Horta is an island for yachties. Almost every sail vessel crossing the Atlantic from west to east, heading for Europe or the Mediterranean, will stop at Horta. For us, after spending twenty eight days at sea, it was a sight for sore eyes. I can only imagine the feelings that my father must have had at arriving and finally reaching his home territory safely.
Forty four years ago, we were greeted by and escorted into Faial Harbour by a Portuguese frigate, whose officers had heard over the radio waves that Scally was approaching. I believe either the captain or one of the senior officers was a fellow naval officer from the fifties and sixties when my father himself had been a member of the Portuguese navy.
Today’s marina is very different from what it was in 1982, with an entirely new marina having been built with pontoons and jetties. The original sea wall is still there but unfortunately I was not allowed access; it’s restricted to the public because cargo ships tie up alongside.
What still sticks out at first sight, and everywhere you look, is the art work on the walls and pavements, creations by the yachties to memorialise their trip, crew, and time on Horta. We also did one for Scally, but it would have been on the original sea wall and certainly no longer visible after so long. I walked for a couple of hours up and down the quayside and looking out over the marina and boats. Most of the flags were not Portuguese. Most likely boats which had reached Horta and been left there for a while until the crew returned to sail onwards.
I wanted to find two artworks in particular. Spotting them is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. One would belong to one of my closest friends, a very keen and avid sailor from New Zealand, who often sails with us now on Illustrious 6, and who crossed the Atlantic a few years ago. I regretfully could not find that piece of artwork. The second one I did, but only after being told by my brother its approximate location. My oldest brother and his crew arrived in Horta about seven years ago having crossed from the Caribbean. One of the crew members was my niece, his daughter, a teenager at the time, who designed the artwork. She was very happy to know that I had found it.
I honoured all the artworks visible and invisible and all the brave captains, crew members, families and children who reached Horta after crossing the mighty Atlantic.
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