From T shirts to thermals

November 24th - still in our T shirts at the marina BBQ

We’ve been working hard over the last two weeks getting the boat ready for winter, as we are leaving it for a couple of months while we return to the UK. We’ve washed the sails and ropes and packed them away, serviced the engine, cleaned down the decks, cleared out the cupboards and packed up our books and clothes. We’ve been lucky as the weather has been fine and sunny, with temperatures between 16 and 21C during the day, though much cooler at night.

We flew back to the UK on 30^th November and found it a bit of a shock going from 16C to 5C. We are now staying with Mum in Milford on sea and have a busy month ahead. I’m having my cataract op next week, then we will be catching up with family and friends before Cliff leaves for the Canaries on 28^th December to cross the Atlantic!

Our friends Richard and Rowena on Galene, a 36ft Westerly Corsair ketch, were looking for an extra crew member for their Atlantic crossing and Cliff jumped at the chance. They’ll be leaving Las Palmas at the end of December to sail to the Cape Verde islands and then on to Grenada in the Caribbean.

I’ll be heading back to Spain towards the end of January and Cliff will return mid-Feb. We hope to do a bit more travelling in Spain in March before we set sail again in April, when we will be heading to the Balearics and then on to Italy.

This will be our last update for 2012 – the next update will be in February 2013 when we’re back on board in Spain.

 

 

Granada

Alhambra from the River Darro

We have been looking forward to exploring inland Spain, so this week we hired a car to take a trip to Granada. Before we left, we headed round the coast to Mazarron to look at the Bolnuevo Erosions, a collection of wierdly shaped, towering sandstone rocks formed by weather erosion over millions of years. It reminded us of some of rock erosions we have seen in Cappadocia in Turkey.

 

Bolneuvo erosions

 

Our trip to Grenada took us through some spectacular and fascinating mountain scenery. One of the most unusual sights were the cave houses in the Sierra de Baza. It used to be common for people to live in the local caves as they were much cooler than the traditional houses, but we were surprised to see that people still live in them today. You would suddenly come across a traditional, white rendered frontage with door and windows set into the rocky hillside, with a chimney or two poking out of the rocks further up. Needless to say, the developers have spotted this as an opportunity and you can now rent or buy the cave houses as holiday homes.



Cave house near Baza

View of Granada from the Alhambra

We woke up to the sound of pouring rain on the first morning, so it was on with the waterproofs before heading off to Granada’s key attraction, the Alhambra. Set high on a hill above the town, the Alhambra housed the palaces of the Nasrid Sultans, rulers of the last Spanish Muslim kingdom.

 

Patio of the Lions

 

Partal Palace

 

Generalife
 

Intricate carved wood ceiling

 Luckily the rain cleared and the sun came out as we wandered around the beautiful gardens and admired the intricate workmanship that went into building each of the palaces.  The Moorish architecture is stunning and is complemented by their use of water, which cleverly reflects the sweeping arches and creates a calming atmosphere. We found the views from the Alahambra equally breathtaking, with the magnificent snow-capped peaks of Sierra Nevada mountains in the distance and the hillsides rich with autumn colour.

 

Snow capped Sierra Nevada mountains

 

Autumn colours below the Alhambra

 Walking back down from the Alhambra, just around the corner from our hotel, we heard the sounds of  a guitar being played. We followed the music and found two guitarerros -  guitar makers - right across the street from each other. Apparently Granada has over 40 guitarerros and many classical musicians buy their guitars here. One of the shops we had found, Casa Ferrer,  is the oldest in the city and has been making guitars since 1875.

 

Casa Ferrer

 

After the Alhambra, the second highlight of our trip had to be the food. We dined out on tapas - most bars offered free tapas with each drink, often bringing us a meal-sized plate of delicious squid, salt cod,  paella or pork and then we would choose another dish or two if we had room. We also discovered that the pasteleria over the road from the hotel made excellent coffee and  very tasty cakes – our favourite was the Granadian speciality of Pionino, a thin, sweet pastry coiled into a cylindrical shape and soaked in honey-based syrup then topped with toasted cream.

