Western Mallorca May 20, 2012

We are slowly sailing counter-clockwise around the north-western shore of Mallorca, having departed Porto Soller and motored through the north side in light winds. Once the corner is turned around Isla Dragona, the shoreline is very different and is full of anchorages and harbors, all within a few miles from one another. We typically stop at an anchorage for a few days, and then sail for a few hours to the next one. That’s enough hard work for us! We stopped at Port Andraitx, a large harbor with a still active fishing fleet. Fresh catch are available for sale at a fish market every afternoon right from the fishing boats, but prices are steep. One afternoon we returned to our boat after a visit to town, and found that our boat was tied to our neighbor boat. Our anchor had dragged! Thankfully our neighbor was kind enough to had taken a line and secured our boat to his. The Andraitx harbor is full of debris on the bottom and is notorious for fouling anchors, but the opposite had happened to mine. I had the anchor properly set when we arrived two days ago, but the wind had shifted to the opposite direction, and the anchor was pulled out and did not reset properly. Well, time to think about getting a better anchor.

 Andraitx Harbor

 We had planned to sail to the next island, Ibiza, and spend a couple of weeks there, but the forecast of strong winds altered our plan. This is our first gale warning this season! Even though the Balearics is not as frequently windy as Sardinia, but yes they do get gales here too. So we are staying put at a small bay called Cala Portals. It’s an attractive bay sheltered on three sides by steep cliffs, with three small cloves that each have a sandy beach, beautiful water. The only down side is that it’s only 8 miles from the tourist center of Palma, and is very popular with all kinds of day-trippers. We settled into the anchorage when it was nice and quiet in the morning, but by mid-afternoon the bay was jam packed with all kinds of sailboat, powerboats, huge sight-seeing catamarans, and a few large yachts. Plus of course the chartered sailboats, usually packed with 6-8 people, coming in and simply dropping their anchors with minimal anchor rode, and immediately starting to drag.

Cala Portals, with some some ancient rock caves/tombs

Some big boats packing into the bay 

Michel and Martinique, sailed all the way from Montreal

The next day, a Canadian yacht dropped anchor in the bay. It’s a rare occasion to meet another Canadian sailboat. They stopped by in their dinghy to say hello, and we invited them onto our boat for coffee. Michel and Martinique are from Montreal. They built their own 32 feet fiber glass sailboat from scratch. It took them 10 years, and La Foret Deav seems to be a well-built, strong boat. They sailed it across the Atlantic, spent a year at the Azores, and are now slowly working their way through the Med. As true Northerners they enjoy swimming in the 18C water every morning!

Sant Elm May 11 – 14

We waited till noon at Soller for the land breeze to pickup and to sail west around the northern coast of Mallorca. The breeze did turn up in the harbor, but it was deceiving. Once we exited the harbor, the wind die down to a whisper, and we had to motor the entire 30 miles to our next anchorage. We were in the wind shadow of the island which blocks the prevalent southerly breezes. Around the Gulf of Leon and in Corsica and Sardinia it is blowing at 20 to 30 knots, but here we get nothing. Ah, too much, too little…

 Isla Dragonera 

Sant Elm bay

The bay at Sant Elm is the first secure anchorage on the north-west side of the island. Sheltered on three sides by small islands, the larger one being Isla Dragonera (use some imagination and you can see the dragon’s head and tail), the bay is a lovely quiet little spot with good holding. The white sandy bottom reflects the sun and turns the clear water into a beautiful turquoise blue. Schools of small fish swim around. There are some small beaches and resort hotels, a few boats anchored, people swimming in the still cold water. The weather is gorgeous, around 25C in the day, with a light breeze driving small, sparkling ripples in the sea, the blue sky shimmering. There is a small swell coming into the bay, rocking the boat gently. We like it here, doing some small chores, reading a book, watching boats coming and going, listening to the rhythmic surfs on the beach.

Our pigeon visitor checking out Eliza's cockie crumbs

One afternoon a messenger pigeon stopped by, either lost or on his/her way to somewhere. It was a beautiful bird, with a blue patch on just one shoulder. There were identification rings on both legs. She was clearly looking for human company, and stayed at exactly touch distance from us. She accepted some water, but declined our salted seeds. She slept at our cockpit in the evening, and by next morning she was gone, hopefully on her way to her destination.

Puerto de Soller, Mallorca

Puerto de Soller turned out to be a surprisingly nice anchorage. The only harbour of refuge on the entire exposed north-west coast of Mallorca, Puerto de Soller is sheltered on three sides by tall mountains, and the large, circular bay is ringed with sandy beaches. In the summer the anchorage will be jammed packed with boats, and even in this early season, there are already plenty of boats anchoring. A large part of the bay is ringed off by swimming buoys, and many mooring buoys further reduce anchoring space. We are glad that we are here in May, not July! The anchorage is very scenic, with beautiful turquoise-blue water, lush green mountains as backdrop, and the town dock is just a short dinghy ride away. The village of Puerto de Soller is a tourist resort town; the town of Soller is several miles in-land, situated to be at a relative safe distance from private attacks in ancient times.

