22:31.00N 60:08.10E
Helen writes...I suddenly feel like a race commentator..."and they are coming down the homestretch"....after 2 weeks at sea, Bryan and crew are once again in sight of land as they come past Ras Al Had and start the last leg of their journey into Fujairah. It is not the final destination for Aroha. After a short refuelling stop, she will set sail again soon for the final destination at DOSC marina. But Fujairah is where Bryan and crew wil disembark, while final plans are ,made for the sail back through Mussandam and back to the heat and sand of Dubai and some recreational crew found to enjoy the sail back.
Nik has a flight to catch, but that has been put back by a few days, so hopefully he will get a chance to see a little of Dubai before he leaves. Joff will have missed the Eid holiday, but at least will have as short week in work before the weekend starts on Friday. The lads still have some 200 miles left to travel so ETA is looking likely for Tues but weather will again dictate. Bryan's text this morning reads "Land ahoy! Funny, no ships here, though plenty in the night. Wind and sea state dropped".
The lads should be able to pick up a GSM mobile signal some time soon. Just as well as the sat phone credit is getting very low. After tonight, we should have a good idea how long till they land. Fujairah is about an hour and a half drive so quite easy to get to, and hopefully we will have a good view of Aroha as they sail into the marina. For all the mooring stern-to that we did in Maldives, it is nearly 6 months since Aroha was moored alongside a pontoon, so I hope Bryan still remembers how to do it!! I will put the KFC down long enough to take some lines!
I have had a few mails asking for plenty of photos of the homecoming, so can promise an update of pics through the blog real soon. I may have to add captions though, as the crew must all be doing great Robinson Crusoe impressions with plenty of beard growth, so they may indistinguishable from each other.
It has been a long time sitting here following the journey home, so the lads must feel like it has taken forever. Watch this space for more homecoming news real soon....
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