38:40.5N 9:19.0W

Saturday 18^th August was a maintenance day in Porto which basically meant we got up late, did a few jobs on the boat, went into the city (which is gorgeous) and visited a port cellar (which was fascinating)

Sunday 19^th:  Dawn start for a long run south – ran the engine in the middle of the night for 10 minutes to make absolutely sure it would start in the morning (it did).  After a promising start with a brisk force 5 easterly, the wind soon died away leaving us motoring for most of the morning.  As the wind died away, Kelpie slowed down and CHRIS CAUGHT A MACKEREL!!!

We quickly named the poor creature “Lucky” because surely it had to be the least lucky fish off the coast of Portugal to find itself on our hook.  Nevertheless, he was enjoyed for lunch sushi-style (yes you can split a single mackerel 4 ways if you set your mind to it).  In fact, the sushi salad was so photogenic that it was photographed and will form the basis of a new cookery book to be named “Baute Cuisine”!!

In the afternoon the wind picked up and we sailed under main and gennaker for a while before the wind puttered out again.  We motored into Figuera da Foz just before last light and found some supper in the rather good restaurant by the pontoon gate

Day’s run was 58 miles with 10 engine hours

Monday 20^th August

The big high-pressure system which created the calm conditions yesterday continues to build so we decided to just bite the bullet and motor all the way to Lisbon (105 miles) in one go taking 21 hours over it. 

We slipped Figuera at 0930 (having repeated our trick of running the engine for 10 minutes during the night to ensure a smooth start) and donked our way south and south, threading our way through huge numbers of lobster pots towards Oeiras marina on the Tagus estuary arriving at dawn on Tuesday 21^st.  The deck log is interspersed with comments like “flat calm” and “you can see your face in it”.  The highlight of a fairly tedious sail was seeing some dolphins in the distance and a brief frison of excitement when Chris’s fishing reel started to run.  Imagine the disappointment when he reeled it in to find he had caught an old bin liner!

During the night we were much troubled by fog and were grateful for the radar which worked like a charm and for the Navionics app on my Android phone which stood in for the knackered Raymarine chart plotter

The run from Figuera was 105 miles in 21 hours 15 minutes, all of it under power.  Yanni the Yanmar never missed a beat and his oil is still clear 32 hours after changing the oil

A warm welcome from the marina at Oeiras, despite the early hour and the promise of a mechanic to look at Yanni’s cold starting problem.

We expect to be here until Thursday or possibly Friday before setting off for the long leg to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.