Twister is the 1902 schooner some of you know from our 2021 Macaronesia trip and the 2022 to 2023 Atlantic expedition. Together we sail a full circle around the Atlantic: Amsterdam to Madeira, the Canaries and Cape Verde, across to Martinique, and home again via the Azores.
The whole loop takes about four and a half months, split into legs you can join one or more of.
The legs
- Amsterdam to Madeira. About three weeks, 1,500 NM. A wild offshore leg.
- Madeira to Tenerife. 11 days, 300 NM. An Ocean Nomads expedition leg.
- Tenerife to Cape Verde. 12 days, 850 NM. An Ocean Nomads expedition leg.
- Cape Verde to Martinique. About three weeks, 2,100 NM. The Atlantic crossing, an Ocean Nomads expedition leg.
- Caribbean loop south. 12 days, 350 NM. Tropical island hopping.
- Caribbean loop north. 10 days, 350 NM. Tropical island hopping.
- Martinique to the Azores. About three weeks, 2,300 NM. A wild offshore leg.
- Azores to Amsterdam. 11 days, 1,500 NM. A wild offshore leg.
On the Ocean Nomads expedition legs, Ocean Nomads member Julie sails with you as host. She joined a trip in 2022 and pretty much never left boat life, and SV Twister in particular 🙂.
How we sail
We run these voyages with the onboard experience we have been fine-tuning trip after trip.
- The Onboard Manual and the Skipper Playbook. Crew and co-skippers step on board and find clarity rather than improvisation.
- The Ocean Nomads Map. Every port and anchorage is a chance to add marinas, organic provisioning, hidden anchorages and local conservation projects. Our local and organic Atlantic provisioning spots are already on there.
- The Ripple Log. Crew log the spots they add to the map, the wind miles they sail and the small daily choices, like wind over engine, reuse over single use and local provisioning.
- Onboard facilitation. The Blueprint for Humans on a Sailing Expedition, developed by Luca Tausel and tested on our Mallorca to Tenerife voyage: agreements, the mail system, non-violent communication and a steady onboard rhythm.
- Meetups along the route. In every port, ocean nomads, members, partners and local hosts come by to connect, share local knowledge or jump on for a leg.
- The course as preparation. If you are new to offshore sailing, Zero to Ocean Nomad gives you the foundations before you step on board, so on the trip you can focus on the sailing and the people.
Curious what it is like out there?
Jonte made a beautiful film about our 2022 to 2023 Atlantic crossing on Twister. Watch it here.
Want to sail a leg?
We will let you know when spots open. Join the waitlist and you hear first, with priority for Ocean Nomads members.
Until then, come and meet the crew. Inside the Ocean Nomads community members share crew calls, sail on each other’s boats and meet up in ports around the Atlantic. Come join us 💙
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