Blog 40: Summer 2024 - Under The Bridge … but only just!

I seem to have ‘fallen by the wayside’ as far as blogging is concerned in the last couple of years! I think it’s partly because the temperature is often just too hot to want to stay inside staring at a computer screen, and partly that the internet connection is sometimes slow or not available at all if we’re out at sea.

Anyway, my apologies and I’m going to start again now. I also have a couple of unfinished episodes from last year that I will try and finish off and post later.

We arrived back in Lagos, Portugal, at the end of April and moved Astraia a few miles down the coast to Portimão boatyard to do some maintenance and get her bottom painted!

Here is Astraia waiting for us in Lagos Marina

This is looking back at the town of Lagos as we leave

We anchored overnight in Alvor, one of our favourite spots, then headed to Portimão Boatyard where Astraia was lifted out of the water.

Here’s Astraia in the boatyard at Portimão. We spent a couple of weeks getting her ready for the season and freshly painted with antifouling and ready to be re-launched. We lived on board during this time and I’m glad I don’t have to go up and down that rickety ladder any more!

After we’d finished boat work for the day we went for some nice walks along the dramatic limestone cliffs at Carvoeiro…

…which you can scramble all over and explore the fantastic shapes formed by the action of the sea.

We also relaxed with some delicious local wine and enjoyed beautiful sunset views at O Mohle restaurant in Ferragudo

Finally after a couple of weeks Astraia was ready for re-launch…

…and we said goodbye to Portimão.

We made our way along the Algarve coast to the Spanish border, sailing in company with Tiger Lily, and our fellow sailors Kit and Mariella, and stopping briefly in Culatra and Tavira.

Astraia goose-winging along the coast

Tiger Lily sailing beside us

Astraia anchored off the beautiful beach at Culatra

Tiger Lily anchored in the river near Tavira

Sundowners on board Astraia

We then moved on to Vila Real de Santo Antonio which is on the Portuguese-Spanish border. Vila Real is a charming town, largely rebuilt after the massive 1755 earthquake and tsunami.

This is a view of the marina and town from the Río Guadiana which forms the border with Spain.

The main square at Vila Real

The market

Sundowners on board Tiger Lily

From here it’s possible to go under the road bridge and explore the beautiful and peaceful Guadiana River, but we have never done it because our mast is nearly 21 metres high and we were unsure if there was enough space under the bridge! The chart says there is only 18 metres height above mean sea level. However, people tell us that at low water it is possible for yachts with up to about 22 metres height to get through - BUT it’s not something you’d want to get wrong!!

However, our friends on Tiger Lily have done it before and their mast is slightly taller than ours…

Tiger Lily is on the left, Astraia on the right.

Here’s the bridge as Tiger Lily approaches it…

It looks incredibly close and scary…but they made it!

So we followed them through…it looks as though you’re going to hit it until the very last moment!

Once under the bridge the river is delightful.

The wind was behind us so we could spend the day gently sailing upriver and we anchored in some truly idyllic spots for lunch or a swim.

This is Astraia approaching Puerto de la Laja

Puerto de la Laja is a pretty place, but almost a ghost town since Rio Tinto Zinc suddenly closed their operation - the photo is of the now-derelict mineral ore loading bays.

An empty street in Puerto de la Laja

A beautiful jacaranda tree

Tiger Lily and Astraia alongside the new pontoon - part of the plan to re-invent Puerto de la Laja as a tourist destination.

This is Tiger Lily at anchor in the evening sunshine.

The next day we went as far as is navigable - to Pomarão, another tiny, unspoilt village…

…and had a delicious lunch at a charming local restaurant with the crew of Tiger Lily

We then spent a night alongside the pontoon in Sanlúcar on the Spanish side, looking across to Alcoutim in Portugal.

The next day we zip-wired across the river from Spain to Portugal! Great fun and a fabulous experience! I loved it! 😊

We a nice lunch there and took the ferry back. It’s really confusing being on the Spanish-Portuguese border - what little Portuguese and Spanish we’ve learned gets totally muddled when you keep crossing the river! And the two countries are in different time zones too!

A street in Alcoutim, Portugal

A quiet corner of Sanlúcar, Spain

Coming back under the bridge wasn’t half as scary, but still looked very tight and we took great care to do it at low water!

We then spent a couple of days in Ayamonte Marina in Spain, just opposite Vila Real de Santo Antonio in Portugal. Ayamonte is also a charming town with lots of nice restaurants and attractive squares.