Finding Crew

At: Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Canary Islands

We were worried that we wouldn’t find crew for our Atlantic crossing. Friends that were interested to join us couldn’t make it because of work schedules. Our worries evaporated when we docked in Las Palmas. I made a profile on Crewbay and Findacrew. But people are actually on the reception dock, helping you with the boat, asking if you need crew for the passage.

We spent the whole morning and part of the afternoon ‘interviewing’ people. It works like this: All kinds of people wander by the boat, say hello, ask if you need crew. You invite them on board, have a chat, explain where you’re going and ask them about their experiences and goals. It feels very much like a job interview.

The thing is: All of them are super nice people. Fun to talk to, open-minded, good with kids, you name it. We truly wish we could take all of them with us. The agony of choice was real.

We weighed the options. We hemmed and hawed. And we made a hard decision. So, we’re taking Hannah and Antoine along for the crossing. Both have some sailing experience, have worked with kids and we clicked really well. They want to teach us surfing and Antoine is a professional photographer. They want to document our journey together as well. First to Cabo Verde, then across the Atlantic.