Saga Ruby Captain's blog

"Bergen, the gateway to the fjords lies between two of the world's most beautiful and longest fjords, Sognefjord and Hardangerfjord. It's known around the world for its charm and atmosphere, even through the summer you can do a bit of skiing! Founded as a fishing village in 1070 by King Olaf III, Bergen, with its perfectly sheltered harbour and access to the atlantic, soon developed into a trading centre.

By the 13th century it was the most important town in Norway and the Royal Capital, where five kings were crowned before Oslo took precedence around 1350. Bergen has remained the most important port on the west coast of Norway, despite its repeated destruction by fire (most notably in 1702 and 1916), wider streets and buildings of brick and stone have been built in response to these disasters.

Browse around the old cobblestone streets and alleyways leading to clusters of small wooden houses lying higgledy-piggledy amidst the backdrop of the mountains beyond. You can also take a leisurely stroll to the aquarium, to see fish, penguins and seals. Eight minutes from the town centre and you can be on top of one of Bergen's seven mountains. Few places have such a combination of bright lights of the city and nature right on its doorstep.".........At least that's how the tour books describe it.

What they usually fail to point out is that Bergen is the rain capitol of Northern Europe! Yet despite this I quite like the place, its large naturally deep waterways and easily accessible harbour make my job of parking the ship a bit easier, provided that it's not too windy. The harbour really is quite charming with all the shiplap buildings painted in a myriad of bold, yet not distasteful colours. Besides you can always use an umbrella!

Skjolden, which is situated at the end of Lustrafjord, another tributary of the Sognefjord, is about 55 nautical miles along the waterways of the fjords from Flam. Skjolden is surrounded by precipitous hills with spectacular falls. The region is rich with dramatic rolling hillsides and verdant valleys, resplendent glacial lakes and crisp mountain air.

With our arrival at the one-year old berth at 7am, it was evident that some of the rain that had been forecast at the beginning of the cruise was going to unfortunately manifest itself. Hopefully this wouldn't dampen the spirits of our guests though, when taking time to go ashore.

With Skjolden being located as far away from sea as you can get in the heart of western Norway, some 123 nautical miles from Sognegjord's coastal entrance, it was going to take us about 7 hours to reach the sea. In the light of the evening with the sun not setting until 11pm, this allowed passengers to admire the fjord's beauty and the surpassing magnitude of its landscape. The average width of the main branch of the Sognefjord is about three miles. Cliffs surrounding the fjord rise almost sheer from the water to heights of 1000 metres and more. Boats connect settlements along the fjord and it's side arms. Towns on the fjord are Balestrand, Gudvangen and of course Flam, which we'd visited the day previous.

We carried one pilot from Stavanger with us and picked up a second near Holmengra Lighthouse at the entrance to the Sognefjord at around 1am. The Pilots worked in shifts for the 101 nautical mile trip along the fjords and associated waterways towards Flam, which lies at the end of the innermost part of Aurlandsfjord, a tributary of Sognefjord. Sognefjord is Norway's Longest fjord and at its deepest reaches 1380m (4291ft). The inner end of Sognefjord is southeast of a mountain range rising to about 6500ft above sea level and is covered by Jostedalsbreen, continental Europe's largest glacier.

We anchored at Flam just after half past seven in the morning and "splashed" the tenders ready to take passengers ashore. Shortly after our arrival another passenger vessel, The Seaborne Sojourn, arrived and berthed alongside on the jetty as soon as the expedition ship, Explorer, had departed to make way for her. Three ships once in the fjord is about as close as it gets to rush hour in this part of Norway.

With the sun making an unexpected appearance, our passengers were ferried ashore with many looking to catch the train, which is Flam's main tourist attraction. The Flam Railway climbs 2835ft in less than 12.5 miles, making it the steepest unassisted railway climb in the world.

At 1900, the Saga Ruby picked up anchor and moored up alongside Flam's now vacated berth. This permitted the ship to top up her fresh water supplies before heading off towards Skjolden at 3am.

With hurricane force winds battering Scotland and the low pressure system moving to effect the northern part of the North Sea, I must confess I didn't expect the weather for this cruise to be conducive to a good cruising experience. Add to this the Norwegian forecasts for rain, rain and more rain, we were all resigned to the fact that this is how the weather will stay.

So on the morning of the sea day, after departing Southampton and transiting the Dover straights, it was a pleasant surprise to have calm seas and sunshine instead of the forecast force 6 gale.

