Ian, Gordon and Dave departed Lagos Marina, Portugal, on 19th August 2002.
The first leg of the trip was an overnighter to Gibraltar. Unfortunately there was little wind and we motored all bar the last few miles from Tarifa, where the wind picked up and we were able to sail into Gibraltar harbour. As it was the height of the season, all the marinas were full. Fortunately we managed to find the last available berth at the Queensway marina. We spent the remainder of the day touring round the rock and then a quiet night in one of the many pubs feeling tired. Gibraltar is busy by day but nighttime is pretty quiet as all the tourists get bused back to their hotels in Spain.
After a windy start rounding the rock, the wind died to nothing and left us with another overnight motor to Almeria. An uneventful day and night made up for by the scorching heat. The arrival was an early six in the morning, which left us with the full day to explore the town. The only problem in Almeria was that the temperature was a whopping 38deg C. After trudging around the town and castles, the rest of the day was spent at the beach swimming and relaxing. That evening was a tour of a few bars and sampling lots of great tapas, most of them free!
The third leg was unintentionally split into two days. We were originally going to overnight to Torreveija, but the previous nights lack of sleep and an increasing wind on the nose persuaded us to stop off at a small sleepy fishing village, where the only berth was where the fisherman off loaded their catch. Fortunately it was the weekend and Spanish fishermen are not allowed to fish, so there was no problem with our berth.
With another early start at six we set off for Torreveija. Good sailing to start with, but then the wind died and the motor was back on. With the exception of a wee swim at lunchtime the day was uneventful and we arrived late afternoon, being met by our friend Martin, who lives there. The original plan had been to have our fourth crewman Richard join the boat and then sail that night for Ibiza. Richard arrived but unfortunately we were unable to refuel as it was a Sunday and so had to wait until the following day. The up side of this of course was a night out in Torreveija!
After fueling we departed with no wind, though feeling a little under the weather ourselves, this was no real disappointment. Unfortunately just after leaving the autopilot died and it was hand steering for the rest of the trip; luckily Richard was there to help. The wind did eventually get up just after nightfall and we finished the leg with a good sail into an anchorage in Formentera at two in the morning.
Waking up the next morning to see we were surrounded by super yachts and floating gin palaces was great. After exploring the lovely town of Formentera and a late breakfast we sailed to Ibiza Town, past the busy beaches of Formentera with hundreds of boats of all shapes and sizes at anchor.
There weren't many unpleasant surprises during the trip but discovering the cost of the berth in Ibiza town was one of them, £75 for the night, which didn't include showers or electricity. With the shock slowly subsiding with every gin and tonic, we headed off into Ibiza town to "large it up". It has an enormous castle full of nice restaurants and some very lively bars outside the walls. As for 'larging' it, well, it never really happened; more us than Ibiza I think.
Ibiza Town turned out to be a really good place. Not the stereo typical clubber paradise that is San Antonio, though there is an awful lot happening.
After a brief motor along the Ibiza coast the wind picked up and so up went the sails. All was beautiful and sunny until mid afternoon when the wind got fresher and the clouds moved. On the horizon we could see lightning storms and squalls coming our way. Within an hour we were right in the middle of it, with lightning landing all around us. This had to be the scariest moment of the trip. It's not easy trying to steer whilst not touching anything metal. A couple of hours later and a thoroughly good soaking the storm past and the sun came out for our arrival into Palma.
Here we managed to find a berth right in town near to the Cathedral. A most pleasant evening was had eating superb tapas and drinking great wine, followed by a few 'mojitos' in a lively Cuban bar. It's a beautiful city with some ultimate yachts moored there.
After a late breakfast in town we departed and set course for the west side of Majorca. A good sail was had including a 'man over board' drill that not everyone onboard knew was going to happen. That night was spent in the picturesque town of Soller at anchor.
The following day was an early start and another motoring. This time by breakfast we had reached the scenic 'Gorge' that is one of Majorca's highlights. Following some exploring and swimming we set off again for the final sail to Bonaire. Along the way we put Gordon in the dinghy and managed to get some good sailing shots.
And so by mid afternoon we finally arrived at our marina, which incidentally was the only thing we had booked before departing Lagos.
Click on a name to view photos of that area
 |
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
|