Nomad's Travels: Two months in the Canary Islands

Enroute from Morocco to the Canaries, Christmas morning Kris woke me up saying we had a fish on the line. It turned out to be a good sized mahi mahi when we got it onboard, which we enjoyed fried, baked, and more, eating nothing but fresh fish all day. Nomad made her usual night time arrival and anchored behind the container port of Marmoles to clear in to Lanzarote the next day. After finding the office to clear in we were told anchoring was now prohibited here. The next port in the guidebook was filled with a marina and also no anchoring so we went around to the old harbor in Arrecife and unexpectedly met three other boats that I had met previously. The harbor here was nice and conveniant to town, but it was open to the south, so the weather had to be monitored carefully. During month that Nomad was anchored here the conditions never got rough enough that we had to move, but there were times it was not possible to land the dinghy because the surge would have battered the dinghy against the stone walls surrounding the harbor. After a long search we found the place to get a prescription for anti malaria pills was near where we landed the dinghy. Got everybody there together the next morning only to find that I had only missed the person who write those prescriptions by a few hours the day before...but he would be back next month. We were assured that we could get this done in Las Palmas at any time, so decided to sail there despite it being a "pay to anchor" type harbor. Lyza's sister Mara joined us in Arrecife and stayed on for the trip to Las Palmas,Gran Canaria and got her first taste of sailing on the ocean and a little bouncy weather. Anchoring in Las Palmas I again found a couple of boats that I had met before. Las Palmas is the main sailing hub in the Canaries with all possible marine supplies available here...but not anti malaria pills. This never ending hunt for these pills was starting to become a bit comical, and the bus ride to Casablanca was beginning to look more attractive in hindsight! The Canary islands are a major tourist destination for European vacationers and each island and large town has its own personality. German, Irish and British areas are all to be found although the islands are Spanish as is the local language. After enjoying Las Palmas and it's quiet anchorage for several weeks Nomad set sail for the south end of Gran Canaria, again in the relentless search for anti malaria pills. Anchored in a small bay to the east of Pasito Blanco marina, it was an interesting walk along the bottom of a cliff to get to the resort area and then a long hike into the city. In Maspalomas we found the long sought after anti malaria pills after a late evening vist to a clinic where we were told no prescription is required, just go to this certain pharmacy and ask for them. We found it just before closing time and made the purchase that would enable us to safely resume our travels in west Africa. With that mission completed, we stayed a few more days and then set sail for Los Cristianos on Tenerife, where Kris and Lyza had spent some time before and had friends there. At first we anchored near a beach north of the port (anchoring is no longer allowed in the port, an all too common problem in the Canaries) and dinghied in to the beach. After a few days, the port officials came by and told us we had to re anchor to the south of the port in what turned out to be one of the worst anchorages I have ever been in. The anchor was set securely in sixty feet of water to keep us off a rocky beach that the wind blew us towards every afternoon. Rowing into the harbor to land on the beach was often quite challenging as the anchorage was exposed to the open ocean and frequently had three to five foot seas. Los Cristianos was an interesting town to visit for a short time, this area having a strong British presence. There are some hiking trails in the hills above the anchorage offering spectacular views of the coastline. After a couple of weeks in a crowded tourist town with an extremely rough anchorage we were ready to leave. It was not possible to clear out in the port of Los Cristianos. After exploring all possible options, I decided the easiest solution was to take a bus to Santa Cruz, on the other side of the island where clearance formalities were swiftly completed for departure the next day. After a leisurely breakfast Monday morning the boat was secured for sea and we got underway. Within two hours Nomad had cleared the southernmost point of Tenerife and the course was set towards Dakhla Morocco.