Baiona to Leixoes (Porto)

Hi everyone,

Yesterday we had a fantastic sail from Baiona to Leixoes near Porto.  We stayed in Baiona for longer than expected while awaiting a weather window.  We anchored off the town while waiting and met the crew of German yacht Alucine - Aussie Ellen and German Alex.  They have a lovely 40' 1970s aluminium IOR ketch.

Most of the days on anchor were rainy and windy.  One was much nicer.  We had our first swim of 2021 in the 18C water to clean the hull.  We need to rebuild our swimming skills!  Otherwise we worked on various boat jobs.

Nicki creating a new foredeck hatch cover

Our sail to Leixoes started with a light E land breeze.  We motored for two hours until the expected northerly came in.  The breeze gradually increased and backed from NNE to NNW.  Eventually it reached 20 knots with stronger gusts.  There was a 1.5m NW swell which produced a lumpy seaway when combined with the N sea.  Zen Again loved it, surfing at over 10 knots at times.

Here are the plots...

Track

Arrival Track Detail

Graphs

And here are the vital stats for the passage…

    • Distances/Speeds

        • Route Distance = 65nm

        • Logged Distance = 57nm (log still under-reading)

        • GPS Distance = 75nm

        • Duration = 12.5 hours

        • Average speed over ground = 6.0 kt

        • Minimum boat speed = 4 kt

        • Maximum boat speed = 11 kt

    • Weather

        • Minimum wind speed = 5 kt

        • Average wind speed = 18 kt

        • Maximum wind speed = gusts to 28 kt

        • Apparent wind angle range = 90 to 150

        • Seas up to 1m NW

        • Swell up to 1.5m NW

        • CAVOK!  Sunny

    • Engine

        • Total = 2.5 hours

We gybed downwind in our normal fashion.  When the apparent wind reached 15 knots and we were averaging 8 knots we put a reef in the main and a second furl in the yankee.  That setup was more comfortable, especially as we headed back into shallower water and started to encounter lots of fishing floats.

Dawn departure

There were a number of fishing vessels, mostly small, working as we departed Baiona.  Once clear of the area and in deeper water we saw no fishing floats at all.

Passing the small offshore wind farm

With the wind filling in we had a great sail SW, taking us west of the offshore wind farm.  We gybed and initially were heading directly for Leixoes.  As the wind started to back we found ourselves getting into shallower water and many more fishing floats.  The wind was starting to build seas which were creating a lot of white water when interacting the the NW swell.

Most of the fishing floats were easy to see and avoid.  One flag-less set proved less easy to see.  The first we noticed whizzing past 0.5m underwater and only 2m off our beam!  It only broke the surface at the bottom of troughs.  We encountered several like it, identifying them when the broke out the back of waves ahead of us.  Not nice.

Despite the fishing 'floats' keeping us on our toes we had a great sail.  Zen Again loved it.

Approaching Leixoes

Entering Leixoes was simple.  It is a busy commercial port and luckily we arrived a few minutes after a cargo ship had entered.  We motored the short distance north up the harbour to the anchorage west of the Porto Atlantico marina.  Two ships departed in the two hours between our arrival and sunset.

Rounding the harbour breakwater

Anchored near Porto Atlantico marina

This morning we hailed Porto Atlantico on VHF channel 9 and were invited into the marina.  We have a berth close to the entrance but inside a bigger boat.  She's absorbing the commercial traffic wash coming into the marina nicely.

Clearing in was a simple process at the marina office.  No need to fly a Q flag or visit authorities.

Zen Again in Marina Porto Atlantico

We expect to stay here in Leixoes for at least two nights.  Today we'll explore the local town Leca de Palmeira.  Tomorrow we'll explore Porto which is a bus or metro ride away.

Trust all's well where you are!