Friday 13 September

I guess we should have considered the date today before setting out, but then who is superstitious anyway?  So we looked up the weather on the internet and it seemed OK.  The winds still predicted to be 5-6, but at least no gales or suggestions of 45kn winds!  So by 8:30 we were on our way.  As we have been delayed so long we wanted to get as far as we could today.  The forecast did suggest further high winds coming on Sunday, so that may cause greater delays.

There was virtually no wind as we first came out, but the sea was rather lumpy and rolly, so I took a pill.  The sun was shinning nicely, but it really was cold.  As expected the wind came up fairly quickly and that with the low temperature made us both quite cold.  We were nearly in English sailing gear, eg. Long trousers, sweatshirts and fleeces. 

After about an hour I was chilled through so I went below to warm up.  I snuggled under the duvet and next thing I knew I was asleep. After half an hour I was awakened by the fact that the engine was not going at any speed and was just ticking over.  Naturally I assumed something else had gone wrong with the engine, but no, Richard just said there was more than enough wind to sail, even though I knew he wanted to do at least 5-6 knots.  When I finally emerged I found that the wind has picked up to a 6 and soon was gusting to the top of a seven.  No wonder we were making good progress without engine!  Soon after I suggested to R that we might want to take in a reef, but he poo-pooed the idea as we were more or less on a run.  However when the gusts got up to 30-34kn we put in two reefs and put our life jackets and harnesses on.

But despite the inauspicious date, we went along beautifully and we were getting so far that we decided to get all the way to Cassis.  This level of wind meant that we could get there by 3-4:00pm.  Then our luck ran out a little.  R telephoned Cassis marina who told him they could not do a berth because they were full!  We didn’t expect that at this time of year (which is why we are here now and not in August like everyone else in the world).  But R then phoned another place just outside Cassis and they said they could fit us in.  It is a small harbour in what is called a calanque.  They are sort of fjords along the coast carved out of the local sandstone.  Most of them are just for anchoring, which we would have liked to do, but with the wind so high and in a direction that means the calanques won’t give much shelter we decided to go to the one with proper berths called Port Miou.  It has been specially recommended in the pilot book and R did want to go to one of the calanques anyway.  Cassis have said they may be able to do us a berth tomorrow, so it will only be for one night.

We got to the port at about 4:30, the wind having gone down to a steady 5 really.  We even motor sailed a bit to keep speed up.  We had a heck of time getting hold of the harbour office.  They did not answer their phone or the radio.  But eventually we got put in a berth.  It is just berthing to pontoon without fingers, but they insisted we berthed bows in, not stern to.  I don’t know why, but the effect of this is that I cannot get off the boat onto the pontoon.  The bows are a good 2-3ft away from the pontoon and climbing over our pulpit (the metal cage at the front of the boat, for you non-sailors) has always been nearly impossible for me to do, and certainly can’t do it now with my dodgy knee.  But there is always a solution to these problems and ours is simple.  We will simply use the dinghy, which we have been towing inflated for several days now anyway.

The place is strange, but pretty.  It is full of boats but is in a lovely wooded gorge type structure with high cliffs on each side.  It is quite well protected from the wind.  The berthing as I have said is odd and there are no facilities such as water or electricity on the pontoon.  But is is safer than anchoring and we quite like the atmosphere.  It is a short row to the office and toilet block, so that is not too bad.  They say you can walk into Cassis from here, but it sounds a long and strenuous walk. 

So we have a nice late afternoon in the cockpit.  I am nearly one third the way through Ulysses!  I cook us mushroom risotto with dried morilles which if I do say so myself was very nice.

So although the day is not quite over (two hours to midnight), it does not seem that the curse of Friday 13 has affected us.  In fact, we have made very good progress saving a least one day’s sailing by getting so far forward.  And if we are lucky we might get to Cassis tomorrow, if not we shall have to see it another time.