Horta

Horta is a much larger and more commercial and touristy town/port than Lajes das Flores.  Many cruisers stop here on transatlantic crossings thus marine supplies are more readily available.  Wonder of wonders Mid Atlantic Yacht Sales had the part we needed to attanch the roller furler to the mast correctly!  That alone was worth coming to Horta.






There are many shops and cafes on the cobblestone streets near the marina.  Many of the sidewalks are made up of dark and light colored stone mosaics.  While Horta is larger than Lajes in Flores, it is still easy to get around by foot ane not as steep.  (My calves burned for several days after we got to Flores after not walking for four weeks!  The hilly roads on Water Island were a distant memory that my muscles forgot.)





We borrowed bikes from our new friends from S'ours.  The grocery was far enough away it was nice having the bikes to help with the carrying.

The tradition of painting on the walls before sailing on has obviously been going on for years here and you can see where some boats had returned adding the current year to their paintings.  Every available wall space was taken and you had to really search to find a spot to add yours, with many resorting to the walkways.  Some of the paintings were quite elaborate and very well done.  Others remained very simple.

Josie did ours again with everyone signing their own name.

We ended up staying three nights instead of the two we planned. The islands of both Pico and Sao Jorge are within site of Horta.  The vocanic cone of Pico sticking up above the clouds formed quite a view.

We left on Thursday morning (July 14) on a day hop to Velas, Sao Jorge.