June 16, 2019
So after almost 6 days at sea, we are approaching Lisbon. We are actually heading to a neighbouring town just north of Lisbon called Cascais with a full service marina that could accept a boat our size. I could tell upon waking on Saturday morning that we were experiencing truly warm weather for the first time on our trip. We had finally made it south! I emerged on deck to find my 2 Steves shirtless in the cockpit discussing the affect of free radicals on the human system (naturally?). I made the team a huge pot of coffee and took my thick fleece off for the first time in weeks. It felt strange and liberating to not have to suit up in 6 layers for my watch. We were so pleased with the weather, the 3 of us stayed on deck together for most of the day, basking in the sun and forgetting the watch system - we all wanted to be on watch! We took the opportunity to string up the hammock that Hozza had given us on the bow of our boat, which was awesome. I can picture many a peaceful afternoon swaying gently in this thing as I rip through books I've been wanting to read for ages.
We blasted some Avicii Stories through the cockpit speakers as we sailed down the coast of Portugal to really get us in the mood. The crew could almost taste that first drink! Dry passages are great and something I think we will firmly stick to going forward, as they keep heads clear, keep everyone sharp and better rested, and help us to absorb the maximum amount of information each day. But they also make the prospect of that first drink upon making landfall oh so sweet.
The approach into the Cascais marina was a little tricky, as the entrance is tight and the welcome dock was quite crowded. After receiving our berthing instructions, I took the helm to drive us into our spot where we could tie up and step onto Portuguese soil for the first time. I executed a fairly tricky park into a tight spot in a strong cross wind, which received a round of applause from the crew of a French boat nearby, so that felt pretty good :) We had officially crossed the Bay of Biscay! I went below deck to pop our lost bottle of bubbly to celebrate, when we realised we were parked in the wrong spot. The numbers on the berths were minuscule and impossible to spot until you were right up against them. Damn. The last thing we needed now was to have move the boat again, as we had all mentally switched off and the marina was quite tight and tricky to makeover in. Stephen checked with the marina, and they insisted we had to move the boat, as the spot we were currently in was privately owned. OK, celebration time had waited 6 days, it could wait another 15 minutes. I told the crew I was done and was not in a mood to park this boat again, so Stephen volunteered. All was going smoothly, although wind had picked up. We were almost into the tiny spot when a gust of wind caught our bow and started to push us away from the pontoon and swiftly towards the yacht parked to our starboard side. We were not prepared. Another pro tip: when parking in a tight marina next to another boat, ALWAYS HAVE A ROVING FENDER AT THE READY IN ADDITION TO AT LEAST ONE OTHER FENDER ON THE OTHER SIDE! We realised too late that all our fenders were tied off on port side, and we didn’t have enough time to free one before we crashed into the other boat. Hozza and I used our hands to physically push Florence’s guard rail off the boat while a very helpful bystander held our line on the port side pulling Florence back to the pontoon, while Stephen steered the boat and used bow thruster to help inch her back. We managed to get tied up without damaging Florence or our neighbour. That was a close one, and the last thing we needed at the end of our crossing. But it served as a good lesson I guess in how a tiny miscalculation in a crowded marina can be costly, and that fenders are there for a reason! They are like big, squishy movable bumpers and will prevent you from hitting other boats. Be liberal in your use of them, they are your friends.
Tied up, nerves a bit rattled, we popped the bottle of champagne and the 3 of us had a cheers to the successful completion of our journey, sharing our highs / lows / lessons learned. A very thirsty crew then took to their wobbly legs and set off into town. Cascais is a lovely little harbour town about 12 miles north of Lisbon While I'd never been to Lisbon before and would have loved to see it, it was already almost 8 pm by the time we were moored up, and the crew didn’t want to spend better part of 2 hours in a taxi just to get some dinner, especially as the town of Cascais itself looked to be quite charming and with plenty going on.
Maybe a little bit too much going on that evening in fact, as our arrival coincided with the annual European Harley Davidson Festival. Excellent! The loud heavy metal music, roaring hog engines, and throngs of leather-clad bikers (whom we joked in real life are all probably accountants named Bob) took away from the small town charm of the place a bit. I saw a lot of these tatted up, leather-clad, angry looking accountants in disguise sitting on their hogs sipping cocktails out of pineapples, which was a funny juxtaposition. We did our best to avoid the festival and stayed off the main touristic drag, where things were considerably quieter. We treated ourselves to a night on the town, with drinks at a rooftop bar then a traditional Portuguese dinner at a cozy restaurant with only a handful of tables in the old town. It felt really good to relax after such an intense passage. It was also finally an opportunity to celebrate Classic’s birthday in more appropriate fashion. We made some nice toasts (roasts) to Stephen and wished him the best of luck on his journey into middle age. We kept a lid on it, as our intention was to immediately set sail for the Balearic Islands via Gibraltar the following morning, so clear heads would be a necessity.
We were met with frustration the following day when we discovered that our bimini and bimini frame that had been repaired in the UK and should have arrived at the marina earlier that week had not arrived, and neither the marina nor the courier seemed to have any idea where they were. Excellent - just one of the inconveniences of boat life. It's difficult to get things shipped to you when you are a moving target and don't have a proper address. We had had to bribe the marina as it was to accept the package for us, and now we had no idea when or if it would arrive.
Rather than sit and rot in the marina waiting for these items, we decided to press on. We would have to try to locate and reroute them to another destination. The next step is a 1.5 day sail down the coast of Portugal and through the strait fo Gibraltar, after which we would make a very quick stop in Gibraltar to refuel and to pick up some charts for the Med, and then steam straight from Gib up the Costa del Sol and over to Ibiza. Get in!!! All in, it should be a 4 day sail, and if the weather cooperates, we should make it to Ibiza by Thursday night. We decided to skip the Costa del Sol, as much of it is dominated by crowded high rise resorts, and it lacks any proper secluded anchorages, so we thought it better just to press on to the Balearics where interesting calas (Spanish for coves) and anchorages abound. Once there, Hozza will leave us, and Classic and I will officially be on our own on this boat. YIKES! Hopefully we know what we are doing and don't sink the boat our first day on our own, that would be a bit of a buzz kill. And barring that, hopefully we can finally take some time to relax and not be on such a strict schedule to pound out the miles and cram in the learning.
I’m on the 12-3 AM watch right now as we sail down the Portuguese coast. Winds are light, but that’s fine as we screamed out of Lisbon today, averaging around 10 knots and we were on pace to arrive at the Gibraltar Strait too early. We need to time our arrival at the strait to coincide with a favourable tidal stream that will help push us through. We also want to time our arrival in Gib for shortly after the fuel dock opens, so we can expedite the process or loading up and just press on to the Balearics. At this rate, we should make it to the mouth of the strait just after sunrise, which will also be my watch. I'm nervous and excited and really hope we got the timing of our passage right...
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