durban and Africa! Laurence and Pierre-Marie’s son, Pierre, joined us for this 7 day trip. During the crossing we saw three 3 big whales, probably on their way back to Antarctica for the Austral Summer after spending the winter in the warm waters of the Indian Ocean. During these 1500 miles, the weather conditions were very unstable. The wind changed a lot, and the swell varied often from calm flat to pretty big. Despite this we arrived on our estimated date of 2nd November, with 30 knots of wind in our sails. Celandine is now discovering South Africa!

It has been a quiet month for S/Y Celandine in the Seychelles. Laurence and Pierre-Marie took some time out to enjoy the wild life of Kenya which is just a three-hour flight from Mahe, whereas David and I had the chance to spend some days in France, to see our families and friends after 8 months away from home.

We welcomed onboard some of our boss’s friends for a few days, and spent the last couple of weeks preparing the yacht and fixing everything down inside for our next cruise that may be a little bit bumpy.

After the long Indian Ocean Crossing, the boss joined us in Eden Island Marina, the main Island of the Seychelles, for his main holiday.

Despite rough sea conditions, we did a lot of sailing to visit the beautiful islands around Mahe. First, we moored in Praslin where the white sandy beaches and clear blue water are amazing. We also had our first glimpse of the famous Coco de Mer also known as Coco Fesse, which only grow in the Seychelles. From there we went to Curieuse Marine National Park which is a nice island with again white sandy beaches, mangrove swamp and spectacular granite rock formations. It is also a breeding center for giant tortoises and turtles. Then, we felt very lucky to visit one off the most beautiful beach in the world: ’l'Anse d’argent’ in La Digue. This beach is indeed unique and well worth the trip.

Celandine then set sail further north and anchored off at Bird Island: A National Park where an Eco resort has been built 40 years ago. From May toOctober, part of the island is the home to millions of nesting Sooty Terns as you can imagine,  it is an ornithologist’s heaven. Moreover, it is also an important nesting site for turtles and boasts the world’s largest land tortoise, Esmeralda who is over 200 years old.

The boat is now in Eden Island Marina, waiting for the next trip.

After spending 2 weeks in Indonesia, Celandine left  Bali on the 5th July to cross the Indian Ocean.

3 days later, we stopped for a couple of hours on Christmas Island to refuel for the last time before the passage. This Australian dependency, located just below the island of Java, has only 1000 inhabitants but welcomes more than 3000 refugees from Indonesia, Bangladesh, etc… waiting to legally enter Australia. This piece of rock is also famous for its big colony of red crabs.

1000 miles later, we arrived at Cocos Keeling, another beautiful and remote Atoll. We moored there for 48 hours to get some rest and to enjoy the great beaches. After this nice stopover we were lucky to catch a strong downwind and we sailed for 4 days with the Engine off at a cruising speed of 10 knots! Our cruising speed record since France!

7 days and 1500 miles later we reached Salomon Atoll in the Chagos, a part of the British Indian Ocean Territory in the heart of the Indian Ocean. Since Great Britain has designated these 7 atolls a “conservation area”, the 60 islands of the Archipelago are uninhabited exept Diego Garcia where a US/UK military base is off limits to visiting yachts.

We moored near Fouquet islet, and for 48 hours we enjoyed the clear water, as well as the untouched island of coconuts trees and white beaches.  On the most exposed beach of this unhabited piece of paradise we have been disappointed to find out that the sea has washed up plenty of garbage. Indeed, since we left Bali, we saw more plastic floating on the surface than ever. All this garbage is probably coming from countries more than 1000km away (India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Australia etc…). As a symbolic gesture, we cleaned the beach and took 40kg of flip flops and plastic bottle garbage to the Secheylles. However this is just a drop compared to what is floating over the whole ocean and it is frustating to think how these pieces of plastic are polluting the sea and killing sea life. However, we really loved this place, and we stayed for 2 days of kitesurfing.

After 25 days sailing, 3 stopovers and 3700 Nautical Miles, we finished the Indian Ocean crossing and arrived in the Secheylles on 28th July, just in time to welcome our boss for his holidays.