Arriving to pick up the pilot in Stavanger the weather was grey and cold, just 50 deg F. The Saga Ruby while under pilotage, followed the MSC Opera, passed offshore support vessels and rigs as we made our way to the harbour.

As the smallest of the 3 cruise ships in Stavanger, we were relegated to the smaller berth at the end of the harbour. In truth this berth was still too small for us and warranted a bit of initiative to be employed in the mooring arrangement. The resulting cats of cradle of mooring ropes from the forecastle, in various colours, wouldn't have looked out of place in a modern art gallery. Perhaps it would even be a contender for the turner prize? Certainly more effort went into it than an unmade bed or pile of bricks!

Once the gangway had been run out and clearance obtained our passengers were free to go ashore, either independently, or off on a tour while the crew were kept occupied with a lifeboat drill.

The sea, once we left relatively calm Mediterranean waters, was causing the ship to pitch and move a little despite the sunshine and fair weather. However about an hour before picking up the pilot, Saga Ruby entered the Bay of Vigo and its calm flat waters. Picking up the pilot at 0700, we proceeded to make our way towards the berth in calm waters with only a light breeze creating ripples on the water. The sun was already up in the cloudless sky, trying to warm the cold morning air, a chilly 14 degrees Celsius.

The important naval and commercial port of Vigo, one of the largest centres of sardine fishing in Europe, lies on the southern shore of Vigo Bay. At 20 miles long by 30 miles wide the bay was once said to be large enough to hold the combined fleets of the world! The English navigator Sir Francis Drake attacked Vigo in 1585 and 1589, and treasure ships from the New World were sunk in the harbour in 1702 by a combined British and Dutch fleet. It is thought that some of the treasure still lies at the bottom. Although I suspect that this could just be a clever ploy by the tourist board in the hope of attracting divers and treasure hunters.

The largest town in Galicia, Vigo rises tier by tier to the Citadel at the top. Situated on the slopes of Monte Del Castro, two old artillery forts - the Castillo de San Sebastian and the Castillo del Castro - crown the town.

On the east side of Monte Del Castro is the newer part of the town, with modern tower blocks, broad avenues and beautiful parks. Below Calle de Policarpo Sanz is the Plaza de Compostela with numerous monuments and in the centre of the Old Town is the principal church, the neo-classical Colegiata de Santa Maria - built in the early 19th Century. A few steps away is the Calle Real, an area of little squares and winding streets which has been proclaimed a national monument.

With only a short call in Vigo, the Saga Ruby made ready to sail at 2pm. The temperature had risen to 25 degrees Celsius, fully realising the promise of the morning’s fine weather. Moving away from the port the Saga Ruby dropped off the pilot and picked her way through the numerous pleasure craft making the most of the idyllic Sunday Afternoon, before traversing the bay and squeezing out into the Atlantic between Cape Home and the Isle of Monte Agudo.

The Gibraltar Straights were acting like a funnel for the easterly wind as we passed through between the Iberian Peninsula and the North Moroccan shores. At the point planned on the chart, the Saga Ruby made a bold alteration to port to cross the westbound traffic lane and make her approach towards Europa Point.

With two other cruise ships occupying the North Mole, the Saga Ruby picked her way through the flotilla of tankers and bunker barges. We found a space a couple of ships length off the western breakwater where her anchor was dropped, ready to commence tendering. By now, with the wind a force 3-4, the vessels four tenders were "splashed", ready to start ferrying our guests ashore.

With the swell and waves inside the bay Gibraltar, and despite having suitable facilities, is not particularly convenient as a tender port. Swell bouncing off the harbour walls of Algeciras and the wake of numerous ships moving in and out of the adjacent port of San Roque, created enough turbulence to give our tenders a torrid time while trying to disembark our guests.

Gibraltar was one of the Pillars of Hercules of ancient times, and derives its name from one of the leaders of the moorish invasion of Spain in 711 AD. After changing hands several times, Gibraltar was finally captured by the Spaniards in 1469. It remained in Spanish hands until 1701, when it was captured by an Anglo-Dutch force and was ceded to Britain in 1713 by the Treaty of Utrecht.

With our guests back onboard and the last tender recovered, The Saga Ruby weighed anchor and once again weaved her way through the busy anchorage and out into the becalmed Mediterranean Sea.

