It’s all about balance: taking care of Illika and a little bit about ourselves! So the main thing is, it seems, that she’s running well. So accompany having our boat taken our and as a little bonus, watch our first video 😉!
Lifting Illika in La Gomera (again)
It was nice to be back in San Sebastian. On the one hand because we had enjoyed our last stay and on the other hand because we wanted to see a bit more of the island and this time do some real hiking.
Also, we had decided, after changing our plans, that this would be the best (and last for a long time) opportunity to redo the antifouling on Illika (that’s the paint under the waterline of the boat to protect it from seaweed and other living marine creatures very interested in clinging to the hull), which had been partially removed with a pressure washing when we lifted her a few weeks earlier… So here are a few photos from the 3 days we spent on the boatyard and a link to our short video of that time spent on the dry. You may laugh, you’re allowed to – it’s our first video! (and we think it’s funny too…)
video to hauling out Illika
Stunning view from la Gomera to splendid Teide on Tenerife 
Typical and pretty village of San Sebastian 
The tour of San Sebastian 
… and some peculiar palm trees, very elegant indeed! 
First test with our Omnia cake form on the gas stove 
Culinary experiences, we like trying 
To haul out a boat is always quite a challenge for everyone’s nerves. 
Illika’s hull before the antifouling 
Epoxy and primer around the bow thruster 
1 layer of primer coating, before adding 2 layers of antifouling 
At the local beach of San Sebastian 
Beautiful black sand beach 
View from the shipyard over the harbour
Wires and hiking
Our new bow thruster control was delivered in no time and we found an electronics engineer specialised in boat electronics (Dan) to advise us on products and the fitting. Unfortunately, he was away for a few days and Jean-Luc had to fit it himself.
Dan and his wife had given us some advice on hiking in La Gomera and on their advice we took a bus to a stop lost somewhere in the mountains and started walking. After an hour’s climb, we arrived at a restaurant known for its typical Canarian dishes, which we really enjoyed. And the view from the top was simply sublime! The way down was going to be longer and we had a bus to catch at the end, so we couldn’t hang around too long. We followed a path that got narrower and anorrower, sometimes so overgrown with creeping plants that we were afraid to get lost. Eventually we found a recognisable hiking trail to Vallehermoso. It was a fantastic walk. Thanks for the tip, Dan and Emily.
The whistled language Silbo
And do you know Silbo? It’s a whistled language that got lost on the island of El Hierro but that they managed to save on La Gomera as they made it an obligatory subject at school. From one side of the valley to the other, people used to communicate by whistling. Impressive! We asked to attend a Silbo lesson for the locals… Wow! You can read more about this unique whistling language by following the link.
Our Gecko in the black sand, but the tide was quicker! 
New cables to fit 
… and reorganize under the floor 
creativity with clay… after that the cockpit needed to be cleaned seriously! 
Beautiful La Gomera 
Dams on the island are quite empty 
Restaurant we went to during our hike 
a Canarian Arbutus (Madrone) 
Stunning view from the restaurant 
Canarian specialities, like the cress soup with Gofio 
Crispy bacon bits in Gofio, salty and sweet at the same time, delicious but very filling 
And conejo (rabbit) is eaten alot, was ok but not more than that. 
The path leading down into the valley 
Very nice hike indeed, ,,, 
where we had the feeling we must have lost our way. 
Aloe Vera grows all over, at this season the flowering is nearly over 
And the agave are starting to produce their long flower stems 
He didn’t want to give us any milk so we went on. 
Where we attended a Silbo-lesson
Great company
After being put back in the water and a few pleasant evenings in good company of other sailors (thanks to Eden and Aysha), we spent our last days in La Gomera, on the other side of the island: anchored and well protected in the bay of Valle Gran Rey, in front of beautiful cliffs, we waited until the winds were favourable to sail to the island of La Palma, where we will get Illika ready and us organized for the next step!
P.S. And not to forget: on the 23rd April we toasted to 1 year living on the water with Illika!
Great evening with Anne and Stephan, and Ethon 
The sun comes out late in the bay of Valle Gran Rey 
First success in harpoon fishing, a canarian parrot fish 
… and after the pleasure comes the work! 
A bottle tree on the Canary Islands, they come from Australia 
Amazing sunset in the calm bay – exceptionnal on the Canaries
Watched the video 3 times.😃 Very amusing and loved your morning routine and commenfs … and the cast members!
And well done Alexander, your boat floats and your video is super😀
Is gonio millet based? How interesting about the Silbo nevef heard of it. Did any of you manage to get a sound out?
As I’ve said before, La Gomera looks so lovely …
😚😚😚😚
My mornings are not always so calm 🙂
Gofio is made of wheat flour or a wheat,millet and mais flour mixture, roasted. But we even saw upnto 10 cereals mixen,so the taste varies a little. Quite enjoyable for a change at breakfast like a porridge, adding nuts and palm Sirup.
Hope everyone found the link to Alexander’s vidéo. He’s very Happy to get feedbacks
Xxx
I can’t believe it’s been a year! What an incredible experience for you all and I do so love to read about it xx
Agree! How time goes by so quickly! And on a sailing boat one cannot be in a hurry, we realized.
Still hoping you’ll joint us along the way!×××