An Unfortunate Turn of Events: June 19, 2023

On the afternoon of June 19, 2023, just three and a half days after arriving in Lagos, we had an unfortunate turn of events. Michele and I had been running errands on our bicycles. We were just finishing lunch at Linda The Beach Bar, one of the local beach front restaurants. It had started to mist lightly and we were not really dressed for the rain so we headed to our bikes for the short ride back to Sea Dog. We had stopped earlier in the day at Sopromar centro Nautico de Lagos, the local marine shop for a portable step to help get on/off Sea Dog when docked.  As I was strapping the step onto the rack on the back of my bike, Michele told me she was chilly, she wanted to get going. I told her I would be right behind her in a couple of minutes. Our bikes were parked just off the road at a bike rack in the sand. Once I had the step secured I headed off onto the paved road. As I rounded the corner, I noticed a car pulled over to the side of the road and a cyclist sitting on the walkway just off the road. As I got nearer, I realized the cyclist was Michele. At first I though she got hit by the car. It turns out the car was a good samaritan that had either witnessed the crash or seen Michele down on the side of the road and stopped to help.  As I arrived, Michele was sitting and looked none the too happy. She had a bloodied forehead and dirt and scuffs on her shirt.  She told me she was pulling over on to the path to stop and wait for me when all of the sudden, the front of the bike turned out from under her and she went flying forward over the handle bars. She described that she was riding fast to warm up when she decided to pull over to wait and when the front of the bike spun out she took quite a flight thru the air landing on her right side. She was visibly stunned and was asking me to help her get up. I could see there was something wrong with her leg. I sat down behind her so she could relax a bit and lean against me for support. A couple of more people stopped to help and one called an ambulance for us. 

Not long after we could hear the siren in the distance and a bright red Bombeiros (ambulance) arrived on the scene.

The two medics, who did not speak much English, were very helpful. They examined Michele and thought it best to transport her to the local hospital for further evaluation.  After we realized that Michele could not get up or stand on her own we knew there was something more serious going on besides a bit of blood and a few scrapes.  The medics, with the help of my self and a strong bystander were able to get Michele transferred to a stretcher and into the back of the ambulance.

I asked to ride along since I had no idea of where they were taking her, but they insisted that is was not allowed and they gave me the address of hospital where they were taking her. On the way to the hospital in broken English they kept telling Michele when she got to the hospital they would give her "free food, free everything".  As the ambulance pulled away, siren blaring, I gather up Michele's bike, jumped on mine and was able to ride both back to Sea Dog in one shot. 

Now it was time to find Michele. Luckily I was able to get an Uber to take me to Unidade Local de Saude do Algarve - Hospital de Portimao, about a 35 minute drive from the marina.  When I found the emergency room, it was packed. After waiting about 30 minutes I was finally able to talk with someone with the help of Google Translate. I explained the situation, that my wife an, American, had been brought to the hospital via an ambulance and that I wanted to see her. I was told I must wait, so I did. After almost two hours of patiently waiting, not always my strong suit, especially in stressful situations, I went back to the desk, a bit more insistent that I be allowed to see my wife. It was getting late. I needed to find out if she was here and what was going on, I was finally able to see Michele, more than 4 hours after she was taken away by ambulance. I found her on a gurney in the entrance to an emergency ward that was over flowing with gurneys full of patients. I can't recall ever seeing a scene like this in real life, it was like some disaster movie.  Michele was told by the doctors that she had a broken leg and would need surgery.

It turns out the hospital is the public (free everything for the locals) hospital. She had been told that there were no rooms on the orthopedic floor and that she would have to stay in the emergency ward for the next several days until a room was available. Even if/when she got a room,  it was not clear when she could be scheduled for surgery.  Things were going from bad to worse, Michele had a broken hip in a foreign country, unable to get care for multiple days. This was just not acceptable. We started to brain storm ideas and talk to various doctors about options. We considered trying to transport her home via medical air transport but the quotes ranged from $25,000 to over $200,000 dollars and it would still mean not having her hip repaired for multiple days. A couple of the nurses and doctors explained that there were private hospitals in Portugal that we might consider. While the public hospital was free to the locals or EU nationals, it was not for US citizens. I was trying to get an estimate about what it might cost for the surgery and hospital stay but no one seemed to be able to give me any answers.  Oh,  did I  mention, that while I had some coverage from Medicare Supplemental plan, Michele had no medical insurance. It was on our to do list  before departure but it fell through the cracks. It was getting late and the nurses where telling me that I had to leave. I continued to stay, not wanting to leave Michele in this limbo situation. I was finally convinced to leave when two orderlies and two police officers came to escort me out. I pleaded for 5 more minutes. In that time we decided that I would investigate the nearest private hospital in Portimao. It was now after 10pm. I took an Uber to Hospital Particular do Algarve - Alvor.

