After
a very busy day in port we left Palma on Tuesday morning. As our crewmate, Marc, had flown off to London for a few days, we were having our very first
ever sail totally on our own. Rob handled the lines and Karen helmed the boat
off the dock, through the harbour and out into the bay. With a 12 to 15 knot easterly
blowing we’d decided to head back to the shelter of Santa Ponsa for our first
stop.
The
wind was blowing from right behind us so we tacked out off the coast then went
wing on wing with the mainsail out the starboard side, the genoa out the port and ran dead down wind. Unfortunately we don’t have a spinnaker pole on Alcheringa yet but even without poling
out the headsail it held beautifully in the moderate breeze all the way across
the bay to Punta de Cala Figuera, the cape on the south west corner of Mallorca.
It was another clear, sunny day and a good opportunity to work on tanning our white bits although Karen insisted a keen lookout was maintained so she could cover up whenever a boat closed within half a mile.
We rounded the lighthouse on the cape and then had a nice broad reach flying the asymmetric spinnaker along the west coast back up to Santa Ponsa. We had no dramas this time and were able to anchor in almost the exact spot we’d been only a few days before. It was as nice a day’s sailing as we could ever ask for and a real confidence builder handling the boat two up.
We rounded the lighthouse on the cape and then had a nice broad reach flying the asymmetric spinnaker along the west coast back up to Santa Ponsa. We had no dramas this time and were able to anchor in almost the exact spot we’d been only a few days before. It was as nice a day’s sailing as we could ever ask for and a real confidence builder handling the boat two up.
Getting some sun on an empty sea. |
An elegant lady we passed entering Santa Ponsa - Mallorca |
Just outside Santa Ponsa |
We
went ashore for the afternoon and had a wander around a few more of the streets
and enjoyed a nice cheap early dinner ashore. Karen was also a pretty happy
girl having found a beauticians and was able to get an appointment for the
important job of getting her legs waxed first up the following morning. This
would still give us plenty of time to get further up the coast to our next
stop.
We
had a very peaceful night until the nightclubs emptied out about 6.00 and the
streets became alive with drunk Irish and Brit tourists. Fortunately no wars
broke out but if we hear one more loud, drunken rendition of ‘We are the Champions’ we may not be
responsible for our actions.
It's a bit freaky looking across Santa Ponsa and seeing the bay full of VW Beetles |
After
breakfast Karen duly got de-furred and then we headed out to sail up the
west coast to San Telmo. Unlike the day before, this time the wind was very
unco-operative. It was right on the nose as we left the anchorage then as we
turned so did it. We motored across the large bay with the thought that we’d be
able to sail once we rounded the point. The bloody wind turned as we turned
again. Realising it was out to get us we gave up on the idea of sailing and
motored our way the short distance up to San Telmo.
Rob with the San Telmo anchorage in the background |
Like
Formentera, San Telmo has restricted anchoring in areas of sea grass and a number
of moorings which have to be pre-booked. Not wanting a repeat of our run in
with the anchor nazi, this time we’d actually gone on line and had booked one
of the moorings. When we arrived we wondered how we’d find mooring 8B amongst
the bay full of floating plastic balls and started idling around trying to spot
the numbers. Then we spied a sight to instil fear and dread into our very
beings. Speeding from the shore towards us was exactly the same type of RIB
(Rigid Inflatable boat) as driven by our jackbooted nemesis on Formentera. Not
again.
But
this time the government official had obviously been trained in a different
place. He really could not have been more helpful. He guided us over to our
mooring and waited to see if we needed help to get organised. Picking up moorings is not exactly new to
Karen as it’s a skill she learned on her parents’ game fishing charter boat long
before high school and as Rob slowly nudged the bow onto the upwind side of the
floating buoy she very quickly pulled it on board with the boat hook. Our
attendant made us feel very good about ourselves as he even complimented us on
the boat handling and mooring pickup.
Later
when Rob went for a snorkel to make sure we were happy with the strength of the
mooring we found out why. The attendant obviously witnesses many failed attempts.
The sea bed was littered with boat hooks people had obviously dropped trying to
pick up the mooring buoy. Pity they were fourteen metres down and way too deep
for Rob without scuba otherwise we’d be boasting a very nice collection now. We
then watched as the man we soon dubbed the Anchor Angel in contrast to the Anchor
Nazi, went up to arriving boats that didn’t have moorings booked, explained the
regulations to them and then guided them to where they could anchor legally and
safely away from the sea grass area. Now that was more like it.
