 | 14 th to 16 th of July 2017 - Ria de Ares |
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| Crew : | Andy and Helen | |
| Destinations : | Ria de Ares. | |
| Distance : | 32 miles |
The forecast was for Force 5-6 from the North East so we decided it was a good time to head south west to A Coruña, although the forecast was also for sea state Fuerte Marejada. We expected a bit of a bouncy ride. We weighed anchor at 0815 with our mizzen set ready to sail. As we headed out of the Ria and away from the coast the winds increased and we had a fantastic sail and surf all the way to the entrance to the harbour at A Coruña. We made a maximum of 9.3 knots over the ground when surfing. We didn't feel ready for a marina just yet, so carried on to Ria de Ares. The Ria was large and blue and we arrived sailing at 7 knots across the bay, tacking into the anchorage. It was time for a bit of hand steering and excitement. We anchored off the beach of the small town of Ares with just two other yachts. It was a beautiful, gently shelving beach with sandy bottom so Andy could see clearly where the anchor landed.
It was very windy all evening but we were in the lee of the land and quite comfortable. It was a great evening for wind surfing. The wind died off over night, only to pick up again the following day. However, we went ashore for lunch, a walk around the headland and swim in the sea. From the cliff path we could see right across to A Coruña and the Torre de Hercules. This will be our next destination. The sun shone all day.....
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TORRE DE HERCULES in the far distance |
The following morning, whilst I went ashore for a row and swim, Andy started to prepare for an oil change. When I came back from my swim, he told me we needed to re anchor as the anchor had tripped whilst he motored back on the chain at 1200 revs. (Less than we used to set it in the first place). We tried setting it again, but it kept dragging. When Andy got it up and had a proper look. he noticed the shaft had bent quite badly and the anchor was in no way fit to be used. Fortunately our kedge, a Fortress anchor, was at hand so we anchored temporarily on this whilst Andy then got our old Spade anchor out from the bottom of the Lazarette. He put this on our long chain in place of the Rocna and anchored once more, taking up our kedge.
We are a little annoyed to say the least. There had been problems with some Rocna anchors a few years ago which had been made from substandard steel. At this point, Andy specifically contacted the people who had sold us the anchor and been reassured that our anchor was not part of the batch made from this substandard steel. Well, now we are not so sure. It seems like we may have been fobbed off. Or else this is just a potential problem of all Rocnas.
Anyway, we now have fresh engine oil and an new oil filter. The inside of the boat is clean and we have an anchor to use. We had nearly left it behind in the process of having to choose what not to put into the car to take to Ireland. We did leave one anchor behind as a garden ornament. Perhaps we should have brought that as well.
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| OUR BENT ROCNA |
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| OUR OLD SPADE TO THE RESCUE |
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