28-04-2023 Friday
We rent a car at 12 and after a small breakfast we go to pick up Ania from the airport.
On the way, we visit two marinas: Puerto Calero and Puerto del Carmen. Puerto Calero is OK and Puerto del Carmen is a small marina with commercial boats and fishermen.
After picking up Ania, we pack the car and go on a trip towards the port. We visit the town of Yaiza, then El Golfo with a lovely green lake (Mirador del Charco de los Clicos-Charco Verde), we drive up to Los Hervideros and climb the cliffs – beautiful with numerous caves and vertical basalt rocks. Unfortunately, you can’t go further – the road is closed. We return to the main road and on the way to the marina we enter Las Salinas de Janubio – the salt factory, it is already closed, so we admire it from above and return to the marina. We leave our bags and go shopping. We return to the yacht around 10 pm. A little dinner and at midnight we go to sleep.
29-04-2023 Saturday
In the morning we go to visit the nearby mountain Atalaya de Femes, which is 450m above sea level. It takes about ½ hour to climb it, but the views are beautiful, you can see the entire Tamanaya National Park and the Volcanoes Park. At the top there are antennas of various radio links. After the photo session, we go down, return to the marina and return the car. Then we go to the bazaar with local products (in fact, there are few local products, but a lot of Chinese). The bazaar is in the marina every Wednesday and Saturday.
30-04-2023 Sunday
We get up at 6:15, have breakfast and at 7:30 we set off to the ferry port (3km on foot). We arrive at 8:20, the ticket office says that it is open only from 9:00 (today is Sunday), and we have a ferry at 9:15. We’re going for an ice cream to a pub by the ferry harbor (one of the few open at this time). Fortunately, the ticket office opens before 9, we buy 3 tickets (the price is 35€ round trip, and 20€ one way). We need to specify which ferry we want to return – we choose the one at 17:45.
We sail on a small passenger ferry (no cars). The ferry takes 35 minutes to Corallejo. After leaving the ferry, we try to find a boat on Isla de Lobos, but it turns out that most of the boats leave at 10. Finally, the lady in the office finds a boat for us for 15€ per person both ways and we can choose the time of return (every 1 hour ). It turns out to be a rib. We choose the time of return to 14:30. It takes about 10 minutes to reach the island. We get off at the concrete pier. After disembarking the passengers, the helmsman returns to Corallejo. First we go to the former village, now uninhabited, although you can rent a house here. There is a drinks restaurant next door and apparently you can eat there, but you have to order in advance. The road on the eastern side of the island is closed (construction works), so we return to the beach by the village, eat a second breakfast (sandwiches). Ania decides to stay on the beach, and we go to the highest mountain on the island. We meet at the ferry port. The climb to the top takes about 30 minutes. The mountain is a volcano 127 m above sea level, one wall of which fell off (it was swallowed by the sea). From above you can see the entire island of Isla de Lobos, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote. Plus a beautiful blue sea. At the top there are a lot of lizards that walk on our arms and legs. After going down we go to the sandy beach and around 14:15 we come to the marina. Our dinghy arrives 10 minutes early. He waits for the rest of the people and returns to Corellijo. The average speed is 25 kn. Is great. After arriving at the port, we go to the port restaurant for lunch. The Lord shows us the fish and we can choose which one we want. We choose the red one. The fish is fresh and very tasty. All four eat one fish. After lunch, we still have some time, so we go for a walk around the city, visit the opened Hiper Dino and buy ice cream. We return to the marina and take the Fred.Olsen ferry back to Playa Blanca. We are on the yacht around 19:00.
1-05-2023 Monday
Today is the first diving day. We dive with the Bonito Diving office, which has Polish service. They have an office in Playa Blanca. In the morning, our guide picks us up by bus, takes us with the equipment to the diving office, where we fill out the paperwork and she tells us about the first dive. First shore dive from a nearby beach (Playa Flamingo). We sail along the “breakwater” and descend to about 17m. We meet stingrays, rainbow fish, two tiger sharks buried in the sand and many other interesting sea creatures (starfish, cuttlefish, colorful fish).
