Harriette - La Coruna

Hello from Harriette,

After 6 weeks in La Coruna we have started to cruise south towards Portugal.

Jo's little finger is nearly better.

In La Coruna we did a few day sails to nearby rias, went to some of the free concerts and festivals that go on throughout August, and spent some time with friends who live in the town, and some that were visiting from the Canaries. The latter we shall meet again in a couple of months.

One of the first concerts that we went to was Carlos Nunez, a Gallego who played the gaita (Galician bagpipes) and other instruments on a stage in the Plaza de Maria Pita. This is a beautiful old square surrounded on 3 sides by arcaded buildings, all with the typical Corunese windowed balconies on the 2nd and 3rd floors. On the 4th side is the town hall, with its 3 copper clad domed roofs. Under the arches are cafes with tables spilling out into the square, reminiscent of St Marks square in Venice (only the beers are affordable). The square is 10 minutes walk from the marina. Nunez had several guest artists, including an Irish lady. The whole theme of the concert, as with many of the events, had a very celtic orientation, with most of the songs in Gallego.

Gallego, rather than Castillian, is spoken more and more by people as their mother tongue in this region. Many signs are in both languages, with some only in Gallego. It can be a bit confusing as the languages are similar, mainly differing by different spellings and pronunciation.

Moored alongside us for a week or so was a 50 foot yacht called Great Circle. This was being got ready to be taken back to America by its owner, Brian. The yacht was a complete contrast to Harriette, which has as many home comforts as we could get in, including washing machine, water maker, 2 showers and heads, microwave oven, TV, generator, etc. Great Circle was basically just a hull with sails for sailing fast. It had a single burner to cook on, a single heads, 2 single bunks and a navigation station which could be tilted to bring it upright on either tack. No water tanks, no shower, no seats or table, not even a floor. And even the engine was being taken out! The Guardia Civil visited the yacht one day to say that there was tax due to be paid and that they'd better not try to leave without paying it. The yacht had been moored on a buoy in the marina for 18 months while Brian saved up enough money to come and collect it, so we thought maybe some tax had become due. So I went with Brian to the Aduana (customs) office in town to try to find out what had to be paid. They said nothing was due, perhaps it was harbour dues. So on to the harbour office. No, nothing due to them, perhaps to the marina. Well, Brian knew that the mooring fees had to be paid, so he settled up and left the next day with Howard Gordon, his crew for the first leg to the Azores.

We never found out why the Guardia Civil came by. The day after that we said goodbye to Janet Baxter, from Chicago, who was going to take over as crew
from the Azores and had been helping get the yacht ready. Brian will be crewing on a new catamaran in The Race, a round-the-world, no-rules sailing race starting in Barcelona on December 31st this year. The same race that Peter Goss's (broken)catamaran, Team Philips, was built for.

We went to a concert by Joe Cocker with Brian, Janet and Howard. This took place on a stage erected on the Playa Riazor, one of the 2 beaches in La Coruna town. There were 2 video screens so that people right down the beach could see. As usual, it started late and went on till way after midnight. The setting is wonderful, with the beaches curving round in front of the town, and the light of the Tower of Hercules visible across the bay. Litres of whisky and Coke, and other combinations, were available from stalls outside bars, for about £5, although most people were not drinking.

On Thursday, 3rd August, a few more friends visited for drinks, tapas and a game of Rumikub on board Harriette. These included Eduardo and Laida, in whose flat in Tenerife we had stayed for several weeks last year - thank you. Also Sara, who works for the same travel agency as Laida and who had helped to arrange transport for Jonathan to get home after sailing to La Coruna with us. Then there was Rosa and son Duarte, and Virginia.

Friday evening, with Miguel, we saw a concert of 3 celtic groups on Riazor beach. This finished at 1:30 and was even better attended than the Joe Cocker concert.

On the Sunday we sailed round to Playa de Ares in Ria de Ares, a nearby inlet, with Rosa and son Duarte. We anchored and rowed ashore for lunch.

A few days later I noticed that there were 3 identical yachts - all Super Maramus (made in La Rochelle, France) in the marina. We found out from Ann Harsh and Ralph Nehrig on one of them (Harmonie) that this was just a coincidence. Only a few feet longer than Harriette but their Super Maramu seemed to have so much more storage space - and an engine ROOM big enough to climb down into! Saw your entry in the visitors' book in Camarinas by the way, Ann & Ralph.

We flew back to England for 5 days for my Mother's 80th birthday on 13th August. About 24 friends and relatives made it to our house on the Sunday and a good time seemed to be had by all. Hope you enjoyed it as much as we did, Mum.

While in England we were invited to Libby's house for dinner to celebrate her **th birthday. Excellent hospitality, as usual, although there are blanks towards the end of the evening. Surprisingly, Libby, I was fairly bright the next day, in spite of reports getting back to me about "being on a mission" that evening.

