First Passage

Well, we finally! made our first passage. We left Canet en Roussillon at 1500 (that is 3 PM for you land lubbers) and arrived at Bandol, some 140 miles east, at 10:30 the next day. It was quite a long trip for our first, but it took us all the way across the windy Gulf Du Lion.

They don't call it Lion for nothing. The land across the gulf is very low and is not far from the base of the mountains, the wind whistles down off the mountains thru the gulf and fans out. We waited several days for the right weather window and in the end settled for windy, but not howling. The wind was predicted for force 5 to 6 that is 19 to 27 knots. It didn't disappoint us, the seas were rough with winds up to 30 knots. We were tripping along with a single reef in the mainsail going 9 to 10 knots, and occasionally hitting a wave with a loud smack.

At dark we put in another reef and rolled the genoa in half way, settling down to 6 knots, making it easier for the autopilot to steer, and for us to get some rest. Unfortunately, Ruth did not get much rest being her usual sea sick and a light shade of green. It takes her a while to get her sea legs.

The seas were rough from a previous 4 day storm and were hitting us from the aft quarter, and the side. Slowing down to 5 or 6 knots helped, besides, if we didn't slow down we would arrive before daylight. We had a full moon and not much traffic. In the morning we saw a couple ships headed into Marseille.

At about 9:30 while sailing along the coast, we were stopped and boarded by the French Doanne Officiers. The came up to us in a big motor boat, hailed us to stop, and got into their inflatable and came over. They first told us we couldn't fly an American flag from a French boat, then after reviewing our papers, told us to please put it back up. They were very nice and wished us a good trip.

We then made our first stern-to docking of this monster. We backed into a slot between a pier and a huge motorboat. A bit rough, but we didn't bang into anything so it was a success. The marina here at Bandol is right next to the city with a constant parade of colorful French wearing anything, passing by. A bottle of wine, cheese, and a baguette are just feet away. Very colorful and very French, with many many outside bistros, bars and restaurants. There is a daily open air market full of good stuff to eat, vegetables, cheese, olives, salami, fish, etc. In the evening are the stalls of craft vendors & painters. Truly a nice stop after a rough first sail.

We will be doing mostly easy day sails for awhile now, as we are in a more hospitable coast. The next stop is the Porquerolle Islands a few miles off the coast near Hyeres. From there to St. Topaz, then over to Corsica. We hope to pick up uncle Patrick and aunt Madeline in either Corsica or along the north coast of Italy around the 18 of July. In mid August we should pick up Bob and Judy, somewhere in mid to south Italy on their way from Saudi Arabia to ? In September we will pick up Gavin and Katie Catto, coming from London for some extended sailing in the Greek Islands & ??? It is not all fun, but we are really enjoying ourselves and having unforgettable experiences. We are located at: 03 degrees 08 min. North, and 05 degrees 45 min. East.