A Benign Biscay...Thankfully

We had a relaxed few days once Wynne joined us. Hopping anchorages north of Cape Finisterre and finally ending up in Caleiro for 3 days of weather waiting. Once a low pressure had moved east we set off with some decent wind. In spite of forecasts for fresh westerly breezes for the coming 24hrs we were soon back to motorsailing and by the next day we were resigned to motoring with light winds behind us. Frustrating stuff, but as we were to find out later, it was a blessing as some vicious weather was following on over the next couple of weeks. It all meant a placid introduction to Moana for Wynne, although we had enjoyed some feisty 30 knot winds on the approach to La Coruna a few days earlier.

The sunsets and sunrises were superb, a bonus for all open water sailors. By the time we passed Ouessant to the west we woke up to a sea mist which refused to budge until we had crossed the Traffic Separation Scheme on route to Falmouth. AIS and Radar came into their own as we picked through the tankers, cargo vessels and stray fishing boats. Dolphins had come and went most of the way but our whale sighting was limited to a 15m spout blowing about 1 mile away. A Blue, or more probably, a Fin whale but much too far away to merit a ’spot’.

To keep us on our toes, a good sized Tunny took the killer purple lure. Freddie managed bring it in close and after taking over for the landing I managed to lose it next to the boat and just in time to avoid having to endure a messy dispatch on the deck.

Just before reaching Falmouth a particularly playful group of Dolphins welcomed us back to the UK. We were safely anchored off Pendennis Marina by 10pm and ready for a quite nights sleep before saying farewell to our crew mate the following morning. Thanks Wynne. You are such wonderful company, as always, we will never tire of the jokes and stories.