Back onboard we tidied up and got settled in the marina properly; adding our robust docklines, connecting the water and electricity, dropping the sunshades in the cockpit, stowing the spare docklines, etc, before we started on the next To Do List, which included lubricating all the squeaks we heard on our overnight sail from Isla de Lanzarote, adjusted the steering cables to loosen them slightly after they were tightened a little too much when we checked the steering system in Gibraltar, tested all the bilge pumps, replaced two instrument panel bulbs, which blew on our passage from Gibraltar to the Canary Islands and finally visited the local chandlery to source an engine blower for the port engine, since the online provider is turning out to be a tad slow and likely to miss delivering it to Justine and Paul before their departure to bring it with them.
The worst task of the day, however, was yet another attempt - we’ve lost count on how many times this has been done - to fix the starboard aft head (aka toilet) in our guest head (aka bathroom), needed for Justine and Paul. This time, not only did the motor decide to stop working, but the leak had resurfaced. Such a pain since, no matter what bits and bobs we’ve replace on this head, it still gives us problems. Last resort will be to swap it with the other head in the starboard forward head until we can get all the parts we need, or indeed, purchase a brand new head. So frustrating given the hours spent on this issue. A close second is the starboard hot water tank that started to leak again, emptying a significant amount of our fresh water before we realised it was leaking again. This, however, is a problem for another day. The strange aspect in all of this, though, is that all these issues are occurring in the starboard hull, an area of Paw Paw that’s rarely used at all. The mind she boggles!
Our day ended with photographs of Layla on her 2nd birthday, looking as cute as ever with her glasses and a 10 Km round trip walk to watch the Ireland vs All Blacks Rugby World Cup quarter final at Paddy’s Anchor Bar, which was packed with Ireland supporters. Thankfully we got there early to get seats. In the process we discovered a number of pedestrianised areas of the city and the very busy and touristy Playa de Las Canteras, arriving just in time to watch the sunset. Sadly, though, Ireland lost, but what a game. It was rather disappointing, however, that Ireland had the referee working against them when he stopped the game every time Ireland were right on the All Black’s line, so much so that it became predictable. We hardly ever watch a rugby match due to inaccessibility, but this referee’s actions were blatant, especially giving penalties to the All Blacks for the most minor of transgressions by Ireland, while completely ignoring the numerous offside plays by the All Blacks. Add to this the ridiculous draw of this Rugby World Cup, where five of the top teams were in the same pool, resulting in Ireland basically playing two “finals”; one against the Springboks, which they won, and one against the All Blacks, which they lost. In fairness, though, Ireland lost too many line-outs in the first half and failed to kick into touch when attempts were made; mistakes no team can afford to make against the All Blacks. Regardless, both teams played their hearts out! It was indeed a battle of the Titans!
During Roy’s watch the engines were turned off and we enjoyed the sail, but unfortunately, an hour into Elaine’s watch the wind had died down, forcing her to start one of the engines to keep a SOG (Speed Over Ground) of at least 5 Kts.
By 1100, though, with a countercurrent raising its ugly head and barely a breath of wind, the headsail was furled and both engines were on, the story of our lives at the moment; blowing a gale while we’re berthed or at anchor and precious little wind while underway! By this stage, though, we had less than 30NM to go, but every nautical mile covered, was a nautical mile closer to reaching the Caribbean, finishing our circumnavigation and taking us closer to loved ones.
“Land ahoy” was spotted just before noon and by 1330 we’d picked up cellular data. Prior to that, reading our respective books had entertained us, thankfully, because it was rather slow going.
By 1700 we were tied to the reception dock, waiting our turn to check-in to the marina and then get shown to our berth. While the marinero was very friendly and welcoming, the marina office staff were definitely not, especially since Roy was basically thrown out of the office because he’d dared to walk in while another cruiser was being attended to and sternly informed to wait his turn outside the office. He didn’t feel too bad, though, when the exact same thing happened to the next cruiser who had just arrived.
Of course, we also met our first numpty on arrival, who cut us off coming into the marina to get onto the reception dock before us, then took up the entire dock before he was instructed to move forward to make space for us to tie up. Coming over to apologise was almost his saving grace, but indicating that it “wasn’t his intention” to “cut us off, then hog the dock”, sealed his fate because that was exactly what his intention was, otherwise why would he have done that. The blank stare he received from both of us said it all!
Regardless, we were delighted to have reached our last stop before heading to the Caribbean. A tad incredulous actually! With our World ARC flag flying proudly we are, however, causing some confusion amongst the other ARC cruisers here, but looking forward to all the festivities and build-up to our departure.
