Artwork of the Week...

I hope this week's artwork will offer you a few moments of relief during this difficult time, with our wishes to be well and stay safe...

Fulfilling a Dream...

Part IV

We continue to travel the globe using Artist Brechin Morgan's artwork as our guide to some of the most beloved and exotic harbors in the world. In 1998, at the age of 50, Brechin Morgan left New England aboard his 27' Pacific Seacraft Cutter "Otter" to sail alone around the world. During his voyage, he sailed 32,000 miles and visited 32 countries. He returned in 2003, becoming only the 232nd person to solo circumnavigate the globe, receiving The Joshua Slocum Society Golden Circle Award in recognition.

We hope you'll enjoy sharing this journey in sketches and paintings, brought to you by Artist Brechin Morgan...

Using Brec's paintings and sketchbooks and his own words, we'll follow his route from East to West - This week from the Maldives (22) to Rhodes, Greece (29) as shown on his charted map above.

(22.) Uligan, Maldive Islands

"When asked my favorite place on the voyage I most often answer Uligan. It is the northernmost of the Maldives. A small sandy oasis sleeping low above the surrounding Arabian Sea. It was a provisioning stop for yachts on the way from Sri Lanka to points west and the Red Sea. On the leeward shore by the village a short wooden pier extended from the beach. At the inner end on was a wooden arch on two poles declaring “Welcome to Uligan”. The streets were white sand, with coral block walls rounded at intersections. Every morning women would rake the streets of leaves that fell from shading banana and palm trees. Most of the men worked off island and the men who remained were boat builders and fishermen. Older children lived on a nearby island large enough to have a high school. The younger children could be heard chanting their lessons from the schoolhouse and they filled the streets in the afternoon. I happily walked around the island one afternoon, sketching along the way and in the soft trade wind evenings the warm glow of oil lamps coming from the open windows of the thatched houses was the only light - except for the stars sharp in the deep black overhead. I hope to return someday."

(23.- 24..) Oman / Aden Harbor

"After crossing the Arabian Sea To Salalah in Oman, I sailed along the coast, avoiding pirates, to Aden Harbor in Yemen. Anchored about 300 feet from where the Guided Missile Cruiser USS Cole had been attacked two years earlier, I went ashore at the Prince of Wales pier and cleared in. There were very few yachts and I was the only American flagged vessel. The local lateen rigged dhows plied the harbor. After provisioning and repairs I was ready for the Red Sea."

(25.) Cargo Dhow in Massawa

"After heading north through the small strait of Bab el Mendab, (Arabic for “the Gates of Sorrow”), at the entrance to the Red Sea, the first stop was steamy Massawa in Eritrea. Otter anchored away from town in the yacht area from where the yachties would dinghy ashore to provision, eat at the tiny restaurants, drink in the bars, (Eritrea is Coptic Christian so alcohol is allowed) and sit at the slow internet cafe, sending notes to home. Eritrea had recently won a decades long war for independence against Ethiopia and with the help of America the bombing damage was being repaired. Tied along the old pier was a mix of local fishing skiffs, large wooden dhows and small freighters. A large dhow named Sultan Albahr “King of the Sea” was being unloaded. It sailed bulk cargo, animals and passengers along the dusty coast with her uplifted prow and stern built for the short steep waves of the Red Sea."

(26.) Suakin Causeway

(26.) Ruins of British Administrative Buildings in Suakin

Suakin in Sudan was the most exotic port I visited. I anchored in the harbor near the causeway to Suakin Island from where the British administered the Sudan from the 1880s. The soft limestone buildings lay in crumbling ruin. It reminded me of Shelley's 'Ozymandias.' In town there were camels everywhere. The men wore white robes with swords strapped over their shoulders and curved daggers in their belts. I was the curiosity and people I met were welcoming. Many wanted to sell me their swords. I bought two. Protracted negotiations in the street always drew a large crowd like a sporting match. Thanks to a thread of Scot's heritage locals gave me high marks. It was fun.

(27.) Ras Abu Zenima Anchored Off the Sinai Coast

"It took nine days battling sustained 30 knot headwinds to work the 190 miles up the Gulf of Suez, the slender finger at the top of the Red Sea that leads to Port Suez and the canal. The Gulf is littered with the steel legs of abandoned oil rigs. With working rigs and heavy freighter traffic, it was not a place for a single-hander at night. With reefed staysail and a triple reefed main, the engine was run full throttle to keep Otter's bow up as we bashed into short choppy seas. The waves were smaller near the coast to starboard so I tacked along the shore as close as I dared. Spray over the bow dried into salt drifts in the cockpit. The main sheet became salt stiffened like copper wire. Blowing fine dust from shore turned the windward sides of the halyards and sheets to brown. Late one afternoon I found shelter behind a cape called Ras Abu Zenima. The dunes rose high beyond the scattered warehouses, hazy in the sand filed wind. The protected water was flat with only a tanker and cruising yacht for company."

"That evening I read The old Admiralty Pilot's description from the days before oil rigs. “The camel track from Suez to El Tor passes close to the coast in the vicinity of Abu Zenima Bay and there is a quarantine inspection station for pilgrims here.”

(27.) Mount Sinai Sunrise

Halfway up the Suez Canal I left Otter in a marina in the Great Bitter Lakes and caught a local jitney crossing the Sinai to Taba. From there I planned to cross to Eilat and Jerusalem. I broke the trip for a few days at the village of St Catherine which lies at the foot of Mt Sinai. In the early afternoon I hiked the long stony trail from the monastery to the top and spent a cold night in a Bedouin tent. The sun rose over the mountains the next morning with a gold glow. Maybe the same sunrise Moses would have seen.

(28.) Fineke Marina, Turquoise Coast, Turkey

While I repaired and provisioned in Fineke, for the first time in 48 years Turkey was in the Soccer World Cup semi-finals, Turkish flags flying and everyone was glued to the TV, note no one at the dining tables. The evening they won third place against South Korea the shouting, horn honking and celebratory gunfire kept on most of the night. The news next morning reported three injured from falling bullets.

(29.) Suez Yacht Club

(29.) Boatyard in Rhodes, Greece

"I was asked if I knew what the lettering on the boat said and then told it reads 'For Sale.'”

(29.) Rhodes, Greece

"At the outer entrance to the harbor in Rhodes is the 15th century fortress built by the Knights of Rhodes which became the Knights of Malta after being driven from Rhodes in 1522 by Sultan Suleiman. At the entrance to the inner harbor are a stag and doe on columns, the emblems of Rhodes and in the location where the Colossus stood, one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world. Otter can be seen tied to the end of a floating dock at the town marina to the right."

(29.) Simi Harbor

"A short sail northwest from Rhodes is Simi with a small harbor filled with boats along the quay. I met American Expats in the harbor-side restaurants who had retired to hillside homes on this beautiful island. "

(29.) Greek Fishing Boat Anchored in Anafi Harbor

"Anafi was one of the last Greek Islands I visited before heading on to Malta. I anchored in the afternoon among fishing boats behind a small breakwater."