Gran Canarian Interlude

Mount Teide

Roque Nublo

Colin at the mouth of a cave

Gilly at the mouth of a Guanche cave

A cave cum hidey hole

Gran Canarian small-holding

Goodbye Tenerfie

It is incredible how different these islands can be.  I suppose we will be having these same musings as we travel to the other archipelagos on our (near) future itinerary, but these Canaries, having the same ancestry and Spanish heritage are really surprisingly different in flavour and character.

We are now in Gran Canaria.  Of huge significance in our programme because it is the island where the BIG VOYAGE will begin on 10^th November…..only 2 weeks to go!  It has always been our ultimate target for this stage in the proceedings so it was with some pride that we arrived on the island from Tenerife .  However, this was not the usual impromptu arrival at any likely marina with the certain hope they would accommodate us…..with so many ARCees and other adventure-seeking yachts swarming the Canaries (especially Gran Canaria being the optimal island of departure for an Atlantic crossing) at this time of year, no, this time our departure and arrival needed some forward planning.  The trouble is, wifi services here are pretty abysmal – not just the technological side of things which varies enormously from marina to marina but also the basic email customer service side of things.  A eureka moment in Radazul marina Tenerife one day  when our wifi allowed us to send emails untroubled far and wide, resulted in us asking all the possible marinas in southern Gran Canaria if they had space for us……..and we waited eagerly for a reply so plans could be made…..and waited…..nada!  Eventually, as the days passed, we had one reply……”this is not possible as we full”. Uh oh!  What to do?  Charm offensive required.  Signora  got on the phone and eventually Signora managed to secure a berth in Puerto Rico.  We had a blowy sail across from Tenerife. There is a ‘wind acceleration zone’ between the islands which is a strange phenomenon as when you leave the coast there is hardly any wind and then whoosh…in it comes and how.  As the sailors amongst you will have realised, this sail, unusually as we were going against the trade winds, was more of a beam reach so the mainsail got an outing for a change much to Colin’s glee. Now we are experienced island sailors (!) we prepare for the wind and reef (make the mainsail smaller) as soon as we see any white horses atop the waves ahead which warns us there is more wind disturbing the surface.

Thus we arrived in Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria which is a lively tourist resort centred round the marina.  We sometimes feel we should be the ones who are paid as we provide part of the resort’s attractive frontage rather than the reverse.  Nonetheless, we enjoyed being part of the resort with its tasteful mainly low-rise villas and hotels and a beautiful beach with imported fine yellow sand and (guilty secret alert…..) a very nice outdoor Indian restaurant which we frequented twice in a week. Our neighbourhood pontoon (all stern-end-to with disgusting black, muddy, bow pick-up lines – yuk!) was populated by the usual international crowd of yachts…this time peculiarly by more Scandinavians than usual.  Hearing Norwegian being spoken around us again evoked lots of confusing  deja vue moments.

Then, we felt it was time to move on and be a little less of a public spectacle – one can only take so much fame!  So, Signora got on the blower again and with her best pleading, appealing  por favor tone and managed to secure a spot in a gorgeous and very posh marina just 6 miles down the coast at the southern tip of the island at Pasito Blanco.  It rather reminds us of our forever home in Hythe – a marina village – but of course this time with palm trees.  It is quiet and secluded and a welcome retreat from all the razzmatazz of touristland .  For the last few days we have hired a car to explore the island properly.  This involved a visit to the overwhelming Las Palmas marina to where we will be sailing next week and from where (….drum roll…. ) we will be meeting all the other 49 ARC Plus boats and departing on the Rally proper. Obviously this will be thoroughly reported on in later episodes but suffice it to say the marina is enormous with 1250 berths, ARC flags flying en masse – a real ARC ghetto with palpable excitement in all the surrounding bars and shops.  In fact the ARC port-a-cabin office was being lowered into place as we stood there which made us realise it is really is all ‘going live’.  Needless to say, euros were spent with un-pensioner- like abandon in the chandleries…which was the point of the exercise…always jobs to be done and improvements to be made.