San
Telmo, or Sant Elmo, depending on which book or sign you read, is a very
beautiful spot with more of the crystal clear water we’ve got used to. We went for a great snorkel one and a half kilometres
all the way around a small island in the middle of the bay and then had a nice
dinner and sun downer drinks for two on board.
The island we snorkelled around at San Telmo |
It
was the first time we’d had Alcheringa on a mooring and considering small swell
running and slight breeze it actually provided us with a very comfortable
night. Each morning since Marc had returned to the UK we had emailed him the
Navionics track of where we’d sailed the previous day so he could see where we
were and got all the track info such as distance travelled, average speed, highest
speed etc.. After our first day on the mooring Karen emailed him the track. It showed a series of lines that all merged
together to form a large dot centred on the mooring. Incredibly we’d actually
got up to 2.5knots across the ground at one stage as we swung with the wind and
current. Marc got a giggle out of it anyway.
We
had a quiet second morning on the mooring and Rob and finally got some blogging
done. Mid afternoon we headed ashore for a look around the town but ran out of
fuel in the outboard about two thirds of the way in. Bugger! Rob had been sure
there was plenty left in the tank. Yeah right!
Someone got creative at San Telmo beach |
So
after paddling the rest of the way in we found the town extremely nice. There
was only one small resort on the southern end of the beach and the main street
was all paved and lined with nice cafes, shops, a great bakery and some even
better gelato stores. It was also a vehicle restricted area, very few cars
making it very pedestrian friendly.
San Telmo is a lovely little town |
We
came across a beautiful mosaic commemorating King Jaimie 1st of
Aragon arriving with his fleet here in the 1200’s on his way to drive the Moors out of
Mallorca. Hang on isn’t this a groundhog day moment. Hadn’t we seen a monument
commemorating the same thing at Santa Ponsa? A proud local café owner explained
that the King may have landed his troops at Santa Ponsa but San Telmo was
definitely his first landfall on Mallorca. He anchored here for a few days and
then moved down the coast to get serious. Makes sense. This was a great spot
for some R&R before waging war after all.
We
wandered around trying to buy some petrol but unfortunately the fuel station
was in the main town a few kilometres inland so we had to paddle back out to
the boat moored about 300 metres offshore against
the wind. Bugger! Bugger! With much effort we made about two thirds of the distance
before our Anchor Angel arrived with
his rib and towed us the rest of way. He’d left us to it until then because he
thought we had everything under control but as the wind got stronger he saw we
were actually being blown backwards towards the beach again.
You
can only stay on the moorings for two nights and we had planned to sail on
further than San Telmo but next morning there was no wind so we decided to just
move the boat in close to the beach and anchor in a patch of sand near the swim
line. There’s very little anchorage space and it’s usually filled quickly with
the influx of smaller pleasure boats each morning so we moved early before day
trippers arrived and had the pick of the place.
It
was so nice here in fact that we ended up staying another couple of very enjoyable
days in San Telmo doing not a lot other than swimming, snorkelling and soaking
up the Mediterranean sun with a book..
That's what you call a house with a view - Mallorca West Coast |
On
Sunday morning we set off to sail back to Cala Portals, the nice little bay we
stayed in when we first left Palma. As the wind was predicted to swing to the
north, it would be a well protected spot to sit out a few more days waiting for Marc to
return. There was no wind to begin with but then it picked up and we had a
great day light airs sailing around the coast. It’s great when there’s no rush
and we can just make the most of what breeze there is.
We arrived after many of the day boats had departed and dropped anchor right in close to one of the beaches. Yes OK. It was the nude beach packed with naked Spaniards of all ages, shapes and sizes but we chose it because it was the most protected from the wind and swell. Really!
We arrived after many of the day boats had departed and dropped anchor right in close to one of the beaches. Yes OK. It was the nude beach packed with naked Spaniards of all ages, shapes and sizes but we chose it because it was the most protected from the wind and swell. Really!
Enjoying a skinny dip at Cala Portals. Karen had given up on the half nautical mile clearance while naked by this stage. When in Spain do as the Spanish do. |
We
never troubled the anchor winch again for four glorious days of skinny dipping,
blogging, reading, working on our all over tans and watching the daily parade
of visitors arrive by boat and down the cliff paths to the beaches. Each
evening after the bay emptied of vessels and people we enjoyed the solitude and
just being us on Alcheringa with nice
food and local wines. Life afloat is
good.
For more about our travels check out and 'like' our Dreamtimesail facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/DreamtimeSail?ref=hl
For more about our travels check out and 'like' our Dreamtimesail facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/DreamtimeSail?ref=hl
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