After diving, we leave the equipment at the diving center and return to the yacht. We eat lunch and at 14:30 we go for another dive – this time the Museo Atlantico created by Jason de Caires Taylor. We sail to the diving site by dingy. We leave the dingy and go down to 14m. The museum consists of sunken sculptures depicting mainly scenes from the life of the inhabitants of the islands. The whole thing carries the artist’s message, draws attention to the problems of the modern world. There is a boat with refugees, a family with a child, a group of children sailing in boats made of blbarrels, a swing in the shape of a pump for an oil well, a couple taking a selfie. The sculptures are already overgrown with algae, but there are few fish among them. The entire tour takes about 30 minutes. After this time, we enter the pontoon and return to the shore, and the instructor gives us a ride with the equipment to the yacht. We rinse wetsuits, boots and hoods and go to the shower to take a bath.
2-05-2023 Tuesday
Today is the second diving day. Type both dives in Puerto Del Carmen together. First dive at La Catedral. We descend to 35m. In the cave we meet a grouper – a huge fish. Along the way we also meet cuttlefish and some colorful fish. We leave the water by buoys (especially for divers) and we go to the shore using stone steps. During the break between dives, we eat sandwiches, cookies and drink water. The second dive is Agujero Azul, a bit shallower than the previous one, but also over 30m. This time I’m not taking a camera, because during the previous dive it got a little wet from the inside and I have to dry it properly first. We swim first to the sunk anchor, where we meet the first seahorse. Then in the cave we watch at shrimps and another grouper. We emerge from the water near the buoys for divers. In the evening we watch filmed films.
3-05-2023 Wednesday
In the morning we gather, take care of the yacht and after 11 we go to sea. It blows a pleasant 14kn and we sail with the half-wind. The sun is shining, there are no waves and we are sailing 5 kn. Around 1 pm the wind weakens, so we drop the sails and Tomek and Ania jump into the water. The water is almost 24°C, so it’s too cold for me :-). After the bath, dinner and, of course, coffee with a cake for dessert. We have 2Nm left to the port, so we start the engine, take out fenders and moorings and enter the marina. We stop at a gas station. Marinero brings us documents to fill in, a shower card (10€ deposit) and a map of the marina. On the plan, he marks where we should stand and asks if we need help. Thank you and we are sailing to the place. Our place is at the very end of the marina by the Y-boom, but quiet and with a nice view of the mountains. The marina office is open until 5pm and it’s already 5:30pm so I’ll get the papers done tomorrow. I’m booking a car for tomorrow at 8:30 and going back to the yacht.
4-05-2023 Thursday
In the morning I’m going to pay for the marina, and Tomek is going to get the car. It was supposed to be 4-door, and we got a Fiat 500 2-door (in the price of Corsa). Immediately after picking up the car, we head to Timanfaya Park. We arrive at the place at 9:40 and there is already a large crowd of cars waiting to enter. Entrance costs €12 per person, you can pay by card, but cash is preferred. From the toll booth we go to the parking lot. A few employees efficiently arrange cars in the parking lot. The next stage of the tour is a bus that travels along the park’s roads. The bus goes between volcanoes, the recorded voice tells in 3 languages (Spanish, English and German) about what can be seen outside the window. At the most interesting places, the bus stops so that you can take pictures. The entire trip takes about 45 minutes. We get off in the parking lot and go to see the views not from the coach windows. The restaurant has a hole with a grill above the outlet of warm air from the volcano where chickens are roasted. Outside, one of the workers puts some hay in a hole. It’s so hot the hay catches fire. The next show is a geyser. They pour water into the hole, which comes out in the form of steam. A few more photos and we go to the Visitors Center of Timanfaya Park. On the way, we pass a huge queue of cars waiting to enter the parking lot. How good that we arrived in the morning :-). The Visitors Center is a tourist information and volcanic history museum, and there is a light and sound simulation of a volcanic eruption. Next we go to the town of Tinajo, we see the temple of Ermita de los Dolores which was built between 1781 and 1784, as an expression of gratitude to its patron saint who, according to legend, stopped the lava flowing on the city and saved it from destruction, then we stop for coffee with a cake . The cookies are big and sweet. The next item on the agenda is Casa Museo del Compesino. Farmers Monument made of old tanks painted white. Nearby, in a nice area, there are small handicraft shops. Everything painted white. We go further and enter the wine museum and El Grifio vineyard. Admission €7 per person. You can download the audioguide to your phone. The museum has free WiFi. There are a lot of exhibits – tools for making wine (presses, sieves, scales, measuring cups, etc.) and the process of making wine is described. After leaving the building, we visit the vineyard – vines grow in hollows surrounded by walls made of volcanic rocks from the wind side. They look beautiful. On our way out, we buy a bottle of the legendary Malvasia wine. We continue along the vineyard road. In Tias, we go to the store and replenish groceries. We return to the yacht, leave the shopping and go to a restaurant for dinner.