Thankfully the reception desk at Hospital Particular do Algarve was staffed with a woman behind the desk that spoke English. I explained the entire situation and was asking if I could get an estimate of what it might cost for surgery, hospital stay and availability. If was a very frustrating situation. She either did not understand what I was asking for or could not provide the answers. She seemed unwilling to call in someone that might be able to help.  It was just the two of us in the reception area. I would step back, take a couple of deep breaths and start again with a slightly different pitch hoping to get through to her.  To my luck, another woman came out who must of been over hearing our conversation. She told me that she understood what I was requesting and that she could help. She opened a folder of procedures and costs and within minutes she was able to give me a rough estimate of what it would cost including the surgery and the hospital stay. The two of them together said that they could admit Michele the following day and based on the doctors examination perhaps even schedule her for surgery that day as well. What a relief, there was a solution in sight. It was late so I decided to call Michele in the morning not wanting to wake her if she was asleep.  I Uber'ed back to the boat. I was exhausted both mentally and physically.

Laying awake all night, Michele started calling the private hospital around 6am. After talking with multiple people she finally found someone that could help. The person told her "I am the person you want to be talking to. I can get you transferred within 4 hours".  Michele was so relieved. She called to give me the news and I shared mine with her.  The plan was for me to meet her at the public hospital prior to her being transported.  I took an Uber to the hospital and waited for her to be released. I was allowed to ride to the new hospital in the back of the transport ambulance and see her into the emergency room. 

                                        

Arriving in the new emergency room, it was like we entered into a completely different world. It was quiet, well staffed, plenty of beds, each in a secluded curtained area for privacy. What a relief. While I waited, Michele was examined and had an X-ray. The doctors confirmed that she had broken the top of her femur. They told her due to the position of the break and her age that she needed a complete hip replacement. The great news was that she could be scheduled for surgery later that afternoon.

Michele was in a semi-private room being well taken care of by an assortment of nurses and physical therapist. She had three meals a day, with her favorite being the fresh squeezed orange juice and a fresh Portuguese roll for breakfast.

                                                

If seemed like no time before Michele, with a big smile, was up and about with the aid of a walker and the physical therapist. The snazzy white stockings are compression socks to keep her legs from swelling. These became a regular part of her wardrobe for several weeks. 

                                              

It was good to see her smiling!

                                                

Michele was in the hospital for a total of 7 days. While Michele was recuperating and getting to know her new hip I would visit her daily.  When not visiting I was kept busy with all of the logistics of "what next". 

So you are probably asking, "What was next?". The doctors told Michele they would not release her unless she promised not to go back to Sea Dog for several months. Ouch! In addition, we were told she would not be able to fly for a week to ten days, so getting home to New Jersey would have to wait.  We booked a room at the Marina Club Lagos hotel, on the first floor with easy access and close to Sea Dog.

Our plans were to sail with Michelle and Keith to Tangier Morocco for the first two weeks of July and then head to Gibraltar where we would bid them farewell. Well those plans were dashed. Michelle and Keith, with a month left on their vacation made plans to visit Montenegro and then UK/Ireland/Scotland. While we stayed in the hotel upon Michele's release, Michelle and Keith stayed on Sea Dog for a few days. They visited with Michele, graciously bringing us home cooked dinners on several nights. I made plans to leave Sea Dog on the hard for three months in Lagos while Michele and I flew back to New Jersey. Michelle and Keith were a big help in getting Sea Dog ready to be hauled out at yard at Sopromar centro Nautico de Lagos.

