Current Position
42 07 32
008 50 68
Baiona
11th October
No wind!!!!
We chose the marina Monte Real Club Yates which had a lovely traditional yacht club that was open to visiting yachtsman. I called them up on Channel 9 and requested a berth for 2 nights and the reply was “no problem ”. Then silence. I was a bit confused as normally we would be told to proceed to a particular pontoon, so we made our way into the marina and decided to just pick an empty berth and tie up. However, I noticed a member of staff standing on a pontoon frantically waving at us , pointing to the berth we should come onto and then proceeded to take our lines. It seems to be the norm here to be met on a pontoon and have help with berthing. Initially I was a bit phased by it as we have a full proof technique when coming onto a berth but I now just throw the lines and let them do the hard work!
We spent a couple of hours chilling in the cockpit with a beer and nibbles soaking up all the lovely sunshine, before walking into town to a restaurant where we had the “fat boy” special – basically a trawler load of freshly caught fish of differing varieties was dropped onto our table!!! Yumbo, and yes, we cleared the plate!! But the real joy was it wasn’t dripping in batter, nor did it come with a shed load of chips. Just pure fish, beautifully cooked.
The next day I looked up from the cockpit and saw thick smoke up on the hillside overlooking the town and then heard sirens. At first I thought it was a house fire but in actual fact it was the forest that was on fire, bright orange flames on the ground, spreading fast, and also in the tree tops. A very distressing sight. There were buildings close by and I imagined a mass evacuation would have to take place if it wasn’t brought under control quickly. A helicopter arrived and did a couple of circuits over the fire obviously assessing the extent of it, then went away for a few minutes and came back with a huge bag of water hanging from its undercarriage which was very expertly dumped onto the flames. We guessed that there may have been a reservoir close by or maybe he picked up water from the bay, but whichever it was, the skill involved was very impressive and after about 6 or 8 goes at it the fire was controllable and the ground crew then spent a few hours hosing the whole area until it stopped smouldering. I remember watching a documentary about these fire fighting planes, and being fascinated by how they skim the water surface to pick up gallons and gallons of water and then dump it over a fire. Never did I imagine I would see it in real life.
The marina was under the walls of a beautiful old paradore and we were keen to stretch our legs and do some sightseeing. In 1493, the Pinta, one of the ships from Christopher Columbus’ voyage to the New World, arrived in Baiona, making the town's port the first to receive news of the discovery of America. In 1585 the inhabitants of Baiona repelled an attempt to take the town by our very own privateer, Francis Drake. The Castle of Monterreal (now a luxury hotel) is on a site of 18 hectares. The construction dates around the 12th century and the fortress and walls that surround it make it a very impressive monument. If you want a luxurious break, The Paradore Hotel would fit the bill. We walked the walls and the views were truly fantastic, followed by a paddle along the small beach. Bombay Sapphires on the terrace of the Yacht Club was the precursor to an outstanding supper. The yacht club was opened in 1966 and still maintains an air of tradition and hasn’t been overly modernised. Large leather Chesterfield sofas and arm chairs make it very welcoming and cosy and if the King of Spain sails his yacht from here then it’s good enough for us!
As we were preparing to leave the next morning, the marina manager, Carlos, came down and introduced himself. He came specifically to thank Andreas for completing the feedback form the night before, and to also thank him for his positive comments. He shook hands and wished us a safe passage. How very nice.
Song for this post: Fire by The Crazy World of Arthur Brown
Thought for this post: We are all to quick to complain and condemn. It doesn’t take much time to write, or say, something nice if your experience has been a good one.
Highlight for this post: It was a real tragedy, but watching the skill of the helicopter pilot, flying so low over a blazing inferno gets my vote for this post.