Astraia Heads South

I'm afraid I've been very remiss this year with the blog - a lot of other things seem to have been going on and also it has often been so hot that the idea of sitting at a computer voluntarily (if no-one is paying me to do it!) does not appeal! Well, that's my excuse anyway. So this is just a quick blog to catch up with where we are now! August 2022 At the end of last year, we planned to sail back from Sao Miguel in the Azores to Lagos on mainland Portugal for the winter. However, that was not to be...!  Our last view of Ponta Delgada on Sao Miguel island The first day or so was flat calm so we could motor and life on board was very easy.  We saw 3 pods of dolphins and a whale (in the distance) and spectacular stars in the clear night sky.  Here's one pod of dolphins... ...and  another pod swimming around and under the boat - so close! The ocean is 4000 metres deep and there is surprisingly little sea traffic - we saw hardly a ship and it is an awesome feeling to be ...

We left Vila do Porto, Santa Maria, before dawn, just as the all-night festival was coming to an end in the fortress up on the hill! The day dawning... It was a grey passage most of the way, but calm, no wind, so we had to motor. But - great excitement! We saw whales! This pod of (I think) pilot whales just cruised past in a relaxed manner, and a bit further off we also saw a humpback blowing out of his hole and flicking his tail! We turned off our engine and just drifted while they went past so as not to disturb them. It brightened up in the afternoon ...   ... but then unfortunately it greyed over again before we arrived which makes Ponta Delgada, the main town on Sao Miguel island look like quite a grim place! Which it isn't! By the following morning, the sun had come out and it looked like this! Looking to the left towards the old town ... ...and to the right towards the more modern part which boasts the only tower blocks in the Azores! I'm not so keen on the tow...

And so, having loved Madeira and starting to feel quite at home after over a month here, we set off for our next destination, The Azores - even more remote islands in the middle of the Atlantic! We spent our final couple of nights at Calheta Marina at the west end of Madeira They employ a wonderful falcon (and his handler) to patrol the pontoons and frighten away the seagulls so they don't make a mess on the boats! It's very effective! This was actually a much nicer passage weather-wise than the first one.  Here we are just leaving Madeira - the west end of the island is pretty remote with steep cliffs and fewer towns and villages. Soon we got the sails up... ... and sailed into the late afternoon ... ... and on to sunset!  It's all much of a muchness in the photos! But that is how 3.5 days at sea feels! This is only Day 1!! Unfortunately, we did not have Caroline on board this time, so we had to share the watches between the two of us, but luckily the weather was kinder...