I spent three fairly indolent weeks in Lagos, relaxing, eating too much, and listening to street music. The first week was mainly occupied with boat maintenance items – an engine oil change done by Sopromar Marine Services adjacent to the marina and buying a few items in their well-stocked chandlery I decided I needed after a month at sea crossing the Atlantic from the US.

I rented a car for a day and drove a loop through the Agarve.  The first stop was Ponta de Sagres, sometimes called the “End of the World” because it’s the most southwestern point in Europe.  Nearby is Cabo de Sao Vincente, the first Portugal landfall I saw as it emerged through the fog as I arrived from the Azores. From there I drove north to Aljezur, then east on winding roads through the mountains toward Monchique, then south to the vineyard country around Estomar.  I stopped at Quinta dos Vales winery, one of the largest and most well-known wineries in the Algarve to taste some of their reds.  The vines were incredibly dried out; I’ve never seen anything like it in the many vineyards I’ve visited over the years.  This winery is curious in that the grounds are populated with a wide array of odd, mostly fat, statues of animals, and a few abstracts. From Estomar I drove back west along highway N125 to Lagos.

If you’re in Lagos it’s easy to take a boat excursion by one of the many tour companies operating out of the marina to see the many waterfront caves that are found along this part of the Algarve coast.  There are hundreds of such caves, perhaps the most famous being Benagil cave with its interior beach and a hole to the sky. Of course, everyone wants to see these caves so crowds of tourists in boats are inescapable.

Toward the end of my stay in Lagos I made a 5 day side trip to Switzerland to visit pilot friends who have also flown small planes around the world (Earthrounders).  I’ll make a separate blog post about that trip.

My next stop is Tangiers since the marina at Rabat, actually a more favorable stop in Africa, never responded to my emails inquiring about berth space. Gale force easterly winds routinely blow through the Straits of Gibraltar so it will take some weather planning finesse to get into Tangiers without driving straight into such winds.