TIME ΤΟ TIME

A NON-STOP PASSAGE FROM FALMOUTH TO FORMENTERA ENABLED PHIL JOHNSON AND ROXY SEARS TO MAKE THE MOST OF THE MED

- PHIL JOHNSON AND ROXY SEARS

Slipping our lines on a sunny day in the last week of June, we left Falmouth under blue skies and a gentle breeze, heading south towards warmer waters. We felt a mix of emotions: sadness to be leaving the gorgeous south coast of England we'd become so fond of, excitement at beginning a long bluewater passage, but also a little anxiety as, this time, the clock was ticking.

In three years of living full-time aboard our 1986 Cheoy Lee Pedrick 47, Sonder, we've explored many exotic cruising destinations, but never one as expansive as the Mediterranean that exists within a single immigration zone. A winter in the Caribbean, for example, can involve entering and exiting a dozen different territories. But islands are small and you can generally extend your cruising permit. In the Med, however, most of the northern coastline and islands all fall inside a single immigration zone, which limits non-EU visitors to 90 days out of every 180.

The 90-day Schengen restriction presented a difficult choice from the outset. On one hand, we could 'start the clock' as close as the Brittany coast in France, then enjoy stopping in Galicia, Spain, and along the Portuguese coast as we sailed south. Alternatively, we could sail non-stop to our first planned destination inside the Med: the Balearic Islands. Though a much longer distance to cover offshore, it would allow us to reach warmer waters more quickly and use all of our limited Schengen time to explore east. An exceptionally fair weather window made this decision easier and we set off from the Cornish coast for a 1,500-mile direct sail to Formentera in the Balearic Islands.

BENIGN BISCAY