Atlantic crossing in a traditional boat

For the ones that love traditional sailing boats.

http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b152/vega1954/barca2.jpg

There were stories that fishermen sometimes crossed from Portugal to Brazil in these boats. I guess these guys want to know what it feels like...even if they travel with a lot more comfort (and an engine).

They have left on 18/12/2005 and they hope to arrive on 4/02/2006.

http://www.portugalrumoaobrasil.com/fotos.htm

http://www.portugalrumoaobrasil.com/barca.htm

 

What a beautiful little boat -what an adventure!

None of your modern rubbish but pure seamen sailing AND LIVING WITH NATURE - I'm jealous

Best of luck to them all!

 

"None of your modern rubbish but pure seamen sailing AND LIVING WITH NATURE"

Well, except for the microwave, refrigerator, electronic navigation, marine radio, marine head... but aside from that, just like they did it 300 years ago!

 

That is peanuts, that comfort. Fact is that they do it with a boat that is hundreds of years old......in design.
And they will make it - even in comfort. The design has been proofed a 10000 times over, and the Portuguese belong to, or are, best sailors in the world.

 

Don't get me wrong. I have the utmost respect for those sailors and the beautiful boat they're on.

I'm just yanking on Walrus's mustache.

 

Deering didn't columbus have a 'marine head' then?
Nothing more marine than sticking your bum over the front of the boat and letting rip - didn't amuse the dolphins (or the deer!) tho'

An' coming from Alaska you know better than to 'yank' on a Walrus's mustache surely

 

Damn me, Vega, I didn't realise the Portuguese had a sailing tradition.....

 

Last news came on 20/01/2006. They have arrived at Cabo Verde without any problem. They have sailed on to Brazil.

About that tradition, kept alive by the fishermen, perhaps you do not know that the names that probably everybody associates with great Portuguese sailors, like Vasco da Gama, or Pedro Alvares Cabral, were not sailors, but warriors, leaders of men, even if I believe that when they have reached those far away places, they had already learnt something about the sea. Pedro A. Cabral, the man that has the glory to be the first to reach Brazil (I have many doubts about that) was a Nobleman from the mountains and I don't know if he had ever been on a boat, prior to his voyage. The sailor was Pedro de Escobar, the pilot, and I believe that he had already reached Brazil before.

Have you ever heard about Lavrador? Why do you think Labrador has that name? Fact is that Portuguese first popular explorations were in that direction, Açores, Lavrador...and do you know why?...Fish...lots of it, cod fish...They were fishermen and they were fishing in those waters since the 15th century. Those were the real sailors, they didn't care about fame and glory, they only wanted a good catch and a better living.

Do you know that even today the cod fish (dried) is the more appreciated fish in Portugal and that it is said that there are at least 100 different ways of preparing it, I mean recipes?

When I was a kid, my father used to bring me to the banks of the river Tejo, to say goodbye to the white fleet, the fleet of big fishing sail boats (3 and 4 masts) that every year sailed to New Foundland to catch cod. That’s one of my fondest memories.

These are some of those boats that have survived:

http://www.gazela.org/g_gazela/index.html
http://www.aporvela.pt/index.19.jpg

 

Hey Vega - I was kidding. Who among us who has gazed at a wide expanse of ocean doesn't realise that the 'damn' Portuguese have been there before.

However I must correct you on two counts -

I think you mean Big Jock da Gama from Inverness, and Wee Jimmy Cabral from Aberdeen

 

well, they have made the passage without any problem (45 days). they are now cruising along the Brasilian coast.

 

Excellent cod fish dishes in Portugal! Probably the best in the world!

Here in Galicia some friends of mine designed and built a traditional 9.5 m 'dorna' and planned to cross the Atlantic the 'old' style: No engine, no electricity, no modern instruments, 16th century cloths and even 16th century food.
Unluckily they have their own jobs to take care of and are still waitng for sponsorship....
http://www.americaendorna.com/

 

Ah, the glories of traditional design: the days when every storm came with its litter of shattered timbers and bloated corpses scattered along the shorelines of europe.

Don't get me wrong: I'm glad that people build replicas of old style boats, and I'm happy to admire those who voyage in them in a sensible fashion. But the hankering back to a supposed golden age of wonderful design is just self deceiving nostalgia. Those days were wickedly dangerous and the death toll appalling.

No modern instruments etc maybe even no weather forecasting? I'm glad your friends have no sponsorhip - sending someone out to to take the real risks of those days would be little short of murder. They were brave men, the Portuguese navigators, but very many of them stayed at sea.

 

Such logic, young gggGuest, never built empires. Can I suggest the Quilting forum might suit you better....

 

Maybe you should be aware the the designer of Irmandiña is one of the best renowned NAs in Spain, dealing with latest technology luxury yachts, as well as several high competition sailing machines. His name is Iñigo Echenique, a good friend of mine, and believe me, he's not crazy at all, as they are not either the other crew members, among them Pepe Garrido, the well known and reputed local wooden boatbuilder who built Irmandiña, also a good friend.

 

The Portuguese boat is not a replica. It is a recovered old sailboat.

I believe that boat is more seaworthy than the same size modern production typical sailboat. It is a heavy displacement boat (probably more than twice the weight of a modern boat) with a hull perfected by many generations of sailors.
Of course it is not as fast (average speed is about 5 knots, maximum speed recorded 11 knots) and it would be a lot more expensive to build from scratch, comparing with a modern boat. It also needs a lot more maintenance.
I did not say that they had not weather information (they had a satellite phone) and they had modern instruments...they had a good sextant

Sailing in a boat like that has to do with style and pleasure and you can believe me, in many ways that boat will be more comfortable than a modern light production boat and for many people more enjoyable.

I believe you did not read the full story. They would be escorted by a big sail boat that would be there if something went wrong and they would maintain radio contact with that boat.

http://www.americaendorna.com/seguimiento/barco_apoyo.htm