28:07.64N 15:25.49W

11 Nov 2011

We arrived in the marina at 21:00 on 10 Nov after a 714 miles and 4 ½ day sail/motoring trip.  The first part of the trip was tough leaving Gibraltar with all the wind and tides against us.  Once south we did get some sailing but then the wind died.  We switched over to motoring and reduced our speed to 7 knots to save fuel.  Looking at the weather forecasts we should have some wind but it never materialized into anything but faint gusts.  Even with no wind the seas were not silk smooth because of a large storm off the Azores to the northwest sending in large waves of several meters at times.  The good part was that the waves had a long distance to calm down and we barely noticed them as we calmly rolled over the top of them.

Since we were now burning more fuel than intended we diverted course slightly to Lanzarote to refuel before completing the trip.  It worked out nicely as we arrived at dawn and the Marina Rubicon fuel berth was open.  A quick custom checkin right at the berth by the marina staff was very helpful.  So it was about one hour there before we were off again.  Now running the engine harder we cruised at 8 knots to cover the 100 miles to Las Palmas.  This time we arrived in the dark but the marina is fairly straight forward in entering.  Nice reception berth with lines and electric to use for the night until they open in the morning.

By 09:00 we were checked in and moved over to our slip.  We completed the formalities of checking into the ARC office and got are rally information, passes, schedules etc for the next 10 days.  Still have some work to perform on the boat but plenty of time.  Have to make the first cocktail party tonight sponsored by one of the companies then off to the Mayors party after that.  Someone has to attend all these events!

Some picture from Gibraltar.  Tradition stands here.

Caverns inside the “Rock”.  These were used as a hospital during WWII and now as a tourist site and concert hall.

View of the airport from the north side of the “Rock”.  The British drilled out tunnels in the rock to mount guns and keep supplies.  This section was for the siege defence when Spain tried to retake the area two hundred years ago.

Potential crew members for the trip.

Some traveling buddies on the way to the Canaries.  The dolphins ride the bow waves for fun.

First big catch.  Could not believe how fast we caught this small tuna.  Really too small to keep but the hook really damaged it so we kept it and had it for lunch.