As the rain pelted the well-wishers at Albouy's Point many could be forgiven for thinking the weather was a bad omen. Parents could be seen eyeing the Spirit of Bermuda and her professional crew suspiciously, trying to gauge if she had what it took to keep their sons and daughters safe. Meanwhile trainees edged their way towards her, some eager for the adventure to begin, while others were clearly having second thoughts.

Little did they know that two months later the Spirit would be returning victorious after crossing the Atlantic twice leaving for Vigo, in northern Spain, via the Azores, before sailing to Tenerife and then back to Bermuda in the Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge, racing against 10 other tall ships which will all berth at the Island.

There have been rough times obviously, times when it was cold and wet and people wanted to quit. But above all else everyone will remember the hard work and good fun involved in ensuring the ship finished its first Atlantic crossing in eight days and five hours and finished its second as the first Tall Ship across the finish line in the race home from Tenerife.

It is hard to believe she left Bermuda's water more than two months ago on April 4 and since then has covered nearly 7,000 nautical miles and visited five European ports. The Royal Gazette's reporter Ruth OKelly-Lynch was on board as a watch leader for the voyage.

Sail to Azores

As the ship left Bermuda the night of April 4 the crew was busy doing sail manoeuvres and learning the layout of their new home. Dolphin watch also quickly became a popular pastime. Watch leader and Marine and Ports seaman Lawson Williams said he had a perfect first night out at sea. "It cleared up and I was on bow watch looking for ships when I heard a splash. I looked over and I saw three or four dolphins surrounded by phospherencense. It was great."

A few days later the Spirit celebrated Easter in true Bermudian style and flew a kite. Bermuda Regiment Private John Cook made a traditional Bermuda kite covering it with plastic so it could fly over the rough seas. After pitching it off of the stern the crew watched as it soared 200 metres off the deck on a sunny Good Friday afternoon. The crew also got a taste of home courtesy of fish cakes and hot cross buns prepared by chef Michael Scott. The Bermuda kite continued to fly for 24 hours, until it had to be taken down due to sail manoeuvres. On April 13 she arrived at Horta, Azores, having completed her first ocean crossing in just eight days and five hours thanks to favourable winds.

Azores

With just a day in Horta, one of the nine islands in the Azores, the crew spent it exploring and taking part in a maritime tradition of painting their crest on the marina's walls, ensuring a safe passage home. After that it was a short skip and a jump to Ponta Delgada on Sao Miguel where the Mayor gave an official welcome. Several days were spent visiting volcanoes, hot springs and pineapple plantations.

For many on the crew it was the first time seeing such natural wonders and everyone seemed to be a fan of the thermal vents. Sixteen-year-old Michael Byron said: "They smelt like eggs and the water was bubbling a lot.

"It was cool when ash was put in one of the thermal vents and smoke came out of them."

While sixteen-year-old Vershon Simmons said drinking water out of the hot springs was a once in a lifetime experience. "The water was like Perrier, it's cool that people can just fill up jugs with Perrier and take it home."

Porto, Portugal

Light winds meant the motor was switched on, while usually this would be a negative thing it meant the crew could now fish. On the previous leg the ship was moving too fast to hook anything, plus if superstition is to be believed the bananas on board were bad luck. But on this leg the crew's luck turned around and a 60lb tuna was reeled in by Lawson Williams and gaffed by Rodrico Bean. Everyone tucked into three meals worth of fresh fish, definitely the highlight of the sail.

When the ship arrived into the old city she docked right down town across from the famous Port distilleries. The crew spent their time visiting the sites, relaxing and doing ship's maintenance in preparation of the beginning of the Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge.

Vigo Spain

The short sail from Porto brought the ship to Vigo, the start of the Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge. In true Bermudian spirit the crew decided to check out the shops and buy a few clean clothes, off-setting the need to do laundry for a few more days. Others took time touring all of the Tall Ships arriving for the race. But most of the crew spent long hours doing ship's maintenance to ensure she was ready for the upcoming races. There was also a small opening ceremony and crew party.

Tenerife Canary Islands

It took six days to sail from Vigo to Tenerife and the ship crossed the finish line at 3.57 a.m. on May 9.

Once they arrived the crew wasted no time getting to know the Island and other Tall Ships. The trainees became fast friends with the Rona II crew, which had 22 young Englishmen on board, while the professional crew took the time to get to know members of the French Etoile crew and Dutch Urania crew. Many nights were spent swapping sailing stories and songs. Tall Ships aside, people also spent days visiting volcanoes and beaches and even organising a camel ride.

"It was the first time I had seen a camel," Seventeen-year-old Cameron Joseph said. "I really enjoyed that. We also saw huge pythons at the zoo."

The crew also represented Bermuda in a basketball game and a dinghy race, where they placed second.

Sail home

We left Tenerife on May 17 prepared for the sail home. The ship would have to cover more than 2,500 nautical miles before taking part in Bermuda's 400th anniversary celebrations. After a perfect start where she streamed ahead of her competitors the Spirit encountered its first difficulty when it's mane sheet clue broke, sending the sail flying. Luckily it was recovered quickly and repairs done within the hour. Soon after that the ship went north, while her competitors went south. A bold move for sure. While some might find the decision to shun the trade winds of the south unusual the captain and officers of the Spirit of Bermuda crew thought it was a calculated gamble. Unlike others in the race Spirit does not do well downwind, thus the trade winds have little value to her.

Captain Simon Colley now says: "Our decision to go north is what put us in the lead for the first half of the race. The vessels that followed the conventional route and dropped down to the trades did not find the breeze they were looking for and ended up at the back of the fleet.

"We started this race knowing it was a course designed for downwind sailors with a handicap system that favoured big, old, slow boats. We knew if we were to have any chance of winning we needed to fight conventional wisdom. Many of those ships that went south looking for the trades ended up following our lead."

As the race continued the ship maintained its position of second on the water and fluctuated between second and fourth in her corrected time category. Just as things were looking good and the ship had broken the 1,000-nautical mile threshold things started to slow down, considerably.

In fact the ship spent three to four days becalmed, bobbing around, waiting for the winds to pick up. Soon after that, when the Spirit had finally broken through the wind hole and other ships had caught up to her in the corrected time category, the race was called. The finish line was moved from St. David's Lighthouse to hundreds of nautical miles off of Bermuda due to the fact that many of the ships who had gone south were now more than 1,000 miles away and would not make it to the Island in time if they were not allowed to turn on their motor.

But now that the motor is on and the ship is in Bermuda waters the crew has mixed emotions about the end of their journey.

Twenty-two-year-old Jan-Michael Robinson said: "I feel great to be coming home. I've made some great new friends and learned a lot. But I am looking forward to having a proper home, at times I feel like I am stranded on the water. And I am looking forward to seeing my mums."

This week the crew is looking forward to showing the ship off and taking their new friends around their Island. We hope everyone will take the time to visit the Spirit of Bermuda during it's open hours while the ship is berthed in Hamilton. For more information or to make a donation to the Bermuda Sloop Foundation please call the Foundation at 737-5667 or e-mail info@bermudasloop.org.