Sailing with the Treleavens

For the past week we could be sailing the English, New Zealand or Tasmanian coast but no, this is the northern coast of Spain. Cold, wet and wind in the wrong direction, we never did see the Pyrenees. A lush green coastline with unspoiled villages, if we could see it in better weather it would be more appealing.

Our stay in Bilbao lasted six days; we left many times only to return. No matter when the next window of opportunity is to leave, we will have to put in long trips to get west and then south. One thing about ports along the coast is they have huge break water walls, sometimes two, to form sheltered bays for shipping and Yacht Marinas. They have certainly used their EU contributions very well in the marine area.

To make the most of the situation the Royal Yacht Club in Bilbao, Real Club Maritimo Del Y Real Sporting Club, formed in 1893, was very welcoming where Ian found a 'Cable' in the corner with his circle of friends running the CYCA, a 'Shifty' waiting to tick off anyone and a 'Swanny' having had a few, telling lots of lies. Nothing changes in yacht clubs! (For those that don't know, this is the CYCA on a Thursday night.)

Once a grand sandstone building, it was blown up by ETA, the Basque separatists in 1973, but is now a new very traditional yacht club with indoor tennis courts and swimming pools.

Holed up here with us in another yacht is ISAF member John Crebbin, his wife Jennifer and brother-in-law John. A dinner ashore together at the club was enjoyed by the two crews with many mutual friends in Australia and New Zealand. Other nights we venture into old town Bilbao to join in with the Aste Nagusia Festival week. The bars are set up in the streets to take the overflow from the Alhambra style, chandler bars, and a favourite, Café Irvea where the queues for the Moroccan chicken skewers are longer than the queues for the bar.

Wet weather gear, safety harnesses and life jackets on, our first opportunity arrives, only 50nm to Santander to wait yet once again. Rain, rain and more rain. When we arrived we where boarded by the Guardia Civil only to be told to take our small Basque flag down. It's only a provincial thing as we are now in Cantabria; the man who boarded us said "this is not possible". They even questioned our CYCA burgee.

Finally a wind direction change and we sail 70nm to Gijon a very important port for the Romans but bombed very badly in the Spanish Civil war by Franco. Only a night stop as an easterly wind will send us very nicely west. Next port Ribadeo, with 30 knot winds, we sail wing and wing, roller coasting down waves for 70nms. No stopping Ian - I'm 'shit scared' alone in the cockpit while Ian's down below fixing something. He loves this stuff, as would all yachtsman, but my nerves are shattered. Anyway, we made Ribadeo entering between breaking sand banks, lining up bridges, church steeples and leading marks in less than 8 hours, averaging 8.5 knots.

Nothing like a good restaurant and wine at Saint Miguel, a good night's sleep and another early start to get that feeling of rounding the top of this continent and heading south. It turns out to be a good and bad day. The sun comes out and the boom comes down… what is it with Ian and booms?

One nut falls to the deck and that's the end of sailing, good company and whatever we had planned for that day. Arriving in La Coruna and that first breeze across my face is warm, our spirits are lifted.

The boom is now temporally repaired and Janey, our daughter, arrives today from Sydney. The forecast is looking very good, spare parts are arriving and its all go for a September Summer.

PS from Ian

In the bad weather we have had to use our radar. When a rescue tug came from astern, we were able to mark her on the chart and radar at the same time. It gave us her position, course and speed, much more advanced than our previous system and easier to avoid a collision. The radar can now be shown on our computer and also on the deck screen at the same time.

Some days are just beautiful and we wouldn't trade for anything else, but then you get a bad day and we are just in the wrong place!
Biarritz with its grand hotels line the very crowded perfect golden surf beach. There is no place for yachts here only a created old fishing port amongst the protruding rocks. This was once a holiday place for Royals but now is full of tourists, surfers and casinos. A lunch of BBQ baby squid served with infused thyme vinaigrette at the port is delicious, fresh and simple.
Leaving Bayonne/ Biarritz we spend our last night in France at anchor in the sheltered bay of St Jean-de-Luc. It is nice to now be able to lower the anchor from the cockpit and know the length dropped without having to run forward, but our luck changes when a windlass problem won't allow us to pull it up the next morning. Totally pissed off, Ian drags me ashore to find a miracle! Luckily the head sailing instructor, Txomin, (Basque for Dominique) in the local village is very helpful and we are soon on our way.
It is only 25nm to San Sebastian and crossing the boarder to Spain, the feeling of warmer weather is very welcoming. There is no marina at San Sebastian but they do have laid moorings and a very traditional yacht club that welcomes members of recognized yacht clubs. The change from France is amazing with its Gothic architecture and everyone speaking Basque, and hardly any English. We never realized how strong the Basque influence was, and we are also required to fly the Basque flag from the yacht.
The famous Tapas Bars are what we have come for and don't get disappointed. Piled high with food from one end of the bar to the other is marinated seafood, peppers, anchovies and then piled high on a piece of baguette, a variety of mayonnaise crab, prawns, bacon, egg etc. You pay for what you choose and wash it down with beer or their local cider which is not to my liking, very bitter and they warn very strong.
The barmy evening ashore is very busy with festival week and fireworks as we become accustomed to Spanish time. The day starts at 10am, siesta from 1pm to 5pm and then dinner at 10pm. The late night doesn't fit our routine when early the next morning another weather change makes us roll as we get side on to the waves. The front that delayed the Fastnet yacht race is now affecting the sea in the Bay of Biscay, causing big rollers that are crashing through the entrance. Trying to sleep is impossible, being in bed is like being in a washing machine or having wild sex!!
We would like another day here but by the afternoon and pitching a metre high, we have to explore other options in the bay. Behind the island is a little better, still in view of crashing waves, we are up and down all night checking the tide and boats bumping into us. The problem is we are too big for the close moorings and then the 4 metre tide change affects the mooring line length.
Enough is enough and an early exit to Getaria, a small fishing port with marina, peace and quite. Every village has something to hang its hat on and Getaria is famous for Juan Sebastian de Elcano who as part of Magellan's expedition to sail around the world in the 14^th century was the only ship to return with 18 survivors when all else were lost and there fore officially is the first sailor to circumnavigate the world.
Bilbao is 50nm and Ian wants a 5am start, so that's up to him alone. The new yacht with its electric winches and fully battened main and bow thruster is very easy for Ian to handle single handed.
By mid day we are in the small marina of the Club Maritimo Del Abra Y Real Sporting Club. We find the metro and visit the Guggenheim Museum in the centre of Bilbao, 20 k's up the river. Our first sight is, wow, looking down past old Spanish apartments to this world renowned modern art museum of titanium "fish" scales glistening in the sun. The design depicts the fishing heritage of Bilbao with boats and fish in a stylized way in the manner of the Sydney Opera House. And then inside modern art and the history of its evolution but we find the building itself more fascinating.
A walk through the old town, back to dinner at the busy Yacht Club with its magnificent pool in front, all this in 24 hours.
At the entrance to the river beside our marina is The Transporter Bridge, first in the world and the only one still working. It was built in 1893 and is an impressive piece of engineering. It is 50 metres high to allow for ships to travel up and down the river with a cage that swings below it to take cars and people across the river. It operates all day every day and tourists can now also travel by lift to the top and walk across. For those that have climbed the Eiffel Tower or The Sydney Harbour Bridge you will appreciate the building feat for it's time.
Today we attempted to leave but after motoring out to the breakwater we found the breaking seas and wind direction not to our liking. When we couldn't see the top of the mast of the yacht close by in the large waves we decided it was time to return to the shelter of the yacht club and wait for another day.

