Lanzarote - Fuerteventura – Gran Canaria – Tenerife

It’s been a while since our last blog so forgive me if I repeat anything – my memory is not good and rather than re-read previous blogs I’ll just continue with this one in the hope that if I do repeat anything you won’t remember either!

Friday 16 September – tour of Lanzarote by coach to Montanas del Fuego Timantaya where we walked inside this volcanic crater then on to a street market/festival.

Saturday 17 September – we said goodbye to Peter & Jazz having had 2 great weeks with them.  Back on the boat we welcomed an electrician who we’d arranged to install an inverter – a very important piece of equipment that now enables us to run the Nespresso coffee machine from the batteries, YAY. This means we can now have proper coffee whilst at sea or at anchor – we don’t have to be on a marina plugged into shore power – woo hoo!  We will also be able to run the microwave off batteries, in fact anything electrical.  This for us is very exciting, as you can probably tell …… it’s the little things in life!

Later that day we had a life raft demonstration and then a look around the search and rescue helicopter which then did a pretend rescue from the life boat.  This was all laid on specifically for Barbados 50 rally participants and very interesting.

That evening we invited the first six boats that had joined the rally in London, Falmouth and La Coruna aboard Lady Rebel for pre-dinner drinks.  We were known as ‘The Famous Five’ until Sundowner caught us up having had engine problems, making us now ‘The Famous Six’.  We chose to eat at a restaurant at the castle, where there happened to be a wedding going on, so music and dancing also!  Very considerate of them to get married that day and we don’t even think they objected to ‘The Famous Six’ gate crashing too much!! 

Gradually more boats arrived in Lanzarote day by day to join the rally; now up to 30.

Monday 19 September we joined a bus/ferry trip to Fuerteventura (the only Canary Island we are not sailing to) that had been arranged for rally participants.  We visited the capital via the spectacular sand dunes and along a narrow, twisty, close to the edge (eeek) road through stunning mountains.  After lunch we stopped at a pretty fishing village before getting the ferry back to Lanzarote.

The following day I went to the gym for a couple of hours – one that overlooks the marina so it makes exercise a little more bearable, whilst Ken worked (yes, he’s still having to do that work thing!).  We then packed the boat ready for the off tomorrow and headed off out for dinner to put back on all the calories I’d burned off earlier at the gym!

Wednesday 21 September – Lanzarote to Gran Canaria, 115 miles, 22 hrs, 5.2 knots ave. speed, 3.6 engine hrs

Total miles: 1513.7

This leg was an official race starting at midday, with an official committee boat, official start line and official photographer.  There was a bit of a queue to get out of the marina, which could only be expected with 30 boats departing all at once! There were no issues on the start line, probably because everyone held back, to avoid any issues on the start line!!  The wind was perfect initially, then dropped to nothing.  Lady Rebel doesn’t appreciate nothing.  We were lolloping about all over the place, getting nowhere fast, dying for someone to put on their engine so we could follow suit.  In the end we bit the bullet, put on the motor, furled in genoa and off we went.  To our amazement (well, not really) each and every one of the surrounding boats did the same, so we no longer had to feel like cheats!!

By 1630 hrs the wind had picked up and we were romping along at 7.8 knots.  Marvellous.  In fact, in order not to arrive at our destination before daylight the following day, (advised by the organisers) we had to reduce sail and slow right down throughout the night.  We dropped the main sail which not only reduced our speed but reduced our stability massively and increased the rolling … massively.  When Lady Rebel rolls she makes such creeks and groans and crashing and banging (even with the crockery, food and wine storage cupboards stuffed with cushions and bubble wrap), that neither of us managed any sleep at all during the passage.  It is an issue we will need to address as we were fairly exhausted on arrival.

Thursday 22 September – Las Palmas Gran Canaria

Las Palmas Gran Canaria, 22–24 September

We arrived into Las Palmas Gran Canaria Marina at 0900 hrs, as instructed, in daylight.  It was first time for us in Lady Rebel to moor stern-to.  Luckily we have done this method a good few times in the Mediterranean on charter boats so are familiar with it.  It didn’t however take our nerves away as we have the dinghy on a platform on the back of the boat and we weren’t sure how we’d get the mooring lines around this.  As always, there were marina staff there to attach our stern lines and pass up our bow mooring lines.  All went remarkably well and thankfully the lines tied nicely to the back of the boat without getting tangled up with the dinghy.  We do however have to climb onto the dinghy and lower the platform to disembark; it’s a bit like going down to the pontoon on a Stenna lift!  Climbing on and off the dinghy in a skirt at night after one or two sherries can be a challenge!  I keep telling Ken not to wear a skirt!!