 

Pionino pastry

We walked off all the calories exploring the narrow streets of the Albecin, the original Moorish sector of Granada which sits on the hillside beside the river. The area is a mix of Moorish and Christian buildings, where souks sit next to churches and the tiny squares still feature the traditional mosaic paving made using the smooth white pebbles from the River Darro and slate from the Sierra Nevada.

Traditional mosaic paving

At sunset each day we made for the Church of San Nicolas at the top of the Albecin, where you have a panoramic view over the Sierra Nevada mountains and the Alhambra. On our second night, as the sun went down two guitarists began playing flamenco music.  When  darkness fell the walls of the Alhambra glowed under the floodlights and the place had a truly magical feel.




Sunset serenade

Alhambra at night

Port life

Yacht Port Cartagena

 

Well, we’ve been here in Cartagena for a month now. I can’t believe how quickly it’s gone! Here are a few of the highlights so far…

Surrounded by the Romans.  Wherever you walk in Cartagena there are remains of its Roman heritage. On our first day we took a wrong turn trying to find the supermarket and stumbled across a large, very impressive Roman Theatre. We went back later to visit the site and were amazed to discover that up until relatively recently the whole thing had been buried beneath houses and a church.  

 

The restored Roman Theatre

We soon realised that a huge amount of investment has gone into restoring the theatre and other key Roman sites in the town. Each site has audio visual presentations and exhibitions which help bring the projects to life. There is so much to see that we decided to explore a different site each day. 

Wall decoration at Casa Fortuna

We've visited five sites, our favourites being the Roman Baths and Casa Fortuna. At the baths you can still see the original flooring and some of the wall decorations – even some Roman graffiti on the wall of the ‘Taverna’ that served the baths. At Casa Fortuna we were taken underground to walk through the excavations of a large Roman villa with original floors, beautiful wall decorations and a well preserved Roman road, complete with the original cart tracks.    

  

Elida gospel choir

         

Sailing for Jesus. We were walking back from town last week when we heard live music coming from the waterfront. We expected to find a band in one of the cafes, but instead discovered a gospel choir, complete with supporting band, on board a 131ft yacht! The band were part of a Swedish Christian mission called Elida, whose motto is ‘Sailing for Jesus’; the ship sails between Sweden, the Med and the Canaries doing good works.  The crew were very friendly, and at the end of the concert the audience was invited on board. Cliff jumped at the chance to have a look round the huge cruiser-racer. Although the navigation equipment was sophisticated, the accommodation was very basic, reminding us of what we have seen on the larger racing boats. But the crew didn't seem to mind, as they get to sail in the Med for just 12 Euros a day! Elida is now in the yard here having her annual checks done before sailing to the Canaries.

 



Sailing training ship Pogoria





Polish spirit. Around the same time we had a visit from another big boat – a 157ft square rigger called Pogoria. This is a Polish sail training ship crewed by young people aged between 18 and 25. They certainly have a head for heights – their idea of fun in the evening was to climb the mast and hang off the top spars!

 

Anita makes it to the second spreader

Up the mast. I also had to climb to the top of the mast last week, though not for the fun of it. Cliff noticed that one end of our flag halyard had come loose and disappeared up to near the top of the mast. The only way to retrieve it was for one of us to go up, and since Cliff is too heavy for me to winch, I would have to do it. I don’t like heights and I don’t mind admitting that I was terrified. Still, I eventually managed to scramble up to the top spreader, but when I grabbed hold of the line to pull it down, it wouldn’t budge.

Anita untangling the line at the top of the mast

It wasn’t until I got back down to the deck again that Cliff suggested the line might have become tangled at the top. Once I had stopped shaking I decided it would make sense for me to go back up try and untangle it. So up I went, this time right to the top (50ft), hugging the mast for dear life as the boat gently swayed back and forth in the wind. Once I got there I realised I would need two hands free to untangle the long series of knots in the line. It took a few deep breaths before I was able to let go, but I did, and after a few minutes the lines were unknotted and I was on my way back down. Cliff reckoned I earned my G&T that day! 

