Log 2014
Lisbon to England

April 26, 2014 Amora, Portugal

April 27, 2014 Amora, Portugal

April 28, 2014 Amora, Portugal

April 29, 2014 Amora, Portugal

April 30, 2014 Amora

May 1, 2014 Amora to Evora and Beja, Portugal ( Start of car trip with Heather)

May 2, 2014 Beja Portugal to Seville, Spain via car

May 3, 2014 Seville, Spain

May 4, 2014 Sunday Seville to Legos, Portugal by car

May 5, 2014 Legos to End of the Earth to Amora

May 6, 2014 Amora/Lisboa,

May 7, 2014 Amora/ Lisbon
Portugal Carriage Museum

May 8, 2014
Dinner out in Lisboa

May 9, 2014 Amora/Lisboa Heather Flys Home

We took Heather to the airport around noon. She will fly to Boston, spend the night, then go back to Denver.
We drove to IKEA to get some new household items for the boat. Pat had a ball buying new gadgets and new pillows for the boat.

May 10, 2014 Amora/ Lisbon Returned car, but Forgot Phone

We dropped the rental car off in Lisbon, and took the subway, a train and bus to get back to the boat in Amora. We discovered that we forgot to take the cell phone out of the glove box. We called Europa Car but the next renter had already taken the car, which they plan to drop off in a city in the far north of Portugal. We were told they would mail it to us if they can find it. I doubt we will ever see it again. It was our old phone which was unlocked to use abroad, not our new US phone.


May 11, 2014 Sunday in Amora

We had coffee and did the internet at Serpente snack bar a few blocks from the boat yard. The Yard brought back our chain and anchor which had re galvanized. I marked chain with yellow paint every 50 feet, then color coded each 50 foot section with colored wire ties, Red, Yellow Blue,White, Orange as each 59 foot section comes out of the anchor well. The way we remember it is the saying “Rub Your Body with Oil. Thus if we get to the orange we are at 250 feet. In the process I discovered that the windless backing plate is broken. Actually it has rusted away! It make me really angry. It should be a stainless plate not iron! Another job that will probably take me three days by the time I remove the full apparatus and wiring, service the unit and replace the plate. The real problem is getting a plate. The job will probably have to wait until we get to England.

May 12, 2014 Amora Launch the Boat

We washed and cleaned the boat to get ready to launch. I have long list of things to do, but there was no time to do them while Heather was visiting. I'll try to get them done as we travel north. Most are not critical, but I'd like to have everything in top shape. At least I got the new cutter installed on the shaft that will cut any lines we tangle the prop in. I also cleaned the shaft, strut and prop of hardened sea growth and knocked the barnacles off the anti fouling bottom paint on the hull. Even though they should not be able to attach themselves a few seem to do so and thrive, especially on a long passage. I guess the motion of the boat brings a constant smorgasbord of food their way.

May 13, 2014 Amora, Tagus Boat Yard to Oeiras, Portugal

We had to wait for high tide to depart the boat yard. That meant that we could not depart until about 2:00 in the afternoon. I spent the morning working on the auto pilot. The pin that supports the drive arm corroded off while we were crossing the Atlantic. We got it into place with stainless wire to finish the passage. Today I tried for hours to drill out the remains of the old pin without success. I guess the wire will have to hold until I can get a new bolt and pin to support it. That will probably not happen until we get to England.
In the process I broke the sensor arm that tells the auto pilot what the rudder angle is. So, no auto pilot today. I'll have to do a repair tomorrow.

May 14, 2014 Oeiras, Portugal

May 15, 2014 Oeiras to Peniche, Portugal

The Portugal trade winds usually blow along the coast from the north to the south, making it very difficult to make the passage north along the coast. We have the luxury of a wind reversal forecast for the next week which will make our passage much easier. The down side is that we will not be able to spend as much time exploring the coast as we would like. The exploration will have to wait until a few years from now when we return down the coast on our way to the Mediterranean Sea.
The predicted winds did not form for us today! We had to fight the wind and waves to get to Peniche. I had hoped to get to Nazare but our progress was too slow to make it all the way before dark, so it was best to come into Peniche.

May 16, 2014 Peniche to Nazare, Portugal

It was an easier trip today. We had very little wind so motored the whole way, With diesel at over $5 a gallon we hope to never turn the engine on, but the reality is that we seem to motor about 1/3 of the time on an average. We have found that we can cut the fuel consumption in half if we keep the boat speed down to about 5 knots. It makes for slow passages, but it does save considerably on fuel.

May 17, 2014 Nazare, Portugal

We are both very tired today. I think we have been too busy getting the boat ready and sight seeing with Heather to wind down.

May 18, 2014 Sunday Nazare to Figueira da Foz, Portugal

Up at 6:00 AM and out of the harbor by 7:00.
The seas were calm and we motored about half of the 24 miles to “Fig Foz”, the locals nick name for Figueira da Foz. We sailed for several hours making only about 3 MPH, so we arrived fairly late in the afternoon. We made a trip to the local super market and spent a relaxed evening on the boat. My back is very sore. I can't figure out what I did to it. I hung myself by my feet in the companionway to see if it would help. It does feel better.

May 19, 2014 Figueira da Foz

We slept in, had a leisurely breakfast and a shower in the marina amenities. The city farmers market is right across the street from the marina, so we shopped for fresh produce to take back to the boat with us after our showers. Coffee at a sidewalk cafe was enjoyed as a short rain shower stopped us from returning to the boat and putting the fresh veggies and fruit in the refrigerator. We explored the town on foot, hiding from a few rain showers as we went. We hiked to a gas station to get Camping Gas for our propane stove. They didn't have it so they sent us to a hardware store that did have it. Camping gas is a mixture of propane and butane that we are told will work in our propane system. I hope it works!

May 20, 2014 Figueira da Foz to Porto, Portugal 61 miles

This passage had us worried. It is a long way against the prevailing Portuguese trade winds and Atlantic swell. The entrance in to Porto is one of the most dangerous. We did not want to enter in the dark.
We had an unusual forecast for this coast. A wind reversal was predicted. Going with the wind was a real treat on this coast. It worked well, but was very rough, as the waves were still coming from the north while the wind was behind us from the south. The early morning brought us easy winds and good sailing, but as the day progressed the squalls started. We sailed under head sail only and at times we surfed down the faces of waves at 11 knots. At other times we just wallowed from side to side, cutting through the swells which would cut our speed to 4 knots. By noon the rain and lightening started. The squalls came by hourly with increased wind and waves and occasional bolts of fire from the sky.
Ten miles out the wind started to die. We ended up motoring the last five miles to the entrance of the Rio Douro. The river bar was not too bad. We bounced about a bit but made it into the river.
The new Douro Marina was a welcome sight.



May 21, 2014 Porto, Portugal

Porto is the second city of Portugal. It is known for Port wine which is grown farther up the Rio Douro.
We took a bus into the city and explored. It is a wonderful place! It is centered around the river and very hilly. The old fisherman's area on the river has become trendy, while the main part of the town is up on the hills above the river. There is a tram between the two areas which is popular with the tourist, but we walked. The whole town is filled the very old historical buildings. Lots of character. We had to dodge the rain squalls, but that makes for a good excuse to have an espresso for 90c, or a glass of green wine for the same price.

