On Saturday April 28, 2001, we had stocked up on food, filled the fuel tanks and cast off from our spot along the quay and headed over to the visitor's area in Club De Mar, Almeria, where Dan proceded to load his moped. The moped was laid on its side on the port bow and tied off, and it didn't seem to be in the way of our genoa. Our little dinghy also needed to be hoisted up and securely tied off, and when that was done, we had no more excuses for staying. For just about five months Almeria had been home to us, and I for one had become very comfortable there. Almeria had offered everything we needed, plus security from the unpredictable weather in the Mediterranean, but for Dan the unknown adventures still to be experienced beckoned. Therefore, at noon we left Almeria behind and headed east towards Cabo de Gata.

As so often happens when we are sailing, the winds don't cooperate at all and soon we took easterly winds right on the nose. When the bow started pounding into the waves, it became very uncomfortable, so Dan peeled off more to the north, and closer towards the shore where the waves were calmer. We knew that if we rounded the point, we would be in for a very rough ride, so instead we opted to throw over our anchor on the west side of Cabo de Gata, at the designated anchorage, and stay there until the next morning. Before we left Almeria, Dan had gone back to Gibraltar to buy "cruising guides" of the areas of the Mediterranean we planned to visit, and those books soon became our guides we relied on. They showed where the best anchorages were, what the harbors looked like and numerous other useful information. From our Spanish guide we knew it was allowed to anchor west of Cabo de Gata. We didn't get very far that first day on the water, but at least we were on the way and at the same time getting used to the movement of the boat away from the dock.

Sunday morning we were on the move by 0800 and the water was totally calm, so we had to use the motor to round Cabo de Gata. Not until later on in the afternoon did we get some winds, so we could use the genoa also. We made our way north along the Spanish coast, but as it was pretty hazy over the land, we really didn't see much of the coast. To me it seems that it's never a crisp, clear day in Spain, like the gorgeous ones we are spoiled with in New England, and Dan informed me that it's because of all the moisture in the air! By motor-sailing we made it 49 miles farther northeast in ten hours, and by nightfall we had anchored inside the breakwater wall in the town of Aguilas. Before it got dark, I hurried and took some pictures around the harbor. On top of a hill in the middle of the town, sat an old windmill, which seemed out of place, but picturesque at the same time. Above the lighthouse, on a crumbling rock, was the ruin of an old castle. At one time Aguilas was an important Roman port, which fell into disuse after repeated invasions by the Berbers, but in 1765 the village and harbor was rebuilt, and the castle restored. Unfortunately, we only saw the castle from the harbor, as night soon was upon us and we were exhausted after a long day on the water. All we could think of was eating supper and early to bed!

Monday the winds seemed to cooperate with us, as they blew quite strong from the west. Finally one full day of sailing only, after we had motored out of the harbor at Agulias of course. The wind gusted up to 27 knots now and then, but mostly it blew 15-20, and as we had following sea it was not too bad. The waves weren't too big to begin with, but after the wind had blown all day, the waves started getting quite large and we estimated them to be about 8-10 feet high. We were debating wether to take into the harbor at Cartagena, because if we continued, we knew there wouldn't be any safe harbors until we rounded Cabo de Palos, which was quite a distance off. Since we had such great winds, we figured we would continue, so along the rugged coast we sailed. Our auto-pilot handled the boat great, until the wind increased all of a sudden. Dan had just gone below to check the chart, when I could hear the wind starting to increase. The wind sounded like a whine, and immediately I knew we were in trouble. I screamed for Dan, and he came running out into the cockpit and grabbed the wheel, as by now the auto-pilot couldn't keep up. We had put out the whisker pole earlier to help hold the genoa out, as the wind came almost dead astern, and of course now the wind was too strong for Dan to be able to roll in the sail. Thank goodness the really strong gust, 50 knots, only lasted a short while, so eventually we were able to pull in the genoa and sailed only with the main up. Even so we were doing about 9 knots and that is too fast with our boat! Boy, was I ever happy to finally see the lighthouse at Cabo de Palos, as I knew that the wind and the waves would be much calmer once we rounded that point! In eight and a half hours we had come 45 miles, and now we were anchored in a big bay north of Cabo de Palos. As long as the winds came from west to south we were protected, and as it was we ended up staying there all day Tuesday because of strong westerly wind still.

