Mile
Building Cruise
Canary
Islands to Morocco (rtn)
February
2014
Looking for some
winter sun, an activity holiday and a chance to do something different we were
attracted to the mile builder cruise offered by an RYA
accredited sailing school which I will refer to as C.S. from their base in the
San Miguel at the south end of Tenerife. The advertised trip was approx
800nm in length and took in the other Canary Islands and crossings to Morocco
and the Salvage Islands.
The dates suited
my scheduled work rotation and after some smooth talking with the Regional Council
where she works, Kathleen managed to “carry” some holidays forward into 2014,
so with our diaries free we signed up for what we hoped would be an exciting
and interesting trip.
Day
1
Friday 7th February 2014
 |
| A Scottish connection |
After flying
from Edinburgh to Tenerife (South) on Easy Jet’s afternoon flight we took taxi
from the airport to the nearby San Miguel Marina arriving there just after 6pm
local time, which was surprisingly the same as UK time! Our taxi driver was a
man possessed and we were sure he was trying to get back to collect the people
immediately behind us in the taxi queue as we hurtled though open countryside
and built up areas at warp speed paying absolutely no attention to the posted
speed limit nor to any road signs or road markings. Arriving at the marina
thankfully without being part of a major car crash we found the C.S. cabin and after introductions we
were shown to our yacht.
We would be sharing
the yacht with a skipper, who we will call (“Skippy”) and two other “guests” – Dr.
C a retired doctor from the south coast of England and Alexis a retired
something or other from somewhere in Russia. Alexis’s origin seemed to change every
time he was asked so all we really knew was that he was a Russian and that he
had travelled around a bit during his career which seemed to involve doing
everything from farming, designing boats, designing nuclear reactors and many
varied things in between.
 |
| Alexis |
During the trip,
Alexis’s many unusual and either interesting or traits came to light much to
everyone’s interest, amusement or annoyance. But more of them later!
“Skippy” our
skipper for the next two weeks appeared briefly to introduce himself and to
explain that the yacht’s provisions were not on board yet, but he had left some
basics for breakfast the next day. After briefly saying hello “Skippy” left us
to our own devices as he wanted to go home. Our yacht familiarisation and
briefing would have to wait until the morning.
After dumping
our bags we joined the C.S. team and
some other guests for welcome drinks at their office before going to a local restaurant
for dinner.
Miles sailed 0
Day
2
Saturday 8th February 2014
 |
| Saturday morning dawns in San Miguel |
As we all were
eager to go sailing an early rise was in order so that we could have breakfast
before “Skippy” arrived. After looking at the basic provisions which consisted
of 4 enormous packs of cheap bread and margarine, children’s cereals and milk,
a walk to find a local shop and something
better to eat was called for!
 |
| Breakfast Day 1 - Just back from the shops |
The area around
the San Miguel Marina is a new build golf resort which appears to consist of
either 2 story housing developments or large apartment blocks or hotels. There
is a distinct lack of local character and it is hard to see why anyone would
come to it unless they wanted to play golf or stay in an apartment for a week.
The local restaurants are OK but are limited as are the shops. Luckily we found
a shop selling freshly heated bread which, while not the best was certainly
much better than that on board. Bananas
were also added to our shopping the basket for breakfast.
The marina
facilities were basic to say the least. While I cannot report on the condition
of the ladies toilets, I am happy to have survived the men’s toilets and
showers without catching anything deadly – they were by far the worst of the
shore facilities that we used during the trip with the exception of those in
Morocco, which in fairness were there to serve the local fishing fleet. While
the toilets in San Miguel which were kept locked and were for the use of the
boats moored on the pontoons and paying overnight harbor dues, the free public
toilets at the other end of the marina were fine, but unfortunately we did not
discover them until our last day there. I suspect the toilets we had to use
were actually locked for public safety!
“Skippy” arrived around 9 am by which
time we were ready and waiting for him as we were keen to be underway. The
provisions for the boat were stored in C.S.’s
office and had to be brought down to the boat, so everyone got stuck into
carrying numerous bags and boxes down to the boat. Once everything was on board
we started to unpack it and pack it away in the boat’s lockers.
Bearing in mind that our trip was not
a cheap last minute week in the sun deal we were dismayed at the quality of the
food that had been purchased. Everything was obviously the cheapest on the
shelves at the local discount supermarket. Bearing in mind that we anticipated
being in a marina probably every second or third day there seemed to be no
consideration at all that fresh food could be bought on a regular basis. As we
unpacked more and more tins of cheap tinned meat, tinned vegetables and snacks
it was obvious that we were not on a gourmet cruise and that eating out
whenever possible would be required to avoid eating what was on board.
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| Clive on the wheel as the sun sets |
|
Having
stowed the food away – most of it hopefully not to be seen again, “Skippy”
announced that we were still waiting on
further supplies, fuel, oil and paperwork so we would not be able to go
anywhere until later that afternoon. This was meant to be a sailing day!
Food stowage was followed by a safety
briefing and a run-down of the boat’s rules. By mid morning we were as ready as
we could be and with nothing left to do Kathleen and I went for a short walk
around the immediate area. Returning to the boat later in the morning we were informed that as we were still
waiting for oil and for missing
paperwork we could either sail late afternoon / early evening or we could
postpone our departure until early the next morning.
