12 March Enough wind to fly a kite

Or more than enough wind for salty sailing. The wind has been blowing hard, steady 20 knots with gusts close to 30 knots since we arrived, and some days it keeps raining! This is not usual weather for this time of the year. We should be basking in 15 knot trades with the occasional shower to wash the dust off the deck, not cowering behind the rain curtains. On the plus side Jolly Harbour anchorage is a large space of uniform depth and very good holding in sand. It’s rare for a boat to drag (if the anchor is set properly with adequate scope). Our is well set, but we still wake up if a strong squall comes through at night.

sheltering from the wind

It’s not all doom and gloom; there are breaks when we can hop in the dinghy and go into the marina / shopping area.

We went one evening to have dinner with our buddy Jody of Thula. A year since we last saw him and Jennifer and there was a lot to catch up. An even longer period to catch up was with Gloria and Michael of Paikea Mist who we last saw in south island NZ in 2012. This was great. From NZ they sailed to SE Asia and then shipped Paikea Mist to Turkey and have been sailing in the Med since then. We took the longer and less direct path to reconnect. No imperative to hurry on the Jackster.