What has been going on? You’ll remember that I was a bit bruised after the attempt to reach Madeira, and had to return to Cascais, near Lisbon, for repairs. Cascais itself had been a bit battered by the winds too: apart from the oil tanker driven ashore, there was damage to fine old trees in the local park (here’s a picture of a grand and aged tree uprooted – it crashed onto the roof of the unfortunate building behind – all efficiently tidied up soon after). It took a few days for sail repairs, Rutland wind generator left-over bits sent to Corby, chips in gel coat repaired (cause: exploding Rutland = v. alarming), bilges and carpet dried, dodger sewn up. In a nutshell, local Portuguese people have been overwhelmingly helpful, fantastically friendly and generous of their time and advice; fellow sailors a colourful mix of hue and view; Lewmar? Brilliant and excellent service and they’ll send a new and bigger one to replace a bent anchor; Rutland? The jury’s out.
Early days with F6/7, and well-reefed sails were fast and exhilerating; choppy seas, spray flying over foredeck, warm sunshine or heavy shower, the sky a riotous jumbled patchwork of clouds in palest washed out pale to darkest inky blue; the ocean swell unceasing and filled with grandeur and power. We are over-awed. At the end of day 6, we approached Tenerife at dusk, finally dropping anchor in the dark, off a remote deserted beach under a mountain, at the north end of the island.
This entry was posted in 2015 England to Cape Verde, Older Posts on 3 November 2015 by michaelsweet50.
Michael/Henrietta, well done for getting down in time….especially single handed. Glad you had a safe trip, we have been checking your blog and our anchorage everyday to see if you would arrive. Hope you enjoy Tenerife, what are your plans next? Are you planning to cross to the Carribbean? Stay safe and hopefully catch up soon. Simon, Holly and Scrumpy.