So, what, I hear you ask, of the rest of the island visit?  Many of you will already have toured Gran Canaria I suspect so much of this will be familiar to you.  The interior of the island is incredible.  The volcanic scenery is very different to that in Lanzarote where it is black and lacking in vegetation.  On Tenerife Mount Teide steals the show but on Gran Canaria there are multiple peaks of orange cratered honeycomb interspersed with deep ravines of dry river beds (barrancos)where there is more fertile land and ramshackle small-holdings with goats grazing and an abundance of lemon and banana groves.  There is also much more evidence of the former inhabitants of the islands – the guanches, and the multiple caves in which they used to dwell and hide when the Spanish invaded.  The roads up to the 2000 metre peaks (most notably the jagged spike of Roque Nublo) are not for the faint hearted – especially those in the most inexpensive, hub-cap less Fiat Uno available to hire whose gears were decidedly dodgy.  A constant helter-skelter up and then down and hairpinning around the edge of the barrancos….just a giddying drive with views to match.  As in Tenerife, the north of the island is wetter and therefore much more green and lush whereas here in the south it is mainly barren but apparently the sunniest place in Europe.  There is one huge volcanic crater in the north of the island just on the outskirts of Las Palmas.  The Caldera de la Bandama is over 1000 metres wide and 200 metres deep and is a really impressive sight.  It is plain to see that if it ever erupted again the bustling city of Las Palmas would be a gonner in terrible Pompeii style.

As well as all this site-seeing there has been a more serious agenda aboard Resolute.  We have been brushing up on our emergency procedures and Gilly has been revising her radio technique (no jokes please about her having a good face for radio!).  Satellite communication skills also feature large, as well as the much more daunting man/woman overboard alarm systems and recovery procedures which, with only 2 of us aboard, need constant rehearsal.   All this voyage prep.  will no doubt be eluded to in more detail in the next exciting episode (contain yourselves!)……when The Countdown will begin in earnest.

Apples and Pears

First sight of Mount Teide

Mt. Teide Tenerife

Chris and Tanvi in Lanzarote

Lanzarote

Lanzarote

Lanzarote

Instinctively I feel it would be wrong to make a direct comparison of two very different Spanish islands in the Canary group having spent only about a week in each.  But that is exactly what we have found ourselves doing all the while and though it may indeed be like comparing apples with pears it is irresistible.

We sailed from Lanzarote to Tenerife (about 130 nautical miles) in a mere 26 hours last weekend. (Note how blasé I can be about these feats now we have over 3000 miles under our belts!)

I am sure many of you will be familiar with these Canary Islands so I promise not to labour the point or to loftily assume any of our opinions are essential truths.  They are just our impressions formulated on the hoof as we have passed through and from the perspective of being marina rather than hotel dwellers.  And I suppose that is a good place to start as marinas on both islands are still few and far between….although it seems there are more in the manana  pipeline.  This is primarily because of the prevailing winds (northerly trade winds) and the Atlantic swell which make only certain sections of the coast sustainable for the mooring of boats.  There are 2 big marinas on Lanzarote and another being built in the capital Arrecife.  Both are the focal points for large resorts of villas, apartments and hotels but both are privately-owned and well- resourced here-to-serve affairs who offer discount to ARC boats.  Tenerife too, for the size of the island, has only about 6 usable marinas for the likes of our 41 foot boat. Most are municipal (council) owned and therefore are not very well resourced and somewhat down at heel.  The others are privately owned but usually have little space for visiting yachts being mainly the domain of local inhabitants.  Of course marinas are not the only option for us and anchorages can be found but again, finding places to anchor which are out of the wind and swell is tricky.

Apart from La Graciosa, our first encounter with the Canaries was Lanzarote.  The architecture and style was continuous with that on Graciosa described ad nauseum  earlier:  one or two storey white washed, flat-roofed cuboid houses….with only one sky scraper to be seen anywhere and that was an office block in Arrecife which stood out like a sore thumb.  The strict building rules were attributed to one man’s vision for Lanzarote – that man being Cesar Manrique, a painter and designer who trained in New York and then returned to his native Lanzarote and campaigned for only traditional and environmentally friendly development on the island.  In his role as part of the planning team he set strict limits on building heights and design. He died in 1992 but his legacy is clear to see.  Though inundated with tourists the island has been spared the worst effects of tourism and the locals pride themselves on the preservation of much of the island’s life, environment and general feel. 

