Plans made in the sand at low tide have a tendency of not lasting! So it is that Toodle-oo!’s plans have again modified!

We were going to head over to Portugal and then start the race down the east cost of South America to Patagonia – planning to arrive around Christmas time. It was always a bit of a slog with lots of miles – but got us to where we really want to end up quickly – and in the southern summer…

Well, things started to go awry when I met with Andy O’Grady on the first evening event of the OCC pursuit rally. Andy has authored one of the Chilean cruising guides – which we own – and has sailed his beautiful boat Baelena there a couple of times… When I realized who I was talking with, I told him I’d read his pilot – to which he responded “well you didn’t read it carefully enough – you’re heading off at the wrong time of year!” Whether or not we decide to follow Andy’s advice (which is to sail down during the southern winter) we have decided to delay our trip south. Instead, we’re heading back to Scotland to gain a little more experience of remote sailing and self-reliance! Plan is to enjoy a week or so in San Miguel – island of Laurie’s heritage – and then head north to the Outer Hebrides – with any luck including a stop at the fabled Saint Kilda.

We’ve had a great time in Horta, meeting numerous crews from around the world at the OCC’s Pursuit Rally, which was packed with events and wonderful dinners and drinks parties. To add icing to the cake, the final dinner saw numerous prizes being awarded and we walked off with the longest distance covered (2,738NM) AND Fastest Boat in the Fleet of 50 with an average boat speed of 6.84 knots and just 20 hours of motoring during the 16.5-day voyage! Very Cool!

In between OCC events we managed some super walks – a great hike around Faial’s Caldera – stunning – and yesterday, at the culmination of the OCC event, we got to hike to the top of Pico’s impressive volcano – the highest point in Portugal.

(Unfortunately unable to load some panoramic shots onto the blog…)

Top of Pico!! Fantastic weather and superb views!

Pico’s summit with Faial in the background.