5-05-2023 Friday
In the morning, the morning bustle, we give the car keys and the shower card, we pack things and after 11 we leave. The wind is squally from 15 to 25 kn (as per the forecast). PlWe sail on the foresail and reefed mainsail, and still our speed exceeds 6 kn. We are sailing full baydewind. After leaving the land for about 5Nm, the wind stabilizes at 16kn, but there is quite a large wave. And among these waves a surprise – a flock of dolphins jumping high out of the water. It’s lovely. After sailing far enough, we make a turn and sail to the Lanzarote marina. At the entrance to the marina, we report on VHF channel 9 and a nice lady gives us the number of the pier and position. After entering the marina, they ask us via VHF to wait a bit, because the marinero won’t be able to get to the pier in time. It blows about 20 kn so waiting is not trivial, but we manage. A moment later, the marinero picks up the moorings from us. We stop at the Y-boom. Marinero promises to bring a card and documents to fill out, but he seems to forget, so when the opportunity arises, I go with him to the office. I get a green pill number 5, I’m supposed to take it to the office tomorrow along with the completed documents. For dinner we eat delicious cutlets with Canarian potatoes.
06-05-2023 Saturday
In the morning I book a car from Sunday and after breakfast we go to explore the city. We admire the lake in the middle of the city (Charco de San Gines), we walk through the narrow streets. In the meantime, Tomek is called by the car rental lady (Cicar) informing us that the office where we wanted to pick up the car is closed on Sunday, on Sunday we can only pick up the car at the airport. We decide to take the car today (office closes at 1:00 p.m. and it’s 12:45 p.m.). We quickly go to the office and pick up the Seat. We pay 80€ for 3 days, so not too bad (supposed to be 67€ for 2 days). After returning to the yacht, Tomek makes pancakes with spinach – yummy. Then, using the fact that we have a car, we go on a trip around the island. First, we visit Lagomar – the former home of Omar Shariff, who lost it at cards (he only owned it for one day). The house is integrated into the slope of the volcano and fragments of volcanic rock protrude from the walls of the rooms. There is also a small lagoon, a swimming pool and benches in the rock grottoes. The next point is Fundación César Manrique, which is the house of Cezar Manrique built in lava tunnels. Manrique designed his house on five volcanic, open-topped caves, each characterized by a different color of lava. The amazing two-story structure he created, combined with water springs, a swimming pool, palm trees and cacti, reflects his idea of matching the style of architecture to the natural landscape. We buy a double ticket (Fundación César Manrique and Casa César Manrique) for 17€ per person the ticket is valid for 15 days. We are delighted with the arrangement of the museum and the ideas of Manrique. His photos and films are displayed in the halls. We leave at 6 pm as one of the last visitors but it is still light, so we go to Costa Teguise – a well-known resort in Lanzarote. There is low tide, but the beach is beautiful and there are a lot of windsurfers and a new invention in the bays – wind foils. We admire the surfers, waves and beaches, take pictures and return to the marina. On the way we also visit the Castillo de San Jose. The castle is now closed (it houses an art museum) but we go downstairs to the restaurant entrance and admire the views. We return to the marina after 8 pm.