 

Sea Dog being hauled out on June 28, 2023

Once Michele was feeling better, a bit more mobile, able to get around on her crutches, we got the OK from her doctors that she could fly, we were ready to head home to New Jersey. Michele and I rented a car, I drove to Lisbon, about a 3.5 hour drive, so we could get a direct flight from Lisbon to Newark NJ. Well, old Murphy, you remember Murphy, he decided to show up again. Our flight was cancel, there was weather in Newark.  We had booked an inexpensive hotel near  the airport, thinking we were just there a short time before an early morning flight. Neither of us could see staying another night, so I found a much nicer hotel, a Radisson Blu. The hotel was great, a large clean and very comfortable room with a restaurant on the property. While Michele was napping I took a walk in the neighborhood and discovered a very pretty little park, Jardim Mario Soares.

The park was a pleasant surprise, nice walking paths, sculptures, a small lake with boats you could rent as well as small cafes to enjoy an espresso or a cold beer. I enjoyed the latter.

                                       

Sculpture by Fernando Botero

We enjoying a fine dinner at Restaurant Bordalo Pinheiro in the Radisson Blu hotel and got a relaxing night sleep. The next morning, we checked with United Airlines , the flight was on time, we were good to go. We were on our way to the airport with a direct flight to New Jersey.

I had a bit of confusion at the airport, I saw signs for chegada and for partida. Without taking the time to ask Google, I thought chegada must be check-in in English. Oops, it was arrival. Oh well, I had a 50/50 chance of getting it right.  I saw an airport employee wheeling a woman in a wheelchair and asked where I could get one for Michele. He explained that this was the arrival area. I explained my situation, I admit I was a bit frazzled, He was super helpful and agreed to take Michele in the wheelchair and stay with her and the bags while I returned the rental. Once back, he lead us thru the airport, knowing all of the secret wheelchair routes through check-in, security, immigration and customs. It was awesome.

I booked Michele into first class so that she would be comfortable on the flight home. The United plane had a real first class section, with a separate privacy cubby for each passenger with fully reclining, lay flat seats. Michele was in heaven. While I was in baggage class, Michele was enjoying champagne and fine inflight meals. I visited her in first class during the flight, to see how she was doing, As can be imagined she was quite satisfied with her accommodations.

Strapped in and happy in 1st class.

When we landed, a wheelchair was waiting for Michele and whisked us through customs. Michele jokes, it took a hip replacement to fly first class. At least there was a little upside to an unfortunate turn of events.

The Final Leg: Santa Maria to Lagos, June 10 2023

Our final leg of the Arc Europe 2023 Transatlantic voyage took us from Marina Vila do Porto on the island of Santa Maria, the eastern most island of the Azores archipelago, to Marina de Lagos in Lagos Portugal, the south western tip of Portugal. This leg, pretty much a straight line east, was approximately 800 nm. Sailing 24/7 with our intrepid crew, rested and ready, we finished this leg in about 5.5 days. We had a good weather window for the crossing and were greeting by a beautiful day as we set sail under a full main and our gennaker (or is it a asymetrical spinaker?, long story here).

We were joined on our departure by Norm the Storm, a beautiful and very fast catamaran, owned and skippered by Normand Jacques. We sailed together for a short while until we were left behind in his wake.

The light house, Goncalo Velho on Ponta do Castelo, the south eastern tip of Santa Maria was the last land we saw until we made landfall in mainland Portugal.

It turns out, after talking with our friends aboard S/V Ola, a catamaran from California, Santa Maria had more to explore than first met the eye. Karen and Steve aboard S/V Ola decided to take more time exploring the various islands of the Azores, leaving the Arc Europe flotilla in Horta, our first landfall in the Azores. In retrospect this was not a bad idea in that they were really able to take their time and experience many more of the islands of the Azores archipelago.

Two days into the passage we found a stowaway on board. Resting on the solar panel supports was a Eurasian Collared Dove. 

He (or she) stayed with us for most of the day, moving about Sea Dog.

The next morning we awoke to more stowaways onboard, small squid. I am not sure how they got on deck during the night, The night was relatively calm and no one reported any waves coming aboard. We have seen flying fish, and found those on the deck of Sea Dog on several ocean passages, but flying squid? According to an article in ScientificAmerican, Fact or Fiction: Can a Squid Fly out of Water?,  they can and do fly! 