“Skippy’s obvious preference as
skipper was to leave the next morning which would allow him another night at
home, we would soon learn that “Skippy” did not like being away from his wife
overnight as he would remind us regularly throughout the trip. Discussing
things between ourselves we all decided that setting out on a night sail when
we had not sailed together or when we had not sailed on this yacht was probably
not ideal. We had expected to be setting out on Saturday morning and by now
should be well on our way. With the decision made to leave early the next
morning Kathleen and I set off for a longer walk as we had the rest of the day
to fill.
 |
| Playa Grande with Montana Roja in the background |
Walking northwards along the coast we followed
the clearly marked coastal path. One great thing about the Canary Islands or at
least the islands we have been on is that new developments seem to have to
maintain a access between them and the coast, so the path along the coast lies
between any development and the shore. Where developments have sprung up the
path tends to be formalised, but elsewhere it is just a well-worn dirt track. Our walk took us through the nearby village of Los Abrigos which was
pretty characterless and consisted mainly of low rise flats built around an
older but redeveloped small harbor. Still following the coast we reached the
long open beach the Playa Grande which is the longest natural beach in Tenerife
and the haunt of a number of naturists who are well past their prime and who
really should not be running around naked in public!!
 |
| Top of Montana Roja |
At the end of
the beach is a dramatic red coloured hill called the Montana Roja which offered
us a great view of the coast line from the top. Unfortunately the visibility
was not good enough to allow us to see across to Grand Canaria which can be
seen on a clear day so we were told.
Walking back we
watched a number of yachts enjoying the ideal sailing conditions although my
eye was drawn to a massive French ketch which came into anchor off Playa
Grande. All in our walk was just over 12
miles which was probably far enough in Flip Flops!
We ate dinner at
a local restaurant. Of the eight or so that were open all were virtually empty
apart from one, so based on the principle that not only did the menu look OK
but that presumably everyone in it has some local knowledge we went with the
herd and managed to get an inside table. Before the smoking ban we would have
chosen to sit outside, but who wants to sit at a table surrounded by other
tables of smokers when they are eating?
To our surprise
the menu was exactly the same as the one we chose from the night before. It
turned out that the restaurant was the sister to the previous one. The
meal was at best OK but the service was
very poor – no tip was left!
Miles sailed 0
Day
3
Sunday 9th February 2014
Passage to Puerto De Mogan on Gran Canaria
8.30hrs to 17.30hrs
 |
| Sailing at last |
“Skippy” arrived
early and after quietly slipping our moorings in as still unawake marina we
headed out to sea at last. Unfortunately there was very little wind so the
motor remained on all day. With the mainsail up to balance the boat, “Skippy”
went down to work out our course, not as
I had expected by consulting charts or tidal flows, but just by putting a
coordinate into the chart plotter. While I suppose there is nothing wrong with
this as we got to our destination, I did expect that navigation when sailing
with an RYA accredited sailing school would have been a bit more formal. When I
asked if we had a tidal atlas on board as I was interested in plotting our
course on the chart myself I was met with a completely blank look. For the next
two weeks navigation consisted of “Skippy” inputting a destination into the chart
plotter and the yacht sailing on the given course. Every now and then the
course would be adjusted if the tide or current or wind had taken us off in a
different direction.
The other criterion
for navigation was that C.S. rules do not let any of their yachts sail in less
than 50 fathoms of water!!!! Whether
this is an actual rule or not we had no idea but “Skippy” was adamant that we
could not go within the 50 fathoms or 300 feet line, which would lead to some bizarre
situations later on in our trip, especially as the 50 fathom contour off
Morocco lies circa 7 miles out to sea!
 |
| Grand Canaria in the distance |
Our yacht was
fitted with radar which is something that neither, Kathleen or I had had on
board before. While undoubtedly radar has it place, especially when sailing at
night or sailing in poor visibility, we were surprised at the extent it was
used by “Skippy” when sailing in good conditions with near perfect visibility.
Rather than simply keeping a watch for shipping during our crossing, “Skippy”
spent much of his time below deck watching the radar and appeared to be overly
concerned at shipping that appeared at the extremities of the radar’s range of
24 miles. Throughout the trip “Skippy”
would continue to spend as much if not more time below decks with the chart
plotter and radar as he did above deck which along with his fixation of staying
out with of water shallower than 300 feet may have been a sign of insecurity on
his part.
During the day “Skippy”
announced that we would be unable to sail out to the Salvage Islands as the sea
state would prevent us anchoring there. This was fair enough until he added
that to date C.S. had not managed to
land on them despite numerous attempts
and it being a prominent part of the
advertisement for the trip. He also advised us that even if we did go there the
landing pass he had been given was for another yacht entirely and he was not
sure if we would be allowed to land.
So for 51 miles
we plotted towards Gran Canaria under engine, had we left the day before we
would have been able to sail all the way, but I suppose that would have
involved us motoring somewhere else today.
During the
crossing we saw the first of the many Dolphins that we would see during our
trip much to Kathleen’s delight
 |
| Approaching Puerto De Mogan |
 |
| Pre dinner drinks |
Arriving at
Puerto De Mogan late afternoon we were
soon tied up stern to against the harbor wall. After a quick walk with Kathleen
to find the marina’s toilets we returned to the yacht before setting off again
with Dr. C to find a cold drink. With most of the nicer bars / restaurants
setting themselves up for diners we were lucky to find some seats in one near
the water’s edge for a late afternoon drink.
Just as we were about to leave Alexis arrived and ignoring the waiter’s
warnings that he was seating dinners only he joined us at our table, for his
brandy and coke.
Dinner saw us
all eating at a local restaurant which offered a fairly mixed menu. It was here
that we began to realize that Alex’s diet was somewhat unusual as no matter
what was on offer he would generally
only eat soup along with a rum or a brandy and coke each night.
 |
| Sunset over Purto De Mogan |
Miles sailed 51
Day
4
Monday 10th February 2014
Night passage to Morro Jable on Fuerteventura
Depart 18.30 hrs.
As “Skippy” had
planned a night passage to Fuerteventura we had most of the day alongside.
After a leisurely breakfast Kathleen and I set out to explore and went for a
walk through the town and along the coast road to an elevated corner that gave
us good views over the marina and surrounding area.