Our visit to Barcelona this time had us scheduled to dock in the newer southern part of the port. Arriving in good time to pick up the pilot, we preceded inbound. There was a strong north to south current running across the harbour entrance that warranted a good 10-15 degrees allowance to the desired heading as we proceeded in a sort of crab like fashion towards the harbour. The pilot boarded at the mouth and by the time he had been escorted to the bridge we were well inside the harbour, with the correction for the current having been removed now that we were in more sheltered waters.

We proceeded towards our berth with the intention of turning to face bow out before docking. With the 20+ knots of wind this required the assistance of a tug in order to safely complete the manoeuvre. Once alongside the gangway was run out and clearance obtained from the local officials, permitting our passengers to venture ashore.

Barcelona in northeast Spain is an autonomous region of Catalonia and seaport on the Mediterranean Sea between the Llobregat and Besós rivers. The second-largest Spanish city in population, Barcelona is one of the major Mediterranean ports and the financial and publishing centre of Spain. The oldest port of Barcelona, formerly enclosed by walls, was built on the harbour and is crossed by the Rambla, a paved roadway extending from the harbour to the Plaza de Catalunya, the focal point of the city. The streets of the old quarter are narrow and crooked in contrast to the newer sections that are wide and straight. Dominating Barcelona’s skyscape are the fantastic openwork spires of Templo Expiatorio de la Sagrada Familia (Church of the Sacred Family), a huge, unfinished cathedral notable for the elaborate patterns and undulating curves characteristic of its builder, the Catalán architect Antoni Gaudí y Cornet. Other local landmarks include the church of San Pablo del Campo, the Gothic cathedral of Santa Eulalia, a monument to Christopher Columbus, and the nearby peak Tibidabo at 1,745ft.

During the course of the day the wind abated giving way to a largely sunny, warm day and with the final tours back a little later than expected we were ready to sail shortly after 5 pm. We waited for two RCL ships to sail past us in convoy, feeling a little on the small side as the shadows of these leviathans were cast across the bridge wing, before following them out of the harbour and turning south towards the Gibraltar Straights.

The approach to pick up the pilot runs in relatively close to the cliffs, which are connected with viaducts to form an almost continuous vertical face of stone that can be used to shelter ships against the mistral winds as they run into the harbour. Fortunately the mistral was absent and the sky cloudless for our arrival today. The pilot embarked a little before 9 am, and the Saga Ruby entered the harbour at 10 knots in order to navigate the first turn. On entering the inner harbour the speed had been dropped to 5 knots and the Saga Ruby made her 180 degree turn before coming alongside, in order to face bow out, ready for our evening departure.

The cosmopolitan port of Marseilles is France’s oldest and second largest city. For many years it was, and still is, France’s gateway to the Mediterranean and as such it has a large and diverse immigrant population from West Africa and Indochina. Around 600 BC, a trading post, known as Massalia was founded at what is now the old port area when Greek mariners from Phocaea, a city in Asia Minor moved here. It remained a free port for many years, although its influence declined during the reign of Julius Caesar when the local inhabitants backed Pompey the Great rather than Julius Caesar. For a while it was the last western centre of Greek learning but over the following years the city declined and became little more than a collection of ruins.

Marseilles became part of France in the 1480’s but the city soon had a reputation for rebelling against the central government. The local population enthusiastically embraced the Revolution and in 1792 some 500 volunteers were sent to help defend Paris. As the troops marched northwards, they took to singing what at the time was a catchy new tune that had been composed a few months earlier in Strasbourg. The song, which was soon dubbed La Marseillaise, subsequently became France’s national anthem. In the 19th century Marseilles grew in prosperity, mainly from the new colonial trade. Today Marseilles is known as France’s most important seaport. The city’s main thoroughfare, La Canebière, stretches eastwards from the old port. There is a large bohemian heart called Julien, which is lined with cafés and theatres. The city’s commercial heart is around Rue Paradis, a more fashionable boulevard.

At 1800, with all passengers and crew accounted for the Saga Ruby let go her lines and moved beam-ways off of the berth utilizing a combination of the bow thruster and the torque created by running the starboard engine ahead and the port engine astern. Once the distance from the quay was sufficient, the order for both engines to run half ahead was given and the headway rapidly increased to provide the 4 knots or so needed to enable the rudder to have good effect. After negotiating the “chicane” created by the inner and outer harbour walls, the Saga Ruby left the protection of the harbour and turned to port to follow along the harbour front and provide a good view of the city of Marseille.

