|
 A
voyaging yacht taking a few guests for a day sail to provide cash flow is
not a new concept. I remember such a sail on a South African built Victress
40 trimaran in Barbados in 1966. Day charters are now big business with a plethora of purpose built boats around the holiday spots of the world. Predominately these are catamarans from 15m to 25m LOA. The author sampled a couple of boats to check out typical itineraries, service and whether the boats sail or just motor around. About six catamarans operate out of Puerto Colon, Playa Las Americas, Tenerife billed as trips to see whales and dolphins. Three are British built Freebird 50s adapted with extra seating, three are French designs. The 19.5m x 10.48m "Maxi Cat" does two three hour sessions at 1000 and 1400 year round depending on season. In fact the fleet seems to leave and return en masse. The large mainsail was raised by electric winch once Maxi Cat cleared the harbour. The skipper motor sailed in the light winds towards neighbouring Gomera and the area where the cetaceans are usually found. Soon a couple of fins were spotted in the distance and we were in company of pilot whales as predicted. All aboard watched the graceful creatures with delight. The dolphins had apparently moved along the coast to be seen by boats out of Los Gigantes. The February weather was a little cloudy and shorts and T-shirts were needed to keep warm over the water. For some time the four cats manoevred for the charterers to get the best views of the 4-6m whales. Most guests had no knowledge of sailing and some had no idea to dress warmly for water on a winter day. At the allotted time each cat headed for the shore into a bay, Maxi Cat picking up her mooring allowing guests to swim and snorkel and take refreshments of beer, wine and uninspiring sandwiches, before motoring back along the coast into Puerto Colom. "Spirit of Malta" is a 20m wood epoxy cat built in St Kitts so has traversed the Atlantic to Malta. In fact she usually winters in the Gambia. swimming and dancing After a hotel pick-up the predominately youthful group, mostly Scandanavians, and "Spirit" motored out of the historic harbour of Sliema. The June day would be hot, even with the cooling breeze over the sea. Bikini clad bodies covered the top deck over the cockpit area as Spirit motor sailed to the Blue Lagoon for the first stop of the day. The German skipper made everyone welcome and the crew served up a magnificent buffet and complimentary drinks. Two further swimming stops were made at Gozo and near St Johns. The distance between the two was covered under sail. At last peace from lack of engine noise allowed the water noises of sailing to be heard. Drinks were available all day. On the last leg back into the harbour dance music was played and guests were encouraged to dance on the large decks. All arrived back mellow and warm from a day's exposure to the hot Mediterranean summer sun. Vehicles were waiting to return guests to their hotels. These giant cats also provide an excellent viewing platform for events such as the start of The Race (see picture). Readers are invited to e-mail their day charter experiences, good or bad, to the editor. Tenerife - Maxi Cat- Tel: (+34) 922 71 65 53 Malta - Spirit of Malta -Tel: (+356) 2134 3373 |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
© MY Publications 2002-6 All rights reserved. Telephone +34 950 467709/+34 686 929855 email webmaster Columns: Useful Tips | Latest Events | Gallery | Requests | Featured Sites | Book reviews | Obituaries | News Archive | Features Archive |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
