Sailing and
hiking in the Azores with
the Catamaran "Moby
Dick."
Welcome
to the Azores in the heart of the Atlantic
Ocean. Cruising on board a luxurious sailing
Catamaran is a wonderful way to discover these nine jewels in the sea.
Sailing experience is
not necessary, "Moby Dick" comes with an experienced skipper who also
can be your guide on the islands. Islandhopping on a Catamaran is also
a very leisurely way to sail around these emerald islands. Contrary to
monohullswhere
you tend to beconfined to sitting in the cockpit,a
catamaran is always upright and steady and has
plenty of space, allowing everyone a spot of privacy for
sunbathing, reading a book or just enjoying the sea. "Moby Dick" is
also ideal for families with children, always stable, a solid
rail all around the boat, lots of spaces where the
children are absolutely safe.
In any kind of nice breeze this type of boat immediately picks up speed
and does for some exciting sailing. Contrary to small racing catamarans
and the like, large catamarans do not capsize. "Moby Dick"
has a luxuriuos traditional
handcrafted interior. There are for spacious
double cabins
on board. Two double cabins amidships with double berths and two double
cabins in the foreship with single berths. The galley
is outfitted
with a four-flame stove, standard oven, double sink and two fridges as
in any kitchen on land giving for excellent cooking.
The Azores
The Azores
The
Azores
Nine
emerald islands, ranging from the smallest- Corvo with 421 inhabitants
to San Miguel with 140.000 inhabitants, warmed by the Gulf Stream and
surrounded by an ocean teeming with life. All islands are within easy
reach from each other in a day’s trip. The Azores offer some
very
interesting sightseeing too. The Unesco has declared the beautiful town
Angra do Heroismo on Terceira a cultural heritage. On San Miguel are
the Blue and Green Lagoons in a huge extinct volcano cone. There are
several hot spots on the island, in some of them food is cooked
traditionally, one of them is in a small cove and warms the sea,
it’s like swimming in a huge bathtub. Santa Maria with its
dazzling exotic flora is another Madeira- one huge flowery garden. On
Faial is Peter Café Sport, one of the most famous
sailors’
bar anywhere on the planet. The beauty of the Azores is endless. No
mass tourism spoils any of the islands. Due to the Gulf Stream the
weather is always just right- nice and warm but not too hot. From June
onwards you can expect air temperatures between 24° and
28°,
water temperatures 22° - 25°.
Hiking in the Azores
All
nine islands have a variety of excellent trails, pure nature and
fantastic views over the ocean. They also offer many other activities,
see the official Website Visitazores: Visitazores
Islandhopping
Yachtcharter
Islandhopping
You
can chose between going into the ports or marinas and exploring the
islands or staying out for a beautiful night sail under the bright
stars in a fluorescent sea, caused by bioluminescent algae. Every
movement of the boat leaves a glittering trail of small stars in the
water, Dolphins coming up to the boat seem to be swimming in long
shining pipes. Island hopping on the Azores is very pleasant sailing.
You can see the next island when you take off in the morning. However,
just a few miles off the islands you are in the deep sea, 2000-4000m
depths are normal. After a beautiful days cruise you arrive on a new
island to explore. For those who would like a longer trip or need mileage
for their Yacht
Master License
there is the option of a cruise from San Miguel to Madeira (4-5 days),
back to Santa Maria (4-5 days) and then San Miguel, altogether 1000 sea
miles of mainly Bluewater Sailing.
Sea
Watch
Yes,
there are whales to be seen, and the right expression for what we offer
is sea watching; whales, birds, dolphins, turtles, bonitos and sunfish.
Whale hunting from small wooden sailing boats has a long tradition on
the Azores due to the great variety of whales around the islands.
Commercial whale hunting ended in 1966, however, you can still find the
traditional whaling boats around the islands, now used for leisure. You
can often say hello to dolphins coming up to the boat for a visit. Tuna
and bonitos sometimes follow the boat for days on end. In calm
conditions you can go for a swim from the boat. A strange feeling,
swimming in the ocean, knowing there are several thousand meters of
water below you. The water temperatures rise to about 23°C in
July
and 24°-25° in August, with air temperatures around
25°-27° thanks to the Gulf Stream. There is no better
and
relaxed way to get to know a bit about sailing and the sea.
Sail
Charter
The Catamaran
Sail Charter
"MOBY
DICK "
Catamaran:
Casenove 46'
Size: Length 14,6m x Width 7,4m x
Draft 0,75m Displacement: 10t. Sail area: 90m2
Design and construction: Roland de Casenove, Architect Navale, Paris
Equipment:
EPIRB,
Radar, AIS, VHF with automatic emergency signal, two life rafts,
chartplotter, Navtex, GPS(5x), fishfinder/sonar,
autopilot,
solar panels (2 x 100W), 220v generator, inflatable dinghy with
outboard, electric anchor winch, towed water generator, just
to
mention some of the gear. Two 40 hp heavy duty Mariner outboard engines
which are raised into the hulls while under sail. There are
altogether 16 waterproof bulkheads on the boat. Moby Dick is an
extremely safe vessel. The
yacht has an unusual colour, for a good reason: white, blue,
green etc. might look nice in the marina, but the bright yellow is for
safety, making sure you are seen out at sea in all conditions.
Mikael-
or Mike to everybody on board. Born in Sweden and has been boat
building, sailing and surfing all his life. He has logged more than
35.000 offshore sea miles sailing all over Europe. He speaks five
languages fluently (English, German, French, Portuguese- and of course
Swedish).
Videos All
videos were made by guests
Logging
Seamiles If
you need to log seamiles for your Yachtmaster
Certificate there are the options Santa Maria-Flores (320 sm), Santa
Maria - Madeira (500 sm) or Santa Maria - Canary Islands (730 sm). Ask
for a quotiation.
How
to Get On Board
"Moby
Dick" is stationed on the island Santa Maria, perhaps the most
beautiful of the azorean islands, it is also called "Ilha do
Sol"
because of the good weather. Air
Azores (former SATA), TAP, Easy Jet and Ryan air offer flights to the
Azores, Porto and Lisbon. All airlines also offer flights out from
Lisbon to Ponta Delgada (São Miguel, the main island). There
are several alternatives to get to Santa Maria: - Via
Lisbon and then directly to Santa Maria, Azores Airlines operates
flights from Lisbon to Santa Maria on Thursdays and Sundays. -
Fly directly to Ponta Delgada and then on to Santa Maria (daily
flights, 15 min) or take the ferry. - Via
Lisbon or Porto to Ponta Delgada (several flights per day) and then on
to Santa Maria ( the connecting flight to Santa Maria is
free. Please Contact me for more info before you book your flight).
- There
are direct flights from several cities in Canada and the US to
Ponta Delgada (main island). From there it is a 15 min flight
to
Santa Maria. See Azores
Airlines
Terms and Conditions
Four cabins, eight
persons. Low season November
– March: € 2.600.-/Week. High
season April - October: € 3.290.-/Week.
Prices include skipper, harbour fees and fuel for
standard harbour or mooring manoeuvers. No
security deposit No costs for check-out cleaning PAYMENT:
35% deposit at booking, another 35% two months before the charter,
final
payment two weeks before navigation day. Cancellation&Rescheduling: full refund if
we
cancel the charter, no refund if you cancel the agreed
charter, however the deposits remain intact and we can discuss another date.
A standard one-week cruise
should normally give you the oportunity to see and explore five islands: Santa Maria,
Pico,
São
Jorge, Faial
and Terceira.
Last but not least: wind&weather
permitting!
Sail
Charter