On the return walk, I
bought a watch as the batteries in my own watch had gone flat and I wanted to
have them properly replaced when we returned to the UK. Having worn the same
watch for the last 17 years, I thought I would indulge myself with a second
watch – one with amongst other features a barometer and a light. Luckily I found one in a sale in a department
store in town that was one I had been looking at home. As it was in a half-price
sale I soon had it on my wrist! I am not sure Kathleen was impressed when I
showed her my purchase as she never wears a watch at all and fails to
understand the need for one. Perhaps that is why I tend to be early for
everything and she is either fashionably late or very rushed!
Puerto De Mogan is a
nice enough small town. The marina is a purpose built development which has
worked pretty well. The houses, shops and restaurants which surround it are all
based on similar architecture and are painted in a variety of well-chosen
colours but with white being the base colour. The planting of numerous shrubs
and flowering plants bring lots of bold colours with the climbing plants that
are trained over the narrow roadways being particularly pretty. Outside the
marina the original village retains some character despite it now having a
tourist buzz, but the newer developments which stretch inland bring nothing to
the town at all and some are a real blight on the landscape. Further along the
coast we saw numerous massive developments of hotels and apartments that are
built into the hillsides. These looked particularly horrible and detract from
some really impressive scenery. Hopefully we will never have to holiday there
ourselves!
 |
| Flowers added a lot of colour |
Late afternoon
saw us heading again out to sea running directly offshore to reach the 50
fathom line before we could turn our head to the wind and start beating north westwards
towards Fuerteventura.
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| Sunset as we leave Gran Canaria behind us |
Beating into the
wind in a fairly large sea meant that the passage was a harsh introduction to
living on board a constantly and violently moving boat. A watch system had been
drawn up which saw everyone being on watch for 4 hrs. and then off for 6 hrs.
As Kathleen and I were the least qualified (Day Skipper) and as we had the
least experience of yacht sailing – although not necessarily of sailing, we
were allocated watches where we would not be on together.
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| Kathleen on watch |
As night fell I
went below to try and sleep around 9pm before my watch , while Kathleen was on
watch (6 to 10). I would then come back up for my own watch which (12 – 4). The
motion in our cabin which was situated in the bow was violent and undressing
was made more challenging by being airborne every few seconds. Having managed
to get my wet weather gear off without injury, I wedged myself against the edge
of the bunk and tried to go to sleep. While not enjoying the best of sleeps it
was not improved by Kathleen coming down after her watch. While putting the
light on to take her outer layers off could not be avoided, her waking me up to
tell me that she did not feel well really achieved nothing as far as I was
concerned. But her seasickness and the accompanying moans and groans meant that
before my watch which was due at 4am I was more than ready to get up, in fact I
was looking for any excuse to do so.
Miles sailed 40
Day
5
Tuesday 11th February 2014
Ongoing
passage to Morro Jable
Arrive 14.15
So at 2am I was
back in the cockpit and feeling better for being back out in the fresh air and
away from my ill wife. By this time we were some 22 miles off course – no idea
why, but then “Skippy” was trying to follow a course given by the chart plotter
which was directly into the wind!
With “Skippy”
and Alexis on watch “Skippy” decided that it was time to go about. Going about
is a fairly basic sailing maneuver and one which should have been a walk in the
park for a pair of Yacht Master Ocean qualified sailors.
As this was a
simple 2 man task I watched as at attempt No 1 “Skippy” turned us into the wind
and just through it in no more. Alexis seemed to have forgotten what to do with
the jib sheet and as he stood immobile with it in his hand the yacht was pushed
back though the wind by the unbalanced power of the mainsail and the power of
the waves. In sailing things do not always go to plan so another attempt was
made to go about. Having learned nothing from attempt No 1 the same thing
happened again during attempt No 2 although this time Alexis did try to pull in
the sheet, but as the boat was turned into the wind by “Skippy” and not through
it, he was unable to get the jib across quickly enough before we were once
again pushed back. This was getting embarrassing!
For attempt No 3
I took the helm while “Skippy” took control of the Jib sheets -= this time we actually
managed this basic maneuver!
With “Skippy” on
the winch the sheets were tightened again until they slipped on the winch drum,
however no sooner had he put the winch handle away then the strop at the head
of the jib snapped, dropping the sail onto the deck.
As “Skippy” / C.S. have a rule that no crew are
allowed on deck at night “Skippy” went forward to rescue the sail. Despite
wearing a harness he did not bother to clip on – this impressed no one as
anyone working on the deck at night in these seas if not clipped on is a
liability – skipper or not!
Without the jib
we could not effectively sail to windward so he motor was started once again.
With 50 miles to go plus an additional 10 or so to make the ground lost by
being off course we plodded onwards Morro Jable.
 |
| Tied up after our night passage |
Arriving at the
Marina at Morro Jable at 14.15hrs (log time) we were allocated a berth beside a
finger pontoon. The boat in the adjacent berth was too large for the berth
which combined with it being poorly tied up meant that there was insufficient
open water to allow us to berth. Having been dropped onto the pontoons at
another empty berth I a managed with the help of two locals to move the yacht
concerned sufficiently to allow Brego to be berthed.
The Marina at
Moro Jable is part of a working harbor which caters for a few fishing boats,
large inter island ferries and an assortment of craft that take paying tourists
out on the water. The center of local village is reached via a steep path over
a small coastal hill which has been covered in low rise housing. The village
itself was nice enough and gave us the impression that it was there to serve
the locals more than tourists.
 |
| My first time up the mast |
 |
| Better viewed from a distance! |
As soon as the
boat was secured and sorted out, Kathleen, Dr. C and myself went off to explore
and to find a chemist to restock on seasickness pills. The assorted pills that
Kathleen had brought with her were obviously not doing any good. “Skippy” had
recommended a particular type which we managed to buy without any problem.
These proved to be very effective and for the next few days while the sea state
remained everyone on board took them – required or not. To give him his due
“Skippy” did know about seasickness pills.
Later that
evening we all returned to the village for an excellent pizza at a local restaurant.
Art from Alexis who had Brandy and soup.