With Marseille’s own Notre Dame de la Garde Basilica sitting up high on its vantage point above the city and La Major Cathedral dominating the view of the Old Port. The ship followed the natural curve of the bay around to starboard and lined up to pass between Cap de Croix on the Ile Ratonneau and the Ile If on which stands the Chateau d’If made infamous by Alexandre Dumas in his novel, “The Count of Monte Cristo”.

The Saga Ruby squeezed through the gap between the two islands giving everyone an opportunity to see, not only the Chateau d’If which passed approximately a ships length on the port side, but also the old quarantine hospital on Ratonneau to starboard, built as a holding point to ensure that migrants did not bring leprosy into the city of Marseille in the middle ages. No sooner had we passed the infamous fortress prison than the pilot disembarked and we set off into the Gulf of Lion, towards Barcelona.

The passage North to Livorno took the Saga Ruby past several islands including that of Capraia, Elba, Pianosa and Monte Cristo, a nature reserve made famous by Alexander Dumas’ book, “The Count of Monte Cristo”.

Once again there were several cruise ships scheduled to arrive at the same time as us, so once again I brought forward the arrival time to ensure our tour schedule could be executed as planned. We still had to wait outside the harbour for a couple of ferries and one other cruise ship to berth, kept in a crude holding pattern with a further three ships behind us. One vessel, from a famous cruise ship company with British origins whose name I’ll not mention, seemed most indignant at having to wait in a queue. The almost arrogant attitude of the very un-British sounding Officer on the VHF provided the Saga Ruby’s bridge team with a little entertainment whilst we waited, particularly when he was told to wait his turn.

Once the go ahead was given the Saga Ruby entered the harbour and made the sharp turn to port, the inboard engine stopped to provide an extra turning moment and assist the rudder. Continuing along the narrow canal-way towards our berth with little more than a beams width either side, the Saga Ruby reached the turning basin. With now enough room for us to turn, the Saga Ruby swung around with the bow turning to starboard and the bow thruster working hard to align the ship as planned, swinging 100 ft off of a floating dry-dock. Backing up to the berth, the deck crew quickly made fast the mooring lines, and the gangway was run out ready to embark the local officials.

The weather was glorious once again, allowing our passengers to venture off to Florence and Pisa and admire all their architectural splendour in the sunshine. Another tour had also been arranged for our crew through the Crew Welfare Committee under the Staff Captain’s instruction. They were off to Pisa to see the leaning tower for the afternoon.

I myself joined a passenger tour to finally see Pisa. I couldn’t quite make my mind up what was more amazing; the architecture of the 13th century cathedral with its bell tower askew, or the fact that the Italians had made such a tourism success out of what essentially is an engineering blunder? The small city was definitely worth the visit and certainly lived up to expectations. I’m not sure Pisa is somewhere you’d want to live if you are of the “picture straightening” personality type though?

For those staying locally, Livorno or Leghorn (as it is known locally) is Italy’s 3rd largest port and is situated on the Liguriun Sea. The Italian Naval Academy, naval shipyards and a navel arsenal are all located here. Places of interest include a restored 16th century cathedral and the “Fortezza Vecchia” also built in the 16th century as part of a defence system for the port.

With the setting sun and everyone accounted for the Saga Ruby departed the Italian coast, sailing past the prison island of Gorgona, across the Ligurian Sea towards Marseille.

The two full sea days on the crossing to Civitavecchia from Gibraltar demonstrated the two facets of the Mediterranean Sea in its entirety.

The first day the sea was calm like blue Murano glass occasionally flecked with white as a dolphin, fish or other form of aquatic life broke the surface. This is the sort of weather one generally associates with Mediterranean holidays in the sun and what new travellers to the region assume is the norm.

The second day however was a different story. The Gulf of Lion has a habit of generating weather systems to regularly upset the idyllic image of the Mediterranean’s Hollywood image, and this day was no exception. In fact the forecasters were evidently as naive about the nature of this area as a first time traveller, greatly underestimating the wind strength and sea conditions. The long fetch geographically afforded with a north-westerly wind gave rise to wind waves with significant enough power to make our passengers think that perhaps I’d taken a wrong turn leaving Gibraltar and some how ended up back in the Atlantic Ocean. With winds reaching force 9, Sunday lunch and evening diner were not quite what passengers had in mind, and to order soup was taking the life of your attire into your own hands!

