Ahoy,
the Ol' Girl and myself are guest's of the beautiful Vilamoura Marina, many thanks to the Director and all the staff.
Now all we have to do is get ready for the next part of the voyage.
Monday, August 31, 2009
VillaMoreA?
Ahoy,
after the shortest and quietest passage to date, the Ol' Girl and me arrive in Vilamoura.
It is a very expensive place, with many tourists and many people that specialize in parting fools from their money, please do not misunderstand me, I too am a fool, it's just that I am lucky enough to have no money.
This money thing or rather lack of it will come to a fore this morning, in about thirty minutes, as I am about to go and see the Director, I hope she is as accommodating as everyone else I have met along the way.
So back to my arrival, I had only just finished securing the Ol' Girls lines when a dingy drew up along side with Graham and his two children, Elliott and Isabela, for those that are new to these rantings, Graham and Printerland supplied the air time for the SatCom phone for the crossing of Biscay, which certainly made a huge difference in my perception of security.
How amazing is this, not only had we arrived on Graham's Birthday, I had an invitation to the Chinese Restaurant with the rest of his family and friends. Now on these travels I have had some regularly occurring dreams, one is having a relaxing bath and another popular one is eating Chinese food. So in this time of preparation I get to wish a friend and sympathiser many happy returns and eat an excellent Chinese meal, no kidding it really was top notch.
We then went to a Japanese style bar with an empty orchestra, I might tell you about it one day.....
Now it's time to go and see this Director, wish me luck.
after the shortest and quietest passage to date, the Ol' Girl and me arrive in Vilamoura.
It is a very expensive place, with many tourists and many people that specialize in parting fools from their money, please do not misunderstand me, I too am a fool, it's just that I am lucky enough to have no money.
This money thing or rather lack of it will come to a fore this morning, in about thirty minutes, as I am about to go and see the Director, I hope she is as accommodating as everyone else I have met along the way.
So back to my arrival, I had only just finished securing the Ol' Girls lines when a dingy drew up along side with Graham and his two children, Elliott and Isabela, for those that are new to these rantings, Graham and Printerland supplied the air time for the SatCom phone for the crossing of Biscay, which certainly made a huge difference in my perception of security.
How amazing is this, not only had we arrived on Graham's Birthday, I had an invitation to the Chinese Restaurant with the rest of his family and friends. Now on these travels I have had some regularly occurring dreams, one is having a relaxing bath and another popular one is eating Chinese food. So in this time of preparation I get to wish a friend and sympathiser many happy returns and eat an excellent Chinese meal, no kidding it really was top notch.
We then went to a Japanese style bar with an empty orchestra, I might tell you about it one day.....
Now it's time to go and see this Director, wish me luck.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Tri as I Might
Ahoy,
I awake in Portimao, hungry, happy and impressed with the Marina.
As soon as I was dressed and having had my "Berroca" (thanks Anne) I headed off to the reception to discover what kind of deal could be struck. The staff were courteous and tried hard to be helpful, of course I presented a very new type of Yachtie, one with no money. As rare as hens teeth in this part of the world, we are now in the Algarve don't yah know.
I made an appointment to meet the Director and headed to town to find a Pharmacy, it seems I am extremely desirable and attractive, alas, only to Mosquito's.
The little bus stop was quite a trek and the little Town was a little disappointing. The area is very beautiful, great weather, fantastic little beaches and all spoilt by Karaoke and people that do not know how to apply sun tan lotion.
I returned to the relative peace of the Marina to meet Maria the Director, after the briefest of chats all was well, the Ol' Girl was again a guest of our oldest allies.
That evening I went for a quiet beer and ended up having a superb free dinner at the Waterfront Inn with Edgar, Gorge, Luis, Jose, Santos, Re and Junior, local legends of the sea, thanks guys a top night.
We left Portimao the following day after saying our goodbyes, as we not only need to stay on schedule for the Canaries there are friends to be met further along the coast.
I awake in Portimao, hungry, happy and impressed with the Marina.
As soon as I was dressed and having had my "Berroca" (thanks Anne) I headed off to the reception to discover what kind of deal could be struck. The staff were courteous and tried hard to be helpful, of course I presented a very new type of Yachtie, one with no money. As rare as hens teeth in this part of the world, we are now in the Algarve don't yah know.
I made an appointment to meet the Director and headed to town to find a Pharmacy, it seems I am extremely desirable and attractive, alas, only to Mosquito's.
The little bus stop was quite a trek and the little Town was a little disappointing. The area is very beautiful, great weather, fantastic little beaches and all spoilt by Karaoke and people that do not know how to apply sun tan lotion.
I returned to the relative peace of the Marina to meet Maria the Director, after the briefest of chats all was well, the Ol' Girl was again a guest of our oldest allies.
That evening I went for a quiet beer and ended up having a superb free dinner at the Waterfront Inn with Edgar, Gorge, Luis, Jose, Santos, Re and Junior, local legends of the sea, thanks guys a top night.
