SAILING
#3 – Sailing across the Bay of Biscay
Two months after crossing the English Channel, we came back to Roscoff in France to continue our journey to Spain.
The first thing we did was to install the AIS System on Lumos. Since we had a hard time on the traffic separation zone in the English Channel, we wanted to avoid another scary passage (reed more about the channel crossing here: English Channel.
We installed the AIS transponder and the new chart plotter as well and checked the weather conditions for the next trip. After everything was done we set off for a short costal sail to L'Aber Wrac’h in France.
First challenge was to navigate through the Canal de l’ile de Batz which needs to be carefully planned if you want to have a safe route. Once we passed the channel, the sail along the coast was beautiful with nice weather and calm sea. The sailing was smooth and fun, so comfortable that we even installed our big fishing rod and tried to catch some fish. Unfortunately, without success.
Just before approaching the channel entrance of L’Aber Wrac’h, thick fog kicked in and triggered an increase in our heart rate. The entrance of L’Aber Wrac’h is full of sharp rocks which made the navigation super tense.
Adjusting the boat speed and having someone on the bow helped to stay away from the rocks. Finally we made it safely into the marina but just on time the wind increased to 20 knots and made docking very difficult.
After a good sleep, we got up early the next day and set sail for Camaret sur Mer, France. It was a wonderful day, the fog despaired the wind was perfect and the sea was calm and flat. We deeply enjoyed sailing all the way down to the next stop, Camaret sur Mer.
Only 10 days left until we had to go back home but the weather forecast looked very promising for crossing the Bay of Biscay. An other, very experienced sailor couple we met few days ago, wanted first to join us on crossing the Bay of Biscay but changed their mind just before departure. They were not ready for the Biscay Bay yet, they said. That made us even more nervous. Nevertheless, we woke up well rested and very excited for the next big tip to La Coruna in Spain.
With a great gut feeling and a beautiful weather window we set off for the notorious Bay of Biscay. The further out we sailed, the less boats on the AIS followed us and the more exited we got. We heard frightening stories about the big, steep waves that can develop about 100 miles off the French coast because of a submarine canyon called Penmarc'h Canyon. The depth increases dramatically from 200 meters to 4000 meters which causes the sudden rise of the waves.
On the edge of the canyon, we noticed a change of the sea. The Atlantic became turbulent and the water looked more like it was cooking but fortunately no big, steep waves for us. As we sailed further out the ocean swell got more and more comfortable and an indescribable beautiful sense of freedom started to grow. The great Atlantic ocean gave us an unforgettable experience. We couldn't have asked for more.
We had a perfect 15 to 25 knots on a broad reach for the whole trip, apart from the last 10 miles when the wind almost died, changed direction and forced us to turn the engine on. The crossing took us 72 hours from Camaret sur Mer in France to Galicia, La Coruna in Spain.