Yana, Cliff, Jim and the magician

Cartagena Ocktoberfest. The last thing we expected in Spain was a beer festival, but since it was on the waterfront just down from the marina, how could we not go? A group of us from the Marina – Yana from Scrabbler,  Jim from La Pearle Noir and Sally and John from Vaitea – headed over. Well, it turned out that beer festival was a bit of an exaggeration. There were 4 beers to choose from and  German sausage to eat! There was also a magician wandering around the tables, a rather strange choice of entertainment for a beer festival, but very entertaining nevertheless.

Cartagena

The Roman theatre at Cartagena
 

3rd October We’ve finally arrived in Cartagena after a couple of overnight stops – the first at the very pretty resort of San Jose and the second at Garrucha.  The heavy rain we had last week has caused flooding all along the coast and all sorts of debris has been swept out to sea. During our passage we had to negotiate great rafts of bamboo, tree roots, branches, wooden planks, barrels and even sections of drainage pipes. Other boats saw animal carcasses but fortunately we were spared that.

Dorry and Steve leave for Majorca  in Bluebottle III

4th October As we ate breakfast on deck this morning we spotted Dorry and Steve, one of the couples we met at Almerimar, taking their boat to the fuel pontoon. Apparently they’ve been here for a couple of days and had hoped to see us. Sadly they’re leaving for the Balearics today so we won’t have a chance to catch up. Maybe next year?

 

Cartagena waterfront

Zulo, a monument by Victor Ochoa to the victims of terrorism

5th October We’ve been exploring the town over the last couple of days and really like what we’ve seen so far. It’s a fascinating mix of old and new: wide boulevards shaded with palm trees, elegant art deco buildings, amazing modern sculptures and some interesting roman and byzantine remains. On a more practical level there’s a good range of shops, including four big supermarkets and three chandlers.

Yacht Port Catagena - our marina

 

Cruise ships dwarf the yachts

Cartagena is set in a bay surrounded by hills on three sides, so our marina is well protected. There’s always something to see from our deck as Naval, commercial and fishing boats sail in and out of the harbour. There’s also a cruise ship terminal right next to the marina. So close, in fact, we spent an entertaining hour on deck today listening to their lunchtime Trivia Quiz!

We’ve decided this will make a good base for the winter, so we have now booked in here until the beginning of April. We’re hoping to do some travelling in between (on land) to see some more of Spain.

7th October We were invited to a live-aboards' BBQ in the marina today which gave us the chance to meet people from the other boats. Everyone was very friendly and we've agreed to get together for a BBQ every week, and to introduce some other regular social activities too. There seem to be a plenty of boats over-wintering here so we're hoping for a good social life.

Almerimar

Almerimar marina

22^nd September.  We’re now thinking about where we will stop for the winter. We plan to live on the boat in a marina until April next year, so we’d like to find somewhere with a good live-aboard community and plenty to do and see. We decided to come and look at Almerimar because it’s one of the cheapest marinas in southern Spain and it’s very popular with live-aboards.

The port is on a flat coastal plain backed by the Sierra Nevada mountains. The fields here are covered in acres of plastic sheeting for growing winter crops – from a distance it looks as though it has snowed!

23^rd September.  We took a walk around the port today.  There are long beaches either side backed by holiday apartments. There’s no village or town as such – the nearest is 4km away – but the port has a good selection of bars and restaurants and the best shopping facilities we’ve seen near to a marina. The area is very popular with Brits and the local entertainment is typical of what you might expect to find in a British resort – pub quizzes, karaoke nights, Elvis impersonators and a busy Sky Sports bar.

Boat buddies: Anita, Geoff, Vicky, Steve and Dorry

Everyone is friendly and we soon got to meet the couples on the boats either side of us. Vicky and Geoff on Wraith are staying for the winter before crossing the Atlantic on their way back home to Australia, while Dorry and Steve on Bluebottle III are stopping for a few nights on their way to their marina in Majorca.

Perfect weather for kite surfing, but too rough to sail

27^th September. We had only planned to stay here for a couple of days, but the weather Gods have decided otherwise. We’ve had high winds for three days and torrential rain is forecast for the next couple of days. Thank goodness there’s a good social life – we went to the local ‘pub quiz’ in a beachside restaurant last night with 18 other ‘liveaboards’. It was a good fun, especially as our team won!

