Today is Tuesday October 31st and altough I've been meaning to update the blog for ages I can't quite believe it's been almost two months since my last update just prior to Mick flying home to the UK for six weeks (which turned into seven) and he's due back here on Thursday (7/11).
Just as I was writing the above I was hailed by Paul (another OCC member) from his dinghy to say that unfortunately he was having to postpone his and Lori's invite to drinks and nibbles on his boat this afternoon on account of something in their toilet system having "exploded" and needed fixing! Hopefully that will be the only bad news of the day!
So what's been going on?
Well, to start with, play time in Las Palmas continued for a week or so. A couple of days after Mick returnd home, Sharon, Stephen, Ines, Amara and Baby Remi arrived for their week's holiday. Sharon stayed with me on board Bonny in the Marina and Stephen and Ines and kiddies stayed with Ines' brother Russel who lived just a 15 minute walk from the Marina
They actually arrived on the 12th of September which was our 36th Wedding Anniversary and Sharon and I celebrated with a very pleasant meal in one of the Marina Restaurant's that evening.
The rest of the week was spent sightseeing and holidaying in and around Las Palmas. This included a trip into the beautiful old town to the south of the port, with (for me) another tour of the Cathedral;
a walk around the plush shopping area of the new town to the north of the port, a day on the beach on the north west side of the peninsula at the top of the island. It's a very long sandy beach and looks like it's straight out of a Brazilian travel brochure.
Whilst in the Marina in Las Palmas Augustin and Sonja visited to celebrate our anniversary and brought with them a gorgeous cake..
Sharon and I also visited Malcolm and Julie on board Ellen II a Moody 42. At 42 feet she was only 6 feet longer than Bonny but had twice the volume. Sharon fell in love with her straight away and wished I could have afforded one!
No pics unfortunately but here is one of another smart yacht that we were also entertained royally on, this one owned by American OCC member Joerg.
Malcolm's a member of the OCC and he and Julie have only very recently got together and will be crossing the Atlantic to the Carribean this year too. I had already been talking to Malcolm about his experience with Starlink, the new portable satalite system. Mick and I had completely failed in our attempts to download weather data via my old satalite phone and indeed had burned through 200 GBPs of satalite airtime trying to get the dam system to work. With climate systems becoming increasingly unpredictable and with the likelihood of complex weather systems to work through when we head up the North American seaboard next spring, I was rather keen on being able to get hold of good weather data. Anyway, to cut a long story and convoluted considerations of the pros and cons of the mid range starlink system short, I decided to buy one. At 450 GBP and with monthly data at 85 GBP it looked like it compared favourably with the Iridiumgo system which cost around 800 GBP and provided a far slower internet connection. With Starlink we should be able to down load large scale weather forecasts mid ocean.
Malcolm very kindly leant me his Stralink carry case which cost almost as much as the kit itself - comprising a satalite dish, a router, some cables, and a stand for the dish - so that I could carry it back on the plane after my forthcoming short visit back home. The die was cast.
On the Sunday, Stephen, Russell and I sailed Bonny down here to Pasito Blanco, where I was going to leave her for a couple of weeks and return home to save some of my precious Shengen days and of course see the family. This would probably be my last chance to see everyone before next summer. The trip down took most of the day and we had a bit of everything with calms, very sloppy seas and some strong winds. The lads were both a bit queesy for a while but overall both enjoyed the trip. It was Russell's first experience of sailing.
Once again, Agustin was a tremendous help as he has been on so many occasions in the past and would be so again. Sharon and Ines picked up a hire car from the Airport after we left on the boat and drove down to Pasito Blanco to meet us there. It would have been rather a tight squeeze for us all on Bonny but Agustin very kindly lent us his boat to use for our short stay at Pasito Blanco. So, Stephen and co slept on board his boat whilst Sharon and I slept on Bonny.
The next day we spent touring the island in the hire car. The scenery of the interior of the island is quite breath taking with imposing jagged cliffs interspersed with islands of forest and other greenary where, it's my guess, moisture is deposited by the clouds that form atop the peaks and from which even rain falls from time to time. The scenery brought to mind the lanscapes of the wild west so often portrayed in 'Western' films. The driving was quite challenging on some very twisty mountain roads but Sharon did an incredible job - she was the only insured to drive.
At the end of the day we dropped Russell and Stephen and family off an Las Palmas and then Sharon drove us back to Pasito Blanco. We had had so much trouble with the mooring the previous night with the swell forcing the bow of the boat up agains the adjacent walkway that I had had to pull the boat so far back on the stern lines that it was almost impossible to get on and off the boat, so that night we slept on board Agustin's boat.
The next day we drove to the Airport, met up with Stephen and Ines and flew home. Sharon and Co went on the afternnon flight and I went on the evening flight.
The two weeks at home flew by. It was wonderful to see everyone again and I found it quite difficult to say goodbye once again after the short visit. During my stay there was a big party at the house to celebrate various birthdays including Charles; Sharon and I visited my Mum and Stepfather in Norfolk and I visited my Stepmother and we both visited my brother Basty and Gill in their lovely 'new' house in Peckham. Before I knew it it was time to head back to Pasito Blanco. The shortness of the visit being dictated by the cost of the marina fees. Agustin very kindly picked me up from the local bus station after my bus ride from the Airport and as soon as I was back on board and the wind eased sufficiently I moved the boat out to the anchorage which was free.
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