May 22, 2014 Porto, Portugal

We are very tired, so did almost nothing useful today. A few boat chores and a pizza for dinner in the village. The Marina is located in a fishing village just a few miles from the big city, but a century away in time. The women wear lace aprons over their skirts, wool socks, shoes that look like bedroom slippers and some wore scarfs. The doors to the houses were often open, often with someone standing in it to watch the people go by or have a conversation with a neighbor. The sidewalks were filled with locals at the tables and chairs of the local bars and restaurants. Everyone seem sot know everyone else.
We love the place.

May 23, 2014 Porto, Portugal

We hiked to a supermarket a mile above the marina. It was huge, modern and attached to a mall. Quite a contrast to our fishing village. Pat loves grocery stores and as usual bought way too much. She didn't seem to realize that she was overdoing it until her back pack was filled to the top with food and weighed 30 pounds. Mine was heavier.
We spent the afternoon on the internet checking the weather and paying the bills over coffee at the marina cafe.
We had dinner at a wonderful little place in the village. The fish was on ice out front by the charcoal grill. You pick your fish and they cook it to order. We had seafood brochettes. The place was packed with locals, always the best sign of a good place to eat.

May 24, 2014 To Viana Castelo, Portugal to Porto, Portugal 31 miles

We were up early. It was an uneventful passage.

May 25, 2014 From Viana Castelo, Portugal To Baiona, Spain Paseo

We got up at 6:30 and got underway. The forecast was for the wind to come up against us in the afternoon, so we wanted to arrive early.
We made it in by 2:00 and didn't have to fight the winds, but we also had to motor instead of sail. We tied up at the marina and checked in to another country.
Once the formalities were completed we walked around this pleasant Spanish resort town. As it was Sunday, the whole town was out walking the waterfront. The Spanish call it the paseo. For us it was a chance to do a lot of people watching. Everyone was out. Kids on skateboards, young families with infants pushing strollers, young couples holding hands and the elderly with canes or younger folk helping them walk.

May 26, 2014 Baiona, Spain Old Castle Town

We are both unusually tired. We slept in. We hiked around the castle at the entrance to the harbor.
A late lunch of the traditional Spanish dish, paella, on the waterfront. We found an exercise area in the park that looked like it was for kids, but the equipment was similar to things you would find at an exercise club, but simpler. It all worked by using the weight of your own body to provide the force to work against. I really needed to work on my upper body and back, so it was a great find.
We moved the boat out of the marina to an anchorage nearby. We stayed up late reading

May 27, 2014 Baiona, Spain Down Day

A real lazy day. We never went to shore, or really did anything useful. We both need the down time.

May 28, 2014 Baiona, Spain To Cangas How do We Get Ashore?

We had favorable winds and an easy trip to Cangas. We anchored off the beach just outside the marina. There is no easy place to get ashore, so we tied to some steps in the fishing harbor and explored the town. We had a pizza and got on the internet while we ate.

May 29, 2014 Cangas, Spain in Rio de Ponte Verde People Watching

Walked to the point along the beach. It is fun people watching. The people come out in the evening and walk. Often it is the whole family, Mom, Dad. kids and grandparents. It has been cool and windy with the winds coming from where we want to go.

May 30, 2014 Cangas, Spain

It rained today. We stayed on the boat reading and doing chores.

May 31, 2014 Cangas, Spain A Day on the Boat

More Rain. We are still the only boat at anchor here. The forecast looks better for tomorrow

June 1, 2014 Cangas to Isla de Arousa, Spain Punto Caballo Anchorage A Great Find

A great warm sunny day at last! We headed north to the next Ria. This section of the coast has lots of good harbors and anchorages. Each of the sunken river valleys offers protection and interesting exploration. We saw lots of people on a nice beach behind the floating mussel farms, or the Batidas, that lined the shore. There were also a couple of boats at anchor. We went in despite the fact that it was not on our charts or in our books. It turned out to be a very nice park with trails, multiple beaches, a few beach restaurants serving simple fare and beer. What's not to like about that!

June 2, 2014 Isla de Arousa, Spain Lighthouse Hike

We hiked the trails and hung out on the beach. I hiked out to a light house where I discovered that the lighthouse keepers residence was now a simple restaurant, as the light is automated and keepers are no longer needed. Lots of people are out enjoying the nice weather.

June 3, 2014 Isla de Arousa, Spain A Real Fishing Village

We took the dingy to a nearby town, SanXuliar. Ir is a real commercial fishing town. No pleasure boats but lots of very interesting fishing boats and mussel tenders at anchor or on moorings. They are brightly colored and obviously owned by prosperous fishermen. The mussel boats carry huge stainless steel baskets about 8 feet across and 5 feet high that are lifted with big deck cranes.
There was no landing for the dingy so we pulled it up high on the beach and tied it to the railing on the sidewalk.
In a place like that we had to eat seafood. We had a huge plate of large mussels for 4 euros and a big plate of squid for 6 euros. Wine and beer for a euro each. We ate like kings for 12 euros total!
We explored the town which actually has two harbors on opposite sides of a narrow peninsula. Each side has a main street with restaurants and modest shops, even though they are only three blocks apart.
We loaded up on Groceries and headed back to the dingy.

June 4, 2014 Isla de Arousa, Spain to Pobras do Caraminal Finding Hardware

This was only a few miles to a bigger city. The weather was still not favorable for going north, so we decided to explore a new place. We anchored out near the harbor entrance. The water pump for our fresh water system is going out and I discovered that the new one I purchased in Trinidad had the wrong ends to connect to our system. We set off to find a hardware store. It took a few miles of walking, but we finally got what we needed. By the time we found our plumbing parts the Grocery stores had closed, so we stopped for a meal and a drink before heading back out to the boat

June 5, 2014 Pobras do Caraminal Rain

It is raining again. The weather in this part of Spain is much like England as it gets the same storms. We make it to the grocery and back to the boat without getting too drenched. It is blowing a good 30 knots with gusts to 35. We are well anchored with excellent holding in sand, but we are bouncing around a bit.

June 6, 2014 To Villanova De Arousa from Pobras do Caraminal 45 Knots is Too Much Wind

The wind was even worse this morning, so we headed for a marina in Villanovva de Arousa. It was a steady 40 knots gusting to 45 when we pulled in. I was a bit worried about getting into the dock without hitting the other boat as any misjudgment would certainly lead to a collision. I had to come in at a higher speed than I like. I had to aim at the stern of a boat that was upwind of my intended path so that the drift would place our bow at the opening to the slip at just the right instant. Once lined up I had to gun it to get in, then slam it into reverse so that I wouldn't put a dent in the dock. The wind took care of the rest, pinning us against the dock with tremendous force. We tied up the lines, adjusted the fenders and I had a much deserved beer.

June 7, 2014 Villanova De Arousa Party with the Australians

It is still blowing, but the rain has stopped. We explored this beautiful old town on foot.
We were invited to a big catamaran for drinks in the evening. There are two cats with Australians traveling together. There are apparently 3 more coming this way. They all bought new Fountaine Pajot from the same dealer in Australia and took delivery at the same time. They didn't know each other before thy arrived in France to pick up their new boats, but a month of outfitting, test sails and provisioning had let them become well acquainted.
It was a birthday party for Bev on Roulette. It was quite a night! Dancing on the foredeck, lots of loud conversation and louder music. I'm not sure the rest of the folks in the marina were enjoying our fun, but we had a great time. The party didn't break up until 2 AM.

June 8, 2014 Villanova De Arousa Hiking the Beach

A nice day at last, but still windy. Pat and I took a long hike starting at a foot bridge across the river that forms the harbor, along the beach for a few miles, then back to the town by back roads and another bridge farther up the river. It felt good to be more active after all the bad weather and time aboard. It also helped cure the hangovers.

