At the end of last year we were in Cape Town, South Africa. Now, we’re in the Caribbean and continuing west. What I want to tell you today is how we got from South Africa to Tobago — the route, the timing, the weather, the stops, and everything else.
If you’re interested in the sailing route across the Atlantic from South Africa to the Caribbean, or planning to do something similar yourself, I hope this helps!
Related:
3 Days in Fernando de Noronha by Boat
Highlights of Sailing and Surfing Tobago
The Overall Route
First, here are the rough stages of the route:
- Saldanha, South Africa – St Helena (1700nm)
- St Helena – Fernando de Noronha, Brazil (1700nm)
- Fernando de Noronha, Brazil – Tobago (2000nm)
Each of these are pretty long passages, and the stops aren’t really long-time cruising destinations — they’re more just brief stops along the way.
Now let’s break down each of those stages.
Saldanha to St Helena
We left Saldanha on the 31st of December amidst a thick fog, starting the year with our first night at sea of many. The first two days were really good sailing and we made good ground comfortably.
Following those first two days the wind gradually picked up and we set the sails either reefed wing-on-wing or genoa only.
The wind was always behind us, only ever creeping up to about 100° apparent if it lightened off. The swell was reasonable too, mainly on our port quarter and not too big.
Most mornings were cloudy, though squall activity was minimal and we didn’t have to worry about rainstorms too much. By midday it was clearer skies and steady wind all the way into the evening.
On the morning of day eight we turned the engine on for the first time as the wind was light and the sails flapping all over the place were very annoying. It didn’t last long however, and we were soon getting the spinnaker up. We flew it until the evening when the wind dropped again.
We motored on and off through the night, and the next two days were filled with wing-on-wing sailing and some hours with the spinnaker up.
I woke up on day 11 to find we had 35nm to go. We sailed with just the genoa all the way to the island and then motored in as a squall hit — great timing!
Thankfully the sun came out and we found ourselves looking at the huge cliffs, the little town, and a few other cruising vessels. We’d made it.
Clearing in was very smooth. It’s such a crazy experience sailing to St Helena, you can read all about what we did here.
After five days, it was time to continue on to our next passage — another ten to eleven days at sea.
St Helena to Fernando de Noronha
We set off on the 17th of January, not really knowing which port we were heading to in Brazil, but heading that way regardless.
We left early in the morning around daybreak and made our way out of the lee of the island.
As soon as we were out we put sails up and started with wing-on-wing once again. There were some serious criss-crossed seas going on and it was pretty messy. Everyone just found a comfy spot and got through the first-day feels.
By the next morning we’d reduced sails to just the genoa and were cruising along beautifully. The swell had improved and it was much more comfortable. We headed into the night with the sails back to wing-on-wing.
I woke up to find no one had had to touch anything and we were still going the same. This was the case for the next few days — only having to motor a little when a squall came through. Otherwise it was smooth and we rarely had to touch anything.
Most days from 9am onwards we’d have consistent winds. Then come nightfall it would increase a bit and we’d reduce sails for the night. Early mornings were shifty but still strong winds, and then it would gradually level out.
Day six saw us flying along under spinnaker for a bit, pulling it down before dark to replace it with “white sails”.
The next day was also white sails and we continued ever closer to our destination, which we had now decided would be Fernando de Noronha. The sailing angle from Recife (our other option) up to Fernando wasn’t great.
The last night was a bit squally with shifty winds, but in the morning we got sails up and sailed the whole way in under spinnaker.
Arriving was amazing and it was so cool to visit a part of Brazil. Though it was short, you can go read about what we managed to squeeze into our visit here.
Only three days later the weather was pushing us to leave on the third 10+ day passage of the crossing. By this point no one really wanted to do it, but we knew that once this one was done we could rest for a while.
But first… it had to be done.
Fernando de Noronha to Tobago
We left Fernando in the afternoon of the 31st of January. Sails up, and we cruised away — by sunset the horizon behind us was empty.
We had an awesome full moon for the start of the passage and it made the nights a lot nicer.
The first morning was wing-on-wing (how many times am I going to have to write that?!). Then by the afternoon we actually had the spinnaker up and flew it through the night.
Night two we pulled the spinnaker down with enough wind to have only the genoa… until 4am when Dad woke me up to put the mainsail up as well. But then by daybreak we’d pulled the sails down and were motoring.
This passage is a tricky one to forecast. As you curve over the Brazilian coast there are currents (hopefully in your favour), decent swell, and unpredictable squalls.
The key part is the squalls.
You cross the equator early on in the passage and then continue west-northwest, eventually getting above the squall line that tends to sit around the equator. We were constantly studying Windy and trying to figure it out.
Most mornings would be cloudy, maybe a sprinkle of rain, and varying winds. By midday everything evened out and you could relax until sunset-ish, when the wind tended to pick up and we would drop some sail heading into the night.
So sometimes we’d be motoring, then the next day we’d be reefed down and sailing. It’s just how it seemed to work. It definitely wasn’t a “set the sails and forget it” kind of passage.
Night seven we had a terrible night full of squalls, big waves, and 30 knots of wind. This continued through the next morning. Everyone was absolutely wrecked by the time it finally dissipated around 10am.
But man, it was a taste of what the area can be like. We also passed an oil rig that day… kind of cool.
Day nine we completed a 207nm day — our best in a long time — and that was backing up a 206nm day the previous day. We were flying.
The last afternoon saw us flying the spinnaker again, and then we brought it into Tobago under the genoa, arriving around sunrise and anchoring at the southern end of the island. We’d made it.
Summary
We’d finally made it.
To do 6000nm in six weeks is pretty crazy — no, it is crazy — and I’m not in a rush to ever do it again. By the time we arrived everyone was well and truly ready to get there. Thankfully, Tobago was just what we needed to recover for a little while – go read my thoughts on this beautiful country here.
Overall, the Atlantic treated us well. It’s a completely different ocean to the Pacific and the Indian, and it demands its own respect.
If you’re planning to cross the Atlantic and have questions about specific parts of the route, or you’ve done one of these passages and want to share your experience, please comment — I’d love to hear!
thanks for the read. why were you in a rush to finish it and why couldn’t you stay longer in Brazil?
Hi Chelsey, thanks for commenting. To answer your questions: we were in a rush because we wanted to get to Panama in time to transit the Canal and cross the Pacific. We would’ve loved the chance to see more of Brazil, but I guess now we have more to come back and explore! Also, the swell got really big in Fernando de Noronha, and it was getting a bit sketchy on the boat… so we ended up taking the available weather window. Hope this answers your questions 😊