Gone hiking...

Sunset views of the harbor

We loved this anchorage and stayed here for several days. There are many lovely hiking trails nearby, and the early-summer weather is perfect for hiking. The cloudy, stormy days are suddenly over, replaced by the Mediterranean summer weather with perpetual blue sky. Compared to islands further south, such as Sardinia and Greek islands, Mallorca is surprisingly lush, and trails shaded by tall pine trees make it a pleasure to hike in the otherwise piercing Mediterranean sun.

We also took a bus ride to visit Palma, the largest city on the island. The bus route goes through Mallorca from north to south, through a long tunnel that cut through the mountain, with hair-pin turns around cliffs overlooking the blue sea, and stops at several ancient-looking villages. Palma is nice, with a large old town and an impressive cathedral, great for a day visit. 

Palma waterfront

Palau de l'Almudaina

The Cathedral

Out of Barcelona

On a bright Saturday morning, we left the Varadero boat yard where we had hauled out Three Rivers and painted her bottom. We swung by Port Olympic, about 2 miles away, to get diesel and also to see the pretty Barcelona waterfront one more time. Then we headed south towards the Balearic Islands, a hundred miles away, into the prevailing SWS wind which seems to be dominant around this time of the year. A wind direction that’s behind our back would be nice, but one cannot wait forever especially since the marina tab is running; and as nice as Barcelona is, it is time to move on and start our cruising season.

So contrary to what we said we would not do again when we did it last time, we are once again bashing into wind and wave for the long overnight slog. We don’t mind sailing close-haul; love it, actually, if the sea is flat. But the sea doesn’t stay flat for long in 15-20 knot winds, so by late afternoon while the boat is happily heeling and making good progress on a lumpy sea, the crews are trying to convince their stomachs that it’s ok to keep the breakfast. A school of dolphins stay with us for a while, showing off that they can swim faster than our 6 knots and leaping off our bow waves. The fresh breeze continues through the night, which is somewhat unusual. A full moon lights up the semi-overcast sky; the sea is bright as Barcelona’s lively back streets. Once we went beyond the busy shipping lane near the mainland, we encountered not a single boat or ship, just the AIS displaying one or two solitary dots passing in the distance. A solitary night sail is not a bad way to start a cruising season.

The Islas Balearic consist of four main islands and a number of small islets, and form one of the most attractive and varied cruising grounds in the western Mediterranean. We are now anchored in Port Soller, a ‘beautiful, almost circular bay lying in the midst of spectacular mountainous scenery’, according to the pilotage guide. The water is a beautiful turquoise blue under the sun, and at least for now the beaches are still quiet and the hordes of charter boats with naked (male) sailors are not here yet. Yes, we will enjoy doing boat maintenance in these exotic locales...

Anchorage at Port Soller, Mallorca

The Winds of May

In the transition season of April and early May, the weather around this part of the Med turns unstable and there are frequent showers and gusty winds. Sitting in our boat we listen to the wind howling through the riggings, the noise reminding us of the gale-ridden April we had last spring in the Aegean. Last year we thought we had left port too early in the season, so this year we decided to stay in the marina longer and to enjoy life in and around Barcelona. Our French sailing friends Francois and Nicole came to visit us, and then they further invited us to visit them and stay at their apartment in the southern city of Perpignan. After a 2-hour train ride and a 30 minutes drive, we were in a different country! During our 3-day stay, our friends drove us all around the surrounding area, and we had a wonderful time visiting a number of beautiful coastal cities and castles nestled in mist-shrouded mountains. Francois also showed us his favorite sailing grounds in the Cape Creus area – he has been sailing in this area for over 40 years!

Francois and Nicole's sun-filled apartment

The quaint city of Perpignan

Dinner time! Francois is a great cook and Nicole is a wonderful host.

The monastery at St. Michel de Cruixa

Hiking at Cape Creus

And then finally it’s time to prepare our boat for departing Barcelona. We need to haul out Three Rivers, clean her bottom and give her a few coats of anti-fouling paint. Most of our marina friends have left by now; some headed west to exist the Med, some ventured east towards France and Italy, and some sailed south to the Belearic islands. The marina feels deserted now. It’s an interesting, nomadic life.

Ben working hard for a change

Spring: Hong Kong, Barcelona

In end of March we were in Hong Kong to see my (Ben) family. The last time we were in HK was 5 years ago, when we were on a business trip when I was working at NCR. We had such a different life back then!