We left Portimao the following day after saying our goodbyes, as we not only need to stay on schedule for the Canaries there are friends to be met further along the coast.
Wow we made Portimao
Ahoy,
after the excitement of the last passage I thought the Ol' Girl and me would be in for a relatively quiet time, this line of thought never seems to work so from now on I am always going to leave port deciding that hell and high water are to come.
An excerpt from the log book for this next passage reads "Slight sea mist, slight wind, engine on and motor sailing, mainsail tucked, I don't trust this coast"
The next excerpt reads "engine off just been battered by 37 knot winds"
What the book does not mention is the fun I had, as the Ol' Girl and myself headed on down the Portuguese coast.
We eventually came to the corner, the point where the sea's combine, where the Med meets the Atlantic, in simple terms.
The headland is called Cape Sagres and as we rounded it all hell broke loose, luckily I had the Main fully reefed, if I had not have done this I have no idea what would have happened, I do know that it would not have been for the best.
The wind rocketed to 28 knots, this was not comfortably or expected, the novice that I am, however the Ol' Girl handled it well and led me on.
Less than half an hour later the winds had increased again, the Tri light on the top of the mast, the one you use whilst sailing had given up on holding on and was now dangling like a hanged Pirate. I switched it off and used the Navigation lights.
The wind increased again and was now between 32 and 37 knots for the best part of an hour.
The log book reads " arrived battered and bruised, learnt a little about evening winds off headlands and what it feels like"
When I arrived at Portimao the wind had all but disappeared, the Marina was quiet with no staff and the full length of the reception pontoon was available, I moored up and fell quickly into a deep sleep.
after the excitement of the last passage I thought the Ol' Girl and me would be in for a relatively quiet time, this line of thought never seems to work so from now on I am always going to leave port deciding that hell and high water are to come.
An excerpt from the log book for this next passage reads "Slight sea mist, slight wind, engine on and motor sailing, mainsail tucked, I don't trust this coast"
The next excerpt reads "engine off just been battered by 37 knot winds"
What the book does not mention is the fun I had, as the Ol' Girl and myself headed on down the Portuguese coast.
We eventually came to the corner, the point where the sea's combine, where the Med meets the Atlantic, in simple terms.
The headland is called Cape Sagres and as we rounded it all hell broke loose, luckily I had the Main fully reefed, if I had not have done this I have no idea what would have happened, I do know that it would not have been for the best.
The wind rocketed to 28 knots, this was not comfortably or expected, the novice that I am, however the Ol' Girl handled it well and led me on.
Less than half an hour later the winds had increased again, the Tri light on the top of the mast, the one you use whilst sailing had given up on holding on and was now dangling like a hanged Pirate. I switched it off and used the Navigation lights.
The wind increased again and was now between 32 and 37 knots for the best part of an hour.
The log book reads " arrived battered and bruised, learnt a little about evening winds off headlands and what it feels like"
When I arrived at Portimao the wind had all but disappeared, the Marina was quiet with no staff and the full length of the reception pontoon was available, I moored up and fell quickly into a deep sleep.
Slightly Singed
Ahoy,
as you may or may not have expected the Ol' Girl and me set off from Cascais, I met some very talented boaties there and some old friends making leaving no easier than any of the wonderful places I have had the pleasure of visiting, being of guest status didn't help leaving either.
The sail on to Sines pronounced "singe" was quiet and peaceful at the beginning, as soon as I was enjoying a relaxing sail the wind and the sea conspired to liven things up. Suddenly the wind and sea state increased dramatically, I needed to reduce sail, I asked "Dave" the autopilot to hold fort on the helm but due to the tricky nature of the waves, he had one of his turns and decided not to work in a useful way as it was not easy.
Eventually the sails were reefed and the Ol' Girl was flying so to speak and despite being fully reefed we were making a good speed.
This little episode, it would seem, was not the major part of the learning curve on my way to Sines, much more was on its way.
As I neared Sines Marina a large increase in commercial traffic was observed, this is OK by me as it was now dark and it made identifying the best course a little easier.
In the same way I always do I called up the Marina on VHF and due to the strength of the winds at this point asked for the direction to a berth and assistance with my lines, the voice coming out of the radio said he would meet me at the entrance and direct me.