Fortunately at 21:30 that evening the Saga Ruby squeezed through the Bonifacio Straights into the Tyrrhenian Sea and calmer waters afforded by the sheltering Corsican land mass. All in time for the evening show and enabling our passengers going on tour to Rome the following morning to get a good night sleep.

Arrival into Civitavecchia was not going to be straight forward with four cruise ships due to pick up pilot at the same time. Fortunately I had brought the arrival time forward by half an hour in order to make sure we were not going to be too delayed. With ferries and one of the other cruise ships deciding on a similar strategy this meant we moored alongside just about on time, albeit struggling against the 30 knot winds.

Despite the wind, which was to ease over the course of the day, the weather was dry and sunny for our stay reaching the mid 20’s Celsius.

Civitavecchia is the Port for Rome, central Italy and the main ferry link with the island of Sardinia. It is situated on the Tyrrhenian Sea and was founded early in the 2nd Century by the Emperor Trajan on a stretch of coast known as Centumcellae. The Porto di Traiano (“Trajan’s Port”) is preserved in the central part of the modern port. The town flourished during late Roman times, but then was attacked by the Vandals and destroyed by the Saracens in 828 AD. The people fled to the Allumiere Mountains, where Pope Leo IV constructed a walled town in 854. Later, the inhabitants returned to the old site (hence the name Civitavecchia, meaning “old city”).

With our passengers and crew all aboard having returned from their excursions into Rome the Saga Ruby sailed at 9pm in calm weather towards our next stop, Livorno.

We sailed into Lisbon after an uncomfortable cruise down from Southampton, to maintain her reputation the Bay of Biscay provided us with some stomach churning seas.  Truth be told , whilst the movement was uncomfortable for those who hadn't managed to find their sea legs yet, the weather wasn't too bad. The weather for our stay in Lisbon in contrast couldn't have been better, high temperatures of 84 degrees and a sunny cloudless sky, albeit with a little haze around.

While our guests took the opportunity to go ashore on panoramic tours, with one invariably involving wine tasting, the crew engaged in an emergency drill.

With the early departure time of 2pm, our guests all had the opportunity to see the sights along the Tagus as we sailed out. My concerns for the lingering remnants of the fog that we passed through around the 100-fathom contour on our approach to the Tagus were short lived, with the sun dutifully "burning it away" during the afternoon. Turning to the South the Saga Ruby set course along the Portuguese Coast with the warm sunshine bleaching her wooden decks, while guests sun bathed and relaxed.

With the lunchtime arrival into Lisbon our passengers had the opportunity of enjoying the cruise up the River Tagus at a reasonable hour. The ship picked up the pilot just off of the Belem Tower, before sailing past the statue of Henry the Navigator, and under the 25th April Bridge with the statue of Christ looking down on us from the Southern Bank.

The Saga Ruby has in the past docked at the Alcantara Passenger Terminal just beyond the bridge, but with work now completed on the Santa Apolonia Passenger Terminal, we sailed a little further along the Tagus, passing the wide boulevards and riverfront square, Praca do Comercio, which has provided elegance and character to Portugal’s thriving capital since the Marques de Pombal rebuilt Lisbon after the 1755 earthquake.

Once alongside the new terminal, only a short walk from the aforementioned Praca do Comecio, our passengers started to venture ashore, making the most of the sunshine on this, the last port of the cruise.

All aboard was 1830, so our passengers could look out over the Tagus whilst eating their dinner in the restaurant if they so wished as the ship sailed in the evening light. For departure Matthew, the Staff Captain, took the ship out, putting the Ruby’s engines and bow thruster through their paces against the tide and wind, turning the vessel just of the berth before proceeding out to sea.

Cadiz lies on the northern extremity of the Isla de Leon, the peninsula forming the southern entry point to the bay of Cadiz. Cadiz, a provincial capital, is the oldest city in Spain having been founded by Phoenicians around 1100 BC, where it soon became a flourishing market for Amber and Tin. Spanish treasure fleets used Cadiz as a base after the discovery of the Americas, which soon made the city one of the wealthiest in Europe.

Often referred to as Tacita de Plata, Cup of Silver, Cadiz has a luminous sheen in the sun, especially when seen from the sea. This can largely be attributed to extensive number of whitewashed buildings often in the Moorish style, centred around the 13th century Cathedral, which dominates the Cadiz skyline.

