The ARC Portugal fleet have enjoyed their stay in the lovey Portuguese fishing town of Póvoa Do Varzim. Having experienced some fairly abnormal conditions on the sail from Bayona, the boats were happy to arrive at Clube Naval Povoense on Tuesday evening. The participants were then able to enjoy a well-needed sunny day in the heart of the Vinho Verde Region, finishing off with an excellent prize giving dinner in the Yacht Club. Now the 19 yachts are headed South on their short sail to Porto, a new stopover this year and one we are all looking forward to. There are excellent conditions so we expect the passage to only take a few hours.
Winds were predominantly from the South during their 50NM sail from Bayona, with poor visibility and a current against them most of the way. Arrivals into Povoa were therefore quite spread out as some yachts decided to put the engine and ensure they were in before dark whist others were determined to keep sailing. The first boat in was Farfelu 19.00 local whilst the last boat, Yacht Idefix came in at 03.00 having resisted the engine until the very last hour.
A tour was organised on Wednesday afternoon, providing an opportunity for fifty participants to get a flavour of this beautiful Vinho Verde region and the surrounding countryside. Marie, out tour guide has been in the job for forty years and has been showing off the best of her stomping ground to rally participants for many years. The weather was great for the tour, and a few rosy cheeks were spotted at the prize giving in the evening.
The Clube Naval De Povoense put on a fine supper of typical Portuguese cooked meats & beans in a port sauce. Which went down very well with a glass of local red wine. Awards were announced after coffee, with dignitaries Carlos Fortes and Paulo Neves presenting the prizes.
Prizes were awarded to Yacht Unleashed who took away two awards after his first leg with the event, 1st in Class A and the Smiley Miley wnner. Yacht Casamara received a prize for winning the ETA competition being with 15mins of their actual arrival, whilst Serendipity took the number 1 slot for Class B, being the only yacht in the division to finish before the line was closed at 21.00 local.
After a one hour delay this morning allowing a band of low pressure to pass through, the start from Povoa was fantastic. The Sun came out, and a good 15-18kt breeze from the North-west made for some great sailing. See you all in Porto!
