Back to England (Gibraltar) and Into The Med

The Southerly winds finally relented and moved round to the NW so after 4 nights anchored in Sancti Petri we had an early morning start to catch the ebb tide to send us on our way to Tarifa.  We managed a few hours sailing but it was mostly motorsailing as the wind was not quite enough to make the 45nm trip in a decent time.  The tides and current towards the Straits of Gibraltar also seemed to be about an hour later than the Pilot Book indicated but we did have up to 3knts pushing us on our way as we neared Tarifa. We rounded the Island and anchored just outside the harbour in a nice calm bay, the anchor dug in straight away and the water was clear enough to see the anchor land on the sand 5m down.  The bay is not very big with room for about 6 or 8 boats to anchor in up to 6m of water, great protection from the West but you do get a bit of wash from the fishing boats and ferries, although there was very little activity overnight.

A Quiet Park in Tarifa	Calm Anchorage at Tarifa

Next day we were heading to Gibraltar and La Linea, but not until late afternoon so we had time for a good exploration of Tarifa, plenty of bars and restaurants but only small supermarkets for supplies.

We set off for the 17nm trip to La Linea at 1600hrs to make the most of the strong tides through the Straits, we had 2 to 3 knts all the way until we turned into Gibralatar Bay. We also managed to sail all but the last mile, the Bay was full of anchored cargo boats and tankers as well as regular ferry traffic so we had to keep our wits about us as we sailed across to La Linea at the top of the Bay.  We anchored inside the La Linea breakwater, great protection and good holding in about 5m of water. The rumours about the Guardia Civil moving boats from this anchorage seem unfounded, we saw plenty of police activity but they never bothered us or anyone else anchored there – maybe it is different in the Summer!!!

Gibraltar Seen From La Linea	Sunset in Alcaidesa Marina, La Linea

Next day we moved into Alcaidesa Marina for a couple of nights so we could do the shopping and go and explore Gibraltar. Although the anchorage inside the breakwater is great there is nowhere very handy for landing the dinghy, the only place seemed to be on the town beach just West of the Club Nautico and this did not seem the safest place to leave a dinghy for any length of time.  Alcaidesa is a new marina and facilities where fine, however it is large and it means lots of walking to get anywhere – a bike would be very handy if staying for any length of time. Mercadona was about 20 mins walk from our berth, the border with Gib was about 15 mins and the centre of Gib a further 15 mins walk.

The first day we set off with our folding sack truck for a major shopping session at Mercadona, the truck was great as it would have been a very long way back if we had had to carry all the bags!!! Awake were also staying in the Marina and Jimmy & Lynn from Lagos also came in while we were there. Next day we went and explored Gibraltar, climbed to the top of The Rock and stocked up on English Essentials from Morrissons – Sue can tell you all about it!!!

Gibraltar Runway and La Linea From The Top Of The Rock	As Close as Sue Would Get To The Apes!!!

We moved back to the anchorage for one more night to save a bit on marina fees, Alcaidesa was costing us €34 per night because of the 50% extra for catamarans and also the high season charges start 1st May rather than 1st June as in much of the rest of the Med.  We also took advantage of the duty free fuel prices in Gibraltar to fill up the diesel tanks and the petrol can for the dinghy, diesel was 88.5p per litre.

Heading Down The Mediterranean Steps From The Top of the Rock	Europa Point As We Head Into The Med

Sat 12th May we set of at 0800 to make the most of the tide sailed down Gibraltar Bay to Europa Point and headed into the Mediterranean on our way to Fuengirola. Light winds and calm seas meant mostly motorsailing until the breeze picked up enough in the afternoon to sail the last couple of hours to the harbour.  We anchored in the outer harbour with Awake, good holding in about 5m of water but only really room for about 4 boats and very open to the East.

Sunday was another early start for a long trip of 55nm to Motril, hardly any wind so motored almost all the 11hrs it took us, at least the sea was calm and the sun was shining.  Anchored just south of Motril harbour off the beach, fine in calm weather but very open if the weather is iffy. There also looked to plenty of suitable anchoring places around the headland and at Calahonda, although most would only be useful in calm conditions, Calahonda was about the only little bay that would offer any shelter at all.

