Hello everyone, on the morning of October 18 we left Santander at 5:40 o'clock. Exit to the sea is long - about an hour. We went at low tide, it did not take so long. We headed for Gijón - there was a calm, we went on a motor ...

After lunch, the wind blew a little, set the staysail, went a little faster, about 5 knots, but the trouble is - our autopilot broke down in Biscay and does not keep the course, so we have to steer with our hands. You quickly get used to good things.

Last night we came to Gijón . The weather is completely calm. We walked under the engine for 20 hours, covered 74 miles.

We parked where there was a place and went to bed. In the morning we were awakened by a marina employee and asked to move the sailboat to the visitor's pontoon and go to the captain.

The weather is beautiful, the temperature is 18-20 ... We enjoyed it (probably for the first time).

In the morning we went to the captaincy: we paid for parking and refueled (diesel ate 35 liters). Then the police came to check us, took our form that we filled out in the captain's office and asked for passports, they copied everything, looked at visas, they said everything was fine, no problem ...

Then we went to the store, a friend cooked dinner. After lunch, while the weather is good, we decided to go to A Coruña , I think we'll get there in 40 hours. The weather doesn't seem to bode well. The diesel worked well, the speed did not fall and did not float: it did not give 1500-1800 anymore.

In the evening at 19:00 we came to A Coruña . Days went on, even more. It took 28 hours and 151 miles from Gijón ... Everything happened during these days: the sun and wind and rain; according to forecasts, there should have been a wind of 13-15 with gusts of up to 17 ... But in fact, it was so blowing at night that I thought I would lay down the sailboat ... For a long time (12 hours) we went only under sail - we managed to save a little on fuel.

Then, in the morning it was no longer possible, although the wind was at my back, I removed the staysail and went on the mainsail. But an hour later I saw that the mount on the top of the sail to the sliders began to pull out, I had to raise my girlfriend, stand into the wind and fold the mainsail, barely managed to tie it to the boom on the wave. But everything worked out, let's go further than the motor with the wind in the back.

So we got it, now I’ll go to the store to look for clips that have fallen apart. We are planning the next crossing to Komarinish. Regarding the transition: I’m not a very good sailboatsman, I prefer to live on the water, go out for a day to fish, swim in the sea, well, maybe not big transitions to Spain or Morocco to start with, in general, use the sailboat as my home. The sailboat is already 40 years old and does not need such tests by wave and wind.

My friend is in a hurry to go to Portugal, so we drive like crazy, I myself would never do that.

This morning we came to Camariñas , there is a small marina, parking costs 13.5 Euros, but everything is there: a shower, a toilet and even a cafe. There is no electricity and water hoses (probably you need to buy something for yourself).

We went from 20:00 to 08:00 in complete calm, again under the motor. I set the mainsail, but it was of little use: 12 hours 40 miles approximately.

The weather is bad for two days - we will wait. On Tuesday morning we go to Vigo , and there is already Portugal. Here are the plans.

We spent 24 hours in Camariñas waiting for the weather.

On October 25 at 5:00 we left for Vigo . The weather was good, calm - we went under the motor, without any shocks. I’m already used to hunger strikes, I’ve lost a little weight, maybe 6-8 kilograms. During the day I drink tea, apples and nuts - that's all the food. In the morning a good breakfast and in the evening a good dinner on the ground.

In the evening at 19:00 we came to Vigo , somehow found a marina - there were a lot of them. Before entering the first marina, there is a metal support with beams of the bridge type without any designations. It is not marked on the map, nor by lanterns, nor by signs - you need to be more careful at night.

Since no one was found and the radio of the marina did not answer, somehow they found a parking place. We had supper that was, as the gates were opened by cards. We went to bed, and left early in the morning, before that we refueled at a gas station, although we waited a long time for the tanker, probably 30 minutes, every 5-10 minutes calling him on the radio on the channel that was written on the pier.

I continue my short story about the journey ...

Two days went from Vigo (Spain) to Nazaré (Portugal): mostly calm, but the mainsail always stopped and the jib sometimes opened when the breeze picked up.

A lot of fishing boats at night and buoys hit the board several times, somehow it was scary, it was hard without an autopilot. We were very tired, but we reached Nazaré .

Walked 140 miles.

I came to Nazaré late in the evening, had a snack and went to bed. In the morning my friend was going home, her vacation was over - it's time to go to work, she said and left by bus to Portimão , via Lissabon .

I was left alone. I went shopping, bought some groceries, took a walk in the evening and went to bed. In Marina Nazare I met a wonderful captain of a homemade sailboat, his name is Anatoly, he himself designed and built a sailboat in Portugal. He has been living here for 17 years, moonlighting as a repairer of boats and sailboats. He lives on a sailboat all year round... We talked, sat in a cafe, drank some coffee. He even came to see me off in the morning, it was very nice.