While our boss took his first trip to Sydney before heading home, Celandine made a 3 day stopover in Cairns to prepare her for 3 months sailing in remote places.

After that, we headed north to Cap York, sailing through the Great Barrier Reef, which is the size of Italy. It took us 3 days to cross the Coral Sea. Navigation was tough, but it was a good fun to zigzag between the jagged coast, tiny islands, big container ships and the reef. At least it kept us awake and fully alert throughout the night watches! As we are now getting closer to the Equator, the temperature is rising to the point of being almost unbearable. We hope the AC onboard will continue to work well, but we will have to get used to warm weather, as we will soon cross the Indian Ocean without this comfortable option. On the 13th June, we passed through the Torres Straight which lies between the northern part of Australia (Cap York), and Papua New Guinea. It took us three more long days to cross the Arafura Sea to Darwin where we stayed for just one day to refuel and complete the customs formalities. We left Australia on 17th June for some easy sailing through the Timor Sea until Bali.

On our way up to Indonesia, Pierre-Marie caught a tuna and a beautiful dolphin fish for us. The sashimis that followed were much appreciated by all the crew!

We arrived in Bali on 22nd and it is a big contrast for us after spending 6 months in more developed countries. Indonesia seems to be a very nice place, with an interesting culture, colorful scenery and very friendly people. Our great boss joigned us a couple of days at the end of the month, and we went sailing to Lombock around the beautiful Gillis Islands. We are now preparing the boat to cross the Indian Ocean.

PS: You may have noticed some dysfunction in the tracking system. When we entered the Indian Ocean, the satellite changed and it took a couple of days to get an accurate reading with our Sat C. Our apologies for any inconvenience caused.

Celandine stayed over a month at Rivergate Marina in Brisbane, waiting for the boss to come back. This gave us time to take a couple of days away from the boat: Laurence and Pierre-Marie flew to New Caledonia to experience their beautiful beaches and amazing dives, whereas David and I had a taste of the Australian Outback, and spent two days in the lively city of Sydney.

The boss joined Laurence and Pierre-Marie in the Ile des Pins for a few days and then returned on board for a 3 day sail to the Whitsunday Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. This journey was quite eventful: first, we were delayed 12 hours as a gale forecast forced us to turn back and to moor in a protected anchorage. Next came 24 hours of really lumpy sea, followed by 48 hours of sea as smooth as a lake. Finally, 24 nautical miles before arriving in Hamilton Island, we were awakened by a fire alarm in the Engine Room: a smoke cloud was coming out of the main engine. David and Pierre-Marie stopped it quickly and then spent hours trying to fix the problem. Unfortunately, the engine remained damaged and we made slow progress to Hamilton’s Marina to wait for the spare parts to repair it.

A friend of the boss joined us there and as Celandine was unable to sail, they rented a nice sailing catamaran to cruise the paradise sceneries of the Whitsundays. The Great Barrier area is the perfect place to go snorkeling, and to enjoy white sandy beaches and crystal turquoise seas.

Our next stop over will be Cairns for a few days.

SF

After 6 months in New Zealand, S/Y Celandine cast off her moorings for a new destination: Australia!

We were all sad to leave this lovely country and such welcoming people after such a long period. Indeed, we left some good friends behind in Auckland, including the team at 37th South (our yacht agent), some friends from Titan’s shipyard, the crew of S/Y Kaori and many others….

Our friend Nigel, offered us the warmest goodbye we have ever had: he escorted us with his beautiful yacht«Endurance», right to the entrance to the Hauraki Gulf.

We took on board a new crew member to cross the Tasman Sea to Brisbane: Edwin De Laat, a young sailor with a great future! He was a great help and a keen deck hand.

After 6 days sailing, we are now in Rivergate Marina, near Brisbane on the Australian Gold Coast. Australia, also called the «country Continent» is the size of Europe from Iceland to Turkey, but with only 21 million inhabitants. Most people live along the eastern coast, and around Perth (west coast) whereas as most of the Aborigine people are located in the Outback. This country was isolated from the other continents for a very long time (15 000 years) and is unique in many ways. We are really looking forward to discovering it soon!