The same cannot be said for poor Tenerife which has faced its own tourism challenge in a completely different manner – by building huge high-rise hotels which dwarf the local dwellings and crowd the few low lying areas of coastline.   The resulting look is a hotch potch of design and style and there is nothing of the original flavour of Tenerife.  The locals do not seem to display any pride in their island. They seem weary of the tedium of year-long tourism. With no respite for good behaviour why try too hard?

In both Lanzarote and Tenerife we have hired cars for several days to enjoy the interior of the islands and play at being proper tourists.  Chris and Tanvi joined us for a week in Lanzarote too which qualified us for proper tour guide status. On the face of it, Lanzarote is not an attractive place as much of it is black and pock-marked by the volcanic eruptions of the early 1700’s which laid 77 square miles of the formally fertile, lush agriculture lands bare. Being forced then to find alternative income streams, many farmers turned their hands to becoming vintners instead. Using incredible ingenuity they devised a way to capture the little moisture available by planting the vines very deep so the roots can penetrate beneath the volcanic rock and dust.  Each one is encircled with a little crescent of lava rock to protect and moisturise.  In a setting where nothing grows and there are no trees or vegetation, miraculously grapes are indeed successfully harvested in the most injudicious of environments and the resulting brave wines are delicious.  All along one long road running through the centre of the island are these unique vineyards and most boast ‘bodegas’ where the wine can be sampled and bought.  We succumbed of course!  With the multiple volcanoes and the damage which their eruptions have caused to the island being the environmental focal point it would have been churlish indeed not to go up to view the volcano itself.  We were not disappointed as the lunar-like lava-scapes were incredible not to mention the still- fiery craters themselves.  Although a national park full access was given and coaches run a continuous shuttle round the craters and lava flows giving a full commentary along the way with very personal testimonies from the diaries of local inhabitants written at the time of the eruptions.

As I am sure you are aware, the most iconic and beautiful view of Tenerife is of Mount Teide a massive peak which towers over 3000 metres high. It mostly has to be content to poke up through the clouds which predominate the north of the island giving this area highly valuable precipitation and lush fields of bananas and all manner of fruit and vegetables.  We drove through verdant forests and then into the rusty dusty volcanic terrain to the visitor centre in the national park.  We queued and paid our 25 euros each to be cable cared yet higher still but the remaining 200 metres to the actual crater was inaccessible unless one had booked and paid extra a month in advance.  On hearing this Colin was not best pleased as you can imagine.  Yes, the mountain views high above the clouds were awesome but for him especially the whole point of the exercise was to see the volcanic action….he was to be disappointed….all very untidy.  Never mind we thought……let’s see how the wines of Tenerife compare with those of Lanzarote. We had already driven past acres of vineyards laden with fruit so knew a treat was in store….but we searched in vain for a bodega beckoning us in for a taste-and-buy.  Feeling somewhat dejected we returned to Base Resolute.

I do not want to give a totally negative impression of Tenerife.  As I write we are in a functional municipal marina in the heart of the buzzing docklands of Santa Cruz the capital city.  We have enjoyed exploring the city and have found it to be as accommodating as all the Spanish cities we have visited thus far. But what it seems to lack is any of the individual glow of character or indeed pride which was so prevalent in Lanzarote. 

Tenerife, I am sure prides itself on the revenue stream created by mass tourism.  This keeps two international airports relatively busy and fills all of the usable (from a sailing perspective) coast with restaurants (of great mediocrity), hotels (of great height) and night clubs (of great audibility) but there is no character, no soul and little charm.  On the other hand may Lanzarote long be regarded by the mass tourist industry as  ‘Land-so-grotty’; may Cesar Manrique’s legacy live on and may Marina Rubicon and Puerto Calero continue to offer their first class service.  Lastly, may access to our daily safe haven of the beautiful swimming pool at Rubicon continue to be restricted to berth-holders only at least until we are able to return one more time.

We always have preferred apples over pears.

 

The 600 (nautical miles) from Lisbon to the Canaries

volcanic peak behind La Graciosa

‘road’ in La Graciosa

La Graciosa harbour

La Graciosa

Dervish the Wind generator and Harriet Hydrovane

Land ahoy at last!

Passage from Lisbon to Canaries

600 nautical miles or NM are equal to 690 terra firma miles and whilst on terra firma we talk about miles per hour (MPH) on the water 1 Knot equals one NM per hour.  Got it?