I spent the morning cleaning the squid from the deck, turns out we should have collected these little guys for a nice dish of grilled baby squid in garlic or at least bait.

Grilled Baby Squid in Garlic at Bahia Beach Bar

Well on our way to Lagos, we enjoyed spectacular sunsets and sunrises.

On one earlier morning watch, 4 am to 8 am, one of my favorite times, I got this picture of the sun rising as the new moon was setting. If you look closely, the bright star you see to the lower right of the moon crescent is the planet Venus.

Many of our fellow sailors had been reporting sightings of fin whales and we were a bit disappointed that we had not gotten the chance to see one for ourselves. Finally, we were treated with a somewhat close encounter of a fin whale. 

Early on the morning of June 14, 4 days into the passage, our dolphin escorts showed up. We were glad to have these guys join us. They put on quite a show for us as they sped along in the bow wake. In addition, where there are dolphins, there are not Orca. As we were getting closer to Portugal, the threat and worry of the troublesome Orca was ever growing.

As we were motoring through the beautiful blue waters of the Atlantic ocean, we kept seeming these strange blobs in the water. We decided to slow down a bit to investigate and we discovered they were sea turtles. 

We made sure that if we saw these "blobs" in front of us we would alter our course to give these guys the right of way. As we continued on, I was down below when I heard a distinct change of sound of the engine. My first thought was, yikes, we hit a turtle. Keith was at the helm, he heard it as well. He immediately shifted into neutral.  We peer overboard looking for the remains of some poor turtle, but none was found, just the deep blue waters of the ocean. We shut the engine down and I went overboard to investigate. Now mind you, jumping overboard in the middle of the Atlantic ocean is not for everyone, but someone had to investigate. Luckily the seas were calm (we had been motoring) and the waters were incredibly clear. As soon as I swam under the stern I could see the problem, a green tangle of fishing net wrapped around the prop and prop shaft. This was not our first rodeo, Michele and I went into action. I grabbed my new knife, which was incredibly sharp,  dove below to the prop and start cutting away the net. At first I would take a couple of swipes and resurface for air. Each time I was able to stay below a bit longer and do a little more damage to the net with my knife. After about the fifth dive, to give me a break, Michele dove under and worked at freeing the sections of net that I was hacking away at. We repeated this procedure several more times. I would dive under, cut at the net with my knife and Michele would follow attempting to free the net. Success!! We were able to completely free the net from the prop and shaft. We brought the net aboard, preventing someone behind us from running into the same problem.

The culprit, an extremely tough fishing net.

Michele taking a well deserved rinse with the stern shower

Michelle and Keith decided to take a dip as well

With the fishing net safely on board, it was time to crank up the engine and continue on our way to Portugal. After several hours, the winds picked up, we were able to shutdown the engine, hoist our sails, sailing once again. While the engine is a lifesaver when you have little to no wind, it is truly a much nicer (and quieter) experience once it is off, with just the noise of the wind filling the sails.

On the afternoon of June 15 we started to seeing more and more sea birds. Seeing birds at sea is typically an indication that you are getting close to a landmass. About an hour later we spotted land, Portugal. Looking at the chart, we were still about 14 nm from the southern tip of Portugal, and another 20 nm to Lagos. We were purposely aiming a bit north of the point. The plan was to get closer to shore before rounding the point and heading down, hugging the coast to Lagos, in hopes of avoiding any encounters with Orcas.  As we got closer to land, we spotted Farol de Sagres or in English the lighthouse of Sagres. The lighthouse sits on the rocky cliffs on the southwest tip of Portugal in the town of Sagres.

Farol de Sagres

The coast is lined with sea caves

                                                       

Our plan worked, we sailed due east staying within the 20 m contour line.  The challenge here was to watch out for fishing boats and fish traps / nets along the coast while hopefully avoiding any encounters with Orca. We arrived at the harbor entrance in the dark. While I don't typically don't like to enter a new harbor in the dark, according to the charts, the entrance as well marked with a straight shot to the reception / customs dock so the decision was made to enter. We arrived safely at the dock and were greeted by a representative from the rally who caught our lines and welcomed us to Lagos.