After circling the Ol' Girl for what seemed like an age through and round many boats at anchor, I caught sight of a man with no torch, no radio but with quite wavy arms. I headed towards him and into the Marina. He shouted at me "TURN" this I did into what seemed like a very tight channel, then the man was screaming"NO, NO, NO" I put the Ol' Girl hard astern and I thought I had gotten away with it, well, this is what happened next, just as I thought all was well a rather large and pretty boat at the entrance to the that channel decided to become intimate with the Ol' Girl. I had caught it's anchor on the Ol' Girl's pulpit( this could be a euphemism I realise) and the noise was quite remarkable. So with brisk winds, the staff shouting things at me in Portuguese and the Ol' Girl stuck to another boat, I was in a bit of a pickle. As I do not move quickly at the best of times and being on my own, my options seemed limited. I put the Ol' Girl in slow reverse, clambered as quickly as I ever have up to the the bow of the Ol' Girl whilst fending off the other boat with my shoulder and with as much force as I could muster freed the Ol' Girl from the clutches of her unwelcome admirer. Then scurried as quickly as I have ever scurried back to the cockpit to gun her forwards before she hit the Police boat, which was full of Police all staring at me and the Ol' Girl and shouting other things in Portuguese. Later I discovered she only missed them by inches.
Due to all the noise and excitement as soon as I found a place for the Ol' Girl and moored up the Police were very helpful. They checked my papers, the Ol' Girls papers and her admirer and declared all well, how nothing serious came of such a moment I will never know. The following day I met with the Police and the Marina staff who told me that the night before I was being directed to the bend. Bend, turn, whats the the difference.
As luck would have it all was well and all became friends, I even stayed as a guest for a couple of days before heading off to Portimao.
as you may or may not have expected the Ol' Girl and me set off from Cascais, I met some very talented boaties there and some old friends making leaving no easier than any of the wonderful places I have had the pleasure of visiting, being of guest status didn't help leaving either.
The sail on to Sines pronounced "singe" was quiet and peaceful at the beginning, as soon as I was enjoying a relaxing sail the wind and the sea conspired to liven things up. Suddenly the wind and sea state increased dramatically, I needed to reduce sail, I asked "Dave" the autopilot to hold fort on the helm but due to the tricky nature of the waves, he had one of his turns and decided not to work in a useful way as it was not easy.
Eventually the sails were reefed and the Ol' Girl was flying so to speak and despite being fully reefed we were making a good speed.
This little episode, it would seem, was not the major part of the learning curve on my way to Sines, much more was on its way.
As I neared Sines Marina a large increase in commercial traffic was observed, this is OK by me as it was now dark and it made identifying the best course a little easier.
In the same way I always do I called up the Marina on VHF and due to the strength of the winds at this point asked for the direction to a berth and assistance with my lines, the voice coming out of the radio said he would meet me at the entrance and direct me.
After circling the Ol' Girl for what seemed like an age through and round many boats at anchor, I caught sight of a man with no torch, no radio but with quite wavy arms. I headed towards him and into the Marina. He shouted at me "TURN" this I did into what seemed like a very tight channel, then the man was screaming"NO, NO, NO" I put the Ol' Girl hard astern and I thought I had gotten away with it, well, this is what happened next, just as I thought all was well a rather large and pretty boat at the entrance to the that channel decided to become intimate with the Ol' Girl. I had caught it's anchor on the Ol' Girl's pulpit( this could be a euphemism I realise) and the noise was quite remarkable. So with brisk winds, the staff shouting things at me in Portuguese and the Ol' Girl stuck to another boat, I was in a bit of a pickle. As I do not move quickly at the best of times and being on my own, my options seemed limited. I put the Ol' Girl in slow reverse, clambered as quickly as I ever have up to the the bow of the Ol' Girl whilst fending off the other boat with my shoulder and with as much force as I could muster freed the Ol' Girl from the clutches of her unwelcome admirer. Then scurried as quickly as I have ever scurried back to the cockpit to gun her forwards before she hit the Police boat, which was full of Police all staring at me and the Ol' Girl and shouting other things in Portuguese. Later I discovered she only missed them by inches.
Due to all the noise and excitement as soon as I found a place for the Ol' Girl and moored up the Police were very helpful. They checked my papers, the Ol' Girls papers and her admirer and declared all well, how nothing serious came of such a moment I will never know. The following day I met with the Police and the Marina staff who told me that the night before I was being directed to the bend. Bend, turn, whats the the difference.
As luck would have it all was well and all became friends, I even stayed as a guest for a couple of days before heading off to Portimao.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
We Are Guests
Ahoy,
it's not just me that's surprised we are guests in one of the poshest, cleanest, hottest and securest Marina's to date. There are shops of all descriptions, cafe's, bar's, cocktail lounges, restaurants and some very large showers.
The staff treat every boat as though it were a super yacht, even the Ol' Girl.
Add to this the fact that I have caught up with a friend from the UK, who flew out for "A" night, how cool is that and another friend is living here and has given me a royal welcome, I feel so spoilt. So with no further delay, many thanks to Anne, Michael & Sophie and all the staff and Directors of Cascais Marina.
Many thanks also to the Hemingway bar for delicious Strawberry Daiquiri's.
The next Port of call is Sines followed by a couple of days in the Algarve before heading to the Canaries, we hope to arrive in the first week of September. It will be the longest time at Sea to date, I am trying to only think of the positives, despite this, six to eight days will be a good test, there is however a very low likelihood of fog. I have decided to buy a Barometer but I have no idea which style or make to go for, any ideas anyone?
