WEDNESDAY 24TH JULY
The
real beginning .....
It
all happened in a rush. One minute there was drama and arguments,
the next Brian was calmly and coolly turning her in her own length in
the haven basin to the accompaniment of whistles and shouts of ‘see
you soon’ (Were they being ironic...?)
Obviously
there were mixed feelings. Plymouth has been our home port for 2
years, Devon our home county for many years. These people were and
still are our friends. Brian has said that Plymouth was just another
stopover location on our travels, and that thought has helped to hold
us to our task, as well as being a saving grace given the stresses of
our work. We’ve always had something to look forward to. Still,
any mention of Plymouth will always evoke happy memories and we
probably haven’t seen the last of it.
Other
feelings included were that we weren’t ready and the boat wasn’t
tidy enough and ... damn, I’ve forgotten to....
A
day later and there’s sunshine and no wind, the engine is on, and
I’m doing a ‘Nelson’ and the boys are reading. However, we did
get to sail across most of the Bay of Biscay in good weather with
nice North Easterly. That’s a bit novel for us. Motoring the
Atlantic isn’t something you think of doing ... We came to La
Coruna early on the 4th
day. We eventually decided to stump up the 50 Euros for a night in
Marina Coruna in order to see Richard off home, shop and do laundry.
It was great to have Richard along. It made such a difference. His
company and expertise were very welcome and we look forward to him
and Liz coming out to see us again.
We
finally anchored in a lovely bay, spoiled somewhat by the beach
–to-sea 24hour disco music. Someone had switched it on and gone
home! We got out my new (to me) dinghy, named in honour of my
Mother. The small inheritance I got paid for Island Song and we felt
that she should be involved in the plan. At the moment my rowing is
terrible but I’ve been promised lots more opportunities to
practise!
CAMARINAS
We
decided to hop around Finisterre and here was our first stop. It is
a pleasant little ria with a fishing harbour and small town and...
guess what ... disco music at dawn!
BAYONNE
This
town, marina and anchorage are in the Ria de Vigo, well past the
bleak and forbidding Cabo de Finisterre. Even the sunshine did
little to lift its spirits. What lifted ours in the opening hours of
fog was a couple of hours of non-stop porpoise play. It was like
having a continuous escort – a cohort would swim over, play and as
leave as another lot joined in. They are such fun and every
yachtsman in all parts of the world will have a story to tell of
these wonderful creatures. Bayonne itself is a lovely town. Getting
in was bit tricky as the outboard wouldn’t go into gear. We
paddled in like American Indians! Everyone was friendly and helpful.
In one shop where they didn’t have quite what we wanted, the owner
and another customer wrote on our map the name of another shop. On
our way there, we heard a car beeping and it was the customer who had
followed us and who gave us a lift! In the day to day life of the
water gipsy, these little incidents are the warp and weft in the
pattern of our lives. As time goes on there emerges a rich tapestry
of people and events, most of them unlooked for and always
appreciated. I’m sure we will contribute to other people’s
designs.
A
note about Island Song. She is handling the changes well. She
hadn’t been out of the Caribbean until we bought her. Her
commodious accommodation is proving valuable as well as versatile
with cabins turning into tool stations, wardrobes and ‘stuff
stores’ and back again at the drop of a hat. No idea where
anything is though .....
