June, July and Mahon

According to the pilot books, conventional wisdom and local lore there are three good harbors in the Mediterranean – June, July and Mahon. As we sit in the cockpit on Lone Star in the beautiful and historic harbor of Mahon, Menorca we heartily agree – Mahon is a damn fine harbor!

We arrived in Mahon on Wednesday, August 3 after a two night sail from the island of Marretimo in the Egadi Islands off the western coast of Sicily. It was an uneventful 50 hours at sea. The first 24 were spent under motor while the second half was a beautiful downwind sail with following seas. We used the jib and mizzen ballooner for the majority of the second day and averaged just over 7 knots. Under cloudy skies we motored into Port Mahon in the morning and were med moored by noon on the Isla Clementina pontoon.

Menorca is the most easterly of the Balearic Islands. Because of its strategic location in the Med, it has been ruled over by all sorts of folks including Vandals, Byzantines, Moors, Turks, French, and the British before finally coming under Spanish rule in 1802. Puerto de Mahon is an attractive and very interesting port up a deep long cala (bay) with a reputation for great all round protection. We were really excited to get to Menorca. In 2009 we bypassed the island when we were in the Balearics and were anxious to see what we missed. The whole area is steeped in history and Craig has just been beside himself the whole time we have been here wondering if Jack Aubrey walked the streets we walked or saw the sites we saw. Now this is a real problem and perhaps Mr. Scott has been at sea just a little too long. You see Jack Aubrey is the main character in the Master and Commander series; the Russell Crowe role in the movie. The problem with this is that Jack Aubrey is a totally fictional character – made up, not real. But did that deter or discourage Captain Craig? Nope, not one bit.

Mahon has a beautiful harbor walk lined with boats and small marinas on one side and shops, cafes and restaurants in historic buildings on the other. There are ample places to find a slip – even in August. Our choice was a bit unusual. We were moored on one of two “floating islands” in the middle of the harbor complete with electricity, and a swimming hole for the kiddos. There was even a Westie on one of the boats which Jan made quick friends with and of course started up the isn’t it about time to get a dog conversation. It’s just a quick dingy ride from the island to the dingy dock. Above the harbor is the historic city center with fish and fresh food markets, churches, plazas, pedestrian walk ways and old historic homes.

We spent three days on our floating island then motored just two miles out to Cala Taulera located beneath La Mola at the entrance of the harbor. La Mola is the site of the Spanish Fort Isabella completed in 1850 and now a tourist site. Interestingly Fort Isabella was obsolete by the time it was completed due to improvements in artillery technology.

We kept a close eye on the weather and confirmed that a Tramontona (a strong northerly gale) was headed our way with winds of over 30 knots predicted. While our anchorage was completely protected, it was rapidly filling up to the point of being overcrowded and quite frankly unsafe. By Monday morning boats were swinging into each other as more boats were trying to crowd in for protection. Using our sometimes good judgment we decided to abandon the anchorage and came back into the main harbor and tied up securely once again on our Isla Clementina. As we waited out the winds for the last two days we have voiced on more than one occasion “June, July and Mahon – a damn fine harbor!”