The morning of the 9^th August we wake to high winds whistling through the rigging and not what I wanted to hear on our first sail down the coast. I tell myself it sounds worse than it is but there is no holding Ian back, as we have to be in La Rochelle the next day.

40nm and a good shake down with no problems, only a little exciting when we reached the dock in a strong cross wind but the bow thruster is proving its worth. For our first time ever we are told the yacht is too big for a berth and once again we are along side a catamaran.

The nautical shops are like 'bees to the honey' and I ask myself how he can look at the same things time and time again?

La Rochelle with its majestic Roman towers to the entrance of the port is impressive and behind lays a beautiful old stone town. Every night during summer is carnival time with buskers, artists and ice cream parlors entertaining 100s of people. To sit with a huge bowl of small sweet black mussels and baguettes watching people watch people is a delight. But where is summer?A day trip with the Oser family and we have many flags to fly along with our Australian flag, New Zealand, Austrian, Slavonia and French. A sail under the Re Bridge to the island of Ile de Re and one of the most beautiful ports in France, Saint Martin. At high tide you can enter the lock and lie afloat in the heart of it all but we are only here for a few hours to enjoy the village and lunch on board while the tide is high enough. The flat island is famous for its potatoes and oyster harvesting. Also a very trendy island being the favoured place for holiday makers from Paris, all riding around on bikes. 

Back at Marina Minimes in La Rochelle, we are spotted by Ian's CYCA belt, youth academy members Tom Barker, Ed Christian and Ben Feeney. They had seen our burgee flying from the spreader and had been looking out for us. It certainly is a small world.

We have decided to follow the coast all the way, where as most yachts head directly to the NW corner of Spain and La Corona after taking delivery of their new yacht, believing that the weather in the Bay of Biscay is notoriously rough.

The forecast for the next 5 days is from the north and with favourable tides we set off to sail the 240 nms to San Sebastian taking 5 days. Our next port is Royan, 45nms. No wind and Ian spends the day splicing, odd jobs and I watch the washing dry. The tide is something we have had to get used to again, around 4 metres. Entering Royan is only at the ½ to full tide but once in its ok, thanks to a floating dock.

We are not disappointed at our decision to follow the coast, as Royan is a delightful trendy beach town and we enjoy our time ashore. The tide range is amazing and one could be confused to wake in the morning and find you are in a very different looking place when the tide is out. Leaving of course is the same and it's a 6am start with Heinz Oser and Christopher, his 10 year old grandson on board for the 77nm sail south to Arcachon.

Crossing the muddy waters at the mouth of the La Gironde to Bordeaux we follow the baron 78 miles of beach coast line to Arcachon. Behind are the most famous vine yards in France, to name a few Medoc, Pauillac, St Estephen, St.Julien and Margaux.

Basin d'Arcachon is a huge inlet of water at high tide and sand dunes at low tide. It makes for a very interesting entrance in the narrow channel , with breaking water on one side and the other the highest sand hill in Europe, especially good for hang gliding. Interesting to see them return to the top by them walking as their kite pulls them back up.

Arriving on Saturday we find everyone is out in their boats, but not the most successful stopover. Fees are very high for one night but you can have the next night free. We find it hard to see the logic in this especially as there was no service and we had to raft up.

Up early and another 75 nms, straight line down to Bayonne/Biarritz with a very nice westerly pushing us along at 9 knots. Nice to have a little more speed with our new boat, both sail and power wise, she has an 110HP engine. We will easily be able to sail 100nm in daylight hours in the right conditions.

"Finisterre" is proving to be everything we could have hoped for and everyday we become excited about another new feature discovered.

Basque country and we are really looking forward to this undeveloped green coast with many historical sights.

Just as we are about to leave France I have developed a taste for Ricard Pastis, the aniseed aperitif and of course champagne.