Blue Horizonvideo

7 days across the Atlantic to Cape Verde! Atlantic crossing Part 1

15 February 2026 · 48 min · 179K views · Fuerteventura

Sailboat Blue Horizon cuts through Atlantic waves at speed

What this video covers

Boot, Thilo, Leonie, and two crew members, Pauli and Claudius, depart the Canary Islands on an 850-nautical-mile passage to Cape Verde, sailing south along the coasts of Western Sahara and Mauritania over seven days.0:25 The boat runs predominantly downwind, deploying twin poled-out headsails in a butterfly configuration for the trade-wind run.39:12 A midnight wind shift forces a sail adjustment mid-passage rather than a full pole gybe, with the crew accepting a temporary course deviation to avoid the maneuver in the dark.8:40 Watch rotations run 2.5-hour shifts cycling through all four crew members.19:47 A loud bang mid-passage brings the crew on deck at night, though the cause is not clearly resolved.25:12 Dolphins and flying fish appear briefly.23:52 The crew notes a stark contrast to a difficult passage on the same route five years earlier, which they describe as a trauma now overcome.34:45 Arriving at Cape Verde in near-darkness with roughly 20 nautical miles remaining in daylight, they enter the anchorage cautiously due to reported congestion from fishing boats and buoys.45:37 The passage confirms that adapting watch schedules and accepting minor course deviations at night reduces crew fatigue on a week-long downwind trade-wind leg.

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