Hard times
More wind would have been good !
23.12.2011, Friday - "With all our doubts ..." (Christian)
We left the Club Nautico (which i can not recommend), with a suitable visibility and went at 16:00 to Puerto Sherry (with a very friendly and helpful receptionlady (the price would have been 22E! for the night). We found every reparationshop/Tallar closed for the evening, but 2 Persons were working on the boat next too us => they have finally got the job!
21E for checking the batteries => one was not too bad but not good => could have lasted another year. We played save and got it replaced (normally it would have taken until Thuesday, but they organized it within the next hour (Nautica Sur)! So after spending 260E we felt more save and immediately left the harbour at 18:30 (allready dawn) with the destination Rabat, Marocco. Our preparation was poor (no grab-bag with safteyequipment prepared, no deep knowledge about the VHF, SSB, Radar, Plotter ...) but we were driven by the weatherforecast which predicetet storm Sat/Sun with gusts up to 10 Beaufort in the strait of Gibraltar. And we wanted to leave (dispite PuertoSherry looked quite ok and very safe for a couple of days to get everything more under our controll.

The harbourmanouvers with the ovni are very thrilling. Despite no wind and no current the boat behaved like a lead-duck. The turning is very slow and I missed my parkingposition (but the next box was free anyway ... (I will try it with the centerboard down next time).



24.12.2011, Saturday - "Gibraltar" (Christian)
I took te watch from 00:00 and with Dagmar we did the crossing of the traffic-separation-schema. Crossing the Strait at midnight was ok, the visibility was good and the AIS is fantastic and extremly helpful to sort out who is maybe running you down.
I really think of buying a transponder so we are much easier to spot and to call!


AIS-Signals with estimated location in 30 minutes (we are the little red one (or course is tracked behind us)) (Afrika is on the right lower corner)

The really bad thing is => only 5 to 7 kn Wind from West (Predicted was 3 to 4 Bft from NE !!!). We tried sailing but 2,5 kn was not enough speed and inconviieinient with the waves => We have plenty of fuel left so we are going ~6 kn with ~2000RPM.

The stars in the sky are fantastic. I looked on them a couple of minutes and then remembered that I have to send my mom some files for the tax-declaration => business never sleeps ...!?!

The fisherman here are a bit weird. They do not have normal navigation lights but only a blue flashlight => looks like boarderpatrol or police! One has got a read light, but it was 360 degree red, not only Port 112,5 degrees => He actualy called me on the VHF and asked if I could do a bit more west because of his nets => Not a big deal to do so, but not easy to understand that he means me!

It´s now 05:00 and I´m bored and really tired. It is hard to concentrate and the noise of the engine makes me sick. Still not enough wind to sail. Dagmar sleeps in the aftcabin => I do not knowhow! The forecabin is a bit more bumpy but quiter => I will take this one now!

I think a trip like this is not to be made with every woman. I am proud of Dagmar that she bites her into the thematik aswell as in the technic and it is good to be with her!
The most harmonic times we had was on a boat!

At night we are dressed like doing some skiing and we do have our safety-lines on in the cockpit!



23.12.2011, Friday - "The first watch alone ..." (Dagmar)
weird flying shadows => penguins :-) or seagulls
weird waves beside the ship => most probably dolphins

Endlich unterwegs...
Nach vielen Verzögerungen und Kalamitäten ist es nun soweit:
Taitonga ist „on the track“ und wir mit ihr.
Gestern hatten wir bei fast nicht vorhandenem Wind ein bißchen mit den Segeln ausprobiert und uns mit allem mehr vertraut gemacht, auch für heute war sehr wenig Wind angesagt.
Taitonga verhält sich unter Segeln viel angenehmer als bei Motorfahrt, aber momentan können wir nicht segeln.
Bis jetzt war nur die Passage der Gibraltarstrasse etwas aufregend, ansonsten heißt es wachbleiben.
Ich bin natürlich bei allen auftauchenden Lichtern erstmal angespannt, es dauert aber meist lange bis man richtig erkennt was da vor einem dahinzieht: fahrende Christbäume manchmal.
Die fliegenden Möwen bei Nacht sind gespenstisch, auch wenn sie ein bißchen Gesellschaft bringen.
Inzwischen ist die Sonne aufgegangen- hinter den dichten Wolken.
Unser Timing für Rabat ist momentan nicht so gut, mal sehen, was wir machen werden.



24.12.2011 - "Heiligabend ..." (Christian)
06:00 The really bad thing is the wind is still not enough to sail!
12:00 The wind incrased and is now comming directly from the front (south!!)!
16:00 No wind, only 1m Swell from west (very calm)
ETA Rabat 22:00


Am Kaminofen in Deutschland wäre es jetzt auch schön (sogar viel, viel schöner). Der einzige Trost ist, das wir in die Wärme fahren (Was noch einiges an Meilen und Zeit bedeutet, bevor die Butter schmilzt und wir auf Westkurs Richtung Karibik fahren...
Weihnachtsgeschenke fallen diesmal, wie zwischen Dagmar und mir vereinbart, aus (schade, schade was hat Weihnachten dann noch für einen Sinn? :-)
Mami bekommt diesmal ein Krokodil aus Polystone für Ihren Gartenteich => habe sie nach dem Mittagessen (Nudeln in Gorgonzolasauce) angerufen und gesagt, wo das Paket liegt (wußte sie schon => fühlt sich trotzdem nicht weihnachtlich (wie wir auch))


