Discovery 55, COOL CAT – Her Transatlantic Voyage Home

First launched in 2013, the Discovery 55, COOL CAT is now in her third ownership. Her current owners, Christian and Isabelle, have maintained her to the highest standards since taking delivery of her in the Channel Islands in 2020, and together, they sailed COOL CAT to Lanzarote where they spent time cruising the Canaries. They made an Atlantic crossing in early 2023 to St. Lucia, eventually reaching Grenada, where she remained until April 2024. After exploring the Caribbean, life’s changes mean that Christian and Isabelle decided to bring COOL CAT back to Berthon’s Lymington HQ in the UK, where she is now positioned to find new owners to continue her sailing adventures.

Here is the story of her voyage home.

Preparation – Grenada to Saint Martin

For COOL CAT’s long voyage back to Blighty, Christian enlisted the help of his trusted friends and professional colleagues of 20+ years, Bruno and Jean-Marie. Master Mariners all three, they enjoyed illustrious careers as pilots for the French Merchant Navy and have a wealth of maritime and sailing experience between them.

After undergoing some routine maintenance in Grenada, COOL CAT was launched and ready to set sail. On 23rd March 2024, Christian and Bruno departed for Saint Martin, where they would rendezvous with Jean-Marie. Following final preparations and provisioning, the trio departed on 2nd April 2024 for their West to East Atlantic crossing to the Azores.

Each brought their unique seafaring strengths to the voyage: Captain Christian took charge of all things meteorological, Bruno managed the technicalities of sailing and expedition photography, and Jean-Marie, amongst his many sailing skills, excelled at cooking up a storm (even in a storm!) in COOL CAT’s well-appointed galley.

Saint Martin to the Azores Ponta Delgada

Their transatlantic voyage started with idyllic conditions, spectacular sunrises, memorable sundowners, moonlit nights, the odd tot of rum and some tuna fishing too.

However, as they sailed further east, the weather slowly deteriorated and a nasty depression forced Christian to chart a south-easterly detour to avoid the worst of the storm.

The final leg of their voyage was a gruelling, with big seas running and 40-knot north-easterly winds and swells of up to seven meters. Despite this, COOL CAT emerged unscathed, save for the loss of her mast-mounted fog horn.

Arriving in the Azores’ Ponta Delgada on a misty April 17th, the crew was both very tired and elated. Here, they bid farewell to Jean-Marie and spent 15 days recuperating and re-provisioning.

The Last Leg – Ponta Delgada to Lymington

On May 5th, Christian and Bruno resumed their voyage, sailing towards Guernsey, in the Channel Island and then onwards to Lymington in the UK.

Favourable winds initially sped their progress, but as they neared the English Channel, the wind died down and calm seas forced them to motor the final stretch to Guernsey.

They arrived at St. Peter Port in Guernsey on the 12th May 2024 under a rain-soaked sky.

COOL CAT’s final push to Lymington on the 14th May was smooth, arriving at 1800 after a 12-hour crossing from Guernsey.

Throughout the voyage, COOL CAT impressed her crew, demonstrating her toughness and reliability as a bluewater cruising yacht for all weathers, achieving 8.5 knots in favourable conditions. The Discovery 55 really does excel at effortless, short-handed sailing while providing comfortable living.

In total, the voyage took 24 days and 16 hours, covering at total of 4,190 nautical miles, at an average speed of 7.1 knots. Christian is pleased to report to us that there is nothing on her work list for the trip, apart from the fog horn. He hopes COOL CAT will sell to new adventurous owners and his only advice to them is they may want to extend the sail wardrobe to include some additional downwind sails.

Discovery 55, COOL CAT is for Sale

This remarkable yacht is now for sale from Berthon’s HQ in Lymington. An extensive refit schedule from 2020-2022 along with a yearly maintenance programme means she is turnkey ready for more ocean adventures.

To see her full specification click here: [OFF MARKET]

Sales Video:

For further information contact sue.grant@berthon.co.uk.

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