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Voyage Day 2 - Wednesday 19 November 2025
🌦️💨🌊 Squally showers, strong winds big seas.
Not a good day. Didn’t do any watches today, not the 0400 - 0800h, nor the 2000 - 0000h. Felling sick all day, no meals but I did try a ginger biscuit and a muesli bar which I threw up an hour later. I have stayed hydrated and drunk lots of water. I have tried to sleep but am exhausted by constantly battling the ships movement. Angie is trying to get me to eat but there is no point if I throw it up again. It’s 2140h and I am in my bunk to see what the night and morning brings. I may add the navigation details from the ship’s website later. I’m not sure what has happened on deck today.
No pictures for today
🌦️💨🌊 Squally showers, strong winds big seas.
Not a good day. Didn’t do any watches today, not the 0400 - 0800h, nor the 2000 - 0000h. Felling sick all day, no meals but I did try a ginger biscuit and a muesli bar which I threw up an hour later. I have stayed hydrated and drunk lots of water. I have tried to sleep but am exhausted by constantly battling the ships movement. Angie is trying to get me to eat but there is no point if I throw it up again. It’s 2140h and I am in my bunk to see what the night and morning brings. I may add the navigation details from the ship’s website later. I’m not sure what has happened on deck today.
No pictures for today
Voyage Day 3 - Thursday 20 November 2025
🌦️💨🌊 Strong NW winds, squally showers, getting warmer as we go south.
I was awake for breakfast and on watch 0800 - 1400h today. I took three spells at the helm 205 - 220° depending on the wind strength and variation in direction. We had the mainsail, forestaysail, and inner jib up. The schooner sail went up just before lunch. There were some showers but no downpours on our watch. After our watch, I slept all afternoon to catch up on sleep, woke at 1715h. Before supper I caught up on reading, making notes for this blog. After supper, showered and was in my bunk by 2130h.
🌦️💨🌊 Strong NW winds, squally showers, getting warmer as we go south.
I was awake for breakfast and on watch 0800 - 1400h today. I took three spells at the helm 205 - 220° depending on the wind strength and variation in direction. We had the mainsail, forestaysail, and inner jib up. The schooner sail went up just before lunch. There were some showers but no downpours on our watch. After our watch, I slept all afternoon to catch up on sleep, woke at 1715h. Before supper I caught up on reading, making notes for this blog. After supper, showered and was in my bunk by 2130h.
This image (scanned from the handbook) may help identify the sails.
Note: The sail 11 (Course) in the Key is not marked with a number, but is shaded in grey on the diagram.
Voyage Day 3 - Friday 21 November 2025
🌤️ Nice day, sunny spells NE winds, warmer 11 - 12°c.No night watches at the moment until I feel confident about my balance again. Ate breakfast as usual. Today’s watch was 1400 - 2000h. I needed a nap during the morning as sleep was scarce last night (this is the price of rotating watches, sometimes your body clock needs time to adjust). I was on the helm, our heading was 220° - then 200°, heading for Cape Finisterre, visible in the distance. The Bree Foch (in Dutch) or Course sail went up during the morning, along with the two topsails and the inner jib.
During late afternoon the wind dropped and the Course came down. We were then motoring towards the Muros river, ETA around midnight. We will be on anchor watch from 0645 - 0800h until we can moor alongside. (Anchor watch is to ensure that the ship does not drift due to wind or tide)
🌤️ Nice day, sunny spells NE winds, warmer 11 - 12°c.No night watches at the moment until I feel confident about my balance again. Ate breakfast as usual. Today’s watch was 1400 - 2000h. I needed a nap during the morning as sleep was scarce last night (this is the price of rotating watches, sometimes your body clock needs time to adjust). I was on the helm, our heading was 220° - then 200°, heading for Cape Finisterre, visible in the distance. The Bree Foch (in Dutch) or Course sail went up during the morning, along with the two topsails and the inner jib.
During late afternoon the wind dropped and the Course came down. We were then motoring towards the Muros river, ETA around midnight. We will be on anchor watch from 0645 - 0800h until we can moor alongside. (Anchor watch is to ensure that the ship does not drift due to wind or tide)
The Course is a really big sail used when sailing downwind (the wind behind you) on a ‘run’.
It also produces some impressive shapes for photography!
A beautiful sunset as we rounded Cape Finisterre.
Voyage Day 4 - Saturday 22 November 2025
🌦️Hint of sun at dawn, dull and cloudy morning, 12°c, rain in the afternoon.