7-05-2023 Sunday
We get up at 7:30, but leave after breakfast and the obligatory coffee around 10. First, we go to the market in Teguise. The entrance to the city is closed, but you can leave your car in a paid parking lot (€2). The market is quite large (the largest we have seen in the Canary Islands), and the stalls are mainly Chinese. However, there are stalls with local handicrafts, there are several stalls with vegetables (we buy tomatoes at one of them) and a lot of stalls with aloe cosmetics, some of them had cream testers and sellers encouraged to try them. We also visit the church de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe and drive to the Castle of St. Barbara, where the pirate museum is located (free admission). The castle has many nooks, stairs and cellars, all of stone plastered a little and painted white. Worth seeing. In addition, from the upper terrace there is a nice view of the nearby mountains and the city of Teguise. From the castle we return to the city and watch the windmill (rather decorative). We head towards Haria where the house of César Manrique is located. We stop by for lunch on the way. Restaurant guests have free access to the observation deck, which we obviously use. The views are lovely, although a bit hazy. The next point of the program is Casa Museo de César Manrique, the house of Casara Marnique. The house is large, decorated with taste and in a rustic style, full of souvenirs from around the world, photos and items brought from around the world. From Casara Marnique’s house we go to see another of his works Mirador el Rio (admission €5 per person). The name Mirador del Rio comes from the name of the isthmus that separates Lanzarote from the Chinijo archipelago. The viewpoint rises on the top of the Risco de Famara cliff. It lies at an altitude of 470 meters. A passage extends from the pointnumerous views of La Gracioza on one side and Lanzarote and La Corona volcano on the other side. Downstairs is a restaurant with panoramic windows overlooking La Gracioza.
On the way back we want to visit the highest mountain on the island, Penas del Chache (671m above sea level). Unfortunately, there is an observatory at the very top and the entire top is fenced with barbed wire. We drive up the car and climb almost to the highest place. We consider the peak passed. We return further through the small streets of the town of Hatia, and then we stop by the road at Ciudad estratificada, i.e. unusual rock formations that take different shapes under the influence of wind and rain. There are small caves, tunnels and strange shapes, it’s a bit like Cappadocia in Turkey. We return to the yacht and eat the second dinner, i.e. goulash with vegetables – delicious again.
8-05-2023 Monday
After breakfast and coffee, we go to another trip. This time on the eastern shore of the island. The first point is the cactus garden, another work by Casaro Manrique. The interior is designed in the shape of a circle, and along the stone paths, almost 10,000 plants representing over 1,400 species grow on flowerbeds covered with black ash. Admission costs €6.5, but you can buy a ticket for 3 out of 4 attractions for 26.5 (later turns out to be the same). We walk along the stone walls, take pictures, and then watch the cacti growing at the bottom of the “garden”. Next we go to Jameos del Agua. It is a cave (or rather a group of caves) with a lovely lake through which sunlight shines through a hole in the ceiling of the cave. After leaving the cave, we go for coffee and cake to a local cafe. After entering above, a beautiful lake with palm trees and blue water appears (the bottom of the lake is painted white. Further on, there is a concert hall in another cave. Preparations for the concert are underway. At the exit, we enter the “house of volcanoes” for a moment and spend the next hour there It’s a two-story museum with the history of volcanoes, the history of their formation, their eruptions. The museum is very interactive, with a lot of videos and presentations, there is also a 3D movie (watched with glasses) of the lava tunnel journey. After leaving the museum, we go to Cueva de los verdes or green caves.Cueva de los Verdes is part of a tunnel formed by the eruption of the volcano de la Corona 3000-5000 years ago.Its name does not come from the color green, but from the name of the “Los Verdes” family, who had their fields and used the cave as a place to hide from pirates and shelter from bad weather.The cave has about 7km of tunnels, but about 1km is open to the public.The cave is open until 4pm, so we enter as the penultimate group. The guide speaks several languages (in Polish he can say “watch out for the heads”). First, he talks in Spanish, then in English (a little less) and finally in French (but here he mainly gestures). The tour takes about 40 minutes. The tunnels are beautiful, nicely lit and it is actually quite low in places.
We return to the marina, eat lunch and set out to see the city (so far we haven’t had time), walk along the promenade, visit the castle of St. Gabriela from the outside, we take pictures and return to the yacht (the lanterns turn on, so the night city tour is also included).
