Covid in Ibiza

Question to our blog readers: Where are the straps of the mask attached ?

Well we read that Covid cases are really going up in Ibiza but we were keen to stick to our schedule. We try to avoid crowds as much as we can and keep wearing our masks on our face!

We avoid busy times by not eating at 9 or 10 pm like most people do here. We rather go for a late lunch somewhere or cook on the boat.

We expected Ibiza to be crowded and busy during high season and summer school holidays. However we have always found a quiet anchor spot somewhere. At the beginning we were thinking “did we miss anything re wind, swell, wave directions?”

When we anchor close to land we sometimes pack our dry bag and swim to shore with it (rather than taking the dinghy) get changed on land and go for a walk, drink or meal then swim back to the boat.

We are always busy, either with planning / researching where to go next, household and boat chores or activities like walking, exploring, swimming, reading. We are never bored.

For planning our journey we use the following applications on our ipad - there are many similar apps of course:

• Navionics (electronic maps)

• Windy (gives us wind, waves, swell, weather info)

• Google Satellite Maps (we use it to familiarise ourselves with the area before arriving)

• Navily (maps and info from other sailors re good and bad anchorage spots)

We also have pilot books, our boat instruments and as mentioned previously use the anchor pro app to get a warning if our anchor shifts during the night.

Many items are obviously different than at home. A few examples:

• We need to put the water maker on in clean water to have enough for showers, dishes and the washing machine. We plan where we run the washing machine and where/when to hang out the clothes to dry.

• We need to consider Solar panel capacity when using the converter for 230V appliances (eg laptop, Nutribullet, washing machine)

• When food shopping we typically take the dinghy, our backpacks and walk to the first large supermarket. It is quite hot at the moment so we need to consider what we can carry back. If we are in a Marina and have heavy items we sometimes call a taxi to bring us back to the boat.

Walking back to the boat after food shopping....

.. and our. dinghy waiting for us alone at the beach.

Journey update: We have left Punta Del Abir (mainland Spain) early in the morning to cross over to the Balearian islands. Left at first light and were greeted with a beautiful sunrise and a great sailing breeze.

another beautiful sunrise... we never get sick of them...

Due to the Posidonia Seagrass we were asked to be careful where we anchor and to ensure we do not pull any out (penalties apply). We got checked several times by local authorities and have seen many boats being asked to leave.

Posidonia seagrass has several ecological functions, It’s as valuable as coral reefs, houses plenty of species and protects against erosion. It grows only a few centimetres per year and hundreds of hectares are already ravaged by anchoring. Once destroyed, it cannot be restored (this picture was taken from our emergency escape window on the boat)

We stayed near Ibiza then headed to Cala Soana (Isla Formentera) past Es Vedrà Island.

Es Vedrà is a small rocky (nature reserve and uninhabited) island off the south western seaboard of the Spanish island of Ibiza.

Es Vedrà Island really did look a bit mystical. Read its legend and mythology below:

Legend and mythology: The island is said to be home to sirens and sea-nymphs who tried to lure Odysseus from his ship. It is also thought of as the holy island of the Tanit, the Phoenician lunar goddess, worshipped as the patron goddess and of fertility, who became Ibiza’s patroness.. Legend has it that specific sacrifices were made to Tanit during full moons on the shore of the island.

Also there is no evidence of the claim, some claim that the Summit holds a high concentration of energy that could attract aliens! Specifically, the entire rocky island would be a large magnetic field capable of removing objects, disrupt compasses and frighten all visitors 😊. Some state you can make a wish the minute you see it and that it will come true!

We all made a wish when we passed.

We had our first visitor on board, Caroline's niece Désirée arrived from Zurich. She stayed with us 1 week.

Es Vedrà on pictures below.

We ate in a hotel in Cala Soana (Isla Formentera) where we had a great meal. Our boat is the second one from the left.

and another gorgeous view from our living room.

We did have a heavy rain but we were well protected in the bay. The boat was sparkly clean afterwards.

There was so much rain, that the water poured down the cliffs like waterfalls, One hour later the sky started to clear up again.

This is the first time we had restaurants onshore competing for new arrivals attention. Paella delivery to the boats and pick up of plate afterwards.

A hike along the cliffs

Reminded us of the twelve Apostles in Australia .... just with one rock.

Walking along the coast we came across many interesting natural sculptures

We continued our sailing adventure first around Formentera then Ibiza.

Anchorage in Raco de sa Pujada and hike. We "parked" the dinghy in front of somebody's boat shed (we did ask) and headed off for a walk. These kind of boat sheds can be seen often in the Balearian Islands.

When doing a hike it is always good to see that the boat is still on anchor and not floating somewhere out in the ocean.

The boat toilet is glowing when flushing !!! 😊

We were lucky to see Bioluminescence effects a few times when flushing the boat toilet water in the dark (sea water is used for that). This is the effect of tiny marine plankton and looks absolutely amazing.

We never seem to gain weight !!! 😊

We took a Scale to check our weight every now and then. But the funny thing is that it is rarely stable on the water and the numbers often swing up and down 5 kilos plus and minus 😊

We enjoy watching people from the boat . These rental boats are certainly a hit - not only with small children but even more so with adults!

Sending you our love from Mallorca (we have sailed over from Ibiza 2 days ago)

More from us soon