How do I put this as delicately as possible, could anyone that is reading this out there in the real world, please sign up as a follower, tell others to do the same and maybe, just maybe make a donation for the Hospital I grew up in.
it's not just me that's surprised we are guests in one of the poshest, cleanest, hottest and securest Marina's to date. There are shops of all descriptions, cafe's, bar's, cocktail lounges, restaurants and some very large showers.
The staff treat every boat as though it were a super yacht, even the Ol' Girl.
Add to this the fact that I have caught up with a friend from the UK, who flew out for "A" night, how cool is that and another friend is living here and has given me a royal welcome, I feel so spoilt. So with no further delay, many thanks to Anne, Michael & Sophie and all the staff and Directors of Cascais Marina.
Many thanks also to the Hemingway bar for delicious Strawberry Daiquiri's.
The next Port of call is Sines followed by a couple of days in the Algarve before heading to the Canaries, we hope to arrive in the first week of September. It will be the longest time at Sea to date, I am trying to only think of the positives, despite this, six to eight days will be a good test, there is however a very low likelihood of fog. I have decided to buy a Barometer but I have no idea which style or make to go for, any ideas anyone?
How do I put this as delicately as possible, could anyone that is reading this out there in the real world, please sign up as a follower, tell others to do the same and maybe, just maybe make a donation for the Hospital I grew up in.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Saucepans and Whistles
Ahoy,
alas the time came for myself and the Ol' Girl to say goodbye to Captain Mike and Sally and show our rudder to Nazare.
I awoke early to find the Sun rising well and the fog clearing. As the weather predictions seemed to suggest all was OK for heading South I decided to leave. The Marina had pretty much cleared of fog, the fishermen were making ready and all was well.
Little did I know what I was about to put the Ol' Girl through.
We managed a few miles before the fog came back with a vengeance. I had the choice to head back to Nazare but this may well have involved passing through quite a few fishing boats, not to mention heading towards land, so with a friends words ringing in my ears"if in doubt stay out" I headed on.
Feeling the heat of the Sun I felt confident that the fog would not last, a very important lesson was learnt this day. Confidence and weather are two words that do not sit comfortably together.
After three hours visibility was down to seventy meters and I had another twelve hours to go, the Ol' Girl has some cool kit, although she has no Radar. This meant I was almost blind in nautical terms. Having very little experience sailing and no experience sailing in fog I found myself to be, lets say, on edge. I did have the advantage of speaking to a couple of friends on the mobile, two experienced salts who proffered some wise words.(thanks Rich n Mark)
I contacted the coastguard and gave them my bearing and position, together with the information I had no Radar and my air horn was broken.(it decided not to work after just ten *%!*ing minutes) So I decided to double click the PTT button on the VHF every ten minutes on full power.
I felt a little better that at least the coastguard could track us despite the fog becoming denser by the hour. Many hours later and more than a little tired from the stress of no visibility, more surprises were on the way.
My log book at eleven thirty at night reads" Coastguard warned me of vessel on collision course, they have not been able to raise them on VHF radio, take evasive action" I did not have to be told twice and changed course. After what seemed like an age another broadcast" vessel is still on collision course off my Port beam" by now, with no foghorn or Radar I was a tiny bit agitated. Thankfully Rich called to see how everything was going, I mentioned in passing the situation and he suggested hitting a saucepan and blowing a whistle. It sounded worth it to me, so this is what I did after changing course again, for the best part of forty minutes. It's dark, foggy and mentally uncomfortable and I am banging a saucepan and blowing a whistle like a drunk at carnival on a full moon. (On my own there was nobody to take any pictures, phew)
Eventually I caught sight of the vessel the coastguard mention and came about to their aft quarter, shouted a few words about VHF at them and stayed out of their way.
I phoned Cascais Marina and asked about the local visibility, better news, once I rounded the headland visibility was believed to be back to normal and thankfully it was.
The visitor pontoon was a good size and no trouble . Exhausted I went to sleep after the briefest of greetings, thinking that on the way back up this coast in the future the Ol' Girl will definitely have Radar and I may have crew, well, maybe.
alas the time came for myself and the Ol' Girl to say goodbye to Captain Mike and Sally and show our rudder to Nazare.
I awoke early to find the Sun rising well and the fog clearing. As the weather predictions seemed to suggest all was OK for heading South I decided to leave. The Marina had pretty much cleared of fog, the fishermen were making ready and all was well.
Little did I know what I was about to put the Ol' Girl through.
We managed a few miles before the fog came back with a vengeance. I had the choice to head back to Nazare but this may well have involved passing through quite a few fishing boats, not to mention heading towards land, so with a friends words ringing in my ears"if in doubt stay out" I headed on.
Feeling the heat of the Sun I felt confident that the fog would not last, a very important lesson was learnt this day. Confidence and weather are two words that do not sit comfortably together.
