Either side of our standard breakfast in Las Palmas of freshly baked croissants and various other French pastries, complements of Paul, accompanied by a selection of fresh fruit, fruit juice and each person’s favourite hot beverage, Paw Paw was a well oiled machine as everyone completed their final preparation tasks. These included getting all the flags down, unzipping the stackpack and preparing the mainsail, removing the absorption chains from the stern docklines, replacing these with running lines for easy castoff, closing hatches, stowing last minute bits and bobs, Elaine making our vegetable soup for dinner tonight, disposing of the garbage, installing the stern lifelines and lifting the saloon sunscreens, to mention just a few.

To the music of “Sailing” by Mike Oldfield blasting out of Paw Paw, by 1115 we’d cast off the dock and joined the queue of yachts leaving the marina and what a festive atmosphere it was, leaving Elaine a little emotional. It was fabulous! We were starting our final passage of our circumnavigation.

Bobbing around in the harbour area near the start line, Roy, with help from Paul, raised the mainsail and by 1230 we were underway, crossing the start line under sail on a port tack, albeit a rather difficult manoeuvre, given the complete lack of wind. Shortly thereafter we tacked, switch on one of the engines, set our course southward and said goodbye to Las Palmas.

By 1300 the first Deck Log updates had been completed and everyone had found their spot in the cockpit, while Captain Roy sat on watch, with assistance from Elaine and Paul from time to time; watches were officially starting at 1900.

By 1730 a dinner of homemade vegetable soup, complements of Elaine, and a freshly baked baguette, complements of Paul, had been served and eaten, sails had been set for the night and the engine had been turned off. All that remained was for us to settle into our first night of watches, but not before we watched a beautiful sunset with a green flash, the latter something we hadn’t seen since we left the Caribbean 8 years ago.

With the boys on the first watch, Elaine and Justine headed for bed, but before we knew it, it was our turn. As midnight drew closer, we sat at the helmstation enjoying the waxing gibbous shimmering off the water, the stars twinkling above us and a few yachts for company, their lights visible on the horizon.