Some days the sailing is so sublime that all you need is a cold beer and to kick back, chill and appreciate it afterwards. That was today, sailing Cherbourg to Le Cap de La Hague. We didn't need to depart Cherbourg until 1030 but I was up bright and early anyway. Once Pete caught up with the program, we moved to the fuel berth, before it became too busy. We then moved to one of the waiting pontoons, for a couple of hours, with a good view of some of the racing yachts. We had leisurely breakfast and then finished fitting the deck shower, which needed some sealant before it could be used. We left bang on 1030 and got the mainsail up inside the harbour, motored for a while until we had passed the naval base and then put the genoa up too. The wind was more or less on the nose for heading to the Cap but we tacked out to sea, with the tide pushing us west, before tacking back inland. I was at the helm and pinching up to make the most of the faster starboard tack. It was delightful sailing. Just before we ran out of land and wind, we tacked out again until we could clearly see the Cap on our port side. A final tack put us on course for Cap de la Hague. The tide was strong and strengthening . Although the sea was not rough, there was a decent swell and numerous whirlpools pulling the boat left and right. The boat speed was only about 3 to 4 knots but we maxed out at 11.4 knots with the speed of the tide. It was a bizarre sensation, almost like floating on air. It was difficult to control the direction of the boat, due to the lack of boat speed but we were absolutely flying. We were heading pretty close to the lighthouse, so I had Pete take the helm for a short while and I enjoyed the view. There are some beautiful golden beaches here but they are inaccessible due to the rocks and the Alderney Race (strong tidal flow between France and Alderney). Almost as soon as we passed the Cap the wind dropped significantly, as we expected. There were still plenty of whirlpools but the sea was flatter. We set a course for Dielette and put the autohelm on. The boat speed slowed to between 0.6 and 3.0 knots but we still had the tide with us. Pete did some fishing, unsuccessfully and we had lunch, sitting in beautiful sunshine, lazily travelling towards our destination, a small beaker of wine in hand. The slow progress didn't matter, as we could not access Dielette until almost 1600 hours. As we approached Dielette, all the local yachts and dinghies came out to play, the flap gate having been dropped and we made our way into the harbour, over the sill and the gate and found a berth towards the end of pontoon A. Decent length pontoons for a change and absolutely pristeen. This is the most expensive marina so far, at just over €36 per night but the facilities are great, the staff are friendly and helpful and the surrounding area is very picturesque. We had a beer, sitting on the terrace of the marina's restaurant and bar, in red hot sunshine and started updating photographs in the blog gallery, using the very good free marina wifi. I think this is the first time I have ever had marina wifi that actually works when you are on the boat. We had a lovely video chat with our neighbour, Llynn then cooked tea on the boat. We managed to consume a fair amount of wine (that's the problem with wine boxes instead of bottles) while looking at the navigation for Granville, our next port of call. We also had some music on and a particularly poignant track by Keith Urban, Making Memories of Us. That's exactly what we did today.
On Sunday morning we ummed and ahhed about whether to stay in Dielette or move on to Granville. As we headed to the facilities block to shower, the market was setting up and by the time we returned they had started cooking chickens and hams over a wood fire and the wine shop was opening. That settled it, we were staying another day. We did some more work on the blog gallery and then went to the market to buy lunch (wood roasted ham and frites), via the wine shop to buy wine. For good measure we also bought some fruit! Following lunch we took a walk along the cliff tops, returning via the beach. A small yacht ran aground in the entrance, trying to enter just before low water but within 45 minutes he had floated off and was able to access the marina's waiting pontoon. We had a peruse around the other side of the harbour, which is festooned with gorgeous agapanthus. There's also a little river, which empties into the marina via a waterfall under a quaint stone bridge and a small garden area with a petanque court. We were just missing Tim and Sarah and their set of boules, along with a bottle of wine. Back on board, I'm writing this blog and watching the visiting yachts pull in while Pete has a siesta in the sunshine. All this fresh air is just too much for him. It's just gone 5pm so it might be time for a glass of wine before dinner and we have dessert tonight too, fresh strawberries and cream. It's been a lovely day again.