Early Morning Over Motril and Acres of Plastic Greenhouses	Entrance to Roquetas de Mar

This part of the coast is covered in acres of plastic greenhouses producing our winter fruit and veg so it is not very scenic, anyway we wanted to keep moving towards The Balearics.  We set off with the wind forecast to be less than 8knts all day so we planned a steady day motoring towards Cabo de Gata. All started  as planned until about midday when the wind started to pick up to over 20knts from the East (on the nose!!), the sea got very short and choppy and things were decidedly uncomfortable.  After a couple of hours it was pretty obvious it wasn’t getting any better and we would not make our planned destination so we changed the plan and headed into Roquetas de Mar.  A council run marina with very helpful staff and clean toilets and showers, also very cheap because high season charges do not start until June.  However the marina itself was nearly empty as the annual berth fees were increased by 33% this year so most boats have left. Still quite a large fishing fleet operating out of the harbour but surprisingly they all seem to obey the 3knts harbour speed limit so there is no wash from the comings and goings.

We have been here for three days because the easterly winds refuse to go away and the sea outside the harbour looks pretty horrible, we think we might be able to get a bit further tomorrow(Thurs) and the wind is then forecast to swing around more to the west so we should be able to make a good few miles towards the Balearics, hopefully we can get to Ibiza by the middle of next week – wait for the next update to see what happens!!!!

Hi all Sue here

Tarifa was a very pretty town to visit and the castle looked really nice from the outside but it was closed the day we were there although it said open on the notice board. We enquired at the tourist information as to why it was not open and were told it was because it was “Monuments Day” that means all the monuments have a day off from the public!! Very strange!!

Gibraltar was very busy and it seemed strange to be in this English place and staying in a Spanish Marina. We decided we had to have a day exploring the Rock and seeing the famous monkeys, tunnels and caves. There are three ways to get to the top of the Rock and most normal people choose the cable cars or taxis but Chris decided we had to walk!! It was a very hot day and we walked to the top with Francis and Erica, stopping of at various points of interest, and then descended via  the scenic route which are called the Mediterranean steps. That wasn’t the end of the day though as we also had a trip to Morrisons planned and a visit to a duty free shop to stock up on Vodka (£3.50 a litre or £7.50 a litre for Smirnoff)). We bought far too much in Morrisons and the Duty Free shop and poor Chris had to carry most of it in his rucksack (that will teach him for making me walk up the rock!!). I never thought my little legs would make it back to the boat!! We were all exhausted that night after our long day.

The wind as usual isn’t right for moving on but it is very hot here so that’s a bonus. It’s very quiet here in Roquetas de Mar and a lot of bars an restaurants are closed. Hopefully we will be able to move on tomorrow a bit further.

Into Spain Under Grey Skies

After a few days anchored in El Rompido it was soon time to move on again. We had anchored just West of the Marina in an area with no moorings, as we had motored up the channel into El Rompido we were starting to wonder where we could find room to anchor.  We had passed nearly 3nm of packed moorings on our way in, literally hundreds and hundreds of mainly small day boats, so it was a relief to see some open space behind the marina. The town itself was a typical Spanish holiday town with lots of bars and restaurants, a couple of supermarkets nearby but no easy place to land the dinghy, fortunately Dakini decided they needed a few days in the Marina so we could park the dinghy behind them in the Marina.

We had a nice meal ashore with Dakini and Awake to celebrate Sue’s Birthday, but after the cheap Portuguese places we had enjoyed recently the prices seemed a bit expensive, reports from friends ahead of us say we will have to get used to it because Spain is quite a bit dearer for eating out.

Sadly Helen and Marcel on Dakini were staying a bit longer than us so we had to say goodbye after spending a lot of time with them since there return to Lagos, no doubt we will see them again in the future.

Early Morning Departure From El Rompido	El Rompido and Some of the Hundreds of Moored Boats

Friday 27th April was a fairly early start (08:00) to catch the first of the ebb tide out of El Rompido and negotiate the shallow entrance safely, the channel is very well marked but even just after High Water we only had 1.5m beneath us at the shallowest points. We had a slow trip of about 20nm to Mazagon, light winds meant we sailed less than half the trip with the chugging of one or other diesel engine doing the rest of the work.  Mazagon is a town at the entrance to the busy commercial port of Huelva, the anchorage was a bit rolly despite being inside the harbour breakwater but holding was good and it was only for one night.

