Alliage

Trip Reports

                            Alliage was put back in the water on 21 June 2005 and sea trials around the South English coast were completed by the end of July.

        Passage from Southampton to the Canary Islands:

                            Alliage sailed from Southampton for Fowey in Cornwall on 6 August 2005 en route to the South Atlantic islands of Cape Verde.

 

On 9th August 2005 they sailed for Bayona in Northern Spain and reached there about 15 August after a F7 blow in the Bay of Biscay. 

                                                        

 They left Bayona on 19 August 2005 bound for Oporto in Portugal.

and then on to Cascais which is very near Lisbon

Brendan reports that all is going well with high swells along the coast of Portugal.

Alliage left Cascais in Portugal on 2 September and sailing in light winds and a clear sky reached Morocco on 6 September 2005.

They entered the port of Mohommedia, near Casablanca, at night and tied up at a suitable looking wharf. The locals weren't too  happy in the morning as Alliage was tied up to the wharf kept exclusively for the Moroc Royal Family!!!  Needless to say they moved on to another wharf. Despite this hiccup Brendan says the locals are really friendly and helpful.

Amanda and Brendan were glad to stretch their legs and went to see the Hassan 11 Mosque which is the world's biggest religious building outside of Mecca:

They departed Mohommedia  about the 9 September to meet Brendan's parents in Essaouira on 13 September 2005.

Brendan's parent arrived on schedule and enjoyed seeing Brendan again and meeting Amanda for the first time. The four of them really enjoyed their two weeks together, pottering around the lovely fishing port of Essaouira, sailing on Alliage and a few days exploring Marrakech .

Essaouira

On 20 September they drove to Marrakech and spent four nights together there enjoying the experience of staying in a traditional Riad and the ambiance of Marrakech.   

On Saturday 1st October 2005 Alliage set sail for the Canary Islands and reached there safely some days later.

After setting out from Gran Canaria  for Cape Verde on 1 November 2005

Alliage was forced by bad weather to return to the island of El Hierro in the southern Canary Group.

El Hierro