It looked like time to get going. Fair wind, gentle seas, good forecast, boat and crew ready. But it was not to be. The vane-steerer wasn't ready. We have a promise for Friday morning. Time will tell.
It was a great day to explore this little island. Faial is 67 sq miles and is populated by about 14,000 people. Most live in Horta, the rest of the island is very rural, especially in the higher lands away from the sea.
Harry took an afternoon to drive Ian and I around. We started by heading up, and up, and up! To the caldera, the cone of the volcano that formed this place, millions of years ago. From the rim, one looks down an almost vertical wall of 400 meters to the floor, now a scrubby plain with a few small marshes and ponds.
We went on to explore the highlands. Driving on curving, narrow, roads, fenced with 6 foot high Hortensia (Hydrangea) hedges, we passed through farms with small hay and corn fields and pastures, all with hedgerows of blooming Hortensia, and with splendid views out to the deep blue ocean.
Along the way, we stopped to visit Harry's girl friend, Angie, enjoyed her tidy, elegant little home on the hillside and an expresso.
Eventually we arrived at the site of the 1957 Capellinhos volcanic eruption, a result of which was that 4,000 villagers emigrated to the US with the support of then Senator John Kennedy.
Today, the land here feels like a moonscape, with no vegetation and wild lines of up thrust stratification. Beautiful, in a stark way.
Nearby is a little cafe called "Fim Do Munde" or "End of the Earth". The proprietor was born here and emigrated to Taunton, Mass, where he lived for 50 years, culminating in a successful career with Shaw's supermarkets. He's home now, and happy to be here.
We are hoping for another opportunity to get underway tomorrow evening or Saturday morning. It will all depend on boat work and the weather. I'm getting mighty itchy to be in our way, though!
That said, we are having a wonderful time and are doing well in this lovely place......