We had a lovely time in Mar Menor. The water was deliciously warm, but the presence of literally millions of jellyfish put us off swimming. 1000’s of tonnes of these jellyfish are caught each year from Mar Menor and used as fertiliser!

 

      

 

On Sunday 24th we went for a gentle sail along the length of Mar Menor and back, ghosting along at 2 – 3 knots in 4 – 5 knots of breeze. Usually we are dashing for the next port, or tidal gate, and it was lovely being able to just chill out and enjoy sailing. We also used the opportunity to calibrate the speed log, and the gyro compass for those who are interested. In the evening we anchored near La Manga, and after unloading the lazarette, we managed to get the dinghy out of the bottom, inflate it and go ashore. The outboard started first time, not having been used for over 12 months. The anchorage was very still and peaceful, and we had a great night.

 

Monday 25th we headed off to Tomas Maestre at 0930 to get to the lift bridge for its 1100am opening. There was no wind, and so motored, but on getting out to sea the wind began to appear, so we began to rig the lines, blocks, tack line etc for the gennaker, and brought the gennaker (cruising chute / spinnaker) up from the bunk room where it has resided since last year. It launched perfectly, and the wind began to build to 15 – 18 knots just aft of a beam reach. The boat raced along, reaching 10.2 knots for a while. Our destination had been Torrevieja, but it was obvious that we would be there so quickly, and we were enjoying the sail so much that we decided to head for somewhere further on. We passed Alicante, then Benidorm, and decided that the afternoon was so lovely that we would anchor off Marina Greenwich – so named because it lies on the Greenwich meridian (or to be politically correct, the UT meridian).

 

 

 

The cove we anchored in was secluded and lovely, and we were soon swimming around the boat. Later we took the dinghy around to the marina to stock up on food at the shop the pilot guide mentioned. This shop proved not to exist, so back to the boat and dig into our reserves. During the evening the wind shifted and the swell began to catch us on the beam so we spent a very rolly night.

 

After checking the forecast we decided to delay our departure to Ibiza until the wind was more favourable, and so motored across to Puerto de Calpe marina. We have had a couple of extensive walks, and re-stocked our food supplies. The town is heaving with holiday-makers, and benefits from a north and south facing beaches.

 

 

 

Towering over us is the Penon de Ifach, a large tall rock that is a nature reserve. It is possible to walk up it, but only by ticket as the path is narrow with not many passing places, and so there is huge congestion if more than 50 visitors per hour go up. All being well we hope to climb this tomorrow.