Well, it's been an interesting few days; Warrior has been very slowly dragging her anchor across the bay in these strong northerly winds - about 4 times. The bottom is stone with an overlay of boulders so the anchor gets pulled through unless you are lucky and hook up a nice big rock, then you may have problems breaking free. It's not so dramatic as it sounds as the process takes a few hours you have plenty of time to decide what to do. Anyway, solved the problem by finding a mooring that has a large hunk of concrete on the end. Moorings were laid a few years back for a regatta but most have had there riser removed but you can snorkel at low water - about 2 meters and find one, dive down and attach a mooring line. I was lucky as when a yacht left yesterday I picked the mooring up and it looks solid so problem solved.
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Changed my view by moving a few hundred yards as the crow flies that is to Puerto de Arrecife much nicer I think you will agree, its still very blustery but manageable. The town itself is just a short walk from the anchorage with three Spar supermarkets and all the usual fashion and tourist retail shops. I found a cinema so might go and see Titanic. I ordered my water tank today, expensive because of where we are but even if I bought it in the UK and had it shipped it would not work out much cheaper.
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I caught a bus down the coast to catch up with Bjørn & Berit at Puerto Calero marina. I had a fantastic day and fantastic meal that Berit had prepared after which we all went for a fun sail on their new 'Happy Cat', not much wind unfortunately and from the wrong direction most of the time but still great fun - I need a waterproof camera.
Tomorrow I am going to investigate getting a new flexible water tank as the present one is leaking I have already attempted repairing it but its past its prime now. I came across a Plastimo stockist so if they don't have one in stock they should be able to get one for me.
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Since I got back from the UK the weather has been very unseasonable, very strong northerly winds and not all that warm so Warrior was stuck in the marina for another couple of weeks. I finally got out today (2nd May) and made passage to the next island of Lanzarote and am now anchored in Puerto de Naos just a stones throw from the town of Arrecife. It's not as a glamorous setting as Graciosa but very convenient for chandlers and other shops. Over the next few weeks I need to do maintenance, renew some of the running rigging continue with varnish work and buy a new household battery as one of them has packed up.
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Hi everyone I am now back on Graciosa after my UK visit. I had some dramas with my flight back. After turning up at the rail station a day early and panicking as there was no anticipated train - what a bozo! I had a close shave the following day catching my flight as the train was 25 minutes late which in turn meant I missed my slot for booking in my bag at the airport, I was charged an extra £50 over and above the £30 that I had already shelled out meaning I paid more for my bag that my flight thanks - Ryanair.
I spent too much on this visit so I will have to stay till the end of the month before I can pay the marina - hay not a bad place to spend another couple of weeks especially as its proving extremely windy. I decided to use the time constructively by getting on with varnishing the interior of Warrior as it was looking a little tired and what a difference its now beginning to look bright and cheerful again. I had a very productive time in the UK, it was great to see Gail, Gina and of course Ozzy. Gina has done really well at work and is being trained as a trainer herself - onward and upward - well-done girl. Got my passport renewed, had my annual medical and pleased to report that all is well and ready to do a few more miles, processed over 100 images for the libraries and went up to Cumbria to catch up with friend and ex colleagues at the University. There are not many left now due to the cuts taking place at the University of Cumbria. It's really sad to see what was a very successful specialist art college with a history of over 100 years being dismantled. The criminal stupidity is that all those skills and experience that the technicians have are now disappearing and the management seems totally oblivious or just not interested, I put it down to ignorance. Needless to say moral is very low as everyone is wondering what is next to go. I can see that arts and humanities disappearing altogether from this so-called University, its what gives humanity its anchor and reference to everything else - sorry folks I'm going off on one but it does makes me so angry.
At the end of March I will be heading for the town of Arrecife on the northeast coast of Lanzarote and one of the main tourist centres in the Canaries, it will be quite a contrast to Graciosa will keep you posted
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Back in Rugby where I spent a good part of my early life in a little village called Churchover. I did my schooling in Rugby, undertook my apprenticeship and then worked as a staff photographer on the Coventry Evening Telegraph newspaper before moving down to London and Covent Garden. A lot of water has flowed under my keel since then.
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The main studio being used by one of the students. The facility still looks impressive even though I say it myself
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The computer and print resource area at the Uni
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Back to the UK for a couple of weeks to renew my passport and a few other jobs. I also decided to head up to Carlisle to see as many of my friends as possible and catch up with the gossip. Michael and I worked together at the University and when I retired 2 years ago he took over running the department
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It was lovely to meet up again with Berit and Bjørn when they arrived from Morocco in their fantastic ketch Temerity
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This must be one of my favourite anchorages Playa Francesa on La Graciosa with Lanzarote in the background
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I was invited to a musical evening in one of the local bars, local music with a South American influence - it was a great night. Warrior went back to anchor on Monday.
