Oeiras
Moorglade's Voyage
Ted Wilson
Mon 23 Aug 2010 10:23
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Our position is 38:40.59N 09:19.08W
We slept well on Friday night despite the
concert going on on the sea front. I think the longish days sailing and the wine
with the pizzas for supper helped. We intended to leave the rather expensive
marina on Saturday morning and anchor in the bay, but by the time we had got
going after a late breakfast, chatted to the Irish couple on the boat next to
us, taken some pictures of a parakeet that landed on the Irish boat's boom, and
been for a walk into town and done some shopping, we were already past
the 14:00 deadline for not being done for another night's fees, so we
stayed.
There was a prety impressve firework display off
the harbour mole just before we went to bed. Just as well we had not gone for an
early night.
Cascais is a busy port for yachts, both those
coastal cruising and the traffic from the Canaries and Madeira. We chatted to a
couple of delivery skippers who both reported having been busy all year bringing
yachts back to the UK for sale. The yacht that pulled into the berth next to us
this morning, after the Irish couple left, reported Torrevieja marina being
almost empty and apartments at rock bottom prices. Very different from when
Keith and I went out there to buy Moorglade in 1993.
 View of the bay at Cascais over the yacht club
dinghy park.
Lots of oppies and lasers.
 Lots of snacks available on the sea front. I
was not allowed to sample this stalls offering.
 Apparantly these little parakeets are well
esablished in the wild round here.
 Lots of fish around the boats in the marina.
Rather more interesting types than the grey mullet
further north.
This morning, Sunday we did get organised and
phoned Oeiras marina to ascertain that they did indeed have room for
us and sorted out a shopping list for the chandlers to be purchased before
we left. This proved to be a bit of a waste of time as they were shut on Sundays
when all the yachties were about. Pity, it is the best stocked one we have come
across for a while.
We left Cascais at about 13:30. not a quick process
as a stop at the check in pontoon was required to reclaim our 70 euro deposit
for access cards and a shorepower adapter, and a fill up with
diesel.
Being late off really was not an issue as our
passage for the day was a very leisurely 5.5Nm motor up the north
shore of the Rio Tejo. The sun was hot, the wind light and the scenery pretty
and interesting. On the way we passed a platform(oil industry I guess) attended
by two tugs which had had a spectacular collision. One corner tower wrenched off
and standing at a rakish angle and another badly dented. There were freighters
going up the channel to Lisbon but apart from those we spent the hour
watching people at play, crowded beaches, jet skis, yachts going nowhere
special, small cats and dinghies and lots of recreational fishing. I think
this coast is the posh suburb of Lisbon.
 The damaged platform - I dread to think what the
othe chap looked like!
Oeiras is a smart little marina, very sheltered.
Indeed it was very hot (mid30's) when we arrived so we deployed the new sun
shade and made some mods to make it quicker to put up.Kay was not that
impressed.
 Kay took this pic while I was checking us in at
Oeiras.
Went for a walk before dinner, out to the point and
down to a little beach. The sand was fine and firm, much better than other
beaches we have been on in Portugal and the range of sandcastles, forts and
pools rivalled a British beach.
While we were walking we met the crew of the
American yacht Remedios who I had talked to at Nazare. There here for a while
with wives and family flying out to join them for non sailing hols in France and
Spain.
Tomorrow, Monday we will try to firm up our
arrangements for leaving Moorglade at Alcontara. That will determine how long we
stay here and when we organise flights home.
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