Miles sailed 59
Day
6
Wednesday 12th February 2014
Depart 08.00
Day
and overnight passage to Tarafaya on Morocco
Leaving the
marina at 8.00hrs we once again headed way off shore to reach the magical 50
fathom contour but this time we were under sail. Our planned destination was Puerto Deportivo
El Castillo further up Fuerteventura. With a good wind we enjoyed great day’s
sailing until late afternoon when it became obvious that we were not going to
make our destination before darkness and as “Skippy” had not been to this
marina before he was understandably keen to get there in daylight.
A mile or so from the marina “Skippy”
contacted them by radio only to be told that there was no room for us to berth
there. This threw the cat amongst the pigeons as “Skippy” had no idea what we
were going to do. It was only after it was suggested to him that we headed east
to Morocco that a plan was pulled together and “Skippy” reverted to the Chart
plotter to get a course. After first announcing that we would have a 122 mile
passage, he shortly after changed this to a 70 mile passage – well what is 57
miles amongst friends.
Unfortunately with the sails back up we
were sailing too fast as having announced that he had not been to Morocco
before “Skippy” understandably wanted to arrive in daylight. It did though make
us realize that apart from Puerto De Mogan on
Gran Canaria and Morro Jable on Fuerteventura our skipper had not been to any of our planned
destinations nor did he seem to have any knowledge of them.
Reading the pilot book entry for Puerto
Deportivo El Castillo, the port that we had just been refused entry to, it
highlighted the fact that it was a very small harbor with limited spaces and
that yachts planning to visit there should book in advance – so much for
passage planning!
So under a star filled sky we headed
generally eastwards towards the African continent
Miles sailed 80
Day
7
Thursday 13th February 2014
In port in Morocco
Arrive 06.50
We had a pleasant night crossing to Morocco
during which I was entertained on my watch by Alexis’s observations of fishing
boats working on the horizon. The boats which had their work lights on were a
good number of miles away and were sailing away from us, which we could easily
prove by their changing bearings. Alexis
though was not convinced and found the work lights confusing as he
thought that they were navigation lights!!! After waking “Skippy” to ask what
the lights meant, he finally accepted that we were not going to be run down,
something that was born out as by this time the lights were well behind us and
beginning to disappear over the horizon.
By 02.00hrs when Dr. C came up on watch
the lights of Tarafaya in Morocco could be seen
on the horizon and as we were entering shallow water – 70 fathoms!!!, “Skippy”
asked us to slow the boat down further. By 06.00hrs when Kathleen came back on
watch, we were within sight of land and were met by the local fishing fleet
heading out for the day.
The local
fishing fleet is made up by numerous small open boats – probably about 15 feet
long, and powered by smallish outboard motors of varying age and condition (but
not new, nearly new or anything like new). The boats had high bows and carried
a crew of 2 or 3 people. A number of
boats came near us and the crews who
were all smiling and friendly asked us for whiskey.
 |
| Fishing boats in Tarafaya |
 |
| Ongoing construction |
The harbor at
Tarafaya was in the middle of some
significant reconstruction with new breakwaters and sea defenses being
constructed by the placement of thousands of large three legged pre cast
concrete units. A small jack up barge and 2 dredgers were also working to
deepen the harbor. These works had we were told been ongoing for the last 7
years and it looked as though they still had a way to go.
Our mooring options
were limited as the only pontoons were reserved for the local fishing boats and
there was only one ladder set into the 20 foot high harbor wall. We did have
the option of mooring alongside other commercial vessels but “Skippy” was not
keen on that and would rather have left the harbor again than do that. Luckily
the ladder was clear and we were soon tied up alongside. We had decided that we
were going to stop in Tarafaya with or without the skipper!
 |
| Ashore in Tarafaya |
Once our gear
was stored and breakfast had been had, Dr. C and “Skippy” went to find the port
office to register our arrival. While Kathleen and I went for a short walk
around the harbor area. Soon Dr. C and “Skippy” were back. The port police
having retained our documents for processing with the promise to give them back
the next day when we wanted to leave.
 |
| Alongside |
With a day in
port Dr. C, Kathleen and I set off to explore the town itself. Alexis did his
own thing and “Skippy” did not want to leave the yacht. In fact “Skippy” did
not leave the yacht for the 1½ days we were in port even when we were on board.
Obviously visiting different places is not his thing.
Tarafaya is not
geared up for tourism. Having once been a ferry port and home to a small
airport it was now simply a small fishing town as the ferry which used to sail
between Tarafaya and the Canary Islands
had ended up on the beach in 2006 and the airport which had been built in the
1950s now had little traffic.
Our first stop
was the bank where we waited patiently while being ignored by the most
inefficient banking staff known to mankind. Eventually by standing directly in
front of the teller we managed to change 50 Euros into local Dirhams. Whether
this would be sufficient to make a significant difference to the local economy
or not we were unsure.
Our next task
was to buy some fresh fruit and veg. Walking along the main street we had ample
opportunities to have our tyres fixed, or to sit and have tea at a local café, but there was no
sign of a fruit market.
Dr. C spoke to
the occupants of a car which had stopped at the kerb in front of us to ask
directions. Rather than give directions, the driver told us to wait where we
were while he dropped off his mother nearby. He would then return and take us
to the market which was only a few minutes away. I was keen to just walk there
and was reluctant to get involved in going by car as past experience in Morocco suggested that this would involve money
changing hands, but Dr. C thought we should accept the offer so reluctantly
Kathleen and I got into the car for a journey that must have been all of 200
yards. Surprisingly no money was requested which was I must admit a surprise to
me. Good call Dr. C!