The motor works normally, the autopilot cannot be repaired (there were problems with it earlier). No matter how I tried to set it up, I did everything according to the instructions: I rotated in a circle at low speed for 2-3 circles and back and forth, tried to orient it somehow, but nothing happened. Probably, the internal compass has gone astray, I will look for repairs on the Internet. Now there is no time, so I will come to Portimão , rest and give it for repair. It is warm and sunny in Portugal - today it was +31 in the afternoon, +18 in the evening.

Left Nazaré at 8 o'clock in the morning, walked all day - calm, walked on a motor.

I spent the night in a small fishing village which was shown by the navigator as a marina at anchor.

I went in and looked around and there was nowhere to stand, everything is so small, and even fishing boats come in and out ... Well, I dropped anchor at a depth of 5 meters, as it seemed to me in the middle of the pier with stones, not far from the lighthouse at the entrance.

Dinner and went to bed. The boat was rocking so badly, after some quiet marinas. I wake up at 4 in the morning, I hear the surf making a suspiciously loud noise ... I'm out the window - and I have such a picture - stones are 3 meters away! I fly out like a bullet, I see that I was blown away by the wind and the tide to the shore almost to the very lighthouse, but there were no blows on the keel and hull (thank God). Well, I quickly started the engine - and into the middle of the bay. The anchor did not even resist. Anchored on a new one, took a breath.

I looked around, brushed my teeth, brushed the toilet and went further towards Lisbon. I passed it somewhere at dawn. In general, I chapaled on the motor again, since it was calm, the weather was classy, it was possible to undress to my T-shirt for the first time in the entire transition, otherwise all the pants, sweaters and jackets.

Within 1.5 hours it blew a little to 4.5 - 5 knots - the sailboat accelerated, and usually the speed is 3.5-3.7 knots.

Came at 20:00 to the Sines marina, it was already dark. I parked, the British from the neighboring sailboat kindly helped me, thank you very much ... It turned out not to be a bad marina: not expensive, only 10 Euros, it works around the clock, everything is there: shower, toilet, internet, everything is in good condition. There is water and electricity on the pier, I was delighted - I washed, ate and went to bed.

Tomorrow is the day off to sleep and wash the sailboat, only 83 miles left to Portimão . I think to get up early on the first of November and reach Portimão before the evening ... These are my adventures, but everything is fine, it's warm here, today the thermometer is +28..+30 during the day, at night +18..+19. All class, I like it.

I even caught a fish in the marina on a trap bought by my friend and given to me in A Coruña . Long thought to have or not. I went to a nearby boat, like a restaurant, I asked the chef if it was edible or not, he went to find out and gathered a whole crowd of cooks and waiters, as a result, they came to the conclusion that it was possible to eat, but of course, clean and fry first.

I would like to inform the entire community that I reached my destination in Portugal, Portimão , late last night.

Now I’ve been standing in the marina for 2 days for 13 Euros a day, and it’s about 300 euros per month, 3600 euros per year ... These are the prices here, there is a cheaper marina, but there all the places are occupied for my length and paid for a year in advance. .. So I made a decision: tomorrow I will inflate the dinghy, drive the sailboat to anchor here in the neighborhood right on the opposite bank and I will live in the sailboat. Although a friend offers to live in her apartment, leaving the sailboat alone for a week or two to recover after such a transition...I'm getting away somehow ... In general, these are the things I have guys.

The last transition was simply painful from Sines to Portimão .

I left at 4:30 in the morning, I thought that I would come by 12 at night. Everything was fine: a small breeze blew from morning until 7 o'clock went under sail and motor.

Then I felt a blow, as if from somewhere below: I thought that I had bumped into something, but it was still dark, it had not blossomed. I looked around - nothing was visible, the engine was running, the boat was moving on. Well, I calmed down ... It began to get light, I feel that the rear cable that holds the mast (backstay) somehow sank, I began to think about what it could be. I took a closer look at the nose and see the fastening of the bow cable (stay, forestay) broke off and dangles between the fasteners of the twist (there are 2 such plates). Well, I think the kirdyk sailed, wound up the staysail quickly so that the loadit was less, tightened the backstay a little and went on.

But an hour later I hear something knocking on the bow on the deck - let's look, and there is a problem. The spin came off at all and jumps on the deck. I put the engine to idle, and how evil the wind blew and a small wave rose.

Began to think what to do. It is necessary to somehow fix it so that it does not fight on the nose. I tried to tie it with sheets to the side cables - it worked. From below, he tied it to his entire height, and at the top, he dangles like a sausage and hits the mast and the bar that holds the cables.

