Andrew Simpson > News
August 2005: Shindig is now
in the Mediterranean, sailing towards the Balearics where we intend to
spend the rest of this summer. The photo above shows an earlier anchorage
in June, about 20 nautical miles up the Guadiana River. The river forms
part of the border between Spain and Portugal. In this shot from the foredeck,
Spain lies to starboard and Portugal to port. It's navigable for roughly
27 miles but we arrived on the biggest tides of the year and thought it
wise to go no further than the pretty little twin towns of Alcoutim (shown
below) and Sanlucar which face each other across the river.
This is a truly delightful part of the world. It's sparsely inhabited
and wildlife abounds. Unfortunately there are already signs of fevered
development. On the Spanish bank, bulldozers are clearing large areas
for golf courses and housing developments. If you want to see it at its
best, you may need to hurry.
Vlad the Impaler: Many congratulations to Greg Marsh and Juliet Wilson whose racing boat I designed. At 38ft (11.6m) LOA, Vlad led the fleet home by a comfortable margin.
The Three Peaks Race is an exhausting combination of offshore sailing in demanding waters and very arduous mountain running. At each of the three stops included in the 389 mile race, two members of the crew are required to run up to a mountaintop and back — Snowdon, Scafell Pike, and Ben Nevis comprising the three — before sailing on to the next one. Not an event for the faint-hearted!
The photo below shows Vlad sailing through the Sound of Jura. Greg trims the spinnaker from the starboard side of the cockpit while the crew enjoy a welcome respite in the sun.
