2022 OCTOBER…Arrival Lanzarote Islas Canarias

At day break we were underway and taking the last photos of Gibraltar.

Our buddy boat was “Smile”, a Bali Catamaran also made by the Catana factory in France that produced our boat. Aboard were Bernard and Lawrence, and their cat Aphrodite, whom we met in La Linea. They were also delayed, waiting on a sail from France.

Timing is important when leaving Gibraltar, as it’s the narrowest section between the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean. When the tide is against the wind, the seas can be darn right dangerous. We had a good motorsail with just 30 minutes of uncomfortable hobby horsing before getting out of the current.

There were a few low profile local fishing boats and large commercial ships to dodge, humpback whale and dolphin sightings, but happily no Orcas!

The passage lacked good sailing breeze but had minimal swell to contend with. There was no moon at all and nights were inky dark, with only starlight and intermittent phosphorescence.

We were very excited on the third morning when we saw the breeze getting above 10 knots. Jumping into action we got the mainsail and jib up in record time, and took off doing 9 knots as the breeze was suddenly 23 knots. Then it changed 180 deg with the next gust and we promptly got the sails back down and returned to our course. It gusted up to 36 knots from the wrong direction for 10 minutes more, then dropped to around 18 and we had a nice sail for a couple of hours. Then it was back to motoring.

It takes a couple of days to get into the passage routine, and time goes slowly at the beginning. You spend time planning meals, checking the fishing lines and changing lures, doing a daily “boat job”, reading, preparing said meals, and making lists for arrival.

This trip we did our usual 3 hour watch schedule, with one 4 hour watch each night. This worked really well and we felt pretty well rested. The night before arrival was a busy one. Due to the calm conditions, there were reports of Migrant boat sightings near Lanzarote Island. Just at sundown, the sailboat infront of us saw a 6 meter low profile wooden boat full of people. The procedure is to call the station on Lanzarote and report the sighting. Then you must keep the migrant boat in sight but not approach it, until the rescue craft arrives. We were watching it unfold on the radar and AIS, and Todd called the sailboat to see if they were OK or wanted us to wait with them. The authorities arrived about 2 hours later, delayed by another rescue while they were inbound to the boat infront of us.

It was impossible to see the Migrant boat once it was dark, and it didn’t show on radar. I tried our big flashlight but there was a lot of moisture in the air and the range was down to 50 feet. It was a relief when daylight returned and we could see!

We arrived at Marina Rubicon after 4 days of passage, and almost 2 weeks behind schedule. Luckily we had paid a deposit for a longer stay, as the marina was very busy and some boats were being turned away. After a night at the reception dock, we finally got our designated slip.

Now we have to prep for the major solar panel replacement job, re-measure for new trampolines, and then get packed for a quick trip. Adios y hasta luego!