The highlight of this month had to be the NZ Marine Cup. With the boss on board we took part in the Kiwi Kawau Challenge against 3 beautiful sailing yachts: S/Y Drumbeat a 53m ketch, S/Y Shenandoah a 55m classic and S/Y Thalia a beautiful 48m. We took on 6 additional crew for the regatta, all of whom were a huge help: Edwin, Nino, Dug, Queeny, Andy and Nigel.

We had a wonderful day racing in the Hauraki gulf from Auckland to the Kawau Island and we were very proud to win this race on handicap by 12 minutes, despite the high level of competition.

This one-day race day ended with a fun kiwi-style barbecue on the island with the yachts’ owners, crew and sponsors. We now have a new kiwi friend onboard Celandine : the nice trophy offered by NZ Marine.

We also admired some other beautiful and more serious regattas from 14th to the 21st March in the Hauraki gulf : The Louis Vitton Trophy.  After several days of competition, Emirates Team New Zealand won in the final against Mascalzone Latino from Italy ! It is a real victory for Kiwis and they celebrated it for a couple of days, making a lot of noise in the Harbour…

We are now preparing the boat for the next 1200nm sailing to take us to Brisbane.

ST

After an excellent month’s holiday spent back in France, Celandine’s crew returned to Auckland to embark on the second part of their worldwide cruise and to prepare the boat for navigation to South Africa. This is our destination for the end of 2010. First we took the yacht to Titan’s Shipyard, where we hauled her out of the water to clean and polish the hull. Phil, Niel, Nigel and their team took great care of the yacht and we did some well-needed maintenance: re-varnishing on the interior, general engine maintenance, water tanks, hydraulic systems etc…

Our boss arrived at the end of the month to spend a couple of week on board with one of his friends. They escaped the dramatic winter in Europe to discover Auckland, and to enjoy the warm summer in New Zealand.

ST

Celandine wishes you a very happy new year!

Our dear boss and his lovely mother arrived on 2^nd November. For their first time in New Zealand they enjoyed very much this friendly and wild country.

Their first trip was to go flying over the north of the island from Auckland to Taupo Lake. They flew over three big active volcanoes: Mt Ngauruhoe which was still under the snow, Mt Tongariro with its emerald lakes, and finally Mt Ruapehu (2797m, the highest), that last erupted in 2007.  After that we went sailing for a few days in the Hauraki Gulf around Rangitoto and Waiheke island, both volcanic and well-known for their world class vineyards.

19th November marked the first anniversary of our departure from Antibes. In one year, we have crossed 12 time zones, passed over the Equator and the date change line. We have sailed across the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean sea, the Panama Canal, the Pacific Ocean, and finally on to Polynesia and New Zealand. We celebrated in a French restaurant called «Pastis» and it was also the opportunity for us to taste the «Beaujolais Nouveau» in exclusivity from the rest of the world.

The boss left us for 2 weeks, and Pierre-Marie and Laurence brought Ms. B. to the south Island. They travelled from Queenstown to Dunedin and enjoyed the wildness of the mountains and lakes. In Invercargill they visited a beautiful botanical garden among Christmas trees, rhododendrons, lilac trees and other flowers… In the Otago Peninsula, they saw a wildlife reserve in the Royal Albatros colony, the only continental nesting place in the world for these majestic seabirds. Apparently they stay at sea continuously for up to five years before reaching mating maturity and only fly in the extreme region around the forties and the fifties from New Zealand to South America. They can reach an amazing speed of 120kph and cross the Pacific in only 10 days! (It took us 16 days from the Galapagos to the Marquese islands…). Further north, at Nuget point, they observed colonies of blue penguins (the smallest of their breed) and some yellow eyed penguins, the rarest in the world. They ended their trip with a stop to meet fur seals and lively sea lions. They came back delighted with their journey. They fell so much in love with the Fiordland region that they are already planning to buy a farm there

ST

We left Tongatapu on 5th October heading, Auckland, in the North of New Zealand. We were unfortunate on this crossing to be met with a lumpy sea and rough weather. On the 3rd day, we ran into winds of up to 55 knots. The positive outcome of this was that we broke our speed record and Celandine reached a record 16.7 knots. The waves were huge, and one of them hit us full on, heeling the yacht flat over.  Luckily Celandine is made of strong stuff and she quickly righted herself. The yacht and crew were unharmed!