To get this completed, though, neither of us had a minutes break from when we opened our eyes until it was time to have a shower and get ready for our evening outing; a barbecue at Andy and Paul’s home, after they moved back into it. Friends, Graham and Lesley, were there too and we were delighted to meet Andy and Paul’s daughter as well. Needless to say, another wonderful evening ensued, sitting on their patio, enjoying the cool breeze and spectacular seascapes while savouring a delicious meal, accompanied by the usual copious amounts of alcohol.
Before we knew it, though, the night had come to a close and we were saying our goodbyes, always a sad occasion, but we had more great memories to take with us.
This morning Roy was up early and took a walk to the shop for a few provisions, while Elaine got Paw Paw ready to set sail for Gran Canaria. However, since this was to be an overnight sail, we spent the day anchored off Papagayo Beach at the southeastern end of Isla de Lanzarote, where we both enjoyed an afternoon nap to take the edge off our fatigue. Clearly we had partied harder than we realised!
By 2345 we had weighed anchor and set a course for Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, our final staging point prior to our Atlantic Ocean crossing.
Back on Paw Paw, the remainder of the day was spent editing and producing our “professional” videos for selling Paw Paw, the footage of which was all filmed on Thursday. Delighted with the initial results, Saturday was basically a repeat of Friday, with the exception of choosing somewhere different for our breakfast; the Rubicon Coffee Truck inside the mall. Although we had the video efforts to occupy our time, we however, had to remain onboard while we waited on instructions from the marina to move to our re-assigned berth. By 1800 the instructions hadn’t arrived, so an email, marked “urgent” was sent to the marina office explaining that we were heading out to honour our dinner reservation and that we wouldn’t be onboard at all on Sunday. It was during dinner that Roy received a phone call from the marina staff, apologising profusely and informed us we didn’t have to move afterall. Delighted with that news, we enjoyed a rather unusual, but tasty dinner at Arabella’s on the waterfront; a Buddha bowl for Elaine and a house special Italian pasta dish for Roy.
Still exhausted from our passage and feeling frazzled from the continuous stream of To Dos, Sunday was a day of rest; well, at least, a change of scenery.
After collecting our hired car, we set off to explore Isla de Lanzarote. First stop was the Timanfaya National Park, in the southwestern part of the island and had the most unusual landscape we’d ever seen, dotted with dormant volcanic mountains, craters and fascinating rock formations rolling out into the distance, created from the numerous volcanic eruptions over the centuries. Our coach tour took us through this impressive sea of lava, stopping at various volcanic craters and lava tubes along the way, making us feel like we were on the moon.
Timanfaya, meaning Fire Mountains, is a reference to the greatest recorded volcanic eruptions that devastated the island for six years from 1730. Documentary evidence of this eruption states: “On the 1st of September (1730) between nine and ten o'clock at night the earth suddenly opened up near Timanfaya, two leagues from Yaiza. On the first night a huge mountain rose from the bosom of the earth and from the apex flames escaped which continued to burn for nineteen days”.
Volcanic activity continues today as the surface temperature in the core ranges from 100 to 600 °C / 212 to 1,112 °F at the depth of 13 metres / 43 ft, something we could feel through the ground as we walked around and which is demonstrated by a guide pouring water into a volcanic vent, resulting in a geyser of steam, as well as a barbecue located over one of the lava tubes, which was roasting pieces of chicken while we were there. The heat emitted was staggering.
In 1993, UNESCO designated a Biosphere Reserve covering the whole of Isla de Lanzarote, with the national park as a core area.
Besides taking the coach tour, one can also tour a section of the park by camel, something we decided was probably not the best idea, particularly for Elaine, since Roy’s imagination was running wild once again, with visions of Elaine hanging off the side of the camel by one leg and being trailed through the sand or something ridiculously similar.
After our tour, we enjoyed a coffee and baked delight at the restaurant in the park, sporting spectacular panoramic views of the stunning landscape, giving way to the Atlantic Ocean in the distance.
From there we made our way to the first of two vineyards we visited; Bodega La Geria and Bodegas Rubicón, where we learnt about the ingenious growing process used on the island.
Given the harsh, arid climate and a landscape of black rock, it seemed impossible that anything could grow, never mind grapes, but generations of dedicated winemakers found a solution. The ingenuity of Lanzarote's 18th-century inhabitants dug deep divots by hand, called “hoyos”, into the volcanic ash, 3 metres / 10 ft in diameter and 2-2.5 metres / 6 ft deep, until the buried soil was found, where the vine was then planted. This “hole” is accompanied by a rock structure that acts as a windbreaker to protect the plant, making the landscape look more akin to an art exhibition rather than world-class vineyards. Since we’ve enjoyed a number of dinner outings, we’ve had the opportunity to sample a variety of these locally produced wines and they’re definitely unique, as well as tasty.
Our next stop was Museo Lagomar, which incorporates “Casa Omar Sharif”, the famous home of the actor, Omar Sharif, which he lost in a gambling bet during a game of Bridge and what must have been a heartbreaking experience, given the uniqueness of this home, built into the contours of the rock-face, with the natural caves creating the various rooms of the house, providing spectacular views of the volcanic landscape and Atlantic Ocean.
