A hop across to Menorca

Beautiful clear water. Great time to clean the hull and check the anodes.

Cala Covas

The girls named this one “Snowdrop”

 

6 – 7 June Cala Galdana – Menorca

Well after the hell comes the calm, so we decide to head for Menorca. 44 miles. There is no swell in the bay, in fact it is flat calm like a mill pond now – such a contrast from the previous day. As we exit the bay and say goodbye to Samji, the open sea looks ok so we head on out into the blue again. Jessica helmed us out and dodged the 2 SAR planes who decided it was a good day to practice their skills again – superb effort Jessica and she did not panic one bit.

No issues really other than no wind or it’s in the wrong place as usual. Feels a little like a Bradwell Cruising Club event – wind on the nose!. Anyway, the wind shifts, sails go up and we are making 4.7 knots with only 9 knots of wind. Pretty good considering we only had the Gennie out. We make water as we go to maximise the noise time and we soon have full tanks of wonderfully pure drinking water again. I find that amazing. Total salty water, to water you can drink, that is so soft it doesn’t need a lot of soap to lather. Fabulous and more or less free compared to having to find a marina to fill up.

We found a lilo floating out in the sea so rescued that – good practice for the man overboard skills and the girls were ecstatic with that. Then we found a fender bobbing about – again good practice but I think it would be easier to get a person as a fender and lilo don’t really have anything to grab onto to bring them in.

We spotted a loggerhead turtle swimming right by us – 39⁰54’.648N   003⁰31’.387E. It popped up on the surface, seemed a little disorientated and caught unawares – perhaps it was being so close to a big boat that upset its natural radar – anyway it sorted itself out and disappeared from whence it came. A very privileged experience to have seen something as old as time so close to us in its natural environment.

We spotted land and before long were in a sea that was not pleasant, in fact it was diabolic. The swell was large and the anchorage we had chosen as our first stopping point was not as described in the pilot book. In fact you could not even anchor at all – a rope was fully across the bay with swimming buoys along it. So we motored into the swell along the coast trying to find somewhere to hide from the motion. We eventually found Cala Galdana – still really lumpy and it was deep. We anchored in over 10mtrs with a 2-3 mtr swell. I was not happy with the motion knowing sleeping would be near on impossible so asked to move station. Howard agreed but as we exited the bay the wind had picked up considerably and was now blowing 22 knots on the nose. So we wnet back in again and reset. Making dinner was entertainment all of its own and dishing up was even more so. Thank goodness it was Chili and rice so we could eat from bowls as I am not sure the plates would have had anything on them for long.

The bay itself was not very big but it held a river entrance that ran along the edge of the small town. We thought we could take the dinghy way up river but it was blocked by falled stones with no way through which was a great pity as it looked beautiful and one local told us that it held a waterfall at the end.

No shops to get provisions but a lovely walk to the next cala some 3.5km away. Albatross was with us and we were also joined by Estrellamar ( Roma and Christine) There were goats on the cliff edges bleating away. A nice way to fall asleep.

8 – 10 June Cala Covas – Menorca

An absolutely idyllic Cala. 11 miles from Cala Galdana by sea. Here we had to do something we have never done before and that was drop anchor then back up and tie off to rocks. Rainer was there to assist us in his dinghy and took our line. The bottom was sand and rock so a bit haphazard to find good ground but the Rocna dug in very well. We put a Bruce Anchor out on a stern line as well as the line to shore. Solidly held on 3 points now.

This cala was full of caves which at one time had been inhabited by humans. The girls went on a exploration of them and had a great time finding their way to them and back to the dinghy. We had a great walk to Cala Porte from here to. We saw a wild tortoise in the scrubland which was a lovely surprise. On the walk back we came across a mule which the girls promptly named snowdrop – can you guess why? He proceeded to follow us on our journey only to bellow at the top of his lungs when the path dropped into single file and steeply downwards as he was unable to follow. You could still hear his haunting calls for over half an hour afterwards, a sad and melancholy sound.

 

11 – 14 June – Mahón – Menorca

Looking for a window to cross to Sardinia, so we make for the capital of the island as it’s the shortest route to get across. You are only allowed to stay at anchor here for 3 days. Weather is not looking great for our timeframe as work is still needed to be completed. Albatross leaves us to continue their adventure – we promise to catch up soon.  The anchorage is lovely and peaceful. Clear water over 6 mtrs deep and over mud / weed bottom. We make new friends – Passagemaker, a lovely old teak boat all the way from Trinidad and Tobago with its carers Peter and Louise. We had a fabulous night with them aboard their floating cottage.

We didn’t really see Mahón, the heat was unbearable – 43⁰ in the shade plus the dinghy ride to town from the anchorage took a good 20 min – 30 mins. So we just found the supermarket, provisioned then came back. The girls swam every day for several hours, learning to dive off the boat and we continue to school them in English and Maths with Computer studies now becoming one of their favourites too.

15 June – Cala Binibeca – Menorca

Just up the coast from Mahón we moved to this cala awaiting the strong winds which are due over the next few days. We hoped this would be a nice shelter from them but it’s too rocky in here so we move back to Cala Covas.

 

 Cala Covas

Mahon

Now look at my beautiful girl.. (Adaya)

Mahon (Below)

On the crossing to Sardinia

The town however was perfect to find UK products which we were all missing. We restocked on Tomato soup, salad cream and Sarsons vinegar!. The girls as always manage to make friends with other children really quickly once on the beach. Storming of sand castles and splashing in the surf duly followed. Crystal clear water as usual, sandy bottom and anchored in 8mtrs of water.

