Day 13: NAVAL RSV 421 Ready to Set Off from Cartagena

n the early morning hours of January 8, the Bulgarian naval research/survey vessel Sv. Sv. Kiril i Metodii (NAVAL RSV 421) received confirmation that it can leave the port of Cartagena and is ready to set off. The port authorities will send a pilot on board at 0900 hrs local time. The presence of a harbour pilot to assist in getting the vessel out of port is mandatory.

The ship's departure was delayed on Saturday due to labour-intensive loading and rigging activity. The crew of RSV 421 managed to load everything intended for the Juan Carlos I and Gabriel de Castilla Spanish Antarctic Stations and to secure the cargo on board to comply with the safety requirements for transportation, as ordered by the ship's Commanding Officer Nikolay Danailov.

After setting off from Cartagena, the ship will follow a course to the Strait of Gibraltar. "We expect to see poorer weather at sea but I believe we will cope with it. Wind speeds of up to 20 m/s and a swell of up to 3-4 degrees Douglas are expected, which is quite manageable for this ship. Sailing along the Spanish coast, we will be able to avoid worse and stormier weather," Danailov told BTA.

RSV 421 is scheduled to cross the Strait of Gibraltar in daylight on January 9 and then it will head southwest towards the Canary Islands. Hopefully, the weather will be fine as a cyclone is currently subsiding in the archipelago area. The ship may encounter residual cyclone fluctuations in the form of a stronger swell on the starboard side. The crew is ready to change course between the Canary Islands to shelter from worse weather conditions.