June 9, 2014 Villanova De Arousa, Spain to Moros, Spain Spanish Whiskey

Favorable winds at last but a rock strewn coast and rough seas. We had a nice, if lumpy sail north, anchoring in the town of of Moros behind the mussel batidas. The harbor is calm. It is hard to believe that it is as rough as it was out there now that we are safely inside. I deserved that shot of Spanish whiskey that I had on arrival. It tastes like Scothch. We didn't go ashore. We watched the sun set and the lights of the town come on as it got dark at about 11:00 PM.

June 10, 2014 To Laxe German Hitch Hikers

Another nice day on the ocean. We anchored about 7 PM and went to shore. A German couple flagged us down on the way in asking for a ride. We had a pleasant walk around the town. We had a light dinner of mussels, octopus and beer. The German couple are out for just a month but plan to leave the boat in Portugal. We gave them lots of suggestions as to where to go and told them about Tagus Boat Yard, where we had kept our boat.
When we got back to the boat at 11 PM it was still daylight! The days are getting really long in this part of the world as the summer solstice approaches.


June 11, 2014 To A Coruna, Spain From Laxe A Town Julius Cesar and I Visited

It has been a real push getting north along the Portuguese and Spanish coasts against what are referred to as the Portuguese Trade Winds that usually flow south along the coast. Calm weather and sunshine are most welcome for this last leg. We can depart for France from here, or work we can our way into the bay of Biscay as we wait for a fair weather window to cross the Bay of Biscay.
We arrived early enough to be able to check into the Marina and walk into town to replenish our fresh foods at a supermarket.
The town is much larger than we expected, perhaps a half million residents. The marina is located in the older part of town just outside the walls of the historic center. It was great fun walking the meandering streets that were probably laid out by a wandering cow in roman times. Jesus's disciple, James, arrived here in his effort to convert the farthest reaches of the known world to Christianity. Julius Caesar visited here as well. The buildings are well maintained

June 12, 2014 A Corunna, Spain Leak Repair

We have been leaking fresh water from our tanks. This is something that could have been disastrous if it had happened crossing the Atlantic. I searched the system and found that the fitting that joins the pressure pump to the outlet lines was the culprit. The boat is plumbed with 15 mm snap together fittings with blue and red plastic pipes. The connector is not sealing properly any more. It is an odd ball fitting, and I have not found a replacement, so I surrounded the whole connection with silicone, wrapped it in plastic film and sealed the ends with wire ties. It is a merical but it is working! As the silicone hardens it should become almost as good as a new fitting. Were planning to stay just one day,
but now that we are on our second, we might as well stay 3 more days as the 5th day of a stay is free.

June 13, 2014 A Corunna, Spain A Day in Town

We Spotted another of the Australian Cats on the dock, so we went over and introduced ourselves. Jeff and Sandy were pleased to hear about their friends that we had met up with in Villanovas De Arousa, and invited us to join them for dinner in town. We wandered down to the main part of the town where there are walking streets lined with bars and restaurants.
Spanish eating hours are really difficult for us to adjust to. They do not server food outside of the meal hours of 12:00 noon to 3:00 PM and 8:30 PM to 11:00 PM. If you want to eat outside of those hours, forget it!
Spanish shopping is equally frustrating. They close from noon to about 3:30 or so depending on their whim. They close at 6 or 7 or maybe 8. It is impossible to spend the day shopping unless you want a 4 hour lunch break.. It is no wonder that the Spanish economy is doing so badly. Unemployment is above 25%! If they just opened the stores and restaurants all day long it would employ most of those out of work and save a few Americans tourists from starvation, I'm hungry at 6:00 PM, not 10:00.

June 14, 2014 Trip to Santiago de Compostila Religious Pilgrimage

We got up early so that we could catch the Train to Santiago de Compostela. Since the 800s people have been making pilgrimages to this town and cathedral. St James is buried here. His remains are in a silver chest below the main alter. He was beheaded by Herod Agrippa and his body was brought back to Spain Yes, that is the James who was the disciple of Jesus who came to this area to preach to the heathens at the far end of the earth, which this was believed to be in Roman times.
The route usually starts in Paris, but there are other places too. The world's first travel guide was written by Aimery Picard in 1130 and titled in Latin “Camino Through the Back Door.” to help people on the pilgrimage. Now you know where Rick Steves got the title of his book!
We toured the city, watched the pilgrims arrive by foot and bike at the seas shell in the court yard in front of the cathedral. They tr to arrive by noon to see the swinging of the incense urn from the ceiling in front of the alter.
It is a lively town filled with lots of tourist shops and places for the pilgrims to eat and sleep. We took the bus back to A Coronua.
Pat found a huge department store, so we spent an hour shopping, We bought a stove top espresso maker to use on our gas stove on the boat.

June 15, 2014 A Corunna, Spain Famous Art

It is Sunday, so everything is closed! The only thing we could find open was the art museum, which was also free on Sundays. It has quite a few masterpieces from Goya and a smattering of other famous artists. Much of the older works are religious, dark and not something I'd hang on my walls, even though they may be worth millions. We did find a Turkish Kebob place to have lunch. We walked along the rim of the harbor past Swimming beaches which were packed with people enjoying the nice weather. The climate here is much like Seattle, so a sunny warm day is rare.

June 16, 2014 A Corunna, Spain Party with Aussies

I got the diesel heater going by bleeding the fuel line. We will use it more as we go north.
We had all the Aussies over for a social after dinner. Tad and Robin from Bisou are in the other marina. Being Aussies, they don't seem to think the visa rules are real or that they might be enforced when they overstay. We told them all that we know about it.

June 17, 2014 A Corunna, Spain Tower of Hercules

We took the bus to the Tower of Hercules, a light house built by the Romans in the first century. The exterior has been added to, but the inside is original. We walked to the top of the oldest existing lighthouse in the world. The view of all of A Corunna from the top was excellent.
We stopped at a Turkish Kebab Shop for lunch. There are very few ethnic restaurants in Spain. It was nice to have something different for a change.
We stocked up on groceries on the way back to the boat.

June 18, 2014 A Corunna, Spain to Cediera, Spain Reading to 1:30 AM again

The wind is finally with us again to proceed along the coast, but still not favorable to head across the Bay of Biscay. The wind came up about ½ way to Cediera. We had gusts to 45 knots and a steady 35 knots. The seas became quite lively, but we were going with it, so we made good time and we not particularly uncomfortable.
Once in the harbor we anchored with lots of room. The wind still gusted, but the anchor held well.
I stayed up until 1:30 reading my Kendle Paper White. I love it because I can make the print large and the lit background lets me read in the dark. I'm going to need more books soon.

June 19, 2014 Cediera, Spain They Won't Sell Us Anything

We spent the day wandering the streets, trying to find shops that were open or a restaurant that was open when we were Hungary. It is not too surprising that Spain is having so many economic problems. They just do not seem to have an interest in running a business. They don't open on time, close for four hours or more during the day, open again latter than posted on the door, close when they feel like it, rather than at the hours posted on the door. The shops are poorly stocked , disorganized and unappealing in presentation. We did get groceries.

