Night sailing, the Celestial Sphere & Carolinian Star Compass

Sailing at night and traditional methods of navigation make the hours of darkness an intriguing experience, especially when you can see how the earth moves. Apparently spinning in an easterly direction at 1,037MPH, (completing its rotation in 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds), it puts the speed of sailing boats, at say 6KTS, into perspective.

Perhaps one of the most enjoyable aspects of the night sky is plotting the rise of stars in the east and tracking them across their diagonal trajectory, south then setting in the west. Whilst this presumes your watching in the northern hemisphere, its fascinating to witness the curved path they take over the course of a few hours.

Meanwhile “circumpolar” stars never actually appear to rise or set at all, visible dependent on latitude, with Polaris anchoring their position in the north, but all stars seen from either South of North Poles are apparently circumpolar.

Notwithstanding the physics, indigenous navigators through millennia used the night sky as a means of successful navigation. Whilst many other natural methods were evolved, including the feel of wave patterns on a boat’s hull and how clouds form above land or islands (you can see this often in the Balearics), night sailing’s visual rewards are indeed written in the stars.

They’re also well documented by Tristan Gooley’s in his books - Natural Navigator, How to Read Water and Wild Signs & Star Paths. Great visual metaphors include the Celestial Sphere and the Carolinian Compass – which all add context to the pleasures of night sailing.

Balearics ferry aground at Denia

Late evening on 16 August, coinciding with a firework display to celebrate one of the regular saints days, the 74m Balearia fast ferry from Ibiza lost power and drifted onto the outer breakwater at the entrance to Denia harbour. Fortunately none of the 393 passengers onboard were injured, but it did take several weeks before the 70 vehicles were offloaded individually by crane. The ferry company decided that they couldn’t re-float the “Pinar del Rio”, which has subsequently been dismantled piece by piece.

Tragedy or treachery?

Listening to Ch16 towards the Strait of Gibraltar, the constant reports of barely inflatable craft carrying individuals or groups of migrants provides an unsettling soundtrack to the spectacle of the Pillars of Hercules. As we neared the end of our time in the Western Med, the harsh reality of the plight of these desperate people was brought into sharp focus.

After an early departure from Marina Del Este on Saving Grace II, our Southerly 42RST, we were bound for a short stop in Gib. Mid-way between the two, we came upon an abandoned 12m RIB, complete with 3 huge outboard engines, but empty of life with the occupants’ apparent attempts to either scuttle the craft or damage caused by a collision.

Visible sealed containers suggested a potentially valuable cargo, perhaps something which could have featured in the new Netflix La Linea Narcos series, and added to our sense of trepidation.

After closer inspection we reported it to Tarifa MRCC, forwarding images via WhatsApp, which seems a preferred mode of communication. Apart from a few polite expressions of thanks and an All Ships Sécurité, no immediate action was taken to explore for its former occupants or recover the vessel.

So the big question remained in our minds, was this the result of a human tragedy or the treachery of drug runners? Either way, in true Trafalgar tradition, I believe we did our duty and on a brighter note, we exited the Strait successfully – avoiding the Orcas – and ticked off a bucket list aspiration flying a spinnaker just past Tarifa.

PORTUGAL to the UK

Mandarins and Oranges; the UK’s traffic light system, colour blind to returning yachts

26 May: Saving Grace II is making ready to depart from the Algarve, bound for the UK. The Skipper and crew will provide updates and images to plot our progress. The intended course is taking into account the UK’s traffic light system, which certainly adds to the excitement.

Recent comms with the RYA suggest that they’re in touch with the UK’s Home Office to gain further clarity….watch this space.