Paradise found!

Tuesday 22nd July 2014

Amazingly, the water was so calm this morning....we could see the sand beneath us and the wind had dropped to almost nothing. We sailed slowly and quietly off our mooring and out of the bay....as we now had an extended pass we decided to sail round to the other side of the island to a bay where you can pick up a mooring buoy for the day.

[caption id="attachment_1495" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Jumping ship...[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1496" align="aligncenter" width="427"] Interesting moment…what to do???[/caption]



[caption id="attachment_1498" align="aligncenter" width="427"] Hahaha!!![/caption]





On the way, after an impromptu kiss, BT decided to jump overboard, with the waterproof camera, to try and photograph us sailing. His plan was to land on Mango tango and sail along behind! Unfortunately, not all plans work out....mango tango decided not to play ball.....she didn’t want BT aboard so moved swiftly out of the way as BT made his escape, causing him to land in the ocean, leaving Billy sailing along alone! (not panicking...aghhhhh!!!) Don’t worry though...BT grabbed Mango’s rope and managed to haul himself onto her ...we were both in fits of giggles, but it all ended well and we both took photos of each other on our respective sailing vessels!!!

[caption id="attachment_1467" align="aligncenter" width="480"] Bye Bye Billy…..[/caption]



[caption id="attachment_1469" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Caught on camera![/caption]

We moored at the bay...it was beautiful yet again. After a swim and a canoe around we sailed away heading back to Mallorca.

[caption id="attachment_1470" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Fish everywhere!!![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1472" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Blue blue water[/caption]



[caption id="attachment_1476" align="aligncenter" width="640"] What is it???[/caption]









 

[caption id="attachment_1478" align="aligncenter" width="640"] We saw a jelly fish in the water…Billy swam away rather rapidly, handing over the camera to BT to take photos![/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_1479" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Winning photo…. "Hey everyone…look at my balloon!!!"[/caption]



[caption id="attachment_1483" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Exploring[/caption]







 



 

[caption id="attachment_1487" align="aligncenter" width="640"] We collected sand for you Ingrid from here….[/caption]









 



[caption id="attachment_1493" align="aligncenter" width="480"] Recovered treasure...[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1494" align="aligncenter" width="640"] We'll be back….[/caption]

It’s been a real highlight of our trip to visit here...BT has never been before so it was a voyage of discovery for us both. We have been thoroughly spoilt being able to spend two days here and take in the unique surroundings and enjoy the clear waters.

Sant Jordi was our final resting place tonight after taking 3 hours to sail back. We were treated to yet another fantastic sunset.

Cabrera at last!

Monday 21st July 2014

Cabrera is absolutely stunning...actually, stunning does not describe it well enough. The colour of the water is so blue it’s unreal and the land gently rises and falls to drop into the azure blue ....it’s awesome. Knowing that we had little time ...despite not making it to our buoy last night, we would have to be away from here by 5pm ... we took Mango Tango ashore, picked up some maps and took the short stroll up the hill to the castle....even at 9am it was extremely hot and shade was very much lacking...making it a hard climb but well worth the effort!

[caption id="attachment_1434" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Looking towards the port buildings[/caption]







[caption id="attachment_1439" align="aligncenter" width="640"] The bar![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1440" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Looking out towards Mallorca[/caption]



[caption id="attachment_1442" align="aligncenter" width="427"] Steps up to the castle[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1443" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Harbour entrance[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1444" align="aligncenter" width="427"] A view from the castle across the moorings[/caption]











 

[caption id="attachment_1450" align="aligncenter" width="640"] An island inhabitant….and a companion at the bar[/caption]





The island has only a few dwellings on it...the castle dates from the 1600‘s a ndthere are a few remnants of buildings from when 12,000 french prisoners were left here in during the war with Spain. It was then occupied by the Spanish again...and today, there is a small hostel you can book to stay in, a port office and a bar...mainly for the port officials, but visitors can drink and eat there too. On the opposite side of the island there is a lighthouse which is unique for the way that it has been painted...red and white diamonds. We made an impromptu decision to walk the 11kms to the lighthouse and back. It was a fantastic walk....up and own and up to the lighthouse...gorgeous views at every turn...

[caption id="attachment_1453" align="aligncenter" width="640"] On our way to the lighthouse[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1454" align="aligncenter" width="640"] The lighthouse in the distance…not as close as it looks! We decided to call it the Thermos lighthouse because of it's shape![/caption]



[caption id="attachment_1456" align="aligncenter" width="640"] How anything grows is beyond me![/caption]



 





[caption id="attachment_1460" align="aligncenter" width="640"] The castle in the distance..[/caption]



[caption id="attachment_1462" align="aligncenter" width="427"] 'Thermos'![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1463" align="aligncenter" width="427"] The long way home![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1464" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Windekind in sight...[/caption]

Once back onboard Windekind it was time to cool off and have a snorkel in the clear waters.....we saw so many fish...shoals of golden fish sweeping from side to side over the seaweed looking for tasty morsels to eat, a large fish with a bad eye who just swam around in circles, huge grumpy looking fish, the tiniest sparkly ones flitting about ,seaweed in all shapes, colours and sizes...it really was just like swimming in an aquarium!



[caption id="attachment_1431" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Golden fish...[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1432" align="aligncenter" width="480"] Look out behind you…..[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1433" align="aligncenter" width="480"] Oh buoy!!![/caption]

As the afternoon wore on the wind really picked up and started to howl across the bay....not weather the skipper wanted to take a small wooden boat out into.....but, we had no permit to stay tonight, so we had a problem. Also, Billy was feeling quite ill...sunstroke from being in the midday sun walking to the lighthouse and back...so she was going to be of no use at all!! The port officials came around and BT explained our situation and mentioned that I was ill...they said we could stay until the wind dropped!!! However, an hour or so later they came back and told us that we could stay for the night in replacement for the booking we missed last night...so we didn't have to pay again. It was a huge relief for both of us! We could sleep in peace knowing that all would be well in the morning!