Vie d'écume · video

What this video covers

The 40-foot sailing yacht Corail completes a 25-hour, 160-nautical-mile passage from Port Hawkesbury to Halifax, Nova Scotia, with a new crew of four. The transit serves as a shakedown for an upcoming Atlantic crossing, navigating between two weather systems in temperatures near 5°C. The crew maintains a two-reefed mainsail throughout the trip, occasionally furling the genoa to manage wind gusts reaching 25 to 30 knots in narrow passages. Heavy condensation and smoke from a malfunctioning cabin heater leave the interior damp, complicating rest during night watches. The crew encounters 3-metre seas and periods of total darkness, relying on moonlight and visual references from a lead vessel to maintain course. Upon arrival in Halifax, the captain notes docking difficulties caused by wind gusts and the presence of a dinghy. The crew identifies a need to relocate emergency rations and water from under the cabin floor to the cockpit for easier access during future offshore legs. This passage confirms the importance of crew coordination and gear optimisation before long-distance sailing in cold, variable conditions.

Boats in this video

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