Highlights

Highlights of the summer was the birth of Tans new grandson Joel Charles on 17th September to Glyn and Emma (both doing well after a late arrival). Rachel and her two daughters, Isabella and Sophia, staying on the boat for four days at the end of July and a visit by Debbie in August. Other highlights are: we have a winter berth on the public quay in Pollenca and we will move off the boat and live on land for the winter.

Mallorca

Tans 1st swim of season We left Vilanova on the 25nd April at 12:40. Despite an uncomfortable sea-state for the first few hours, we had a good wind on the beam for part of the journey so we got some good sailing managing 8 knots at one point. We arrived Pollenca at 08:45 the following morning and because the forecast was not favourable for anchoring we went straight to the public quay where we stayed for the next 35 days!

During that time we had a three of four menu-del-dia a week at either El Posito (10€) or La Bodeguita (9.50€) or Blau Maritim and a new one this year, La Vall. We also discoered Cellar La Parra for excellent evening meals.

It wasn't all pleasure, both Tan and I had dental appointments during that time. I also had to replace the hot water immersion heater which was tripping the circuit breaker despite the boiler being relatively new. When I removed the old element I discovered they hadn't fitted the anode during manufacture.

We pottered around the north of Mallorca until early July, alternating between the quay at Pollenca and anchoring in the bay and at Alcanada, Cala es Calo and Bonaire. On one occasion we rafted alongside Shabonee at anchor outside Bonaire and had shared lunch with Mike and Chris on board.

Menorca

Superyacht Chronos On the 5th July we departed for Menorca. I had hoped to sail in the light winds but early in the journey the clew came away from the mainsail so I had to furl it and we had to motor. Its the same problem as we had when we left Brindisi, the stitching weakens over time in the strong sunlight. I decided to wait until we got back to Pollenca to get it repaired because we weren't planning any long voyages.

We looked into Cala Morell en route, it's quite deep and there was already a yacht at anchor in the prime position so we continued on and arrived at Cala Fontenelles   mid-afternoon. This is possibly the nicest cala along this coast with lovely clear water and lots of fish. The following day the 177ft schooner Chronos arrived. It has 13 double cabins with en-suit and charters for 50 to 60 thousand euro a week!

We left for Fornells on the morning of the fourth day because the forecast was for unfavourable winds. However, the wind and waves picked up faster than expected so we were somewhat shaken and stirred by the time we arrived.

It was nice to be back in Fornells  again and to see Mario (the marinero) and Xavier with his little dog Nutella who between them look after the Posdonia buoys. We also met Terresa and Mike a few times and ate at the restaurant and snack-bar Sa Nansa. It was a fiesta week while we were there with many free concerts and events and after a particularly good meal at Sa Nansa one night we were entertained by an excellent youth orchestra and singers in the town square. We stayed in Fornells for 13 nights, all at anchor bar one which was on the Club Nautic pontoon.

Filming the Night Manager at Fort Aleza Pollenca On the 21st July it was back to Fontenelles again. As we were creeping out of Fornells early in the morning Tan spotted Richard and Carolines boat on a buoy so we swung by to have a chat. Only Richard was up because they had just completed a night passage. We anchored at Fontenelles for one night before leaving for Mallorca.

Mallorca

After an uneventful passage (the best kind) we anchored under Fort Aleza in Pollenca bay at 16:00. Mike and Chris were at anchor nearby with David and Marjory on board so we had a chat across the open water between us before they left to return to Bonaire. The next day we berthed on the public quay to prepare for the arrival of Rachel and girls, Isabella and Sophia.

They duly arrived on the morning of the 26th July and Tan took us all out to lunch at Cellar La Parra but Izzy and Sophia were both very tired after getting up at 03:30 to catch a plane. The next day we sailed out into the bay and anchored under fort Aleza. The girls thought it was a great adventure but Isabella was quite concerned that I wasn't steering all the time, although I tried to explain that the auto-pilot was on. We spent the afternoon swimming and snorkeling. The next day we had a long dinghy ride to the shore to do some shopping then more swimming and snorkeling. After two nights at anchor we went back onto the quay at Pollenca ready for Tans family departure on the following day.

Rachel, Isabella and Sophia We stayed on the quay for five nights, during which time I had the mainsail clew repaired and we went to lunch at Canyamel with Mike and Chris. It was the weekend buffet and well worth the value of 12.50 euro. I had several trips to the buffet room, each time for small portions so I sampled sopa mallaquian, seafood salad, frito malloquian, oven cooked veg and fish, lechona (roast suckling pig) and fruit for desert. On the way back to the boat Mike and Chris took us to the hotel Llenaire for a drink. This exclusive hotel is situated on a hill overlooking the whole of Pollenca bay and consequently has spectacular views. The ladies opted for pots of tea while Mike and I sampled Campari and fresh orange juice.

On the fourth of August we left the bay of Polenca and arrived at  in the bay of Alcudia by mid-afternoon. After three nights at anchor in crystal clear water we crossed the bay and dropped anchor at . Next day we took the dinghy to Port Alcudia and had an excellent lunch at Blau Maritim where I had salcicon de marisco followed by fillet of Mero (a large tasty fish of the grouper family). The weather is hot and humid, very uncomfortable.

Emma with Joel Charles 10th August, back to the bay of Pollenca where we spent nine nights on the quay and four nights at anchor. During which time I rescued a neighbours dog when it fell into the harbour. It had a harness on so I just hooked it out with the long boat hook. On the 22nd August Tan went to the UK for a month to be there for the birth of Glyn and Emma's baby. Joel Charles was almost two weeks late but all was well in the end. Meanwhile I looked for an apartment for us for the winter.

On the 24th I sailed to Alcunada. After two nights I returned to Pollenca and on the 30th my dear friend Debbie arrived for a short visit. After a night on the quay we went to Cala es Calo for a night at anchor where we enjoyed the swimming, then back to Pollenca for a night at anchor before returning to the bay of Pollenca where we anchored for a night the went onto the quay. Debbie left on the 4th and the following day I anchored out in the bay for four nights then went to Alcanada again for a couple of nights then back to Pollenca bay.

One more trip to Bonaire for a couple of nights before returning to Pollenca and finally settling into our winter berth on the 28th September.