June20, 2014 Cediera, Spain to Viveiro, Spain Caught in Lightening

A calm day of motoring. I hate motoring because the fuel is so expensive. We anchored off the harbor jetty. We were the only boat in the anchorage. Within an hour a Swedish boat came in and anchored almost on top of us.
We took the dingy to town and explored. The weather started to look bad, so we headed to the dingy. By the time we had loaded up it started to rain. Then the thunder and lightening came along with a torrential downpour. We did,t know what to do. We could head back to town to wait out the storm, but we were soaked and the wait would be uncomfortable, or we could continue into the harbor in the lightning storm. We decided to continue on to the boat by hugging the stone wall as long as we could, then making a dash for the boat. We were glad to be back aboard and able to dry out, but we question our sensibility in going to the dingy instead of a bar as the storm approached. Oh well. It turned out OK.

June 21, 2014 Viveiro, Spain to Sea for France Near Collision

We had a good forecast last night so we were up at first light to depart for France. It was a bit foggy in the anchorage, but became very dense near the harbor entrance. We had followed another sailboat out, but knew that it was going slightly faster than us so would be no danger. The radar was not on, but should have been, so I was looking away from our course getting it set up when a boat appeared only one boat length off our bow. It was sailing, so we had not heard it. I veered off just as he sounded his horn. It was the boat we had followed out. He should have been sounding his horn every 2 minutes as should we. I think we were both surprised by the lack of visibility. He could undoubtedly hear us as he was under sail. He also know we were behind him on a similar course, so when he changed course and slowed to put up his sails he had to know we would be coming up behind him. We were both luck to not collide. It was the closest I've ever come to a collision. From now on my horn will be in use in the fog.
The fog lifted in an hour or so. The wind came up and we had a good sail all day and so far tonight.

June 22, 2014 At Sea in Bay of Biscay Pigeon Visit

We made it to France after a week in A Corunna and stops along the way to Viveiro, from which we departed for Ile Houat, France.  What a beautiful place!
At mid passage, at least 150 miles from any land, we heard a "Plop" on the deck. It was a very tired pigeon. It and didn't even try to land gracefully, just flopping on the rear deck and not moving for awhile. Once it came to life, it walked around the deck to check out it's surroundings, then joined us in the cockpit. It did not seem to be afraid of us at all.

June 23, 2014 At Sea in Bay of Biscay to Ile Houat, France Our Pigeon Friend

We gave it some water, which it drank right away, and some bread, that it ignored. It dropped down onto the cockpit floor and watched us. For the next day and a half it spent in the cockpit pooping and eating some seeds we were able to offer it. All night it settled down under our feet, refusing to move unless we shoved it. It has bands on it's legs and must be used to being around humans.
When we arrived at the Island, I chased it off the boat. If flew a nice circle around the harbor and came back to the cockpit. I chased it off again with the same result. So far I have not been able to convince it that it does not live here. We removed its food and water bowls and have chased it around the boat waving out arms and shouting at it. It is now sitting on top of the main companionway hatch looking in and watching us cook dinner.
I don't know how we will get rid of it! It likes us!

June 24, 2014 Ile Houat, France Arrival of the Insane American

We sailed most of the day toward the Island, but the wind angle was pushing us much farther south than we wanted. We changed destination to a point much farther south along the French coast than we wanted. The wind finally died and we had to motor. From our current position we were almost equal distance from the two choices, we adjusted course back to Ile Houat. We anchored an hour before dark, which doesn't come until after 11:00 PM here. There were many other boats from several countries at anchor off a beautiful sandy beach. Our hitch hiking pigeon is still with us. I tried to scare it off after we anchored, but it just flew around the harbor and returned to the boat. I think the rest of the people in the anchorage must have thought the American was totally out of his mind for jumping up and down screaming and waving his arms. I really thought it would fly off when it saw land, but I guess it is afraid to spend the night in an unfamiliar place. It will probably be gone in the morning.


June 25, 2014 Ile Houat, France Our Favorite Island

We were exhausted from the passage. We slept almost 12 hours. The pigeon is still here. I tried to scare it off again without success.
We took the dingy to the beach to explore the Island. Wow! What a wonderful place. There are several of the best beaches in France with French families playing in the water and enjoying the warm weather. The beaches are backed by rocky banks, which provide a nice wind break for sun bathing.
The trails took us to the village. It is filled with little white house with colored shutters, hanging baskets and flower filled gardens. There are a few places to eat and drink and two small food stores. There are almost no cars. The locals and the new arrivals from the passenger ferry walk or ride bikes. It gives a special feeling to the island. Nothing here seems hurried, everyone is happy and enjoying life.
We were invited for drinks to an English boat near us. They pointed out that everyone was leaving the anchorage. The forecast was for a wind change making this anchorage exposed to the wind. We decided to move as well. We also hoped that the pigeon, who was on the island, would not find us on the other side of the Island, As soon as the boat started moving, the pigeon arrives. He perched on the solar panels talking to us and very proud that he had not missed the boat! We anchored quite far off the beach on the other side of the island. I did another crazy American dance on the deck with very little effect on the pigeon. I even swung the pike pole at it and threw some rope at it. It did fly off each time doing a circle of the boat and returning to the solar panels.

June 26, 2014 Ile Houat, France to Haliguen, France Sneaking Away

We Fed the Pigeon and scarred it off to shore. We found that it was happy to go away for a few hours after it was fed, so we fed it and watched it fly to shore. After 15 minutes of not seeing it we pulled up anchor and snuck out of the anchorage. We kept a wary eye on the island as we sailed away. After 5 miles I figured we were pigeon free.
We would have like to stay a few more days on the Island, but we couldn't stand all the pigeon poop.
We arrived at the marina in Haliguen about 3 PM. We walked about a mile to the super market. Pat firmly believes I'm a mule and can be willingly loaded down with multiple saddle bags without complaint! As usual, she bought far to much for me to carry, but somehow I stuffed it all into the back packs and canvas carrying bags and hauled it the mile back to the boat.

June 27, 2014 Haliguen, France Walk across peninsula

No pigeon! We walked across the Quiberon peninsula to the town of Quiberon. It is only a mile or two but a very nice walk through a wonderful French neighborhood. The prosperity of the people is evident in the homes they keep. The houses are perfectly kept. They all have fresh paint, flower filled gardens, colorful shutters and steep roofs with dormers. Most have a name as well. Some give the date it was built.
The town of Quiberon is a busy beach resort filled with the shops that are typical of all beach resort towns. Lots of nice places to eat, places selling crepes, many bars and places to get ice cream or jellato.
To our frustration, not one place had an English menu. Our French is non existent, so we had ice cream
and wondered how we could order more.

June 28, 2014 Haliguen, France We don't like French Food

More groceries. This time I brought the wheeled cart. Much easier, but I still had a backpack full of things to carry as well.
We went to a beautiful stone creparie on a side street near the marina for dinner. The setting was magical. The food, however, was not. Pat's lack of French had her ordering a tripe crape. It did not have a pleasant taste. Perhaps the tripe was not cleaned well as it tasted like it's former contents.
Mine was passable, but not great. Most people we see eating out are having crepes of one type or another. Full meals seem to start at around 35 Euros so a 10 Euro crepe is a good bargain....if you like them.

June 29, 2014 Haliguen, France Lazy Rainy Day

A rainy day spent reading and relaxing on the boat.