Contemplating a journey of that length under any sort of propulsion requires some forward planning and preparation (though perhaps not for our wider-visioned American and Australian cousins who would possibly contemplate such a distance with jaunty disregard).  For us small-island dwellers 690 miles is considered a LONG journey…equivalent to going from Land’s End to Aberdeen….non-stop in a car at a respectable 60 MPH is about a 12 hour drive but the boat goes at about 7 knots or 8 MPH and that is pretty much flat out!

So there we were in Lisbon contemplating our 600 nautical mile trip to the Canary Islands, estimating it would take us about 5-6 days non-stop – depending on the wind (evil expensive fuel-guzzling engines on sailing boats, you must understand, are only to be used in extremis and anyway only achieve a top speed of about 6 knots which is slower than Resolute can sail in a good wind – they therefore do not enter into the time/distance equation one iota).  This was very much billed as a dress-rehearsal for the bigger trips to come (Gran Canaria to the Cape Verdes and Cape Verdes to St. Lucia).  We were setting out to test the boat herself:  the rigging; the sails; the self-steering kit (Harriet the Hydrovane); the Water Maker (as yet unnamed – suggestions welcome) and provisioning to name but a few.  Also on trial was the endurance of the Skipper and crew (singular) to the 4 hour watch system over their longest period to date.  No pressure then.

With the forecast checked and treble checked and the holds groaning with supplies we left Oeiras marina at the mouth of the Tagus river, early on Monday 16^th September and much to Colin’s dismay there was no wind at all.  After an hour of forlorn sail changes we decided we had to switch on the engine and motor until the wind decided to make an appearance.  The swell made it quite an uncomfortable ride but we breakfasted and waited. At last the wind decided to blow as forecast….and then it decided to blow some more….until Gilly at least was wishing it would moderate its behaviour somewhat (no pleasing some people).  We had at least a Force 6 behind us and Colin was able at last to properly trial our downwind sailing rig – the one which we hope will see us comfortably across the Atlantic proper in November.  Let me explain further, without boring you I hope with all the technicalities:  to sail with the wind behind you it is necessary to have as much sail as you can up front.   Obviously.   To achieve this many multi-handed racey types opt for a very light but huge spinnaker sail poled out at 90 degrees…the beautiful colourful ones you see in all the pictures.  They are in practise not beautiful at all and need ropes galore to hold sail and pole in place, just the right amount of wind – not too much not too little and skill to steer the boat to keep the wind in situ (not a job for dear Harriet).  If the sail collapses due to the lack of any of the above it is likely to wrap itself around the rigging causing untold chaos.  So, needless to say this was not an option we chose.  Second to the spinnaker is the cruising chute….also pretty and colourful and made of light fabric but this time easier to manage as no pole is required.  They are however still tricky, definitely needing two people to put up and take down and jibe (take from side to side)….not a good option when one person is going to be on watch for most of the day.  So we decided our best bet was to compromise by poling out our existing headsail (genoa) which secured it in place in order to ensure it captured as much wind as possible but still allowing it to be modified and made smaller by rolling some away if necessitated by a sudden blow for maximum effect and to ensure some comfort to those on board by minimising any rocking action on the swell, it was accompanied on the other side by a little headsail (the working jib).  Once in place (no mean feat on a rolling sea) it worked an absolute treat and we were soon scooting along at a fair lick (about 7 knots) which in turn meant that the swell seemed as nothing.  Harriet too coped ably with her task of steering powerlessly and usually keeping us (when she didn’t get too distracted) on course.  Even when the wind dropped a little to a more comfortable Force 4-5 the sails did not need to be touched and we just carried on speedily.

The amazing thing about being out at sea and completely away from the land is the splendid isolation of it all.  Once we were well past the Straits of Gibraltar and the shipping separation zones in and out of the Mediterranean we saw one other vessel a day if that. On morning three (Wednesday) alone on watch again,  I was feeling rather wistful and wishing to see someone else…anyone else out on the ocean to loosely call a companion.  Much more in hope than expectation I surveyed the horizon and jumped up and grabbed the binoculars excitedly when I spied another sail!  The sailing yacht was heading straight towards us at right angles and as it came closer the radio crackled and a tentative accented voice came on the airwaves.  It transpired that the Swedish yacht was going from Casablanca to Madeira and we waved and exchanged comments about the good winds and then as they sank over the horizon we bid them a sad farewell.  But it was enough to bolster me, safely assured that we were not entirely alone out there.

