10) Menorca, Spain

Puerto de Fornells, Menorca, Islas Baleares, Spain 40° 03.9 N 04° 08.2 E

 10:15am

The mouth to this natural inlet is fairly narrow.  This body of water is considered a safe haven for boats when storms occur and there is a navigation range that helps with the approach. (Range: Two lights in the distance on land; the forward light is lower than the aft light; when lined up vertically you are on an invisible line that extends out the entrance of the harbor; as long as you keep those two lights lined up vertically on your way in you will not go aground.) 

Range markers are the white towers.

There wasn’t any traffic to speak of on our way in and we had the entire channel to ourselves.  The approach went well and we set the 75lb CQR anchor and 125’ of

all-chain rode in about 13’ of water.  We had an issue of the boat not responding well in reverse while trying to set the hook and we think it might be the line wrapped on the prop shaft.  This morning I will dive it and cut it free if it is still there. 

 

Onshore looked pretty quiet last night so we decided to eat in.  Alan, of course found something to work on.  John found something to keep himself busy, too.  A couple days ago at sea I noticed that something dirty brown had leaked from the top shelf of the refrigerator (oh, by the way, on this boat there is a real refrigerator like you seen in a house).  I knew I was going to clean it up and edit the fridge contents but could not do it underway. 

Last night I discovered that the chili in a bag leaked.  I cleaned the fridge and cooked the chili.  Unfortunately, all the liquid had leaked out and it was a pretty dry looking chili.  I added a can of diced tomatoes and salvaged the grub.

We have some boat issues going on.  The gen-set (generator) can only be started from down below in the engine room due to some inter-galactic force that has gathered and conspired to make Alan figure it out.  Alan is an electrical engineer and apparently he loves everything electrical.  If he had it his way we’d still be in Rome and he’d be re-wiring the entire boat and drawing new schematics.  Hell, we were on our way into this inlet and John had to tell him to get up from the table he’d been at for the last 8 hours drawing the gen-set wiring to see what we were seeing.  It was beautiful.  The sharp jagged cliffs, the sun setting, the fishing boats, the buildings on shore, and the clouds.  We remarked that we were seeing the beauty of the world and Alan was missing it all.  I guess you can tell that there is animosity growing.  This is one of the risks of crews.  Alan wants a perfect boat that makes sense and John, and I, understand that a 20-year old boat is what it is.  Back in Italy John and I agreed to get the hell out of town and work on the boat in the next exotic port.  I felt that if we had sails, an engine and some food we’d be fine.  Don’t get me wrong about Alan’s talents.  He’s a genius regarding electrical work and wiring and understanding.  He has fixed too many things to list. 

The next big issue is that the freshwater pump will not stop running when a faucet is opened.  It is drawing air from somewhere.  John thinks an o-ring on the pump needs to be replaced.  The pump is located in a difficult place down below in the engine room.  The plan is to fix the gen-set first and then work on the water pump.  John is outside scrubbing decks, Alan is below in the engine room and I’m about ready to get in the water.

When we got into Bonifacio Sunday morning I got pretty wet doing the dinghy work.  I took a shower and got on some dry clean clothes.  I am still wearing those same clothes 4 days later.  You don’t really sweat at sea and it is impossible to take a shower underway.  While on a passage you tend not to care about anything but sitting somewhere comfortable while on watch and sleeping in your bunk.  Changing clothes is not that important in the big picture while underway.  Yes, the clothes got dirty and I did know it was not normal.  It takes a little getting used to altering your everyday habits to get along in this environment.  I had the opportunity to shower last night but I knew I was getting in the saltwater this morning and I thought why waste a shower and clean clothes.  Once the gen-set is turned on and the water is heated (electrically operated water heater, not engine heated) I’ll get in the water, cut the line free and then take a shower.

We talked yesterday of hiking up the hills for a view of the inlet approach.  There are some ruins on the other side of the bay.  There might be something to see on the shore where all the condos and buildings are. 

6:30pm

John was in the water this morning before me and said the water was perfect.  I looked at the temp gauge at the nav table and it said 75°.  I was shocked how cold it felt after I jumped in.  After I got my breath I made my way to the prop.  It didn’t look too good.  I noticed a large clump of line on the prop shaft.

On this particular boat the prop is within about 3-4” of the keel and does not have much room for a line to wrap.  After several breath-hold dives and a few attempts to cut it free I went and got a scuba rig.  I am guessing that it took me about twenty minutes to cut it free.  It managed to wind itself so tight while wrapping that it heated up to its melting temperature and some of it melted and was hard.  The line also scraped away bottom paint and fiberglass. 

