San Antoni de Portmany bouys

[beserksail]

This week 80 mooring buoys are being laid in San Antoni bay Ibiza and when the exorcise is completed say goodbye to free anchoring, even the longtime live a boards are being squeezed out. The recession is officially over we are now looking forward to paying more for every amenity. The Balearic's is becoming the playground of the well heeled.

 

[jordanbasset]

Thanks for the info. Do you know will these be buoys be for visitors as per the http://www.balearslifeposidonia.eu/index.php?register_vars[lang]=en system or will they be for longer term residents. When we were last there there were a lot of buoys anyway, indeed we picked one up and stayed a week. Fully expected some one to either ask for payment or tell us to go, but neither happened.

 

[RobbieW]

I think the Posidonia buoy scheme had run its course (funding dried up) and would strongly suspect this is a public/private enterprise scheme. I'm currently in Pollenca where there are no Posidonia buoys and, apparently, there were none last year either.

 

[Trident]

The council handed the buoy laying over to the marina ES Nautic, but last time they evicted the liveaboards - in April, they all cam back over night and the plans were put on hold. The new council elected in May are not behind the scheme as far as I know and the case has been to court when families that had had buoys for 250 years in the bay objected. The marina has been saying they will get the new ones laid each month since April but by end of May hadn't even received them yet to put down and just last week people were diving and laying "illegal" lines to the sunken blocks and setting up new "illegal" moorings. The new buoys are to be eco friendly stainless screws in to the sea bed and are to be charged out on a daily or weekly basis just the same as berths at Es Nautic.

Unless the OP knows something I don't (and I left San An 5 days ago) I highly doubt that they will actually get them laid this season - a local councillor told me 3 weeks ago that the whole plan had been shelved until 2015 anyway - they haven't even managed to get swim buoys properly laid this year - just two channels for powered craft to the beach and a 50 yard section by the dinghy dock to keep swimmers and outboards apart (and that only went in at the very end of June - well in to the season)

On top of which the other side of the bay is a different local council who are not laying buoys and so one half of the bay (the southern side) will always be free to anchor - its further from the main dinghy dock (though there are two lesser ones around the bay) but perfectly fine to anchor in with room for over 100 yachts

The biggest worry right now is the foul ground - there is so much junk from old moorings, old chains, old anchors (we saw a 6 foot long fishermans a few weeks ago) that every day we see people fouled and having to dive down to free themselves...

 

[jordanbasset]

I think the Posidonia buoy scheme had run its course (funding dried up) and would strongly suspect this is a public/private enterprise scheme. I'm currently in Pollenca where there are no Posidonia buoys and, apparently, there were none last year either.

Thanks for the update, it is 4 years since we were in the Balearics and things have obviously changed. Although we may well be back next year

 

[beserksail]

Have just moved because of the bouy laying, they are dropping bouys next to and around anchored vessels, i can see no 67 and there are more beyond it. They are laying them next to existing local ones.

 

[beserksail]

Update on bouys with more put down today, yellow round with diagonal cross marking perimeter and a sea of orange mooring bouys which look like a floating minefield. The bay has emptied except the longtermers and a few visitors, never seen it so empty in July. German friend had bouys placed around him and was told to leave or pay 50 euros a night for 8 mtr boat on bouy, when he refused the harbour rib came past later so close it nearly swamped his dinghy. The fun and games have begun.

 

[Trident]

Thanks for the update - I can't believe they've actually managed to do this now; the court said they couldn't evict long termers, the new council elected in May were not offering support; but then the whole place runs on corruption so I guess the club influenced the right people. Last year they had the bay closed for two days because they spilled petrol into the water in vast quantities and not a single fine was levied or person prosecuted...

Are the old moored boats still around - the liveaboards like Alley Cat and Fenecio? The big cruiser Oceane and all the little french boats etc?

 

[beserksail]

Not many old boats left just Stewart on the westerly, Abla the tri and the red boat next to him but they have had to move into the middle of the bay and now surrounded by bouys. This morning the launch is moving people away as they try to anchor.

 

[jordanbasset]

Update on bouys with more put down today, yellow round with diagonal cross marking perimeter and a sea of orange mooring bouys which look like a floating minefield. The bay has emptied except the longtermers and a few visitors, never seen it so empty in July. German friend had bouys placed around him and was told to leave or pay 50 euros a night for 8 mtr boat on bouy, when he refused the harbour rib came past later so close it nearly swamped his dinghy. The fun and games have begun.

50 euros for a buoy is a lot. Are they putting buoys all across the bay, which is large, if so given the size of the bay there must be hundreds, probably thousands. If that happens I suspect with the combination of high prices and large supply, many will be empty

 

[Trident]

So have they buoyed all across the end - past the Hawaii and over to the other side? Surely they can't stop anyone anchoring outside the mooring field - quite apart from anything else one side of the bay is a different council who have not done any deals with the Es Nautic and San Antoni have no jurisdiction there...

Its also the only all weather anchorage in Ibiza so as soon as a storm kicks up they'll have their work cut out trying to keep people out. Meanwhile for anyone heading that way just drop the hook either on the left hand side as you enter the bay our outside the marina breakwater - in the predominant Easterlies just outside the harbour wall is very safe and calm.

 

[beserksail]

Bouys go past Hawaii point where I am anchored in shallow water too near the beach in a blow. They extend well over to the other side you will get a shock when you see how much of the bay is now bouyed.

 

[RobbieW]

A couple of thoughts:
It has been reported on the CA Forum that the charge was 26 Euro for a 10m boat on one of the new buoys, although thats still more than nothing its not as much as 50 for 8m

If these are 'eco-friendly' buoys what wind speed are they rated to ? The old Posidonia buoys were only rated up to 15kts which really is no good to man nor beast

 

[beserksail]

Price of bouy for 10mtr boat is 24.20 euros from es nautic. At present you have about 80 to choose from.

 

[RobbieW]

Price of bouy for 10mtr boat is 24.20 euros from es nautic. At present you have about 80 to choose from.

Thanks, thing is that if that includes use of laundry, watering, wifi and any other convenience that taking a berth confers (apart from walk ashore ) the (short term) cost looks different. How much for 12.5m ?

 

[JOURNEYMAN]

Be very careful when using laid buoys. talking to a chap who picked up a lifeposidoia buoy in San Telmo, SW Mallorca last year. Went ashore to dine, mooring broke as wind blew up and shifted and his pride and joy was pounding on the beach before he could get to it! Circa E 100,000 and 7 month repair job!

It's a real dilemma, the Spaniards forbid anchoring and drive us onto their buoys to raise revenue (nothing to do with the posidonia weed!), we in turn cannot feel very safe if using their ground tackle.

I guess if it was a Spanish boat wrecked, rather than Brit, they may have reacted to prevent this happening again?

 

[Trident]

A friend came in to Mallorca yesterday from San An and said all the buoys were now full in use day to day and he was charged 67 Euro a night for a 15m boat...

 

[sailorman]

what about Cala Salada

 

[Trident]

No buoys in Salada - everything is of course very busy now. Had a night in Portinax with plenty of swing room though and then tried San An for a buoy today - half are empty but we were still told there is a waiting list and we'll be called by 3pm if we have one - no call if we don't . They only want 26 euro for a 10.5m boat which is not bad but the waiting list actually means - "we'll wait and see if bigger more profitable boats come along and then if not we'll take your money instead". So we anchored instead - still quite a bit of room to do so and some of the old live aboard boats are back anchored inside the buoys. Interestingly all buoys are the same and laid equidistant so the charges for bigger boats are because they can not because they've left more room or laid heavier moorings...