Mazarron to Cartegena

One of several large ships at anchor outside Cartegena harbour. Note the anchor chain is well and truly in place as we sail close to have a look at Grace Acacia. As we rounded her we heard shouts and zooming in here are some of the crew...

They must be short on entertainment but it's lovely to have people acknowledge you none-the-less :O)

 

On to Mazarron

As we left Garrucha marina a motorboat came zooming alongside - it was Johan, the electrician, come to wave us off!
The swell was high outside the harbour with long troughs (nothing compared with the Atlantic)  but not uncomfortable once we were across the entrance, light winds meant we motor sailed away seven hours in the sun to Mazarron. We are no longer in Andalucia but Murcia on the Costa Calida. After the last two nights of storm swell and the seven hour sail we wanted a quiet nights sleep. So here we are moored alongside a nightclub called IMAGINE in Mazarron marina.

 Several people were strolling around, one man spotted our flag and said to his girlfriend: 'Hey there's a Brit.' Then to Greg : 'You alright mate?'

Not a sound disturbed our sleep in spite of the bar. This is breakfast after a million zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Local honey, grapes, mandarins, bread and trusty Marmite.

 
For anyone who doesn't know - this is the machine that lifts boats out of the water...

 

And because there was no wind we hoisted the main and mizzen sail before motoring out of Mazarron harbour.

 

 

Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints.

This is something I try to do, however today, I accidentally dropped a plastic tub in the sea and couldn't retrieve it :O(

The photo you won't see in Thomas Cook windows!

The sea hasn't let up all day - went to the beach, took this photograph then the battery died, Sod's Law. No footballers around either.

Walked a mile up the beach where things were getting 'dodgy' - the surf smashing concrete slabs and making matchsticks out of pallets. Mesmerising, dangerous.

STILL in Garrucha!

And here's a clue as to why we haven't sailed - photo taken an hour ago:

   This breakwater wall is about 30 metres from us. Funky huh? Just incase anybody was deluding themselves that the Mediterranean Sea is benign!
The sea has a four metre swell going at the moment and we have eight lines on Lerryn Lady on her mooring.  Five men went running up the main pier with ropes a while back, I ran after them with my camera as somone was in trouble in a small dingy. Here he is after being pulled alongside - he went out after someone's passerelle - got caught out on the waves as his outboard failed... see who this is safely rescued now...

Johan our electrician!

The group came back to Lerryn Lady for coffee and Snicker bars. I asked them if storms like this happen often, 'esto es no típico' - this is not typical.  Even the massive fishing boats are heading back into harbour. I'm sitting here composing the Blog wearing ear plugs as the noise of the fenders on the pontoon is getting on my nerves - little wonder fenders POP! Think I'll go for a walk to get some peace and quiet.
 

Still in Garrucha

 

The wind was against our plans today. It blew Easterly and we want to sail East. No point having head on wind, head on sea and motoring as well. We'll leave on Thursday as the wind is set easterly tomorrow as well. had a relaxing day in the sun and went for a long walk tonight.

The local windvane at sunset:

 No matter where you are in the World you can always spot Englishmen - Bless them!

 

We left the Marina and walked to the very end of the eastern promenade where the Salinas ( salt marshes) begin. Watched this little guy, a black-necked Stilt, searching for his supper at the shoreline. His little mate could be a Knot. Took loads of photos of him. Here a few to share with you...

 

With a friend

 

Striding purposefully:

 

Found a morsel;

 

And off again

They are blurred but will give you a feel for what we saw :O) will get to grips with the 'moving bird' option on camera as soon as possible.

What 'appened woz...