After three hours visibility was down to seventy meters and I had another twelve hours to go, the Ol' Girl has some cool kit, although she has no Radar. This meant I was almost blind in nautical terms. Having very little experience sailing and no experience sailing in fog I found myself to be, lets say, on edge. I did have the advantage of speaking to a couple of friends on the mobile, two experienced salts who proffered some wise words.(thanks Rich n Mark)
I contacted the coastguard and gave them my bearing and position, together with the information I had no Radar and my air horn was broken.(it decided not to work after just ten *%!*ing minutes) So I decided to double click the PTT button on the VHF every ten minutes on full power.
I felt a little better that at least the coastguard could track us despite the fog becoming denser by the hour. Many hours later and more than a little tired from the stress of no visibility, more surprises were on the way.
My log book at eleven thirty at night reads" Coastguard warned me of vessel on collision course, they have not been able to raise them on VHF radio, take evasive action" I did not have to be told twice and changed course. After what seemed like an age another broadcast" vessel is still on collision course off my Port beam" by now, with no foghorn or Radar I was a tiny bit agitated. Thankfully Rich called to see how everything was going, I mentioned in passing the situation and he suggested hitting a saucepan and blowing a whistle. It sounded worth it to me, so this is what I did after changing course again, for the best part of forty minutes. It's dark, foggy and mentally uncomfortable and I am banging a saucepan and blowing a whistle like a drunk at carnival on a full moon. (On my own there was nobody to take any pictures, phew)
Eventually I caught sight of the vessel the coastguard mention and came about to their aft quarter, shouted a few words about VHF at them and stayed out of their way.
I phoned Cascais Marina and asked about the local visibility, better news, once I rounded the headland visibility was believed to be back to normal and thankfully it was.
The visitor pontoon was a good size and no trouble . Exhausted I went to sleep after the briefest of greetings, thinking that on the way back up this coast in the future the Ol' Girl will definitely have Radar and I may have crew, well, maybe.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Nazare
Ahoy,
what seems like a milestone, at least for me and a stroll in the park for the Ol' Girl, we make port in Nazare.
Mooring went OK, I did find a dead end and have to do a three point turn but like I said all went OK.
Since leaving Davis's Boatyard I have had information about Nazare Marina and the delightful Mike and Sally printed out on the bulkhead of the Ol' Girl, also much information relayed to me, thank you Bill.
After a quiet first night, the following day I set about saying my hello's and having a good look round. Sorting out the paperwork was a breeze with the assistance of Mike and Sally, a lovely couple who do everything of importance in the place, all from passion and kindness, rather than what seems to be any support from the Portuguese authorities in that part of the world, of course I may be wrong, over opinionated or just a bit mad.
Mike and Sally have probably the most unique boat I have seen to date, a steel version of Captain Joshua Slocum's "Spray" just a little bigger, called Pintas Pilot
Not only was I lucky enough to visit, have lunch on board and get to ask two very experienced Seafarers more questions, Pintos Pilot gave up some valuable booty from it's vast locker's for the Ol' Girl, a SSB receiver, Navtex and an important rubber belt, unbelievable and very much appreciated by me and the Ol' Girl. Food, conversation and support, it could have been no better, thank you Captain Mike and Sally.
Nazare has a pleasant beach, by all accounts some good restaurants and a very eclectic seafront with a recent Irish Bar "Donohue's" who made one of the better Mojito's since I have been away, go figure. (lots of stray dogs around the Town with lots of cute puppies, which kind of makes it OK but not quite)
The Marina is a little out of the way but the Bus's try hard and the little Marina shop can sort out just about anything, add to this support from Mike and Sally and some clean, spacious showers and Nazare has the ability to let you relax for a bit.
Just as well, for the next passage was to make trouble.......
what seems like a milestone, at least for me and a stroll in the park for the Ol' Girl, we make port in Nazare.
Mooring went OK, I did find a dead end and have to do a three point turn but like I said all went OK.
Since leaving Davis's Boatyard I have had information about Nazare Marina and the delightful Mike and Sally printed out on the bulkhead of the Ol' Girl, also much information relayed to me, thank you Bill.
After a quiet first night, the following day I set about saying my hello's and having a good look round. Sorting out the paperwork was a breeze with the assistance of Mike and Sally, a lovely couple who do everything of importance in the place, all from passion and kindness, rather than what seems to be any support from the Portuguese authorities in that part of the world, of course I may be wrong, over opinionated or just a bit mad.
Mike and Sally have probably the most unique boat I have seen to date, a steel version of Captain Joshua Slocum's "Spray" just a little bigger, called Pintas Pilot
Not only was I lucky enough to visit, have lunch on board and get to ask two very experienced Seafarers more questions, Pintos Pilot gave up some valuable booty from it's vast locker's for the Ol' Girl, a SSB receiver, Navtex and an important rubber belt, unbelievable and very much appreciated by me and the Ol' Girl. Food, conversation and support, it could have been no better, thank you Captain Mike and Sally.
