Month: June 2023 (Page 2 of 2)

I had seen them from the boat in the Xarraca anchorage, but the water was clear and there weren’t many swimming around. I decided to go for a swim. I scraped the boat at the water’s edge and cleaned the hull a bit, then decided to just swim around. There were plenty of jellies in the water, but they were easy to avoid. Until I tuned and apparently swam right into one. Wham, and I had a sudden pain around my neck and upper chest and then forearm and wrist – I knew immediately what it was.

It took a few minutes to swim back to the boat. Once onboard, I took a shower to rinse off, and slowly the pain started to build. Luckily we had cell service again and I started googling treatments. I knew that urine was a myth as a treatment, but was surprised to learn that vinegar is not recommended either. Instead, you submerse (or apply compresses) in as hot of water as you can tolerate without scalding yourself (exactly what Alejandro had told us back in Balandres). This denatures the protein of the jellyfish venom and slowly reduces the pain. After that it was a couple of ibuprofen followed by some cortisone cream and witch hazel wipes every few hours. The pain and swelling was gone by the time we went to bed, and I’m now left with red marks that hopefully disappear soon and do not scar. Lesson painfully learned.

It was on to Cala Xarraca for one final stop on Ibiza. We wound up doing another spinnaker run, this time along with fellow OCC members Gar and Orla. We typically never anchor in the shallows close to shore, and indeed stay further out, but the posodonia was thick further out, and we found a perfect spot close to shore all in sand which affords great holding for the anchor.

After an interrupted swim (more about that later), Gar and Orla came over for sundowners and we got to hear all about their circumnavigation that they did when they were young (incredibly unusual, as most people do it after decades of sailing and in retirement). They also had lots of recommendations for future anchorages and were loads of fun to have on board for a drink.

Northeastern winds were forecasted, and this side of Ibiza doesn’t have many good hidey holes. I consulted the charts, Navily, and NoForeignLand (apps where users post reviews of anchorages and marinas), and found one possible spot. Trip was skeptical, but agreed to check it out.

We wound up in one of the most spectacular, isolated anchorages of the season. There was only one other boat at anchor, and we tucked in nearby. It turned out to be very good protection, though the winds were not too strong.

The cliffs above us were absolutely breathtaking, and the geology was there to read with your eyes.

We went for a row the next morning to investigate the old fishermen’s huts that had been built at the edges of the water. Boat neighbors Maria Jose and Alejandro, who have been cruising the Med for 30 years, explained that the huts aren’t used much anymore, as tourism has become a much more lucrative prospect for income. Maria was a professor with the University in Madrid for thirty years , and has written books about political philosophers de Tocqueville and Rousseau. It was interesting to hear about how interpretations of history changes as time evolves. Maria was working on an updated version of a book she wrote thirty years earlier and it required significant changes to be updated with current thoughts.

At some point during the day, we were joined by the mega yacht Rising Sun, owned by David Geffen. I didn’t know it at the time (we had no cell service), but celebrities are usually on board. I had joked that I thought I saw Ellen Degeneres and her wife Portia DeRossi on jet skis by us, but who knows?

We managed a spinnaker run from the Talamanca anchorage up around the corner to Cala Escondido. It was a stunning sail, but a little hair raising with the gusts between the mainland and Es Vedra islands.

We dropped the anchor along with a dozen other boats and just relaxed and enjoyed the spot. We went for a swim, and then settled in with drinks and listened to the drums on shore. Apparently it’s one of ‘the’ sunset areas on the island, as some boats near us jockeyed for positions with front row views.

Trip wasn’t ready to move on yet, but our Schengen clock is ticking….we have 64 days to enjoy the Balaerics, Sardinia, and Sicily before we have to get out of EU waters. So off to Ibiza it was. Despite light winds (well under 10 knots), we had a glorious sail up to the island.

Ibiza has a reputation as the summer party capital of the world. We’re still a few weeks away from high season, but it’s gearing up hard and fast. We would never be able to afford a berth in a marina here, but there is a lovely cove around the corner. It you can find a bit of sand amongst the posidonia sea grass, you’re only a short dinghy ride, short walk, and a ferry trip across the harbor to the old town.

Upon first glance, I thought I was back in Tangiers. Fortresses plus dilapidated but charmingly crowded old white buildings. Then again, that pretty much describes everywhere in Europe with a good natural defense location that was inhabited by the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Moors, etc. And Ibiza has had its share.

