A near perfect anchorage

Current Location: Playa Francesca, La Graciosa

After a week in Arrecife the weather looked set fair for a couple of weeks so early one morning, before the wind got up, we inched out of the very tight marina [well done Gilly, a perfect exit watched by world girdlers from three pontoons]. While there we had met up with Turkish sailors on Vega, Robert and Carla on Moody Mistress from Canada, both Atlantic Crossing Group boats as well as our Danish next door neighbours who were heading off for southern Argentina via Brazil.

We motorsailed back up the east coast of Lanzarote where a week previously we had galloped down big seas when we first arrived here. Apart from a nasty wet squall as we rounded the vicious looking northern cape of Lanzarote it was fairly uneventful. By 2pm we were anchored in this most beautiful bay in the south of La Graciosa. You may have been here on holiday? This was our first attempt at anchoring since the windlass was repaired back in the UK. It seems to be working fine. At least, none of the new teeth came flying off as we anchored. I'm still trying to source a replacement though. There was one advertised on eBay in Georgia (eastern Europe) last week but it's now disappeared. Eventually one will appear I'm sure.

Nestled below an almost perfect little ex volcano we are sheltered here from the predominant northerly and northwesterly winds. Across the straits about two miles away is the harsh rugged northern coastline of Lanzarote. This has to be one of the most atmospheric anchorages we have stayed in. And we are here for up to a couple of weeks. At last time to chill out, read books and watch the stars. Just what some people think we spend our whole time doing. It's bliss.

That's not to say there are no jobs to do though. Already we have, almost, fixed the toilet (again), cleaned the outside of the boat, inspected and removed Wanda's lower parts, tidied the rope locker, entertained a single handed French sailor who, despite having cancer of the stomach from working on the French nuclear tests decades ago, set off this morning on his own towards Brazil. Tonight we have a couple of Americans coming over to give us their experience of many years in the Caribbean. Tomorrow we will climb our little volcano and do a bit of lying on the beach soaking up the still warm sunshine. GSK? Eat your heart out!