The weather so far on this cruise has been fantastic, and our stay in Cadiz looked like it was going to follow the trend with light airs, a cloudless blue sky, and warm temperatures, making it feel more like July or August. Running into the harbour on a day with such fine weather is fairly straight forward, despite the tight “parking spot” in prime position at the end of the “Darsena Commercial”.

Historically the sight of a ship carrying a large number of UK citizens would not have been so welcome, particularly when you consider that an English naval force under Sir Francis Drake raided the port in 1587, destroying many vessels and in 1596 an English fleet, commanded by Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, plundered the city. Fortunately nowadays, the UK’s relationship with Spain has greatly improved and our passengers were made most welcome.

The port of Cadiz provided our passengers with the ideal base from which to explore, not only Cadiz itself, but also the beautiful Andalusian city of Seville. Or for those who like a glass of Sherry now and then, a tour to Jerez might be preferred, with an opportunity to sample some of the local produce.

After a fine day in the sunshine, the Saga Ruby slipped her moorings, and assisted by a gentle breeze drifted off the quayside before the rumble of her engines and bow thruster enabled her to complete a 90 degree turn to port and proceed out to sea.

The origin of the town is not known. A Berber village called Anfa stood on the present-day site in the 12th century and it became a pirates’ base for harrying Christian ships and was destroyed by the Portuguese in 1468. The Portuguese returned to the area in 1515 and built a new town called Casa Branca (“White House”). It was abandoned in 1755 after a devastating earthquake, but the Alawi Sultan Sidi Muhammad ibn Abd Allah rebuilt the town in the late 18th century. Spanish merchants, who named it Casablanca, and other European traders, began to settle there.

The French after a time outnumbered other European settlers, and the name Maison Blanche (“White House”) became as common as Casablanca. The French occupied the town in 1907, and during the French protectorate (1912–56) Casablanca became the chief port of Morocco. Since then, the growth and development of the city have been continuous and rapid. During World War II the city was the seat of a British – U.S. summit conference in 1943. The man-made port of Casablanca is protected from the sea by a breakwater and handles most of Morocco’s foreign trade.

With the pilot onboard the Saga Ruby proceeded to make her way into the port, taking refuge behind the breakwater, though to be honest, the sea was calm with only a slight swell running. There was unfortunately a dredger right in the middle of the fairway to the inner harbour that necessitated that the vessel slalom around it in order to safely enter the port. Once this obstacle had been navigated, the engines were run astern to bring her up quickly in the confines of the inner harbour, before the vessel completed a 180-degree turn to port and came to rest, starboard side alongside.

Casablanca has had notoriety in shipping circles, for being a stowaway hotspot. With this in mind port security was high profile, and just in case the integrity of the shore side security staff was in doubt, ship’s crew were placed as extra lookouts at each end of the ship too, amongst other precautions taken!

I’d been to Casablanca many times before on ship, but had never been ashore further than needed to check the ships forward and aft drafts before departure. This time I took the opportunity to venture into town on the shuttle bus and see the place for myself!

Some people like the hustle and bustle of the North African markets such as the one in Casablanca; I can honestly say I do not share their enthusiasm in embracing this side of their culture. The vendors will try to get you to buy souvenirs that you don’t really want, or fake goods brandishing designer labels, some of which even have the correct spelling on them. I found myself briefly looking at tureens! I’d seen Rick Stein use one on the TV, but fortunately came to my senses when weighing up my culinary expertise against what I’d seen on the rest of the program and walked away.

Haggling is a way of life in this environment and is not for the feint hearted. As a rule of thumb if the vendor is still smiling and is as happy at the end of a transaction as when he first introduced himself to you, then you’ve been ripped off! The key to successful haggling is to stick to your low offer and walk out of the shop. The vendor will nine times out of ten, follow you and cut his price. And if you think the price is too high, go with your instincts and keep walking.

Having returned to the ship with my wallet intact, everyone accounted for and the vessel ready for sea, the Saga Ruby “let go” her lines and proceeded out into the Atlantic Ocean, once again having to navigate around the inconveniently located dredger.