Peter and Jenny from boat Modjadji came for breakfast of eggs, bacon, beans and beer (docking totty is the law whatever the time of day or night), then we had a much needed sleep, in a nice, still, calm, quiet boat (aside from the snoring and farting that is …. and that was just me!!).

Early evening we investigated our new location, visited the local chandlery to suss out what they stock and stopped at a local bar – purely for free Wi-Fi, obviously, where we were joined by Harvey and Wolfgang, boat Xada, who also were in need of free Wi-Fi!!

Friday 23 September – Las Palmas Gran Canaria

Following a morning of paperwork and general boat chores we were invited to a drinks party aboard Oyster Bar to celebrate Holger’s 50^th Birthday.  Karin, his wife, insisted we ‘kill’ the champagne – her words – so we duly obliged, which lead to a very lazy (ok, comatosed) afternoon.  Martin and Rita (Maisie) and Bill and Jade (White Ibis) came for drinks at 6.00pm, which lead to a tapas dinner in town with the rest of the fleet, which lead to a very lazy (ok, comatosed) evening! 

Saturday 24 September – Las Palmas Gran Canaria

We joined an organised bus tour of the island which took us to the highest point, 2000m.  We stopped at various viewing points to see the amazing mountains full of plant life; so much greener than Lanzarote or Fuerteventura.  The island has improved massively with a new infrastructure, no crime and is very clean and tidy.  After a late lunch at Morgan Marina we came back along the old coast road for more stunning views, then stopped at the old cathedral and museum in Las Palmas old town.  There was much information re Christopher Columbus stopping here en-route to America, to get his ship’s rudder fixed.  We learned Gran Canaria is named after the large dogs, canines, that inhabited the island.  We stayed in the old town for tapas and witnessed a wedding (not literally), parading through the streets, which gave the old town an even more traditional feel.

Sunday 25 September – Gran Canaria to Tenerife, 52.8 miles, 8.6 hrs, 2.0 engine hrs, 6.14 average speed

Total miles: 1566.5

0800 departure.  Once out of the shelter of the harbour, the sea state was totally unexpected and not in a good way.  We’d planned to motor to the North of the island, not far, then put the sails up once we turned the corner – a more favourable wind direction for sailing.  However the waves were huge and very ‘confused’ so we were being thrown around all over the place.  It was too bumpy to go out on deck to hoist the mainsail for stability so we had to live with the unpleasant motion for quite a while, envious of those who had hoisted sails in the calm shelter of the harbour.  We headed further out to sea in the hope the waves would be slightly less enormous and more consistent in their direction.  Eventually we decided the mainsail had to be hoisted so Ken went on deck to do the deed, clinging on for dear life.  Obviously he was clipped on at all times to avoid going overboard but that only makes the task more difficult, being restricted.  Safely back in the cockpit and with the boat more stabilised we started to breathe again and enjoy the trip.  Once around the corner we were able to hoist the genoa and mizzen sail, turn off the motor and whizz along quite nicely.

One advantage of the roughty toughty sea state was we were finally able to locate the diesel leak that’s been baffling us for what seems like ever (even during our around the UK trip prior to this one).  It was pouring out of the fuel sender fixings on the top of the fuel tank on the starboard side, due to damaged thread.  Although we’d checked this area many times before, it was never in bumpy seas and always appeared dry of diesel (clearly evaporated) so no signs of leakage.  We were extremely relieved as we were beginning to think there was either a split in a buried hose that would have been a nightmare to change or worse, a split in the inbuilt fuel tank. 

Stern-to mooring again in Santa Cruz Marina, Tenerife.  A noisy marina due to its location next to the very busy ferry terminal.  I spent the first few evening hours sewing our flags to dress overall as the consistently high winds in the Canary Islands has shredded most of them.  Frustratingly the tension control on my sewing machine is broken so the stitching is very messy, but at least it is holding them together!  Ken went off to meet some of the other boats then came back with an invitation for drinks aboard La Mischief, one of the catamarans.  Drinking wine on an empty tummy is not good for me; I don’t even remember having drinks aboard another catamaran, Dolojaime, on our way back.  Oh dear ………….