Atlantic Island
Moonbeam
David and Lynn Wilkie
Wed 1 Sep 2010 17:28
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33.03.731N 016.18.942W
The time spent anchored in the entrance to
Portimao passed quickly doing boat jobs, provisioning, socialising and generally
watching the world go by!
 Farewell drinks with
'Mi Duchi' Friday night.Collected Ian off the quay at Ferragudo about
midnight on Friday and finished our organisation on Saturday morning, filling up
with diesel and said our good byes to Jonas and Sophie and Rene and
Anneka.
We cleared the breakwater at 10.30 and after about
an hour the wind started to fill in from the South (!) but by early afternoon it
was in the NNW and we were sailing the rhumb line to Madeira on a tight
reach and increasing wind. Two separate swells made progress uncomfortable if
quite fast and soon with up to 25 knots true we had stowed the mizzen, were down
to the 3rd reef in the main and about 8 rolls in the genoa. Lynn had made a
lasagna the night before and luckily it stayed in the oven and we bore away a
bit to give an easier motion while we ate. Gradually the swell subsided but the
odd rogue secondary wave broke against the topsides sending spray into the
cockpit. Fast and furious we logged 90 miles in the first 12 hours of sailing
and the bright moonlight made watch keeping easier.
  The wind eased below 20 knots and we continued to
make good progress although by lunch time Sunday the wind was down to 15 knots
true but we had still logged 168 miles in 24 hours.
The wind and sea continued to be kind and through
Sunday night and all Monday "Moonbeam" continued to head effortlessly and
comfortably south-west and while we occasionally adjusted sheets and had a brief
airing of the Code O genneker it was very relaxing and we were impressed how "
Moonbeam" maintained around 61/2 knots even during periods of light winds and
how comfortable the motion was throughout.
  Ian on
duty!The final night was full of stars and the moon
appeared again about 2am to illuminate the whole scene. Two reefs were put in
the main as a precaution against rising winds and to keep the speed in check- we
did not really want to arrive in the dark! At about 7am a pod of small dolphins
welcomed us to Porto Santo in the increasing light and about 8.30 we moored at
the small marina in the harbour; 70 hours from leaving Portimao with 455 miles
logged and without engine apart from motoring away from Portimao for 10 miles- a
very satisfying passage!
    
Familiar ??Tuesday
After checking in and washing down the decks and
everything else to remove salt we walked to 'town' for lunch and reacquaint
ourselves with the enormous steak kebabs that are popular here.
  The afternoon was spent sleeping and we were not up
early on Wednesday!
To compensate we set off for a brisk walk to the
viewpoint above the marina and we chose the route without any form of track!
        note the EU approved
safety rail!Walking back along the road we came upon a
restaurant miles from anywhere and thinking that a beer would go down well we
stopped. The tremendous views and the interesting menu called for a change of
plan so we enjoyed a superb lunch! The local scabbard fish with banana and
passion fruit sauce was delicious. The restaurant is called 48/3XL which is
apparently the owners shoe and waist sizes! The intentions of spending the
afternoon on the beach slowly slipped away.
 view from our restaurant table through the open
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