Best country

[AndrewB]

I hated Salvador however and would advise going further south, eg to Vitoria or Rio as the land-fall if coming from Europe.

What did you have against Salvador? I was there for three months a few years back and had a great time - Baia de Todos os Santos is a wonderful cruising area. Salvador itself was a magnet for single-handers as it is so easy to pick up a girl. Carnaval a magnificent spectacle. Some yachties were there indefinitely.

I have heard though that since then there has been increasing crime aimed at visiting yachts. Shame if that's still true.

 

[jdc]

What did you have against Salvador? I was there for three months a few years back and had a great time - Baia de Todos os Santos is a wonderful cruising area. Salvador itself was a magnet for single-handers as it is so easy to pick up a girl. Carnaval a magnificent spectacle. Some yachties were there indefinitely.

I have heard though that since then there has been increasing crime aimed at visiting yachts. Shame if that's still true.

I think the difference may be in the 'a few years ago'.

1. The large Bahia Marina, which is described in Balette as '300 spaces available' and 'there is no problem obtaining a berth' is rammed full, although we did actually get a space, of great big F-O motor boats. It's quite the most racist and polarised place I've ever been, whith fat white mafiosi type blokes waddling down the pontoons accompanied by a trophy bimbo wife and three or four black servants who do all the work, even rubbing sunscreen into the kids. We were told in no uncertain terms by the efficient and charming staff on no account to walk nearby but always take a taxi as it's just not safe on foot. No other foreign yachts, and we were perhaps one of 3 sailing boats in circa 600 berths.

2. The marina near the elevator (Terminal Nautico) is full of stinking and rotting things in the water, and a few scruffy and decaying boats. Outside it, particularly at night, people are injecting themselves with heroin: ok, you just step over them - and try not to slip as they've sh*t themselves.

3. We went to Itaparica and anchored there. All ok, but we were the only foreign boat at the anchorage, and the only one to have been there for some weeks. We were told that some years ago there would have been 30 boats there at anchor, but thaye've all gone.

4. We went up river to Magoragipe and to anchor off San Francisco. No problems, but deserted places. We went specially to Magoragipe for the famed Saturday market. Well, we met a donkey and two sleeping dogs at 9am on the Saturday morning, but nobody around at all. Those who saw us walking up the empty streets (market day has been cancelled indefinitely) wouldn't look us in the eye. We found out later that it's been taken over by drug barons who conduct turf wars there - using machine guns of course - every couple of weeks.

The officials of Policia Federal,e Receita Federale and Capitania dos Portos / Marinha do Bresil were fine and helpful albeit miles away from Marina Bahia. Shopping is excellent in Barra, The Pelorinho was fun for an evening and most people helpful and charming, but somehow it was threatening, with undercurrents of violence and racism. The contrast to Vitoria or Rio is startling.

A shame that this was the first place we came to in Brazil as further S it's SO much nicer!

 

[RobbieW]

yes I was thinking of visiting the rias, any info about them book wise?

Try this ... https://www.imray.com/Publications/Imray+Pilots/Almanacs/IB0031/ ... though its now 8 years old much of the info is culture and food oriented. I dont expect the places described will have changed significantly but its always as well to use almanacs/internet/etc for up to date info where available

 

[tcm]

As many learned and experienced folk show, the “best country” is a matter of opinion.

And your opinion is a matter of your circumstances.

The forum is UK based and for lots of people, that's a damn fine boating area. South coast with access to France and west country very fine. Scotland west coats spectacular, world class aside from the cold, not so easy weekend access for many, so it’s empty outside 6 weeks in the summer.

So here is your primary criterium (?) IMHO - you know what i mean - what’s you your commitment to Home? Hm? Gotta 9-5 job? You need somewhere with max 2 hours flight each way. UK, N France, Spain, Western med, but it’s a mission for a weekend. That’s why people buy motorboats - they know they can get somewhere and back for the flight, no issues.

Perhaps you a bit less committed to Home? But you have loads of friends and family back home. Grandkids, clubs, gardening. Well you could leave those a bit and be easier in southern Spain, more wider Med, Greece, Turkey.

Can you leave for months at a time? You can have a boat on the other side of That Ocean - and the carib or n/s America is possible. But the flights are one or two thousands not one or two hundreds.

Only with retirement and/or monster cash do places like extended carib cruising become possible. But even then - what’s your commitment to Back Home?

For most people, boating on the other side of the planet or round the world is a once-only trip and for most it remains a dream.

So, my plan is to spin around the planet annually in a large catamaran. I did the same for a some years around the Atlantic in a 50ft cat - westbound in Nov, eastbound in May/June.

Annual circumnavs are doable - a year is all you need. Go from the carib in Jan, Panama in Feb, cruise Pacific through July, go through Torres before end September, Cape town end Oct, 5 weeks back to the carib by Christmas and off again.

Not sure if this addresses the OP question. A bit, I think...