Raining in Gibraltar

Having arrived in Marina Alcaidesa, the weather has deteriorated somewhat and we are recollecting why we do not wish to sail around the UK in these damp conditions. Fortunateley we have plenty to keep us busy and with the laundry already turned around, the food shopping completed and the boat washed down we are now looking forward to the next leg of our adventure. The wind is ironically due to turn Westerly, so fingers crossed it will not hinder us leaving for Cadiz either on Monday or Tuesday. All that remains is to buy some new charts and for the sun to come out and we are off on another adventure, looking forward to this particular leg as we will be back in tidal waters and leaving the Mediterranean for the Atlantic, but more importantly will be arriving in our new sailing base, Isla Canela.

Alcaidesa Marina

El Rubicon is sitting in the new Alcaidesa marina in La Linea under the cloud of Gibraltar. The new marina is ideally situated for a short walk across the border for those looking to acquire some not so duty free goods in Gib or fly into the airport for crew changes. The facilities are good and the staff have all been extremely courteous so far. We are here for the weekend awaiting a crew change, unfortunately we say cheerio to Will but look forward to meeting the new crew and sailing with them onto our new base in Isla Canela, from where we are offering Tidal sailing courses and advanced pilotage training along the numerous estuaries. Join us for some great sailing, company and food. Book today as places are strictly limited to 3 students per practical week giving plenty of opportunity to practice new skills.

Marina prices

Running a sailing school means we get to visit numerous marinas, it always amazes me how much varience there can be in the pricing structures. Since leaving Cartagena on our adventure to the Spanish/Portuguese border town of Isla Canela, we have not paid more than 22€ for the night. Marinas on our usual sailing patch tend to charge far more than that with us rarely managing to pay less than 30€ per night in low season, I ask myself how can the pricing be so different, there is no drop in the level of service or quality of the infrastructure so why are we being forced to pay higher rates. Surely if the tariffs were lowered slightly it might encourage more cruising yachtspeople to visit the Costa Blanca and Calida areas. It makes sense to try and encourage growth and build a long term reputation rather than trying to make a quick buck now at the expense of the area becoming out of favour with cruisers.

El Rubicon arrives in Marbella

El Rubicon is safely tied up in Marina La Bajadilla in Marbella, our trip so far has been testing with strong winds. Taking the decision to leave Sunday night rather than Monday morning certainly paid off, we rounded Cabo de Gata with 40 knots behind us and the winds were due to increase, following a quick stop over in Almerimar we set off again much to the amazement of the marineros. We tucked the thrid reef in and weith the staysail hoisted El Rubicon handled the 30 knots winds and large swell admirably. Our intention was to head for Motril only to be told the harbour was closed due to foul weather, with little option other than marinas on lee shores, we pressed on through the night towards Marbella. It all fell into place as the winds and sea eased as we approached and awaekening this morning we are back to 25 knots across the deck in harbour with water crashing over the sea wall. Looking forward to a well earned paella, a couple of beers and siesta before setting off tomorrow for Estepona or Sotogrande. So far it has been a breezy trip with some great sailing, Will has helmed most of the way and is over the moon with the sailing experience so far, having done this trip numerous times we have never gotton this far so quickly having used around 3 ltrs of fuel, excellent sailing!!!

Yacht Deliveries

We are now offering Yacht and Power boat deliveries by experienced Skippers, we can also arange for smaller boats to be transported by road on a trailor whilst larger boats are sailed to their final destination by our experienced crew. During our deliveries there will be a minimum of 2 Yachtmasters (Skipper and Mate)plus crew subject to journey type and length, so rest assured your pride and joy will be in treated with respect and lovingly cared for whilst in our hands. On delivery, our Skippers will also provide a safety list /recommendation to ensure your vessel remains in tip top condition for years to come. Contact us today for a no obligation quotation 00 34 653 468 472.

