Mar Menor Continued

Mar Menor

Having visited the Mar Menor many times on land, and previously in Scarlet Lady two years ago, you think you know a place reasonably well. This visit surprised us in a number of ways.

We first went ashore at poo beach, so nicknamed because it has a slightly whiffy aroma. We dropped Phill off and later that evening met up with Lynne's parents and Phill at the bar on the beach. It was good to catch up, and the next day Lynne met her parents and went shopping in the nearby town for some provisions. The sand on the beach near the waterline is very sticky and smelly. Some might cover their bodies in the stuff and lay out in the sun, but we decided to change our meeting place for a couple of days time when friends and family were intending to come out for a leisurely sail and lunch at anchor. After a little research we settled on using the ferry jetty at Santiago de la Ribera. Although not ideal, it was about the only nearby option.

When the day arrived Steve made a couple of journeys in the rib, and within an hour all were on board and excited at the prospect of our little outing. As it turned out the wind was kind to us in both direction and strength, and we sailed down to a little island to anchor off and enjoy lunch. As it was a weekend it was quite crowded, but we had a nice spot and a lovely lunch.

After that we headed back, wafting along under the genoa. As far a sailing goes for newbies it was about as perfect as you could get.

Many thanks to Graham, Sheila, Phill, Annie, Pat and John for making a special day. Hopefully some special memories for years to come.

Sheila enjoying the sail and good company

Annie at the helm

Phill and John comparing sailing experiences

Pat enjoying the helm

 
We then headed down to the east corner where we rendezvoused with Nautilus and Kerching. We ventured out in the evening along the strip for a drink or two. We found a really nice bar/restaurant along the beach and finished up in one adjacent to the main road. It was here, just as we were about to leave, that the waiter beckoned us inside to enjoy the entertainment which was just about to start. As it turned out it was a drag act! It was all a little too surreal so we left soon after.

On the Sunday we went to an Irish Bar called Paddy Whacks for a rather nice Sunday Roast which is a bit of a treat for us. The bar lady/owner? is a real character and reminded Lynne of the Julie Waters character, Mrs. Overall. Well let's just say you had to be there.

We stayed in the Mar Menor for three weeks and learnt a lot. We learnt that our Genoa was so baggy we could not point much higher than 65 degrees, and our main sail although not too bad, was probably past its best. We made the decision after speaking to Andy our rigger, to go with a new main and Genoa from Hyde sails who made our Staysail. The only thing was we really did not trust ourselves to measure them. At short notice we managed to borrow Graham and Sheila's car, take our sails off and drive down to Almerimar to meet with Andy who would measure them. The journey was about three hours by road but worth investing the time to get it right. They should be ready in time to collect from Almerimar in early July. We also learnt that racing drivers, namely Lewis Hamilton, can lose a race that was a dead cert through a really poor team decision. What should have been a text book start and finish turned into a farce. It will be interesting at the end of the season to see if that result makes a difference.

Our sailing companions Ian and Stephanie had great patience with us as we all went out on Azzy to play with the big spinnaker. This time all went well as we practised dropping and raising under supervision. We also went on Nautilus for an experience sailing under the new Parasailor. This is a very special type of spinnaker that has a sort of letterbox vent to it about three quarters of the way up. It is fast becoming the sail of choice for serious long distance cruisers, and it's not hard to see why.

Nautilus flying the Parasailor

A special mention should go to Club Nautico La Isleta. We spent a good deal of time in the anchorage just outside this pretty marina, using it as a base courtesy of the protection the area offered. The club is going through a revamp and we had a number of menu del dias there. The staff were very friendly and did not seem to mind us coming in via our dinghys to fill up water containers, nor indeed make use of the excellent shower facilities.
We needed to use our own shower one morning when we discovered the reason our paddle log was no longer spinning. It was full of critters who had made it home!

Our log had stopped working, these critters had lodged in the paddle wheel

Whilst in the good company of Nautilus and Kerching, we anchored off Los Nietos and caught a one carriage train into nearby Cartagena. Although we had visited Cartagena a number of times over the years, it is stil a really nice place to go and well worth making the effort. We visited the Naval Museum and the National Underwater Archaeological Museum which was fascinating. We also found time for a spot of lunch. All in all a very convivial day out.

Cute train

On our final full day we, that is to say, Azzy, Nautilus, Plane Magic and Genie of London had a barbecue on the beach, and even a go at Paddle Boarding. Grateful thanks to Steph for allowing us novices to have a go, it was great fun and Lynne seems a bit of a natural. Still not sure we will rush out and buy one though!

Woman's hour

The barbecue, a male domain. Guess we all like the Cobb version!

Aztec Dream, Nautilus and Plane Magic

Busy dinghy park!

Lynne doing well on the paddle board

 














After the barbecue we made our way slowly up the sea to anchor off the main marina to be close to the bridge to catch the 10.00am opening the next day. As it happened this short passage took longer than expected as Genie had taken a short cut behind the islands and had gone aground on a sand bar. George emptied one of his water tanks to reduce the weight, and eventually got off by winching in on the kedge anchor. We all joined nearby to offer assistance, but in the end none was needed.

We will be returning to the Mar Menor again on our way back. There is a possibility of watching an air show towards the end of June, so we will report on that in due course. 

In our next instalment we come a cropper with a discarded fishing net and are rescued by Ian who fortunately keeps a dive tank on Nautilus, do a driveby of Benidorm, watch Moors and Christians go head to head, visit Denia Marina and so much more. Join us next time as we continue our voyages on Aztec Dream...