There are some rope fibers that made their way into the bearing and some that fused with the fiberglass.  There is the possibility that the boat will have to be hauled out of the water during our trip west.  Water that migrates into fiberglass is a very serious problem.  One good thing going for this current problem is that the keel is lead and the glass does not go very far so real serious damage most likely will not occur.

So, I cut the line free, the gen-set is running, John takes a hot shower, Alan takes a hot shower, Alan puts in a load of laundry and then John tells me to hurry up and shower so we can go ashore and get a beer and some lunch.  I have taken my last cold shower on this boat and let them know.  During my shower the water pressure failed.  There was scant hot water for my first rinse and for my final rinse I had to use a 2-liter water bottle from the galley.  It was ice cold.  I didn’t appreciate the load of laundry Alan started knowing the laundry machine leaks and that I needed a shower, too.  Very inconsiderate and that falls in line with some other things. 

For example, and yes I’m pissin’ and moanin’ right now, during the rough passage where Alan got sick I made tortellini for John and I while underway in the middle of the seas.  I knew we needed a meal to keep our strength up.  We needed at least one big meal to hold us a long time and a big bowl of pasta will do that.  Around noon I finally talked myself into getting up out of the cockpit and making my way to the galley.  I fried some pancetta, boiled water and pasta, added fresh garlic, fresh tomatoes, pine nuts, ground black pepper, sliced some fresh Parmesan and paired it with a chunk of authentic French bread from Bonifacio, France with butter.  I knew this was going to be good.  John and I were in heaven.  We had so much that neither of us could finish our servings and we saved them in the fridge for later that night.  Keep in mind that the stove is gimbaled and rocks with the boat to keep it level.  But, you still have to hold onto whatever is cooking.  And, I opened the portholes so I could constantly keep sight of the horizon so as to ward off seasickness.

Our agreed upon ritual is that whomever cooks doesn’t clean.  Fair enough.  After I prepared this meal I put all the dishes in the sink and the big pot on the floor.  We knew neither one of us was going to clean dishes until it was safe and we knew that was when we made it to port.  Well, after we made it to port and Alan had come out of his fog he decided to do the dishes the morning after we dropped the hook.  At some point that morning wherein the three of us crossed paths in the galley and had a short conversation he actually said to us that he did the dishes and didn’t appreciate that the food had dried in place and that we needed to be more considerate!  I let him know in a nice way that I cooked that food underway while he was sick in the rough seas and there was a water pressure issue and neither of us was about to do the dishes.  We never woke him up for his watches or asked him to do his watches.  We covered for him and said that’s the way it goes.  Sleep on a boat on a passage is worth its weight in gold.

9) Between Corsica & Menorca, Spain

Mediterranean between Corsica & Menorca, Islas Baleares, Spain

Puerto de Fornells, Menorca, Islas Baleares, Spain 40° 03.9 N 04° 08.2 E

Last night looking east we were able to see the lightning in a storm.  It was probably the system we saw earlier in the day that had moved over Sardinia.  Since the beginning of the trip we have transited with no moon.  The nights have been very dark.  But, the stars have been magnificent.  Venus rises when the sun sets and it sets soon after.  It is so bright that it is visible well before dark.  Mars rises with the unmistakable hue of a dirty red.  Falling stars are all over.

The seas had calmed down last night about 830pm.  Calm just means that the seas were about 2-4 feet and we could actually tell the difference.  Alan has unfortunately been down and afflicted with seasickness. 

I came on watch at 3 am.  Managed to get some sleep since 10pm.  My watch was uneventful.  Read some of my book, listened to my mp3 player and tried to stay comfortable.  Some soreness has settled in.  It is expected.

The best news of all is that since the seas calmed down and the boat is more efficient our arrival time has been moved up.  We expected to arrive before sunset and we arrived at 5:30pm.  This leg was estimated at approximately 242 miles and turned out to be about 270.  The black line running east from Corsica is the planned route to Menorca.  The red line indicates our actual route from Bonifacio, Corsica.  There is a break in the line because at that point the power to the computer was interrupted and we lost the tracking line.  The sharp left turn was the latter part of the rough period we went through on Monday night.

 

8) The Mediterranean

The Mediterranean 41° 02.235 N 007° 23.918 E

Last night was rough.  We have one less ceramic plate to wash or use or worry about.  It gave up the ghost sometime in the wee early morning hours.  There are many strange noises on the boat that we are trying to figure out.  They happen when the boat rocks and rolls like last night.  We located one of the noisemakers and cured it with, well, it’s not marine grade and not, uhm normal, but a folded newspaper will last a little while.  At least long enough to get some sleep.