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Last Saturday they had a sporting weekend, consisting of triathlon swimming, cycling and running luckily it was not to hot for the competitors
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A picturesque corner in the town
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The hinterland just outside the town turns into desert scrub
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From a guide: lsla Graciosa is about 6.5km long and 3km wide. The land is flat and sandy with four low volcanic cones, the largest 265m high, no made-up roads, and a small population living in Caleta del Sebo and Pedro Barba. So long as development can pass it by, lsla Graciosa will remain one of the most appealing spots in the entire Canaries. 'When you land' a Lanzarotean said, 'you can take off your shoes and forget the world.' Local artist and sculptor Cesar Manrique, who until his death in 1992 exercised a benevolent and effective control over the design of buildings on Lanzarote as artistic adviser to the island council. In the lost paradise that inspired Robert Luis Stevenson for writing his book "Treasure Island", they discover the Blue Gold.
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It reminds me a little off an outback town or American cowboy setting. The temperature during the day has been between 18 - 21C and a great deal hotter out of the wind which tends to be a consistent NE, N, NW not bad for February.
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Old timers hanging out - watching the world go by
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Graciosa church - its Sunday afternoon and no ones about
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This is Nemo, a very bright terrier that belongs to one of the yachts on my pontoon. I have become a dog walker as his owner Rafael has got a weekend job in one of the bars and as his partner has gone surfing in Mexico. Nemo has a lovely nature and its nice having a dog around even though it's not mine.
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I already have a visitor, Sikaflex came to check me out she belongs to one of the yachts on my pontoon. The marina is great and very cheap, 33 euros a week (£28) water but no electricity and just a short walk to the town. Graciosa boasts three supermarkets a butcher and well-stocked hardware shop (feretoria) as well as the usual cafes & restaurants.
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I decided to head for Graciosa island because it is the most northerly and most isolated being 13 km long and 7 km wide. It is also interesting as it is a marine and land nature reserve. The colours of the volcano and plains, contrasted sharply with the white houses of the only village on the island and where the marina Coleta de Sebo is situated. The town is very picturesque with its white buildings and sand streets, there are no metalled roads apart from the dock area. I had to get permission to stay in the marina 10 days in advance and you even need to get a permit to anchor in the very beautiful bay Playa Francesa which I arrived at on Saturday.
The seven main islands of the Canary Islands are well spaced out so that it is only a day's sail between most of them. The logical route for most yachts arriving from the north is to visit Lanzarote and Fuerteventura first before sailing to Gran Canaria, then Tenerife, La Gomera, El Hierro and La Palma.
The Canaries remain the logical jumping-off point for yachts crossing the Atlantic to the Caribbean, ever since Columbus started the fashion over 500 years ago, and from November to January the islands are full of yachts preparing for their Atlantic crossing. Las Palmas continues to be the main port of departure on a westbound transatlantic passage.
I have only been here a few days and loving it. One of my friends from Rabat has made a comment on my blog about the sea conditions which is interesting and confirms my reflections. I am leaving the marina on Monday and anchoring in the bay again before exploring further
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A celebration meal - see the next story
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I was planning to leave on Monday for my epic 500 miler to the Canneries but my plans were scupperd as the card machine in the marina office was caput so had to go and get cash from a machine. After saying my farewells, I was piloted out of the river and cleared the bar at 12.20 on Tuesdays 7th February. Lovely weather but very little wind and from the wrong direction but I expected this and was going to have to motor a little, there was this lovely long rolling Atlantic swell that always seems to head into the bay. Motored till 2.00 and then the wind came round from the NW and I was under sail. I slept in the cockpit that night so that I could keep a watch for shipping - very little and a long way off.
Next morning the wind was still a little light so decided to try the cruising chute (a simple spinnaker used when the wind comes from astern) it had come with Warrior, a brand new sail I had never had the bottle to try before, after couple of attempts I managed to get it up and drawing for an hour before the wind got too strong I had been bowling along at 6.5 knots - not bad.
I was becoming aware that I wasn't feeling brilliant; it almost felt like seasickness that thanks heavens I don't suffer from. It got steadily worse - felling dizzy, nauseous and grotty especially when I went bellow, the only comfortable position was lying down in the cockpit just getting up when I had to make some sail adjustments. At one point when the ride was getting somewhat lively it crossed my mind that I may go back and what was I doing out here anyway, gave myself a good taking to and pressed on.
