As usually, contacts with our team onshore, in San Francisco or France are getting numerous while we are approaching the stop over. We call the “Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron” to organize our clearance in Canada. Wayne, the dock master gives us a warm welcome on the phone. It’ 10 AM when we leave Sambro Island and the Sisters on port side. Then, we reach the channel and we just have to follow the beacons to Halifax, 10 miles away. The weather is beautiful. Everything is peaceful.
When we arrive to the Yacht Club, some members are here to prepare their sailing season. Everyone seems to know about us, we feel home.
We achieve in Halifax the 19th leg of the expedition. The loch finally went further up than the initial predictions even with still an ocean to cross. 18032 nautical miles since Tromsø (33395 kilomètres)

The crew for this trip was :

On top, from left to right: Knut Vibe (Suisse), Olivier Pitras (France), Helga Lilja Bjørndottir (Island), Valentine Ribadeau Dumas (France), Pierre Charles Gueroult (France), Catherine Cruse (France)

Bellow, from left to right: Laurent Ceresoli (France), Allan Dallest (France), Vincent Berthet (France).

The tidal currents considerably influence our route. Mainly while approaching the South-West point of Nova Scotia. Fishing boats are more and more numerous. We have to keep concentrated to sail through Nets or fish pots. We are sailing fifteen miles off shore.
The shoreline is low on the horizon. Looking at the nautical charts show us a coast full of fjords, well sheltered bays and even little archipelago. We’re eager to discover all of that but we stay on the route because the bad weather from the departure of the leg had delayed us and does not give us the opportunity to stop anymore if we want to be in schedule in Halifax.

The sky is full of stars. The moon is absent. We sail in a relatively calm sea but the swell prevent us to go under full sails. The wind is weak and we roll too much, sails can not compensate. That’s the way it is. The first glow of the sun arrive early, it is only five and the whole horizon in the East is lighted from bellow.
Later on, during the day, a bird pay us a visit. He is really small to be so far away off shore. After a rest he keeps going.

We set sail only after noon. It was no need to go before because we had to wait this low to drift East and the wind to calm before going. Couple of big boats wait at the anchor next the entrance of the canal.
The first bridge does not look high enough; we call “canal control” with the radio to make sure and of course, he is. The canal is narrow enough to enjoy the landscape. It is nice to sail for a while in the middle of the countryside.
Soon, we arrive in the other side, we can head for “Race Point” before “Cape Sable” in Nova Scottia.

7h30, we are leaving the Newport Yacht Club. The wind is strong, it’s cold, wind chill factor at –30°C. We sail down the channel to the open water before to point East. We are going to the canal which connects Buzzards Bay to Cape Cod Bay. It is a short cut to the Fundy Bay without being obliged to go far away off shore to sail around numerous shoals.
While entering the Buzzards Bay, the wind is contrary. We go very slowly. Finally we are obliged to reduce our ambition of the day and stop in Mattapoisett Bay, 10 miles away from the entrance of the canal.