3rd July 2008 - Cadiz to Gibralter (Looking for the French fleet)

Bali Hai
Neal Stow
Thu 3 Jul 2008 23:01
Last night the wind had really got up and
been howling around the boat. The forecast was now for Force 4-5 with
3m high waves, which were expected to be stronger through the Straits of
Gibraltar. I decided it was safer to take the bimini down and put up the
sprayhood and also so check that everything was locked away safely. I was
up at six and surprise surprise followed shortly afterwards by Julian (munching
his sea sickness pills). I asked him where the open bottle of wine was
that Jim had had for his nightcap glass only to be told that Jim's
nightcap glass had become the whole bottle!
Excessive drinking before another long sail is not
a good idea and I was preparing myself for another voyage with Jim in bed when
both he and Lyn appeared looking bright and breezy. With
the Duracell Bunny still going and everyone helping prepare
the boat we were actually able to leave before our scheduled departure time
of seven.
It was quite windy and very choppy as we left Cadiz
harbour (the sprayhood was a good idea). As we turned down the coast we
had the wind behind us and it was quite a good sail. With the swell it was
quite tricky to sail downwind and although I still rigged a boom preventer, Jim
demonstrated some impressive helming skills. It was unfortunate for Julian
and Lyn that they could not really get a chance to helm as zig-zagging along
with a fairly strong wind behind is a bit risky.
The wind was behind us for the whole way and as the
boat does not sail well downwind without the cruising chute up and speed was
important for such a long trip, we had to resort to motor sailing much of the
time. We rounded Cape Trafalgar (where Julian was expecting to find some
sort of memorial to Nelson in the middle of the ocean) and shortly before
Tarifa the wind rose to 16-17 knots and we had a fantastic sail all the way
to Gibraltar.
I was very worried about the docking in Marina Bay
marina which was to be stern to the pontoon with lazy lines (that is no finger
pontoon along the side of the boat). It was only my second such docking
since Bayona and the crew's first. Everyone was briefed and the marina had
a staff on hand to take lines ashore. Everything went perfectly at first
as we reversed into our space. Then there was chaos. It was no fault
of the crew who did a great job but it was the lines provided by the marina that
were tangled and unreachable and the dock itself very high,
non-floating and made of concrete. With there still being a tide in
Gibraltar and overhanging davits to worry about I could not reverse the boat
close enough the dock to use the fancy new gangplank. To get ashore we had
to resort to tottering along long plank of bouncy wood I found on the
dock or clambering over the dinghy and using the fender step that we had rigged
to the dock.
In the evening we headed into town. Jim,
having been posted here with the RAF, was keen to visit old haunts. Not
that there would be many still here as his posting was in 1982 but we did manage
steak and ale pie and a pint of IPA in the Gibraltar
Arms.
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