5th to 9th June - Pass the port

We had the next day to explore Porto but unfortunately the day did not start well as I looked in the bilges and found that they were full of water.  On investigation, it turned out to be the old Moody problem of the rear lazarettes not sealing properly and, with such a large quantity of water over the deck during the last few days, much of it had found its way into the boat.  It had not been an issue in the calm, flat seas of the Mediterranean but back in the Atlantic and UK it is going to be a problem again.  I ended up removing about 40 litres of water from various compartments in the bilges and then tightened up the lazarette locks, so hopefully we can get back to the UK without any further leaks.

Sadly, there had been a bit of an incident on the boat a couple of days earlier when Greg and Richard went shopping and decided to buy just three beers.  They came back to the boat, put one of the beers aside for me and then went straight up on deck with their drinks and a packet of crisps.  Emma, who was sitting in the saloon on her own, was completely ignored.  Not only did they not buy her a beer, she wasn’t even offered a glass of water or a crisp.  

Unfortunately, the atmosphere was still a little strained and so everyone decided to do their own thing in Porto.  Emma and I headed into town, first to the town of Gaia where the port lodges are based and then across the river into Porto itself. 

Porto (as seen from Gaia)

The two towns are built on the steep slopes flanking the river with an impressive two-level bridge between them. They are very attractive with lively waterfronts on both sides of the  river. The port houses have also moored examples of the traditional “rabelo” boats used to transport barrels of port down from their quintas up-river, where the port is made, to the shipping warehouses in Gaia.

By the end of the day everyone had returned to the boat and, as Porto was nearly a 4km walk away and up a very steep hill, everyone was also pretty exhausted.  Richard’s watch told him that he had done 46,000 steps and although he had probably walked further than anyone else, we were probably not that far behind.

The next day was to be the final early morning start for the 66 mile leg to Baiona in Galicia.  The wind and swell had completely gone and was replaced by a thick fog.  With visibility of only a couple of hundred yards it was a little scary as many local fishing vessels do not switch on AIS and so, all of a sudden, one would appear out of the gloom right next to us and we would have to take evasive action.

Crossing the border back into Spain

Fortunately, by lunchtime, the fog had cleared and it was sunny and warm.  There was even sufficient wind to allow us to motor-sail as we crossed the border into Spain.  

Baiona - where Christopher Columbus landed after returning from discovering America.  His boat, Pinta, is still here (at least in replica form).

We arrived at Baiona at about four in the afternoon and moored at the Monte Real Yacht Club which was a real treat as it was a proper old fashioned yacht club rather than a commercial marina.

A taste of the '80s

Feeling nostalgic, Emma had bought a bottle of Mateos Rose in Porto which we opened on arrival and, combined with the effect of some extremely strong rum and cokes that Greg made, the previous bad mood was lifted.  In the evening we all went up to the yacht club restaurant and enjoyed a fabulous paella.

Dining at our club

Bali Hai would be staying in Baiona for at least a couple of days waiting for some bad weather in the Bay of Biscay to pass.  The original plan had been to go round the coast to La Coruna before heading across the Bay of Biscay on a slightly shorter route but, as the first group of orcas was now between us and La Coruna, the decision was made to go directly back to the UK in a four-day crossing.

One of the Baiona beaches

The next couple of days were spent relaxing and enjoying Baiona.  Greg planned the meals for the crossing and then did a massive shop and stocked up every nook and cranny with provisions.  We also visited the replica of the Pinta and decided that crossing the Bay of Biscay in Bali Hai was going to be slightly more comfortable.

Greg decided to press gang one of the Pinta's crew

There was only one further "moment" when Richard was overhead making one of his sexist comments behind his hand to Greg but, apart from that, we managed to have some pleasant meals together in the excellent tapas bars along Baiona's main street.

Final dinner in Baiona tapas bar

After three days in the Baiona the weather was still not great out in the bay, but was good in rivers of the Riax Bais (of which Baiona was the most southern) and so we decided to head up to Combarra in the Pontevedra river for the final night.  Combarro is a restored fishing village and consistently considered to be one of the most attractive places in Spain famous for its galicain architecture and raised granaries.

The granaries of Combarro

Restaurant for our last paella before departure

We leave Monday morning to cross the Bay of Biscay.  For anyone following us on a tracker app, you will lose us when we are 10-20 miles from shore and our signal is no longer picked up by the land stations.  We may appear again as we pass the French cost after about 72 hours and then when we reach the UK on Friday.