02 Jan Travel Journey 3 | A Coruna – Porto

Travel Journey | A Coruna (Esp) – Porto (P) 

It is radiant blue, about 25 degrees and there is a fairly strong south wind. The weather forecasts for the coming days do not look much different. Not that this is annoying, but we are somewhat on time because Jamie, Berber and Denise, our friends, land on November 9 in Gran Canaria. The wind will have to turn.
Because of the heat, this is an excellent time to wash everything out well and to protect yourself from salt. The entire boat is emptied and all quilts, pillows, mattresses and clothing are scattered over the scaffolding. With a garden hose everything is sprayed down to the last detail with wonderfully fresh water. We wonder if this will ever be dry before we go to sleep, but an hour later the first underpants are already flying off the clothesline. With the warm wind from the south, which feels like a hair dryer, everything is dry in no time.

Our DIY list is steadily finished and before we know it, 2 days have already passed. A favorable wind is forecast for tomorrow evening as the only day for the coming period. With this forecast we can sail to Finesterre in exactly 1 day. From there it is easier to wait for good wind and to descend further south. During the day we find the time to get to know A Coruna a little better and we already prepare a meal if we go sailing that evening. The harbor master told us earlier in the week that we really should not leave on Monday because there was a far too high wave due to Hurricane Ophelia rushing towards Ireland. We thought this was a sales pitch and we saw the one after the other boat leave the harbor during the day. In the meantime, the harbor master was busy providing all boats with extra lines as if a hurricane would rage over it.

Vertrek uit A Coruna

Around 8 p.m. we threw off the bunches and carried out the A Coruna channel.
The forecast for the night was a wind force 2-3 with waves of 4-5 meters. The waves did not bother us very much until the wind broke down quite quickly. The bulletalie served as a blow-catcher all night. In the following afternoon we arrive in Finesterre where we anchor for the first time. We are in a beautiful bay and this will be our new home for the next 3 days. One of those days it rains literally all day and then you find out that a boat is very small anyway. We climb the local mountain, fish our evening meal together every day and also have some chores to do.

Meanwhile, our 17 solar panels easily keep the batteries full. We have not had to start the generator since the start of our journey. Bas even gets permission to play the xbox for a few hours in the evenings. What a luxury on board. So far everything has been working well and we are a bit proud of that, because we have installed everything ourselves. Niels is the engineer on board and for me electricity 5 years ago was nothing more than something that was very difficult to understand. Now I can tell the people who are interested to view our ship what kind of technology has been installed in the boat. That we have a 12V, 24V and 48V DC system and a 230V AC system. The 12V system is needed for most on-board computers and lighting and is charged by means of 5 solar panels and a vertical axis wind generator. The 24 volt system is needed for the anchor winch and is charged from the 48V system. The 48V system is needed for driving the electric motor and is powered by 12 solar panels, a wind generator in the bezel mast and by the electric motor itself which generates while the shaft rotates during sailing. 230V is converted from the 48V lithium batteries and is required for cooking on the induction hob and for all chargers and the like. There is also the possibility to charge the 12V batteries with the 48V batteries. In summary, that means that a lot of cables run through the boat to different distribution boxes and that one cable does give a shock when there is power on and the other not.

When we have done our last shopping after 3 days and come back to the boat, it suddenly seems a lot further away than when we stepped into the dinghy an hour ago. Our chartplotter confirms our suspicion. Because of the wind that suddenly came from a different angle, the anchor started to scratch. We are no longer behind the sheltered wall and our ship is rocking on the incoming waves. Moreover, the anchor roll has completely bent and relieved the force that has come upon it. With a lot of effort we finally get rid of the anchor. We put the ship on a mooring buoy for the coming night and hoist the sails at the end of the day the next day while we are still on the buoy. Off to Porto!

Kijkje in de achterkajuit

Initially we had a nice walk in it and because we still had to travel 100 miles we decided not to sail. We knew that. Shortly after it became dark we had a rainy shower. A strong wind force 6 blew our ears around and with full rigging it means that the ship was flooded not only with the gangways but also with the full cockpit seats on port side. Never before have we gone this way. In the meantime, the waves had also joined the plot against us. The nose of the boat regularly submerged completely under water, which was followed by a kind of tidal stream of hundreds of liters of water that were pushed back through the gangways towards our sheltered tub. At the same time as I went down, I felt my stomach contents press a little closer to my head with each wave. With all my efforts I tried to sail as high as possible to the wind so as not to be pushed even further. Revening (making the sail smaller) was impossible in this wind. After about an hour the wind became less and we got some speed in the ship again. In the meantime my service was almost over and completely soaked I crawled to the fore cabin. From experience I know that I don’t have to wait too long before I lie down with my eyes closed because otherwise I can feed the fish again. In the meantime I was quite adept at taking off my clothes and I was in my sleeping bag within 2 minutes. I don’t have time to close my eyes yet and jump up. I apologize to Niels for not taking the guard rail and broke our sink full. Because I am afraid that it will stink, I then turn the tap on with a finger to stir my warm puke so that the pieces go through the drain a little better. I can also laugh about it when I see myself standing here like this. Fortunately I don’t feel sick, only my stomach tries to change my mind. Niels still has a very restless service that night with very strong winds and lots of water, but when I start my service the next morning the peace seems to have returned. We are proud of our boat. She has held up well during this wind with full rig. The sun is getting brighter and soon land is in sight. That evening we call in Porto and last night it seems to have been forgotten. We are installing New Nexus at the first best jetty that we see. Well, first a walk along the Boulevard!

Tjerk kayaken achter de boot.