June 30, 2014 Haliguen, France To the Morbihan and Bono River Inland Sea

The Morbihan is a small inland sea that is very popular with the French boaters, It is a bit of a backtrack, but we had to take a look, The entrance has strong tidal currants. We had to plan our arrival to coincide with slack water at the entrance. It was a warm sunny day, great for sight seeing along the shores of the inlets. We made our way as far up the Riviere d' Aury as we could with our 6 foot draft. We took a mooring at the junction of the Bono River and the Aury River.
The dingy took us the rest of the way into the small town of Bono. After walking the streets, we took a foot bridge to the trail system across the river from the town, They have a wonderful trail system. It is possible to hike along most of the shores of the waterway and between the towns. We walked a few miles along the shore before returning to Bono and the Dingy.


July 1, 2014 Bono, France Dingy to Auray Ben Franklin Was Here

Another day of dingy travel. It is about 3 miles up the river to the town of Aury. At high tide we could take the sailboat to town, but we would be trapped until the next high tide,so the dingy is a better choice. The waterfront area has changed little in the last 500 years. This is where Benjamin Franklin landed when he came to France to negotiate for Frances help during the Revolutionary war. The same old timber frame buildings that Franklin visited are still standing. One has been turned into The Ben Franklin Restaurant and Bar. I bet Ben stopped there for a beer on his arrival!
The new town is up the hill. We stopped at a boulongerie and bought some of the great looking pastries and a baguette sandwich for lunch, which we ate sitting on the steps of a building hiding from the rain.

July 2, 2014 Bono to Concarneau, France Tied to a Walled City

This was a long trip, but we had mostly sunny weather and fair winds. We made good time.
The marina is just outside the walls of the old city, or Chase as it is called here in France. The town is preserved and maintained to be just as it was 100s of years ago. One main street with all the shops and side streets with old stone homes, It is one of those places that looks like Walt Disney made it just perfect to represent an ancient town and be a part of Disney Land. In other words too perfect to be real!

July 3, 2014 Concarneau to Anse d St Nicolas, France Through the Dangers

Up and off at 7 AM. A long day of motoring. Our choice was to wait until tomorrow when the wind would be against us or go today. So it is today, even though we would have liked to stay linger. We hopped to make it through the Raz De Sein, a very rock filled passage between Ile Ouessant and the mainland. The currents can run up to 6 knots. There are hundreds of rocks that must be avoided. A navigation error here would be the end of our sailing. We had to hit the passage at slack water, as it is too dangerous to do in full flow and impossible if the current is against us. There were a few harbors we could go into if our timing was off. We make it just on time into the passage and had no problems although even at slack water the currents were still buffeting us quit a bit.
The next problem was to get in by dark. We hopped to make Morgat, but didn't. Instead we anchored in St Nicholas Bay, a deserted bay with high rocky cliffs all around and limited protection, except from north winds. It was almost dark when we anchored.

July 4, 2014 St Nicolas, France Storm

The predicted storm arrived with lots of wind swooping down over the cliffs and heavy rain. Lots of naps and reading today while we bounced about in the limited protection.

July 5, 2014 St Nicolas bay to Douarnene, France Escape from Bad Anchorage

The morning was still stormy. We waited for improvement, but there wasn't much. We finally decided to go to the town of Douarnene across the Baie of Douarnene from our present location even though the conditions were not the best. We could see about a mile through the rain and haze, but the anchorage would be better there, which it was.
I was feeling boat bound so put on my rain gear and took a dingy tour of the harbor. To my surprise I found an American boat, De Ja Veju, on the dock. I knocked and had a nice conversation with the first Americans, Roger and Pam, we have seen in two months.

July 6, 2014 Douarnene, France Surprisingly Nice Town

Our guide books said very little about the town. It turned out to be a pleasant surprise. The main harbor is accessed only at high tide through a lock. Most visiting boats tie to a visitors dock at the marina outside near the pleasure boat harbor, where there is a second town, Treboul, really a twin city opposite Douarnene. To get beween the two towns we walked across the lock gates and bridge, as do the locals. We found the supper market, but being Sunday it was closed.

July 7, 2014 Douarnene, France Maritime Museum

We spent most of the day at the Maritime Museum, which had many of the traditional boats used in the area as well as ancient craft from other parts of the world, There were also large ships and barges at the dock that we toured.
We went to dinner with Brits, Nigel and Sue from Rebel, and Roger and Pam. We all retreated to Rebel for after dinner drinks and conversation. Roger is a racer, having raced motor cycles in his youth and now races sailboats. Roger and Pam bought their boat in England are new to cruising.

July 8, 2014 Douarnene, France to Morgat, France French Holiday Resort

We had Roger and Pam out to the boat to share information that would be helpful to them as the headed south.
We had a pleasant passage to Morgat, which is a beach resort established by the founder of the Peugeot automobile company. The place is alive with activity. Lots of little sailboats filled with kids sailed past us while we were at anchor. All French kids who live withing 100 KM of the coast are taught to sail. No wonder it is such a sailing mad country. The town doesn't have much of interest other than the usual tourist shops.

July 9, 2014 Morgat, France Hike to Crozon

I wanted some exercise, so we walked to Crozon, a pleasant regional town a few miles from the harbor. Pat enjoyed the shops, which unlike in Spain were actually open.
We had dinner at a Turkish place before walking back.

July 10, 2014 Morgat to Brest, France Huge Tides

The weather is not great, but we decided to move on. There is quite a bit of current along this coast and in the entrance to Brest's harbor. The current sucked us into the bay with a 5 knot boost. The Marina had an open space, so we have a dock and power again. The tides in this area are the second highest in the world. The change today is about 25 feet.!

July 11, 2014 Brest, France New Bike

Brest was almost flattened by bombing in the second world war. It has been rebuilt, is modern and clean, but lacks the charm of most French towns.
We took the street car to a shopping mall and Hypermart, where I bought a bike, It is a retro looking bike with a basket on the front and a rack in the back. It will be excellent for carrying groceries and exploring the places we go. I wish Pat would ride, bit I think it is a hopeless quest on my part, so I will ride alone.
We were allowed to bring the bike back on the streetcar. It needed some work to be ride able. After it was fixed up I explored the harbor area.

July 12, 2014 Brest, France Groceries by Bike

We hid from the rain most of the day. We go groceries. It is so much easier to carry the groceries back to the boat on the bike. I even made a second trip to pick up items Pat forgot.
I filled the tanks with diesel by carrying the cans to the fuel dock and bringing them back in a dock cart. It was easier than taking the boat to the gas dock.

July 13, 2014 Brest, France to Roscoff, France Don't Fight Mother Nature

We left early to go to Roscoff. We had a two knot current boost along the coast all the way. Planning to go with the current is very important. If we go against it we make 3 knots an hour, if we go with it we make 7 knots and hour. Thus a 40 mile trip can take 5 ½ hours or 13 hours depending on time of departure being timed to the flow of the tide being with us or against us.
The marina here is band new. There is quite a bit of current making it difficult to get into a slips. I did a poor job of my landing. Pat saved us by having a big bumper pad in hand that she dropped between the boat we hit and our boat just before we made contact. After we were in the other boaters said not to worry, everyone has difficulty with landings here. The Tour de France sailboat edition is here for a leg of the race. There is lots of media coverage and we are checked each time we want to get to the docks as they are trying to keep the spectators off the piers.

July 14, 2014 Roscoff, France Boats here Don't Float

I rode my bike to the town, Pat walked. The town is really something special. The town has a drying harbor filled with boat sitting in the mud at low tide, but floating at high tide. A carnival is set up above the harbor. There will be fireworks tonight. The streets of the town are lined with very old stone buildings, filled with activity and charm. What a pleasant town.
It is Bastille Day, so the streets are filled with happy French families on holiday. This is the holiday that starts the month long holiday period that all French people enjoy. Americans should be jealous.

