It’s been more than 600 days since I set sail from Spain to try to fulfill my dream: to sail solo around the world. I’d sign up right now if it meant everything would stay the same and I could get home just as I set sail. Mentally, it’s all been a new experience. The speed at which the days fly by is mind-boggling, and it’s one of my concerns. It’s impossible to slow them down—they pick up speed and, in half an hour, days go by; days turn into weeks, and weeks into months. Every sunrise is a gift.
The Sofía VI is decked out in her finest to welcome the shipowners and my sister. In a few days, Itxi will head back to Spain, and I’ll stay with my parents and my sister to continue exploring the Seychelles. We’ve set our anchorage at Eden Island as our base. From here, we have access to mainland amenities and the cheapest airport transfer, since there will be many crew changes on the Sofía over the next few days. These quick visits give me a boost of energy that I use to get through the tough times, whenever they arise.
I hadn’t seen my parents in a year, and it had been a year and a half since I’d been together with my sister and the shipowners at the same time. On the first of our four days aboard the Sofía, we sailed 30 miles to Praslin Island. We anchored in 6 meters of water over white sand and went ashore to celebrate as a family. At the end of the beach, among the coconut palms, we found a wooden shack called “Coco Loko.” It has a bar and an area with tables and chairs offering panoramic views of the entire beach. In the background, the Sofía lies motionless. Watching the sun disappear over the horizon, we finished our last cocktail from the menu that we hadn’t tried yet and returned on board. After a fresh-water shower, we prepared a nice dinner to celebrate our family once again.
We spent a few days on this idyllic beach on Praslin and sailed another 25 miles to anchor off the west coast of Mahé, the capital of the Seychelles. This coastline offers beautiful hidden spots to discover that meet some of my favorite criteria for an anchorage: no access by land and protection from the prevailing winds. We spent a few nights in a very narrow bay with room for only one sailboat. Surrounded by reef and sheltered by three beaches barely 20 meters long, we anchored in 9 meters of water to stay a safe distance from the reefs. The three small beaches are separated by rock formations, and before reaching the shore, there’s a reef that makes it very difficult to disembark by dinghy.
Since there’s no access to this bay by land, we can say we enjoyed our private little beaches for a few days. Every day we explored a different beach and spent our time snorkeling among the reefs, collecting seashells, and strolling along the dead-end paths that wind along the coast. The sea is completely calm, and the reefs are clearly visible from above. You can even make out the seabed where the Sofía is anchored, farther out from the shore. We never missed our date with the sun: every afternoon, when it wasn’t too cloudy, we enjoyed the sunset around 6:30 p.m.
After a few days disconnected from society, we return to the northwest coast to anchor at one of the highest-rated beaches in the Seychelles. According to nautical guides, it’s a good anchorage with white sand and a solid hold. According to online reviews, it’s the typical beach full of resorts and tourists, with a beautiful white-sand beach and coconut trees. Our mission at this anchorage is to find a local eatery to celebrate the end of our family vacation in style.
Any reason is a good reason to celebrate, but when it’s for family, it’s even more of a reason. With my sister leading the search, there’s nothing to worry about. She guarantees good food and drinks. After checking out a couple of spots, all with beach views, we found an area with different food stands offering various types of food and a “soft drinks” stand. Next to it are some small tables where you can sit and watch the world go by from the beach. We fell in love with the area. After a few rounds, we became friends with the bartender, and for the next few rounds, we’ll get double the rum.
As soon as we see the moon’s reflection on the sea, we regain our sense of time. We should start thinking about ordering our last drink. No sooner said than done, we ordered our last drink.
Having my family and my girlfriend on board the Sofía here has been another dream come true. Now it’s time to focus on preparing to reach South Africa.