We left Mazagon on Saturday morning with a plan of heading towards Chipiona and then anchoring a bit further up the River Guadlquivir, just for a change the weather was not quite what the forecast said so after about an hour the wind had risen to over 20knts, at least it was not on the nose!!!  We decided it made more sense to head directly to Cadiz where we could anchor in a well sheltered spot to sit out the forthcoming strong SW winds. We had a pretty quick trip to Cadiz covering the 50nm in less than 7hrs, but the weather did keep us busy with reefing and changing sails fairly often as the wind increased and changed direction. At one point we had two reefs in the mainsail and two reefs in the jib with gusts well over 30knts, it is a long time since we have sailed with that number of reefs!!!

We sailed across Cadiz Bay and anchored in a shallow area to the South of the new suspension bridge that is being built across the Bay, however work seems to have ground to a halt and it seems the project has run into financial trouble. There was some work going on but the small number of workers will take decades to get the job finished.

San Juan Square and Town Hall	Merchant House, Cadiz

There was also a lot of projects evident in and around Cadiz that seemed to have ground to a halt before being finished, the Spanish economic troubles really seem to be having an impact on public spending projects. We had a stroll around Cadiz but it was a shame that all the interesting buildings seemed to be charging around 5 Euros entry, perhaps they are trying to improve the public finances by charging the tourists. The city itself is interesting with lots of old buildings, big plaza’s, narrow streets and open parks so well worth a walk around.

Santa Maria Convent, Cadiz	Plaza de la Constitution, Cadiz

We stayed three days in Cadiz and then set off for Sancti Petri, a trip of about 20nm, the forecast was for SW F3-4 but we ended up with SE F4-5, this was right in the direction we were heading!!!  We had a very uncomfortable passage with the sea state being very lumpy and mixed up – it was like being back in the Irish Sea again, we were very grateful to turn between the channel markers into Sancti Petri.  We motored through the lagoon past a surprising number of moored boats and anchored ourselves to the North of them.  The weather forecast for the next couple of days is not very encouraging so we will probably be staying here until Sunday or Monday before heading further South.  Even though we currently have winds of F5 from the South the anchorage here in Sancti Petri is pretty calm despite the lagoon entrance being wide open to the south, the twisting entrance and shallow sandbanks give very good protection.

Sue “Borrowing” Dodgie	Deserted Sancti Petri Beach

Hi all Sue here

Since we left Lagos we seem to have had strong winds with us all the way and unfortunately not always in the right direction. The forecast has quite often been for lighter winds but it doesn’t seem to happen and when they say sea state slight never believe them!! We had a very lively sail to Cadiz and a very lumpy one to Sancti Petri!!

Cadiz is well worth a visit even though a lot of work is still in progress, I’m sure many other places will be having the same financial troubles. We are still sailing with Francis and Erica off Awake and of course Dodgie the dog. Dodgie got run over by a motorbike in Cadiz but he’s ok, he’s a rescue dog and got his name after being found dodging the traffic in Portimao as a puppy. I was tempted to adopt a dog but think it’s best to just borrow Dodgie for now for my dog fix!!

Weather is still very mixed with SW F4-5 keeping us in Sancti Petri, forecast to change over the weekend when we hope to make our way to Gibraltar, only about 60nm to go so we could do that in one day if the wind and seas are good!!!  Looks like we might be stuck in Gibraltar for a few days as the wind is forecast to change to the East middle of next week!!!

Nimrod Sets Sail for 2012

 

Welcome Back to everyone after our long silence while we were moored in Lagos Marina for the Winter. We will try and make our blog updates a bit more regularly now that we are on the move again, but as always this will depend on WiFi access and signal strength to post to the website – we will do our best.

Leaving time at Lagos Marina came round all too quickly with everyone working hard in the last 2 or 3 weeks to get all the winter jobs completed, yes we know we had 6 months to do them all but it never quite works like that – there is always something more important to do.