July 15, 2014 Roscoff, France to Maguedheir Near Lezardriexu 2nd highest tides in the World

We made it out of the slip without incident.
It was another day of riding the tides. They get more extreme the closer we get to St. Michaels where the tidal range is greatest. We anchored in a spot recommended by one of our books. A 30 foot change in the water level overnight it made it hard to pick a spot with confidence. We knew we were surrounded by drying rocks but could not see them at high tide. We also had to put out a lot more chain than we would normally deploy because of the depth at high tide. The problem with that is that at low tide we will sweep a much larger area as we swing, I'm not crazy about the idea of sweeping the harbor with the keel looking for rocks at low water in the middle of the night

July 16, 2014 Maguedheir Near Lezardriexu St Peters Port, Guernsey, Channel Islands Trapped

We were up early. For this passage we will be with the tide most of the way, but fight it for at least part of the day. We are too big to go into the main yacht harbor. The harbor can only be entered for two hours on each side of high tide. It has a sill at the entrance that serves a a barrier to keep the water in the harbor at low tide. A measurement board is at the entrance. A boat can enter only when the measurement exceeds it's draft. Once inside it is trapped until the next high water. We are too long for the slips so we have tied to the docks in the outer harbor.
We were met at the entrance by the harbor master who led us to our spot in a skiff. We were still tying to the dock when he brought the next arriving sailboat in to tie to us on the outside. It was a bit of a Chinese fire drill as we tried to get us tied to the dock and the other boat tied to us at the same time.
It was not long before a third boat was brought in to tie to the outside of the boat tied to us. At least we were now secured to the dock, and it was up to the boat outside us to secure the third boat.
By nightfall we were trapped inside the harbor by all the boats tied up alongside us and behind us. I will be interesting seeing how everyone gets out. I'm not sure what we would do if we wanted to make an early departure.

July 17, 2014 St Peters Port, Guernsey, Channel Islands Around the Island By Foot and Bus

Guernsey is a country little known or understood by the outside world. It has its own government and money, the Guernsey Pound. It is not part of England, nor is it part of the European Union, which is good for us because we can restart the clock for the18 months we are allowed in the Scheming Countries of the European Union when we enter England.
We explored the town in the morning. At lunch time we found a community cafe sponsored by a local church as a find raiser to help the poor of the town. All home cooking by the ladies of the church. I had a lentil loaf and salad. Pat had a veggie crumble. They were both excellent and very cheap. We gave an added donation to the organization.
We took the bus around the Island for 1 pound, getting off at the north end. We hike several hours around the norther bays and peninsulas. It is the most rocky rugged coast I've ever seen. At low water the bottom of the bays looked like they were lined with dragon teeth. The sandy beaches, often just a patch of sand between the rocks had families with little wind break tents enjoying beach activities.
We passed a marina that was a former stone quarry. An entrance to the quarry pit had been blasted out of the solid rock allowing the quarry to flood. The entrance was a solid rock sill with no more than 20 feet of clearance on the side followed by a sharp turn. There was no room for an error, but once in you could not be more secure.
We re boarding the bus just as it started to rain for the trip back to town.

July 18, 2014 St Peters Port, Guernsey, Channel Islands Marble Sized Hail and Flood

I stayed on the boat this morning while Pat went to the grocery. A storm passed over about an hour later. At first it rained, then it hailed. The sound on the boat was really something. The metal parts made a noise like little bells pinging. The decks sounded like someone was pouring rocks on the top sides. We built up a layer of ice on the decks. I could hear sirens and commotion in the town above the harbor wall. Then it Rained like it was coming out of fire hose.
I hoped that Pat was not out in the storm, but she was. She ducked into a shop with others from the streets. The water rose until the streets were flooded and running like a river. The water rose higher and the shops started to flood. Fortunately the shop Pat had gone into was up a few step. The water rose to the top step, but didn't come in. She could see people knee deep in the water trying to make their way in the street. Cars were in water above the base of their doors. The man hole cover in front of the store blew off the storm drain. The opening to the uncovered hole turned into a geyser. As it settled down a man went out into the flooded street up to his knees and tried to stop cars from driving into the open hole.
Pat came back wet and full of stories of the flood. The others in the shop were locals who said they had never seen anything like this before.

July 19, 2014 St Peters Port to Dixcart Bay Sark, Channel Islands Animal Ambulance

We waited for favorable conditions and a time when we were not trapped by other boats to made the short trip to Sark. The Island of only about 200 residents has its own government, but no cars except for an ambulance and an animal ambulance. It does have tractors and a trailer pulled by a tractor that will take those who can't walk to the town at the top of the Island.
There is no marina other than the passage ferry landing, so we anchored in a bay with a trail to town.

July 20, 2014 Dixcart Bay, Sark, Channel Islands High and Dry No Cars Allowed

We beached the dingy at high tide and headed to town. The trail is steep, following a creek through the forest. The trail led to a hotel and restaurant and a horse cart path that wandered through the farm fields to town. There are several hotels on the island as well as shops and restaurants. It has a post office that has its own Sark Stamps. It uses Guernsey Pounds as its currency.
We passed the horse drawn taxi buggy as we walked. We explored the shops and then had an early dinner at a Pub. We walked back to Dixcart Bay by another trail.
The Island is the perfect place to go if you want to slow the pace of life down and savor your time.
When returned to the beach where we left the dingy the tide was out and it was a long way from the water. I took the outboard off and removed anything I could to lighten it. Pat could not lift her side, so I then dragged it to the water over the rocks, put the motor back on and we were off to the boat.

July 21, 2014 Sark, Channel Islands to Alderney, Channel Islands Exposed Anchorage

We rode the current to Alderney. Again there is no marina, but a breakwater makes it possible to gain shelter from most winds. All the moorings in the well protected part of the harbor were full, so we had to anchor in a rather exposed spot. The weather is calm, so we should be OK.

July 22, 2014 Alderney, Channel Islands Scared Belgians

the anchor held well. We took the to shore. I rode my bike around the island while Pat walked to the village. I met her in town, then later at a pub for dinner and a pint. The Island is very relaxed. There are only a a few thousand residents. No one is in a hurry. During World War II the entire population was evacuated to England. Not all moved back after the war, but those who did gave it a more English character than the other Channel Islands.
Around midnight we heard voices outside the boat. A young couple, who turned out to be from Bruce, Belgium, had brought their boat along side us. They begged us to let them come alongside. I tried to discourage them but the begged, so we tied them alongside. They had never anchored their boat before and we frightened to do so. They had tied to a mooring ball that was vacant, but thought the ball was drifting away, so detached from the mooring and came to us. I thought they could stay on our anchor for the night, but the rolling of the boats was making the masts swing towards each other. Once their mast passed through our rigging. If it had caught on our rig it would have torn something lose or we could have become entangled. It took some explaining to them that the mooring had not come loose. The wind was opposite the current and their boat was just making contact with the mooring ball as they swung and that they would be safer on the mooring than with us. It was like trying to scare off another pigeon, they didn't want to go!

July 23, 2014 Alderney, Channel Islands to Studland Bay, UK Fighting Currents and Wind

We made a 7 AM departure for England. We expected to be able to sail, but the predicted wind decided to ignore the forecast and blow from the wrong direction. The current was not cooperative either so we had to motor across the very busy English Channel at a snail's pace.
It was nearing sunset when we approached Poole Harbor. Entering an unfamiliar harbor in the dark is never a good idea. We decided to put up the Q flag and anchor outside the harbor at Studland Bay for the night and go in in the morning.

