We had arrived after a boisterous sail from mainland Portugal to the island of Porto Santo. However, on approach to the island, the engine had failed to start. We'd managed to sail into the anchorage outside the harbour, where further tests indicated we definitely had a broken engine.

After a good night's sleep we felt more ready to face the horrors. First things, to get Emerald into a safer location. The anchorage off the beach at Porto Santo seemed OK, but if we did drag, it would be next stop Canaries. Or maybe Brazil. Sailboats are made to move with the wind, but in close quarters, such as a marina, an engine is essential. So, our broken engine meant we couldn't manoeuvre Emerald safely into the harbour. We thought about towing her ourselves with the dinghy, but at 8hp, the outboard just isn't powerful enough.

We launched the dinghy and went ashore to visit the harbour office who were able to offer a tow at a reasonable price and arranged to be with us at 2pm.

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On a sunny Saturday morning, we raised the main, and turned away from mainland Portugal. Our destination: Porto Santo, part of the Madeira archipelago, 435nm away.

The sea was flat calm in the Enseada de Sagres, where we had spent the night. However, once we cleared Cabo Sagres - the headland that holds Henry the Navigator's fort - we met a light swell and stronger wind from the north. We unfurled the foresail, and silenced the engine. Emerald was now sailing on a course roughly west-south-west, which we would maintain the whole way across.

To help us with the passage we had a third crew member onboard - Harry the Hydrovane. After a little bit of adjustment, it steered us all the way to Porto Santo.

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At long last, the time had come to leave the boatyard. Late on a Friday afternoon, the launch crane rumbled along and transferred Emerald from her support cradle to the slings. The yard is closed over the weekend, and allows boats to hang in the slings during that time before launching on Monday. We felt excitement bubbling at being so close to escape, but we had one major job to complete. When we Coppercoated in April, we weren't able to access the patches underneath the cradle supports nor below the keel. The two days in the slings would give us access to these areas with sufficient time for applying and drying the product.

We'd booked the crane a week ago, thinking surely there'd be no risk from wet weather in the middle of May. However, on Thursday, the weather forecast was showing a chance of light rain for Friday night. We laughed. What else could we do?

Thankfully, it was just the forecast gods messing with us. The rain stayed away and by Saturday lunchtime the job was finished. After a busy week of preparing for launch, the water tanks were full, as were the fuel tanks. We had gas for at least 6 months and the food stores were groaning. There was nothing else to do until Sunday evening when we would lightly sand the Coppercoat. With this unexpected free-time, we rewarded ourselves with a meal out and a last Faro wander.

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