29^th September. It’s still raining and so cold that we’re back to wearing macs, jeans and sweatshirts. The weather’s due to clear tomorrow so we’re hoping to sail further up the coast to look at Cartagena – another possible destination for a winter berth.

Punta de la Mona

Marina del Este with its rocky outcrop

Tuesday 18^th September. We arrived Marina del Este today after an overnight stop in Benalmedina. The setting is spectacular and feels more Caribbean than Spanish – no wonder this area is called the Tropical Coast. The port is tucked between the pineclad headland of Punta de la Mona and the rocky outcrop of Penon de las Cabellas.



La Herradura bay

Wednesday 19^th September. We walked over the headland to the town of La Herradura today and bought fresh fish and vegetables in the market. It was a long, steep and hot walk but we were rewarded with some spectacular views. When we returned we were able to cool off with a swim in the crystal clear waters off the marina beach - we agreed it was the best swim we’ve had this year.

Friday 21st September. We had planned to move on yesterday, but the weather Gods are against us. The wind has increased, the waves are crashing against the rocks outside and Sandpiper is doing an ungainly dance in the water. We’re hoping the winds will ease tomorrow so that we can sail on to Almerimar.

La Duquesa and Estepona




Enjoying life at La Duquesa

Sunday 9^th September. We sailed to La Duquesa today. When we checked the weather this morning the forecast was for mild winds, which was great, as Mum sometimes suffers from motion sickness and we weren’t sure how she would cope in the boat. As we sailed out of the marina we had 8 knots of wind. Five minutes later, out in the bay, the wind had accelerated to 22 knots, head on, and the sea had a nasty chop that sent spray arching over the boat!  Forecasts are all very well, but they don’t allow for the ‘Gibraltar’ effect – the Rock produces its very own microclimate.

As I wrestled with the helm Cliff dashed below to find some waterproofs to give to Mum. I wondered whether we should turn back, but then I looked at Mum, and saw she was grinning from ear to ear -  she was clearly enjoying it! Once we had rounded the Rock the wind backed and dropped to around 12 knots, enough to give us a gentle downwind sail for the rest of our passage. The only disappointment was not seeing dolphins. Mum has never seen them in the wild and we were hopeful of a sighting as we had been told they are often seen in Gibraltar bay.

 

Mum at the helm

Monday 10^th September. La Duquesa is a small, quiet marina built as part of a tourist development and named after the local castle. It’s a pleasant place to spend a couple of days; it’s architecture  blends well with the scenery and there are good sandy beaches on either side of it.

With Mum on the seafront

 

 It was good to see Maggie and Nigel again

Tuesday 11^th September.  Our friends Maggie and Nigel (neighbours from home) drove up from their holiday villa near Cadiz to visit us today. It was great to see them again and catch up with their news. Cliff cooked a BBQ on the back of the boat then after lunch we walked down to visit Castillo de la Duquesa – a small castle built in 1767 that now houses a museum of fencing and the local archaeological museum.

 

Castille de La Duquesa

 

 

Maggie and Nigel at the castle

 

Wednesday 12^th September. Mum said she would like another sail before she went home, so we decided to travel five miles up the coast to Estepona today. There was very little wind but we raised the sails anyway and drifted along at 2-3 knots, hoping that we might spot some dolphins. Then, as if to order, a large pod appeared and swam past the boat, gracefully jumping and diving through the water!

Thursday 13^th September. Mum flew home today. We all took the bus back to Gibraltar to see her off.  I was sad to see her go. It’s been great having her over and we have been amazed by how easily she adapted to life on the boat.







Estepona seafront

 

The clock tower in the old town

 

Friday 14^th September. Estepona is a town of two halves – the seafront is typical of many Spanish resorts, a long sandy beach backed by modern high rise hotels and apartments.  But behind this is an old town that has retained its character, with narrow cobbled streets, whitewashed houses and shaded paved squares. Today we walked to the old town and spent a lazy morning in a café in Plaza de las Flores, sipping coffee, admiring the houses with their ornate balconies and simply watching the world go by.