We arrived in Auckland on 10th of October and began to empty the boat to give her a thorough clean. We also made some repairs and improvements: the hydraulic system, the rig check and all the regular maintenance after more than a year at sea, and 17 000 nautical miles covered.

The boat is now berthed in Viaduc Marina, downtown Auckland and it feels good to be back in civilisation. Named the City of Sail, this town is the largest city in New Zealand with 1.2 million inhabitants. It is also the main industrial centre in the land of the long white cloud.

After spending a year between the Caribbean Islands and Polynesia it is a big change for us to meet the famously fickle weather, with “4 seasons possible in a day”, any time of the year. Despite this cold weather, we would like to thank the New Zealanders for their warm welcome, and especially the 37th South Team, our Yacht Agent, managed by Phil Tomlinson.

After 3 months in French Polynesia, we left Tahiti on 7th September and headed to Vava’U, a group of islands to the north of the Tonga. We made a 72h stopover in Aitutaki, in the Cook Islands. This isolated island is surrounded by a clear blue lagoon and a reef. We spent a full day on Honey Moon Island, a deserted sandy islet, dotted with coconut trees and bordered by crystal clear water: paradise!

3 days later we arrived in Vava’U, which is composed of around 50 islands: in the north, high cliffs plunge straight into the sea while small islets peek above the surface of the water, surrounded by white sand and coral reef in the south. There, our «best boss» joined us to visit the archipelagos. There we had the unforgettable experience of following and swimming with 3 whales: a baby with his mother and an escort (protecting male). Apparently humpback whales migrate to Tonga’s warm water to breed, Vava’U being one of the most famous for that.

One highlight of this visit was a fishing trip where our boss caught a huge 120kg black marlin, more than 2.20 m long! He also brought back a nice Mahi Mahi, a yellow finned tuna and a Barracuda. These catches are now filling our freezer and the crew’s tummies!  Before leaving Vava’u we anchored close to Mounu, a beautiful private Island, and then set off for the south.

We headed to Ha’Apai Group and made a quick stop in Felekesia, a tiny deserted island which was again, a small paradise.

On our way to Tongatapu Group, we saw many whales jumping around the boat. It was amazing to see them clean out of the water. We also saw a funny flying Mahi Mahi, escaping from a predator and finally ended this animated journey by catching 3 Mahi mahi, and a Bonite.

We arrived in Nuku’alofa, the Capital city of Tonga, on 28th September, and after visiting the island and the lively market our boss flew back home.

The day after, we had been informed early in the morning about the big earthquake that occured in Samoa, 400 miles from us. Thus, we had to stay prepared for a possible tsunami, but luckily it did not touch Nuku’alofa

After that we were surprised to come across « Le Revi», a French navy supply vessel, coming to bring help after the recent Tsunami that tore through Northern Tonga. We already knew this boat from Papeete, where we became friends with the Stéphane, the first mate.

Finally, we stayed for a few more days more in Tongatapu in order to prepare the boat for the next navigation: 1000 miles to reach Auckland (New Zealand) where we will arrive for the beginning of the summer season.

ST

We left the Marina Taina on 4th August and headed for the bay of Opunohu in Moorea. Our boss suggested visiting the island by quad and it was a great way to sight-see. The second main activity of the island after tourism is agriculture, so we took off to an agricultural college in the Paopao valley, visiting many hectares of pineapple plantations. They also grow bananas, papaya, corossol, exotic flowers (tiare), and even vanilla, in fact the best, but also the most expensive in the world!. One of the highlights of the tour was tasting delicious ice cream and fresh fruit juices in local flavours. Next we went to Belvedere to get a bird’s eye view of Opunohu bay and Cook’s bay. We made it right to the top of Magical Mountain in order to see the most beautiful views of the island.

