Oceans of Hope continues to sail down the coast of Portugal and has dropped anchor to prepare for their arrival in Lisbon.  The Skipper reported, “We arrived in Cascais yesterday at 1700 after a beautiful anchorage a few miles out. We have a couple of days here before we head in to the port of Lisbon, and we are planning to make the best use of these days before our transatlantic crossing.”

Over the next couple of days everything on the boat will be checked and double checked to make sure Oceans of Hope is completely ready for the her Atlantic voyage.

The Skipper said, “Today we are checking up on the plumbing in the boat, making sure everything is as we want it for the crossing. Also we are marking up all the safety equipment with stickers and mounting the last safety gear the way we want it for the crossing. The last touch ups on navigation equipment is being done and the wiring is getting a general health check in the mean time. 

The crew is doing a great job measuring all of our spare ropes, so we can determine what we want to use for spare sheets and what can be used for mooring lines.”

However, it’s not all work and he added that, “The crew is having a chance to rest, while doing minor preparations such laundry, cleaning and of course sun bathing.” 

MS Crew member Anne explained that they had to wait for a much  anticipated swim outside Cascais due to a technical glitch, “Our mascot - the Little Mermaid - was her usual relaxed self after having given the crew a stern eye: "Hurry up and drop the anchor!"  Patience was needed because it took the Skipper and Bosun a little while to have the anchor and chain roll out - something was jammed and Skipper was determined to fix it so he could enjoy a dip the water.”

The stop at Cascais also saw the departure of Søren, the last of the original MS Crew members who set out with Oceans of Hope from Copenhagen. He said he was very much looking forward to going home to see his kids.

Anne summed up the occasion by saying, “We had calm waters, sunshine and a possibility to give Søren warm words as he was heading back home this morning. He was the last of the original MS crewmembers that left Copenhagen onboard Oceans of Hope last months and he shared his thoughts about his part of the trip.”

Oceans of Hope will arrive in Lisbon, Portugal on 28 July.