12:15 WEST from Figueira da Foz. 1 hour 45 minutes before high water (14:00 WEST), on the flood, so the bar never has the ebb running against the swell.
Arrive
About 19:05 WEST at Nazaré. About 1 hour before low water, with about 1 hour 10 minutes of daylight in hand (sunset 20:17 WEST).
Tides
2 days before the full moon: range about 1.8 m and growing
Wind
North to north-west most likely: a fair wind southbound
Boat
35 to 38 ft sailing yacht, 1.9 m draught, 6 kn under sail, 5.5 kn under engine
Crew
Skipper and 3 crew, 2 watches of 2
Track and waypoints 1 to 5.
Go or no-go
Decide at 10:30 WEST, after the morning bar status update. Go only if all of these hold:
Figueira da Foz bar open, and not breaking when you look at it before slipping.
Wind from north to west, force 5 or less.
Swell under 2.5 m from the west or north-west. Nazaré handles more than this, but the Figueira bar does not.
Nazaré bar open on amn.pt.
Visibility 2 nm or more.
If Figueira's bar is the problem, wait for the next high water (about 02:15 WEST) or the next day. Nazaré is a short leg, so a day's wait costs the rest day planned for 19 April and nothing more.
Route and waypoints
Waypoints are planning positions in open water, checked against a 1:10m coastline to be at least 1.5 nm off land except at the harbour ends. Distances and courses are calculated from them. Plot every one on the current chart before use. Courses are true.
#
Waypoint
Latitude
Longitude
Course
Leg nm
Total nm
ETA
Notes
0
Figueira da Foz marina
40°08.9′N
008°51.5′W
12:15 WEST
Depart on the last of the flood. Call POLIMARFOZ on VHF 13.
1
Figueira da Foz approach
40°08.5′N
008°54.0′W
258°T
2.0
2.0
12:38 WEST
Clear of the bar. Turn south.
2
Off Pedrógão
39°55.0′N
009°01.5′W
203°T
14.7
16.6
15:05 WEST
3 nm off. Seine nets and boats off the beaches.
3
Off São Pedro de Moel
39°45.5′N
009°05.5′W
198°T
10.0
26.6
16:45 WEST
3 nm west of the Penedo da Saudade light (Fl(2) 15s).
4
West of the Pontal
39°37.0′N
009°08.0′W
193°T
8.7
35.3
18:12 WEST
2.4 nm off the Nazaré headland. Clear of the Guilhim rocks. Praia do Norte is to the north-east: keep off it.
5
Nazaré approach
39°34.8′N
009°06.5′W
152°T
2.5
37.8
18:39 WEST
Approach from the west. Call CAPIMARNAZARÉ on VHF 13. Check on the chart
6
Nazaré harbour
39°35.1′N
009°04.3′W
080°T
1.7
39.6
19:05 WEST
North basin, recreational pontoons. Position approximate. Check on the chart
Tides and time
Figueira da Foz · Sun 18 Apr · WEST (UTC+1)
HW
01:31
3.0 m
LW
07:49
0.6 m
HW
14:00
2.9 m
LW
20:03
0.6 m
From the Nazare station.
Nazaré · Sun 18 Apr · WEST (UTC+1)
HW
01:31
3.0 m
LW
07:49
0.6 m
HW
14:00
2.9 m
LW
20:03
0.6 m
Sunday 18 April 2027, 2 days before the full moon. Range about 1.8 m.
Leaving before high water. High water at Figueira da Foz is at about 14:00 WEST (from the Nazaré station: no Figueira station in the TICON-4 set). Leaving at 12:15, the flood is still running in against you on the bar, which flattens the sea there; the ebb, which steepens it, has not started. Leaving at the slack itself would bring the arrival too close to sunset. Check the pilot book
Arriving before low water. Low water at Nazaré is at about 20:03 WEST, 0.6 m above chart datum. Nazaré's entrance is deep, with the canyon running almost to the moles, and this draught has no tidal restriction. Check the pilot book
Tide times are predictions made for this plan from the TICON-4 harmonic constants (DGFI-TUM) with the Neaps tide predictor, because the official 2027 tables were not yet published when it was written. Tested against the official APDL table for Leixões on 23 July 2026, the predicted times were within 8 minutes and the heights 0.1 to 0.2 m lower. Heights are above lowest astronomical tide. Check every time against the official 2027 table before sailing.
Daylight. Sunrise at Figueira da Foz 06:54 WEST. Sunset at Nazaré 20:17 WEST.
Weather
April. North to north-west winds are the most likely. A front with a south-westerly is the main risk.
The Nazaré Canyon. The canyon runs up to about 1 km off Nazaré. It bends and focuses westerly and north-westerly swell onto Praia do Norte, north of the headland, where the waves are much bigger than anywhere else on the coast. The harbour, south of the headland, is sheltered by the headland and by the shape of the canyon.
Swell and fog as for leg 2.
Forecasts to check
IPMA (Portugal) maritime bulletins and coastal warnings, ipma.pt, maritime section. The high-seas area for this coast is 17 Porto.