We managed to find time to organise a Marina Leaving Party at Bom Pecado, a local restaurant a few minutes walk from the marina. Jorge and his staff produced a great meal, lots of wine and beer as well as some local entertainment. There was over 40 boaties from the marina and it was a great party, the marina was pretty quiet the next day as everyone tried to recover from the excesses. The pictures below give some idea of the fun we had.

The Lagos Marina Leaving Party at Bom Pecado – A Good Time Was Had By ALL!!!!

Obviously we could not leave Lagos having had only one leaving party, so Helen and Marcel on Dakini decided we should have a “quiet” party the night before we left the marina – not a good idea!!!!  Helen decided we should have an early start and an early finish so we would all be fit and healthy to set sail the next day, surprisingly it did not quite work out like that.  The early start was easy so we all gathered on Dakini at around 3pm, the early finish definitely did not happen, unless the early hours of the next day count as finishing early!!!!

The final day was a panic of very last minute jobs and shopping as well as washing the boat ready to go. We finally escaped our berth at around 2:30pm for the huge trip of 8nm to Portimao and Feragudo for our first night at anchor for 6 months.  We had a really great time in Lagos with a really great bunch of fellow sailors and it was hard saying goodbye to them all, some we have already bumped into again, some we are still sailing with and unfortunately some we will probably not meet again, however that is the cruising lifestyle.

There was a great mixture of nationalities living aboard for the winter with English, Irish, Dutch, Norwegian, Swiss, Swedish, German, Czech and many others all coming together to make the winter fly past. We were also lucky with the weather as we had clear blue skies and warm temperatures for practically the whole time, hardly any rain in 6 months means the local farmers are very concerned, but it was lovely for us. Some photos below to show our very quiet final leaving party!!!

Marcel on Keyboard, James on Clarinet and Hilde on Vocals	The Band Warming Up
Sue and Hilde on Top Form	Goodnights after a Great Party

The Final Leaving Party on Board Dakini

 

Alison and Phil on Bagheera Leaving Lagos	Monsieur Mole With Sun Hat Ready For His Summer Travels
Sue Saying Goodbye to the Cats	Feragudo, First Stop of 2012

After a winter of nearly perfect weather it all changed as we headed East, so far we have had some fairly strong winds and pretty cool temperatures so it has not been an easy start to our summers adventures. From Feragudo we had a good sail to Culatra where we safely negotiated the strong currents in the entrance to Faro Lagoon and anchored off the coastal Island of Culatra, I am sure it is much nicer in good weather, but with strong NW winds the anchorage was a bit uncomfortable and dinghy trips ashore were very wet.  We did manage a walk around the village on the Island and we had the lovely beach all to ourselves.

The weather was not forecast to get much better so we decided to head for the better shelter offered by Tavira.  Another good sail in the offshore NW winds and we were soon safely anchored in the lagoon with the sun making it very pleasant.  Friends on Awake and Dakini were also with us so we had some good company, James and Jana off Scrabbler also drove down and spent a couple of days on board. We had a visit from a couple of very friendly Marine Police who wanted to check our papers and give us some advice, all very nice.

We had an unscheduled early start one morning as our anchor dragged and we bumped gently into the bank on the opposite side of the channel – not sure why because we had been anchored safely for a couple of days by then – the tide does run quite strongly so the regular change of direction must have been enough to unstick our normally reliable anchor. We were quickly re-anchored in time to take James and Jana ashore to catch a flight for James.

From Tavira we headed towards the River Guadiana that forms the border between Portugal and Spain, again with Dakini and Awake, Pippit with Ann and Andy were already in the River. We anchored just below the impressive International Bridge for the night ready to leave in the morning at low tide. The bridge is charted at varying heights depending on which chart or pilot book you consult, with 18.5m, 20.5m and 23m all being quoted – all a bit too close when you have a mast height off 20m. The low tide gave us an extra 2m of clearance and we crept under very carefully, you can never tell from the deck how close the bridge is but Marcel following behind estimated at least 2m of clearance, still pretty close though!!!

