A couple of days ago we motored from Portimao to another anchorage behind the Island of Culatra. The island is in the delta of a river that runs by the cities of Faro and Olhao. It is low and sandy and reputedly has a long and beautiful beach.
Of course the forecast was wrong and we had no wind when we weighed anchor, but once we got here it piped up. The anchorage is quite large and there are dozens of boats anchored here. The wind was blowing from the east and we were at the down-wind end of the anchorage. We set the Rocna and I knew we did not have to worry about dragging, but I was concerned that one of the boats upwind might drag down onto us, so I had a fitful sleep – popping my head through the hatch to have a look around throughout the night.
Since this is a river and also having a tidal range of about 9 feet, the current and tide combination will cause the boats to circle around their anchors a couple of times a day. This increases the chances of dragging in high winds because an anchor may break its set and have to reset along the new direction. This is what happened to our friends on Foxglove.
They had gone to shore in their dinghy to gather some clams. Once they were gone, I noticed that their boat was dragging in winds that picked up speed. We did not have our engine on our own dinghy yet, since it was the morning after we got there and had not had a chance to go to shore. So it would have been a scramble to mount the engine and chase Foxglove. Fortunately, they had plenty of searoom behind them and a neighbouring boat was ready to give assistance. The neighbour came and picked me up and together we went and boarded Foxglove; whereupon I let out more anchor rode to increase the scope and give the anchor a chance to set. Foxglove has a Delta anchor on chain/rope rode, but I feel that it is too small for the job. In the meantime, Yoshi and Fumi had noticed that their boat had dragged and were racing back. Once aboard, we raised the anchor and attached a Bruce anchor to the Delta so that now there would be two anchors in line on the same rode. We set the anchors and he has held his ground since then. Maggie and I know what it feels like to watch your boat sailing without anyone on board. Yoshi and Fumi were very grateful and relieved to have had someone watching out for them.
The anchorage is very busy with ferries, fishing and pleasure boats passing close by with no reduction in speed. A man from a catamaran anchored next to us decided to go for a swim and was about 50 meters from his boat when he got run over by a speed boat. His loud screams alerted everybody nearby to his distress. We looked over to see the speedboat circling the man and trying to pull him onto his boat. A passing jet ski came over and helped haul the man onto the speed boat. The injured man was laying on the back of the boat as they took him to Olhao for medical attention. I went out and towed the abandoned jetski back to our boat and waited for someone to retrieve it. The National Guard came later and told us the man's injuries were very bad and that he might die. That was yesterday, and we have not heard anything since.
With the overcast, windy weather, the dragging, and the tragic accident, this anchorage has taken on an ominous atmosphere and the girls feels edgy and nervous. We our hoping for the sun to break through to lighten the mood and give us a chance to go to the island for a tour and a day on the beach.
Each day offers a new experience.
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