Madeira to Canaries

Hi everyone,

Our 270nm passage from Quinto do Lorde Marina in Madeira to Playa Francesa on Graciosa was a fast sail over a choppy grey sea and under a sullen grey sky.  Winds were NE 12-18 with gusts mostly to 25 but one to 30 knots.  Zen Again loved it but a little sun would have cheered the crew.  At least it was a beam reach and not another close reach.

Grey!

Here are the usual plots...

Track

Arrival

Graphs

We logged 257nm during the 47 hour passage, for an average boat speed of of 5.5 knots.  That pretty good for us.  In contrast to the same passage in 2021 we passed Ilhas Desertas to windward which avoided its lee.

Passing Ilhas Desertas

Sailing under a grey sky

A little sun on day 2

Entering the anchorage in light rain

Party boats in the anchorage

A view of Graciosa

Sadly our foredeck leak isn't yet fixed.  Time to start removing the headliner to see where it's coming from.  Some years ago we removed the side paneling in forepeak and quarterberth, and headlining in the quarterberth.  Time to finish the job perhaps.

We expect to stay here for a night or two before heading onward to Lanzarote.  We're here with OCC Macaronesia Cruise sv Asteria and at least one other OCC boat.

Looking forward to some trade wind sailing in the months to come!

Trust all's well where you are.

Canaries Inbound

Hi everyone,
At 1200 today (Friday 4th) we were at 30 44N 014 50W steering 145M, sailing under single-reefed main and and triple-furled yankee at 6 knots. Still overcast. The wind was 16G22 from the NE. Our noon to noon run by the log was 136nm. We have 114nm to go to Graciosa.

Yesterday afternoon the wind gradually increased, with regular periods gusting to 25 knots. We put in the second reef in the main for the night. The second reef is trisail sized but still pushes us along nicely. During the afternoon we had a few short periods of sunshine through small breaks in the cloud. Generally pretty grey though.

Overnight the cloud broke up a little more, letting us see the stars for short periods. After midnight the winds eased a little and we shook out the second reef to steady the boat and keep her moving well. The seas are on the beam which makes the ride rolly if the boat isn't powered up.

This morning the gaps in the clouds closed and we've been sailing along under a grey sky and over a grey ocean. Here's hoping the sun comes out soon!

Trust all's well where you are.

Madeira Outbound

Hi everyone,
At 1200 today (Thursday 3rd) we were at 32 33N 016 27W steering 145M, sailing under single-reefed main and and single-furled yankee at 6 knots. It was overcast which made the spectacular Ilhas Desertas islands a little threatening under our lee. The wind was 11G17 from the NE.

We departed Quinta do Lorde Marina at 0900 this morning. It was nice to revisit the marina and get three good night's sleep. So much nicer than the rolly anchorage at Machico, but the latter was free.

During our stay at QdL we sealed the bow mooring cleats and the forward hatch. During the close reach across the N side of Ilhas Desertas we were taking plenty of water on deck. Sadly the leak is still there so it's back to the drawing board on that problem. By noon we'd borne away onto a beam reach with little water on deck, so little leaking below.

We're sailing towards Graciosa in the NE Canaries. OCC Macaronesia cruiser sv Asteria is there and it'll be good to catch up with them.

Trust all's well where you are.

Madeira

Hi everyone,

We've been in Madeira for 8 nights.  Three were spent in the anchorage at Ensenada da Abra, four anchored off Machico and we'll spend the rest of our time in Marina Quinta do Lorde.

Madeira!
(sign on Funchal waterfront)

Our three nights at Ensenada da Abra were quite social.  We spent time with OCC Macaronesia Cruise SVs Asteria & Metzi, plus German SVs CrazyB and Zora.  One afternoon we had a beach BBQ/Braai.

Colour landscape at Ensenada da Abra

Beach BBQ in Ensenada da Abra

Our next anchorage was off the town of Machico.  It's a nice town but the anchorage is notoriously rolly, and so it was for us.  But hire cars were cheap and we shared a car with the Metzis for three days.  We had a marvellous time exploring Madeira with them.

Approaching Machico

Machico anchorage from harbour

Machico artwork

Machico waterfront

On car hire day 1 we explored the western part of the island, including a great Levada walk, a swim in the sea water pools at Port Moniz and driving around the coast.  Levadas are man-made water channels used for town water supply, agricultural irrigation and hydro power.  This network of waterways was started in the 15th century, then greatly expanded in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Let the Levada walking begin!

Levada

Levada view

Lunch 1 (sv Metzi photo)

Wonderful coastal scenery

Nice viewpoints

Porto Moniz pools

Dramatic coastlines

On car hire day 2 we did a long Levada walk of about 20,000 steps in the island's centre.  The walk involved descending about 100 storeys down into a valley then climbing back out again.  At the base were a waterfall and the '25 fountains'.  Spectacular and exhausting!

More amazing landscapes

Ready to walk

Down to the waterfall base

At the waterfall base

View down the valley

At the 25 fountains

Looking up from the 25 fountains

From the walk we drove across to the windward side of the island - out of bright sunshine into cloud/fog.  But we found another great lunch spot.

Sky cows & cloud/fog

Lunch 2

On car hire day 3 we explored the eastern part of the island including a short Levada walk, amazing landscapes, a look around the town of Santana and yet another fantastic lunch.

Levada view

Walking break

View to the coast

Lunch 3

Amazing valley views

Santana traditional cottage

On Machico day 4 we bussed to Funchal with the sv Metzis to briefly rediscover the town and to visit the Botanical Gardens.

Funchal waterfront

Funchal city centre

Funchal waterfront art

Funchal old town door artwork

Tiled artwork

Funchal old farmer's market

Tutti Fruti

Spectacular plants and flowers in the Botanical Garden

Funchal from the Botanical Gardens

On returning to Machico mid-afternoon we made ready for sea and motored the 4nm to Marina Quinta do Lorde.  What a difference from the rolly anchorage!

Approaching Quinta do Lorde

Quinta do Lorde

We have a few boat jobs to do over the next two days, followed by a good weather window for the Canaries.

Trust all's well where you are.