Nazare has a pleasant beach, by all accounts some good restaurants and a very eclectic seafront with a recent Irish Bar "Donohue's" who made one of the better Mojito's since I have been away, go figure. (lots of stray dogs around the Town with lots of cute puppies, which kind of makes it OK but not quite)
The Marina is a little out of the way but the Bus's try hard and the little Marina shop can sort out just about anything, add to this support from Mike and Sally and some clean, spacious showers and Nazare has the ability to let you relax for a bit.
Just as well, for the next passage was to make trouble.......
Great Rozzer in Fozer
Ahoy,
well here we are the Ol' Girl and me in Figueira Da Foz, I arrived at night and whilst there is a lot of room to manoeuvre, with the extension of the Sea defenses and the Town shinning brightly behind, my chartlets didn't make all the sense they normally do.
This was not a problem, visibility was high and the channel was quiet.
I entered the Marina and saw what seemed to be someone of importance standing on the fuel Berth, it turned out to be the Port Police.
After going over my papers, all was well, alas no fuel was available. This however was better and worse, I did need some fuel I also managed to stay on the dry fuel berth for free for the night, many thanks to the Manager there.
The following morning after a quiet and early night ~I awoke to thick fog, thankfully it cleared before eleven in the morning so I was ready to pick up fuel in the fishing port and be on my way.
Now for the tricky part, or so I thought; the jetty wall in the fishing port is high, very high, at that time of the morning around twelve feet high, attaching my ropes was going to be improbable at best. Minute's before I set off, three Police-men came up to the Ol' Girl and me and said they would escort me though the fishing Port and sort my rope's out for me, this they did and more. A great service to me and a credit to Foz.
well here we are the Ol' Girl and me in Figueira Da Foz, I arrived at night and whilst there is a lot of room to manoeuvre, with the extension of the Sea defenses and the Town shinning brightly behind, my chartlets didn't make all the sense they normally do.
This was not a problem, visibility was high and the channel was quiet.
I entered the Marina and saw what seemed to be someone of importance standing on the fuel Berth, it turned out to be the Port Police.
After going over my papers, all was well, alas no fuel was available. This however was better and worse, I did need some fuel I also managed to stay on the dry fuel berth for free for the night, many thanks to the Manager there.
The following morning after a quiet and early night ~I awoke to thick fog, thankfully it cleared before eleven in the morning so I was ready to pick up fuel in the fishing port and be on my way.
Now for the tricky part, or so I thought; the jetty wall in the fishing port is high, very high, at that time of the morning around twelve feet high, attaching my ropes was going to be improbable at best. Minute's before I set off, three Police-men came up to the Ol' Girl and me and said they would escort me though the fishing Port and sort my rope's out for me, this they did and more. A great service to me and a credit to Foz.
Hmmm Sargo
Ahoy,
well what a beautiful second day in Leixoes, really it all started last night when I met Sjoerd and Suzette in the bar. There are so many reasons to like bars and I have to say these two sailors were no exception to the rule. After a few drinks to line our stomachs we had a few more before deciding to catch up the following day. Sjoerd is a professional skipper and has the beautiful ship Elena, the chance to ask loads of newbie dumb ass questions could not be missed.
Inset are some picture's of the fish I caught that Suzette cooked better than I could ever attempt. We also ate on Elena which felt a little like a night on a cruise liner to me.
This next passage may not be for those of a sensitive disposition, if so move on now. After we had eaten dinner we decided to play Backgammon and chew the the fat so to speak,Both Sjoerd's and Suzette's English is excellent, he does still have an accent and this is quite important to the following explanation. As we chatted and played, while drinking shot's of Gin with lemon juice the conversation came round to "Useful sayings" If in doubt stay out, One hand for you and one for the ship, A halo round the moon rain coming soon and so on. When the conversation moved on to Whisker poles( a pole used to stop the foresail collapsing), the accent, with no disrespect, made me chuckle at this one "Don't put the pole in the sheet hole" I know, I get a slap on the back of the hand for that one.
I hope I meet Sjoerd and Suzette again, with luck in Amsterdam, fingers crossed.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Marina de Leixoes
Ahoy,
so I decided on a slightly longer passage and ended up in Leixoes. A commercial Port with a small well priced Marina. Whether it was the fact that the Marina in this large Port is smaller than I expected, the wind picking up, the fact that the Weather helms rudder was still on today or my lack of experience, mooring up took three attempts, how embarrassing.
Due to some very fresh winds I have decided to stay for a couple of days before cracking on to Figueira da Foz. Due to heavy fog in the mornings often lasting nearly till noon, I have decided to sleep as much as possible on Monday day and head off around 5pm, sailing through the night to arrive in "Foz" a little after the fog has cleared(finger crossing stuff). I feel I should mention I really would appreciate Radar on this stretch of coast, at least I have AIS and an Air horn.
