Voyage of SY Nessaru

The 2024 voyage of a 39ft sailing yacht, Nessaru, from Barcelona, Spain, across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, via the Panama Canal, to Bundaberg, Australia.

22 June 2024 | Port Louis, Grenada
17 June 2024 | Port Louis Marina, St Georges, Grenada
20 May 2024 | Pasito Blanco, Gran Caneria
08 May 2024 | Puerto Deportivo Pasito Blanco, Gran Canaria
28 April 2024 | Rota, Andalucia, Spain
20 April 2024 | Almeria, Club de Mar
12 April 2024 | Port Ginesta, Barcelona, Spain
05 April 2024 | Port Ginesta, Barcelona, Spain
17 March 2024 | Port Ginesta, Barcelona, Spain

Voyage of SY Nessaru - in Spain

17 March 2024 | Port Ginesta, Barcelona, Spain
Colin Maslen | Weather - warm and sunny
Hola! Here we are in Spain. Michael arrived on 5th March and I arrived on 7th. Since then it has been a lot of work, which was to be expected given that it is an older boat and that we are preparing for an ocean voyage.

The yacht is moored at Port Ginesta, south east of Barcelona. We are at the western end of the marina which stretches for about a kilometre along the coast with the main gates at the eastern end. The nearest town centre, Castelldefels, is about five or more kilometres away - too far to walk, which means that we are becoming familiar with the local bus service.

There are just a couple of cafes and restaurants as well as small supermarket within the marina complex. The supermarket sells some basic provisions including delicious, freshly baked bread sticks. We have been having a few meals, mainly bread, ham and cheese, with a glass of wine, onboard our yacht. Occasionally we dine out; we found a cheap and cheerful restaurant in Castelldefels called the Olive Garden, which serves great pasta and pizza.

Internet/WIFI access in the marina is difficult, so our morning routine usually begins with walk to our local café, Ahuevo, where we log on to their WIFI and enjoy coffee and croissants while catching up on emails and banking. Sunday is becoming the exception when we treat ourselves to bacon and eggs, and do the quiz which Mandy sends us.

We have been going to bed at about 8:00 or 9:00 o'clock, and I have been getting up early, usually between 4:00 and 6:00 in the morning. I learned that if you want to use the marina bathrooms in the morning you have to get there before 6:00 to beat the cleaner before she closes them off for cleaning.

During the day, Michael and I have been working almost non-stop on the boat. We have inflated the dinghy, rigged the Bimini (awning over the steering position), and have been cleaning and cleaning and cleaning - every cupboard, locker, the fridge, the bathrooms, bilges and so on. Michael has also scrubbed the decks including the teak inlay in the cockpit.

I have been trouble shooting and repairing faulty electrical equipment - lights that didn't work, 12V sockets that were so corroded they needed replacement, and a shore power connection and battery charger which kept tripping. The marina has an interesting system for getting shore power and water, for which I had to download an app and establish an account with 100 Euros. When I open the app it tells me what is connected, what our consumption is and our account balance. (There are apps for everything, including one which I had to download to operate the washing machines and dryer in the marina laundry.)

We have all of our navigation instruments and VHF radio working, and loaded our MMSI (Mobile Marine Service Identification) into the AIS (Automatic Identification System), which means our voyage can now be tracked. However out yacht registration is still ongoing. On Friday (two days ago) we went to the Correos (post office) in Castelldefels to mail our Marking Note declaration back to AMSA to certify that the vessel has been marked up in accordance with the relevant regulations.

While I have been working on the electrical systems, Michael has been crawling around the engine, changing filters, draining fuel and water separators, checking oil levels and so on. And I do mean "crawling" because there is not much space to work in around the engine. He has been consulting with a local mechanic, learning more about our 50hp Perkins Prima diesel engine, and has also done maintenance on the Suzuki outboard motor, and has taken took the inflatable dinghy for a spin. He is turning into an engineer and grease monkey!

A few days ago, Chiara (Network Yacht Brokers Barcelona) gave us three blue Ikea bags with towels and linen including doona covers, fitted sheets and pillowcases. She said that Network Yacht Brokers used to manage some hire boats but don't run that business anymore. The linen is new, with all of the Ikea tags still attached.

