We were SET UP by drug smugglers - a WARNING to sailors!

We could have done this entire episode with just the sailing, which was sporty at times, and beautiful at others. In fact we really considered leaving out our... incident. Why? Because honestly, it was an intimidating situation. The realisation that we'd likely been tracked on AIS by the authorities from that moment onwards still gives us that nervous feeling you get when you're walking through airport security, despite knowing the naughtiest thing on you is two paracetamol and your sibling's headphones that you've borrowed without asking! BUT we concluded that it's really important that other sailors are made aware of the smuggling risks in the area between Spain and the Balearic islands, help them understand what and why if they have similar experiences, plus what to expect if it's followed up by a surprise Border Force visit! If something similar happens to you, we would really advise taking footage if you can (discreetly - don't aggravate a potentially volatile situation). We obviously didn't get any of the vessel as it made an aggressive beeline for us and eventually turned when just 25 metres away from our hull, because Bryony was a little busy yelling and helming in a panic... but even if you can get some footage afterwards like we did, explaining what just happened, it can serve you well if you get questioned by authorities. Additionally, make sure you write in your log the details of what happened, and keep a strong log afterwards to show exactly the rest of your route, to help show that you've not made any sneaky pick-ups or deliveries along the way! That log was our saviour, given that our chartplotter had erased our tracks by the time we were questioned! Just don't do a Bryony and offer Border Force a hot bevvy whilst they're ransacking your boat :) You can now join the crew on Patreon! patreon.com/CutterboveSailing Paypal Donate: paypal.me/cutterbovesailing Buy us a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/cutterbovesailing