Mum and Dad took us back to Heathrow on the Tuesday and the next day we sailed to Sada, in Ria de Betanzos, not far from Ares, to spend a few days. There were festivals going on, the main one being the Sardine Festival, where they cook sardines over broken boxes and serve them with red wine and bread (the sardines, not the broken boxes). You can have as much as you want for 400 pesetas. There was a small band playing gaitas going round entertaining the assembled people (mostly locals). This took place next to the beach.

Later in the evening a group played and sang on a stage and at midnight they had a big display of fireworks, which we watched from the boat. It rained quite a lot but it didn't seem to put people off.

We returned to La Coruna on Saturday with a local young man (Manuel) whom we had met and who had taken me (Mike) sailing in his Snipe (dinghy).

On Sunday we took Laida, Eduardo, Toy and Ernesto (the latter 2 visiting from Tenerife) for a day sail to a beach at Mino, back in the Ria de Betanzos. We had to motor there for lack of wind. After lunch, a swim and a game of frisby we returned under sail. In the evening, after drinks and tapas with Bea and 2 more friends we walked to Riazor beach to watch a 20 foot model of the tower of Hercules being burnt and then 2 magnificant firework displays.

On Monday evening we walked to the Plaza de Maria Pita to watch part of a folk concert. We saw a group from Colombia dance out a very entertaining story about slavery and a group from La Coruna danced 3 Gallego folk dances.

The next day we were taken by Naro, Ernesto, Toy, Eduardo and Laida to a small town near Lugo, about an hours drive inland from La Coruna. Here we met up with a dozen other friends from Tenerife who were doing the Pilgrims' walk from the French border to Santiago. They had been on the trail for 2 weeks and had  another 4 days to go. We had a late and very long lunch with them and saw the hostel where they all stay in dormitories for nothing. There are many such places all across the north of Spain, and on other routes to Santiago. Driving along part of the route we passed many people with sticks and wearing the scallop shell which is the symbol of Santiago.

Another evening Nieves and Eloy entertained us and others to dinner (starting at 9:30!). Another wonderful spread of local food and wine.

Rosa has made us a lining for the netting in our cabin and last Saturday cooked us an excellent lunch of shellfish a la marinera, salmon steaks, pork & beef fondue with cheese sauce and mash potatoes, Tarta Portuguesa and local wine. Many thanks to Rosa for both sets of handiwork.

On Sunday at dawn it was time for us to leave La Coruna. We set sail (or rather motor, because there was only 5 knots of wind) as the rising sun lit up the cracks in the clouds. We kept several miles off the rocky coast, in deference to the coast's reputation. It is called the Costa da Morte (Coast of Death). We were entertained to 25 minutes of intense dolphin swimming on the way. Sometimes as many as a dozen at once swimming under the bow, with others all around. Common Dolphins, with the characteristic long beak, dark grey backs, white underneath, with 2 streaks of light grey and cream on the sides where the grey and white overlap. Many had deep scores on their backs - perhaps from coming too close to boats, or to propellors? Some swam upside down for a while, sometimes belly to belly with other dolphins.

After 8 port turns (and one starboard turn to navigate the narrow channel into the ria) we were tied up stern-to in the sheltered harbour of Camarinas by 5pm. After sampling the Estrella Galicia in the yacht club bar we had a wander round the whole of Camarinas. That took 40 minutes - time for another beer. Then it was back to the yacht club for dinner (had a beer while we were waiting). 2 enormous but tender steaks, washed down by a bottle of the excellent Rioja bottled and labelled specially for the yacht club. Finished the bottle (and a few more glasses) talking to some other long-distance yachties in the bar. Kim and Nick on their steel ketch, Jumbly Girl, had been sailing in different parts of the world for a few years with their 2 kids (now about 6 and 8). Including a couple of Atlantic crossings. They are now on their way to the Med where they may settle for a bit so their kids can go to school. He's a qualified sailing instructor and she's a nurse, so shouldn't be difficult to get a nice job somewhere!

That's all for now, except to invite you to join us sometime, preferably sooner rather than later.

The Rias Bajas are a superb cruising ground, so anyone with a week or 2 to spare this month should fly out to Santiago asap. Just ring us up and we'll  meet you at the airport.

After that it's Portugal - probably from about 28th September till 21st October. Always day hops down the coast with a couple of nights in each place. We may have time for a week or 2 based in the Algarve at the end of October.

Then, as soon as we get crew sorted out, we'll be setting sail for the 5-da y   crossing from the Algarve to the Canaries. We still need volunteers for this crossing, so anyone interested please phone or email. Our prefered time to cross is leaving about 26th October, but it could be any time from mid October to late November. Crossing via a few days in Madeira is also a possibility, but will add to the total crossing time (not a problem for us but it may be for anyone who has to take time off work).

Then the rest of November, through to February or March we'll be in the Canaries, so how about a winter break with us there? Just choose your island(s). We will probably be based in Tenerife much of the time as we have friends there but we want to visit the other islands as well.

Next summer we'll be in the Med, starting with the Spanish coast in April-May and perhaps along the south coast of France during June. Who knows where we'll end up by the end of the summer?

Best Regards to all, ON-ON to hashing friends, and love to loved ones,