Together with our boss, we spent an amazing afternoon swimming, and dancing with two captive dolphins. It was also the occasion for us to talk to specialists and to learn more about these friendly animals and their way of living.

The end of the month was taken up with technical repairs: the main sail furling system, the small generator, and some hydraulic problems.

After two wonderful months in Tahiti and French Polynesia we are now about to discover the west side of the South Pacific Ocean.

ST

We have made the most of the long stopover in Tahiti to carry out some repairs onboard that were much needed after 9 months of navigation and two ocean crossings.

We also welcomed onboard Marie-Agathe and Pierre, Laurence and Pierre-Marie’s children. We sailed with them to the island of Moorea in Haapiti Bay, and then in Opunohu Bay. This beautiful island is an extinct volcano which has lush vegetation and is surrounded by a clear lagoon. Pierre and Pierre-Marie had a surprise on one fishing trip when they came nose to nose with a 15m white whale. She stayed with them for quite a while, and even jumped clean out of the water. They said it was an amazing show, but one they had to keep in their memories as neither had brought along a camera that day. It is not unusual to see whales in Polynesia between July and October. After a wintering in the Antarctic and stocking up on food, they travel to the warm waters of Tahiti in order to relax and also to give birth. Now, we are all looking forward to see more whales!

ST

After a quick stopover in Thaîti, the boss joined Celandine for two weeks and at last David and I stepped back on board Celandine. Our next destination was the paradise islands of Tuamotus.

The first anchorage for Celandine was in Rangiroa, close to the Tiputa pass. Rangiroa is located in the north of the Tuamotus and is the second biggest atoll in the world. It measures 75km from east to west, and 25 km form north to south. As the atoll is a well known diving venue, we asked Serge, a professional diver to join us for a few days. He took us on fabulous dives, with depths of up to 26m. We couldn’t believe our luck as we swam with friendly dolphins that even let us touch them. The turtles were also happy for us to swim alongside them and three manta rays danced gracefully around us.

After three days in Rangiroa, we headed south to Fakarava. This atoll is a UNESCO protected area because of its diverse ecosystem and is well known for its black pearl farms and pink sandy beaches. We dropped the anchor next to the Tumakohua pass in the south of the atoll. When we went diving in the pass we found ourselves surrounded by hundreds of sharks: black tip sharks, grey sharks … much to the captain’s pleasure! We also saw some huge Napoleon fish.

We went back to Society Islands to spend the weekend in Moorea where a local organisation had planned various traditional activities for about 60 boats. We attempted their national sport: the Va’a, which is a traditional Polynesian canoe. Our captain proved very successful at the banana run and the stone lifting whereas Laurence and our boss were very good at the coconut rap and milk preparation.

We left mountainous Moorea to discover the world famous island of Bora Bora. This group of islands is a creation of volcanic peaks above crystal clear lagoons. We spent a wonderful day with Patrick, a local guide, who took us to touch the tiger rays and sharks, before heading for a fabulous lunch on a private motu.

Finally, we returned to the Marina Taina in Thaiti where our boss departed for a month.

Celandine arrived in Nuku Hiva, one of the Marquises Islands, on 8th May. The Marquises are composed of six inhabited islands all of which are mountainous and green, making the sea cloudy and choppy. The boss was due back on board but his trip was cancelled so Celandine continued on her way visiting Hiva oa, Tahuata and Fatu Hiva. The final stop was Tahiti, stopping by Fakarava, one of the big atolls of the Tuamotus. The beautiful beaches and clear blue lagoons symbolised our arrival of French Polynesia.

