Friday 8/19
A beautiful day to be at anchor. We stowed the code 0,
tidied up the lines and messed with the rigging on the dinghy davits, they just
do not work smoothly. Tuned the standing rigging, it seemed that the back stay
was loose while sailing and that the mast had to much rake in it. Around 1300
we were ready for lunch and a dinghy ride. We stopped to talk to our boat
neighbor who made a restaurant recommendation, we think. We headed into the
little marina nearby, Port de la Vigne to check the weather report and check
with the Capitainerie on the sea condition at the entrance tomorrow. He jotted
down a number and said call this number for the report. Ok. Lots of beautiful shallow draft boats on the moorings.
This bay is famous for oysters and has been a great source
since the Roman times, so oysters for lunch. We motored south to what looked
like the restaurant, but no dinghy dock. At the ferry dock a guy said we can
just put our dinghy on the beach, so we did! We managed a table right at the
edge of the beach and enjoyed oysters, mullet ceviche and tabbouleh. I am going
to say I think the oysters in the Gulf of Mexico are best, but the ceviche was
sensational! We watched as a couple young men tended the oyster farm in front
of the restaurant. The shore is just one oyster farm after another.
We wonder through the little town full of tourists and then
back along the beach. The tide had gone out so we had a way to drag the dinghy
and some shallow water to negotiate while rowing. In deeper water we headed
north taking in all the beautiful classic boats, the grand homes along the
shore and the sunshine.
When we got back to the boat our boat neighbors pulled up in
their skiff and offered us fresh caught sardines. They said to flower, butter
and fry. We had no flower so it was olive oil, salt and pepper in our grill
basket. Suzette made up some rice and it was sardines and rice for dinner. Suzette
cleaned up the remaining sardines and pureed them with butter. We had this
sardine butter back in Les Sables and she did a great job of replicating it.
Tomorrow, we head south to Bayonne, another 75 miles. The
weather looked good. We would negotiate the d’Arcachon entrance on an incoming
tide at about 0900, not looking forward to that. The anchorage was very calm
making for a great night’s rest.
Sat 8/20/2022
We pulled anchor at 0800 under partly cloudy skies and a
light breeze from the NE. Having run the gauntlet of this entrance in bigger
seas and wind gave us confidence on our exit.
It is till scary going through breaking waves as you head to sea in 4 m
of water and the chart plotter shows you are on land.
The wind was light and from the north so we motored. It was an opportunity to charge batteries, make water, charge the outboard battery and make hot water. The skies cleared and the seas were helping us along, but no wind. Off in the distance we had our first glimpse of the Pyrenees and of Spain! We made the entrance to L’Adore River about 1830, a little ahead of schedule for the flood tide, but plenty of depth in the channel. The entrance looked the remains of ancient Roman ruins, which is possible as this was once a port for Roman shipping. Over time it was abandoned and silted over until the British came along and resurrected it. In more modern times it has been turned into an industrial area with shipping on the north shore and marinas for pleasure boats on the south.
We motored past the marinas to a crook in the river behind some moorings and dropped a hook in about 4 m of water. The river current and the ebb and flood of the tide dictate how the boat will lay at anchor, not the wind. This takes some getting used to as all my anchoring has generally been dictated by wind. The setting was industrial and not far from the noise in the industrial complex, on a Saturday night!
Our view tonight
It appeared to be a mill with grain silos, a steel mill
using imported scrap steel and a plant using sand and gravel, perhaps making
concrete products. The anchorage turned out to be the calmest spot yet.
Sunday 8/21
Woke to a little rain, but we were in no hurry and did not
have far to go. Up until now this has been more like a delivery than a cruise.
Having passed nearly 140 miles of coast with a continuous stretch of sand and
pine forests. D’Arcachon was the only possible stop. Now we have lots of option
at very reasonable distances. Our size, particularly our 7’-5” draft, does
eliminate some places.
We departed about 1000 and motored out to sea. Light breeze,
but we were in no hurry so we sailed. We nosed into Biarritz where Napoleon
built Josephine a summer home. It has since become a luxury hotel and the city
has grown up around it as it became a resort for the rich and famous. There are
some interesting rock out croppings, one of which has a pinnacle and a statue
of the Virgin Mary. There were lots of people milling about below the Virgin,
perhaps it is a Sunday thing to do.
We turned south and made our way into Saint Jeans de Luz Bay.
You see that this was a resort town, beautiful seaside buildings, lots of
people on the beach and lots of activity in the bay. We anchored in about 6 m
of water off of the beach along with several other boats. Once the boat was
secured it was time for a swim in 23o C water. We set out in the
dinghy and landed in the little harbor. We needed, wanted, a baguette for
dinner. Even on a Sunday afternoon we did not have to walk far to find a baguette.
We were also down to our last bottle of wine!
Saint Jean de Luz
View for tonight
The wind and a small swell were making there way into the
bay from the NW so it was a very comfortable evening at anchor. However, when
the wind went W we were now sideways to the swell and not very happy rolling in
our boat bunk. That is life on a boat.
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