Culatra to Ayamonte

Ile Jeudi
Bob and Lin Griffiths
Tue 12 Jun 2012 17:16
Tuesday 12 June 2012
 
37:12.65N 07:24.43W
 
We set off about 12.15pm and motored out of the river entrance beside Culatra.  Once outside we set sail in an ideal northerly of about 12 knots.  This ideal wind soon died and moved around the compass and we started the 'iron sail' (the engine0 until a southerly sea breeze set in about an hour later.  Thereafter it was a lovely sail across the bay passing low level land and long, relatively deserted beaches.
 
We had decided not to use Carly today but use the elctric autopilot instead.  After a short time we heard and felt some knocking from the rudder area which only occurred when the autopilot was on.  A quick inspection showed that the hydraulic ram which drives the steering was catching on the steering quadrant.  It seems that when Sopromar in Lagos adjusted our quadrant to stop it catching something below it reduced the gap to the ram, which is above it.  This meant hand steering to our destination which was about 28 nautical miles away because we had not fitted the Hydrovane parts.  Not a problem for a few hours but we could see how tiring it would be on a long passage.
 
We arrived at the shallow bar at the entrance to the Guadiana about one and a half hours after low water so we had enough depth to get over.  Tied up in the marina and checked in at the office about 7pm.  The marina has expanded since we were last here 6 years ago but was virtually empty.  Apparently the Andalucian authority (which owns this, Rota and other marinas) decided that 6 month winter contracts were to be stopped as were the normal 'discounts' for signing up for a year.  This means that boats pay something approaching the daily rate even on a long contract.  Austerity measures where somebody at a desk has decided this is a good way to raise income, forgetting that boats will just 'vote with their keels' and bog off somewhere else.
 
A picture of the rather basic lighthouse marking the eastern entrance to Faro / Olhao approaches:-