We opened our celebratory champagne and toasted each other on a successful transatlantic crossing. This was the first crossing for Michele, Michelle and I, while Keith has several under his belt. It felt like quite an accomplishment for us all.  We stayed on the custom dock overnight and woke to a spectacular day in Lagos.

Seadog safely in Lagos Portugal

The next morning we checked into immigration and customs and we were assigned our slip in the marina. Once securely tucked into our slip, we made use of the pool and bar at the Marina Club Lagos Resort.

Sea Dog crew enjoying the comforts of land

Once a majority of the boats completed the passage we were able to visit with each other, swapping stories of our adventures and share in the bounty of the seas. 

Tuna night aboard the catamaran Abundance

A final awards dinner was thrown by Arc Europe at the Sunset Restaurant and Bar which was thoroughly enjoyed by all.

Well there you have, Sea Dog's first Transatlantic crossing with Arc Europe 2023. 

Oh is it?  Really the adventures are just beginning. Stay tuned for more!

Ponta Delgada, Sao Miguel, Azores, June 6 2023

A lot has happened since we first arrived in Lagos Portugal after a successful transatlantic crossing as part of the Arc Europe 2023 aboard Sea Dog.  I am currently in Truckee Ca with a bit of downtime so I decided it was time to catch up the blog posts.  Since the dates on the posts are when I edit them, I am adding dates in the titles so it is easier to follow the progression.

As part of the Arc Europe rally, the fleet was to visit several of the islands in Azores archipelago. Unfortunately due to forecasted severe weather we decided to forego a visit to Terceira and head straight for the marina in Ponta Delgada on the island of Sao Miguel. We were told the marina in Terceira was small and not in a favorable location of the island for the approaching system. So far we had pretty good luck avoiding major wind events so why push our luck.

Ponta Delgada, Sao Miguel is about 150 miles south west from Faial. The island of Pico is pretty much in the way. We chose to head north around Pico and then down the east coast of Pico towards Sao Miguel. It is about a 24 to 25 hour trip between the two islands so we left mid morning with plans to arrive mid morning the following day. We ended up motoring the entire way as the winds were calm (before the approaching storm??). The first few hours were a delightful cruise as we stayed close to the eastern shore of Pico. We had great views of the volcano and the varied country side of the island. Before long we were pass Pico and back into the open waters of the Atlantic. It was a relaxing and uneventful motor to Sao Miguel. 

A welcomed calm night and full moon on the way to Sao Miguel

Marina Ponta Delgada is located on the south west-ish side of Sao Miguel. It is a large marina with a large breakwater/seawall to protect boats from the Atlantic ocean. We were on an outside dock and with any wind, it was not the calmest marina that we have visited. Most of the boats around us (the locals) had all sorts of various secondary shock absorbing devices to protect their lines and boats. Since we would only be in the marina a few days we made do with our existing dock lines and added a couple extra for added protection. The storm that we were avoiding arrived the afternoon on the following day.

I spent the next morning searching about town for a computer repair shop and a phone store. Sadly, it turned out the computer was done for, it just would not charge. I did find a phone store  in a local mall about a mile (all uphill) from the boat. The mall had a cool whale tale sculpture in the entrance.

The mall was a bit of a culture shock after traveling on board Sea Dog since early April. I was able to replace my old Google Pixel 6 with a new Samsung S23 Plus. I wanted to purchase a new Google Pixel 7, but for some reason I was told they are not available Portugal, strange.  It turns out the Samsung S23 is a dual sim phone which proved to be a real bonus. I was able to purchase a local MEO (Portuguese phone company) sim card and retain my Verizon sim card. This would become even more important than I thought with events that would transpire.

Now armed with a new phone and a broken computer I headed back to the boat before the storm. The following are pictures of some of the pretty gardens I passed in my brief stroll through town. Notice the darkening skies.

While I was on my mission, Michele, Michelle and Keith decided to explore some of the local museums in town. They stayed out a bit longer than I and were caught out in the brunt of the storm. Michele's wet weather gear turned out to be completely worthless. Drenched to the bone, Michele ended up buying a new outfit in a local shop so she could go to dinner without having to return to Sea Dog. 