NAVTEX Portugal (Monsanto): 518 kHz, station R, in English; 490 kHz, station G, in Portuguese. Check the station letters and broadcast times against the Admiralty List of Radio Signals. Check the pilot book
Bar status: Autoridade Marítima Nacional, “Estado das barras”, on the amn.pt home page, by zone. The online notice overrides the signals shown at the harbour.
Navigation warnings: Instituto Hidrográfico local warnings, geoanavnet.hidrografico.pt.
Hazards
The Figueira da Foz bar on the way out. Same hazards as on arrival: look before you go. The 11 m rule. The Figueira da Foz and Nazaré bars have a state called “barra condicionada a 11 m”: only vessels longer than 11 m may cross. A 35 or 36 ft yacht (10.7 to 11.0 m) is shut out in that state; a 37 or 38 ft yacht (11.3 to 11.6 m) is not.
Seine nets off the beaches from Figueira south past Pedrógão, March to October. Keep 1.5 nm off.
The Pontal and the Guilhim. Rocks lie off the Nazaré headland (the Pontal), chiefly the Guilhim. Waypoint 4 keeps you 2.4 nm off.
Praia do Norte. Do not cut inside waypoint 4. The canyon makes the sea north of the headland far rougher than the forecast for the coast.
Nazaré harbour rules. Anchoring inside the port is prohibited. Anchoring in the bay needs prior approval from the harbour authority. Speed 10 kn between the moles, 3 kn in the outer harbour.
Ports of refuge
Port
From the route
Use it when
Notes
Figueira da Foz
Start
Within the first hour
Re-enter only on the flood and only if the bar is calm.
Nazaré
Destination
Always the first choice on this stretch
Port of refuge all year. Often open when other bars are closed. No VTS.
São Martinho do Porto
5 nm beyond Nazaré
Not recommended
Shallow entrance about 200 m wide, strongly affected by westerly swell and often conditioned or closed.
Peniche
25 nm beyond Nazaré
Nazaré closed, which is rare
Port of refuge all year. Dangerous bar in westerly and southerly swell.
Pilotage
Leaving Figueira da Foz
Call POLIMARFOZ on VHF 13 before slipping.
Leave on the last of the flood, mid-channel, under engine, at no more than 5 kn in the river.
Clear the moles and head west to waypoint 1 before turning south, to stay outside the breaking sandbank.
Make sail once in open water.
Entering Nazaré
From waypoint 4, close the harbour from the west, keeping south of the Pontal.
Look at the signals. Closed: a cone point down over a cone point up by day, or green-red-green vertical lights at night. Conditioned to vessels over 11 m or 35 m: see the Edital.
Call CAPIMARNAZARÉ on VHF 13, the mandatory watch. VHF 9 is the recreational channel.
Enter between the moles (north mole red light, south mole green) at no more than 10 kn, then 3 kn in the outer harbour.
Go to the recreational pontoons in the north basin, run through the Clube Naval da Nazaré. Book ahead. Check the pilot book
+351 214 401 919 · [email protected] · watches VHF 16 around the clock
Contingencies
Figueira bar breaking at departure. Do not go. Wait for the next high water or the next day.
Wind or swell rising on the way. Carry on to Nazaré: it is the most sheltered harbour on this coast. Do not turn back to Figueira on the ebb.
Fog. Fog routine as for leg 2. The approach to Nazaré from the west is in deep water with no off-lying dangers south of the Pontal.
Engine failure. Sail to Nazaré and call the Polícia Marítima for a tow in from the approach.
Person overboard. Shout, point, throw the danger buoy, press MOB, DSC distress alert, Mayday on 16.
Before leaving
Forecasts read and logged before the go or no-go time
Bar status checked on amn.pt for departure, destination and refuges
Navigation warnings checked
Waypoints entered and checked against the chart
Ship's log started in UTC
Crew briefing: route, watches, safety gear, MOB, fog
Fuel for 7 hours under engine, plus a reserve
Water, food and hot drinks for 8 hours
Lifejackets with crotch straps, jackstays rigged, harnesses
Liferaft, grab bag, flares in date, handheld VHF
Radar, AIS and navigation lights tested
Passports and boat papers aboard
Sources
Nazaré harbour rules, signals and VHF: Capitania da Nazaré, Edital 171/2026 (amn.pt).
Nazaré harbour behaviour, the Pontal rocks and contacts: Plano de Salvamento Marítimo do Porto da Nazaré (amn.pt).
Figueira da Foz: Capitania da Figueira da Foz, Edital 490/2025 and Plano de Salvamento Marítimo (amn.pt).
São Martinho do Porto: Capitania da Nazaré, Edital 171/2026 and rescue plan.
The Nazaré Canyon: summary in Wikipedia, “Nazaré Canyon” (secondary source).
Tides: predictions from TICON-4 harmonic constants (Hart-Davis, Dettmering and Seitz, DGFI-TUM, 2025, doi 10.17882/109129) with Neaps (openwaters.io). Check against the Instituto Hidrográfico 2027 tables.
Sunrise and sunset: calculated (NOAA method).
Lights: The Lighthouse Directory (Rowlett), ibiblio.org/lighthouse, Portugal pages revised August 2024. Cross-check with the IH List of Lights, volume I.