July 24, 2014 Studland Bay, UK to Brownsea Island, Pool Harbor, England Rolly Night

We did a lot of rolling in the harbor last night. We slept in before having a late breakfast and pulling the anchor up. Poole is a very busy congested harbor. There are thousands of private boats. It is also the arrival and departure point for several ferrys. The narrow entrance had a chain ferry that crosses back and forth every few minutes. It runs on a chain it pulls up from water below the boat. The engine pulls on the chain and the ferry follows the chain to the other side. We had to time our entrance to miss the ferry and chain, other ferrys and local traffic. We didn't want to pay the outrageous 4 pounds a meter, which adds up to $95 for a night on the marina dock, so we anchored at Brownsea Island, a National Heritage site. It was about a mile across the harbor to the town. We filled out the required entry papers for England, and headed to find a shop that could sell us an English SIM card for our unlocked US phone.
After we got the phone we explored the town and had dinner at a PUB.
The Phone shop said that the phone would activate in a couple of hours. It didn't

July 25, 2014 Brownsea Island, Pool Harbor, England Phone problems

Back to town and the phone shop. They messed with the phone and got it working. We explored, did some shopping, had another Pub meal then went home to the boat. I tried to get the data to work on the phone, but it didn't. The phone would make calls, so I called customer service. They sent me an Email with directions to get the phone working. We don't have email on the boat, so we will have to go to town to download the instructions.
The town had a fireworks display tonight. We had a front row seat in the cockpit for the show.


July 26, 2014 Brownsea Island, Pool Harbor, England Phone

Back into town to use the internet. Heather has a buyer for one of our rental units. We need communications. Doing business from the boat does not work well, especially if we don't have a phone. Most marinas these days have WIFI, but it is usually very slow and weak. It is enough to get an email, but not enough for Skype or download of document. The only solution is to find a restaurant or bar with WIFI if we want a good connection.
I downloaded the phone directions and got the thing working on my own. Now we have phone and Data.
The Tohatsu 3.5 HP outboard died 4 times on the way back to the boat. Pat was almost in tears as we drifted in the busy harbor traffic in the fading light. We got back home with some paddling and some engine, but just barely.

July 27, 2014 Brownsea Island, Pool Harbor, England Outboard Problems

I decided to not use the little outboard any more this trip, or at least until we can get it fixed, so I put the Yamaha 15 on the dingy. When I went to the dingy I discovered that I'd left the cap off the tank and most of the gas was on the floor of the dingy. It was an oily mess. I cleaned up and put the 15 on, filled replacement tank with the gas we had left and realized that we didn't have enough fuel to cross the harbor.
When I tried to attach the fuel hose to the Yamaha tank, the the fitting broke. I also discovered that the rubber ball in the line that is used to pump fuel from the tank to the prime the outboard was had as a rock and it would not Pump fuel. I had a spare rubber ball pump and an extra fitting, so I went to work replacing parts on the hose. The ball turned out to be miss labeled It pumped fluid the opposite direction than the label stated. I turned it around. The new Yamaha tank fitting would not stay on the tank. I compared it to the old one and found them to be slightly different. The new one would not work.
I had a beer!
Then I remembered that I had a whole spare hose with good ends and ball. It took some searching but I found it. It's ball had also hardened!
I cut the fitting off the end and put it on the other hose. It worked. We could use the outboard.
The problem is we have no gas and no daylight left.
We had dinner and read

July 28, 2014 Brownsea Island, Pool Harbor, England Hike the Island

We took the dingy to the Island, beached it and went for a hike. The Island is the site of the first Boy Scout camp out, lead by Baden Powell, the founder of the Boy Scouts. There is still a Boy Scout camp on the Island.
There is regular passenger ferry service to the island, but no cars. There is a castle and mannor house on the far end. There is an open air Shakespeare Theatre on that end as well, but the village and houses of the potters who gave the island its name are long gone. It is also home to the endangered Red Squirrel.

July 29, 2014 Brownsea Island to Cowes, Isle of Wight Banking Difficulties

We fought the current all the way. I should know better than to take off without checking the tide and current. It is such a calm protected area that I didn't think about it this morning. A three hour trip turned into a 5 hour trip. We tried to pay the marina in Cowes with our debit card. It wouldn't work, so we set off to find a cash machine. We tried three banks. Our card wouldn't work at any of them! A few days ago we got a call from the bank saying that we had changed our address and must sign some papers withing 5 days or we could not have access to our account.
We tried to convince the lady that we had not moved, but we do have to have a P. O. Box in Crested Butte. We also sent emails to the bank and our personal banker right away explaining that we had not moved.
We were really concerned. Our debit card is how we get cash.
We went back to the boat and got our credit union debit card and headed back to the bank.
It wouldn't work either!
Finally the thought came to me that perhaps we were asking for too much money. I entered a 100 pound request into the machine and out came the cash. I tried the bank card at 100 pounds and out came another 100 pounds. We had exceeded the limit allowed on British machines.
We headed back to the marina to pay our moorage bill. I was met by a smiling lady who said that their pay point machine was now fixed and I could charge the mooring, which I did.
Time for another beer! The banking had taken up most of the day but we have cash again.

July 30, 2014 Cowes, England Bike to Newport

Cowes is the center of sailing in England. I've heard of it for years. It is wonderful to be here and see the town and the very busy river harbor. The big ferry comes in right behind our dock every hour. The chain ferry, which is free for foot passengers is only 100 yards up river from us.
Next week is regatta week. We will be gone, but the place will be hopping with racers. The around the island race has 2000 entrants!
I rode my bike along a paved bike path that follows the river to Newport, the largest city on the Island. I found a Home Depot type store and a plumbing store that had the 15 mm fittings I needed. I rode back on the other side of the river, mostly on roads through a farming area.
Pat toured the shops along main street while I was gone.
I booked airline tickets to For Lauderdale on Norwegian Airline. We still need to book the tickets from there to Denver. We should be home by Sept 2nd.

July 31, 2014 Cowes, Isle of Wight, England

June 18, 2012 Arrived in Grenada from Martinique
We are in Clarke's Court Bay in Grenada. We made great time from
Martinique, about 27 hours. The first light of the morning showed us Carriacou and soon the northern shore of Grenada. We checked out several anchorages before setting in near the Hog Island bridge in Clarkes Court Bay.
We were almost out of fuel in the dingy, so we headed to the nearest fuel dock in Mt. Hartman Bay, about 2 miles away via dingy. There is a customs place ½ mile walk from the dock in the next bay, Prickle Bay, so we planned to check in with customs there.
It took a while to get find the staff and get the needed gas. As is usual in Grenada everyone was very friendly and helpful. They told us to not go to the nearby customs and immigration office as they are difficult to deal with. Instead we should go to Le Phar Blu, which we did. It is a several mile dingy ride to Le Phar Blu, and of course the offices were not open for lunch, so we had a drink and relaxed in the bar waiting for the offices to open again. They are very helpful here, but one of the officials was not there, so they kept our passports. We will have to go back tomorrow to get them.
June 19, 2012 Clarkes Court Bay, Grenada

We took it easy in the morning, then went to Le Phar Blu to gather up our passports and papers from the officials. We went to Ninrod's Rum Shop for a Roti lunch. They have the best Roti on the Island served in very rustic but pleasant surroundings. Nobody seemed to have much energy today after the overnight passage from Martinique.


