At the helm of Blue Garachico

A month ago, the port of Garachico saw the launch of a project to which I have devoted my heart and soul, my dedication and my passion for the sea: Blue Garachico. A unique experience in the north of Tenerife offering exclusive sailing trips in small groups, combining sailing with an interpretation of the marine environment led by a professional skipper, aboard the PAPOA, a Jeanneau Sun Fast 37.

For those of you who already know me through GuiaNatura EcoTourism —an ecotourism project I founded in 2014 after years working in the Canary Islands as a nature conservation manager and official guide— you’ll know that conservation and respect for the environment have always been my driving force. However, Blue Garachico represents a return to my deepest and most authentic roots: the sea.

Today, I’d like to take advantage of this first month at sea to formally introduce you to the captain who is at the helm of this dream.

My story with the ocean began in childhood, like that of many of my fellow countrymen. Born in Brittany, I have always lived close to the sea. What’s more, every year, during the two-month summer holidays, I learnt to fish off the coast of Charente-Maritime aboard the MENHIR — my grandfather Guy’s boat, which proudly bore that Breton name — alongside the rest of the family. At just 16, I obtained my first sailing qualification, which allowed me to take the helm of the TARAMEA (my father’s boat) on voyages along the coasts of the Île d’Oléron and the Glénans archipelago.

My passion for sailing in its purest form took root right where I was born, in Brest Bay, at the helm of a 420 dinghy. My connection with sailing was so strong that, just one year later, I was crowned Finistère champion in the Hobbie 18 catamaran class. Since then, I have remained captivated by the wonder of sailing powered solely by the force of nature.

«At the helm, the same winds are felt that once guided the sailors of the past; the course may change, but the passion for the open sea remains.»

The Breton and French Atlantic coast is one of the world’s finest training grounds at sea, and it was there that I continued my training on a cruising yacht, tackling environments where sailing demands the utmost concentration:

• The legendary Raz de Sein: Crossing this strait between the island of Sein and the Pointe du Raz — recognised as one of the most complex, dangerous and formidable passages along the European coastline due to its violent currents — taught me from a very young age the value of discipline on board and the rigour required during night watches.

• The Pertuis de Maumusson: Every summer I would sail south of the island of Oléron, in the vicinity of this channel, famous for being one of the most unstable, changeable and treacherous passages in the French Atlantic.

From my other grandfather, Jean, a seaman on the MAD ATAO (a cargo ship on the English Channel), I inherited that look of a happy seafarer and the lesson that the ocean must always be respected.

To make the professional transition to the maritime sector in Spain with the utmost confidence, I fulfilled all the official requirements until I was awarded the Yacht Skipper qualification in April 2024.

But a qualification only truly comes into its own through accumulated miles, stormy weather, night watches and offshore sailing. My sailing experience in the waters of the North Atlantic and Macaronesia includes a solid track record of crossings on a wide variety of vessels:

• La Gomera – Agadir (Morocco): An Atlantic crossing aboard a Dufour 425 alongside a great mentor, Jacques, taking night watches and rigorously managing the logbook and digital charting (AIS / WatchMate).

• Agadir – Arrecife (Lanzarote): Return voyage at the helm of an Island Packet 370, steering manually for hours following a failure of the autopilot.

• Horta (Azores) – Madeira: 707 miles of ocean sailing with a two-man crew aboard a Sun Legend 41.

• Rochefort (France) – Cádiz: 984 miles of Atlantic crossing with a two-man crew at the helm of a Sigma 38 racing/ocean-going yacht, learning to navigate critical situations in the Bay of Biscay and off the Galician coast.

• La Rochelle – Tenerife: A demanding 1,541-mile ocean crossing as skipper with two experienced sailors aboard a Lagoon 43 catamaran fresh from the shipyard.

This experience, gained on classic monohulls, technical-class boats and multihulls, gives me the confidence, the ability to assess weather conditions and the quick reflexes needed to ensure maximum safety on board.

«A good sailor weather the storm he cannot avoid and avoids the storm he cannot weather»

Today, Blue Garachico brings together the best of my career: my understanding of the sea, forged during my childhood in Brittany and Charente-Maritime; the technical rigour of a yacht captain; my role as an ornithologist with a passion for marine wildlife and the pelagic birds of the coast between Garachico and Punta de Teno; and the philosophy of responsible ecotourism that I have championed since 2014 at GuiaNatura EcoTourism.

On board the PAPOA, every sailing trip is more than just a boat trip. It is a respectful immersion in the marine environment where, as that old seafaring saying goes, “the best moment on a boat is when you switch off the engine to let the wind carry you”.

I invite you to come on board, feel the breeze blowing through the sails and share the sea with us.

See you on the water!