Morocco remained relatively free from foreign invasion until the early 20th century because of its rugged mountainous interior, and its distance throughout its history from imperial centres in the east. This enabled it to preserve a proud traditional character, which is a rich blend of Berber, Arab-Islamic, Iberian, and African cultural influences. Those traits were joined by an infusion of European cultural elements during the colonial period (1912–56). Agadir is situated in western Morocco on the Atlantic Ocean, within a mining region. Cobalt, lead, manganese, and zinc are shipped out of the city’s excellent natural harbour.

However, tourism is the main economic activity, and the city is Morocco’s most popular tourist destination. Agadir was founded as a Portuguese settlement around 1500 and came under Moroccan rule in 1541. In 1911, at the height of the controversy caused by Franco-German rivalry in Morocco, Germany sent the warship Panther to Agadir. The incident, which nearly precipitated a general European war, led to the establishment of a French protectorate in Morocco in 1912.

The old port of Agadir itself is a fishing port and the pungent smell of this industry doesn’t let you forget it if the wind is blowing from the south. Anza, the commercial port adjacent, is where the Saga Ruby would be berthed, with the harbour wall running parallel with the shore, providing a lea from the rolling Atlantic swell that continually perseveres against the Moroccan coastline.

Unfortunately recent events in Marrakech had facilitated the need to cancel the overland tour for passengers, but Agadir itself still provided the Moroccan cultural experience for our half-day call.

The lunchtime departure involved the Saga Ruby having to perform a rather slow, 180 degree pirouette, inside the commercial harbour, with the engines and bow thruster churning up the harbour water into varying shades of brown. Once aligned with the entrance, the Saga Ruby accelerated ahead to provide enough flow over the rudder in order to steer through the fishing boats and turn to starboard and out to sea.

Arriving in the morning at 0700 to take the pilot as arranged, we found that the Port’s only duty pilot was engaged in taking another cruise ship, “Empress”, into the harbour. So to keep ourselves within sight of time for the tours departure and our scheduled berthing time of 0800, I obtained permission from the pilot to bring the ship in, and he would join us when he could. With the westerly wind and current seeking to set the Saga Ruby onto the quay, I guided the vessel into position just off the berth and let nature do the hard work. The Pilot joined us just in time for us to adjust position accordingly and run lines to shore, with the vessel all fast with still a little time up our sleeves.

Lanzarote is an extraordinary place, visually striking having turned a volcanic catastrophe into an art form. The houses are small and white, with green frames and doors and their chimneys are topped with Moorish-style onion domes. In back gardens the black ash has been corralled as neatly as any manicured lawn, and planted with hibiscus and bougainvillea. In the fields, potatoes, onions and tomatoes grow under the same volcanic debris. Each group of plants is protected from sun and wind by a semi-circular stone wall. As this repeating pattern slopes away to infinity against the blackened mountain slopes, the effect is as hypnotic as any piece of modern art. To add to this are the beautiful beaches of the south and the unpolluted azure seas around the island.

Arrecife (Spanish for reef) is Lanzarote’s capital and principal port with over half of the population of the island living here. The fishing port has its own fortress, the 16th Century Castillo de San Gabriel. Now that pirate attacks are less likely, this houses a small archaeological museum.

With the 1430 all aboard time, our short stay at the island came to an end. Maneouvering off the quay wall now had nature working against us, and with the bow thruster working hard and the engines working in opposite directions to create enough lift, the Saga Ruby fought against wind and current to back out of the harbour to sea before turning to starboard and heading towards the North African Coast.

Another port called Santa Cruz! Unfortunately Spanish mariners were not very original when it comes to naming places, a trait that to be fair seemed common amongst sailors of all nationalities back in the age of discovery.

The weather on arrival to this port was a little on the windy side, and with the wind blowing us onto the berth, getting alongside was not going to be an issue. It was getting off again when it came time to depart that was going to be more awkward!

Tenerife city is the largest of the Canary Islands and is surrounded by beautiful scenery. The island itself is dominated by the 12,198 feet high volcanic mountain, Pico de Teide. In the northeastern part of the island is Pinar de la Esperanza, where there is a forest of eucalyptus and pine.

On a more nautical note, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, which was founded in 1494, is where in 1797 Horatio Nelson lost his right arm in battle.

Sure enough, after our passengers had returned from their day’s adventures, tug assistance was needed to help the Saga Ruby lift off the berth against the strong winds. Once turned inside the basin, again with tug assistance making an easy task of what would otherwise be a very difficult maneouver in the wind, the Saga Ruby proceeded out to sea and headed towards the last of the Canary Island ports of call on our cruise, Arrecife.