Menorca - we could spend a lot longer here!

Whilst enjoying the tranquility of our (nudist) bay in Mallorca, a French couple on a yacht told us that our lives would be incomplete if we did not visit Ciutadella, Menorca.  30 gentle miles later we arrived at the entrance to the little creek that conceals Ciutadella.

                   Traditional Menorcan fishing dinghies,and loads of restaurants

We anchored up, and set off in the trusty dinghy (thanks, Pete Fletcher, your engine is still going strong) and this is what we found.

                                                  On the way up to the Town Centre

                                                   Town Hall and Tourist Office

                       LOTS of opportunities to buy shoes, as long as you like this type!

A fantastic market - fish and meat every day, but fruit and veg are only available once a week - and not while we were there.  So much for the healthy mediterranean diet!

                                                    Fish caught by Vicenta's Boat

                                                             The Meat Market

                                           The Fish Market - Established 1895

We spent a lovely few days in Ciutadella, enjoying wondering round the old town and even had a meal out in the port.  Naturally the sunsets were beautiful.

                                        Sunset, as seen from our anchorage, Ciutadella.

Having had our fill of civilisation and culture, we moved round the North of the island to Fornells, the home of Menorca Sailing.

                         The entrance to Fornells Bay - Spain's answer to Beachy Head?

                                        The view from inside the bay, looking out.

And the view from the land, looking down the bay.  The harbour is hiding there, on the right but we're anchored in the bay, far left.

                                  And our big brother is looking after us (Ovni 495)

This is really cute, in a VERY touristy way - the water is so clear you can hardly see it, and the traditional fishing boats are immaculate. We have just been politely requested to move over, as there is a major Fishing Boat Admiration Event going on this weekend - they're like classic car enthusiasts!

                          These are the regulars, The Event hadn't started yet.

                        Water Grooming (no sand here to rake, so they catch jellyfish instead)

        Of course the British left their mark - evidence of one of their three take over bids!

No Spanish port (or maybe even Spanish town) is complete with out Art:

                                                                Beach Art

                                                                Chair Art

                                   Not many Nudists here, so they make do with chairs!

                                                 Another town, another sunset

  So, where to next?

Actually, the decision has been made - we are heading to Alghero, Sardinia to meet daughter Clare and Jamie who are coming for a week afloat.

Mallorca - a beautiful island

We left Ibiza bright and early on 23rd June in light winds expecting to use the motor - as we left the wind picked up, we hoisted our spinnaker kept it up for the next 7 hours, 46 miles later and we were on the Western tip of Mallorca.

We spent two nights at our first anchorage - Cala S’Artaxa, Camp de Mar - there was a large hotel that provided the evening entertainment:  Live shows that were a combination of ‘Last Night of the Proms’ and Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals - not what we expected, but very pleasant listening from the cockpit!

Apart from the holiday accommodation round the bay, there were also some very exclusive houses literally perched on the edge of the cliffs - they certainly don’t worry about coastal erosion here, even though the evidence of it is very apparent in places!

Find a cliff - build a house!  The lower foundation is actually falling into the sea, along with part of the cliff face.

We worked our way around the South of the island to Playa es Dols, San Jordi. 

Another holiday spot, but no huge hotels this time.  There was a tiny marina

But it was not for us!!!

We did use the fuel pontoon, the water was 1.5m deep which involved lifting both the keel and the rudder.  We filled our water tank as well, and crept back out to the deeper water in the anchorage. We later felt very smug when a couple of other yachts ran aground trying to get fuel and water after us!

We got the impression that having a mooring buoy here was not prohibitively expensive!

Well, I suppose it is a boat ...

And you could even go on a Submarine Tour for €12

Sunset - San Jordi Anchorage

After a thoroughly enjoyable few days involving lots of swimming and kayaking round the bay we decided to move on and find another anchorage - we went 25 miles South East and ended up in Cala Gran.

Is this Butlins?  We arrived and were immediately surrounded by pedallos, swimmers and snorkellers - not the easiest anchoring conditions we’ve come across!!

One night here was enough - we really were the Goldfish in the Bowl

The next morning was Saturday and we were treated to the astonishing spectacle of a Fishing Boat race - at least that’s what we assumed it was.  There was a 10 minute gun, then lots of jostling on the line, a double gun shot and they were off - full speed ahead they fanned out into the great blue yonder! A bit of a relief really, as we were wondering if it was a port blocade!

Approximately 30 boats took part in this event

We passed some of the more laid back contestants, peacefully fishing along the beautiful Mallorcan coastline.

Our final stop in Mallorca was on the Eastern tip - another stunningly beautiful bay, Cala Guya.  This one was clearly a major holiday destination for German Tourists - again we were surrounded by pedallos filled to overflowing with German Youths - all very friendly, but not quite what we had in mind so we moved to the far side of the bay where it was much more peaceful.  

More of those ferocious rocks, but they do make beautiful caves

So it wouldn’t be fair to leave Mallorca without mentioning one more thing - nudists.  Apart from the ‘Butlins Bay’, where the people were way too British for such things, the men take every opportunity to go naked:  Naked sailing, swimming, walking along the beaches or just sunbathing.  Very few women seem to feel the need to do this, clearly a Man Thing.  There were also a significant number of men who jump in the sea, (obviously naked), climb back on board and get out the shower gel for a full scrub down.  Personally (being British) I prefer my shower in salt free water!!  No photos of any of this, obviously.

