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STORMVOGEL - 1978

STORMVOGEL - 1978

Jacek Pałkiewicz
2006-06-17 14:59:41

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off. It had eventually, and we were now able to bask in the unusual luxury of a winter sun.

On arriving in the dock yard, we found a little bar with bamboo chairs and tables outside. There we drank "batida", a squash of many exotic fruits and spoke to the locals, who are always cheerful and seem to move in tune to some never-ending inner music. The yacht was waiting for us in the port, decorated as if for a party, with lowered sails. She looked sleek and exciting. We didn't resist the temptation to board her for long. Within a few minutes we already felt as if we were on holiday. We could kick our shoes off. Such transgressions from good manners are frowned upon in the city, but there it seemed an obligation to relax. As skipper, I played host, but I didn't insist on our stowing everything too neatly. We just threw our bags down the hatches and left it to later to sort out the cabins. In the event, most of us slept on deck, under the stars, in any case.

We were all anxious by now to unfurl the sails and get out on to the open sea.

On board, there was plenty of work for everybody, but the holiday atmosphere made us a little lazy. The scenery encouraged idleness too. Our eyes were met with beauty wherever we looked. The pink sands of the beaches were dotted with palms. At their backs there was the deep green of the forest. Everything was glowing in the golden light of the sun.

It was easy to feel at ease with everyone and everything. Arguments are notoriously common on boats, since the limited space obliges everyone to live on top of one another. Moreover, you can't end an argument by slamming the door and going for a walk. For the moment, however, no quarrels disturbed our serenity.

We were sailing following the coast, admiring the rich vegetation of the islands. We saw the barren rim of Mount Pelee, a volcano which erupted at the beginning of the century, destroying the entire village of Saint Pierre. ...

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I sailed in Stormvogel from Cape Town to Grenada in Oct- Dec 1973 with a crew of about 8 or 10 mostly South Africans. Skipper was Malcolm ???. Yacht was coming off a charter in the Far East and heading back to the Caribbean for more chartering in Jan/Feb.
Very enjoyable and fast for the time with daily runs of about 200nm. I remember being on watch at the wheel in the middle of the night surfing down large swells at 15/16 knots. Pity it had to end in Grenada.

Hamilton Mcdermott, 2008-11-12 15:24:09

I can clearly remember the Stormvogel being built in the General Box factory of Kees Bruynzeel in the outskirts of Stellenbosch in 1960-61. I climbed aboard the unfinished boat several times as a young child.

I remember the Stormvogel, 2008-05-03 07:34:34