We were SET UP by drug smugglers - a WARNING to sailors!

We could have done this entire episode with just the sailing, which was sporty at times, and beautiful at others. In fact we really considered leaving out our... incident. Why? Because honestly, it was an intimidating situation. The realisation that we'd likely been tracked on AIS by the authorities from that moment onwards still gives us that nervous feeling you get when you're walking through airport security, despite knowing the naughtiest thing on you is two paracetamol and your sibling's headphones that you've borrowed without asking!
BUT we concluded that it's really important that other sailors are made aware of the smuggling risks in the area between Spain and the Balearic islands, help them understand what and why if they have similar experiences, plus what to expect if it's followed up by a surprise Border Force visit!
If something similar happens to you, we would really advise taking footage if you can (discreetly - don't aggravate a potentially volatile situation). We obviously didn't get any of the vessel as it made an aggressive beeline for us and eventually turned when just 25 metres away from our hull, because Bryony was a little busy yelling and helming in a panic... but even if you can get some footage afterwards like we did, explaining what just happened, it can serve you well if you get questioned by authorities. Additionally, make sure you write in your log the details of what happened, and keep a strong log afterwards to show exactly the rest of your route, to help show that you've not made any sneaky pick-ups or deliveries along the way! That log was our saviour, given that our chartplotter had erased our tracks by the time we were questioned!
Just don't do a Bryony and offer Border Force a hot bevvy whilst they're ransacking your boat :)
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[@christip20]

First time I’ve seen you guys, but I’m glad I did and it’s sounding as if it’s going to be exciting! I’ve subscribed.

[@CutterboveSailing]

We are glad you did too. Welcome aboard ⚓️ And yes, there's still plenty more excitement and adventures coming up!

[@sirkyoj1]

I think I’m going to setup a Wyze camera like in my house. It’s low voltage and always records. This way I just have video to show that I’m just a middling sailor.

[@CutterboveSailing]

It's definitely a good idea. On a good day, you'll get nice videos of dolphins. On a bad day, it'll prove your innocence!

[@SoniaBalfour]

We were boarded and searched by french gendarmes in Riatea,french polynesia,they thought they had hit the jackpot when they found a 1KG bag of Fiberglass powder filler mix,,,,that is untill they tried tasting it,like they do in the movies.

[@CutterboveSailing]

Nooooooo 😅 They'd be washing their tongue for a week! (Note to self: no suspiciously packaged fibreglass powder).

[@h.rutten2187]

That’s why you put your cocaine in the top of the mast or under your boat hooked on a easy to release weighted line.

[@CutterboveSailing]

@@h.rutten2187 criminal mastermind has entered the chat 😅

[@h.rutten2187]

@@CutterboveSailing I’m not the first Dutchy considering how to smuggle drugs in and out of Spain by boat.😜

[@patrickandmichaela]

Wow! Gives a whole new reason to avoid vessels coming too close to you! Would have never even thought that was the case. Glad y'all were able to make it on time and get to the marina safe, even though it was a bit of an eventful arrival 😆

[@CutterboveSailing]

Doesn't it just 😄 We hope to never receive a welcome like that ever again!

[@mattdouglas5570]

One of my absolute favorite channels Thankyou

[@CutterboveSailing]

We appreciate you equally! Cutterbove would be nothing without the (to us, mindblowing) support, so thank you!

[@romeowhiskey1146]

GREGORY PECK! not CARY GRANT

[@CutterboveSailing]

You gotta stop making us laugh like this 🤣 My (Bryony) favourite book is To Kill a Mockingbird, and Gregory Peck was awesome as Atticus Finch in the movie! I approve of this comparison.

[@SailingYachtSaltyLass]

There does appear to be something in the water (odd looking wave breaking in the same spot a few times) around 11m21s - maybe they *did* dump something overboard 😮It's down in the bottom right corner halfway between horizon and screen edge and to the left of YT's "Autoplay" button. It certainly made for a heck of a memorable passage 👍

[@CutterboveSailing]

I've watched that few seconds over and over now that you've said it 🤣 It's not impossible that they did! It was all a bit frantic, and I was busy helming to avoid collision, so I was likely oblivious to anything else. Going to have to watch it a few more times now!

[@sailingnomad4963]

Crazy bad luck with the drug runners! Look into fitting Lee clothes, or better yet, pipe berths that you can raise while in them with a block and tackle. It will pin you in and keep you from rolling and waking you! Ear plugs or earbuds for the noise from the engine and sea state. Make sure your watches are long enough that the off watch is getting deep REM sleep. Shorten the watches as the Wx deteriorates and the on watch starts to get too cold or exhausted. Really enjoying the videos! Though, keep it up!!!

