Cape Town to Walvis Bay Namibia - Sailing Greatcircle (ep.326)

We return from Holland and have some time left to prepare the boat for the upcoming legs crossing the South Atlantic. The first leg goes from Cape Town over 700 miles north to Walvis Bay in Namibia which will take us 3,5 days accompagnied by Aline, whales, dolphins, seals and a lot of birds

[@tonic8945]

Wow what a trip, I was born in Walvis Bay and moved to Hout Bay at the age of 1😊

[@ruslana.6559]

Great as always! Enjoy the high-quality, deliciously filmed video, the magnificent catamaran and the wonderful couple who spend the most valuable thing: personal time, to share the beautiful) I am an old yachtsman and windsurfer... I go faster than the wind in a JP-supersport, your speeds, in this car bring, me simply to erotic ecstasy... adrenaline is heavy, but a sweet drug)

[@vivianeriesterer4279]

such a treat to be able to watch you sailing, your droneshots are amazing and you really give us the feeling to sail with you….thanks for letting us be part of your adventures

[@bryanhughes8373]

Excellent video, it’s wonderful to watch you sail the world, looking forward to watching the next episode👍😊 thank you👏❤️

[@ahminmabed5166]

You guys produce truly amazing, high quality, professional videos. Always such a pleasure to watch. Cheers

[@CatGreatcircle]

❤️

[@codegame027]

I'm a "Sailing AWEN" superfan. I feel really bad for them but I think they are in good hands and I think they could still possibly make it.

[@CatGreatcircle]

I don’t know the details but this kind of damage is often not a big issue. Hope they both make it in time to the show

[@MarketingStrategies28]

1300 miles in 9 days. 144 miles per day

[@zitoune3052]

Je suis toujours autant impressionné par la qualité de vos images; Bonne navigation ! 👍😀

[@pb8484]

Fun riding along ⛵️

[@scarletbegonias2359]

Outstanding Film Making, Mark. You've got a real talent for this.

[@CatGreatcircle]

🥰

[@ismetcalisir3390]

beautiful a video,

[@SVSeaChange]

Sorry to miss you a week or so ago in Cape Town, we visited Etienne and Genevieve on Joly moored opposite you. I am glad you did not have the fog that Sailing Florence had last year going up to Namibia, and I hope next year I have as clear a passage as you.

[@alfreddaniels3817]

Wonderfull feelings when I see you gliding through the water, dancing on the wind. 👍👍😊

[@markmicallef4367]

What a beautiful boat!

[@deepeddysf]

Nice to see you’ve got help from a new athletic crew member that will handle night watches! I know sailing this boat as a couple possible but it’s a big job.

[@CatGreatcircle]

Yes it is so much more relax to share the watches with 3 aboard. To sail the boat 2 and mostly 1 is enough but without enough sleep it’s much easier to make mistakes

[@AHmad-pm4pb]

Nice video. Envy your travels. How about more drone view.

[@laurence9695]

Im learning: i had this image that Cape Town and that part of the world was constant battering of storms and horrendous winds. And here you show sunny days and flat seas!!!

[@CatGreatcircle]

The area around both capes (good hope and Agulhas) does have pretty impressive weather a lot. We did leave a day later than planned because it was blowing over 50 knots outside on the 11th

[@carolinajanssen6451]

You had the total SA package at sea. Ashore I remembered the many steps & Houtbaai the restaurant and route😍. Back to sailing .. no words can capture your footage! Wow! Our small Beneteau’s name is Skattie (Zuid-Afrikaans lieverd) my husband just walked in and suggested to change it to “small circle” because of our limited sailing experience😂. We wish you a super sailing 2024 from a cold and white Holland.

[@CatGreatcircle]

Schattie in Dutch 😎

[@bertju100]

Mooie jacht op prima plek.

[@erronius1]

Nice tunes this vid

[@abhishekparmar6702]

can you guys do a video talking about experiences (and security) of sailing along western coastlines of african continent, esp past angola, lets say congo to senegal ? that is if you go that way.

[@CatGreatcircle]

Sorry, crossing to St Helena this Monday

[@abhishekparmar6702]

@@CatGreatcircle ahh alright. fair winds and following seas to you. :)

[@sylibb]

Nice vid, what is the music? Love it

[@CatGreatcircle]

Listed at the end of

[@frederikdecoene8860]

As Dutch people , you certainly could exchange with some locals in afrikaans….

[@CatGreatcircle]

Yes sure we could understand a lot back and forth

[@Ictblaze]

What type of music is this? I love it!!! U think they have on KZbin so i can listen to it?

[@CatGreatcircle]

You didn’t watch until the end did you 😎?

[@isabelle_Unity]

Great report sail and video footage from the drone. How do you manage to avoid fishing boats at night not on AIS ? Thanks and have a nice day.

[@CatGreatcircle]

Thx! If they would all be that big it’s not an issue as they will show up on radar for sure. It was a bigger problem in Indonesia with all the wooden structures out there in really deep water

[@livingthervlocalifecarlosa3111]

I have not seen you do any fishing

[@JosePedroEspinosa]

Just a suggestion: Taking reefs sailing downwind is just as easy as taking reefs sailing upwind, it is different, but it is not more difficult.

[@CatGreatcircle]

We tried that as well, on our boat the biggest risk doing that is breaking the gate on the masttrack that’s there to be able to get the cars for the main off. It’s really sensitive and in a position where it will damage easily

[@RGF56]

Great videos . Are your shrouds wrapped to prevent chafing on something ?

[@CatGreatcircle]

To prevent resonance from the wind

[@mckenziesonthemove807]

Great video I noticed you head up to wind to reef giving you 30 knots apparent with full main up for some moments. Is it not possible with your mainsail to reef down wind ?

[@CatGreatcircle]

It’s easier and safer upwind. Without a rotating mast there’s too much risk breaking the gate in the masttrack when reefing downwind As a reference by the way reefing instructions for going upwind on an O55 are max 31 knots apparent

[@mckenziesonthemove807]

@@CatGreatcircle I appreciate your feedback 👍 31 knots apparent for full main ? or do you mean with reefs as well. I’ve practiced down wind reefing last week with ballbearing cars but none rotating mast and seemed very easy but didn’t know there was serious stress on the mast track so it’s now concerned me you said this. We are always so nervous speeding up and heading upwind with full main in almost 30 knots even if it is briefly to reef as we get serious heel on our 45 in big waves. Very unsure what practice to pursue

[@CatGreatcircle]

@mckenziesonthemove807 I understand your feeling when you actually start the turn, even though the 55 is much heavier. Full sail on the O55 until 24 it’s apparent downwind / 31 kts upwind. Of course in the manual for flat water, not often the case with this much wind

[@ozolli]

Hello, I noticed you have a Vesper Cortex VHF onboard. I have heard mixed opinions on this VHF, especially that its auto squelch is not really efficient. What is your experience on that VHF please ?

[@CatGreatcircle]

We had some problems with charging the handset but in the meantime it seems pretty stable.

[@CanadianGrenadian]

I love your wife

[@CatGreatcircle]

Me too 😎