transequatorial passage / 21 days: rio de janeiro, brazil to st. david's, grenada, west indies

We had a smooth non-stop passage from Rio to Grenada, completing our circumnavigation with the two oldest kids (Tormentina & Raivo), when we crossed our own path from 2011 on the paper chart just off the coast of Recife. Back then Tormentina was three and Tarzan was one.

So wonderful to be naked & warm in the waters of the north Atlantic after so many Southern Ocean miles of blasting the heat and being bundled in all of our technical layers. We said goodbye to the Albatross & thick kelp of the south and traded them in for flying fish, needle fish, & the more delicate seaweeds and algaes of warmer waters.

My oldest daughter Tormentina was a huge help with our youngest, Tarzan - keeping him safe and being an extra set of hands when we needed - during sail changes, systems checks, cooking, cleanring... So grateful for her maturity & responsibility up the entire coast of South America - we couldn't have done it without her.

We made landfall on May 13, 2017 after 21 days at sea. Our children were ages 8, 6, 4, & 1.

Parting view of Paul Landowski's art deco statue - Christ the Redeemer - as we left Rio.
Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (April 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (April 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (April 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (April 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (April 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (April 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Sargassum muticum. Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Sargassum muticum. Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Four on a seat designed for one. Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

No luck fishing - only losing lures - Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

Passage / Rio de Janeiro to Grenada (May 2017)

downtown antics / punta del este

Climbing Fools. Punta del Este / Maldonado Department / URUGUAY (March 2017)

Trippy sidewalk tiles. Punta del Este / Maldonado Department / URUGUAY (March 2017)

cruising world (usa) / february 2016

Cruising World (USA) / February 2016 print issue
"Southern Ocean, Family Style" - Story & Photos by Somira Sao

A story I wrote in 2013 (just after Pearl's birth) appears in the current issue of Cruising World (USA).

The 8-page spread documents a 30-day non-stop family passage we made aboard Anasazi Girl in the Southern Ocean in April 2012 from the Cape of Good Hope (Simons Town), South Africa to Fremantle, Western Australia . At that time, Tormentina and Raivo were ages 3 and 1.

The story and the type of sailing you experience at this latitude is without a doubt some of the most difficult and challenging you can take on. It takes a certain level of sailing experience, risk management skill, the right kind of boat, crew & conditions, as well as a very high mental & physical threshold for discomfort.

Tough is tough, but when the sailing here is good, it's really damn good. It's that feeling you ride long after the voyage is over.

Thanks to editors Mark Pillsbury & Jennifer Brett for supporting our sailing program and a big thanks to Dave Weaver for his work on the story layout.

"Southern Ocean, Family Style" - Story & Photos by Somira Sao
Cruising World (USA) - February 2016 issue

"Southern Ocean, Family Style" - Story & Photos by Somira Sao
Cruising World (USA) - February 2016 issue

"Southern Ocean, Family Style" - Story & Photos by Somira Sao
Cruising World (USA) - February 2016 issue

"Southern Ocean, Family Style" - Story & Photos by Somira Sao
Cruising World (USA) - February 2016 issue