Back to Leixoes, the supermarket, together with the rest of anything I may wish to visit are a major hike, well at least for me. Add to this the fact that the Bus's don't go to them and for me it was a little bit of a chore climbing up the hill to a Minimart. This said there was a silver lining, opposite the Minimart, a traditional bakers, not only bread but very tasty cakes, biscuits and patisseries.(I need to gain weight for the Atlantic crossing, oh yes I do)
As I am here a couple of days and everything not boat related I may wish to see is out of harms way, I will get on with a few little bits of work that I know the Ol' Girl would like. One of these little tasks I completed only moments ago, cleaning the paddle wheel( a small wheel that spins around in the water giving me the boats speed and records distance travelled) thankfully I did not sink the boat removing it, neither did the Ol' Girl take on too much water. Only, washing, cleaning and the like to keep me busy, at least I have the Ol'Girl and Radio 4.
I have said before it's a big ocean but a small world, whilst in Davis's boatyard in Poole, what seems like an age ago now, astern of the Ol' Girl was a yacht making ready to head this way, I met the chap's Rob, Neil, Graham and Keith from her here and was reminded of the day's of Joy and Ben's Bacon sandwiches washed down with a proper cuppa.
After Foz, if I make it, will be Nazare Marina............a milestone in my mind.
so I decided on a slightly longer passage and ended up in Leixoes. A commercial Port with a small well priced Marina. Whether it was the fact that the Marina in this large Port is smaller than I expected, the wind picking up, the fact that the Weather helms rudder was still on today or my lack of experience, mooring up took three attempts, how embarrassing.
Due to some very fresh winds I have decided to stay for a couple of days before cracking on to Figueira da Foz. Due to heavy fog in the mornings often lasting nearly till noon, I have decided to sleep as much as possible on Monday day and head off around 5pm, sailing through the night to arrive in "Foz" a little after the fog has cleared(finger crossing stuff). I feel I should mention I really would appreciate Radar on this stretch of coast, at least I have AIS and an Air horn.
Back to Leixoes, the supermarket, together with the rest of anything I may wish to visit are a major hike, well at least for me. Add to this the fact that the Bus's don't go to them and for me it was a little bit of a chore climbing up the hill to a Minimart. This said there was a silver lining, opposite the Minimart, a traditional bakers, not only bread but very tasty cakes, biscuits and patisseries.(I need to gain weight for the Atlantic crossing, oh yes I do)
As I am here a couple of days and everything not boat related I may wish to see is out of harms way, I will get on with a few little bits of work that I know the Ol' Girl would like. One of these little tasks I completed only moments ago, cleaning the paddle wheel( a small wheel that spins around in the water giving me the boats speed and records distance travelled) thankfully I did not sink the boat removing it, neither did the Ol' Girl take on too much water. Only, washing, cleaning and the like to keep me busy, at least I have the Ol'Girl and Radio 4.
I have said before it's a big ocean but a small world, whilst in Davis's boatyard in Poole, what seems like an age ago now, astern of the Ol' Girl was a yacht making ready to head this way, I met the chap's Rob, Neil, Graham and Keith from her here and was reminded of the day's of Joy and Ben's Bacon sandwiches washed down with a proper cuppa.
After Foz, if I make it, will be Nazare Marina............a milestone in my mind.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Another Courtesy
Ahoy,
well to my surprise as well as to everyone else I am sure, me and the Ol' Girl are in Portugal and another courtesy flag is raised for the occasion. We, I decided on Viana do Costelo, despite the wind being a little sprightly from the North the fog had cleared so we left, all seemed well, how much easier it seemed with the preventer, I am even learning how to sail using the waves a little, well I think so.
As I entered past the outer sea defenses, I was greeted by complete madness, windsurfers, kite surfers, canoeists, sailing dingies and jet ski's all around seeing how close they could get to the Ol' Girl, as I don't speak any Portuguese I tried a few tried and tested English phrases. After running this minor gauntlet I was then onto asking the Captain to raise the bridge into the Marina, I called up on the VHF and had no response, so after a few minutes whilst circling the Ol' Girl, as the wind and activity around me would not allow me to just hang at rest, I tried again, nothing,
Just as I was beginning to get a little irritated, about having to grab the visitor mooring in limited space alone, a chap from the Marina arrived on the visitor pontoon and apologised for the lack of an aerial on the Marina radio, we did have a laugh about it. After a little while they raised the bridge and I was safe and sound, moored up and ready for a beer in town.
Viana is a little bizarre, the old town has been totally gentrified, all sparkly and pricey, not to mention a very disturbing blend of architecture. Some extremely beautiful Stokeresque buildings and some concrete monsters which look like they where flown in especially from a demolition in Poland.
The spot the Ol' Girl has in the Marina is in a perfect location to view them all, not to mention being right next to a restaurant, club and bar which has Portuguese Karaoke tonight.....Hmmmm should be good for a laugh if not a good nights sleep!