Our last stop was the “Cueva de los Verdes” (the Green Caves), situated on the northeastern part of the island. Unfortunately we weren’t able to see the inside due to the lengthy wait times before each tour, opting instead to drive down the coast and stop in at Punta Mujeres to enjoy a delicious late lunch / early dinner at Mamas Grazia, before continuing on to Puerto Calero to enjoy a nice cup of tea and a chat with Andy and Paul on Talulah Ruby III.
By early evening we were back in Marina Rubicon, enjoying sundowners on the waterfront, before heading back to Paw Paw for a nice chat to Keenan, who was on a stopover in Seattle.
Yesterday we were up fairly early to get ready for our departure from Marina Rubicon. While Roy dropped off our access card and the key of the hired car, Elaine prepared breakfast, after which we gave Paw Paw a cursory clean. It was soul destroying that, after all the effort and energy we’d invested in giving her a detailed cleaning inside and out, to stage her for the “professional” videos, a sand storm, which blew until this morning, had covered her in red sand off Morocco. It was literally everywhere!
By noon we’d cast off the dock and had commenced our short sail up the eastern coast of Isla de Lanzarote to Puerto Calero, where we’d secured a berth months ago and where Andy was waiting to assist us with our lines. After an initial chinwag and a cold beverage, arrangements were made to join Andy and Paul and friends, for sundowners on Talulah Ruby III, followed by dinner at a wonderful local restaurant called Restaurante El Tomate, the first restaurant to open in the marina after it was first built.
By mid afternoon, though, neither of us could keep our eyes open, forcing an afternoon nap; something we were glad of, considering the rather late night which ensued over drinks, dinner, numerous sailing stories and plenty of laughter in the company of friends.
Today we enjoyed a somewhat slower morning, although most of the day was spent completing our “professional” videos, revamping our For Sale website, uploading all the videos and advertising on a few more platforms. We ran out of time by early evening when it was time to meet Andy, Paul and their visiting friends for drinks at the Upper Deck Bar, followed by another tasty dinner at the Azure restaurant. Besides eating and drinking our way through Isla de Lanzarote, we were definitely sampling all the different restaurants in the process.
For those interested in seeing the videos or indeed, if someone is interested in purchasing Paw Paw, feel free to visit our For Sale website at leopard46.appsforboats.com. We plan on having this link on our whereispawpaw.com website soon as well.
Deciding to enjoy a nice long walk to stretch our legs, after being yacht bound for days, we walked around the circumference of the marina, surprised to find a uniform architecture of buildings, beautiful cacti gardens, wide walkways, bridges over little ponds, an Arts & Crafts fair, a swimming pool which we have access to, a laundry facility, supermarkets and numerous cafés, bars and restaurants, all of which were neat, tidy and spotlessly clean.
After completing our business at the marina office, we enjoyed a morning coffee accompanied, of course, by a baked delight, before returning to Paw Paw, where we had a number of important tasks to complete, some administrative and some urgent repairs that raised their ugly heads on passage. These included temporarily plugging yet another leak in the starboard hotwater tank. This was a brand new tank, which we’ve now lost count on the number of leaks we’ve had to repair on it. Completely and utterly ridiculous! The manufacturer is definitely going to get an earful at the first opportunity we get.
Other tasks included filling the water tank, cleaning the RACOR filters on both engines, running the generator and cutting Roy’s hair before getting ourselves ready for our dinner outing; we were meeting Andy and Paul, off Talulah Ruby III, after saying goodbye to them 18 months ago in Suakin, Sudan during our Red Red passage. Needless to say, another evening of fun and laughter over drinks and a delicious meal ensued. It was lovely to see them and catch up.
Later research revealed that the architecture of the all white buildings, with accented wooden beams and specific colours of paint, were the brainchild of the much respected local artist and sculptor, César Manrique, who until his death in 1992, exercised an effective control over the design of buildings on Lanzarote as artistic adviser to the island council. This uniform architecture permeates across the entire island and makes for a very aesthetically pleasing environment.
Unfortunately today was a day that we’d both sooner forget altogether.
Deciding that a video of Paw Paw and all her features would better serve the purpose of selling her, we set about giving her a “spring” cleaning inside and out, then staging each area for a video. This was a retake on all the efforts we’d put into taking the high resolution photographs a fortnight ago in Gibraltar and was something we shouldn’t have had to do again had we not been ill advised and had followed our own intuition at the time instead.
