Anchored at Ilha Berlinga

Today we depart Nazaré Marina, say thank you and goodbye to the helpful, nice "Isle of Man" couple who run it. We are a little cortège of Norwegian boats, "Blue Marlin", "Agape" and "Blå" (that’s Blue) from Bergen, heading for Ilha Berlinga, a rugged red rock pierced by grottos and lagoons: a diver's paradise.

There's a light house high up, mid-island. And there's a fortress, that looks like it's carved right out of the rock at the harbor entrance. A few houses hug the harbor, but, otherwise, just vertical cliffs and seabirds. And a jolly Portuguese gathering with long fishing poles, precariously perched on these cliffs, optimistically casting, seemingly all night. I didn’t notice anyone actually catching anything. But by the sounds of it, it didn't seem to matter.

"Blue Marlin" and "Agape" have problems anchoring and decide to leave shortly. They continue on, to Madeira, about a 4, 5 days sail south. We hope to meet again, in a couple of weeks from now. "Blå" has its rubber dinghy out; they explore the cliffs and grottos, and finds a Norwegian woman living up by the lighthouse!

We have a wild and windy night, but “Babette” stays put; the anchor has bitten fast in the rocky sand bottom.