 

Plaza de las Flores

 

 

Gibraltar

View from our mooring

 

Wednesday 29^th August. Well, we finally made it to the Med! We left Cadiz yesterday, rounded Cape Trafalgar (site of the famous battle) and spent last night in Barbate. We set off early this morning to catch the tide through the Gibraltar Straits. The narrow gap between Spain and Africa (less than 8 nautical miles at its narrowest) creates fast currents and high winds, so it’s important to choose the right weather to sail through it. The Almanac told us that the wind off Tarifa blows at 30 knots or more for 300 days each year, so we were expecting a challenging sail. 

Luckily for us, both wind and tide were in the same direction (behind us) and the wind was moderate for most of the day. But as we turned into Gibraltar Bay the windspeed doubled to 22 knots and we had an interesting time dodging the oil tankers lining up to go into Algeciras. We finally made it safely into Marina Bay, remembering to keep well clear of the airport runway that lies right next to the marina entrance.

We had a good view of the planes taking off and landing

Thursday 30^th August. Our mooring has an excellent view of the Rock…and also of the airport! The latter has turned out to be less of an issue than I expected, as there are only a handful of flights each day and none at night. The marina is popular with liveaboards and is very friendly. We walked into town today and found it strange to see BHS, M&S and other British shops in a Mediterranean environment.

Friday 31^st August. We went to Morrisons today and Cliff was in seventh heaven as he stocked up with Peanut Butter, Marmite and Cheddar Cheese! He also stopped at M&S to pick up some shorts and shirts in a smaller size – he has lost so much weight over the last three months that his clothes are falling off him.

Saturday 1 September. The ‘Levanter’ wind set in today – a strong easterly wind that also brings cloudy weather. We’re grateful for a bit of cloud after so much heat, but our mooring is exposed to the east and the boat is surging back and forth and then moving wildly from side to side – it’s a bit like being on a Bucking Bronco. We’re moored stern to with a passerelle (gangplank) from the stern to the quay. There’s a metre plus drop at low tide and the passerelle sits at an alarming angle. This and boat movement has made it interesting getting on and off the boat. At the lowest tide we decided to dispense with the passerelle altogether and opt for a wild leap to shore instead.

Sunday 2 September. We got the bikes out today to do a circuit of the Rock. The city sits on the west side of the rock and is an odd mixture of austere concrete military fortifications, modern high rise flats, multi-story  car parks and older houses with pretty shutters and ornate iron balconies. The east side is sheer rock edged by beaches – the most attractive is at Catalan Bay, a fishing village originally populated by Genoese fishermen, and with a very different feel to the rest of the area.

Monday 3 September. We’ve decided to get a few things fixed on the boat while we’re near an English speaking boatyard. The riggers were first to arrive this morning to re-rig our Lazyjacks and look at the problem with furling the genoa. They stood on the quay for some time before chancing a leap onto the boat (the wind is still blowing a hooley) and weren’t keen to go up the mast, but this is the only day they could fit us in, so it had to be done.

Later on the plumber arrived to try and solve the problem of a permanent dribble from our hot water system. He thinks he’s found the answer and is coming back tomorrow.

I’m flying back to UK tomorrow for a hospital appointment about the cataracts in my eyes (yes, I didn’t know people my age got them either). I’m back again on Friday and bringing my Mum out with me for a week’s holiday. Mum is 90 and bright as a button, but is unsteady on her feet, and we’ve been worrying about how we will be able to get her on and off the boat on this mooring. We’ve checked, and there aren’t any other moorings available in Gibraltar just now, though the situation may change by the end of the week.

Wednesday 5th September. I waited three hours at the hospital to be told what I already knew – that I need an operation on both eyes. At least I’ll be on the waiting list now. It was lovely to spend last night back in Worplesdon (thanks Tricia!) and to see Mum today.

