{"id":22918,"date":"2025-11-07T10:09:09","date_gmt":"2025-11-07T14:09:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/?p=22918"},"modified":"2025-11-07T10:09:09","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T14:09:09","slug":"meandering-the-med-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/?p=22918","title":{"rendered":"Meandering The Med – Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

Western Med<\/strong><\/p>\n

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It\u2019s been almost 2 years since our last post – an amazing 2 years spent exploring the Mediterranean Sea. \u00a0We\u2019ve traveled from Gibraltar to Greece and back to the strait with over 5000 nautical miles under our keels.<\/p>\n

In November of 2023, as reported in our last post, we were approaching Gibraltar from the Atlantic. \u00a0We passed through the Pillars of Hercules \u00a0and into the Med to begin our exploration in this part of Europe. \u00a0Shortly, we will once again pass through those Pillars back into the Atlantic Ocean and this time head south toward the Canary Islands.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The Pillars of Hercules<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Our

Our Route<\/p><\/div>\n

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In 2023, our first stop was in Gibraltar. \u00a0Pretty amazing to see Europe on one side and Africa the other, explore The Rock, meet the Barbary monkeys and spend a little time feeling like we were back in England. There we also reset our temporary import of Echo into the European Union providing for another 18 months.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Echo

Echo approaching Gibralter<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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From Gibraltar we made a few stops en route to Cartagena where Echo would spend the winter.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Early <\/a>
Eartly morning departures <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Beautiful <\/a>
Beautiful Anchorages <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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During these stops we began to learn the art of the \u201cMed Mooring\u201d, a technique where boats are tied stern to the dock or quay and the bow is secured with lines anchored to the sea floor. \u00a0 We had been reading about the process as it was completely new to us. \u00a0We have since used this method in varying ways and certainly have improved our skills with practice. \u00a0It can be used here in the Med as there is very little tide change and it allows many more boats to tie to a quay than if they were side tied. \u00a0Often times you\u2019re just separated from your neighbor by the fenders strung along the sides of each boat. \u00a0In Greece you use your anchor to secure the bow adding a new dimension to the process.<\/div>\n
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\"Using

Using \u00e0 Passerelle for boarding can be a little scary at times.<\/p><\/div>\n

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When Med mooring you need a \u201cpasserelle\u201d for getting on and off the boat. \u00a0We initially bought the one pictured here, later got an inflatable one which was a bit wider and longer. \u00a0It can be entertaining and enlightening watching other boats as they execute the process, especially in Greece where anchors can sometimes become entangled and stress levels elevated.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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In case you\u2019re interested in learning more about Med Mooring, here\u2019s a link to a good explanation from the Royal Yachting Association.<\/div>\n
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https:\/\/www.rya.org.uk\/boating-abroad\/med-mooring-stern-to\/<\/a><\/div>\n
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Cartagena was a great spot to learn more about Spanish customs and some of the history in the Med. \u00a0By land we also visited many locations including Seville, Madrid and Barcelona. \u00a0We loved our time in Spain, so many wonderful things to experience! \u00a0It was very interesting to learn of the Moroccan influence in the Andalusian Region of Spain. \u00a0The Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba is a vivid example.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Serrano <\/a>
Serrano Ham! <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Roman <\/a>
Roman Theater of Cartagena <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Ruin <\/a>
Ruin of Roman Baths <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Enjoying <\/a>
Enjoying watching el paseo <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n
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Inside The Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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As we set out in April of 2024 we had two great new additions. \u00a0Having an address in Cartagena allowed us to order a StarLink antenna and an Oxley spinnaker. \u00a0Needless to say StarLink has been an incredible improvement and has served us well along the way. \u00a0We are able to use it without any restrictions while within 12 miles of the coast. \u00a0Beyond that point we change our service to ocean priority which is more costly, $2.50 per gigabyte. \u00a0In this mode we turn our devices to low data or off while not in use. \u00a0 They can still connect to the internet when needed.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Starlink

Starlink Antenna!<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The Oxley sail has been used many times when the conditions are right. \u00a0Just recently we used it for many hours as we often had perfect downwind conditions and our son Brian on board to help with the sail handling.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"The

The Oxley Spinnaker!<\/p><\/div>\n

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After a few stops along the coast of Spain we headed off to the Balearic Islands with our first stop in Formentera, a small rustic island just off Ibiza. \u00a0We enjoyed the peacefulness here before heading to the more lively islands of Ibiza and Majorca. \u00a0It was still early in the season so not too crowded and a nice time to explore. \u00a0Brian and Katie joined us in Ibiza and we spent our time sailing and exploring. \u00a0We said goodbye to them in Majorca where they headed off to the Pyrenees for some hiking in the Spanish mountains. \u00a0They stayed in Llavors\u00ed, a village in the Catalonian Pyrenees with some amazing hiking and beautiful mountain villages.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Anchorage <\/a>
Anchorage in Ibiza <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Beautiful <\/a>
Beautiful Formentera! <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Brian <\/a>
Brian and Katie <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Anchorage <\/a>
Anchorage in Majorca <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Exploring <\/a>
Exploring with Brian and Katie <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The region of Catalonia is another interesting area where many speak Catalan. \u00a0We had encountered this along the way. \u00a0Brian and Katie were immersed in it while hiking in the Pyrenees. \u00a0So many languages in Europe!<\/div>\n
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We moved on to Menorca which was much more low key than either Ibiza or Majoric. Here we enjoyed some quiet time and stocked up on some provisions before continuing on in our journey.<\/div>\n
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Western Med It\u2019s been almost 2 years since our last post – an amazing 2 years spent exploring the Mediterranean Sea. \u00a0We\u2019ve traveled from Gibraltar to Greece and back to the strait with over 5000 nautical miles under our keels. … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":22926,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22918","post","type-post","status-publish","format-gallery","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","post_format-post-format-gallery"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/svecho.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IMG_1422.jpeg?fit=1536%2C2048","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2y1a7-5XE","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22918","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=22918"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22918\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22949,"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22918\/revisions\/22949"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/22926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=22918"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=22918"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=22918"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}