By Wednesday morning the wind had died down, but now dark threatning clouds scurried across the sky. It even rained a few drops, and lightning was visible farther out in the dark clouds over the water. We decided to continue, even if we had to motor to begin with, so by 0900 we were on the way again. We went north alongside the big inland lake, called Mar Menor, but all we could see were rows upon rows of hotels. We passed close by the Isla Grossa, that had looked like a volcano sticking up out of the sea from Cabo de Palos, but once we got close, we could see that was not its shape at all. It looked more like two humps sticking up out of the water! Once we passed Isla Grossa, the wind changed to a more easterly direction, and we could help move us forward with the genoa also. Almost four hours from the time we pulled up anchor in the morning, and 20 miles farther north, we had anchored again inside the breakwater walls in the port of Torrevieja. I wanted to stop in that port, as I had heard there was supposed to be a Swedish grocery store there, and I was looking forward to some Swedish food. That was not to be; we couldn't find the store nor the Internet, so we finally ended up buying some groceries in a gas station and paid premium prices for everything. What did surprise me was the signs in most of the store windows; they advertised in Swedish, so obviously there must be lots of Swedes in that city. Not a city this Swede would consider living in; the city was too crowded with people and everything seemed too congested for my taste! I was happy to get back out to our boat on anchor!

Time to put the dinghy up again as we wanted to continue Thursday morning. By 0900 we were on the way, but since there was hardly any wind, we used the engine to move. By noon we passed the island of Tabarca, southeast of Alicante, and from then on we could pull the genoa out also and motor-sail. Our next lay-over was planned for Villajoyosa, but unfortunately the anchorage was along the beach outside the breakwater walls, and since the winds picked up, we were in for a bouncy night. The city looked very nice, and finally we saw houses painted in pastel colors; a nice change from the standard white with orange roofs! Behind the city, a tall flat topped mountain rose up, and it seemed to have its own weather. Sometimes clouds enveloped it, and sometimes it looked very dark and forboding down upon the city. When we were anchored along the beach, we started to see dark clouds moving in from the sea. Flashes of lightning also streaked between the clouds and the water, and farther south of us they were getting rained on. All we could do was sit and watch the clouds getting closer and closer to us, and when the storm seemed to finally reach land south of us, churchbells started ringing. That was a bit eerie! The same happened when the storm looked like it had passed, so we wondered if that was normal when a storm hit? Luckily, the storm seemed to be all around us, but no lightning hit our mast, as ours was the only one along the beach! Once the storm passed, the winds changed to a more north-northwest direction, and for us it meant a calmer sea, so it wasn't too uncomfortable to sleep.

When I don't feel safe and secure on anchor, I don't sleep very sound, and usually I wake up several times during the night checking to make sure we haven't dragged our anchor. That's what I did during the night to Friday, and I was actually glad when it was time to get up and continue. The sky was still dark, and rain fell now and then, and the wind still came from north and northwest, so we could motor-sail some. When the wind started gusting up to 20 knots, we decided to pull into the harbor at Calpe, where we could anchor between the outside and the inside breakwater wall, and be somewhat protected, at least from winds from north all the way around to south. To the east of the anchorage rose the mountain Ifach, which looked very impressive both far away and close up. While Dan and I were discussing when and to where we were going to continue, our phone rang. It was our friend Tom from the boat XTC. He and his lady friend Val, had reached the first island in the Baleares, and they were wondering when we would catch up to them? Maybe by Saturday evening, we said! As it turned out, we were on the way sooner than expected! The wind changed direction in the afternoon, and blew straight into our anchorage, so Dan wanted to move to the other side of Mount Ifach. When we had pulled up our anchor and started out from Calpe, I told Dan, that I was finally prepared for the crossing over to the Baleares, so that's what we did, and it proved to be a faster crossing than we had figured.