Impressions of Sao Jorge
Persephone... Cruiser/Racer
Nigel & Karen Goodhew...
Fri 21 Jul 2017 18:03
But the development is carefully managed and all in keeping with the historical heart of the town. There is a brand new school, a new sports stadium, a huge new breakwater under construction too, which tells us a little about how the weather and sea can be outside the summer season.
Sao Jorge is long and thin, rising straight out of the Atlantic and boasts lots of 200 and 300 metre cliffs. The central hilly spine at the top is shrouded in cloud, with misty rain much of the time, while the coastal fringe basks in summer sun. The locals have terraced and walled a great deal of the land area and do farming...notably dairy farming.
We have walked the bits close by Velas, enjoying the additional perspective of Pico, hired a car to explore the further flung bits and enjoyed the island in its sunny spendour as well as its white out mists higher up.
There are few beaches here, not that we are tempted to swim; after water at 29 degrees in the Caribbean, the bracing 21 degrees is well into wetsuit terittory, but the locals have found, even manufactured rock pool lidos to swim in.
The overwhelmingly dominant feeling is that of a garden, lusciously green and immaculately tended and maintained....not a speck of litter or rubbish anywhere and the villages sparkle with their black and white churches, painted houses and traditionally Portuguese black and white cobbled streets.
While here, we have made new friends, particularly John and Linda on their Oyster Suilven.....we seem to have a few friends in common in the UK, and Tom and Katherine in their Swan 46, Katface.
The marina is a delight, crystal clear water, exceptionally staffed and as we tend to say in blighty, as cheap as chips!
But all good things must come to an end and we are off to Terceira tomorrow, about 50 miles away. We want to try and get as close to it as we can before the wind shuts down for 3 or 4 days.
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