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Free Spirit - Log 24: 7 June 2015



Fourth in our class! Not too bad considering we had just one functioning sail for much of the trip. The north route had been the way to go for a faster passage but would the repairs we cobbled together at sea have stood up to the battering of strong winds? Maybe not. According to Mrs.Trouble we were protected from worse disasters by divine providence. Not sure about the 'divine' but she might have a point otherwise. Once in port there was much work to be done to effect repairs with a better chance of standing up to the heavy weather that may be encountered on the final leg of our voyage. This entailed removing the entire furling system from the mast in order to redrill and tap holes in the metal plates where the bolts had sheared at sea -  and then it had to be reassembled back into the mast. Fortunately Ernst, on the boat next door, had an angle grinder, which he kindly lent to us in exchange for bottle of local plonk. This made the seemingly impossible possible. Must get one for FS. The job was finished, with rehoisting of Mr. Mainsail, at 2200hrs last night in time for a 0700hrs start this morning. Meanwhile, certain elements of the FS company preferred to pass their time, AWOL, seeking intoxication, and finding it, in the world-renowned Peter's Bar, which has led many trans-Atlantic sailors astray down the years. There was precious little daylight time when they were sober, awake and anywhere near capable enough for jobs aboard. Very irritating and deserving of severe restitution, which I'm still thinking about. No matter, Free Spirit is in good fettle once again and now headed for the island of Terceira, about 70 NM east of Faial, where we first made landfall in the Azores. We are going there for a 'bull-running' fiesta. Let's hope nobody gets gored too badly! Despite the irritations of the week, my aim remains to return to mainland Europe with all bodies chastened but, essentially intact. Early on Tuesday morning, 9 June, FS will split from the rest of the ARC Europe fleet and set off alone on a heading of 95 degrees for the Strait of Gibraltar. Our ETA in Benalmadena, Spain is Tuesday 16th June.
Log authored by Peter.
  
So it is farewell to the beautiful island of Faial, so very lush and green. The rolling landscape is one of hills and fields divided by hedgerows of hydrangea and tall majestic trees richly clothed in fronds of green. The hydrangeas were introduced to the island by the first Flemish and Dutch settlers to be used rather than building stone walls and now they are rampant everywhere and apparently have to be controlled to keep balance with the indigenous species of flora. They are mostly blue, all shapes and sizes, some lace varieties, along with tall blue agapanthus and white lillies growing wildly in abundance.
The sea is always near no matter where you go on the island and the volcanic rocks edging the shores are dashed by the waves as they come crashing in, turning the water from dark blue to turquoise in a never ending sequence broken only by the white crests of foam. The last volcanic eruption was some time in the 1950's and the evidence remains with volcanic ash and lava fields covering everything save the roofs of the whalers cottages. Some of us went whale watching. If you like whales this is the place to come. I have to say I did not find this a exciting as the whales we saw from our own boat on our way here.  But we did get close to Fin Whales and Sperm whales.  On our way here we encountered two Orcas (killer whales) - Spectacular!  Another very large whale, which we now know was a Fin Whale recognisable by it's fin and one white side and one black side, swam by Free Spirit.
One more lovely thing about these Portuguese islands is the people, who are delightful.  We have been eating the local food - so lots of sea food, including octopus stew - specialities such as black puddings, sausages and cheeses along with a few bottles of wine, of course. But the day after tomorrow we shall be a "dry" boat again as we shall be setting sail on the last leg of our Atlantic voyage back to mainland Europe. I think we are now all starting to look forward to being reuinited with our loved ones.
Log authored Carole


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