I got off watch last night at midnight and immediately went to bed with lofty hopes of sleeping straight through to my next watch 6 hours later.  Nope, not going to happen.  This boat was rockin’ last night and not in a comfortable way.  The winds were up to 30 knots and the seas were lumpy.  I was up by 2 am rolling in my bed and listening to the noises and feeling the boat find its way.  Heard a loud crash of something breaking of which it was the plate falling off the shelf in the galley.  The boat would lift up and then follow through into the trough.  I just could not find a long-term comfortable position to lie.  Sometimes the boat hits a smooth spot that lasts for about 3 seconds and it is so weird.   Finished with teasing it then gets back to business.

Around 3:30 am Alan fired up the engine because the winds were down and we were in some very confused seas.  He set the throttle at 1,300 rpm and changed tack by turning port to get rid of the bumpy ride. 

   

I was back on watch at 6 am and watched Alan move off to bed.  It turns out he had a rough night, too.  Around 9 am we all convened in the cockpit and chatted.  John brought up the coffee for he and I and we talked.  It turns out that a Coke and a pear don’t mix.  Alan tried that last night and within half an hour he paid the Neptune tax.  Good to know.

The seas are very confused this morning and we are still rolling along.  The ETA for the next port has been revised due to the conditions.  We are now expecting to arrive around 11/4 at 3 am.  That’s about 2 days 10 hours from now.  We are at the mercy of the conditions.  Yesterday we had a tailwind and following seas well into the night that moved us along well.  Today we are sailing into the swells and seas pointing in to and as close to the wind as possible.  We are a little off coarse but headed in the right direction.

John and I just looked at the nav screen, which is a vertical mounted monitor over the nav table.  The computer tower is located abeam the cabin in a closet with a jumble of wires, inverter, TV, etc.  We are over a body of water identified as the Abyssal Plain east of Sardinia.  The conventional wisdom of sailors is that the when the wind blows in the Med it then becomes a messy, bumpy confused sea.  Today the Med is living up to its rep.  I am sitting at the nav table facing aft and looking out the window periodically to allay malaise.  So far, so good.  I am acquiring sea legs.  Based on my experience in the cyber-café a couple days ago in Bonifacio of the building moving while I was seated I am already sea-legged.

 

Several miles to port there is a large squall.  We are running parallel to it and it is of no concern right now.

 

   

As long as we continue to watch bubbles go by and are not able to count them then things are well.

7) Bonifacio, Corsica, France

Bonifacio, Corsica, France 41°23’ N 09°08’.8 E

Menorca, Spain, Puerto de Fornells 40°03.9 N 04°08.2 E

It’s 4:15pm and I’m on watch from 3 to 5 on our way to Menorca.  The black line is the planned route and the red line is the actual route.  We gotta go where the wind blows. 

John and Alan are asleep.  The wind is from behind at 20-25 knots and we are running with just the main up.  Our speed is between 6-7 knots.  The seas are building and they are just about 3 to 4 foot wind waves.  The swells are negligible.  The boat is slowly rolling along as I sit at the navigation station looking aft out the window.  We expect to arrive at our destination in about 38-40 hours or around 9am on November 2.

6) Bonifacio, Corsica, France

Bonifacio, Corsica, France 41°23’N 09°08’.8E

In a casual conversation between Nancy, John and I he mentioned that he had lost his multi-tool (Leatherman) and wanted another one.  While we were walking the streets of Rome he noticed a street side shop and looked for the tool.  Too expensive and we moved on.

Bonifacio turned out to be difficult for us to find a slip.  After entering the mouth of the inlet Alan contacted the harbor-master since he speaks French and notified them that we wanted a 17-meter slip to fit a 58’ vessel.  They came back with a location for us.  As we motored in we passed all the slips that would have been easy for us to acquire and were big enough for us.  Well, it turns out the harbor-master did not understand our requirements because he sent us to a slip area for smaller boats.  We got to the end made a difficult turn-around and asked for a bigger slip.  He gave us one in the same area.  We thought that’s what we get and that’s where we were going. 

Long story longer, we made it into the slip bow first and managed to capture the mooring lines and made fast the vessel.  Granted, all of this is 50’ from the promenade and when a boat this size comes in everyone watches.  The problem was that the mooring lines were attached to the bottom and located to handle a shorter boat.  We ran the risk of the boat hitting the cement dock when the wind shifted and slackened our lines.  John said let’s move across to the other side. 

We managed to get the boat in stern first this time and made fast the mooring lines.  The problem this time was the same problem in that the mooring lines were set for a shorter boat.  They went straight down and did not allow a forward pulling force to keep us off the dock.  I recommended that we drop the hook and put tension on it.  John said that he tried it here 8 months ago and the bottom would not hold an anchor. 