Monday morning dawned bright and sunny and we departed Dielette in cropped jeans and t-shirts. The wind was forecast to be north easterly, meaning we would probably be sailing on the foresail only. The sail was up within a hundred metres of the harbour entrance and we were on our way but moving slowly with a little tide against us and very light wind. Once we were beyond the restricted area around the power station, just south of Dielette, we gibed the foresail to head south towards Carteret and Granville. Around 1215 Pete shouted that he had seen dolphins of the port side, just as I was going below to prepare lunch, so we rushed up onto the foredeck to get a better look. There were 6 or 8 of them, much larger than we usually see at home, probably common dolphins. They swam beneath the boat and tried playing in the bow wave but we weren't going fast enough to keep them interested and they continued on their way. Not long afterwards, we caught a pot, around low water. The line was floating on the surface. Luckily a quick turn to port managed to loosen the rope and the danger was over. We had lunch, smoked chicken sandwiches and decided that we were in danger of missing the slot into Granville if we didn't make up some ground, so dropped the sail and put the engine on for an hour, while we waited to get help from the tide. The wind then started to pick up and turn more easterly, at the same time as the tide turned in our favour, allowing us to raise both sails and pick up some speed. Now we were really flying and needed our jackets back on to keep warm, despite the sunshine. We were passing Jersey, along way offshore but could see the jagged rocks off the coast. It was ironic that we were passing Jersey exactly 1 month after I should have flown there to meet Pete, the flight obviously cancelled due to Covid-19. Most of our day was spent listening to the dulcit tones of the Guernsey Coastguard, who was calling up every boat in the vicinity to check their intentions, informing them that Guernsey, Sark and Herme are closed to anyone from outside the bailiewick. We also heard him talking to the French Warship we had seen at Cherbourg. The warship wanted permission to pass through Guernsey's territorial waters, which was granted. Just before our approach to Granville, the galleon 'Marite' passed behind us, going rather faster than us with its 7 sails up. However, it had to wait outside Granville for enough water to access the commercial harbour, whereas we cut inside Le Loup (red and black bouy), passed Marite and went straight in. We were met just inside the entrance by a blue uniformed lad in a small rib who would allocate us a berth. Pete asked him for 'a gauche' and he gave us a berth port side to, just inside the marina sill. We were alongside at 1845. You will see pictures of the sill in the Gallery which we took the following day. A vast area outside the marina dries, to as much as 5.5 metres and at low water the sill dries around 3 metres. We paid our dues and went to buy breakfast provisions and beers, as we were expecting guests overnight. Ted and Sara were travelling from Ijmuiden, where they got off the ferry, to Saint Quay Portrieux, where their boat has been on the hard for the last 10 months, so they were making a stop off in Granville to see us and break their journey. They were our first guests on board since we departed Grimsby. A good night was had by all, with dinner at Le Pontoon by the marina.
We decided to stay in Granville on Tuesday, to relax and do some sightseeing. We walked up to St Paul's and then back down to the promenade and then through the pretty town centre and up to the city walls. We also walked round the commercial harbour and the drying harbour but sadly the colourful fishing boats that frequented Granville in my teens, were no longer there. We decided to treat ourselves to a light lunch out, in the narrow streets of the town, choosing an Epicerie called La Pulperia. We ordered 2 glasses of Sancerre, a mixed platter of meats and cheeses and a melon, ham and tomato salad. Both dishes were enormous, so we had to have a second glass of wine each, while we finished the food. If you're ever in Granville, do stop here for lunch. We then shopped in the butchers, the bakers and the supermarket before returning to the boat for some R & R. At last I had my bikini on, soaking up the sunshine. We watched the tide rising, quite quickly, then it was gushing over the sill and within seconds of the digital guage displaying 1.4 metres the boats started racing in. As we were eating tea in the cockpit, we spotted a familiar boat and 3 familiar faces entering the marina. It was Alan, Emily and five year old Troy, in their Sigma 35, who had been moored alongside us in Granville. We gave them some time and then walked round the marina until we found them. Alan and Troy were just returning from a bike ride while Emily was cooking dinner. We left them in peace, with Alan saying he would come over in the dinghy in half an hour to borrow our bike pump as his tyres were a bit flat. He duly arrived and accepted the offer of a glass of wine on board. Hopefully Emily didn't think that he'd got lost! It's a small World. Alan and Emily own Quay Sails, down near Fowey and know Nick Beard and Adam who trawled up north to fit our new engine in February and they also know of Paul and Nancy's relative who builds boats in that area. Alan suggested we visit Saint Malo before we headed onto Saint Quat Portrieux, so we gave it some thought but ultimately decided to go to Saint Quay, given the forecast winds, which promised a good sail.
Wednesday morning we were awake at 7am, although hadn't been planning to leave much before 8.30 to 9am. However, we got up and set off at 8am, without the promised wind. We motored out past Iles Chausey, which comprises Gran Ile and a number of smaller drying 'islands' and rocks, supposedly a great anchorage during the day and visited by many trip boats. Gradually we turned our thoughts to Saint Malo, which would avoid hours of running on the engine and the resulting fuel costs. We were going to miss the last lock in for Port Vauban, which is right beside the walled city, so moored up in Saint Servan / Port des Sablons instead. It's a tricky approach to Saint Malo, with rocks, islands and submerged causeways every which way. We made it through though and were alongside in time for lunch. We decided to get the folding bikes out for the first time since we left Grimsby. The access ramps for the marina were at about 45 degrees, so it was a bit of a slog getting the bikes up there. We had a ride around and eventually found ourselves just outside the ramparts, so locked up the bikes and set off on foot. The city is beautiful and the views from the ramparts are magnificent, especially with a bright blue sky for background. We had a great walk and treated ourselves to a rather expensive ice cream, before returning to the port, via the Carrefour City for provisions. On arrival it was low water and the gradient of the access ramps had increased. I refused to attempt walking my bike down so Pete had to come back for it. Following a shower, we relaxed in the cockpit to watch the chaos that ensues when the tidal height allows yachts to start entering the marina over the sill. It required 2 lads in boats to allocate berths for everyone and our neighbour was asked to move further down the pontoon to accomodate a larger yacht. We were allowed to remain, our 37 foot boat suggesting a deeper keel, although we are actually shoal draught at 1.53m. Our plan is to anchor out tomorrow night, as the winds are negligible and we don't want to motor to Saint Quay or pay for another night in Saint Malo, which is the most expensive marina so far, at €39 and doesn't even have wifi. The only place we can find is at Nelliere, north west of the Ile des Hebihens, just west of Saint Malo. Everywhere else dries and it will be the highest spring tide of the month tomorrow, meaning very shallow low tides and very high, high tides. We will give it a go in the morning if they weather forecast remains the same.