The market was a
real local affair with piles of fruit and veg displayed on stalls of varying
construction and state of collapse. For a coastal town surrounded by desert,
the produce displayed was impressive. I decided to take some film while
Kathleen and Dr. C picked what we wanted. Shopping was simple, you take a basin
and just pick what you want. You then take the basin to stall owner (or the man
taking the money), who then sorts things into piles and adds up what you have
bought. I suspect he then looks at the customer and sees “tourist” before
multiplying the cost tenfold. What we paid for the fruit and veg must have made
his day, but it was still not too expensive
and everything tasted great.
 |
| "Home Delivery?" |
Our third and
final task, or as I should say Dr. C’s task was to find a souvenir for “Skippy”
to take home to his grandson. As “Skippy” obviously did not want to come ashore
he had asked Dr. C to find an article of clothing suitable for a toddler that
had Arabic script showing on the outside. This was no easy task as the few
shops and stalls that we found were all selling fake European designs –
obviously they were considered a better item of sale than local fashion (if
there is such a thing). Eventually we found a Moroccan football strip the
quality of which was reflected in the price – about 3 Euros or so.
Having successfully
completed our shopping Dr. C announced that he wanted to find a postcard to
send home. This was real optimism, but to give him his due we ventured into a
number of likely establishments and a few unlikely ones in search of a card;
but without success.
On the way back
to the yacht we had a look over the sea wall behind where we were berthed and
found that we had easy access to a fantastic unspoiled beach, so after quickly
dropping off our messages and changing into our swimming costumes we braved the
cold water for a quick dip. It is worth mentioning the sand dunes which had
been formed against the harbor wall and which provided us with access. The sand
which was very fine and had not compacted. Stepping on it resulted in you sinking
up until your knees, a very unusual experience.
 |
| Swimming |
While we were
out shopping and buying fresh fruit and veg, “Skippy” had cooked a dinner which
he thought we should eat in the middle
of the afternoon. The dish that he had made was corn beef hash – potatoes
tinned corn beef – honestly! Not surprisingly nobody showed any enthusiasm for
this so we settled for bread, cheese and fresh fruit instead.
By midafternoon
it was time for a walk again so Dr. C, Kathleen and I set off southwards from
Tarafaya to walk to the hulk of the former Morocco / Canary ferry that we could
see on the beach. Leaving the village we passed a splendid building surrounded
by a well-kept wall and garden. The building had lots of interesting rooms and
extensions as well as domed and elliptical roofs and canvas shaded areas. We
wondered if it was the home of a rich local.
 |
| A house? |
Rather than walk
along the road, I suggested that we head
across a narrow section of scrub land to the beach which would be nicer to walk
on. Unfortunately the beach turned out to be a rocky shoreline and unsuitable
for walking so we headed back to the road, but not before walking through the
local dump. So much for that idea!
4 miles or so
later we reached the ferry which looked fairly intact despite having been aground
just offshore for the last 8 years or so. Admittedly it could have done with a
coat of paint!! Having been given up as a total wreck many years ago, I am sure
it has been stripped of everything of value and will remain there as a monument
to what? For the foreseeable future.
On the way back
to the yacht in fading daylight, we took numerous photos of the sunset which
was a particularly good one.
Dinner was
potatoes, cheese and cold meat. Dr. C did try the corned beef that “Skippy” had
left out. Dr. C proving himself to obviously be a better team player than
Kathleen or I.
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| Goats |
While were in Morocco
there was an ongoing issue / paranoia regarding our passports and getting them
returned. While Kathleen and I were not involved in any discussions with the
local harbor police, a bottle of whiskey was exchanged with the chief of the
port police to get our passports back the day before we left as this would
allow us an early start. Whether this was necessary or whether the concerns
were genuine or not I cannot say but the matter was resolved without any
issues, albeit with “Skippy” promising never to go back there again, which as
he did not actually go ashore will I am sure be a great loss for Moroccan
tourism!
Miles sailed 39
Day
8
Friday 14th February 2014
Motor
sail from Tarafaya (Morocco)to Puerto Calerno (Lanzarote)
Depart 04.30 arrive 17.20
With the
forecast promising high winds over the
next few days we wanted to head back over to the Canary Islands rather than be
storm bound on the lee shore in Tarafaya, so with no wind forecast for the day
I got up at 4.30am to help “Skippy” take us out of harbor as we would have to
motor all the way. As soon as we cleared the harbor entrance “Skippy” set the
auto pilot and went below to check the chart plotter, while staying on deck I thought
it more prudent to disengage the auto pilot and steer away from the numerous
fishing boats that were also leaving or which had been out fishing overnight
and which anyone down in the cabin would be oblivious to.
By daylight we were
all on deck, enjoying the sunshine and calm seas, but not the nose of the
motor. Yet again we were entertained by
many dolphins which came to play around the bow. Dolphins were proving to be
pretty common but that did nothing to lessen their magical appeal. Later on we
were visited by some pilot whales heading southwards
Early in the
afternoon Dr. C suggested a swim and was given permission to stream a buoy
behind the yacht. By holding on to the rope Dr. C followed by Kathleen and then myself were
towed slowly along behind the boat. Disappointingly for Kathleen no dolphins
were in the area when we were swimming and I can see that swimming with wild
dolphins is going to be added on to her “bucket list”.
As we dried off
after our swim, a brown object was spotted off the starboard bow. Dr. C
proclaimed it to be a drowned rat, but just as he said this the turtle raised
it’s head and gave him a withering stare. Obviously comparing a turtle to a rat
is offensive to a turtle!
By early
afternoon Lanzarote was clearly seen on the horizon and by 17.30 we were
berthed in Porto Calerno but not before Alexis had livened up our initial
arrival by falling off the boat onto the pontoon outside the harbor masters
office much to the amusement of himself and everyone who saw him. I hope I am
still able to sail when I am in my late seventies!
As Tarafaya had
no on shore toilets other than the hole in the ground used by the local
fishermen we were all looking forward to the toilets in Puerto Calerno. Having
been there before Kathleen and I had already sung their praise so we hoped that
they lived up to everyone’s expectation. They did and much time was spent
showering and re showering in a clean environment under the plentiful supply of
hot water. To be fair the shower on the boat was good, but it could not compare
to the showers in Puerto Calerno
For dinner that
night we went to a local Mexican restaurant which was awful – possibly even
worse than potato hash! Future note – avoid the Mexican Restaurant in Porto
Calerno.