The 4 hour watch system worked well for us but it does mean that, except when we hand over to each other, we don’t see too much of each other….some would say both a curse and a blessing!  To counter this we have a ‘dog-watch’ between 4-8 p.m. when we are both awake and this is when we send and receive e-mails (via the Sailmail system), check the weather (on Sailmail and the Sat C systems); run the engine (just to charge the batteries I hasten to add – not to drive the boat…heaven forbid!) run the water maker too if necessary; eat a civilised supper together and talk ten to the dozen of course….comparing notes about our separate watches and clocking up our progress (we make a navigational mark on the paper chart and write the log every two hours so the progress is plain to see). The dog-watch also means you naturally switch your watch hours in the next 24 which gives some much-needed variety.  The night watches of course can seem long and dark (the further south we go the earlier it gets dark) but the marvellous stars and the phosphorescence on the water and the appearance of the big bright cheerful moon all serve to make it a very special experience….a time to be totally ‘at one’ with the surrounding environment and therefore a great time for deep contemplation usually not afforded to us in our busy lives.

With steady winds continuing to help our endeavours and the sails well set and not requiring any attention (except checking for any chaffing) we were surprised to find by Thursday dog watch that we only had about 120 miles to go and that, all things remaining equal, we should make land the following afternoon….great excitements!   We had decided to make landfall on a small island north of Lanzarote called La Graciosa.  This decision was not for the faint-hearted because all the guides and pilot books stressed that the harbour there was so small and so prone to attempted illegal immigration from Africa that one had to jump through hoops of bureaucratic fire to be admitted.  It was therefore a big risk to be hoping to arrive there after such a long voyage when to tie up in a secure, hassle-free spot becomes a desperate necessity.  The nearest alternative on Lanzarote was a good thirty miles further on.  We had sent the necessary e-mails with all our particulars and announcing our intentions both to the La Graciosa Harbourmaster himself and to the Head Office in Las Palmas too, but it remained to be seen whether we would indeed be granted a space…no return e-mail had been forthcoming.

We first saw land on Friday morning – a huge sandy coloured mound which could not be mistaken in any shape or form for clouds.  Then gradually more lunar-like peaks popped up over the horizon.  Being so high of course they made their presence visibly felt over 30 miles away which made the next 5 hours as we neared the huge volcanic mounds almost unbearably slow and we were still left wondering if we would be permitted into La Graciosa harbour at all.  Eventually we made our final approach, excited by the dark peaks and cliffs around us and by the thought of a good shower and endless sleep… We entered the little harbour intending to go to any spare berth and then go to find the Harbourmaster….but before we had chance to gather ourselves we were whistled at by a gentleman frantically gesturing to us and with ‘no way’ written all over his face.  In our best Spanish we said the words “reservation” and then quickly added “with Las Palmas” and the negativity on his features and gestures diminished a little.  He asked us to turn round so he could see our name on the stern and armed with this information he gestured that we should tie up to the wall reserved for ferries and fishing boats.  We held our breaths but didn’t really dare to hope he would let us stay. Miraculously, he came back to us and grudgingly agreed that he indeed had a piece of paper from Head Office giving us clearance to stay…hurray!  We were given a berth next to a Brazilian boat (as if to serve to remind us that all our achievements are as naught compared to some).

La Graciosa was a delight and was all by itself ample reward for our four and a half day, 600 NM sail.  It is a place that time has completely forgotten with no roads – only sandy tracks.  The only vehicles permitted are Land Rovers…one doesn’t drive from here to there on La Graciosa one land rovers – a whole new verb.  With a back drop of a huge volcano the (only) town nestling on its fringes comprises little white cuboid, flat-roofed cottages and villas….resembling the pictures of Nazareth in your first illustrated Bible.  Visitors are ferried in on several boats from Lanzarote throughout the day and delight in the abandoned village feel and the beaches.  By 7ish they would leave us in peace in the evening to wander through the shady paths and find a bar or restaurant.  Just a magical, timeless vacuum of a place from which we had to prise ourselves away after three restful, life-affirming days during which the diligent Harbourmaster became our best friend and refused to charge us for our stay.

With our dress rehearsal voyage so successfully completed and to high acclaim (albeit our own!) life was very good.
(A short video is available on Vimeo at: http://vimeo.com/76076501)