And on that note - on to Menorca ...

Ibiza - more ferries than the Solent

The Denia drizzle cleared up quite quickly, and we had an uneventful sail across to Ibiza - by the time we reached Cala Vella bay it was blowing about 25kts and there was quite a big sea.  Anchoring is forbidden on much of the Ibiza coastline in order to protect the Posidonia Sea Grass so we picked up a mooring buoy - and found we were facing in a different direction to all other vessels and were very close to our neighbour!  So - some advise from our neighbour, who as it happened was Scarlet Lady from Eastbourne - and we discovered the aft line on the buoy and all was peaceful.

Cala Vella Bay, Ibiza (we are the yacht on the right & Scarlet Lady is in the middle)

We went ashore in Cala Vella to check out the WiFi, which does involve having a beer at a local cafe, then kayaked round the bay.  The inflatable kayak was a great success - surprisingly easy to paddle.  Having experienced all that Cala Vella had to offer, we set off for Formentera Island at the Southern tip of Ibiza - a Unesco World Heritage Site because of the sea grass so no anchoring allowed.

The local fishing fleet

Fishing boat sheds

One of the more rustic sheds - the roof is a huge lump of fossil rock

I'm thinking this guy has retired!  (and that's our kayak)

One of the bays - the crystal clear water paying testament to the powers of the Posidonian Sea Grass, which somehow cleans it.

More of those lovely fishing boats

The coastline - VERY unforgiving rocks

The island itself - very inhospitable!  Ibiza visible in the distance

We also went along to the town of Formentera - a busy little place, with dozens of places where you can rent a bicycle, moped or quad bike.  Lots of evidence of fishing, and also a large area of salt pans in various stages of dehydration.

Formentera salt pans

After a couple of days in Formentera we decided to move on - we initially planned to stop in a bay near Ibiza town itself, but as more and more high speed ferries went past us and we got close enough to see the town properly we decided to go almost anywhere else!

Ibiza Town - a huge mass of blocks of flats and ferries!

Instead, we went to the tip of the island and spent the night moored up off Tagomago Island - beautiful.

Posidonia Sea Grass still doing its job

The island is deserted, apart from the Ibiza Port Authority which seem to have some headquarters here.  The cafe is derelict.

We now plan to head on to Mallorca and then Menorca - to check out the activities of Menorca Sailing.

Note: For anyone following us on our tracker, there seems to be a blip in its working. When you log on: under "Device List" you will see there are 3 devices listed all with the same reference. If you select the last one on the list.....and then go to "Live tracking" or " Show Journeys" it will work.

Denia - visiting friends

This area of Spain has a very rocky coastline, you can be sailing 20m from the shore in 40m depth - the houses seem to cling to the cliffs, clearly not afraid of coastal erosion in these parts!

The headland between Javea and Denia

We are visiting Denia because we have some friends here (they live in Javea, just round the corner) - John and Elli.  A brush with civilisation!  They drove us to a large supermarket where we stocked up on ‘heavy essentials’ like beer, and showed us round the area.  It’s lovely, the hills are covered with ancient stone terracing and there is a local steel artist who has adorned various public areas with large artwork (no photos!  Must do better)

We're in a Marina, so have to get the bikes out for the obligatory cycle ride along the coast ...

The Beach:  There is a little strip of sand, but it quickly turns to rock.

We cycled along until we came to the end of the road - quite literally!

The hill was a bit of a monster, but this Watch Tower was at the top - Torre del Getto, XVII

Lovely views from the top - Denia Marina and breakwater visible in the distance, along with the Balearic Ferry that seems to be in perpetual motion between Denia and the Balearic Islands

You do have to be careful on these roads though, and not get distracted by the views - you never know when the road will just stop!

The other end of the road!

Denia Marina is very well appointed, the showers are individual rooms, each one bigger than our bathroom at home!  It’s a huge place.

The old town of Denia is quaint - hundreds of restaurants along the street, and any patch of road or pavement can clearly be used as a dining room.  We may have been early for a meal in Spain, but there were not a lot of diners in evidence here!

Old Town, Denia - one of the many Restaurant Alleys

On our last day, John and Elli took us to Javea and we had dinner with the Costa Blanca Yacht Association - this is known as a virtual yacht club, as none of the members actually have a yacht!  Many of them sail, and they regularly race the local fleet of Toms, but the Marina is in the rather unique position of being able to select whose boat they will accommodate:  Unless you have inherited a mooring, you have to pay the €100,000 joining fee to the local yacht club first! Clearly not a club that struggles for membership!!!

Ian, Elli and John - Happiness in Spain, Javea Marina

Anyway, we left after a lovely dinner armed with loads of local knowledge regarding anchorages and moorings in the Balearic Islands, so off we go ...

Just in case any of you are thinking that the sun always shines in the Costa Brava - It doesn't!!  Before we left, there was a huge thunder storm and torrential rain - the boat ended up covered with fine Saharan (?) dust.  We left in light drizzle and very light winds, fortunately the Spanish Sun won the day and the wind picked up for our journey on to the Balearic Islands - Ibiza calls