ST

After going through the Panama Canal, Celandine made a quick stop in Flamingo Marina. This was where David and I had to leave the yacht and head back to France for medical reasons. We were replaced by Mary, a pretty Scottish stewardess and Abraham, a dynamic American deckhand, for the next two and a half months.  Celandine left Panama City for Bahia Pinas on the south east coast of Panama, renowned as the best fishing resort in the world. Here the boss and his friends stopped off in “Tropic Star Lodge” for 3 intense days of fishing. Back on board Celandine went on her way to the Galapagos Islands. The crossing was spiced up when the crew battled to hook two huge marlin; the fish won the fight that day and the crew had to watch them swim away.

The boss and his friends joined five days later in Bahia Academy, on Santa Cruz Island. The Galapagos are an isolated group of 20 volcanic islands belonging to the Ecuador. It is a UNESCO protected area because of its flourishing wildlife and flora. The crew visited three of these islands with Juan Carlos, a friendly local guide, who was a mine of information. Here the crew discovered giant tortoises, colourful blue feet boobies, huge sea lions, strange sea and earth iguanas, and even penguins especially in the South Eastern part of San Salvador. In the Gordon rocks, they were also lucky enough to see hammer-head sharks and eagle-spotted rays, and to swim along-side sea lions. Celandine also welcomed a surprise guest onboard when a sea lion jumped on the garage platform, and took a long nap! Two hours later the crew finally found out how to get him off !

The boss left the yacht mid-April, and Celandine continued her route across the Pacific Ocean arriving 16 days and 22 hours later. During the crossing, the crew caught a giant yellow finned tuna, which kept the crew well fed throughout the navigation, with some left in the freezer upon arrival! The “monster” was 2.20m long and weighed around 120 kg! The crew also celebrated two birthdays on the crossing: Laurence and Abraham.

ST

We departed Grenada and there ended our navigation in the Caribbean Sea. Our next destination was Bonaire, one of the three Dutch islands commonly known as the ABC Islands: Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao.

Bonaire is the third best diving spot in the world. It is a protected area and you can often see parrot fish right near the shore. The boss took us diving and we saw countless colorful fish, beautiful coral and even barracudas. We also spent a day fishing around the island with a fisherman we nicknamed “Pepito”. The catch of the day was two big wahoo and a barracuda. Next we set course for Willemstad in Curacao. This was a calm stopover in a city made for Dutch tourists – it looks just like a little Amsterdam.

After the boss’s departure we left for Aruba, a sandy beach island surrounded by palaces and resorts. Three more days of navigation brought us to the San Blas islands. This is an archipelago of nearly 400 islands, each one a different blend of sandy beaches and palm trees. This “Comarca de Kuna Yala” is an independent region of Panama inhabited by the Indian Kuna. This population has refused every kind of modernization in order to maintain their traditions and culture. It is a matriarchal community, with excellent organization, although they still live in bamboo huts. Visitors are accepted but they are not allowed to marry a Kuna or to settle on the islands. We were welcomed by Nestor, a very hospitable Kuna, who showed us around his village and took us fishing.

On the 30th of March, we left the Atlantic sea and we went through the Panama Canal so as to join the Pacific Ocean. After a quick stop in Panama City, the vessel is now heading the Galapagos Islands .

ST

The beginning of the year was very eventful.

Once the boss joined us in Guadeloupe we visited the surrounding areas of the island with him: îlet Carret, a sandy strip with just a few coconut trees, îlet Fajou, îlet Gosier, Marie-Galante, and the Saintes. We were lucky enough to spend a full day on the 60’ Trimaran of our friend Claude Thellier. This skilled sailor has already completed two “Route du Rhum” races, and is planning to do the third in 2010. With this F1 of the oceans we reached 28.5 knots with only 18 knots of wind. This boat is the former Primagaz on which Laurent Bourgnon won the “Route du Rhum”.

We left the French island for St Lucia in Marigot Bay, a beautiful and clean Marina where local vendors on little wooden boats offered us fruit, sea-food, and handicrafts. Their catch phrase each time was “My name is Bushman!”

