Plan B (Tenerife, Canary Islands)

This year did not start according to plan. After months of preparation, we had to abort our Atlantic crossing after 2 days and turned back to Tenerife. It was a big disappointment. We soon realised that by the time we completed the repairs, it would be a little late for the crossing. Especially since hurricane season starts end of June in the Caribbean.

So, we completely changed the plan. We will stay in the Canary Islands until beginning of July, hopefully doing some island hopping as soon as our engine is ready. Then we will sail to the Mediterranean via Madeira, for a better wind angle. The added bonus of this plan is a sailing trip to Norway, where we will meet up with our friends Bryan and Denise on their sailboat Willow (Boreal 44.2), wherever they will be in mid-May.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

We chose Santa Cruz de Tenerife as our landfall in the Canary Islands because it is an ideal place for provisioning and welcoming crew members. Little did we know that we would also appreciate the fact that it offers plenty of activities for a longer stay. With its 250 000 habitants, Santa Cruz has the urban vibe of a spanish city.

Santa Cruz hosts a major Carnival which lasts 2 weeks. It features many parades, big concerts, murgas competitions and the election of the Queen.

Santa Cruz is a major hub for Cruise ships

Up to the top of mount Teide

When approaching Santa Cruz, we could see mount Teide in the distance. It was clear that we wanted to visit this snow covered peak. We enjoyed our excursion to the top of this magnificient volcano, which is not always possible due to frequent wind and clouds.

The peak of mount Teide visible in the morning sky.

Mount Teide – volcano culminating at 3 715 meters

The cable car to the top. We are above the clouds.

The Canary Islands are ideal to observe the sky (like Chile and Hawaii). Mount Teide has one of the world’s largest solar observatory.

Lava fields. While the island of Tenerife benefits from the humid influence of the trade winds, the presence of an inversion layer traps moisture at lower altitudes, resulting in an arid climate for Mount Teide and its caldera.

The repairs

As we started our Atlantic crossing, we experienced a series of issues. While getting ready in the morning, a new alarm appeared on the dashboard that we had to sort out with the efficient help of TEEM. Once we left the marina, we noticed that our AIS was not working (again) but decided that we could do the crossing without. On the second day, the wind conditions were ideal for our blue spinnaker.

Unfortunately, by the end of the afternoon, the halyard broke (chafing) and the sail fell into the water. With a crew of 4 people, we could quickly bring the spinnakers back aboard without damage. But the broken halyard had retracted into the mast, now blocking the halyard of the main sail. This would considerably limit our sailing options. Then came the final stroke as we realised that the engine was not cooling down anymore due to a failure of the raw water pump shaft seal. This accumulation of problems at the very beginning of a 3 weeks crossing lead us to turn back.

Rerouting of the spinnacker halyard trough the mast. Bryan using magnets to lead the line.

For the repair of our Volvo D2 engine, it took a long time to get the parts delivered to Tenerife. The customs process is slow and complicated. In addition, while examining the turbo, Yan realised that after 1600 hours it needed a complete overhaul (we sailed close to 18000 nautical miles during the last 4 years). The turbo wastegate was completely jammed with soot. We also found a lot of corrosion, most probably due to the salt water ingress experienced during the test sail. The good news was that our carbon burn method had kept the exhaust turbine clean.

Changing the elbow is not enough, we need to replace the complete turbo.

Hiking in the Anaga mountains

There is a wide range of hiking possibilities in the Anaga Mountains, also known as laurel forests.

The trade winds flow over the island, encounter the Anaga mountain range and cause condensation of moisture. Fog and clouds and fog are frequent.

North coast from Playa Benijo to Playa del Tamadite

Turning left, you can climb up the valley towards Arfur

Quaint towns of La Laguna and La Orotava

It is an easy tram ride to San Cristobal de La Laguna, the first capital of Tenerife established by the spaniards. The linear layout of its streets created in the 15th century without protective outer walls make it a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In addition, the nearby university kept the town lively with cafes and artistic shops.

On another occasion, we visited La Orotava. The town retained its architectural heritage and beautiful gardens. It is located very close to the more urbanised towns of Los Realejos and Puerto de la Cruz.

Happy Easter (Garachico)

And just like that, we were already in spring. This time, we took the bus to Punta de Teno, the lighthouse at the north west side of Tenerife.

Garachico – used to be the major port to the north, before the volcano erupted and covered the harbour with lava.

Happy long weekend everyone!

2 replies on “Plan B (Tenerife, Canary Islands)”

Happy to get some news. I understand the plans changed and lots of repairs were required. I guess this part of the adventure. (I went to vesselfinder.com few times but now I know why I could find Fabule on map, due to AIS issue).
Seeing some snow at this latitude is not common and Mount Teide is amazing and photos are superb. All the best.

Thank you, Célini! While changing the waterpump of the engine, Yan undertook a major maintenance of the turbo as well. He learned a lot and this will be precious knowledge for times when we are in more remote places.