Every Friday, Dan Turk, who is sailing his boat ‘Little Bea’ in the Mini Globe Race, shares fascinating posts on Facebook about courtesy flags.

We’ve gathered his information and images all in one place to bring you a unique perspective on where Dan intends to visit along his voyage and the rich traditions of courtesy flags. Follow Dan and Little Bea at: facebook.com/littlebeasailingadventures.

Portugal

We fly a courtesy flag at every port that we will enter on the Transat 2024 and Mini Globe Race 2025.

Let’s start with the flag flown as Little Bea entered the Azores Islands and Portimão, Portugal, during the shakedown North Atlantic crossing July 2023. Additionally, a skipper must fly the Q Flag when entering a country for the first time. The Q Flag, which signifies Quarantine, is flown until the skipper and crew clears customs in that country.

Lanzarote

The Canary Islands are the first stopover on the Transat 2024 Race. Lanzarote is the island we will be racing to which is about 600 nautical miles from Portugal.

Lanzarote, one of the Canary Islands off the coast of West Africa administered by Spain, is known for its year-round warm weather, beaches and volcanic landscape. Timanfaya National Park’s rocky landscape was created by volcanic eruptions in the 1730s. Cueva de los Verdes has caverns formed by an underground river of lava. East-coast resort Puerto del Carmen is home to whitewashed villas, beaches and dive centres.

Antigua

Antigua is the final stop and finish line for the 2024 Transat Race. We will travel approximately 3,000 nautical miles from Lanzarote to enter the waters surrounding Antigua.

Antigua is not only the finish line for the Transat but will be the start of the Mini Globe Race – February 23rd, 2025! This race will be the first of its kind with 18 Class Globe 5.80s on the start line, racing around the world.

It will be great to be in Antigua again! Our family vacationed there in 2018 and absolutely loved everything about the island.

Antigua, also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean. Antigua and Barbuda became an independent state within the Commonwealth of Nations on 1 November 1981.

Panama

Colón, Panama will be our first stopover during the Mini Globe Race. Little Bea will be hoisted out of the Caribbean Ocean and loaded on a trailer and travel by land to Panama City and launched in the Pacific Ocean.

A lot of people have been asking whether I am transiting the Panama Canal. That would be quite an experience, however, there is a huge financial cost, a boat must maintain a certain speed the whole way through and you must have a few more crew onboard. Little Bea will be powered by an electric outboard, so she cannot maintain that speed with the additional weight onboard. Additionally, the cost of transport is cheaper and much faster than sailing.

Pacific Ocean, here we come! Can anyone guess where the next stop is?

Colón is the capital of Colón Province, in Panama. It sits on the Caribbean coast, at the entrance to the Panama Canal. The Canal Expansion Observation Center is a park with viewing platforms over the canal’s Atlantic locks and Gatún Lake. The vast Colón Free Trade Zone offers tax-free shopping. Just west of the city, at the mouth of the Chagres River, Fort San Lorenzo is a well-preserved colonial military structure.

Panama City, the capital of Panama, is a modern city framed by the Pacific Ocean and man-made Panama Canal. Casco Viejo, its cobblestoned historic centre, is famed for colonial-era landmarks like the neoclassical Palacio Presidencial and bougainvillea-filled plazas lined with cafes and bars. The Miraflores Locks offers views of ships traversing the canal, an essential shipping route linking the Atlantic and Pacific.

Galápagos Islands

For those of you that picked Galápagos Islands for the first stopover, you might be correct! I will explain.

One of the interesting rules in the Mini Globe Race is the fact that I can choose which ports I stop at during this next leg. So between Panama City and Fiji I can stop where I want and have the freedom to stay as long as I feel necessary. The Galápagos Islands could possibly be one of the first ports of call. Weather systems don’t favour this stopover due to the islands being located directly on the equator which are notorious for little or no wind. I suppose we will have to make that decision when Little Bea leaves Panama.

The Galápagos Islands is a volcanic archipelago in the Pacific Ocean. It’s considered one of the world’s foremost destinations for wildlife viewing. A province of Ecuador, it lies about 1,000km off its coast. Its isolated terrain shelters a diversity of plant and animal species, many found nowhere else. Charles Darwin visited in 1835, and his observation of Galápagos’ species later inspired his theory of evolution.

French Polynesia

The Marquesas Islands could be the next potential stop while in the South Pacific. Geographically, it would be one of the next group of islands to the west of the Galapagos. A choice has to be made whether to sail closer to the equator (Marquesas is at 10°S) or dive a little more south to 18°S and make landfall in Tahiti or Bora-Bora which is all part of French Polynesia. One advantage to sailing more southerly is that the 2nd major stop for all competitors in the Mini Globe Race is an island at that same latitude. At approximately 180° we will have sailed across the dateline to reach that harbour – or really close to it.

The Marquesas Islands are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southern Pacific Ocean. Their highest point is the peak of Mount Oave on Ua Pou island, at 1,230 m above sea level.

