Fuerteventura
Malua
Harry Watson Smith
Tue 13 Nov 2012 08:23
We left rib-off Rubican Marina soon after the chandler opened and set sail across the channel towards the east side of Fuerteventura. The wind was well abeam and we pulled up the main and let out the genoa with the spinnaker pole. The wind increased to slightly over 23 knots and with a little swell we topped 9.4 speed over the ground - current helped. It was a great sail along the coast which started flat and sandy in the north with a few holiday development to rocky and uninviting further south. We were chasing the distance to get to an anchorage before the light went. We passed La Entallada Lighthouse high on the cliff and pushed on in fading wind to a bay outside a town. The bay was supposed to be behind a cliff and seltered from the swell. Two yachts were anchored close to the cliff along a rocky shore but they rocked and rolled as the swell came round the headland. We dropped the anchor hoping the wind would keep our stern into the swell but that was not to be. Not a great night but not bad.
At 08:00 I hosted the MOzzie net and called. We weak signal from Sundancer, slightly stronger from Charm Offence who had both been to an ARC party the night before. Then boom out of the airwaves came Jack Tar. You have a strong signal where are you. They gave their Lat and Long and it was almost the same as Malua. They must be in the harbour outside which we had spent the night. We pulled up the anchor and before 8:30 we were next to a pontoon in the harbour.
I went to the local chandler to see if they had an impeller for the generator and yes one would be there tomorrow. That is service. Sure enough at 8:30 the next day I had the impeller and within minutes the generator was running again - what bliss.
I then installed the desalination system - water maker and started to run water through the system. As soon as I turned up the pressure I saw that the end plug in the membrane tube was cracked and leaking water. A major problem. Back to the chandler but no fitting.
Tomorrow we are off to Gran Canaria at 04:00 am