Wed. 07/17/19
Dep. 9.10am Arr: 2.29pm. 22nm. 5 hours, 19mins
For a pdf of this route, click HERE
The sun was shining as we left Degerby en route to Mariehamn, where we were scheduled to rendezvous with my friend Mark W from Los Angeles. He’s a fine sailor and an even better companion, and I knew he and Richard would hit it off just fine. We hoisted sail soon after leaving port and I was eager to run under jib and jigger in about 14kts of wind, mainly because it requires less maintenance, allowing me to experiment with the Cap Horn windvane. We actually got her working pretty well for about three hours, but then a series of windshifts plus the wind dropping suddenly to about 4 knots meant we abandoned our efforts and fired up the genny to meet Mark shortly after his ferry arrived from Stockholm at 2.30pm.
Mark is well known in my sailing circle for his fondness for florescent green sailing gear. Whether this is because he likes the color or just wants to be seen if he goes overboard I don’t know, but I remarked to Richard that I’d bet him $20 that we’d see on the dock easily because of his garb. And I was right. Mariehamn was hosting a power boat convention and in keeping with their busy schedule, they now had a RIB come out to greet us and guide us to our berth. As we approached there was Mark, – or dear old Wilson as I love to call him after the volleyball that keeps Tom Hanks company in Castaway.
After an embrace we immediately cracked open a few beers and I told him of my adventures so far while he did the same about his recent trip to France, from where he had joined us. We later decamped to the sauna to introduce him to the finer things in life in this part of the world, before Richard made us a stupendous dinner of smoked salmon, potato salad and fresh greens. With beer, wine and good company, it felt like another wonderful beginning.
I was also surprised to see another American flagged boat in residence, a large Hanse named Maverick from Rhode Island. I skulked around the dock until the owners came back and was intrigued to learn that the Newport YC had partnered with the Royal Swedish Sailing Association and brought about a dozen boats over from the States the previous winter for a serious season of sailing on both the east and west coasts of Sweden, including a jaunt over to the Aland islands. I guess word of this magical place is spreading….
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