Miles sailed 79
Day
9
Saturday 15th February 2014
 |
| Coastal path |
The promised
high winds arrived and we were officially storm bound Puerto Calerno! As
Kathleen and I had been in Porto Calerno when we sailed with Endeavor Sailing which
are based there in 2013 we knew the local area fairly well. Our plan for the
day was a relatively lazy morning followed by a walk to nearby Puerto del
Carmen in the afternoon.
Dr. C decided to
join us for the walk which although relatively short follows a scenic route
along the cliff tops and offers good views of any boats sailing nearby. On
reaching Puerto del Carmen we decided that a drink was in order which ended up
as some tapas for Dr. C and an omelet for me. As it was early afternoon all the
cafes and restaurants were fairly busy so we were lucky to find a nice table
outside one which gave us seats overlooking the harbor. Unfortunately just
after we had ordered the heavens opened and we found ourselves in an ever
decreasing dry spot under an umbrella which eventually proved too small so we
relocated inside to have lunch while the rain passed.
That evening we
had booked a table at a local steak restaurant, which we had eaten at when we
were here in 2013. The restaurant serves steak which is imported allegedly from
Argentina. Having made our booking the night before after leaving the dire
Mexican Restaurant, we were looking forward to a nice meal out. We had previously
decided that “Skippy” would be our guest as although he had proven to be
perhaps not the best or most competent skipper he was a nice enough guy.
Alexis, who had
settled himself into a local bar earlier in the day and who had been drinking
from late morning decided that he was not going to join us after all. It was a
bit of a surprise therefor that shortly after having been seated at a table for
4 by the restaurants manager, we were joined by a slightly drunken Alexis and
his camcorder (He was making a Russian disaster movie during the trip!)
As the manager
had no idea what she was letting herself in for she welcomed Alexis with open
arms and sat him along with us. However Alexis decided that his movie needed a restaurant
shot so he thought he should film each and every customer in close up as they
were eating, returning to our table between shots to film his napkin as he
explained that filming the napkin would correct the white balance in his camera
! Do all Russian film crews carry white napkins?
Eventually we
managed to get Alexis to sit down and order. Of course Alexis wanted soup which
was not on the menu, followed by a number of other dishes which were not on the
menu. After finally agreeing that meat was OK and placing his order it was time
for more filming so another tour of the tables was called for plus some
extensive filming of the chef in action.
Despite Alexis’s
antics we had a great meal. No doubt we will eat there again if we are ever
back in Puerto Calerno
Miles sailed 0
Day
10
Sunday 16th February 2014
 |
| Church tower in Teguise |
With the weather
still distinctly unfavorable we were storm bound Puerto Calerno for another day.
Our plan was to do a bit of sightseeing but slightly further afield this time
and so we had hired a car for the day.
When Kathleen
and I had been in Lanzarote in 2013 we had visited the house and gallery of
Cesar Manrique. This is a stunning semi underground structure formed on a forma
lava field and was somewhere we were keen to visit again. We suggested to Dr. C
who was coming with us that this would be a good place to start our day out. The
house and gallery did not disappoint and I hope Dr. C enjoyed his visit there.
From Cesar
Manrique’s house we headed north to the small town of Teguise which was only a
few miles away. Teguise is home to a large Sunday market and so we thought it
might be worth a visit. Dr. C was keen to but a Moroccan hat, and having been
unable to find a suitable one in Tarafaya when we were there he thought that
there may be one to be had at the market.
The market
itself consisted on numerous stalls all selling the same things. If you wanted
to buy fake sun glasses, handbags, headphones or watches, look no further the
market at Teguise as this is the place to go! Fortunately there were some
stalls selling more interesting things and the local shops stocked some nice
stuff, a lot of which was handmade.
 |
| Local hat shop |
In a side street Dr. C found a stall
selling hats – while not strictly Moroccan, a hat was bought as Dr. C thought
he would have many opportunities to wear it at home – really? Personally I
cannot imagine a single occasion when I would wear a brightly coloured silk
brimless hat never mind a number of occasions. Dr. C’s life is obviously more
interesting than mine. So saying that the hat did kind of suit him.
 |
| A man with a hat! |
The gale force
winds that had kept us in port appeared
even stronger in Teguise due to its hill top position and much to the consternation
of the stall holders the wind was wreaking havoc with not only their
merchandise but with their stalls as well. As lunchtime had been and gone we
looked for somewhere out of the wind to get something to eat, loosing Kathleen
in the process when she stopped to take a photo and then went into a shop to
look at something without telling us.
 |
| FOUND! |
Having found my
errant wife we also found a fantastic little bar / restaurant were we had a great lunch before resuming our
day’s sightseeing.
 |
| Which one is real? |
Our next stop
was the beach at Caleta de Famara on the north coast of the island. As the wind
was northerly we hoped that there would be some impressive waves and a walk along
the beach would allow us to burn off our lunch. The waves were pretty big and
with a high tide the beach itself was barely visible. The beach patrol had
closed the beach to surfers and swimmers and so disappointingly there was no activity
on the water to watch, but we had a good walk along the edge of the dunes and
then into the village in the other direction.
By now it was midafternoon
so we had just time to take in the west end of the island as we completed our
circular route back to Puerto Calerno. The east end of the island is very
varied in terrain, with large flat windswept open areas, dormant volcanoes and
vast lava fields. We stopped again along
the coast to watch the waves rolling into some seas caves which had pedestrian
access ways and viewpoints.
We returned to
Puerto Calerno in the late afternoon /
early evening by which time darkness was
beginning to fall.