Went to the supermarket this morning, it was closed, a first for us on a Sunday in Spain. We decided to walk along the beachfront and came across a massive group of very noisy Spaniards waiting at a bus stop. 
I asked if they were waiting for the bus to Pueblos Mojacar ( a place we thought to visit yesterday ). Oh yes, I was told, only ten minutes to wait for the autobus :O) The coach duly turned up and the fifty or more Spaniards made a dash for the door. One man tried in vain to keep order but they all squeezed and pushed and shoved and shouted and a lady lost a shoe - it was hilarious! Greg said: 'Let's go, we'll never get on with this many people'...' No,' said I 'even if we don't get on the bus I'm watching this.' The coach driver tried to take fares and keep the peace as they fought over seats. After about ten minutes of elbow fest, the few 'sane' ones who had waited patiently, got on and there was just enough standing room for me and Greg as well. So, with tyres flat to the tarmac, thinking we must be caught in a hen house, jiggling along with Spaniards talking at us like machine guns never pausing for breath ( no answers expected here), fifty plus vociferous monologues going on simultaneously. We soon found ourselves about five miles down the coast and in this time I'd met two teachers and a retired Fireman from Granada ( he got his badge out to show me he'd done thirty-five years service!). We were dumped off the coach with all these chickens still clucking and crowing, to find ourselves way way away from where we thought we were going! So, pigeon Spanish to the fore again, we were told that a yellow bus would arrive in fifty minutes and take us up to the village about 8kms away. We drank a lot of water, had a few Tapas, the bus arrived and away we went to Mojacar hill village. What a beautiful spot, 180* views either out to sea or across a massive river valley and more of the gorgeous Andalucian streets.  Of course I didn't have my camera because I thought we were going to the supermarket this morning - remember? Had lunch, sat in the sun, waited for a bus back. The bus only took us so far then veered unexpectedly to the West. Off we got and walked three miles east along the shore towards Garrucha. Such a beautiful afternoon, sea turquoise, kitesurfers, families dancing to a band on the beach, I collected some pebbles... finally got back to the boat at 6pm. Tomorrow we're going to try the supermarket again LOL. Of course we could end up in Madrid if today was anything to go by!

Garrucha

Well here's a tale for you. Yesterday afternoon we sailed into Garrucha harbour. We passed a very large container ship being loaded with Gypsum, passed the tugs, passed the fishing fleet. Moored up, had a cup of tea, dealt with the usual paperwork. Greg plugged into the electricity supply on the pontoon and within a nano-second there was a BANG and smoke in the boat. Disconnected from mains supply in a nano-second ( as you would) and checked to make sure there was no fire onboard - accrid smell - no flames. To cut  a very long story short, the units in this part of the pontoon were throwing out 415 volts! As a result our boat battery charger was burnt out, the ipad charger and laptop charger were burnt out. Suddenly our boat had several visitors including: Marineros, Port administrators, two dogs, a few onlookers and thankfully one brilliant marine electrician who couldn't believe what he was seeing! He was not responsible for the problem - outside contractors ( Cowboys) had put the units in. We moved the boat onto another pontoon where the Voltage is 240. Today all the chargers have been replaced with new and the main ring system and appliances thoroughly checked. We could not have asked for a quicker response from the staff here. All is well. One bonus, the boat battery charger replacement is much quieter than our other one!

 

This is Johan, our electrician, pointing out the burnt bit inside the battery charger...

 

Whilst all this was going on I went off to the mercado and bought a few veggies, peppers, spinach and early garlic...

Rustle up dinner recipe : Lentil, Garbanzo and Spinach Pot with Rice

Ingredients:

Onion - chopped
Small red pepper - chopped
As much garlic as you like - chopped
1 heaped tsp ground Cumin powder
As many chilli flakes as you like
2 cups of lentils ( or 2 cups garbanzos - chick peas)
4 cups water or stock
Torn leaves of spinach
Splosh of tomato sauce
Coriander leaves and quartered lemons to serve
Serve with rice or cous cous

Method -

Saute onion in oil for few minutes until transluscent.
Add garlic, fry for another minute.
Add cumin, chilli flakes, lentils and water/stock, simmer until lentils are soft ( approx 35 mins).
Add spinach - add splosh of tomato sauce - cook till spinach soft

Serve with rice, coriander and a good squeeze of lemon juice. Simple and delicious!
 

San Jose

San Jose was a six hour sail from Roquetas del Mar. Light winds again which meant we tested the dart sewn into the Code Zero  - it works perfectly, has stopped the luffing on the edge of the sail and the subsequent noise that created. On the way into San Jose harbour a gorgeous turtle swam past about five feet away from the hull looking totally relaxed, unfortunately I didn't have my camera handy, but he was really cute :O) San Jose is a shallow bay at the end of Cape de Gata, very small, two hundred souls, the rest are tourists.

Code Zero fixed!

Cabo de Gata ( special request from Mark Phillips) - another place with a windy reputation. Just ten knots today. The haze still around even though it's two in the afternoon.

 

 

Me on helm, Greg dropping sails as we go into San Jose harbour.

 

Sewing Day

Today my trusty sewing machine saw the light of day for the first time since leaving Cornwall last August. Pleased to report that it is still in one piece and functioning perfectly. Our lightweight Code Zero sail needed a dart in the luff edge - no sooner said than mended - will let you know how successful this is after tomorrows sail to San Jose.