We continued all the way up the river with the flood tide and eventually anchored about 7nm past Pomarao, nearly 30nm from the bridge.Just past the anchorage was the first shallow patch with Dakini having less than 200mm of water under her keel at one point so we turned back a bit and anchored in a bit more depth, a line ashore to a suitable tree ensured we stayed in line with the current and avoided swinging around the anchor as the tide turned – a very comfortable night.

Approaching The International Bridge on the Guadiana	Phew!!! That is Very Close!!!
Old Iron Ore Works	Anchored With Lines Ashore in The Upper Reaches of The Guadiana

Next day we decided to make our way up river to Mertola with Dakini’s dinghy and crew.  Many years ago some quite large ships used to navigate the river to Mertola but it is now silted and shallow in a number of places on this last 3nm stretch. The Guadiana Pilot book says it is possible to get to Mertola with 2m draught provided you use the tides correctly, both us and Dakini decided that was not a good idea particularly after the dinghy trip!!!

The tide times for our dinghy trip meant we were heading upstream only just after low water, we thought we should be OK and be able to find plenty of water for a dinghy that only needs about 300mm of water – how wrong we were!!  We had to paddle the dinghy through a couple of places and even had to get out and tow it through the very worst bits, luckily the water was not too cold and we made it to Mertola with nothing worse than wet feet and trousers to show for our troubles.

Mertola is a stunning little town built on a hill with an old castle dominating the town, the view as we rounded the last bend was well worth the effort of getting the dinghy there. The views from the Castle were also pretty special, as was the town itself with numerous little streets winding around the hillside. We found the crew of Awake in a cafe, they had walked from the anchorage to Mertola because they have only a small dinghy and outboard, it had taken them 3hrs to walk although it must be said it took us an hour and half to get the dinghy there!!!  Lunch was enjoyed in the cafe with a huge plate of meat, chips, rice and salad together with wine and beer costing the huge sum of 15Euros per couple.

After a good walk around the town it was time for the return trip, now the tide had risen by nearly 2m so we had no hazards at all to worry about and the trip back took only about 20 mins. The crew of Awake decided to walk back down the other side of the river even though their dinghy would be on the wrong bank, they were hoping we would rescue them.  We checked for any sign of the returning trio and Dodgie the dog but there was no sign as we settled down for food aboard Dakini, 1/2 hr later we just caught sight of Francis on the shore leaping and waving trying to attract our attention, it seems they had been shouting and waving for about 15 minutes before we saw them – Francis was getting ready to strip off and swim across the river to the dinghy but the strong current was enough to discourage him. We ferried them back to Awake and their dinghy and no one even got their feet wet.

Approaching Mertola by Dinghy	Intrepid Crew Ready to Explore Mertola
View Downriver From The Castle	Early Morning in The River, Awake Heading Downstream

Next day dawned clear and calm in our cosy anchorage but we need an early start to go downriver with the tide to Pomarao.  As on the way up we had to contend with numerous fish nets strung across the river, some better marked than others – most stretched about two thirds across the river leaving room to pass, however a few seemed to be set across the full width and we had to drift over them hoping they were deep enough not to snag them.  We managed to miss them all on the way down but we did catch one on the way up, we managed to drift off it after pushing it aside.  I am sure it would be very difficult to miss them with any deeper draught than our 1.5m, I can only guess that they are not laid in the summer as there is no mention of nets in any Pilot Book or website that we looked at.

We anchored just South of Pomaro and took the dinghy ashore for a hike around the Dam behind the village, some scrambling and climbing was needed to get us back onto the road to get back to Pomarao.  It was a very nice expedition apart from Dodgie taking an unexpected leap into a canal carrying water from the dam, he leapt onto the top of the wall and straight into the water, luckily he paddled to the side and was quickly rescued by Erica, Francis and Sue – he didn’t seem at all bothered by the surprise of landing in water that he couldn’t see!!!

Relaxing in Pomarao	Ready to Explore Alcoutim
Alcoutims Main Square	Sanlucar on The Opposite Side of The River

From Pomarao we sailed slowly downriver with the tide to Alcoutim, managed to get alongside the pontoon with Dakini behind us and Awake rafted alongside us – a good enough reason for a bit of a party!!!  Being alongside the pontoon meant we had water and electricity so we could top up the tanks, wash the boat and charge the batteries, all very civilised.

