St. Helena is a wonderful island. It can only be reached by boat and the locals, called “Saints” were very friendly. We took a tour of the island which is very fertile and full of tropical vegetation. We saw Napoleon’s home, saw Jonathan the famous tortoise, had lunch at Anne’s restaurant and met several cruisers there. It was a wonderful break in the crossing. We stocked up and filled up our tanks and then headed for the coast of Brazil.

We were under some time pressure to get to Grenada in time to fly to Seattle for our daughter’s college graduation and our crew was very anxious to get home as well. The worst way to make a crossing is with a deadline! We had very light winds once out of St. Helena and trying to make westward to Brazil without losing latitude was difficult. We continued NW across the equator and through the ITCZ - never picking up the “Fortaleza 500” current so famous off the coast of Brazil. We have met a Canadian couple who crossed about the same time and they confirmed they never found the current either. The only northbound current we did get was a few days south of French Guyana and it pushed us along at an added 2 knots. We ended up having to slow the boat down, after all our light winds, so that we would arrive at the river entrance to Cayenne in daylight! We ended up going to Cayenne, French Guyana to pick up fuel and drop off our crew for a flight home. That leg took us 27 days.

Susan and I sailed the last leg to Grenada. It was about 700 miles and was pretty uneventful. The Coastal waters along that stretch are shallow. It was 30’ deep 30 miles offshore so the waves were a bit strange until you got to deeper water.

We pulled in to Clark’s Court marina on Grenada with four days to spare on our deadline. We flew home for 3 weeks and returned to Grenada end of May.

Now that we are back on the boat we will do some local cruising to the nearby islands. We are in hurricane season and constantly checking the weather reports to keep track of any activity. It is predicted to be a more active storm season this year. Our plan is to make a run for Trinidad if anything threatens this area.

Our maiden voyage was 6,000 miles and took a total of 45 days. Overall we were very pleased with the boat - she handled beautifully and we had very few issues with gear and systems. We’re glad it’s behind us and we can now begin to enjoy cruising in the Caribbean. We will sit out the hurricane season here and in November work our way slowly up the island chain and reach Miami in time to feature Flamingo in the February boat show. From there we will head south to Panama and work our way up to Mexico. At least that’s the plan for now.

A list of extra’s we have fitted on Catatude for our comfort and for Blue water cruising.
Spectra 47 Catalina water maker
3x Electric Toilets
Air-conditioning
Fisher Panda Genset
DVD players in all 4 rooms
Sailor 150 broadband internet dome and satellite phone system
Intellian i4 satellite TV system
Forward looking sonar
Upgrade 48mile 4kw Furuno Radar
Furuno 3D Navnet system
Furuno AIS
3 x 90 watt solar panels
Airigen 4 wind generator
Extra two house batteries giving us a total of eight house batteries and 1x dedicated engine battery
Rocna anchor on 100 meters of anchor chain

Why did I choose a Knysna 440 opposed to the dozen other catamarans on offer?

I wanted a sailboat more than I wanted a floating holiday home, I wanted a catamaran that was well designed with sleek hulls that would glide thru the water with the least amount of energy wasted, in other words I wanted a boat that likes to sail.

I wanted a boat that could motor with its small 29hp diesel motors and 3 blade props comfortably at 8 knots on a flat sea running both motors at 75% power setting, or at 6 knots running one motor, and not have to fit 40hp motors to achieve the same results, less fuel burn, less weight, cheaper running cost as fuel is not readably available in East Africa, Madagascar and most of the Indian Ocean islands and Atolls, our first adventure site with our new baby.

I wanted a well build strong, yet light boat with a good track record, i.e. there are 64 Knysna 440 out on the ocean and most of them are blue water sailors, I wanted a boat that we could customise to our needs so that we could sustain a satisfying life onboard whilst cruising our amazing planet.

There was only one boat that fitted the profile a Knysna 440 designed by Angelo Lavranos and build by master boat builder Kevin Fouche and his competent team
The only negative with the Knysna 440 is the low bridge deck clearance of 300mm----, or is it that such a negative, lets debate it?

In my opinion the bridge deck clearance subject seems to be the new buzz word around and is being used by boat builders to sell their boats, hey let’s face it what other marketing tool can be used to say buy my boat because it is better than the opposition, there is really nothing else that separates one catamaran from the other these days all have big saloons all give the option of galley up or down all have king size beds, the balsa wood versus foam core has been covered, the centre board issue has been covered etc.
Let’s look at some of the facts realistically; firstly catamarans are by nature noisy sailing vessels especially in confused seas. If you are not prepared to put up with a noisy vessel then I suggest you buy a Monohull.

The other fact is that ALL cats have bridge deck slap, and yes that is a fact, and yes some more than others, an interesting fact is the difference between the Knysna 440 bridge deck clearance and the cat with the highest bridge deck clearance is a mere 600mm so, when sailing or motor sailing the only time bridge deck clearance comes into play is in an unsettled sea, or when beating into waves or swells, will 600mm really make such a significant difference as to that being the deciding factor on which catamaran to purchase?

Then again like anything there are always pros and cons. Higher bridge deck clearances have their own problems too, an example that comes to mind is lots more windage on the port or starboard beam due to the much bigger surface area which equals lots of fun when trying to dock in moderate winds whilst trying to avoid being pinned by the wind to someone else’s docked vessel!