After a good
dinner on board which was made by “Skippy” we went for a wander while unbeknownst
to us Alexis decided that the lucky diners at the steak restaurant would
appreciate being serenaded by him playing his mouth organ while they ate –
amazing what drinking all day does for your self-confidence! Whether the diners
appreciated the gesture or not I have no idea and hopefully the owner will have
forgotten us if we ever go there again!
 |
| Music man |
Miles sailed 0
Day
11
Monday 17th February 2014
Depart 14.30
With the weather
moderating the plan was to leave during the afternoon and sail down the north
coast of Fuerteventura continuing overnight to Las Palmas in Gran Canaria.
With the morning
to fill we walked along the coast to the small and undeveloped village of Playa
Quemada some 2 miles away. The village which is at the water’s edge consists of
only a few houses and a small restaurant with an outside terrace. Here we
enjoyed freshly squeezed orange juice before we headed back to the yacht.
Departing
Puertro Calerno at 14.30hrs the winds although still blowing 25 to 30 knots
were favorable and ideal for us to reach / run under genoa for most of the
way. However what we as crew had not foreseen was the skipper’s decision to follow
the 50 fathom contour rather than sail a course that would allow the boat to
reach as that would take us into 30 fathoms. This inflexibility meant that
having sailed by the optimum course between Lanzarote and Fuerteventura we had
to beat back up wind to pass between the islands. Ironically this meant that we
had to sail in waters shallower than 50 fathoms, so his decision regarding the
course taken was flawed from the start.
Beating back upwind in 25 – 30 knots of
wind with just the full genoa up was putting a lot of strain on the rig
especially each time the bows buried themselves in a wave.
Shortly after
changing tack, there was a loud noise from the rigging, signifying that
everything was not all right. Upon looking upwards the top of the mast was bent
at an alarming angle and looked as though it would snap at any moment. While “Skippy” did not react at all apart from to openly
wonder what had caused that, the crew let the jib sheets go, furled the jib and got the engine started. This probably
save our dismasting – no thanks at all to “Skippy”.
Looking upwards
at the mast it was apparent that the top starboard mast spreader had collapsed
allowing the starboard shroud to slacken
 |
| Its broken!!! |
“Skippy” then
decided that we would continue under motor along the windward coast of Fuerteventura.
The crew disagreed and stated that we should find shelter and sort ourselves
out as with the mast out of action, being so close to shore we would be at the mercy of the seas if for
any reason the engine stopped.
“Skippy” than
decided that we should head to Rubicon for shelter, ignoring the natural
shelter a mile or so away behind the tip of Fuerteventura (Rubicon being 4
miles away upwind) again the crew felt that this was not a good decision as a) heading back upwind into a lively
sea with damaged rigging would not be good for the mast, b) “Skippy” was unsure if there were facilities to fix the rigging
in Rubicon and c) If the rigging could not be fixed then the boat would need to be
motored to San Miguel Marina in Tenerife
so motoring in the wrong direction to Rubicon would be a waste of time
when there were other marinas where we could stop in the lee of Fuerteventura.
Having decided
in the face of the views of others to head for immediate shelter behind Fuerteventura
“Skippy” went below to use the radio while I helmed the boat. Helming was
challenging as we were running at an angle before a steep 3m swell which
continually wanted to turn the boat.
The mast free of
any load and still supported by the backstay, forestay, port shroud and lower
starboard shrouds had regained it shape and with no load from the sails on it
was in no danger of failure.
We were
therefore amazed when the skipper returned to the deck and proceeded to remove
the main halyard from the mainsail to use as additional support for the mast.
While this had a degree of sense behind it, there was no immediate need to do
it as a) The mast was secure and
sheltered waters were nearby which would be a more sensible place to sort
things out. b) The spinnaker halyard
was readily available and could have been instantly used without the need to
take the mainsail halyard. c) As the
main sail was out of it’s bag, the only thing holding it down was the fact that
the main halyard was led under a cleat further down the mast and tensioned to
hold the sail down. By removing the
halyard there was nothing to stop the wind filling the mainsail and creating
further problems.
By this time “Skippy”
had lost all rationality and proceeded to work on deck without clipping on
despite the sea conditions. Again making himself a liability to the boat and
the rest of the crew. None of us were impressed!!
 |
| Too much text - picture to break it up! |
Once sheltered
waters were reached “Skippy” was in further communication with C.S. and advised
us that he had been instructed to bring the boat straight back without further
delay. We advised that we did not want to go straight back to Tenerife as we
were on holiday and we wanted to stop off on the way back to enjoy the
facilities on shore and to visit other places along the route. We certainly did
not want to motor non-stop for the next two days and nights!
At this point “Skippy”
told us that he was following company instructions and the boat would be going
straight back. He also advised that we would be no doubt due some compensation.
It was with a
somewhat angry and disappointed crew on board that the yacht headed back under
motor to San Miguel.
Miles sailed 93
Day
12
Tuesday 18th February 2014
My four hour
watch was spent helming southwestwards as we headed back to Tenerife as the end
of my watch at 04.00hrs approached “Skippy” stuck his head up from the cabin to
give me a new bearing as we had more than enough fuel to head towards Puerto
Mogan on Gran Canaria, so I was more than a little surprised when having been
in my bunk for an hour I was woken by the yacht coming alongside the fuel berth in Moro Jable at 05.30 hrs. It appeared
that “Skippy” in one of his many moments of indecision, had changed his mind about the fuel and we had
changed our course back after heading towards Gran Canaria for an hour or
so. Even simple passage planning under
motor appeared to be out with our capabilities.
As we had to
wait for the fuel berth to open we did not leave Moro Jable until 07.45. After
motoring all day we reached at Puerto Mogan in Gran Canaria at 22.45. Yet again
we had not let anyone know of our impending arrival. When we were approaching
the marina “Skippy” tried to raise them on the radio as he assured us there
would be someone on call 24hrs a day. Obviously the pilot book must be wrong
then as it says that the marina office closes at 21.00hrs i.e. . nearly two hrs.
before we got there. Eventually after sailing into the marina we managed to
hail a helpful security guard who told us that not only was the office shut -
the pilot book obviously being more knowledgeable
than our ranting skipper – but also that there were no berths available,
however he kindly allowed us to tie up where the ferry docked as long as we
promised to leave before 09.00hrs the next day.
