Route: A Coruna – Muxia – Muros – Baiona – Porto – Figueria da Foz – Nazare – Peniche – Lizbona
Date: 12-25.09.2022
Miles/ hours: 425Mm/95h
12-09-2022 Monday A Coruna
In the morning we go shopping and the new crew goes to explore the city. They take their swimming trunks with the intention of swimming in the sea.
We stay on the yacht, read and chat. In the afternoon the crew returns to the yacht (unfortunately they come back in the rain, so we have dinner on the yacht). After lunch, we go on to replenish our purchases (another break in the rain). In the evening, a boat trip to the bathroom (you can go to the bathroom by boat or walk through the entire port)
13-09- 2022 Tuesday to Muxi
We set sail at 8 am, we have breakfast already at sea.
It blows average temporarily, so we sail a bit on the engine and a bit on sails. For now, there is a rest, so we are sailing on the genoa itself. Around noon, the wind weakens so we add the mainsail. After 3 p.m. the wind turns up and increases to 5-6B, so we change the genoa for a seal and reduce the mainsail. The kids behave brilliantly – they don’t whine, they curl up next to the capstans on the superstructure and as if they weren’t there. When we go around the bend, the wind increases to 7B, so we add the engine to the sails and sail a bit sharper. We choose the Muxia marina, it is better protected from the waves. We enter it at 19.
After a late lunch we go sightseeing the city. There is a church from the 17th century, unfortunately closed at this time, and a fragment of the path of Saint James’ pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostello. When we return to the city, it starts to rain, so Marta, Marcin and the children return to the yacht, and we go to a pub near the port. At around 23 we are returning to the yacht – the children are asleep.
14-09-2022 Wednesday Muxia
The forecast is poor – 7B is to blow and it is to rain so we decide to stay one more day in Muxi.
After breakfast and the shower trip, we go to the city, go up again (this time too light) and return to dinner. We go back to the yacht and sing songs in the evening – we stay up late.
15-09-2022 Thursday Muros
We leave at 8:15 when it gets light. It blows quite nicely from the stern so we put the genoa and the seal on the butterfly. We arrive at Muros at 6pm, we still have to fix our moorings in a traditional way and we go out to the city (the kids go to the beach and we go to the shops).
When approaching, the boatswain has a grudge that we did not call him through the VHF, but in the end he will forgive us, and when I go to pay, he turns out to be a very nice man. The town is nice, there are a lot of houses for sale, unfortunately often very dilapidated. There are also many chapels and churches (mostly closed). It turns out that there is a Polish yacht in the port, which was attacked by orcs and damaged the rudder blade – they were towed by the SAR.
16-09-2022 Friday Baiona
We depart after breakfast at 8:30. Despite the poor forecast, the wind is quite good so we sail at an average speed of 4.5kn. On channel 16, we hear a coastal station responding to the call for help from the Polish yacht Krystyna, which was attacked by orcs. Approaching Baiona, we see a damaged yacht towed by SAR. Apparently, the orcs damaged their rudder. We reach Baiona just before 7pm, we stop in the club marina by the guest pier. I’m going to the office to pay. The boss is just leaving, but he is still registering the yacht and collecting the fee. In the evening we go for a walk around the city.
17-09-2022 Saturday Baiona
In the morning we move to another place (the yacht for which this place was reserved comes to our place) and we go sightseeing the peninsula with the castle. We climb the upper walls. There are nice views, inside the walls there is a church, hotel and restaurants where the wedding is taking place.
We go back to the yacht for dinner and at 6 p.m. we go out to sea.
18-09-2022 Sunday Porto
It blows differently at night, so we sail a little and a little on the engine. We enter the Douro marina before 12 noon. It’s warm and sunny. There is a nice lady in the marina office who tells you what to see in the city and offers to call taxis for us when they want to go to the city. The platforms and toilets are opened with a card – you can take as many cards as you want – I take 4 pcs. After lunch, we take two taxis to the old town.
The city is nice, but largely under renovation. We visit the city, go for ice cream and coffee and finally have lunch – typical Portuguese food. We go back up the bridge (we walked down in the previous direction). In the evening it turns out that there are no taxis, so we go back on foot. It is only 7km.