And there was still about 50 miles to go, I think he will break the whole mast for me. I stopped again and untied it, tied up the forestay: I have one more safety rope not reaching 1 meter from the staysail fastener, I tied it as best I could. Well, it seems that he didn’t hit like that. He lowered the mainsail, as the backstay was completely sagging. But you can break the mast with such excitement at sea, you have to somehow pull it to the bow.

I took the sheet of the spinnaker, increased it with a rope and pulled it up with all my strength - the backstay stretched a little ... I pulled it up a little ... That's how I think and I'll get there, added gas to the diesel and went ...

After 15 minutes I calmed down and then I hear some kind of squeak inside the sailboat, well, I think the radio is beeping again (we used to have some kind of message that would come until you press the button and turn off). I’m sitting for about 5 minutes, well, I think let’s get in and see what’s there, I climb inside and hear that the diesel overheats and the red light is on, not the radio. Here you are again, hello - we have arrived ...

I began to think what could be. It was useful to look, judging by the temperature, it was not that hot, the water was everywhere, the empeller worked, what he needed, the devil knows ... Well, I think I'll look at the instructions until it cools down. I went into a drift, although the wind died down altogether - calm ... It’s 15-20 miles to the coast, to the cape where the turn to Portimão is 30 miles, at least stay, at least fall ... Well, I read it, I didn’t find anything - there is no such malfunction.

The diesel has cooled down, I start it - it squeaks again. I began to look at the pressure in the cooling system - I unscrewed the control bolt, but there was no pressure. I let's unscrew the thermostat cover, took out the thermostat, tightened the bolts on the cover again, started beeping, but there is pressure through the control hole, well, I think it's better. Started it up again, I think let it work without a thermostat, it squeaks, but it works and doesn’t heat up at all, well, it’s lukewarm 40-50 degrees ... Then I realized that this sensor is probably the brain that makes me stand out and calmed down. So he plopped with a squeak all 50 miles to Portimão, running periodicallyski to the touch checked the temperature whether it was accidentally heated in another hour. These are my adventures.

I want to tell all those experienced navigators who wrote to me on the forum that this idea of u200bu200btransporting at this time of the year is a scam idea - it’s not like that, even if you approach it the way I approached it (at first, through the sleeves, but then everything fell into place) , then I will tell you you can pass at this time of the year. Of course, many on the forum helped me as much as they could, especially Ignat, I’m really glad that there are still people on earth who can help out with advice and deeds in this difficult moment, thank you very much to him for this. Many on the forum wrote to me that no one for mewill not help, and one must rely only on oneself. All this is nonsense. Wherever I was, in what country or marina, everywhere all foreigners helped me free of charge, I wrote a lot about it, the main thing is to ask and not be afraid of it.

I also want all such adventurers like me to be extremely careful with the choice of route: it is better to wait for the weather and not go into the wilds... From myself I will say that these some days (especially Biscay) were the most difficult days in my whole life, the balance was between life and death. A slight loss of consciousness or a landmark in space and you are overboard (it is advisable to become attached - for singles this is a must). My friend would not have pulled me out - she has no experience. She helped me steer and drove me to Portugal, and if it was at night, then in general, damn it, I would have sleptand probably slept until the sailboat rested somewhere on the shore ...

Today I went shopping to look for this piece of iron (the tip of the forestay), but it turned out that the thread diameter is completely different there, and even if you take it as a whole assembly, you need to remove the entire cable to uncompress it, and only then put another one, the sailboat is English, and there is another metal and other threads (imperial system of measurements, in inches and feet, and not metric, familiar). Well, that's what they told me at the store. Advised to boil.

I went to the workshops to look for welding in the port, and what do you think I found and kind people asked me for 5 euros, I gave 10 and thanked them very much for their help.

Arriving at the marina, I removed the normal fasteners from another cable and put it on the forestay, and this welded in place is not so important, I also bought a coarse filter for 6 euros and an oil filter for 17 euros: tomorrow I will change the oil. Yes, I got into the chest with spare parts and accessories, which I got from the previous owner and I see there is a new temperature sensor in the package and a couple of old ones, so I think I will eliminate this squeak tomorrow. It's just that temperature sensors probably don't last that long on these engines. That seems to be all that I wanted to tell you all ... The journey is over, I willsleep, eat and recover from this ...

This is the end of my sad but fascinating story with adventures and the passage of a sailboat from Holland to Portugal. From myself I will say the following: if I were offered to do this path again with this friend, I would never go for it, for any money. It is possible in a good team and on a good reliable boat, but I do not advise one for anything and no one. Although these are my personal feelings ... All successful travels and take care of yourself my friends, help everyone you can and they will always help you.

I would be happy to help with advice if anyone is going in such a way, write in a personal message on the forum ...