Then we got the clever idea of running a line from the bow across the water to the other side.  Since there was so much open space and no boats over there it was a perfect set-up.  We got the dinghy in the water, some line and me.   I went across and tied the line to the dock ring.  This line had three lines tied together to make the span and there were several knots in it.  Anyway, I managed to get the line to the dock and they managed to get it tied off to the boat and we were done.  For safety I tied a large faded orange float in the center to warn off boats.  We had effectively closed off the slips to all others.  We were a sight.  American! Outta my way!  American! Coming through!  I got pretty soaked doing all this and afterward took a shower and got into dry clothes.

Fast-forward and it is time to leave and set sail for Menorca, Spain, which is part of the Islas Baleares group of islands and the easternmost island.  The wind had changed directions overnight and it was up and we devised a strategy as to the best way to exit the slip.  We needed to avoid our neighbor on starboard and the hard concrete corner on port.  As we motor forward we need to make a slow turn to the right and keep moving.

In the Med they favor a specific type of docking that has come to be known as “Med-tie”.

In effect, you back in and secure two lines from the dock ring to the stern with one on port and one on starboard.  From the dock ring is a chain that dangles into the water and connected to that chain is a heavy line.  You grab that line and walk it forward to the bow mindful of the growth that has accumulated and the water splashing all over.  Once at the bow you then pull on the heavy line until you put tension on the part of the line that goes forward of the boat and is attached to a concrete mooring block on the bottom.  That block must be forward of your boat in order to have a forward pulling angle wherein it is most effective.  This was the basis of our docking issue.

Our plan was for John at the helm, Alan handling dock lines and me in the dinghy to capture the long bow line and float.  I put on shorts for this round and I thought I was prepared.  Once the stern lines were untied the stern began to swing to port.  Then Alan ran forward and released into the water the line that ran across to the other side.  The rope sunk before I could get to it to capture it and pull it from under the boat to avoid wrapping it in the prop.  Also, I was supposed to nudge the bow of the boat with the dinghy like a tugboat to push it away from the concrete corner until John had forward control of the vessel. 

The line got wrapped on the prop shaft and the boat had to move forward and the line kept wrapping.  He got past the corner and stopped and drifted and managed to keep the boat in one spot with throttle.  At that time I was within 10’ of the stern and Alan threw a knife to me.  This knife was the brand new knife that John bought this morning on our last minute shopping spree.  We had gone grocery shopping and bought way too much again and dropped into the chandlery just for kicks.  John found himself a new knife.

Within seconds of me opening the knife to the serrated blade and grabbing the float, the blue 1” double braid snapped and the boat was on its way.  I motored up to them and said ‘make it to safe open water and I’ll catch up’.  I needed time to get the line and float that was left behind.  So after I picked up the line I headed out of Bonifacio on a dinghy and the boat that I came in on left without me.  I was having a blast!

I managed to catch up to them about a half mile away and started taking pictures of them and they of me.  I followed them out to sea for about another mile and after the picture opportunity we made the connection.  I managed to meet up with the vessel fairly easy but the swells and the wind added to the difficulty.

Here I am in the Mediterranean operating a small dinghy a mile offshore trying to get on the mother ship for another adventure.  The sky was blue, the air was warm, and the water was the deep blue associated with offshore water.  I was in my element. 

After we broke away from the dock and ceased being a spectacle I offered to John in our quick exchange that once offshore I would dive the boat and cut the line free of the prop shaft.  After motoring out of the inlet he deduced that the wrapped line was not causing any out-of-balance issues with the spinning prop and we decided to delay cutting it until we were on the hook in the next place. 

Barely visible line in the water trailing from the prop.

Two hours later while having lunch we talked about our departure.  I offered that I should have had a knife and that I could not get to the line in time and that was the failure.  Then it popped into Johns’ mind that he did not know where his new knife was.  I said that I dropped it in the dinghy and it should still be there.  Sure enough it was there.  He got it, freshwater rinsed it, oiled it and put it in a safe place.  I just hope he knows where it is.

 

  

5) Bonifacio, Corsica, France

Bonifacio, Corsica, France 41°23’N 09°08’.8E

Last night I had the 3:00am to 6:00am watch.  When John came on at six I was pretty tired and headed off to bed.  He told me he was going to wake me when Corsica came into view.  Around 8 or so he woke me and I took some shots.

The first view of land after leaving Italy is the southeastern part of Corsica.

This is a monument to the souls lost on a shipwreck.

Not shy to let them know we are an American flagged vessel.  The smaller flag is the courtesy flag of the country we are entering and visiting.

This looks too easy.

Excuse me.  Do you speak English?