Tahiti is the largest island in French Polynesia, the South Pacific archipelago. Shaped like a figure-8, it’s divided into Tahiti Nui (the larger, western section) and Tahiti Iti (the eastern peninsula). With black-sand beaches, lagoons, waterfalls and 2 extinct volcanoes, it’s a popular vacation destination. Explored by Captain James Cook in the 18th century, it was also often painted by French artist Paul Gauguin.

Fiji

The 2nd major stopover will be in Fiji!

I believe that this will be a much needed rest at this point in the Mini Globe Race. Arriving here in around early July will avoid any serious storm systems – I am sure we will see our share of heavy squalls!

Tonga is another island on the list of potential island archipelagos to visit. I would like to weigh anchor here to experience the islands, the people and their way of life. It looks exhilarating!

Fiji, a country in the South Pacific, is an archipelago of more than 300 islands. It’s famed for rugged landscapes, palm-lined beaches and coral reefs with clear lagoons. Its major islands, Viti Levu and Vanua Levu, contain most of the population. Viti Levu is home to the capital, Suva, a port city with British colonial architecture. The Fiji Museum, in the Victorian-era Thurston Gardens, has ethnographic exhibits.

Australia

Fiji will be a difficult place to leave due to its beauty. Little Bea will set sail in a westerly direction passing Vanuatu and entering the Coral Sea. Weather will dictate the exact route taken, however, at some point in this next passage we will be crossing the Great Barrier Reef. I can’t imagine what that experience will entail. This will bring towards the next big challenge which will be traversing the Torres Strait. I am hoping that my Aussie competitors can help me with some local knowledge of those waters!

Once through there I would like to make landfall at a couple of ports along the Northern Territory of Australia. I believe that I would regret making a stopover there. Could it be Darwin? Who knows… we have the freedom to choose the stopovers during this leg so I would like to stop at the Coco Islands. This is a small group of islands mid way across the Indian Ocean.

Cape Town

South Africa is the final destination for this leg of the Mini Globe Race. More specifically, Cape Town.

Can we sail there directly from Coco Keeling Islands? Absolutely not… we need to do around 4 to 6 stopovers to get there. Why so many you ask? Not only is it a great distance to sail a 5.8 metre boat but there are many different sea and weather conditions to consider on this leg.

It is likely that Little Bea will be stopping in Mauritius, Madagascar, Durban and Port Elizabeth and finally Cape Town. To sail around South Africa is very tricky and I would say, it will be the most challenging part of this race. Crossing the Mozambique Channel, Southern Ocean weather systems and trying to piece together a safe passage around the Cape of Good Hope will be a sure test of the boat and the skipper. Arriving in December 2025 will be our approximate ETA.

Cape Town is a port city on South Africa’s southwest coast, on a peninsula beneath the imposing Table Mountain. Slowly rotating cable cars climb to the mountain’s flat top, from which there are sweeping views of the city, the busy harbour and boats heading for Robben Island, the notorious prison that once held Nelson Mandela, which is now a living museum.

Saint Helena

St. Helena island is the next stopover.

After leaving Cape Town, we will set a course in a north westerly direction. Taking advantage of the prevailing south east tradewinds, we will have to proceed with caution as these winds are generally very strong. This island has a storied history that goes back to the 1500s. It had served as a vital stop for thousands of vessels on voyages from South Africa to South America and the West Indies. It should be another amazing stopover as there are so many things to experience there and, furthermore, not many people can say that they arrived there on a 5.8 metre hand-built sailboat !

Only one more stop before the big finish line…

St. Helena island, part of the British Overseas Territory, also encompassing Ascension and Tristan da Cunha islands, is a remote volcanic outpost in the South Atlantic Ocean. It’s famous as the place of Napoleon Bonaparte’s exile and death, as commemorated by a now-empty tomb. Climbing destinations include the 699 steps of Jacob’s Ladder and Diana’s Peak, sheltering endemic plant and animal life.

Recife, Brazil

Recife, Brazil, is the next stopover after St. Helena. Making landfall at this port will conclude our journey across the South Atlantic Ocean. At this point, Little Bea will have crossed the Atlantic Ocean 3 times… once easterly and twice westerly!

There have been conversations that all Mini Globe Race sailors will participate in a mass restart together leaving Recife. I believe that this will keep the fleet closer together for the finish line back in Antigua. The distance between Recife and Antigua is approximately 2500 nautical miles so anything could happen… Little Bea will likely drop anchor in at least 2 ports along the way.

This route is traditionally very challenging due to the Intertropical Convergence Zone or as sailors call it, The Doldrums. The position of the doldrums varies depending on the season and other meteorological influences. Our mandatory electric outboards and the management of the batteries might prove to be pivotal during this leg. That is what makes this race so exciting!

Recife, located on Brazil’s northeast coast, is a bustling port city famous for its beaches, colonial architecture and nightlife. It’s also the host of one of the most popular carnival celebrations outside of Rio de Janeiro. Often called the Venice of Brazil, Recife spreads across peninsulas and islands intersected by canals and rivers. It takes its name from the Portuguese word for reef, a reference to the reefs that shelter the city’s shoreline.