Mahone and Beyond

Porto de Mao, Menorca

We really enjoyed our visit to this progressive port town. Also known as Mahon, the area has a rich history dating back to the second millennium before Christ. There is evidence of a pre-talayotic culture in addition to centuries of inhabitants by the Greeks and Cathaginians, the Romans, and Moslems. The area is famous for its Lobster Soup. Once considered the meal for survival during the Spanish Civil war, now it is an expensive menu item. The Balearic Islands were cut off from mainland Spain during the war, the embargo created ways for the island to provide its own economic growth. Fashionable shoes and costume jewelry are manufactured and exported to the world from Mahon. Agriculture and farming with the emphasis on cattle and cheese production as well as tourism is the strength of the Menorcan economy.

Menorca is the most easterly of the Balearic Islands. We had a chance to see the local sailors race in their Friday night races. Wind is not lacking for the area and 40% of the territory kept as a nature and marine reserve.

We departed Menorca on Saturday, November 12, 2005 enroute to Mallorca, the bigger of the Balearic Island. We made the 30 mile journey to Vera, a very small harbor. We Med moored, a process of dropping the anchor and reversing to the dock, throwing two stern lines around bollards and creating tension between the anchor and stern lines. Usually there is easy access from the boat’s stern to the quay, but we repositioned the Avon to the stern of the boat and instead off loosen any lines we stayed aboard for the evening. We woke and departed for our destination port, Colom. We passed Colom at 10:30AM and figured we would try to keep moving. We had nice weather for a few hours and wanted to see if it was possible to shoot the gap between weather systems. We have been waiting or pushing through low pressures like crazy. We noticed on the horizon around 3:30PM the weather was not looking pretty so we decided to boogie back to Colom, look for a dock and wait for the storm to pass. We made it back to the entrance Colom in 2.5 hours thanks to our sail and the breeze behind us. Right about 6:45PM we grabbed the closest mooring ball and settled in for a long night of rain and wind. In the morning we checked the weather forecast and it was more of the same projected. We were happy to be in a port during a Force 8 gale. Louise made oatmeal cookies with mint chocolate chips and we enjoyed reading, playing Scrabble, and eating nice meals.

November 15, 2005 we departed Colom for Ibiza, the trip roughly 90 miles from Colom. We had a beautiful morning with sunshine and light breezes. Right about the halfway mark the weather began to change. The weather system we had seen on the horizon was quickly approaching, at least the lightening was. Jeff had the watch from 11PM-2AM and I stayed up with him to experience the tempest lightening, 35 mile hour winds, and 8 – 10 foot seas coming across the bow. It was truly a sight to behold. When the light show subsided, I took to the bunk and attempted to get some rest. The boat was occasionally tossed around, but we were secure and dry inside. When the clouds passed the moon was strong, practically like daylight on the dark water and sky. Around 12 noon on November 16, we made it to the port of Ibiza. During the high season this port sees tons of tourists. There are many cafés, shops, and restaurants along the waters edge. The amount of construction sights in view from the harbor shows the growth of this island. Thankfully we are here in winter and the weather is such that the tourists are home in their home lands. Germans, British, Italian, French, and Spanish seem to be the biggest visitors to the island. We hung out in the Sydney Café all afternoon and could hear many different languages spoken. We are in the heart of Euroness!

We’ll be departing for mainland Spain November 17th. Alacante is our next stop. Depending on the window of nice weather predicted, we should arrive on the 18^th.