All hands planning to head for the Med in the near future-- Listee Milt Baker, who plans to cross the Atlantic in 2007, has started a Yahoo! Group for folks exclusively interested in buddy-boating across the pond. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MedBound2007/ Here's a post of Milt's that explains it all: The following e-mail was posted on the Nordhavn owners' site a couple of days ago and generated responses a number of Nordhavn owners interested in crossing in company to the Med in spring/summer 2007. But this crossing-in-company certainly need not limited to Nordhavns . . . we welcome any experienced skipper who has a proven offshore passagemaking power boat and who is interested in crossing to the Mediterranean this summer. To be sure, this 3,800-mile trip is not for a captain, crew and yacht with little or no offshore experience, but it does represent a good way to experience both the safety and camaraderie inherent in a group crossing. Although this is not being sponsored by Nordhavn or PAE or any other entity, I expect it to be modeled in many ways after the very successful Nordhavn Atlantic Rally 2004, which I helped created and manage. My vision for this crossing is this: a group of experienced and independent captains, each making his own decisons, heading to the same destinations at about the same time and, with a little luck, remaining within sight or hailing distance of one another all the way across. If this has appeal for you, by all means let's use this board to exchange ideas! Thanks, --Milt Baker, Nordhavn 47 Bluewater, Fort Lauderdale, FL Moderator Subject: Med Bound 2007 What are you doing with your Nordhavn next summer? Did you buy your Nordhavn with the idea of crossing oceans? Why not make 2007 the year to get your feet wet with a crossing in company to the Mediterranean? In spring 2007 Judy and I plan to take our Nordhavn 47, Bluewater, to the Med via Bermuda and the Azores, and we're looking for the company of other Nordhavns (or other ocean-capable yachts) for the 3,800-mile crossing. We hope to keep Bluewater in the Mediterranean for about three years, cruising in the summertime and leaving the boat either on the hard or in a marina during the winter months. As a member of the organizing committee for the Nordhavn Atlantic Rally and head of the advance team for the rally, I had a terrific time and learned a lot-and the rally whetted my appetite and Judy's to cross to the Med in our own Nordhavn. The camaraderie and the friendships forged on the rally are what all rally participants remember, but there are lots of other benefits to a group crossing as well. With this in mind, I'm hoping to put together a group of boats to cross to make the crossing in company. This would not be an "official" rally like the Nordhavn Atlantic Rally. Rather, it would be a group of yachts traveling to together on the same schedule to the Mediterranean. It's my hope that the crossing will share several elements with the NAR: * Safety, security and camaraderie of cruising "in company" * Pre-arranged dockage in Bermuda, the Azores, and Gibraltar * Social events in each port * Weather routing from the same company used on the NAR * Pre-departure survey strongly recommended for each yacht, using NAR pre-departure survey checklists * Pre-departure "inspections" of each boat by captains of other yachts making the crossing * Pre-departure briefings and seminars * Daily roll calls and tracking of all yachts On the other hand, there are a number of important elements from the NAR that will NOT be present for this crossing. There will be: * No official sponsorship by PAE or its suppliers * No escort vessels from PAE * No technical support in the form of mechanics, divers, etc. embarked in the yachts which are crossing * No embarked doctors, EMTs or other medical personnel * No up front fee - each captain will be entirely responsible for his yacht's expenses My plan is to follow the methodology of the Nordhavn Atlantic Rally 2004 as closely as possible and as closely as weather will permit. With that in mind, the schedule should look something like this: Meet at Bahia Mar Resort and Marina, Fort Lauderdale May 13 Dockage at Bahia Mar - 3 days Depart Fort Lauderdale May 16 for Bermuda - 925 miles (5.8 days at 6.7 kts) Arrive Bermuda May 22 Dockage at Royal Bermuda Yacht Club in Hamilton - 8 days Depart Bermuda May 30 for the Azores - 1,818 miles (12.0 days at 6.3 knots) Arrive Horta June 11 Dockage at Marina Horta - 8 days Depart Horta June 19 for Gibraltar - 1,136 miles (7.1 days at 6.6 knots) Arrive Gibraltar June 26 Dockage at Queensway Quay At the moment, there's a good possibility we will have a Nordhavn 62 joining Bluewater for the entire crossing, and we've had interest from owners of another 47 and a 43 in joining for the Lauderdale-to- Bermuda leg. Join us for the entire crossing or any leg. If you're thinking of crossing to the Med, don't miss this opportunity to do it in company with a group of like-minded skippers. --Milt Baker, N47 Bluewater, Fort Lauderdale, FL -- Georgs Kolesnikovs Your host at Trawlers & Trawlering, formerly Trawler World, since 1997 Our new site is being readied for launch at <http://www.trawlersandtrawlering.com>