We reach the marina before midnight – it rains a bit, but fortunately it is not long.
19-09-2022 Monday Porto
In the morning, Tomek and Marcin go shopping and disappear for over 2 hours – it turns out that there is nothing in the local store, so they go to the market 2 km away and up the hill.
Then the kids go to the beach, and Tom and I go to a nearby town. Coming back, we stop for coffee and ice cream. At 6 p.m. we go out to sea. It is not blowing so we go on the engine all night. In the evening we pass a fish farm where several herds of dolphins are hunting.
20-09-2022 Tuesday Figueria de Foz
We enter the marina at 8 am. The marina office is open from 9am. To get out of the pier, you need to use a chip or a code. Doors to toilets and shower can be opened only use a lozenge. Children with their parents and grandparents go to the beach and we go sightseeing.
There are typical seaside houses, tiled houses, some shops, some pubs. Coming back, we take the ice cream at the port pub. Port tasting in the evening. Then a bath in the shower and Tom gives the pill to open the door (the marina office is open until midnight).
21-09-2022 Wednesday Nazare
We leave at 8 am, breakfast is on the way. It is not blowing so we are riding on the engine. In the second half of the day it starts to blow, so we set the sails – in total, the balance of sails / engine was half and half. We enter the Nazare marina at 4pm. A nice lady from the marina staff shows us the place. The showers are in a container and rather small, but we manage. We eat lunch (carbonara) and after lunch we go sightseeing.
Just before leaving the marina, she asks us to move forward, because the yacht that arrived is standing at the pier with a gas station, and it shouldn’t. Disel costs € 1,859 / l. We go to the city and take the cable car (4€ both steep) up the cliff. Then we go down to the fort from where you can see the waves and surfers. The whole sea is calm and there are waves of several meters in the bay. After sunset, we return by cable car to the lower town and walk down the small streets to return to the yacht.
22-09-2022 Thursday Peniche
In the morning, Marcin, Rafał and Marta go shopping for groceries. After breakfast at 10:45 we leave. It blows poorly, so we turn on the engine.
In the evening we enter Peniche and stand the longside as the third one from the quay, in front of us there are nice Swedes on the Salsa yacht. They also go to the Canary Islands.
23-09-2022 Friday Lisbon
We leave at 7 am, like most yachts. It blows quite well, so we decide to go straight to Lisbon, avoiding Cascai. We enter the marina after 7pm, so the office is already closed. We stand by the gas station (other places are reserved). The marina is close to the street, the train and there are planes flying overhead. Full of happiness. We decide to look for another marina.
24-09- 2022 Saturday Lisbon
We go out as soon as it becomes light – we look for a quieter marina – we start with the northernmost one. After reaching our yacht, it turns out that there is no room for our yacht and that is the case in other marinas. We finally find a place in marina Alcantara, but only for 1 night. After arriving and embracing the yacht, we go for a walk around Lisbon.
25-09-2022 Sunday Lisbon
We manage to extend the stay for another 2 days, but we have to moor to another position.
After mooring and having a second breakfast, we go sightseeing in Lisbon. We buy a daily ticket for 6.45 € and a card for 0.5 €. A women met at the metro station helps us buying tickets.
We take the metro to the aquarium. In the middle it has a huge water reservoir with different types of fish. You can walk around this reservoir. On the other side are other sea and land creatures. We come to the time of feeding penguins, puffins and other birds.
After seeing the aquarium, we go to a nearby shopping center to eat something. In the meantime, Dorota comes and joins us. After lunch, Gosia and Rafał return to the yacht and we get off early with the intention of visiting the rest of Lisbon. We come to a square from which historic trams depart. We decide to take tram number 28 all over Lisbon. We only enter the third tram and it is already dark. We get off at the final stop and walk to the marina. Rafał and his family went to eat, so we take care of the things that Dorota brought. The children will be back soon, but they will go to sleep right away. I write opinions, print a photo, and go to sleep too.
26-09-2022 Monday Lisbon
In the morning, Marcin packs his things, cleans the cabin, and Tomek makes breakfast. Around 9:30, everyone gathers and goes to the airport. We stay on the yacht with Dorota and everyone works bravely.