Tomorrow I think we leave for Varzim or Leixoes.
well to my surprise as well as to everyone else I am sure, me and the Ol' Girl are in Portugal and another courtesy flag is raised for the occasion. We, I decided on Viana do Costelo, despite the wind being a little sprightly from the North the fog had cleared so we left, all seemed well, how much easier it seemed with the preventer, I am even learning how to sail using the waves a little, well I think so.
As I entered past the outer sea defenses, I was greeted by complete madness, windsurfers, kite surfers, canoeists, sailing dingies and jet ski's all around seeing how close they could get to the Ol' Girl, as I don't speak any Portuguese I tried a few tried and tested English phrases. After running this minor gauntlet I was then onto asking the Captain to raise the bridge into the Marina, I called up on the VHF and had no response, so after a few minutes whilst circling the Ol' Girl, as the wind and activity around me would not allow me to just hang at rest, I tried again, nothing,
Just as I was beginning to get a little irritated, about having to grab the visitor mooring in limited space alone, a chap from the Marina arrived on the visitor pontoon and apologised for the lack of an aerial on the Marina radio, we did have a laugh about it. After a little while they raised the bridge and I was safe and sound, moored up and ready for a beer in town.
Viana is a little bizarre, the old town has been totally gentrified, all sparkly and pricey, not to mention a very disturbing blend of architecture. Some extremely beautiful Stokeresque buildings and some concrete monsters which look like they where flown in especially from a demolition in Poland.
The spot the Ol' Girl has in the Marina is in a perfect location to view them all, not to mention being right next to a restaurant, club and bar which has Portuguese Karaoke tonight.....Hmmmm should be good for a laugh if not a good nights sleep!
Tomorrow I think we leave for Varzim or Leixoes.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Preventer No.1
Ahoy,
the Ol' Girl and me have nearly had enough of Partying at Spanish Fiesta's but not quite. Each Marina to date has had some sort of bash. Of course I have tried to pace myself and not get too caught up in the revelry, maybe.
As Miguel the Harbour Master has allowed me to stay, Gratis so to speak, I have stayed a little longer than I first intended, it's time to move on though despite such a fantastic price.
I have a couple of options for my next Port, so I will decide on the way, either Viana Do Costelo or Povoa De Varzim.
Yesterday the local newspaper visited the Ol' Girl and me and seemed very interested in this nomadadventure and what I thought about the fireworks, I hope it makes copy.
The picture is of my Preventer MK1 eight loops of six millimeter bungee lashed together and a couple of shackles, on the other end of the lines are snap shackles. I will let you know if it works and if it does how well.
Some of the salt's round here have told me about strange Northerly winds that come upon you all of a sudden and with some force, sounds like, er......fun and time to play with the preventer.
Such winds are expected in a couple of days, I will see what the local sailors have to say about them once I am in Portugal.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Baiona
Ahoy,
so the Ol' Girl and me are in Baiona, around fifteen nautical miles from the Portuguese border. As neither the Ol' Girl or myself wish to use the engine unless necessary or the diesel for that matter we are waiting for the wind to shift from the SW.
Miguel the manager here is being very sympathetic, I do not want to embarrass anyone by outstaying any welcome, maybe tomorrow conditions will be favourable to push off.
I like this Marina, alas the facilities in the town are quite a walk by my standards so I am a bit of a boat rat at the moment, thankfully there is no bar here at the Marina so I am not falling into cups.
This means I am feeling a little separated from the rest of the Town and my fellow boaties as there is a three day Fiesta going on in Town and many people are enjoying it, I however, am listening from a distance not only to the fireworks but the sound system too, I have some sailing to do and dare not stress my legs on anything else.
I am looking forward to raising the Portuguese flag and seeing there coast and some of the Ports, hopefully I will make good time and will be able to be in Southern Spain for the end of the first week of August, fingers crossed the wind will be favourable.
so the Ol' Girl and me are in Baiona, around fifteen nautical miles from the Portuguese border. As neither the Ol' Girl or myself wish to use the engine unless necessary or the diesel for that matter we are waiting for the wind to shift from the SW.
Miguel the manager here is being very sympathetic, I do not want to embarrass anyone by outstaying any welcome, maybe tomorrow conditions will be favourable to push off.
I like this Marina, alas the facilities in the town are quite a walk by my standards so I am a bit of a boat rat at the moment, thankfully there is no bar here at the Marina so I am not falling into cups.
This means I am feeling a little separated from the rest of the Town and my fellow boaties as there is a three day Fiesta going on in Town and many people are enjoying it, I however, am listening from a distance not only to the fireworks but the sound system too, I have some sailing to do and dare not stress my legs on anything else.
I am looking forward to raising the Portuguese flag and seeing there coast and some of the Ports, hopefully I will make good time and will be able to be in Southern Spain for the end of the first week of August, fingers crossed the wind will be favourable.
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