And while the wheel was turning I patched up a pair of shorts and fixed a few other small pulls and tears around the place.

Not sure if other crafters experience the almost 'meditative' state whilst crafting? Today, fixing the sail dart, I was glancing around and noticed a huge discrepancy in size between the fishing boats across the water from us. See very big trawlers below and the little 'tiddler' in between them, David and Goliath came to mind.

 

A day full of colour!

Just wandering about Roquetas - the photos say it all.

Harbour entrance:

 

Fixing his nets:

Sad yet beautiful:

Being coaxed into a pose on the walls of the Castille:

Picture postcard:

 

Arrived Roquetas del Mar ( small rocks of the sea) 15th April

We're on the Costa Tropicana! The Sierra Nevada mountains protect this area well. As we sail the coastline we can see acres and acres of greenhouses on the southern slopes producing fruits and vegetables. My particular favourites - delicious avocado, tomates and sweet peppers. I imagine this intense farming provides much needed employment for local people. Roquetas has quite a large fishing fleet - we wake up when the boats leave harbour. Last night we ate fresh grilled fish courtesy of these hunter gatherers and Greg tucked into a plate of fried baby squid ( Chiperones) which he loves! I feel sorry for them :O(  After supper we walked to see the Castille S.Ana  which is in spitting distance of our mooring. It was a stronghold for centuries against the dastardly marauding pirates :O) Only Mother Nature managed to conquer her - in 1804 an earthquake tumbled the towers. The local government had it rebuilt, this was completed in 2003. Here are a couple of pics taken last night:

My zoom can't quite make it to the clipping of the Moon :O)

 

Adra

Adra marina was originally built for the fishing fleet. Unfortunately the fleet has diminished. Apart from us there was a German and a Norwegian boat - peaceful. Adra was the very last stronghold of the Moors. The  town is devoid of all but a few metres of the old fortress wall.

Spotted this little girl on the breakwater in her communion dress.

And some flowers in makeshift vases

 

Down a back street, a bag of kindling waiting to be hoisted to a second floor window by a length of sisal

 

 

Alhambra Granada

The Alhambra has now been crossed off the bucket list. I've chosen just one image to sum up the afternoon at the Palace  and this is it:

My absolute favourite -

 

On to Motril 10th April

Somedays you get the distinct impression you are sailing along on the edge of an infinite postcard - the Sierra Nevadas this morning:

 

 

Love sea stars!

 

Waiting for the massive roll on roll off ferry to go into Motril harbour before us, suddenly its horn blasting away one, two, three, four, five, six times - see the fishing boat in front of it:

and somehow it pops out from behind and lives to tell the tale:

nutters!

Este Marina 9th April

Arrived Este marina, we must have looked in need of a drink because they gave us a bottle of wine :O) The sail from Caleta de Velez was not the most interesting to date. Hardly any wind, lots of swell, a lot of flopping about. About an hour before arrival the wind and sea picked up and we surfed 50% of the way to our destination. Here's Lerryn Lady at dusk on her mooring - we've since got rid of the mucky fender stain on her hull. Mostly we moor stern to with a slime line on the bow - this is typical Mediterranean mooring.

 

 And this is the view behind us:

Walk from coast to Malaga Velez

Time for some weight bearing exercise. From Caleta de Velez marina, inland for five miles, to Malaga Velez. En route, what we believe are the remains of a Roman aqueduct:

 

 Goats in a river bed.

A street in Malaga Velez

Escuela Oficial de Idiomas - Official Language School where they teach Galician, Catalan, Arabic, Korean, Mandarin, Cornish... I'm sure this gorgeous courtyard would distract me from studies:

 

Fuengirola to Caleta de Velez

Five and a half hour motor-sail yesterday. Beautiful day. No wind unfortunately and what there was only amounted to 6knots. We flew the Code Zero,  a large lightweight sail that picked up a knot or two for us. A pair of bellows may have been useful. Greg skyped family in Berlin and Norwich, who thought it surreal to be speaking to him as we sailed along.

Leaving Fuengirola early morning - prefer the hinterland to the coastal strip:

 

Sun Block required on lips today.

Greg skyping from the deck :O)

 

 The sail on left is the Code Zero, the one on right is the main, because the wind was very light (and directly behind us) we 'goosewinged' the sails (one out each side) to get as much surface area exposed as possible - even so you can see the sails are not 'full' of wind, but they still gave us a bit more ooomph :O)