BAY OF CASCAIS TO OIERAS MARINA, 5th August

Along the way we had earned some marina cost discount from other marinas of 20%. Remember Marina costs use up a big chunk of cruising budget so any discount is enthuisiatically welcomed.

We motored gently Eastwards into the river Targus towards the centre of Lisbon. Easy until we got to the "neck" of the river and ran into a head-on tidal stream of about 3 to 4 knots. We could have chosen a different tidal time but hadn't thought the stream would be so vigorous. Oieras Marina is situated on this neck and the entrance to the Marina is swirling with dangerous eddy currents. What a welcome.. Never mind once into the Marina the water was more or less still so we squeezed (literally) into a pontoon slot with some help from our happy Dutch sailor from 'racing turtle' who had arrived the previous day, and the German neighbouring yacht. This would be our home for a week or so. Time to order parts, wash, clean and relax.

PENICHE TO LISBON (BAY OF CASCAIS), 4th August

Leaving PENICHE early in the morning was straight forward. The port is on a prominent peninsula so once off the pontoon is was simply due South to Lisbon and the Targus River.

Wind was minimal and the swell was quite significant. Nevertheless we made good headway and entered the Targus River when the wind picked up to 20 Knots. We even managed to sail into the lovely bay of CASCAIS with only our mainsail.

Here we dropped the anchor and had a pleasant evening while we decided where our final port would be in the Lisbon area.

NAZARE TO PENICHE 3rd August

Leaving NAZARE was perfect. Sea was calm and there was a gentle breeze. We had already talked to the captain of the Belgium yacht that was with us in Nazare to loosely agree that we could 'raft' against each other if the need arose in the port of PENICHE. We had read that mooring space was limitedso people  'raft'.

As we entered PENICHE there was room on the pontoon and we moored successfully. We were greeted by enthusiastic crew from a Norwegiam boat and from a Dutch boat called 'racing turtle'. Great jokes about our flag and I lent the Norwegians my electrical cable so that they could hook up to shore power.

Our visit to this port coincided with a 'fiesta'. We had hoped that these were typical of the Spanish and no one else would be crazy enough. However this was one hell of a fiesta and had been in action for several days already. Festivities included loud live musical at the harbour until 04.00 in the morning interrupted only for extensive and very loud fireworks at 02.00 in the morning.

We had already endured the most awful rough conditions caused by the many fishing and transport boats motoring past the pontoons (within a few meters sometimes). Our yachts were rolling and pitching to a dangerous extent. Apparently this harbour is well know for this.

Then just to completely ruin our visit a Dutch yacht wanted to raft against us without adequate fenders. By the time we convinced him that he couldn't ( too rough for rafting, and we were leaving early next day) he had severely scratched the gelcoat on the side of our hull. No 'sorry' uttered and of course no offer to pay to repair the damage, and their yacht was probably valued in the millions of Euro.

AVEIRO TO NAZARE, 2August

On the next morning we left the anchorage in the port of AVEIRO and cruised South with the intention of bypassing Figuero DaFoz and getting to NAZARE.

We always have several plans sorted for the occasions when our cruise timing and conditions dictate some changes. On this particular day the weather was glorious as we got to Figuera da Foz so we happily continued.

There is an usual phenomenon close to NAZARE and this is a massively deep chasm in the sea just off the coast. This causes the highest waves recorded in Europe because the big Atlantic rollers come very close to the shore before they break. NAZARE is famous for daredevil surfers. Record surfed wave stands at 33 metres high. I presume this was in winter when storms are churning up the great Atlantic, because when we entered the bay and the port there was very little swell.

In the port of NAZARE space was scarce but we were assisted by a kind captain on a Belgium boat to moor close to the fishing vessels. Smell was pungent but the area was nice and the local people very kind as we discovered the next day.

We waited until 09.00 the next day to pay our port dues and were surprised that several yachts didn't bother paying, they just sneaked out. Taking risks like this could have repercussions with the authorities.

PORTO TO AVEIRO, 1stAugust

We decided it was time to leave Porto before we grew roots, and anyway we were keen to see Lisbon next. On the morning of our departure it was clear but mist was moving in over the sea from the West. By the time we had given back the marina keys and cleared the mooring, the fog was dense. Navigating out of the Douro River was quite hair raising. The ebb tide was strong, sweeping us sideways and we could not see anything. We just relied on the chart plotter.

In hoping that the fog would 'burn off' as the sun came up we kept going with very watchful eye on the plotter, AIS, and of course the sea ahead. The main problem in these waters are the little fishing boats and their thousands of crab trap markers. These markers are usually in the form of a boue of about 15cm diameter with a trailing rope ( so that the fishermen can haul it into the boat we presume). They are mostly found near fishing ports and are planted in depth between 20 and 80 meters. Other yacht people have told us that you have to cruising in about 100 meters to avoid them, however this would mean going 8 to 10 miles offshore which is a hassle when 'coast-hopping'.

By the time we were nearing Aveiro the fog had just about cleared. The AVEIRO port authority called us as we entered the estuary and then amazingly a police boat escorted us through the many fishing and sports boats until we were at our intended anchorage.

Finding a place to drop the hook was quite easy and the only problem was that boats arriving later tended to crowd around us too close.

A WEEK IN PORTO

Besides the general wash and shine of the boat hull and deck we re-supplied and rested after quite a long period of not being in a marina. With our solar and wind power we are able to stay off shore for several weeks at a time. Often we anchor outside a port and use our dinghy to go ashore for supplies and visits.

It was the first mate's birthday on the 25th July so a run-ashore was required. We decided that Porto town was a good place to celebrate.

The highlight of our visit was a sampling session of Porto wines followed by an exaggerated amount of purchases. Yes we bought lots of white and tawny Port.!