At Måløy, a short stop overnight, then Vagabond left Norwegians fjords, protected, to cross the North Sea, rougher! Two days and half a dozen of oil rigs later, here we are in Lerwick, Shetlands, warmly welcomed by Leslie. Close friend of Norwegian Blue's crew, which was together with us in the Northwest Passage in 2003, he is following Vagabond since. Great stories to share, discovering the islands and taking of the boat before sailing to Scotland, as soon as weather will be fine.
Yesteday afternoon, Vagabond crossed the Polar Circle. She has been in the Arctic for almost six years! She will go back next year, after the good refit planned in Brest.
There is not much snow anymore on the mountains along the fjords, temperature is rising and the stove can be turned off during the day! Wind is pushing us and northern lights are looking after us during night watches...
In a few hours, Vagabond will be leaving Tromsø. Piem, André, Stéphane and me are heading for Brest. We will never forget the last downhill ski trips, in Lyngen's powder...
Since last week, Vagabond has got back her family crew. Léonie had her third birthday on board (like previous ones!), and her younger sister is adapting well to her floating home. Sky is still blue, temperature increased from -15°C to -8°C, and first of all wind stopped. Conditions are now perfect to welcome our friends and sail in the fjords for about 8 days, heading to Tromsø. A little bit further, in the Lingen Mountains, Vagabond will then take a group of mountain skiers to some unusual summits. What a pleasure to sail in winter, even above the Arctic Circle! Thanks to the Gulf Stream, there is no pack ice here, and the fjords are well protected from the open ocean.
Mid-March, Vagabond will be heading for Brest... just on time for us to embark on board Ecotroll!
Aurore, Léonie, France and I arrived at Liland last Friday. In front of this little Norwegian village, between Narvik and Lofoten Islands, Vagabond, at anchor, is waiting for us since last summer. Léonie is looking forward to show her boat to her younger sister! While waiting for the wind to reduce, to make it easier to embark, we are enjoying the beautiful and comfortable house from our friends.
In less than 3 months, we will start sailing on board Ecotroll, heading for East Greenland. This amazing boat is under construction at Olbia boat yard, at Hyères (south of France). Few days ago, the whole team was there, and we could discover the smallest of the 3 Omega sails we will use for the trip (20, 40 and 60 square meters).
H a p p y 2 0 1 0 !
From trimaran Prince de Bretagne, Christophe sent his greetings.
Vagabond's crew is getting bigger: Aurore is born Saturday in Brest!
A new prize for the film Born under the northern stars: the prize Look of schoolboys won at La Rochelle Adventure Film Festival!
In December issue of Voiles et Voiliers magazine, Amélie and Hervé are telling about their stay in Spitsbergen when they replaced us on board Vagabond during the 3 first months of the wintering 2008-2009.
