Just sending a few words from a quiet passage between Bayona and Lisbon We will probably arriwe Lisbon tomorrow on high tide. I virtually escaped from a norwegian colony in Bayona. It was 6 norwegian boats there when I left. Its interesting to talk to other norwegian sailors but its not very exotic. To save all the hassle with anchoring, I sailing up alongside a big danish scooner with 20 crazy vikings onboard (Opal, Greenaa) They invited us for dinner.
The leg from La Coruna to Bayona was almost without problems. My monitor (mechanical windsteeringsystem) stopped working after an old damage it got in Ireland. Steering a sailboat by hand is so boring, so instead of trying to fix it under sail, I decided to go into Muros, Spain to see if I could fix it there. Muros is a small fishingvillage in one of the few Rias or fiords in Spain. It started to blow when we entered the bay and halfway up I had real trouble making any progress. Still it was not bad, but suddenly I got one of this heavy winds coming from the mountains. It was to late to get up the anchor. I really belive in big anchors and chain after seeing two boats beeing damage in La Coruna after dragging anchor so I figured out that I was probably safe. The locals in Muros didnt think so, and started shouting and screaming that we have to move. When an ambulance entered the scene on the pier behind us, I decided to drop the anchor and i the lee of a big tugboat it should be possible to sneak behind the pier and into calm water. Everything went well, but this episode was a good example how vulnerable you could get close to shore.
My mainanchor is a 35 pound CQR with around 200 feet of chain. That means around 150 pound of weight. Probably enough for a 27 foot boat. Next time I will try tandem-anchoring. That means two anchors on the same line.
I bet its getting colder back home now. It is good and warm here in south Portugal. The wind is from north (Azores high) but is a bit weak. We are watching hurricane Erica on the weatherfax. She is now east of Azores. She has still 600 nm to go before she could be dangerous to us, so I think we are safe. I'll try to take down weatherfax 3-4 times a day. Its good to get the grasp on the weather around us, but local weather is difficult to get on weatherfax so weatherreports on VHF is better.
When we are sailing, we usually eat tin-food and homemade bread. I got 120 kilo (240 pound) of flour when I left and I think it would last for 2 years, if it doesn't get spoiled. It shall be nice to see Lisbon. I already know where the best place to stay in Lisbon due to an e-mail from another norwegian boat staying there.
Best regards, SY OMNI Jonny Birkelund