Mar Menor Sea School heads west

Our temporary detachment into tidal waters commences this week and El Rubicon is heading West and out into the Atlantic to her new base in Isla Canela. From the 8th of April we are offering all RYA practical and theory courses in Tidal waters, perfect for those learning to sail with Competent Crew or for the more experienced Day Skippers wanting to take their first command. Of course the Ayamonte area is perfect for practicing pilotage techniques and will test higher level sailor looking to earn themselves the coveted Yachtmaster Offshore and Coastal qualifications.
Courses start every sunday night and finish on Saturday, so take advantage of low cost airlines into Faro International airport and join us for a weeks sailing in the Spanish and Algarve sun. Contact us 00 34 695 326 184 for more details and availability.

San Pedro Feria Nautica

Marina Salinas in San Pedro is hosting a used Boat Show or Feria Nautica with various other nautical sector on display, whilst not quite what we have come to expect from a used boat show organised in the UK, but it should be nice to wonder around the boats and speak to those in the know. These types of shows are important to raise awareness of whats on offer in the Murcia Region and they can only succeed with your support, so pop down to the marina, have a coffee and get behind the idea, then maybe one day it will grow into something really worthwhile.

Ibiza to Gibraltar

Our recent adventures have seen us sailing from Barcelona to Ibiza and then onto Gibraltar, some amazing sailing on the way and lots of interesting places were visited. Our mile building trips are an excellent way of gaining quality sea miles and qualifying passages that can be used towards the Yachtmaster qualifications.
Our next adventure is planned for the 25th March when we set sail from Cartagena towards the Straits of Gibraltar, we stil have a couple of spaces avalable so dont miss out and see Spain from a diferrent angle.

Barcelona to Gibraltar

The Costa Brava is renowned for its Tramontana and on arrival in L'Escala it was blowing hard, delayed by 2 days we slipped on Wednesday morning and set sail for Ibiza via Barcelona, blowing hard we had some biggish seas and strong winds providing some exhilirating sailing. Spending the night in San Antonio was a pleasant surprise as most of it was closed down with it being out of season, the marina is fantastic and very well priced. The staff could not have been more helpful and it was a delight to be there, something I thought I would not be saying about San Antonio. Although the prosepect of Friday night in Ibiza sounds amazing, the crew and skipper were feeling the trip so far and opted for an early night as we planned to leave the following afternoon and we had to tidy the boat.
The intention was to make for Cartagena but winds played there part and finally we made for San Pedro having experienced good wind then total calm before the winds picked up again allowing to sail within a mile of the harbour. During the calm of the day we sighted numerous turtles and had a magical encounter with 2 pilot whales. San Pedro provided a great pilotage exercise closing it from seaward and avoiding the fish farms using only a hand bearing compass and the lights. Having identified a safe route around the farms we found that the West Cardinal bouys were unlit so extra caution was needed. Despite arriving late, the crew rested well and were fighting fit the following morning as we made for the Mar Menor and passed under the impressive lifting bridge. Meeting up with El Rubicon and her all femal crew we had lunch then departed once again under reefed sails as we beat our way around Cabo de Palos, the shipping lanes seemed extra busy and provided plenty of opportunity to study the lights and apply the colregs. With the wind easing in the early hours we called into Garrucha to see the new pontoons which give the place a fresh new feel and more importantly allowing  secure stop over when sailing this stretch of coastline, something that until now has been greatly missing. Now heading for Motril the wind is due to increase again this afternoon  to E3/4 just in time for us to take advantage if it and sail round Cabo de Gata.
Night sailing has been wonderful under the full moon and with being slightly offshore the stars have been impressive to say the least, with only a few more days to go until we arrive in Gibrlatar the crew is planning a stop over in Marbella before the final leg.
If you are interested in joining a mile building trip from Cartagena to Gibraltar on the 25th March contact us today for more information.

First weeks sailing

Our first week of the season has been a fantastic and varied week. Unfortunately the winds have been light and the nights rather chilly but that didn't stop some great sailing at times and gave us a chance to fly the spinnaker. Testing the crew on their colregs was more difficult as there were very few other vessels to practice on, so with light winds and few other boats there was plenty of pilotage and compass navigation practice.