We had dinner at a restaurant outside of the crowded tourist zones featuring basque (northern Spain) cuisine that was so satisfying. We then spent the rest of the evening wandering around town. We spent most of our time up in the old town along the walls of the fortress. However, there is nothing I love more than people-watching and this is the place to do it. Ibiza is a place to see and be seen. Vacations are carefully planned and budgeted, it can be crazy expensive to come here. Outfits are very carefully planned as well – you have to look carefree and bohemian but in a chic expensive way. This is one of those places where you can never be too rich, thin, or young. The music is thumping from a DJ at an outdoor stage by 7 pm and apparently it goes till the wee hours of the morning. None of this describes much of anything we usually enjoy, but this town also oozes a charm that I never expected. Such a delight!

Welcome to the Balearics! The overnight run from Cartegena only got us 5 hours of sailing (wind coming exactly from the direction we were heading when there was wind), but they were fabulous hours and the wind vane worked perfectly. Once again, like the last anchorage before Cartegena, we found ourselves racing to drop anchor in a completely new spot at 10 pm with the last shreds of daylight.

We dropped the hook on a Friday night, knowing that Formentera comes to life on the weekends. Sure enough, at 10 am, the party boats came pouring over from Ibiza, with jet skis and a lot of loud music. Interestingly, everywhere we go in Europe, all the music is American stuff from the 80s and 90s, hmmmmm. I’m not complaining, but Trip is sick of ABBA.

Since we were on the outer edge of the anchorage, we got all the monster yachts anchored around us.

We had our first dragging incident of the season, with the lovely Lady Ann drifting slowly past us. Unlike most situations, it was not an emergency (no high winds), Lars, the owner, was onboard and could see what was happening. They never got close to us or caught our chain. They moved and reset cleanly, and later came over by dinghy to chat. Lars was kind enough to give us lots of information about Ibiza, where we were headed next.

We headed in to shore in the afternoon, enjoyed a beer at one of the local bars, and then took a walk along the cliff tops.

Once we were back on board, Trip went for a swim and I finally broke out my new (to me) inflatable paddle board. The board is small and light, and the anchorage was a bit rocky with boat wakes, so I stuck to paddling on my knees, but the goal is to get up onto my feet soon!

See those light and dark patches in the water? They are the latest challenge in cruising. The dark patches are Posidonia Oceanica, a sea grass, and the population here in the Balearics is considered to be one of the world’s oldest living organisms, dating back to the Pleistocene era. The light patches are sand.

Posidonia is critical as it provides a habitat for fish hatcheries among other living things. It reduces swell and therefore reduces beach erosion.

It’s forbidden to anchor in Posidonia. Boat anchors rip out the seagrass and degrade the seabed. Thank goodness the islands supposedly get 300 days of sunshine a year, as we have to come into an anchorage slowly, driving around looking for a clear spot to drop the anchor. There’s even an app now to help locate safe anchoring zones. If you don’t, look out for a hefty fine from the ‘Posi Police.’

What a shock, we’ve found yet another new city that is our new favorite….this time it’s Cartegena. Like Cadiz, this is a modern city that is living on top of their history. In this case, they were digging to build something new in the 90’s and found the remains of a Roman amphitheater! For 6€, and less than a 10 minute walk to downtown, you can explore the ruins that have been uncovered. Started as a Roman amphitheater built between 5 and 1 BCE, it partially crumbled and then when the Moors came the foundations were used to build a medina. Centuries later a cathedral was built on top of these ruins. You can see all three elements in the different parts of the excavations.

Not far from the amphitheater, you can also find a Roman colosseum, which fellow cruiser Jeremy told me was the foundation for most modern bullrings in Spain.

Exploring all these historical places makes you hungry, and thirsty. Of course Cartegena didn’t disappoint with the tapas, but the magical discovery was iced vermouth, which we sampled each night on our way home from dinner.

In between meeting new cruising friends on our dock (Horscht & Utte of s/v Appolonia, and Jeremy & Mary of s/v Mystique) we got an email from a friend, Martin, that he was heading to Cartegena, and would we still be there? Unfortunately he’s had foul fuel tank issues this season, and he and Dawn wound up getting towed into harbor. We were at least able to greet them with cold beer, and get them out to dinner to take their minds off the boat for a few hours. (A few days later, we see now on Marine Traffic that Martin is further up the coast so, yeah, engine problems at least temporarily solved!).