Alcoutim is a pretty little town with a few shops and cafes so it was nice to stop for a couple of days, Sanlucar on the Spanish bank opposite was also quite nice but did not seem as friendly to us.  There were a couple of cafes but no shops in the parts we walked around, the Castle above the town seemed an awful long, steep walk so we didn’t bother.  The crew of Awake did make the hike but said the Castle was closed and lots of construction work going on – apart from the views it wasn’t worth the walk!!!

The weather had been pretty good for most of our time in the River but now the winds picked up a bit and the sun was not so warm when it managed to show itself from behind the clouds. We sailed further downriver to a little Portuguese village called Guerreiros do Rio and anchored in the river, all seemed well while the tide was ebbing and the wind was also blowing downriver. Then the tide changed direction so it was going the opposite way to the wind, the wind strengthened to about 25knts and chaos ensued!!!  Both us and Dakini were sailing around our anchors, back and too across the river with the wind against tide kicking up a pretty nasty chop on the water – altogether pretty horrible.

We often put out a stern anchor as well as our main anchor in strong reversing tides to ensure we stay in the same place – it usually works very well. We decided to re-anchor and put out our stern anchor to calm everything down but the wind and current meant it was impossible to hold Nimrod in place to get out the stern anchor, at one point our bridle on the main anchor chain got caught on the keel of the boat and we couldn’t get our anchor up – it was all pretty fraught, especially with Dakini in pretty close proximity!!!  Eventually we managed to retrieve our anchor and moved further downriver to anchor away from everyone.

We all decided it was not a very nice place to spend the night and as soon as the tide turned again we all sailed 3nm downriver to Foz de Odeleite, we tied alongside the small pontoon while Dakini and Awake anchored, the wind died to nothing and we had a very peaceful night eventually!!!!

Next day we planned to go to Ayamonte at the bottom of the River so we set off with the tide and a fresh wind behind us, we started off with our headsail out but we were going too fast meaning we would be at the bridge too early – we wanted to be there for low water to give us maximum clearance again.  We gradually rolled the sail away to slow down and eventually we were doing 4.5knts with no sail up at all because of the 20 – 25 knt wind behind us.  We anchored just south of Ayamonte with the wind still blowing at 20knts and the tide due to turn against the wind very soon – VHF discussion with Dakini resulted in us deciding that it was not a good place to stay so we upped anchor and set off on the 20nm trip east to El Rompido. Another factor that encouraged us to move was the sight of a Dutch monohull sat at an unhealthy angle on the bank opposite – he must have dragged his anchor and ended up aground, it looked as if he would float off again as the tide returned but it was a reminder of how things can go wrong.

The number of crab pot flags en route was quite incredible, literally hundreds of the damn things to dodge, not sure what they were trying to trap but with that number of pots about there really can’t be anything left to catch. The entrance to El Rompido is a shallow channel between sandbanks, only to be attempted near to high water, it is very well buoyed and we entered safely to finally anchor just past the Marina.  We are staying here a couple of days while some nasty weather passes through and we plan to head for Mazagon as soon as the weather is better.

Hi all Sue here

I really think Chris has said it all but I will just add a few words. Leaving Lagos was quite sad as we have made some really good friends and you don’t know if you will meet up with them again. I know that’s how it goes but I am hopeless at goodbyes.

Before we left Lagos my mum, sister and my mums friend Moira came to stay for a few days and we had a great time. We went to a Karaoke bar one night where we danced and sang until one in the morning. We sampled quite a few jugs of Sangria, the best being in the Marina Bar where we sat and drank three jugs one afternoon!! I blame it on my mum who doesn’t like to walk too far so we keep having to find places to sit down. We had fun and games with the keys to the apartment mum and Moira stayed in, the first day Caroline and me went up to meet them we couldn’t get in the front door to the apartment block and in the end we had to ring Chris to come up to help. When he arrived he gave us one of his looks and said it would help if we tried the right door, which was a bit further up the road!! He didn’t see the funny side at all but we laughed all day!! 

