Aleria was ready but we were not

 

Aleria was finally ready to be launched in August. But insurance stipulated that we'd have to be South of the Bay of Biscay by September 15. There is nothing onboard as we stripped everything off in preparation for the refit and sale of the boat. We'd have to bring down truckloads of stuff, do short hops to check everything out and remind ourselves how to put things back together and sail. I didn't think we could do that and make it to the Iberian Peninsula by mid-September. It would be rushing it at best, and a schedule is one thing we've always avoided. 

So we made the decision to hold off and splash in the early Spring. Then we could take our time reftting her and practicing what we have not done in five years, since Covid interrupted. That turned out to be a wise move as a series of storms plagued Biscay and Iberia in that time period. In addition, the Orcas were attacking sailing vessels off the NW corner of Spain and one of our ICC member friends was a victim. We would have been sailing through those waters at just that time. 

So once again, we're in a good place.