16 – 19 June – Cala Covas – Menorca

Winds of 20-25 knots were predicted so we slipped back into my favourite place so far. Surprisingly not busy but we had 18knots funnelling through the mountain gaps. As we had to stern to and attach lines to the shore a discussion was had before we had entered to decide on best course of action. Anchor dropped into sand  and reverse in, hold her in gear whilst I get in the dinghy and run the lines ashore. As always – the ropes that you thought were coiled nicely make themselves into a snake’s nest of mess and halt your progress. Eventually I sort them and get the line on, second one now and all in safely. No mishaps or shouting. Enjoy the space.

We met some nice Spanish Americans (Javier and Maiti ; not sure I have spelt her name correctly but it sounded like this ) who had chartered a boat for 2 weeks. We helped them to stern to, holding off their boat whilst they sorted the lines for running ashore. I fixed his bowline loop in one rope as it seemed to come a little easier for me to do it than when Javier was trying to hold both the dinghy in the shore and recall how to tie one. They said that our girls reminded them of their own daughters at the same age, two blondes who love life and the water.  Emails were exchanged and messages of friendship and the following of our journey also stated.

We also saw total madness from a German boat who had put out an anchor buoy. In a small tight fitting bay like this it is not a great idea as you gets lots of day boats in and out in a constant flow taking photos and stopping for a short time to either lunch or cool off. Well Frau nutter shouted at the top of her voice every time anyone went near to said buoy.  However, a French motor boat didn’t care for her screaming and hair pulling routine. They completely pulverised the buoy, dislodged the anchor from its secure base and set Frau nutters nose adrift. So Frau Nutter is now all set for being carted away to the asylum (she reminded me of the mad woman in Harry Potter you know the one who killed Sirius black: Bella Tricks I think is her name) Screeching and pulling at her hair instead of trying to get her boat under control. She has boats by her and a husband somewhere who hasn’t even come on deck. Finally another German boat went to their aide. An Australian off the Cat next to us collected parts of the mangled buoy, as did Livvy and Jessie with our fishing net. Just as well as she didn’t seem to be at all concerned for the litter she had left in the water. Parts were duly returned to her and she was still in an hysterical state. Maybe she will not be so daft as to put out an anchor buoy next time, but I bet she does and the scene will be a recurring one again…..

20 June – Mahón – Menorca

Back again to re-provision and wait for the window to cross to Sardinia. One the journey back we ran a Man Over Board ( MOB). Howard and I pretended we had both gone overboard to see if the girls could manage to retrieve should it ever happen. I have to say I was very surprised and impressed with how calm an 8 and 7 year old can remain considering we had not warned them it was going to happen. Jessica took the helm instantly, with Olivia being point and retrieve. They managed to collect the bucket and fender on the second pass. We did it again with the roles reversed and found that Arctic is just too heavy on the steering for Olivia to handle and Jess is not great at wielding the boat hook.  A really useful exercise to have undertaken for all of us. It highlighted parts they had forgotten, like the MOB button on the plotter and the key fact for us that Arctic is just too heavy for Livvy to handle and perhaps Jess too if the sea state were too rough. It upset them a bit with tears when it wasn’t going so well but a really good learning curve for us all.

21 – 22 June – Addaya –  Menorca

Wind not looking favourable for a few days and we had friends in Addaya so decided to head up and join them as they too were waiting for wind to Sardinia. Nice surprise when we got out as Passagemaker was also heading up the coast but to Fornells instead.  Addaya is found down a channel which weaves in and out, very much like the channel into Titchmarsh / Walton backwaters on the East Coast of the UK. Also like Titchmarsh it has lots of hidden islands to explore – Swallows and Amazons fame of Arthur Ransome. So what to do when school is done for the day- go exploring of course. We got into the dinghies (Pat and Duncan came too) and off we went to find a hidden lagoon that D and P had found once before.  It took us a while to find it but eventually a gap was spotted probably only about 30 feet wide and in we went. A small fishing boat was inside with 14 lads on board, not one girl which we found rather curious. They didn’t stay long after we arrived so it was nice to get a small piece of paradise to ourselves. Duncan, Pat, Olivia and Howard all went off snorkelling. Jess was a little worried about what might be lurking in the weed patches so we scoured the rock pools instead. It’s amazing what you can find if you wish to look. Red crabs with yellow spots on each leg and blue diamond patterns across their backs. Pure white small fish darting across the shallows, camouflaged against the white sand bottom. A catfish lurking under a large rock, only its feelers visible to us. Red sea anemones; some open to catch their meal with their fingers waving to the motion of water whilst others are closed and looking like tomatoes on the rocks. Lots of different varieties of Wrasse were also seen. It was a wonderful afternoon. But like everything it had to end and it was time to leave but our outboard would not start. The lagoon was well sheltered but as we tried to exit under the power of oars driven by me it was a little hair raising. Howard was still trying to get the Outboard started as I tried to traverse the 30 foot gap against rolling waves crashing through the same space. Out into open sea but it was strewn with large boulders making passage tricky to find. Weaving in and out we eventually found a route back towards the channel. The outboard still won’t start so we have to row all the way back. Howard takes over half way back and eerily a bird of prey circles above us overhead….As we pass Samji, Duncan and Pat wonder why we had taken so long, we explain and they apologise for not waiting. So began an epic mission by Duncan and Howard to fix the outboard.

Addaya itself is another British hotspot. It seemed the only shop we found close by had lots of UK products at highly inflated prices but still being bought by lots of UK people. The bay was very pretty and extremely well protected. It was surrounded by a pine forest on the one side and a forbidden island on the other. A breeze was unheard of here and it is very hot and stuffy on board. Being down a river type entrance the water was a murky brown colour, not that inviting to swim in but Howard and the girls took great delight in skinny dipping on a regular basis. We had an evening spent with Duncan and Pat on Samji, singing along to rock songs and having a nice relaxing time.