June 20, 2012 Clarkes Court Bay, Grenada - Dingy Concert

We had a lazy morning. No set plans for now.

We can be in Trinidad in one day from here, so I'm going to try to move the haul out date up from the 29th to about the 25th. The haul out is closed on weekends, so I don't think it is reasonable to try for Friday haul out.. We will probably sail from here on Thursday or Friday, use the weekend to prepare the boat for haul out on the weekend. I need a day or two once on the hard to prepare the boat before flying home. Thus I may be able to fly Wednesday or Thursday of next week.

The Le Phar Blu Marina put on a floating dingy-up concert in the middle of Clarkes Court Bay this evening. They brought in a floating dock, tied a tug boat up to it that hada good generator, and set up a band and all of the required electrical connections. We tied up to about 200 other dingys, all tied to each other or the dock. They sold drinks on the dock. Craig gave a kid in a nearby dingy a tip to go get drinks for us. He had to crawl across quite a few inflatables to get to the bar. The singers were excellent and it was fun watching several of the women, including Vonnie dancing in the dingys. We saw Ian, a guy that Craig and Vonnie had befriended in Puerto Rico at the concert. We made plans to visit him on his boat in the marina in town tomorrow.


June 21, 2012 Clarkes Court Bay, Grenada - Island Tour
We took the dingy to Nimrods Rum Shop and then the bus to town. Ian and his crew were just leaving for a bus tour of the island by public bus. We decided to join them. It turned out to be a great trip. The mini buses don't depart from the station until completely full. The first bus took us over the mountains to the other side of the island, letting us off in the town of Greneville. We found a place that served Doubles for lunch, then took another buss to the Chocolate Factory. We were dropped off at the real factory, which usually does not accept visitors. The very hyper owner lets us in for a few minutes to see the facility. We all had a good laugh as the description of this guy in “The Embarrassment of Mangos,” was spot on, definitely a type A+ personality.
We walked the road to the tourist “Chocolate Factory” where they only sell chocolate, but do not make it. The walk was a real highlight. We saw all kinds of tropical fruit growing along the road as well as a mongoose and some huge caterpillars. People, as is usual in Grenada, were very friendly often speaking to us as we passed by. We took the tour of the “factory” and had some chocolate tea in the restaurant.
We walked on another mile before catching a bus back to Greneville, where we bought some groceries.
The last bus took us back to the turn off for Clarkes Court Bay. It was about a mile walk back to the dingy. We arrived back just after dark. We then went to Whisper Cove Marina where there was a singer performing and a dinner special.
I have not heard from Pat or Heather yesterday or today, but assume all is going OK.It really isn't much
fun without Pat here with me. I'm anxious to get going toward
Trinidad and to get back home. Next year we can enjoy the islands and
get things done.
June 22, 2012 Arrived in Trinidad
We departed at first light. It was a great sail all the way down to Trinidad. We made it all in daylight and sunshine in under 12 hours, which is great for over 80 miles under sail. The only problem we had was the chart plotter would not display the entrance chart when we arrived. The new Navionics charts on the computer saved us from operating from a rather fuzzy memory of the channel. The Chart Plotter would not display details of the harbor. Fortunately I have charts on the computer so we got in with just a few stressful minutes of guessing where we were. We made it to the dock before dark and well ahead of our estimated arrival time. I made one of the worst landing of the past few years when approached the dock to clear. I had it all lined up to stop at the close end of the customs dock, but the guard waved us to the other end. Unfortunately I hit the tires that were wrapped around the pilings, which bounced us away from the dock. Craig threw the line, but was standing on it, so it never got there. The customs man tried anyway and lost his hat into the bay in his effort. Not our best arrival at a dock, but we eventually got tied up and retrieved the mans fancy hat from the water. Our landing in the slip was not much smoother, but we got in just fine. The paper work for customs was completed, but we did not have any Trinidad and Tobago Dollars, so they kept our paperwork until we can get to a cash machine in the morning. They also charged us overtime as it was past 4 PM.
June 23, 2012 Trinidad

We are on the dock at Crews Inn. We have free WIFI, free water, and free ice. It is raining so cool for once here. We washed the boat down and are getting a good rinse from Mother Nature.
We got up early this morning to get to the cash machine which has been conveniently moved from near the customs dock across the harbor to Coral Cove. We got cash, had doubles at the doubles stand for breakfast and chatted with the folks on Cape, who we had tied to for a couple of hours at the dingy tie up concert in Grenada.
Immigration also charged us overtime as it is now Saturday. We paid off the customs office and are legally in the country. Craig descovered the hotels ice machine and we helped ourselves.
The in next slip over is S/V Receta. they are the authors of “An Embarrassment of Mangos.” They seem like nice folk. We will have to get to know them better.
June 24, 2012 Chaguaramus, Trinidad

Craig and Vonnie washed down the boat while I took the dingy to Peake Marina to check on the haul out. I am set for Wednesday, but will have to single hand into the slip as Craig and Vonnie will fly out on Tuesday.
Werner and Hana, the German couple who we meet two years ago were at Peake's dock. I stopped to say hello. I'll have to get over there and hear about the 4 months they spent hitch hiking around South America.
We put out the sails and washed them down, changed propane bottle, did laundry and started to get things ship shape for leaving the boat.
June 25, 2012
Craig has helped with the heavy stuff. Vonnie has helped with laundry and cleaning. We have the interior pulled apart to remove the radar cable and put the new one in.
Seems like for every job I do, I find 2 more thing that need doing.
June 26, 2012
Craig and Vonnie departed via taxi for the airport around noon. I went to customs and checked out this afternoon as they said I could do it early. That will avoid having to get across the harbor tomorrow to do paper work.
June 27, 2012
I took the boat to a mooring just off the Peakes Marina haul out this morning at 7 AM. I was worried about getting the boat out of the dock on my own, but it went smoothly.
I got the boat into the sling with little trouble and now the boat is on the hard ground in Peakes. I almost blew the electrical system by plugging the 110 power cord into a 220 outlet. The outlet was not labeled and had a regular 15 amp receptical. Fortunately I always test the outlets before I plug in. My tester earned its keep today! Werner and Hana, the German couple who we met last year invited me to dinner. It was really fun hearing about the 4 months they spent backpacking around south America since I had last seen them. I went back to the boat and worked until 3 AM to get things ready for departure.

June 28, 2012 Depart Trinidad

I though I had plenty of time to finish the chores on the boat before going to the airport about 1PM, but when I got to the Peakes office, they said I had to go back to Customs for one more piece of paper with a rubber stamp on it. My whole morning was blown. I found a local workman who gave me a ride to the customs office, or I would not have made it to my flight.

The last hour on the boat was crazy. I had 3 hours of work to get done in one hour. I did it, but when I got to the airport I was still in my sweaty clothes and I had forgotten my shoes on the boat. My sandles would do to get home, but my hiking boots will be sorely missed this fall.

As it turned out, I had lots of time. My American Airlines flight was six hours late arriving in Trinidad to pick us up.

I missed all the connections in the US, and American put me up in a hotel in Miami for the night. Actually it turned out to be only 4 hours of sleep before I had to get back to the airport for may 6:30 AM flight to Dallas, and connection to Denver.

I drove to Crested Butte that night, but almost went off the road twice as I was very drowsy. I should have stayed in Denver and driven out in the morning