I won't go into too much detail as it's a little boring so will compress the days into a generality of what was going on. The wind was moving NE, N, NW and increasing as were the waves and swell at least we are all going the same direction as Warrior. Now, the only problem with this scenario (running before) is that the boats starts to roll which then can become an erratic pendulum action especially when the sea starts to get confused (coming from different directions). Normally, when sailing into the wind it's the weight of wind in the sails that keeps the boat stable, healed over but not doing this rolling action. By now the wind had come up to about 21 - 22 knots that is termed 'Fresh breeze', I can't be more accurate about the strength as my wind speed indicator stopped working. The tops of the waves were just being blown-off so I put a reef in the mainsail, I had already rolled up some of my headsail (roller reefing).
Its now like ridding one of those fairground cowboy-bucking broncos, you just have to literally hold on. Going to the loo can be difficult to say the least the motion (excuse the pun) is such that it is conspiring to try and throw you off all the time. When you make a drink you do this with only one hand the other is holding on and the moment you put anything down even for a split seconds its gone. It was getting so violent that I decided to alter course even if I wasn't heading in the correct direction I could deal with that later. I brought Warrior round so the wind was coming from the quarter (broad reach) this puts some weight into the sails and provides a much smother ride. The waves and swell must have been about 3 metres or more and were now generally coming from the same direction lets put it this way, when looking astern they were above my eye line. Warrior took it all in here stride she just slipped down the waves beautifully I felt so confident in her ability to cope with it all - no anxieties whatsoever. We continued with this for a number of hours, at night I would drop the main and just run under headsail, slower but safer as the wind was rising & falling 24 - 26 knots (force 6) and at times 28 which is near gale and back down again. Once Warrior gets in the grove she feels so good, her best points of sail are from broad reach, beam reach to close reach she just ploughs her furrow that's the benefit of a long keel. I had not eaten anything for about 24 hours just took water, one morning I felt like food so made scrabbled egg and toast, I was on the mend. As I was not able to make the heading (the direction) I wanted to go I did it with a number of tacks heading east and west sort of zigzagging but ultimately heading in the correct direction.
On the forth day the 11th at 3.15 pm I sighted the Canary Island on the horizon and got very excited as I calculated that I might make the passage in just 4 days but guess what - the wind just dropped, I was becalmed - bugger & blast. I was feeling peckish so decided to celebrate and take advantage the boat being upright by cooking a proper meal - Cajun chicken with red & yellow peppers, french beans and rice, no alcohol on board as Morocco had been celebrating Mohammad's birthday and there was no booze on sale. A slight breeze came up so I was heading in approximately the correct direction at 2 knots which is better than nothing. It was just getting dusk and a lovely sunset when the wind just went. I waited and waited, it was dark and the tide seemed to be taking me east we were 30 miles off. I don't like using the engine unless I have to but as I was getting really tired - very little sleep just 20 to 30 minutes at a time to keep watch during the passage I decided to motor in. I headed between Graciosa and the island of Isla De Montana Clara down the east side of the island to a safe anchorage on the south east corner of Graciosa, Playa Francesa, out of the way of any northerlies that might come along. I dropped the hock at 3 am very tired but job well done and went to my real bed not camping in the cockpit or saloon and slept for 8 hours - bliss.
Photo: dawn on third day
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Here I am after a 500-mile passage - Rabat to the island of Graciosa in the Canaries in 4.5 days. I arrived in the dark at 3am and when I looked out at 8am this was my view - what can I say. More about the passage shortly.
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Farewell to Temerity Bjørn and Salé
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Looking towards Salé giving some idea of the investment that is going on here. This is a completely new viaduct spanning the river that includes a tramway system linking the two centres. Serge, the guy that was in charge of building this massive viaduct system visited a few weeks ago in his yacht Vanilla
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Looking down the Bouregreg towards the sea from the viaduct Hassan II. The marina is towards the right and the old bridge which is shortly to be demolished
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Looking up from the marina with a tram going past and full moon
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I intend heading for the island of Graciosa part of the Canaries during the first week of February. The passage is about 458 nautical miles which equates to 518 road miles and at an estimated speed of 3.5 knots (3.5 nm per hour) should take Warrior about 5 ½ days + or -. Each triangle on the chart represents a days sailing. This volcanic island is north of Lanzarote and one of the 12 islands that make up the Canary Islands
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