Once we were
tied up we quickly found the last remaining open restaurant where we had a
passable meal.
Miles sailed 89
Day
13
Wednesday 19th February 2014
My
Birthday!
We did not make
it away by 9.00hrs as we were 30 mins late in departing, but no one seemed to
mind.
Heading out of
the marina and with the our final destination set in the chart plotter we set off to motor the last leg of our
journey in frustratingly ideal sailing conditions.
As we grew
closer to Tenerife the dominant mountain Teide gradually came into view.
Unusually it was covered in snow, a phenomenon that is virtually unheard on in the
canaries and a consequence of the weather system that had brought us strong
winds and rough seas.
The events and
our experiences during the previous two weeks had as can be imagined fallen
considerable short of our expectations. We had advised “Skippy” that we wanted
to meet with the director of C.S. to
discuss the trip and that we would be seeking compensation / refund for the
days that we were unable to sail. Skippy responded by telling us the director
would be there to meet us when we got back or that he would be there tomorrow.
 |
| Motoring - The Salute! |
We arrived back
in San Miguel at 18.00hrs to find “Skippy’s” wife and family on the pontoon to
welcome him home. As soon as the boat was secured, “Skippy” departed with his
waiting family, leaving us to our own devices. No discussion took place
regarding what was planned for the next day as the skipper’s abrupt departure
was unexpected. There was no sign of the company’s director, however this was
some misinformation that had been provided by “Skippy” as the director was not
due to be on Tenerife until tomorrow
 |
| Back in San Miguel |
Miles sailed 53
Day
14
Thursday 20th February 2014
“Skippy” turned
up at 10.00hrs and asked if we wanted to go sailing. As nothing had been planned
it was 11.30 before we located everyone and left harbour. While we were waiting for Alexis to
return to the yacht we asked again when the director of C.S. would be in San
Miguel to speak to us.
Skippy then
announced that he had only brought the yacht straight back to Tenerife as that
was what we requested! Gob smacked and furious I walked away from this blatant
lie otherwise I would have flung him off the yacht!
Reluctantly I
joined the others on board the replacement yacht as it was too nice a day not
to sail. Skippy, now back on his home turf wanted to do everything himself (not
a team player) including going to the mast to pull the sails up using the main
halyard. This he did without paying attention to what was happening in the
cockpit where Alexis who was on the halyard there had to take in twice as much rope
as “Skippy” did due to the main halyard being doubled above the sail. This
resulted in the halyard getting wrapped around a mast light and becoming well
and truly stuck. Having just left the
marina we had to go back in wile the idiot who had caused this problem went up
the mast to free the halyard. Had we not been going sailing it would have been
tempting to have left him there – up the mast!
Once out on the
water we had a great half day’s sailing which was a good way to end our week.
Later after we
had returned from our afternoon sail we met with the director of the company
who listened to our complaint in a courteous and professional manner.
Having listened to our complaint we were
asked to formally submit it in writing in order that it could be properly
addressed, which we did when we returned home.
We were then asked to join the director as
his guests for dinner at a local restaurant that evening. Having accepted the
invite we had a nice meal where we were joined the crew from another yacht.
Miles sailed 24
Day
15
Friday 21st February 2014
Our last day and
Kathleen had a cold – no doubt given to her by me! While Kathleen may not give
much sympathy to me when I have a cold, she was certainly suffering herself for
the first time in years which may in the future invoke some sympathy for others!
We had been asked to clear the boat by 10.00hrs as it needed to be cleaned for
its next outing. This presumable would either be a motor sailing course or it
would have to be postponed until the rigging was fixed.
 |
| Local flora |
We decided that
a morning walk to Los Abrigos for coffee was the plan for the day as Dr. C had
to catch a taxi to the airport early in the afternoon. As our own flight was
not until later in the day we could walk a bit in the other direction in the
afternoon if we wanted to.
 |
| Stark Landscape |
Our planned
coffee ended up being a light lunch at a small restaurant looking over the
harbor. Unfortunately Kathleen did not feel up to eating which was a pity as
the food was good and the helpings enormous.
 |
| Lunch |
 |
| Traditional Russian farewell dance!!!! |
Back at the
marina we said farewell to Dr. C who had been excellent company during the week
and with a couple of hours to kill we set off towards the town of Les Gelletas.
A small coastal town a short distance to the south west of the marina.
By this time
Kathleen was struggling with her cold so we turned back just short of the town
to make sure we were in sufficient time for our taxi at 15.00hrs.
 |
| Smiling despite her cold! |
Miles sailed 0
Total Miles sailed 607
Back
in the UK
We did have an enjoyable two weeks despite
the many sailing related issues. We were fortunate to have good company in Dr.
C and interesting company in Alexis. As
for “Skippy” while I bear the man no lasting ill will, I will not be sailing
with him again.
Since our return to the UK we have had
further communication with C.S. which has addressed our complaints in a very courteous
and professional manner and we have reached an aimicable resolution.
If anyone has actually read this far I
would like to stress that the issues that arose during our trip were mainly attributable as far as we are
concerned to the skipper of our yacht who was clearly ill prepared and
uncomfortable sailing out with the immediate area of Tenerife South. The yacht itself had a number of relatively
minor issues, the worst of which was the continual water leak in our cabin
which soaked our bedding and filled both wardrobes with water to a depth of
circa 250mm when the sea was anything but calm.
I have been impressed with the way our
complaint was handled which proves that C.S. value their reputation and long
term client base over a quick profit.
I am sure that a number of lessons have
been learned from our trip and hopefully
the issuse which arose have all been addressed. Would we sail with C.S. again –
yes, but with other trips already planned it will not be within the next few
years
