Faro

We sailed towards Faro on monday at about noon - we wanted to have high tide to get from the Guadiana river delta to the sea, since it is so shallow there. There were big rollers on the ocean so we were glad we waited for the high tide. We knew this would not be optimal for entering Faro lagoon though, but it was not possible to have high tide in Guadiana and ingoing water in Faro lagoon, both in daylight. We hoped entering Faro lagoon would not be to bad. 

But already when approaching the entrance we were surprised by huge waves pounding on the lighthouses on both sides of entrance. 

But we couldn't stay outside and wait for the tide to change, so we maneuvered our way in. There were some scary moments, but captain managed to bring the boat and the rest of us safely to the lagoon.

We spent first night anchored in the main anchorage in the middle of the lagoon, but it was like being in the middle of the busy road, with fishing boats motoring by all night. After not finding the berth in marina in Olhao we moved to the anchorage close to commercial dock near Faro. It was the most convenient spot to get to Faro and to the airport - Matjaz was leaving us on tuesday early in the morning. We were happy to have such a competent sailor to make our lives easier on the way from Alicante through Gibraltar to Faro. Thanks again, Matjaz!

On friday we got a visit from captains friends - we were happy that they decided to make a long trip from Lisbon and back by car just to see us for a day. We had a lovely summer day - swimming near the island of Culatra, and having a picnic on the boat.

I am really enjoying it here - there are so many birds here, i could spend entire days watching them through my binoculars...

Even this looks like a family, it is not - the big guy on the left is a seagull (galeb), and the smaller guys to the right are sanderlings (beli prodniki).