White Lady Mar Menor

[MedDreamer]

Phil (White Lady) was scheduled to move his Trawler Yacht from Alcudia to the Spanish mainland.

Did you make it Phil and how was the voyage? Please let us all know.

Hope it all went according to plan.

Martyn

<hr width=100% size=1>Living the dream

 

[andy_wilson]

Hazards encountered en-route

Not wishing to steal anyones thunder........

First day departed Alcudia 05:00. On rounding the N tip of Mallorca a combination of reciprocal headings, our increasingly forceful avoiding manouvers, and the the never changing aspect of a ship gradually rounding the headland, whose white steaming lights looked red, and had us all wondering what the heck was coming our way. Rapidly.(We didn't use the word heck though).

Due to a failed impeller / overheating port engine that afternoon we made an early, forced stop in Andraix for repairs. In tune with other superyachts in the Med recently, anchors began to drag when the wind piped up that night, and just after midnight followed an hour of sinchronised anchor dancing before we settled on tipping the lot over the bow and mounting anchor watches. Two other yachts gave up and shipped out in the middle of the night.

Next day we rose at the crack of sparrows, and we subsequently continued via San Antonio, Ibiza.

During this time we narrowly avoided several collisions with bar and nightclub ticket touts, who seemed always to swerve away at the last minute!

Later on several crewmembers had difficulty navigating bodies stewn between the bars and the marina.

Medical equipment was plentiful however. A team of teenage girls wearing TuTu's (and G-strings it's fair to add) were parading confidently around, covering their 'top parts' with crepe bandages, eye patches etc. My particular favourite chose to cover just her nips with 2 pairs of sticking plasters arranged in a cross. I have a MCA card on the back of the heads door which explains the significance of a cross displayed thus.

As we were due to refuel the next morning, Phil and I decided to take on a paraffin/kerosene mixture that night, called Ninja Death. Though our injectors were truly primed, there was a distinct lack of enthusisasm for anyone to turn the keys and take those throbbing monsters for a spin.

Despite using all the best lines like "do you want to come and sit on my boat", we succeeded in returning empty handed, repairing (there's a word) to bed ready to see what surprises the next day had in store!

After a decent breakfast, watching the streets being hosed down of vomit, blood, other bodily fluids, we tanked up in about 38 degrees and had uneventful trip to Costa something, stop-over in Grenwich Marina, then on to Mar Menor the next day.

The best bit was when Phil came to book in, only to be told sorry, we made a mistake, there are no berths.........


Plan? There was no plan.

Voyage? Mildly challenging, 'specially when the engine hatch came up after the impeller failure. Ever tried navigating a Turkish Bath?

Laugh? I almost bought a round.

A minor victory all things considered.

Andy

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[Nat]

Re: Hazards encountered en-route

Hi Andy.
So where's White Lady now then?......Nat

<hr width=100% size=1>2655 ! You can tell me, I'm a Docter !

 

[andy_wilson]

Final part of the journey.....

Phil was sent on a 4km hike (sub-40 deg heat though) to get money (cash) which seemed to solve the berth-space issue.

White Lady now berthed where we left her, in a marina who's name eludes me, part way up the spit that forms Mar Menor, just North of La Manga, by the lifting road bridge.

Of course after arriving there, seeing the Marinier(??), trying to fit a 4m M/Y into a berth 2.5m wide, getting another berth, tramping round for cash etc. Ben and I decided to go back to pack up while Phil found the hole-in-the-wall.

Packing up that normally takes a day was completed in less than an hour (remember the heat). Shame for them near us on the plane!!

White Lady is easy to find. She's the boat with salt-laden deck fittings, pongy heads, black transom, half the sun covers missing and berthed a bit asquew 'cos we didn't have time to fiddle around with the lines....much.

Andy

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[Nat]

Re: Final part of the journey.....

Im Going over to Spain in the morning, will be in the Mar Menor a few times next week I'll drop by & say hello, if of course its convenient.........Nat

<hr width=100% size=1>2655 ! You can tell me, I'm a Docter !

 

[mikewilkes]

Re: Final part of the journey.....

Would that be something like Tomas Meastro - spelling probably wrong.

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[andy_wilson]

Yes nm

,

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[White_Lady]

Re: White Lady

What my 'ghost writer' has omitted to give you is the best bit of the trip!
On the leg from Ibiza to mainland at Altea, we passed by a school of some 16 plus dolphins jumping and splashing around the boat.It was a fantastic sight, and in my married eyes,even better than the girls in one-one's! ( too small for too-too's )
The facts;
1,232 euros on diesal
1.2mpg
Ave speed 10.5 kn
And just to reinterate.San Antonia is a horrible place unless you are under 19yrs old with a shaved head and body piercings!.If the devil has a head office,it must be in San Antonio.Marina poor,facilities poor and a fuel berth that is closed at 4 and not open till 9 next morn!
The jury on Tomas Maestre is out.It is no Alcudimar,but that said a third the price.Gill and i are over there 13 Oct and will do a proper recce.As to a berth,they have found us a space for a month or two, so am contacting marinas with requests.Almerimar the only positive at moment.

Will keep you all posted.

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[MedDreamer]

Re: White Lady

Hi Phil

Glad you got there safely. the dolphins must have been fantastic.

Hope you get all the organisation stuff out of the way quickly (but not likely in Spain) and don't miss Alcudia too much.

I'm pleased that Louise and I made a contribution to keeping your fuel costs down by helping to remove all the excess weight being caused by your beer and wine /forums/images/icons/smile.gif

All the best to you and Gill, keep us informed

Martyn & Louise



<hr width=100% size=1>Living the dream

 

[andy_wilson]

Wildlife

Thought I'd covered all the wildlife, but yes, forgot about the dolphins.....

Also saw a flying fish do about 3 boatlengths (50m) which was impressive.

Phil was prob'ly asleep though 'cos he missed that.

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[Ben_D]

Re: Wildlife and Whitle Lady

Hi Folks,

As the quiet crew member of White Lady, and having seen both the Dolphins (Phil said 16, more like 2 dozen I reckon) and the Flying Fish (I'd agree, 50m across the surface), I feel I should chip in here.

The trip was superb, filled with adventure and exploits of the terrible trio. Having said that it was I who remained sober in San Antonio (Port and Lemon, not Ninja Death for me), sober enough to clamber around the locked marina access to let
Phil and Andy in - very poor marina facilities!

After limping into Andrex, the engine repair was effected proficiently by the Skipper
not to mention the repair of the GenSet by yours truly, spade connector vibrated off a relay which had oobviously been arcing for some time. We revelled in our achievements with a beer or two in Tim's Bar, and enjoyed a fabulous Swordfish supper with Majorcan vegetables.

Greenwich Marina at Campomanes (a few km from Altea) was exquisite in comparison to San Antonio. Good hot showers, clean concrete walkways - and very easy to recover those lost fenders form the fueling pontoon!! A little quiet, but then again everywhere is compared to S.A. Good food to be had as ever and meeting up with Phil's friends helped pass the quiet evening away......

Tomas Maestre... there she sits, riddled with exhaust fumes on her rear end, abandoned hastily without so much as a thank you. She did well, all things considered. Hope you have a good time when you get out there again!

Ben

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