On watch today 0645 - 0800. Breakfast was at 0800h. The anchor was lifted around 0930 and we moved alongside the quay. With mooring lines secured and the gangplank fixed ashore, we walked towards the town along the harbour road, past the fish market and the marina. When we reached the corner by the town hall and the “Teatro Mercedes” I realised that we had been here before in May 2022 on our Iberian Peninsula circumnavigation. Angie and I walked up to the church, and through the narrow hillside back streets that were now familiar. It was a pleasant walk along the harbour side promenade to the Tourist Office (closed in the off season) and on the way we spotted a nice bakery for lunch. We returned there and ordered coffees and toasted ham and tomato open sandwiches (which came with complementary Pastais de Nata) for the princely sum of just €10.40. By this time the weather was looking quite threatening so we returned to the ship just before the heavens opened. The rest of the day was spent adding pages to the blog and a routine evening followed, supper, reading and in our bunks by 2300h.
A selection of pictures taken today in Muros Galicia, Spain.
🌦️Hint of sun at dawn, dull and cloudy morning, 12°c, rain in the afternoon.
On watch today 0645 - 0800. Breakfast was at 0800h. The anchor was lifted around 0930 and we moved alongside the quay. With mooring lines secured and the gangplank fixed ashore, we walked towards the town along the harbour road, past the fish market and the marina. When we reached the corner by the town hall and the “Teatro Mercedes” I realised that we had been here before in May 2022 on our Iberian Peninsula circumnavigation. Angie and I walked up to the church, and through the narrow hillside back streets that were now familiar. It was a pleasant walk along the harbour side promenade to the Tourist Office (closed in the off season) and on the way we spotted a nice bakery for lunch. We returned there and ordered coffees and toasted ham and tomato open sandwiches (which came with complementary Pastais de Nata) for the princely sum of just €10.40. By this time the weather was looking quite threatening so we returned to the ship just before the heavens opened. The rest of the day was spent adding pages to the blog and a routine evening followed, supper, reading and in our bunks by 2300h.
A selection of pictures taken today in Muros Galicia, Spain.
Voyage Day 5 - Sunday 23 November 2025
🌦️💨🌊 Squally showers, brief sunny spells, strong winds and heavy seas.
A long day and very busy. Breakfast at 0800h and we prepared to leave Muros by 1000h. We all helped get the ship off the mooring and headed out of the harbour into the bay and along the coast on a port tack. We motor sailed for a while heading WNW, planning to tack later and head back to the coast to anchor near an island further south. As we headed in to the channel to the island the captain was told that vessels over 24 meters could not anchor without a licence. He had no licence and no shipping agent or the time to apply for one. We had to turn and come away, which involved a lot of sail handling. Because force 8 winds were coming in from the west later, and with no alternative plan for an anchorage we returned to Muros on the engine by 2200h and moored alongside again. As there were no watches tonight we were able to have another quiet, unbroken night alongside.
The only photos I took today were before dawn of the harbour in Muros.
The availability or otherwise of a decent 4G phone signal makes posting this blog a bit sporadic. It is now Day 6 and we have left Muros and are heading straight for Porto in Portugal. Hopefully, once alongside in Nexus (the port area in Porto where we have a berth) I will be able to post all of these daily accounts for the first of our voyages, before the start the second to Tenerife.
🌦️💨🌊 Squally showers, brief sunny spells, strong winds and heavy seas.
A long day and very busy. Breakfast at 0800h and we prepared to leave Muros by 1000h. We all helped get the ship off the mooring and headed out of the harbour into the bay and along the coast on a port tack. We motor sailed for a while heading WNW, planning to tack later and head back to the coast to anchor near an island further south. As we headed in to the channel to the island the captain was told that vessels over 24 meters could not anchor without a licence. He had no licence and no shipping agent or the time to apply for one. We had to turn and come away, which involved a lot of sail handling. Because force 8 winds were coming in from the west later, and with no alternative plan for an anchorage we returned to Muros on the engine by 2200h and moored alongside again. As there were no watches tonight we were able to have another quiet, unbroken night alongside.
The only photos I took today were before dawn of the harbour in Muros.
The availability or otherwise of a decent 4G phone signal makes posting this blog a bit sporadic. It is now Day 6 and we have left Muros and are heading straight for Porto in Portugal. Hopefully, once alongside in Nexus (the port area in Porto where we have a berth) I will be able to post all of these daily accounts for the first of our voyages, before the start the second to Tenerife.
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