Vilamoura to Vila Real de Santo Antonio - Sunday 28th June

We ended up spending five nights in Vilamoura and new crew arrived on board on Wednesday morning - Adrian flew into Faro which was a short drive away. We had a hire car, which was just as well because we weren't able to get hold of charts for the coast we had passed which meant we would be unable to get in too close if we returned on Zaffina. Instead we drove to Carvoeiro and spent an afternoon on a nearby beach.

We did manage to get a chart for the area to the east of Vilamoura and yesterday we went about an hour out and nosed into Ria Formosa where we anchored off Ilha de Barreta, a nature park surrounded by long golden beaches. We lazed on one of the beaches for the afternoon before returning to Vilamoura for a barbeque on board.

When we left harbour this morning, there was a surprisingly heavy swell and we anticipated a bumpy trip. We hadn't actually decided where to spend the day as we couldn't get to Santo Antonio until early evening due to the tides, but the conditions pretty much dictated that we head back to Ria Formosa which turned out to be an idyllic choice. By the time we got there, the wind had dropped and we had a delicious day in the sun, with a warm breeze rocking us gently at anchor.

We moved on in the late afternoon, avoiding the numerous pots on our way to Rio Guardiana, the border between Portugal and Spain. Getting into port was an interesting challenge, with both the wind and the tide pushing hard on the stern, but the negotiation of the entrance was immaculate (I would praise the Skipper, but he'd only get big headed...) and now here we are, tied up in Portugal and looking across the river to Spain!