Our symbol for xmas-feeling

Mir ist langweilig und das Wetter drückt. Ich habe Kopfschmerzen und muss mich zwingen mehr zu trinken.
Wenn es weiter so geht, werden wir gegen 23:00 Uhr 2 Stunden nach Niedrigwasser in Rabat ankommen. Entweder wir ankern draußen und warten auf Licht oder wir schleichen uns zum Customsteg (Nein, eher nicht) oder wir rufen vorher mal den Hafen und Customs => Die Papierarbeit mit der Einklarierung soll 2 Stunden dauern => ich bin sehr gespannt und werde meinen Bootspapier-Ordner herrichten!

Alles was mit schreiben oder lesen zu tun hat strengt, wegen der Wakelei, brutal an.
Die Eintönigkeit des Motorgebrummes läßt mich manchmal vergessen nach oben zu gehen und meinen 15-Minütigen Rundumblick zu machen => ich habe also einen Kurzzeitwecker dabei (Der bei dem Motorgeräusch allerdings nicht allzu deutlich zu hören ist).

Ich habe ein Buch angefangen !!! Das erste seitmehr als einem halben Jahr! Jessica Watson Abenteuer mit Pink Lady. Dagmar und ich hatten das Vergnügen Jessica bei einem Interview im Rahmen des extrem empfehlenswerten Blauwasserseminars der Hippopotamuscrew, Judith und Sönke Röver kennenzulernen. es war ein whrer Genuss und ein Highlight (obwohl meine Erwartungen an den Programmpunkt extrem niedrig waren, so dass ich vorher fast zur Messe rausgegangen wäre).
Jessica hat einen absolut natürlichen Charme, steht dabei mit beiden Beinen so fest auf dem Boden und ist von einer Reife gekenzeichnet, die für Ihr junges Alter extrem ist. (Im Vergleich zu ihr sind wir absolute Kaffeesegler)



25.12.2011 03:30- "WHAT A RIDE !!!" (Christian)
We just arrived in the Marina Bouregreg in Morocco and are fastend to the ponton. We actuallyarrived at 22:15 in the mouth of the river and after some very difficult conversations on french via VHF10 I found out that the marinaguys will collect me between 01:00 and 01:30 because of the lowtide.
It was groase to cruise outside in the swell which was only about 1,5 m high and long but very powerful => that was the reason we dared not to anchor (despite it was not possibly for me to measure the surrounding at night, especially distances!!. I was absolutely tired and Dagmar was nearly out of order!

That was defenitly the deepest Point of motivation to go on since June!! We thought about going directly to the Canaries which would have meant about 5 days and nights at sea! Dagmar even had much darker thoughts ... (=> We have to do some days off)


Hier ein Bild der Warteschleifen, die wie vor dem Hafen drehten


The marina had big problems in hearing me on the VHF => I have to check this as soon as possible!!! (I had some problems to understand them, because my french is not very good, but it was good enough though (good feeling)!

The marina-staff fetched us at 01.20 with a little but fast dingy and guided us through the entrance of the river where the swell was breaking. We made more than 8 knots due to the tide and the entrance is weindy (however this word is spelled). It was a ride like in a kartrace without lights at night => It was not nice looking to the sides, where the flats are (Without the pilotage I would have grounded!). Not without reasons this marina will be closed if the waves are higher than 2m.

The marina-staff were assisting us to moore to the arrival-ponton which was nessary because of the heavy current. Taitongas motor was on very heavy duty. The Police-Procedure (with drug-dog in the boat) and the Marina-Check-In took about 30 minutes (The custom-office was "allready" closed => we go there tomorrow (I can not imagine what they want from us)
The marina-staff were assisting us again very professional and very helpful/friendly to get our berth and again Taitongas motor was on heavy duty, because I understood a bit too late that they wanted us to go with our backside to the ponton. It worked quite well!

=> Overall this was an adventure night!

Here is obviously an open air disco nearby, not playing xmassongs but maroccon charts! It sounds as they leed a joyfullife here

I am done for today!



25.12.2011 18:30- "First impression of the city Sale (Rabat is on the other side of the river)" (Christian)
I woke up ar 10:30 because a policeman was in front of our boat. He asked me politely for the papers to do the custom => What a service!!! I have not heard our alarmclock and after 30 min I did my signature at the customs, took a shower and went to bed again until 16:00. Dagmar is still out of order and asleep (I will join her in an hour). Just now the muezzinis calling for a prayer => that the time where the noise of the traffic dies a bit.

My brain is still rolling from one side to the other even standing on the jetty.

Going to town was nice. Lots of shops and a bustling arabic atmosphere. Totally fifferent to Europe; I like it. Strange that I found a hardwarestore who was displaying the gaspressurereducer we were looking for weeks in Spain we visited quite a lot of fereterias there. I will buy it tommorow, because I was without any money (only plastic) at this moment.
I found an ATM in the forth Bank who was able to give my some money. ~11 Dirhams equals 1 Euro.
They have lots of guards in the marina. I feel save.


 
Dagmar und Christian Sahr www.taitonga.de