Columbus sets sail 1492

[Valin]

Christopher Columbus - 1st Voyage

 

On the evening of August 3rd 1492, Columbus left Palos with three ships, the Santa Maria, Niña and Pinta. His crew mostly came from surrounding towns such as Lepe and Moguer. He first sailed to the Canary Islands, owned by Castile, where he reprovisioned and made repairs. He was delayed there for four weeks by calm winds. Columbus left the island of Gomera on September 6, 1492, but light winds again left him within sight of the western island of Hierro until September 8. He then started what turned out to be a five-week voyage across the ocean. His method of navigation was mainly by Dead Reckoning, that is plotting course and distance travelled to determine his position.

 

(Snip)

 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

Christopher Columbus Ships -Niña, Pinta, and Santa Maria

 

Christopher Columbus had three ships on his first voyage, the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. Columbus sailed from Palos de la Frontera on 3 August, 1492. His flagship, the Santa Maria had 52 men aboard while his other two ships, the Nina and Pinta were each crewed by 18 men.

 

The Santa Maria was a nao, was a bit of a tub, and was not able to go near the coastline. But was able to carry a lot of cargo, and it was able to stand up well in bad weather. The Niña, the Pinta were caravels, with a shallower draft than a nao, did not have much cargo space, but were able to explore shallow bays and the mouths of rivers. A carvel was square-rigged on its foremasts and mainmasts, but used a lateen sail on the mizzen to help in tacking. A caravel had about twenty crew members, who slept on the deck and would go below only if the weather was bad.

 

The crew were gathered by Martín Alonso Pinzón (captain of the Pinta). They were experienced sea-men, and four of them had taken an offer from the Spanish throne for amnesty from prison if they took the voyage. Many of these sailors were from the nearby towns of Lepe and Moguer.

 

Over several days, ships of Columbus's day would average a little less than 4 knots. Top speed for the vessels was about 8 knots, and minimum speed was zero. These speeds were quite typical for vessels of the period. So overall, 90 or 100 miles in a day would be typical, and 200 phenomenal. Of the three ships on the first voyage, the Santa Maria was the slowest, and the Pinta was the fastest. The differences were not great over a long voyage.

 

(Snip)

 

 

 

[foxylady]

So happy he did