Atlantic - keep going South until the butter melts

We have continued our journey South with the goal of being in Gibraltar by June 6th to install our Solar panels. Fingers crossed this is still going ahead since there currently is a stainless-steel shortage. You may recall that we initially planned to have this done in Lisbon but timing did not work. Surprisingly we now got a better deal in Gibraltar which is of course a bonus.

After leaving Lisbon, we did some further stopovers in Portugal: Sines, Baleeira, Vilamoura and Ilha da Culatra.

Back in Spain (our last leg before entering Gibraltar) we also stopped in Azamonte, Mahagon, Rota and Barbate.

On Navionics (our electronic navigational charts) we could see some spots marked with: “Caution - Submarine Exercise area - Submarines Exercise Frequently. Both surfaced and submerged. A sharp lookout is to be kept for them when passing”. We certainly did keep a look out but could not see any “snorkels” coming out of the water. That does not mean that there weren’t any ... we would have loved to see what was going on below us.

Our various stopovers have been uneventful (except from entering a military shooting zone - more on that later....). Hardly any waves or swells. However, there has also been little to no wind. After floating for hours like a sitting duck we had to motor most of the way to get to our new destinations before dark.

Here a few impressions and comments from some of the spots we stayed..

Lisbon

Some graffiti at the empty train station near the marina. One saying "a melhor maneira de vijar é sentir" (The best way to travel is to feel).

We visited the Lisbon castle where a peacock showed off his brightly coloured feathers.

We left Lisbon early in the morning at first light and had breakfast on the way.

Sines is a pretty and relaxing place. We both enjoy the local restaurants and ate in this family run place. It did not look like much from the outside (or inside) but we felt it was charming and were served great local food.

One of the many things we enjoy on the boat is the different outlook from our floating home, not only nearly each day but also at different times of the day eg below is the view of the Castle of Sines by day and night

We could not resist an ice-cream stop

Baleeira (Enseado da Baleira) we ended up anchoring, cooking on board and watching another stunning sunset and sunrise later on.

Ilha da Culatra

After spending a night at Vilamoura - a very touristy resort in the Algarve region (known for its large marina surrounded by restaurants, bars and party goers) we were glad to be back on anchorage at Illha da Culatra. We used the dinghy to go out for dinner to a little local restaurant on the island. We also got the coast guards checking in on us.

Aymonte (back in Spain)

Aymonte belongs to the Huelva region in Andalusia and is right next to the Portugal boarder. This was a very nice spot. Lovely shops and restaurants. We could have easily stayed longer than our 2 nights but are on a mission to get to Gibraltar. Hams, hams and more hams in the shops....

The houses in this lovely village are mainly white, however there were a few colourful streets as well.

We just enjoyed our drinks and watched the kids playing in the village centre next to the church.

Rota - Oh my goodness – we think we are in trouble again.

On our way to Rota we heard a name similar to "Kwilena" being called on the radio but we were not sure if it was for us. What we did hear is a message in Spanish saying: “real shootings currently going on“ and the coordinates. Shortly after we were called on the radio again asking what our intentions are and where we are heading. A civil motor boat was circling us. We were advised that this is a military shooting area and to head immediately 5 nm away from shore. Interestingly the navigation charts did not show that we were not allowed to enter ... but when zooming right in it did say military area....

10 Minutes after we changed course we got another big ship approaching us. We watched the mothership lifting a smaller boat down with a crane. This boat was heading towards us at high speed. 3 of the 4 men dressed in black, guns and all, boarded our boat. We asked them if we did something wrong. They laughed and said no and did their paperwork. They smiled for photo (we at least think they did). There also was a discussion if our boat should be searched (which they didn’t).

The four men in black heading back.

Rota is a place we enjoyed a lot as it offers a bit of everything but still kept its medieval atmosphere. . We did some very long walks along the beach as well. This fishing town also houses the largest US Navy and Marine Corps personnel. We got the police arriving again at our boat asking us for our papers.

Below "Besame en esta Esquina" translates in English to "Kiss me in this corner". Sven said he did not speak Spanish 😂

Many little streets had these flowerheads on the walls.

Old part of Rota.

A few photos of us being hopeful / positive and putting out our sails then waiting for some more wind or gusts…..

More from us soon from Gibraltar.