Santa Ponsa 39:30.86N 02:28.36E
Red Skies
David Alexander
Wed 10 Sep 2014 09:57
| Friday 5th September. El Trenc Anchorage. After a motor down the coast and around Punto Salinas we pitched up at El Trenc, a long sandy beach with some shelter from the East from the town of San Jordi. The water was its usual aquamarine here and the swimming excellent, when one chose one’s time carefully to avoid motorised watercraft, who all too frequently were not paying sufficient attention to where they were going or what was in their way. In fact, one of our friends from Sant Carles, who had been here earlier in the summer and who we met in Santa Ponsa (see later), was hit by an out of control rib when the helmsman fell out doing doughnuts to impress his friends but, with no kill-cord attached, the machine sped away and rammed our friend who was in his dinghy doing some work off the back of his catamaran. That he wasn’t decapitated was a miracle but he was injured and needed to go to hospital (which was a logistical nightmare from this location), his dinghy, outboard and the back of the catamaran all were damaged. Fortunately, there were other boats from Sant Carles here and they all pitched in to help. It transpired that there was some doubt about the miscreant’s insurance (which was photographed by one of the party) as it didn’t cover charters and there was a paid skipper aboard the mother yacht and eventually a settlement was reached for a cash payment (yet another of the Sant Carles party owned a boatyard and was able to produce estimates on headed notepaper). When we met up with our friend in Santa Ponsa, the money had been received, the urgent repairs effected, a new outboard had been purchased and some of the physical scars were declining, although clearly the experience will linger with him for some time to come. As dusk was falling, a Customs patrol boat entered the anchorage and dropped its rib. We were chosen as one of three boats it visited to check paperwork. Although armed, their dress of uniformed tee-shirts and shorts was more appropriate to the location than has been the case in previous occasions when we have been boarded. Our evening idyll was resumed but only to be shattered when an incoming motorboat, going far too quickly and with too much wash, rocked us severely such that the skipper’s full glass of chilled rosé fell on to the teak cockpit sole and shattered into a thousand pieces. Sunset at El Trenc Just how many people can you pack on to a party boat? Saturday 6th September. Santa Ponsa Again we had to motor to Santa Ponsa as there was insufficient wind to sail. The anchorage was more crowded than we had seen before but we managed to find a space not too far from the dinghy landing place. On a visit ashore, for provisions etc, we saw a stage being erected and a sound system being installed that would do justice at Wembley. This apparently was part of the festival of Rei Jaume taking place this week to celebrate the liberation of the Island in the thirteenth century. We feared for our peace. However, on the first night there was no noise at all and on subsequent evenings the volume was turned down well below its capability on testing and the concerts finished well before midnight. The stage under construction Tuesday 9th September. Drama today with yet another rescue here. We noticed a dinghy coming down the bay with 6 large adults aboard and very little freeboard. At this particular time there was a little bit of chop around and, while we watched, two occupants fell overboard and turned the dinghy over as well, so all were in the water. D jumped into our dinghy and set off, as did another person from a German yacht. Whilst that person tethered the upturned dinghy, which had the majority of people still clinging to its sides, D went to the assistance of a large, elderly, German man, who was on his own, making no progress whatsoever. It transpired that he was clutching a large bag, filed with belongings that he was anxious to preserve. D tried to take the bag from him but had to remove some of the water from it before it could be lifted. It was amazing that the man had stayed afloat with it at all. The difficult task was then to get the German out of the water and into D’s dinghy - not easy when he spoke no English and D no German. The individual was well into his late 70s and clearly had not worked out for a long time, if ever, and was well overweight. Eventually, with a lot of sign language, and the use of rope and brute force, the mission was accomplished. By this time the other rescuer had towed the upturned dinghy (a rigid one with a now useless waterlogged 25HP engine) back to their motor cruiser, where the other unexpected swimmers were being coaxed from hanging on to the side of their dinghy and on to their swim platform. The mission having been accomplished D returned to Red Skies to finish his interrupted lunch. On arrival A pointed out that there were a pair of spectacles aboard the dinghy so D had to return to give them back. Whether they were in shock, or whether they were preoccupied in trying to right the dinghy, the assembled German crew didn’t seem interested in the returned spectacles and D left them and went. Although the German motor boat is still here, we haven’t heard anything from them since. Santa Ponsa beach Santa Ponsa anchorage |