What are we doing?


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Puerto de Torrevieja to Formentera


At 4am it is pretty dark, but this harbour was lit up like Wembley Stadium, fantastic and better still there were no marked hazards (Fish Farms) outside the harbour. We could not have asked for a better start whilst there was no moon it was clear and there was enough light in the stars to see by.

As soon as we departed we were forced to use the engine as there was simply no wind and we had about 104 miles to do. It wasn't long before I spotted the fishing fleet on AIS and it was quite clear they were all working together and yes in about an hours time they were going to completely surround us. I really didn't have much option but to alter course to make sure we were astern of them as they had nets out. It probably cost us about 30 minutes on our journey time so it was a frustrating start to to the day. Shortly after we padded the fleet the sun started to rise and soon afterwards we spotted an unmarked and unlit fish farm some 5 miles off shore. This could have been a real hazard and it irresponsible. Fortunately it was not on our path so we passed it by.

Soon as the sun rose the wind arrived and we were soon skipping along at 7.5 knots and it stayed like this for the whole journey. The wind was 12-14 knots and the sea was smooth to slight you could not have asked for a better sail, blue sky warm and fast sailing utter bliss. You cannot sail like this around the UK because there are always tides and tides rough us the sea, they act against the wind every six hours etc.

We arrived on Formentera at around 7:30pm, I had selected an anchorage called Cala Saona as it was a big anchorage and should be an easy place to stop with no complications incase we were late arriving. Our friend Keith Jones had recommended Esplamador but it seems in July and August it is filled with buoys and you need to book in advance. We decided to go there another time. As soon as the anchor was down we were both over the side enjoying the refreshing feel of the azure blue water of the med after being slightly cooked under our awning (bimini). As soon as we were out of the water a celebration was needed and Whispering Angle came to the rescue, having been reserved away in the wine store for such an occasion. What a relief, we both slept well that night.

The next day we decided not to go anywhere, we just chilled and swam and then around 2pm I suggested that we go ashore and try our luck in the restaurant. "Do you have a reservation?" er no we have just arrived by boat. I always think that restaurants think that boater have deeper pockets and will enhance our chances of getting a table, rightly or wrongly we were given a table. I had the most splendid veal steak, cooked to perfection and 4 chips. Linda ordered a lovely Sole and it to arrived with 4 chips. Easy on the chips is a thing here, and it was fine it is so hot your appetite is suppressed anyway all washed down by a sparkling Rosé. Splashing out is ok if we anchor as anchoring is free.

We have decided to go to Esplamador and see what all the fuss is about so I registered after some considerable effort on the Spanish IP ports website and booked a buoy for tomorrow night. The cost an eye watering €75… until I got to the checkout where VAT was added. It was just under €100 for the night. To put that into perspective Gibraltar charged £25 a night in the marina and in Formentera the marina quoted us €598 for the night… this has to be amongst the worlds most expensive marinas… we will find out.


  • This is what the doctor ordered!
  • The anchorage but it does not depict the colour of the sea
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