|
Article by Tony and Sarah Boas - Ione
A rally: When two or more RAFYC boats are gathered together? Well, in this case just two!
Chantrel (John & Cilla Mitchell) and Ione (Sarah & Tony Boas together with crew, John Oates) both left the Hamble on Friday, 14 May. In Chantrel’s case it was a morning departure to anchor in Studland before crossing the next day to Alderney.
 Ione left at 2300 to take the tide out of the Needles. With light winds it was a case of plug on with the engine until well west of Alderney when enough of a WxN breeze allowed us to set sail. Basse Portsall was reached at 0730 on Sunday morning allowing us to bear away down Le Four towards Camaret where we arrived after a passage of 37 hours, 60% under engine. An uneventful passage apart from a mad quirk with the chart plotter off Alderney when suddenly we appeared to be tracking south at 16 knots for several minutes. A check with the hand-held GPS showed the plotter to be significantly in error, but a restart seemed to eliminate the gremlins.
After a couple of nights in Alderney, Chantrel headed west down Channel; again with little wind the passage was mainly under engine. Camaret was reached in little over 24 hours and, moored close to Ione, rally celebrations could start.
Celebrations continued throughout the next day. Members Roger & Sue Longley (Niobe II, based in Lorient) arrived by car for a lengthy lunch aboard Chantrel and later former members Tim & Sarah Phillips arrived in Caribou on their way home from La Rochelle.
Camaret Front
Despite mild weather in Camaret, the GRIB files showed strong easterlies for the next few days on the north Spanish coast, so both boats decided to delay their crossing of the Bay. Chantrel spent a further night in Camaret before transiting the Raz to Audierne. Ione spent one night in the Glénans – not too crowded at this time of year – before moving to Concarneau for supplies.
 On Saturday, 22 May Ione left France in bright sunshine, heading for A Coruña. The NE winds were fair, albeit a bit too light and this was the pattern for most of the crossing with the engine being run for 10 hours at the beginning and again towards the end. With a crew of three, watchkeeping was not onerous – 3 hours on, 6 hours off. Memorable moments included a beautiful dawn on Sarah’s watch with dozens of dolphins playing around the boat and a dramatic, heavy thunderstorm just a few miles out from A Coruña on Monday afternoon.
Maria Pita Square, A Coruña
From Audierne Chantrel also had a gentle crossing of Biscay, stopping initially for a couple of nights in Viveiro, and covering the 300 miles in 50 hours. Thence south to A Coruña, arriving on Thursday 27 May, and mooring next to Ione in Dársena de la Marina. Clearly a cause for celebration – RAFYC Rally Coruña had been achieved – so a good excuse for both drinks on board and a meal ashore!
 
Celebrating arrival Chantrel & Ione in A Coruña
 From A Coruña the boats separated for a few days, Ione moving west to anchor off Laxe and thence to Camariñas whilst Chantrel visited the newly extended marina at Ares and then also Camariñas but after Ione had left.
Camariñas harbour
The coast between A Coruña and Ría Muros is wild and rugged with few safe havens. Its name, La Costa da Morte, is well deserved; steep cliffs with rocks and shallows offshore over which the swell heaps up and breaks.
Rounding Cape Finisterre
The two boats met again on Thursday, 3 June at anchor off the town of Muros. Unlike Camariñas which has been in part spoilt by poorly planned development, Muros retains its original character with soportales – arcaded pavements – and galerías – enclosed overhanging balconies. Dinner was taken ashore for very few euros – despite a quantity of wine – before the boats left the next day for a windless motor of 5 miles to Portosín marina.
Muros view
Muros Church
 Portosín marina is a friendly place, albeit a little way away from any provisioning in the town. However it provided a useful stop-over for a night, with a good launderette and allowing batteries to be recharged and water tanks to be refilled.
Portosín
The next day both boats left together, sailing in close company for the first time, on a reach out of Ría de Muros and past Cape Corrubedo and south to Isla Sálvora at the entrance to the Ría de Arosa. Here we had to point up, but with the swell and waves diminishing to flat water in the shelter of the ría we had a delightful passage to the marina at Caramiñal. Here we were again made welcome – as has been the case in every Spanish harbour so far – and found spaces despite the arrival of a fleet of 60 racing yachts.
Thence Chantrel sailed across to Vilagarcía, the largest town in the ría, whilst Ione made the short trip through the bateas – mussel rafts – to anchor off the small harbour of Escarabote close to a long, sandy beach and with no other boats present.
 
Escarabote Harbour Bateas in Ría de Arosa
After a peaceful night the wind turned southwest and onshore, so Ione left the anchorage to join up again with Chantrel in Vilagarcía marina. From here Chantrel will move back north whilst Ione will continue gently south. This parting of the ways required celebration which was duly held in a tapas bar in town at which RAFYC Rally Coruña was declared successfully completed.
On Tuesday, 8 June Chantrel left early on a grey morning, with rain threatening, to take advantage of the southwest wind and head back towards Caramiñas. Ione will remain here for a few more days awaiting the return of the sunshine.
|
