Cruising progress 2016 (Click to enlarge)
30th July 2016
Our coast hopping idea worked out really well, as after one short beat to windward we found that we had the wind off the land and were able to sail very rapidly with gusts of 34 kts (we recorded one gust of 43 kts) in relatively calm water. Our top speed was 10 kts. We had three days of this kind of sailing until we reached the bottom of the Gulf de Lyon on the French side, when the wind calmed down a bit, but this had been the best sailing we'd had for years and we loved it.
We had to sail across the mouth of the Grand Rhône River and as we approached, it looked like a brick wall - we were sailing in beautiful clear green water and up ahead was a mass of dirty brown silt. Apparently around this area the coastline increases by about 15 metres per year and when you see it you can understand why. Once we'd sailed across, the water returned to clear green and we continued up to our anchorage at Fos sur Mer where we had three attempts to get the anchor to bite in 32 kts of wind.
The following day the wind finally died down and we motor sailed to Marseille and eventually anchored off Ile Jaire, a lovely peaceful island. From there we motored along to La Ciotat, where we stayed for a couple of days. There's huge superyacht boat yard on one side of the bay, where the rich and famous have their vessels serviced. It was the first time we'd ever seen boats this size out of the water.
Our next stop was in the Golfe de St-Tropez and to say that it felt as though we were driving the wrong way up a motorway in the rush hour is no exaggeration. There were huge superyachts and some not so huge ones streaming out of the marinas, of which there are quite a few, all seemingly racing to find an anchorage for lunch and play. We headed up to the very top of the Golfe and anchored off the marina at Port Grimaud.
One evening, as we were about to take the dinghy ashore, we were told we'd have to move the boat as there was going to be a fireworks display later on, and we were far too close to the launching platform (only about 30m - slightly close for comfort). So as requested we upped anchored and moved about 600m and from there we had grandstand view of a very impressive display. Thank goodness we weren't any closer, even from where we were it seemed as though they were right overhead.
We had hoped to find a suitable anchorage to leave Mistroma so we could visit St Tropez, but this proved impossible and we weren't too keen on the exorbitant prices of the marinas, so we decided to give it a miss. Maybe another time.
Unbeknown to me, Mike had completed an online application form for the marinas in Monaco, thinking there would be a very slim chance of any vacances at this time of year, however they came back offering a berth in Port de Fontvieille located below the Princes Palace and the Cathedral. We were delighted and really enjoyed our visit.
The Princes Palace was very ornate, but unfortunately no photographs were allowed. We visited the Cathedral which is a beautiful building and is where Princess Grace is buried. We wandered around her memorial rose garden where there is a lovely bronze statue of her. Mike was really in his element when we went to the motor musuem, many of which were donated by Prince Rainier. There were cars dating back to the early 1900's as well as quite a few F1 models. There is plenty of evidence of the history of F1 throughout Monaco, with a statue of Juan Manuel Fangio, one of the most famous F1 drivers of all time, standing near the marina. And of course we had to walk on the track, adding to our list of Monza and Valencia.
We've anchored in quite a few bays several times, depending on the wind strength and direction and in some cases it has been pretty breezy. The maximum gust recorded so far is 40kts, during which time Mike was blown off his feet when he was up on the foredeck. We've dragged a couple of times, the first time we managed to collect a huge boulder in the claw of the anchor and I had to motor around while Mike tried to prize it free. Eventually he managed to free it and we re-anchored safely. It's not too much of a problem in daylight, but when the wind gets up after dark it's not a lot of fun.
We were anchored in Villefranche, a mile or so from Nice, when our new solar panel suddenly stopped working and Mike had to check everything to confirm it was the panel at fault. That night we had to re-anchor in winds gusting 35kts, motoring around the bay looking for somewhere that was shallow enough, without running into other boats which had no anchor lights. One motor boat had to be rescued when his anchor snarled a nearby yacht's anchor and he spent at least two hours reversing around with the yacht in tow, getting ever further from shore. We noticed police cars racing along the coast road to Nice but didn't pay much attention to them, as we were watching the struggle with the motor boat. We only found out about the terrible events in Nice the following day and it put our trivial little drama into perspective.
We decided to stay in the vicinity of Nice for another week or so whilst trying to sort out a replacement solar panel. The new one had been doing a great job of keeping the batteries fully charged for about five weeks before it stopped working. The supplier (Merkasol in Spain) were useless and said it must either be in the shade or was too hot. So it wasn't working because there wasn't enough sun or because there was too much sun, not very helpful! Mike contacted the manufacturer in China and they agreed to send a new one, after seeing photos of all the testing. We arranged a stay in Golfe de Juan marina and the panel duly arrived three days later. The response from the manufacturer could not have been better or more helpful. Once we're back at anchor we'll be able to check it's working properly, but hopefully it will have a longer lifespan than the first one.
The service in Golfe de Juan marina is second to none and if you're ever sailing in this area it's well worth a visit. The price is very reasonable, the staff extremely helpful, there are four electric bikes which can be borrowed for no charge, there's free chilled spring water (sparkling or still) on tap and your first machine wash and tumble dry is free.
We used our own bikes to cycle along to Antibes and spent a very enjoyable day wandering around the old town, visiting the Cathedral and street market, before having a look at the huge marina. The next day we cycled in the opposite direction to Cannes but weren't particularly impressed. The old town is very commercialised and seems to have lost all its character. We had intended taking the train to Nice, but decided it would probably be similar to Cannes, so are giving it a miss.
Roman Abramovich's yacht Eclipse was anchored in the Golfe de Juan when we were there. It was difficult to get a decent picture as she is so large that you need to be a long way away to fit her into the frame. She is around 535ft long with a crew of 70, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, 3 helicopters and a submarine. I believe that she cost around 1 billion pounds.