This effort required, on the heals of an exhausting two weeks in Ireland, an exhausting two weeks in Gibraltar, following our return from Ireland, to get all the necessary repairs completed on Paw Paw before our departure, using the parts we brought back with us, as well as all the effort required to complete the majority of the provisioning for our Atlantic Ocean crossing, on top of a five day passage from Gibraltar, without so much as a breather in between, was infuriating and the last straw for Elaine, pushing her well beyond breaking point and causing a complete meltdown by early evening. The good news is that she found her limit, but it wasn’t a pretty sight and definitely not a boundary she could afford to find with her health conditions!
By the time order was restored to Paw Paw and we were able to crawl into our beds after a nice hot shower, it was well past 2200, a day never to be repeated under any circumstances! Our only hope now is that this “pound of flesh” was worth it!
Although the wind speeds fluctuated between 12 and 18 Kts, we kept the engine off, deciding that a SOG (Speed Over Ground) varying from 5.2 Kts to 6.5 Kts was enough to get us to Isla Graciosa just after lunchtime, both delighted that we didn’t have another night at sea. It had been 18 months since doing multi-night sails from Djibouti to Sudan, then Sudan to Egypt and onto Türkiye and we were both feeling the effects, so much so that Elaine decided to postpone her methotrexate day, rather than risk the nausea side effect that she knew would result in expunging her body of the medication regardless, something she really didn’t feel like dealing with.
Pan-Pan calls regarding migrant boats and their possible positions, broadcast over the VHF radio, continued as we got closer to the Canary Islands, most located in the vicinity of where we were heading. That required a sharp lookout for the remainder of our passage.
By 1100 we had roughly 15NM to go, but had lost all our wind, so the genoa was furled and we continued onwards.
“Land ahoy” occurred just before noon when we spotted Isla de Alegranza and what we thought to be Lanzarote Island; our initial destination of Isla Graciosa lay between these two islands, but being as flat as a pancake, we understood, we weren’t expecting to see it until we were very close in. Then Elaine spotted two peaks just after noon at about 6NM out.
Making our way down Estrecho del Río the winds picked up to 25 Kts and, by the time we wanted to anchor, they were howling at 30 Kts, ripping a section of our weatherguard at the helmstation. Given that the anchorage wasn’t protected at all in these conditions, we took the decision to scrap that plan and continue down the west coast of Isla Lanzarote to the south coast. Fortunately we managed to get a last minute reservation at the Rubicon Marina, but getting into the berth remained an unknown with the winds.
After sailing the remainder of the day in howling winds, it was close to sunset by the time we rounded the lighthouse situated on the southwestern tip of Isla Lanzarote, after which the winds died completely, allowing us to enter the marina without too much ado.
By 1915 we’d tied to the visitor’s dock, cleared in at the marina office and moved to our berth for the next four days, with the hope of getting this extended to six days.
Before a dinner of bangers and mash, a celebratory “we-got-here” drink was enjoyed on the foredeck as the sun dipped below the horizon. It wasn’t long after that we both crawled into our beds, thankful that we’d made it safe and sound to the Canary Islands, leaving us with just one more passage to complete our circumnavigation.
Although we had wind speeds of 15-20 Kts overnight and around 15 Kts for most of the morning, we still had a horrible countercurrent of 1.5 Kts against us, which meant we had to continue to motor-sail on one engine at a low RPM to keep our speed up. However, by 1500, the countercurrent had subsided, the winds had picked up again to 15-20 Kts and we were sailing again at last!
Besides Elaine not sleeping too well on both her off shifts last night and Roy almost suffocating himself, after putting his pillow over his head to drown out the noise on his second off shift, we both managed to catch up on our sleep during daylight hours.
Additionally, Roy mopped up water in our starboard bilge, having no idea where it came from and we both finished reading our books.
We’ve certainly had a few unusual occurrences on this passage, though. In particular, we’ve never heard a MRCC (Maritime Rescue and Coordination Centre) calling yachts to lookout for migrant boats. Today we could hear Arreciffe Radio on Lanzarote Island and Las Palmas MRCC on Gran Canaria Island calling various yachts, which was a little disconcerting, as we really didn’t want to encounter anything like this, especially at night and run the risk of colliding with one of these boats.
Additionally, we’ve heard numerous warships too; American, British, Spanish and Moroccan. In particular, one occurrence was a securité broadcast on the VHF radio from an American warship requesting traffic to remain 15NM away from a stated location, since live ammunition was being used in an exercise; really! Furthermore, the British warship was informing a vessel to cease operations and leave British waters immediately. For all we know, World War III could have erupted and we’d be none the wiser!
During Roy’s first watch of the night tonight, he had to wake Elaine to jibe, which set our final course for Graciosa Island, located just north of Lanzarote Island. He also had to restart one of the engines because the countercurrent had raised its ugly head again and the winds had dropped to below 15 Kts.
By the time Elaine came on watch, with the moon rising much later, it was a very dark night initially, but, by 2300, a waning gibbous was lighting our way as we soldiered on with less than 80NM to go.
