In 2012 Malua returned to the sea and resumed the westward voyage. From Port St Louis the route crossed the Gulf of Lion to Spain, continued down the Spanish Mediterranean coast and through the Balearics, then towards Gibraltar and out of the Mediterranean. Beyond Gibraltar the voyage became preparation for the Atlantic crossing.
Read the voyage in order
CHAPTER 01
Back to Port St Louis
The 2012 season would be a long one. The plan was no longer simply to cruise the Mediterranean: this was the year we would leave it behind and prepare for the Atlantic…
CHAPTER 02
Gulf of Lion to Spain
We left Port St Louis and crossed the Gulf of Lion to the Spanish coast near the French border. It was a dream crossing and the beginning of the final westward Mediterranean…
CHAPTER 03
Barcelona and the Spanish Coast
Barcelona marked an important stop on the journey south. Leaving the city, we continued along the coast towards the Ebro delta and Valencia.
CHAPTER 04
Balearics Revisited
Five years after we first began the Mediterranean cruise in the Balearics, we returned to the islands on the way west.
CHAPTER 05
South to Gibraltar
Back on the mainland coast we continued south-west towards Gibraltar. One memorable night brought a full moon, about 23 knots of wind aft of the beam and Malua running down the Spanish…
CHAPTER 06
Beyond Gibraltar
Passing Gibraltar closed the Mediterranean chapter that had begun when Malua was shipped from Australia to Spain in 2007. But 2012 was far from over.
Photographs and route