Fun when anchored in tidal stream areas like the Knysna lagoon, Langebaan or along the Mozambique coast line where with moderate winds when one has wind versus stream situations and your boat is confused as to which way it should lie and swings 360 degrees every few minutes because the current turns your boat in one direction, then the wind hook’s onto your large protruding beam and overrides the current and swings you broad side or to the other direction most times unseating your anchor and usually this happens at midnight, the other thing that comes to mind with higher bridge deck clearance is more fibre glass and foam core is needed plus paint/gel coat which equals a much heavier boat.

The following afternoon, we passed Cape Agulhas, still with the ‘chute up, with the wind up to around 20 knots. We had aimed to angle out to the current, in the hope of picking up a Dorado or two but, with boat speeds averaging 10 knots and regular surfs up to 15 knots, the fishing proved a waste of time.

Just around sun up, on the following day, some 38 hours after leaving Knysna, we arrived at the V & A waterfront, having suffered the usual pasting off Llandudno, with 40 knot winds & very lumpy seas. We had not planned to stop in Cape Town but the boys wanted to hit the Crocs shop so we snuck in, had breakfast & left again, bound for Dassen Island, with great expectations of the crayfish dinner that would follow.

It was our first time at Dassen Island and the weather was perfect.

This was now the day before Good Friday and we were clearly not the only ones with the idea of a night in House Bay. Pretty soon, there were 5 boats lying at anchor. We quickly discovered that this crayfishing story is not so easy. The bait was rapidly devoured by a number of revolting, slimy snake-like fish (Hagfish) and the sum total of our efforts was two tiny crayfish, which we quickly returned to the sea.

Next morning, the fog had closed in and we quietly motored to Saldanha. The weather predictions indicated that the Southerly winds were going to pick up over the next few days so we decided to take advantage of the prevailing conditions & altered course for Paternoster. Fortunately, the fog burned off & we had a great sail up the coast, dropping the hook right off the beach, in the company of Catlyn, a Maverick 400.

By then, it was too windy to go ashore, tempted as we were by thoughts of a good supper at the Voorstrand Restaurant. Our resident chef, Franz & accomplished braai expert Allan, suitably “ge-oelie”, did an outstanding job & we enjoyed a great meal on the boat. At 06h00 next morning, we upped anchor & motored back to Saldanha, before the Southerly got up, to take up our mooring at Club Mykonos. We were greeted by the sight of a whale breaching just outside the entrance to the lagoon. Absolutely magic! After a wash & clean up, we decided that the wind was just right for a sail and we spent the next couple of hours enjoying the 20 knot winds, under full sail.

These are conditions that the Knysna 440 absolutely revels in. We blasted back & forth across the bay. The lagoon is quite shallow but, with a sharp eye on the plotter, we managed to dodge the banks. By then, the boys were getting hungry so we sought shelter at the Saldanha Bay Yacht Club. Arriving there around 15h00, we had a little snoop around and, fortuitously, discovered the Slipway Restaurant. Robbie Dove & the crew of Hot Ice were just leaving so we took their place at the jetty.

We were soon enjoying a fantastic meal, with Gulliver moored right in front of us. By now, it was getting late so we asked the management if we could stay at their jetty for the night. They were happy to oblige & locked us in!

What a magic little corner of Saldanha we had found, tucked away, out of the wind. Another memorable day came to an end.

We had promised to be gone from their jetty by 09hoo and so off we went, back to Club Mykonos. By now, the wind was blowing a solid 20 knots and we nipped in for a quick refuel with diesel, which provided its own challenges, trying to moor at the fuel dock, beam on. It’s then that one appreciates the shelter of Knysna Quays! That done, we took off for Kraal Baai.

That was a great decision as we found a good anchorage, with excellent holding, in the company of our sister ship, Genevieve, originally owned by Rudi Pretorius. Rudi & I had stepped our masts together & he had been kind enough to lend me a R5 coin (I never carry money) to place under the mast, honoring the age-old tradition. Genevieve is now owned by Johan Stemmet, of Noot vir Noot fame.

Fortunately, the wind, which was by now gusting over 25 knots, kept the jet-skis & water-skiers away. We had a long walk on the beach & remarked on how clean everything was. Considering the number of people there, this was commendable.

After another outstanding meal, whipped up by our gourmet chef, Franz, we settled down to watch a Crosby, Stills & Nash DVD. This went down so well that we followed it up with a Santana concert at full volume! The boys were stoked!

Next morning, we ambled back downwind to Club Mykonos. This Southern part of the lagoon is very shallow so we took our time & enjoyed the scenery. Our mooring at Mykonos is almost in the direct line of the harbour entrance and, with the wind now gusting 25 knots again, mooring was “interesting”. A big clean up ensued and we made ready to leave Gulliver to her own devices.

Obviously inspired by the previous night’s music, Allan entertained us & had us rolling around with his “air guitar” antics! The Troggs never sounded so good!

Next morning saw four tired but happy sailors take leave of Mykonos, to start the long drive home. We may have a fairly inhospitable coastline in SA but there are some superb spots to be explored, if one takes the time so wait for the correct weather. Plans are well advanced for Phase 2 of our West Coast Cruise. The anchorages of Stompneus Baai, Sandy Point, Slipper’s Bay & the marina at Port Owen are still there to explore!