Port-Joinville, île d’Yeu has about 50 visitors’ moorings but with nearly 100 rammed in no one was going to leave in a hurry and with another bout of grim weather anticipated most of us decided to sit it out!
It wasn’t long before 48 knots of screaming, bitterly cold, northerly winds blasted through the marina. We closed the windows, tried to remind ourselves that this was August and turned the kettle on again..
At the first break we ran for Les Sables d’Olonne, the centre of solo world sailing, host city to the famous Vendee Globe and Golden Globe races. We were last there in 2019 (link) when we were kidnapped by the Babout family and thoroughly spoilt with dinners galore by Sylvie and Pascal.
We moved away from the bustle of Quai Garnier in the centre of town to the quieter marina of Port Olona, or at least that’s what we thought it to be. All we did was pop out for a cycle ride to the beach and when we returned a musical stage that the Glastonbury festival would have been proud of had been built no more than 100 metres from our boat. There being no way to avoid it, we arranged our nibbles and wine and for the next 7 hours enjoyed the delights of Flagrants Delires, Strollad and the headliner Boris and Moris. Without understanding a single word we eventually went to bed at 2am.
15th August 2023
Trip Mileage 51 miles
Mileage Completed 2152 miles