The long flight took us through Munich, Peking, and finally after almost 24 hours, HK. We stayed at my brother’s house in Taipao, a small countryside city about an hours drive or train-ride from the city core. The house is in a beautiful setting – the backyard overlooks a bay framed by mature trees, gentle waves lapping a quiet beach not far away, and mountains in the distance. We stayed there for a few days, and then moved to a vacation-apartment on the Hong Kong Island. We had a great time seeing relatives and friends, and trying out lots of restaurants!

      View from the roof-top terrace in TaiPao  

      The view from the Peak overlooking Victoria Harbor

Now we are back in Barcelona. April is probably the best time in the year here, perfect temperature at about 20C during the day, mostly sunny under a blue sky, mixed in with a few days of shower sometimes. The downside is that tourist season is also in full swing, and throngs of tourists are everywhere. But we’ve gotten to know a few places where the locals go – the little café here where we go for coffee and pastry after a long walk through the park, the Belgium restaurant down the corner with excellent steaks and great price if you make a reservation on the internet…and the almond trees are in full bloom, and the bike paths are so inviting…so we are staying here for another month, and in May we will haul out and then hit the road. 

      Easter parade through the streets of Barcelona 

      Dinner at our friend Sherry and Dennis' apartment on La Rambler

    

Barcelona - From Winter to Spring

the Aljaferia (Palace of Joy

 Zaragosa town square

Monasterio de Valvanera 

near the Hotel Marques de Riscal at Elciego 

Eliza enjoying lunch at the Guggenheim 

Time sure seems to fly and before you know it, almost six months have gone by. The winter was short and reasonably pleasant in Barcelona, with only several weeks in January/February that had temperatures dropping to single digit at night. There was a couple of weeks of rainy days, and other than that it was mostly sunny and pleasant. Besides enjoying our time in the city, we’ve also been busy traveling – a trip to UK, and two trips across Spain. In the most recent trip, we rented a car with a couple of friends and headed north, to Bilbao, near the Atlantic coast.

We spent the first two days of our north-bound journey in Zaragoza, the capital city of the region of Aragon. The city has many interesting old buildings, including a huge cathedral set in a beautiful square.  It’s called the Basilica de Nuestra Senora del Pilar, with the town hall (ayuntamiento) and the Lonja (commodities exchange) nearby.The next day, we walked and visited the Aljaferia (Palace of Joy), an enormous Moorish palace built in the 11^th century.  The Aljaferia is really impressive, beautifully done. On our last day at Zaragoza, we had a nice dinner in the city and celebrated our friend’s 60^th birthday. Continuing north, we drove through the mountains into Basque region and into the land of Rioja, one of the well-known regions for its wine. The climate and scenery were markedly different once we crossed the Sierra, and became cooler and much greener. The moist air of the Atlantic is stopped by the tall mountains and this part of Spain is very different from the Mediterranean Spain that we are used to. This is the region of monasteries and wineries, and we drove an hour through winding roads to see a monastery-the Monasterio de Valvanera, located 1,000 m above sea level, in a secluded forested valley and backed by the jagged peaks of the Sienna de San Lorenzo.. We spent a night at a small city called Navarrete, in a valley near the Hotel Marques de Riscal at Elciego, a famous hotel designed by Frank Gehry (of the Guggenheim fame). The Basque separatist movement must have settled down, as we see no military presence anywhere. The Spain today is very different from that in the ‘80’s, when machine-gun totting soldiers were everywhere. Actually the country seems quite prosperous, with very little sign of high unemployment.

We stopped at the Basque capital city of Vitoria. The city is built at the highest point of the region, and the buildings there have a completely different style, almost Northern European. Basque claims to have one of the oldest cultures in Europe, and one can easily mistake this to be a different country. The cuisine is also quite different; apart from the usual tapas, there’s also plenty of meat and fish dishes. Our trip cumulated at Bilboa, where we stayed for two days at a hostal-style hotel in the old town, near the winding Rio Nervion. Bilboa is a river city, close to the edge of Atlantic, by the Bay of Biscyne; one can almost smell the ocean air. We spent almost a full day at the Guggenheim, including a delightful lunch at its famous restaurant (since we can’t afford the 70 Euro dinner). The museum’s architecture is indeed fascinating, but its modern-art exhibits are also very interesting.

We took a slightly different route for the return trip, and turned north-east ward, hugging the mountainous region of Aragon, near the French border. Our main interest was to visit Ainsa, considered as one of the most beautiful towns in Aragon, and it has retained its charm with houses built with brown stones. To get to Ainsa, we drove through Jaca, home to the Ciudadela de Jaca, a massive pentagonal citadel built in the 16th century, and one of the two of its kind remaining in Europe.  And along the way, up a white-knuckle winding drive near the Parque Nac de Ordesa, called the Roof of Aragon, the roads cutting through a beautiful stretch of green valleys with snow-capped mountains not far away. Then the green fields give way to the arid, brown landscape of Mediterranean Spain, and we are on the home stretch.