Azores and back THE SCENIC ROUTE

Phil Taylor dusts off the charts and turns a winter dream into reality after overhauling his Sabre 27 for a bluewater cruising adventure

- Phil Taylor

Surely we have all planned imaginary voyages during the winter months and although many remain in the imagination, sometimes they actually happen! I first considered sailing to the Azores five years ago and got as far as buying the charts, but then events intervened, not least Covid. Realising that I’m not getting any younger (at least not physically) I was determined that in 2022 I really would do it.

My plan was to sail first to Spain where my wife, Paula, would fly out to meet me for a relaxing holiday in the sun. Finally, I’d sail home to Cardiff by way of the Azores to complete a nice triangular voyage taking advantage of the prevailing winds.

Sea-readiness

Over the winter of 2021 I made further modifications to Tabitha, my Sabre 27 to increase her seaworthiness. I replaced the large and potentially vulnerable cabin windows with portholes, by removing the old windows and filling in the holes.

I am lucky to have a friend who is a retired boatbuilder so the fibreglassing was done to a professional standard. It was then easy enough to cut holes for the polycarbonate ports and add a polished stainless steel surround to act as a secondary weather seal and make it look more expensive than it was.

The deck and cabin were already painted so with a further coat it all blended in nicely.

I decided to invest in a new suit of sails and, after much deliberation, opted for a pair of Vectran sails from Ullmans to their Endurance specification. Vectran is stronger with less stretch than standard polyester so the sails should keep their shape longer – not the cheapest option but worth the extra if you expect to sail far enough to justify it. I’m hoping they’ll last at least as long as I will!