I see they found the local beer museum.

The storm had abated somewhat the following day and we join the postponed half day bus tour of the island sponsored by Arc Europe.  The tour started with a stop at a small pineapple plantation.

                                                   Inside one of the plantation's hot houses.

                                                        A very small and very new pineapple.

                                                       Outside were local bananas as well.

From the plantation, we headed up into the center of island to explore some of the lake filled caldera's. As the sun and clouds moved across the lakes various greens patches would appear on the waters below. Quite beautiful.

                                                          Ponta Delgada in the distance.

A view to the east, the Atlantic ocean in the distance.

We headed down to the village of Sete Cidades that sits on the shore of Lagoa Azul on the west end of the island surrounded by two volcanos, Caldeira Seca and Caldeira do Alferes.  In town is a pretty little Catholic Church, Igreja de São Nicolau. Behind the church were old farm buildings. I found them to be photogenic along with some bird of paradise plants.

I also came across an assortment of flowers I found worthy of remembering.

At the end of the bus tour we all met at the Forte Terrace restaurant for dinner and the awards ceremony hosted by Arc Europe 2023.  We enjoyed a wonderful meal and wine followed by the awards presentation.

                                             Sea Dog Crew (Michelle, Keith, Michele, John)

                                                                   

The next day, Michelle and Keith rented a car to explore more of the beauty Sao Miguel, I decided to tag along. Our first stop was Miradouro da Lagoa do Fogo, a hiking area near the mountain lake Lagoa do Fogo. It was similar to the lakes we visited on the previous day bus tour but we were able to spend more time hiking and enjoying the views.

                                           Keith taking a picture of me taking a picture of him.

                                  Clouds cause shadows over the lake change the color of the water

The Atlantic Ocean in the distance

Our next stop was Centro de Interpretação Ambiental da Caldeira Velha, a scenic nature preserve with huge lush ferns, waterfalls and hot springs. This place was like something out of Jurassic Park sans the dinosaurs (thankfully).

The were some of the largest ferns I have seen.

Hot springs were popular with locals.

Not all of the pools were suitable to enter.

Back in the car on the way to the beach town of Ribera Grande, we saw a sign for A Mulher de Capote, Fabrica de Licores. We all looked at each other and thought that seems like a worthy stop.  There was a showroom and tasting area. The (free) tour was a little underwhelming and as were the flavored rums and gins.

Michele and Keith trying out for a job.

One way to get rid of the old bottles.

The beach town of Ribera Grande, named after the river that flows through town, is located on the north coast of Sao Miguel in the center of the island.  They have built a square around the river as it flows thru town with a series of waterfalls and channels that route the river.

The town square is in the top of the picture.

Our last stop for the day was the town of Furnas, a resort town known for its hot springs and spas. We had brough bathing suits with hopes of enjoying a dip in the hot springs but the first ones we found looked a little too hot.

Along with the hot springs we found a bunch of dirt mounds and cement line holes in the ground. It was the strangest thing. 

After wondering around for a bit we came across this sign and asked one of the locals that were working among the mounds what they were for. He told us that they were cooking pits used by the local restaurants, Restaurante Banhos Ferreos, being one of them, to make the signature dish of the area, Cozido das Furnas. We called the restaurant for reservations but they were full. 

Luckily we found another restaurant in town that had an opening and we were able to order Cozido das Furnas.  Cozido is a traditional Portuguese dish comprised of various meats such as bacon, ribs, chicken, sausage and an assortment of vegetables such as cabbage, potatoes and carrots all boiled together. In Furnas the dish is special because it is cooked underground by the steam of the hot springs. It is slow cooked for about 5 hours and then delivered to the various restaurants in town.

We enjoyed our meal paired with a nice Portuguese red wine. It was a fine way to end a very full day of exploring Sao Miguel.

If you look at a map of Sao Miguel, it is quite a large island and we spent a full day exploring only the center of the island. We could have easily spend another couple of days exploring the west and east ends of the islands, but the ocean was calling (well the Arc Europe flotilla was scheduled to leave the next day, as were we).

Next stop, Lagos Portugal, our final destination and the completion of our transatlantic crossing.