Route: Cascais – Porto Santo – Funchal
Date: 30.09-8.10.2022
Miles/ hours: 529Mm/115h
30-10-2022 Friday Cascai
In the morning, some of the crew go sightseeing around the city. Cascais is a summer resort full of bars and souvenir shops. In the afternoon we go shopping and bring a taxi to the yacht. It comes out with 2 full drawers, a fridge and bilges next to the bikes (water wanders there). In the evening, we open the wine and tell sea stories.
01-10-2022 Saturday
In the morning, fruit for breakfast with muesli and milk. Then some of the crew go to shower. Then we refuel the water and I go to return the card (they took a deposit of 25 €) and pay for the marina. This is the most expensive marina so far, and it gives nothing special in return. Toilets rather mediocre, WiFi poor, queue all the time at the reception. The only one is a nice view of the castle and the city from the marina. Returning the card and paying takes almost 30 minutes (there are 2 people in front of me, the ladies move like flies in the tar and generate a whole pile of papers. Finally we swim out. We swim to a gas station and refuel one tank. After refueling, we go to sea. First on the engine. We leave the bay avoiding the poles from the net, and when the wind blows up to 10kn, we put the sails. At night it dispels to 28kn. We sail on the genoa itself.
02-10-2022 Sunday
In the morning the wind weakens to 15kn and turns a little to the east. We deliver the jib on the other side. For breakfast, fruit with cereals and yoghurt – delicious. During the day, the wind gets weaker, but we don’t give up. To make coffee in the machine, turn on the engine. Rice with vegetables for lunch and vegetable salad for dinner. Chocolate for dessert after dinner.
03-10-2022 Monday
The wind weakens to 4kn, so after breakfast we start the engine. In the afternoon, we manage to sail a little, but then the wind weakens again, so we ride the engine all night. Spaghetti with salmon paste for lunch and hummus with vegetables for dinner.
04-10-2022 Tuesday
The wind is still weak, the water and air temperature is 24ºC, Dorota puts up the hammock on the bow. For dinner, chicken with rice and salad. Several times we approach various floating objects, but each time it turns out to be rubbish: a rusty can, a bag from a supermarket or a broken styrofoam buoy.
05-10-2022 Wednesday
The wind comes after midnight so we set the sails.
At 1:30 PM we enter Porto Santo. We are londside to a German yacht that decides to spend the winter in Porto Santo. I spend over an hour in the marina office, first the police, then the lady in the secretary’s office – neither of them can type fast or know any typing program, and 8 crew members are a bit too much for them.
After clara and a small lunch (pancakes with spinach) we go for a walk to the city. The Columbus Museum is now closed (open until 5:30 PM). We buy ice cream (black and red), then go to the pier and return to the Portuguese ladybug, Pingo Doce. We buy Madeira, beer, wine and some spinach.
06-10-2022 Thursday Porto Santo
Around 10 am we go to town. We catch an 8-person taxi and set a sightseeing route. First, the das Flores vantage point, from there we go on foot to the Zimbralinho beach, call Mr. Taxi driver and he will come for us – the next point is Castelo volcano (437m above sea level) – we enter from the south and go down to the north side, from where a taxi takes us. We are going to the next volcano – Branco (450m above sea level) – the views are beautiful. At 6:30 PM we return by taxi to the marina. The whole trip costs us € 56 for everyone and everything.
7-10-2022 Friday Porto Santo
After breakfast, we paint the Pluskata logo on the wall. Some of the crew go to the beach to bathe. At 6:30 pm we go out to sea. We only put up the jib – the reach is blowing, so we swim 4-5kn.
8-10-2022 Saturday Funchal
In the morning we hide behind the island and the wind weakens – but these were the forecasts. We enter Funchal around 9 o’clock. It turns out that there is no room in the marina, so we stop at the anchor in front of the marina. We’re launching the boat. Tom works for the coachman. I’m going to the marina to talk about the place, but nothing can be sorted out. Some of the crew stay ashore and I go back to the yacht.
After lunch, we go to the nearby parks and look for a bus stop to the airport. On my way back, I take 2 yoga tickets on Sunday (on the occasion of the Nature Festival).
9-10-2022 Sunday Funchal
In the morning, Tom drives some of the crew for a trip they have already bought in Poland, and Dorota and I go to yoga – it was supposed to be at 10, but it goes out at 11, the session at 10 had a lot of exercise, and at 11 it was mainly meditation. After yoga, we take the cable car to the top.
Entry to the tropical garden costs the same as the cable car, so we do not go in. Instead, we visit the city garden, admire the views and take the cable car down. We’re going back for dinner. Dorota is doing treatment. Around 18, the rest of the crew returns from the trip. They buy a bottle of fresh punch.
10-10-2022 Monday Funchal
Rafał goes to the shore by boat at 3 am. After breakfast, I go to the marina again to find out about the place in the marina – they say there is still no place. I do the laundry and arrange a permit to visit the Selvagens Islands on my way to Tenerife. At noon I received a place the marina longside to another yacht.