We continued to a mooring in Mustique, which is famous for its prestigious residents: Mick Jagger, Princess Margaret etc. After hiring a golf buggy, we toured the island and finally spent a crazy evening in Basil’s Bar listening to blues music. The next stop was in the Tobago Cays, a natural reserve which is probably the closest to paradise that you can get. It is a group of five tiny islands where the water is crystal clear and we saw many beautiful colourful fish and turtles. It was there that we met Lorson, who cooked delicious barbecued lobsters on the beach, and became a friend.

After that, we sailed back up to Martinique, stopping off at St Vincent in Walilabou bay, where the Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed.

The boss left us in Martinique and we continued our route towards Becquia for a short stop before cruising back down to Tobago Cays, where we found our friend Lorson once again. The next stop was Grenada where we moored in Martin’s marina. From there we hired cars for a full day visiting the island: Concorde waterfalls, Sauter’s point, the River Rum distillery (anything under 75° is thrown back in the pot!) and the tropical rainforest.

We decided to head north once again, where we sailing into strong headwinds and lumpy seas, so we were happy to arrive in Carriacou. There we spent the day before continuing to Little Saint Vincent.

Next stop: the ABC Islands: Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao.

ST

Celandine left St Marteen for the British Virgin Islands in mid December.

We first moored in Virgin Gorda, a paradisiacal sandy beach island where we saw some turtles, Barracudas and Skates, especially in the Baths. The “Baths” area is a National Park where volcanic rocks form a series of grottoes that flood with sea water.

Then for Christmas Eve, our Captain found a nice small Island: Jost Van Dyke. Only 3 houses, a restaurant and a diving shop on the beach. We spent the most exotic Christmas ever there, eating delicious fresh lobsters, drinking rum cocktails, and dancing the Merengue.

After that, a shaking navigation brought us to St Barthelemy, the famous french Island. The amazing number of yachts in the harbor or moored in the bay can be compared with the marinas of St Tropez and Porto Cervo in the high season. We spent new year’s Eve in one of the most fashionable places on St Barths, having a delicious fine dinner and dancing on tables until the end of the night.

Since the beginning of January the boat has been in Guadeloupe and will be there until the end of the month. This long stopover will enable us to repair some elements on board (sails, paint jobs;..), and to discover this big island.

Next destinations: Dominique, Martinique, Grenadines Islands….

ST

Welcome to the ship’s log. You will find below the boat’s news:

Celandine set off from Antibes on the 19th November to start her 3 year worldwide trip.

A few minutes after leaving port, a group of dolphins followed us symbolizing good luck. Lucky dolphins meant a lucky crossing. For the navigation until St Marteen 2 crew members joined us: Arno and Andrew also called “The Beatles”. After a fuel stopover in Cartagena (Spain) and calm navigation through the Gibraltar’s strait we arrived in Las Palmas (Canaries Island) on the 26th November. The boss joined us to spend 5 nice days in the Island, hoping to catch a marlin….unfortunately it was not the best period for this, but we did watch plenty of whales not far from the coast.

We left Gran Canaria the 1st December for the Atlantic crossing heading for St Marteen (Caribbean).  The first days were animated: no wind but a big swell which was not good for the crew spirit, and for the fuel autonomy! The wind finally did arrive with the “Alizées” (trade winds) and we caught 3 dolphin fishes in only one day. Thanks to David the biggest was around 20kg! Laurence, our favorite cordon bleu chef had nicely prepared a delicious fish dish! The last week we had a lot of wind, and we reached the top speed of 15,4 knots for 38 knots of wind! As a fitting conclusion to our voyage, Pierre-Marie caught a magnificent 20kg sailfish but as it is sacrilege to catch and to keep one, we released it back into the ocean…for the next fisherman to catch!

It took us 13 days 12 hours and 40 minutes to reach St Marteen, which is quicker than expected. Now, the boss will join us soon and we will cruise around St Marteen, St Barthelemy and the British Virgin Islands until the beginning of January 2009.

The crew sends best wishes to all of you for a merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous new year in 2009.

ST