Mum and Moira on Nimrod	Sangria stop at Marina Bar

 

Well Lagos Marina seems miles away now and we are of on our travels again and it’s really nice sailing in company with Dakini and Awake. The trip up the Guadiana was very lovely and very challenging, especially the dinghy trip to Mertola. At one point when Chris, Marcel and Helen were knee deep in water pulling the dinghy, they assured me there was no need for me to get out as well (ring any bells Lesley!!), I happened to see a really nice display of wild flowers on the bank behind them so thought I should point it out to them. They didn’t seem to be impressed, I can’t understand why as they looked really lovely from the dinghy!!

On my birthday we arrived in Ayamonte where once again the wind was a lot stronger than forecast and not good for anchoring and going ashore for a meal as promised. I couldn’t help wondering what I used to do on my birthdays, those stiletto's and glad rags seem along time ago now!! It all turned out ok though as we made it to El Rompedo, anchored safely, had champagne on Dakini with Helen and Marcel and then went out for a meal.

Sadly we will be moving on tomorrow to Magazon without Dakini as their timescale is different to ours but hopefully we will meet up with them again to spend the winter months. So we are going for a farewell meal to their boat tonight and no doubt I will shed a few tears!! I’ll get used to it one day!!

Life in Lagos Marina

Hi all Sue here

Just thought I’d give you a quick update of what life is like in Lagos Marina. It is a very social marina with loads of things going on, in fact you could be out almost every night if you joined in with everything!!

50th Birthday Drinks	Party Goes Downhill !!

Chris celebrated his 50th birthday in December and we had about 20 people on board for a party, it was a great night and there was much singing and dancing, we finally got to bed at 5.30!! The following day we went for a walk on the beach with our friends from Holyhead Alan and Yvonne, who had flown out to join us for the big 50th, to clear our heads a bit. It started to rain so of course we had to head for the nearest shelter which just happened to be a beach bar!! It all went down hill from there and we just made it back to the boat in time for a quick change before heading to a restaurant we had booked for a nice quiet meal!!

Christmas Day at the Beach	Dinghy Launching at Christmas !!!

We organised a BBQ on the beach for Christmas Day. Everyone went down to the beach in there Dinghy's laden with food, drink etc but when we got there a big swell had built up and it proved very entertaining trying to get ashore. There was a lot of soggy people and the paper plates and serviettes didn’t fare very well!! Of course when we got back to the marina the party continued on Nimrod. It was such a great day that we were asked to organise the same for New Years Day but at least this time there was no swell and we all managed to get the dinghy's ashore with no bother. I even kayaked down to the beach with a friend.

New Years Eve – South Bar	New Years Day Barbeque

In January eight of us went out on a fishing trip to learn some new tactics on how to catch fish and what bait etc to use. Seeing as I’ve never been fishing before I was a bit dubious about going but it turned out I really enjoyed it and caught loads of fish. I just need to work up to getting the fish of the hook now, I didn’t like that bit!!  My sons girl friend, Heather, says I’m just a hunter not a gatherer!!  When we got back to the marina the men gutted the fish and we had a big BBQ on Nimrod. One of the couples,Jana and James, did some sushi and smoked fish for a starter it was very impressive.

Sue’s Red Snapper	Sushi From Our Catch

We have been involved with so many things here, Boules matches, racing, weekly walks, Friday night suppers, feeding the rescue cats (that’s me not Chris!), kayaking and the list goes on. Far too much for me to bore you with!!  We went to Loule Carnival last weekend which is meant to be one of the best you can go to. The floats were magnificent but the men were more taken with the dancing girls, especially the one wearing only body paint!!  Next weekend we are of to a sausage festival in Monchique, we’ve heard it’s really beautiful there so are looking forward to that.

Loule Carnival Girls	Loule Carnival Float

There’s only six weeks left on our marina contract so we are going to be really busy now getting the boat ready to go again in between all our social engagements. We have really enjoyed our stay here and have made so many new friends, most of whom are going to be heading in a similar direction to us in April so hopefully we will keep meeting up with them. Our aim is to be around the Greek Islands by mid August but we will keep you in touch with our travels along the way.

Country Walk Ravine Crossing	Top of the Hill at Last !!!