Month of March , 2007

Familiarity with a place makes it feel like home, and that was exactly how we felt when we saw the island of Gran Canaria on the horizon on the morning of Friday 30 March. We recognised its shape from the sea, the two distinctive hills in the north behind which lies the capital of the Canary Islands, Las Palmas. We had spent eight months in the Canary Islands in 2005, with Las Palmas as our home port, piloting our work.

‘Do good! Feel good!’ was the theme of the day. About 15 young people aged 12 to 18 and their parents had gathered at Rotterdam Zoo’s Oceanium to take part in Schretlen & Co.’s youth programme, FutureS & Co. The activities of the day centred around feeling good by doing good, and Morganonline had a central role in the day.

After the adventures of leaving Lisbon, we were in no mood for even more surprises. Before we left we checked the weather three times on different websites, and after doing repairs on the windows and water cooling hose we headed towards Madeira.

The passage from Lisbon to Madeira was the penultimate trip before we would set sail for Las Palmas in the Canary Islands. The weather forecast for the next four days was good, and this would last long enough for the more than 500 nautical mile trip. We prepared ourselves for a relaxed passage to Madeira.

It had taken us nearly four months since leaving the Netherlands to get to Lisbon in the Morgan. Bad weather in the Bay of Biscay had forced us to wait out the winter in north France. Today, by plane and train, I was back in the Netherlands within a number of hours.

After a couple of days in La Coruña for rest, refuelling, and provisions, it was time to move on again. The infamous Bay of Biscay was behind us, and we expected the passage from La Coruña to Lisbon, our next stop, to be easier. The only challenge we expected was between La Coruña and Cape Finisterre at the western tip of Spain, a notorious coastline where the currents and waves are often unpredictable.

Every place has it’s delicacies and traditions, and in the historical harbour city of La Coruña in the far north west corner of Spain, in the province of Galicia, the delicacy and tradition is percebes or Goose Barnacles. These little shellfish grow vertically in clusters on the rocky islands of the coast. They live on the tide line, and grow well there as their need for sea water and oxygen are well supplied by the waves that constantly wash over them.

Three days of mixed weather conditions, and we have arrived in the historical maritime city of La Coruña in north Spain. After resting and victualling the Morgan, we will head to Cascais in Portugal on 15 March. We expect this passage to take two days. 

We can be followed live on Track & Tracing.

Good seamanship means helping your fellow sailors in trouble, even if it means going out in gale force winds. Today we had winds of 56 knots per hour, or wind force 10, racing through the marina. The rain was horizontal, and the only people out and about enjoying the winds were a group of adrenalin charged wind surfers. While watching them from our pontoon we noticed a yacht a distance away in the Bay of Brest.

Arriving at the marina Port de Plaisance at Moulin Blanc in Brest (France), I was struck at how neat and tidy it is, and how friendly all the staff are. It really is a pleasure to stay here. At the same time, I wondered if the cleanliness was only superficial, or whether the marina really was trying to take care of the ocean. In an interview with the Harbour Master and his staff I got my answer.

Our last visit to Mignon was a month ago, on 24 January. We were therefore very much looking forward to seeing her again and hearing how she is doing. When we last saw her she had put on weight and she was in a small indoor pool with three other Grey Seals, getting used to being in seal company again. She had done so well, feeding herself and finding her place with other seals that she had been moved into the large indoor pool.