The following day we went to Ikea in Barcelona, there and back by bus. We came back with two more Ikea bags loaded with pots, pans, a kettle, coffee plunger pot, cooking utensils, bottle opener, oven mits, tea towels, and various other bits and pieces. I also bought two doonas, one for me and one for Gary (when he joins us in Panama), and some pillows. For the first five nights onboard, we had been sleeping in our sleeping bags with makeshift pillows made up with rolled-up towels and clothing, so the first night sleeping under my new doona with a pillow under my head was just luxury!

From Australia I ordered a new Genoa (headsail) which was made in Thailand, shipped to Barcelona and is now rigged on the boat. I was hoping that the Mainsail would be okay, however we had it surveyed by a sailmaker, and it needed some minor repairs and reinforcing to make it more robust for an ocean crossing. Our refurbished Mainsail was delivered and rigged on Friday. We have lots of rope, more then we need, particularly for the reefing lines, but we will go for a test sail to work exactly what we need before we start cutting and shortening rope.

The yacht's steering wheel had a very old and worn leather cover which we decided to have replaced. So on Friday (it was a busy day), our steering wheel was reinstalled, with a new leather cover made by Ernesto Seijo, the local "nautical saddler" (www.tierrafirme.com). His workmanship is superb, and the refurbished wheel with its new leather cover, together with the new spray hood and cleaned teak decks, finishes off the cockpit nicely.

The weather has mostly been good, although cold at night. We had a severe storm last week-end (one week ago) which contributed to some drama and excitement. While the storm was raging, two men in a large and very expensive looking motor cruiser called Scandal ran aground just outside the entrance to the marina, and the heavy swell washed the boat onto the rocks. There were police and rescue personnel at the scene as well as a small crowd of onlookers (including us), but the guys on the boat could not get off in the storm and had to wait to be winched off by helicopter. The boat is still there, on its side, on the rocks. We think it would have been worth about three or four million Euros or maybe more. The story going around the marina is that the two guys onboard were engineers, and were taking the boat out on only one of two engines. If they were not qualified to drive the boat then the insurers may not cover the loss. In addition, the owner can expect a fine for pollution from the subsequent oil spill, a bill for the helicopter rescue, and a bill or the salvage operation. Not a good day for whoever owns the boat. And the lesson for us is don't even think about going through the marina entrance in bad weather!

We have had our own, thankfully minor, mishaps and lots of laughs, such as when we paid out (lowered) the anchor cable and watched the end of the cable (the "bitter end") disappear into the water (it wasn't secured inside the cable locker). Fortunately we had already ranged the anchor and much of the cable on the pier so all was not lost, and it was much better to find out this little issue now than when at anchor somewhere. We had the cable surveyed and of course it did not pass, so we will be buying another 50 metres of chain cable. Until then, we will remain in the marina.

Over the past week we have celebrated a few milestones which might seem insignificant from the comfort of a home in Australia, but made a world of difference for us, such as: making our first brew of coffee onboard, cooking our first pizza in the oven (my half was a little bit burnt), Michael cooking the first omelette on the stove top, as well as the first night's sleep with real pillows. Last night we cooked a meal in a tinfoil tray which we bought locally. It was green and cheesy, we have no idea what it was, although it tasted okay. However, I do not think we will be stocking up on that item for the Atlantic crossing.

And so, to conclude this post, preparations continue, much progress has been made, and today we are flying the Spanish courtesy flag from the new starboard halyard and the Australian flag from our new flagpole at the stern of Nessaru.
Comments
Vessel Name: Nessaru
Vessel Make/Model: 1991 Jeanneau Sun Charm 39
Hailing Port: Port Ginesta, Barcelona, Spain, changing to Mooloolaba, Australia
Crew: Colin Maslen, Michael Stewart and Gary Humphries
About:
Colin and Michael are retired Navy Commanders. Colin was a submariner, but also has above-water sailing experience in Australian coastal waters, the Mediterranean and the UK. [...]
Extra:
Nessaru is a 1991 Jeanneau Sun Charm 39, with a length of 39.33 ft or 11.99 metres and a beam of 12.76 ft or 3.89 metres. A Jacques Faroux design, the Jeanneau Sun Charm 39 was introduced in 1989 as a fast cruiser with excellent accommodation. These older Jeanneaus share a family resemblance to [...]
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