Arriving with Mum at Gibraltar

Friday 7^th September. We flew back today. While I’ve been away Cliff has managed to find us a calmer mooring in Ocean Bay, at the more upmarket end of the marina. We are now surrounded by super-yachts! Cliff has been busy cleaning the boat inside and out, and there’s good and bad news about our plumbing. The good news is that it’s now all working properly. The bad news is that as soon as the plumber fixed the pressure problems, the pump failed, so we’ve had to replace that too.

Mum and I at the top of the Rock

Saturday 8^th September. We woke to heavy cloud again but it cleared by early afternoon so we decided to take the cable car up to the top of the rock. It was worth the effort – there was a good view down over the town and across to Spain on one side and Africa on the other.

Ape with the stolen Fanta

The rock is famous for its Barbary apes which roam freely at the top. The apes are quick to spot food and drink, and when we got to the viewing platform a young ape grabbed a can of Fanta from the woman next to us, poured it onto the ground and licked it up! The adult apes generally looked listless and bored with life, but the youngsters were more lively, and we managed to video two very sweet infants playing together.

Video of baby apes playing

There’s a big concert tonight in the sports arena featuring Jessie J and UB40. As we sipped our sundowners on deck we watched a wedding party celebrating on a super-yacht opposite. Then there were yelps of excitement from the bridesmaids as another super-yacht pulled in behind them and Jessie J and her entourage appeared briefly on the back, before being whisked from the yacht to a waiting black limo.

If the weather’s good tomorrow we’ll head out of Gibraltar and up to La Duquesa on the Costa del Sol.

Chipiona and Cadiz

Chipiona old town

Friday 24^th August. We arrived in Chipiona today after spending a couple of days in the beach resort of Mazagon. We had plenty of wind for our sail here, but also plenty of swell, which made for a rolly ride. As we approached Chipiona the water got shallower and the sea became rougher, so we were glad to be going into harbour. But as we started to roll the genoa in, it jammed solid. We unfurled it and tried again, but the same thing happened.  The only solution was to drop the genoa, which meant turning the boat into the wind and waves, and Cliff going forward to wrestle the genoa down as the waves broke across him on the foredeck.

Spain's tallest lighthouse

 Saturday 25^th August. We explored Chipiona today. It’s an interesting town with lots to see – it boasts Spain’s tallest lighthouse and is home to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Regla, better known as the ‘Black Madonna’. The sanctuary is a striking building, set just above the beach. One unusual feature in the church is the font, which is made from half of a large clam shell – we imagined the priest would need to be very careful to avoid catching the baby on the sharp edges!

Sancutary of Our Lady of Regla

The clam shell font

 We were also fascinated by the Chipiona fish corrales – these are rock formations off the beach that have been enhanced since Roman times to form large natural pools. At high tide the water rises above the rock walls allowing fish to swim into the pools, and as it recedes the fish are stranded and are then caught by the fishermen using spears and other traditional tools.



Plaza de Espana in Cadiz

Monday 27^th August. We sailed to Cadiz yesterday, there was very little wind and we motored most of the way. The marina is 2km from the city centre so we got the bikes out today and cycled in. What a brilliant, fascinating city! Its heyday was in the 19^th century when it hosted the signing of first Spanish constitution and was the centre for trade across continents.  The merchants had grand houses built with watch towers on them so that they could look out over the bay and see the ships with their goods coming and going. We started our cycle tour admiring the merchants' houses near Plaza Espana then cycled along the battlements and through shaded gardens with wonderful views across the bay.  We finally wound our way down the narrow cobbled streets to the main square and the impressive cathedral.

Cadiz roofline showing the watch towers on the merchants'  houses

Cadiz cathedral

I’m not a great church lover but Cadiz cathedral is truly majestic – apparently it’s the largest church in Spain. The organist was practising as we wandered around inside the cathedral and we were treated to Toccata by Bach, which fitted perfectly with the surroundings. We also discovered a new taste at a tapas bar across the square from the cathedral – grilled goats cheese and walnuts on toasted bread spread with wine marmalade. It was so good we ordered a second round!

The other highlight in Cadiz was highest of the original watch towers - Torre Tavira - which  had a Camera Obscuring offering a bird’s eye view of the city. As the camera operator moved it around he gave us a guided tour, explaining the history of the buildings we could see.