Entries on the blog have been a little quiet recently largely due to the lack of effective internet access along the Portuguese coast.

Having departed Sines with a fresh crew we slogged north towards Lisbon. Arriving in a northerly gale of wind in the upmarket marina of Cascais, just to seaward of Lisbon 24 hours later. These daily northerly blows are really sapping and by the time we arrived I already had one member of crew ready for the plane home! In the event we found a shop selling bags of smiles and the situation was averted for the time being.

Cascais is pronounced ‘cash cash’ according to the locals and I soon found out why! After a stopover of 25 hours they decided to levy a berthing charge of 114 euros. On enquiring why, I was informed that vessels staying after 1:30pm each day would pay for the next night. With my best Devonian accent I advised them that they must be “maissed” and we came to a compromise.

Departing Cascais we set sail north for Bayonna in the hope that this would be our final stopover before Biscay.

As John Lennon observed: “Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans”. After another day and night in a northerly force 7 we aborted the mission and ran into the fishing port of Viana do Castelo just a few miles south of the Spanish border. One crew member now totally convinced that a plane journey was part of his immediate strategy and the rest in need of some serious sleep. The bag of smiles was completely empty and we set off in search of a new supply.

For those of you who have been following this saga you will realise that, by now, I had been at sea and away from my ‘day job’ for five weeks and all good things have to come to an end. With some reluctance I booked a flight from Porto back to Birmingham airport and spent the day cleaning the boat ready to be left. A professional delivery crew, with time on their hands to sit and await favourable winds, has been employed to bring Lady Jenny the last 500 miles home. After more than 1300 miles of hard upwind sailing the remaining crew left for the airport and a well earned pint back in blighty.

Lady Jenny is due back in Devon next Monday, weather permitting, and all we can do is sit and wait. If the trip so far is anything to go by the saga isn’t over yet so watch this space for updates on the last 500 miles and the inevitable party that will mark the arrival back in Torquay. Meanwhile I will sift through the holiday snaps and try and post some of the more presentable ones.