[@CutterboveSailing]

Your comment seems to have appeared twice, but it was a good one, so I'll copy and paste our reply onto this one too 🤣⚓️ Hey there! We do have lee cloths which we use when very rolly one side to the other, otherwise we just keep to the leeward side. But I doooo like the block and tackle idea! I've never really found our lee cloths to feel sufficiently secure and do think they're overdue an upgrade, and a block and tackle would be quicker to release if we need to jump out and assist, which is another reason why we don't use them so much. I'm definitely going to ponder that option 😊 Thanks! Earplugs kinda also depends on the sailing conditions as to how often we use them, but we probably could afford to relax and be a little kinder to ourselves and use them more often, given we are still alive so far 🤣

[@damianmulally2985]

Wow! What a story! You'll be watched whilst you're there I assume. Time to plot a course to Fiji! (Not Colombia)

[@CutterboveSailing]

Can't lie, we were a little concerned that we might have difficulty leaving Spain a few days later to fly home for a funeral, or even worse running into trouble when trying to re-enter the country the following week! But thankfully we seemed to be okay 😅 Columbia is on our list, but luckily not for a while yet!

[@rickkwitkoski1976]

@@CutterboveSailing Many cruisers have stopped in Columbia. Even recently. Don't pass it by when you get there.

[@CutterboveSailing]

@@rickkwitkoski1976 we've heard very good things about Columbia. Tony's half Chilean (a little fun fact haha) so we do plan on dedicating some time to South America!

[@nickfountain8420]

The algorithm sent me here, glad it did. Never would've thought about that with the boat heading in your direction intentionally to make it appear as if they dropped off a package for you to pick up. Makes sense though. Definitely tells you that fishing vessel is up to no good. Even if they weren't running a package of drugs at the moment. For the fishing vessel to divert in your direction should tell the local police that vessel is one to keep an eye on in the future.

[@CutterboveSailing]

We are glad it sent you here too! We've since heard that the first time smugglers set up a sailboat in roughly the same area (I think a bit further west though), the Skipper was very fortunate, as he had cameras rigged up on deck so could prove his innocence very easily! Since then I think the authorities have cottoned on to the likelihood that sailboats are sometimes being framed as a decoy, but obviously still have to conduct the necessary searches and questions. I would have liked to know what did go down when the border force rib caught up with that fishing vessel!

[@ready_4_sea]

A thorough boat search could be standard procedure for any arrival in the Pacific Ocean, and especially in Australia and New Zealand, if only for biosecurity reasons. It has become unusual in Europe over the last decades, but it is something worth being psychologically prepared for.

[@CutterboveSailing]

We've heard it can be quite intense in the Pacific... we shall have to brace ourselves for that in advance. It always feels very intrusive, but we do understand the reasons.

[@ready_4_sea]

Indeed,@@CutterboveSailing, it is part of being welcomed as a visitor anywhere to accept local regulations. And as a result, customs and border controls can be intrusive, you are totally right.

[@uupdown2]

A bit scary, yeah. Makes for a good story though. I'm curious, why is the light in the saloon red? Good video. Looking forward to more.

[@CutterboveSailing]

Thanks! Although sometimes we could do without the good story 😅 We do laugh about it now though. That's a good question! We use red light at night because red is best to help maintain our night vision. Dim red is optimum, but a dim greeny-blue colour is another option - not quite as good as red for keeping your eyes adapted to the dark, but has the benefit of enabling better distinction between colours if needed. Back in the day charts were black and white so red light was fine, but we have coloured charts now and red doesn't enable a sailor to distinguish between the colours easily, so some people choose greeny-blue over red as a result.

[@sailingnomad4963]

Lee clothes, or better yet, pipe berths that you can raise while in them with a block and tackle. It will pin you in and keep you from rolling and waking you! Ear plugs or earbuds for the noise from the engine and sea state. Make sure your watches are long enough that the off watch is getting deep REM sleep. Shorten the watches as the Wx deteriorates and the on watch starts to get too cold or exhausted.

[@CutterboveSailing]

@sailingnomad4963 hey there! We do have lee cloths which we use when very rolly one side to the other, otherwise we just keep to the leeward side. But I doooo like the block and tackle idea! I've never really found our lee cloths to feel sufficiently secure and do think they're overdue an upgrade, and a block and tackle would be quicker to release if we need to jump out and assist, which is another reason why we don't use them so much. I'm definitely going to ponder that option 😊 Thanks! Earplugs kinda also depends on the sailing conditions as to how often we use them, but we probably could afford to relax and be a little kinder to ourselves and use them more often, given we are still alive so far 🤣

[@Salzbuckel]

50% max is understandable , always mumbling, but very fast and too silent, but therefore with loud background. Then pronounce spanish locations in some weird english dialect, make sure we get no idea, where you were. Pictures always out of focus. Can you do anything right? I was interested by the title, but could make it to the end.

[@Captain_Clark_CDoryAdventures]

Well thanks for letting us all know how you got so many subscribers on your channel. You are the best to ever do it and we should all take a page from your book. I know I'm going to. May God bless you always. 🙏