We are currently tied up on the town Quay of Porto Pollença (or Puerto Pollensa, spellings are varied depending on whether Spanish or Menorcan dialect). The town quays are run by Ports IB (Ports Islas Balearicas) which are part of the local council and prices are very reasonable (about 35 Euros per night including electricity and water). You cannot get a place in a marina at this time of year and even if you could the cost would be in the region of 150 euros with water and electric charges on top for a 10m yacht like Vaila!! You can only stay at the town quay for up to three nights and you can book in advance on the internet. We were on the town quays in Andratx and Puerto Soller too and it’s just as good here.

 

Andy washing down Vaila

It does make life easier when you can just step ashore. Doing the washing, cleaning the boat and shopping are all simpler. The luxury of a long shower is also great. The downside is that you are very close to your neighbours and the general public walking past and having a good look.Luckily our neighbours here are lovely.

We arrived in Porto Pollença on the 1^st August and spent 4 nights at anchor in the bay. The whole bay is very shallow and lots of boats are anchored here. It is a long dinghy ride into the town but the water is crystal clear and it’s like being in an aquarium. I made the most of swims before breakfast, something you can’t do so easily when tied up ashore, although there is a beach just round the corner.

Our lovely anchorage at Puerto Pollensa (this amazing castle is privately owned!!)

We have had some lovely day sails while in this area. We went back to the NW coast, round Cabo Formentor in the hope of anchoring in one of the Calas. Unfortunately this was not to be,  as the Calas were full (it was Saturday and the Spanish were out to play in their massive motor boats). Four 60-100 foot boats easily fill these tiny Calas. We anchored in one for lunch but we were so close to a massive motor boat that we had to abandon lunch very hastily as we were drifting very close to them. So lunch was forgotten and up anchor quickly and away. These northern  Calas are surrounded by 1000 foot cliffs and the downdrafts and strange winds are difficult to handle sometimes. Motor boats also move differently at anchor so it often looks OK to start with when you drop your anchor but ends up too close when the wind changes!

We also had a sail round to the next bay, Alcudia, and we had thought that we might stay there for a night or two. When we sailed round there we found it was very different from Porto Pollença, with a lot more industry,  busy with ferries and a huge bay very open to big swells, so we decided to head back to our quiet spot.

We took advantage of the weekly market this morning. We cycled there on our new fold up bikes, which we had bought in Cartagena. This was the first time we have used them in earnest and it was great not to be walking in the heat.

The market was great with mounds of beautiful vegetables, local crafts and the inevitable tat stalls. The most amusing one was a man dressed in full North American Indian outfit playing the panpipes! North and south hemispheres slightly mixed up but nobody seemed to mind! We bought lovely fruit and veg and feasted on a huge salad at lunchtime.

Tomorrow we are doing a tourist bus trip to the Drach caves (Dragon Caves) on the east coast near Porto Christo. The caves are meant to be amazing and there is a large underground lake where you go on a boat with classical music being played! We are really looking forward to it, so hope it’s not disappointing. Watch this space……