Due to easterly winds, we stay longer in Estepona than expected so we take the opportunity to get the damage to the transom repaired by Tomasz and enjoy the sunny days. We will also have time for an excursion to Ronda, but more about that in the next story.

When we got here it was blowing hard and we had an awkward addition where the transom got a damaged gelcoat. The boat next to us on the pier was being polished by a guy who seemed to know his stuff. At first, I had planned to wait for repairs until we got back to Lagos, but changed my mind. The weather was perfect, no rain in sight for a whole week, and Tomasz had time to work on the repair while he worked with the boat next door, a 50-foot motorboat with a large superstructure and a lot of stainless steel that would also be polished. The job at Sally would involve many short steps he could do before and after the job with the motorboat.

Day one Tomasz sanded down the damage and repaired it with polyester and fiberglass mat. Day 2 he grinds the repair and puts on the first layer of gelcoat. Fortunately, I have been foresighted and bought gelcoat from Hallberg-Rassy to get exactly the right color. For the next 3 days, he applies another 5 coats of gelcoat to a larger and larger area so that there will be an invisible transition between new and old gelcoat. On day 4, he hand-grinds with a finer and finer sandpaper, finishes with a 2000 paper, and then the polishing machine. The result is brilliant, there is no trace of the gelcoat damage.

We spent these days taking long walks and bike rides along the beach and into the center, where the old buildings are located. There are flowers and plants along with all the houses in the old town, it is really cozy there with several small squares where there are cafes and restaurants with warm sunny places for a coffee or lunch.

It’s cold as soon as you get in the shade or when the sun has gone down. At night it is often around 10 degrees warm, some nights even colder. During the day we have around 17 degrees in the shade and a lovely 25 in the sun. It often blows a lot, I think it is due to the high mountains a few kilometers inland.

On Sundays, there is a market in the marina and it is full of people who enjoy the environment and maybe make a bargain. We buy new sunglasses, the ones we have are scratched. The restaurants are packed so we settle for a refreshing Aperol Spritz at the bar by the harbor office.

Up next

We rent a car to make a road trip to the historic city of Ronda up in the Sierra de Las Nieves.