Leg 8 of 97 · Passage plan · RYA Yachtmaster standard
Sines to Sagres
The longest day in Portugal: about 65 nautical miles down the Costa Vicentina, a natural park with no harbour for 60 nm, round Cabo de São Vicente and Ponta de Sagres into the lee of the cape at Baleeira, the harbour of Sagres. Lagos, 14 nm further, would mean arriving after sunset this early in the year.
06:30 WEST from Sines. At first light, 15 minutes before sunrise (06:46 WEST). This coast has no shelter, so start early.
Arrive
About 17:58 WEST at Sagres. With about 2 hours 20 minutes of daylight in hand (sunset 20:20 WEST).
Tides
6 days after the full moon: springs easing, range about 2.0 m
Wind
North to north-west most likely: a fair wind down the coast, often stronger off Cabo de São Vicente
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. A long day: plan meals and rest
Track and waypoints 1 to 7, with ports of refuge as squares.
Go or no-go
Take a first look the evening before and decide at 05:30 WEST. Go only if all of these hold:
Wind from north to west, force 5 or less on the coast, and not more than force 6 forecast off Cabo de São Vicente.
Swell under 2.5 m. Lagos's harbour authority says south-west swell affects the whole area severely.
Visibility 3 nm or more: there is nowhere to stop for 60 nm if fog comes in.
Crew rested: this is an 11-hour day.
No navigation warning for the route or the traffic scheme.
If the forecast fails, stay in Sines: a rest day was taken there on 25 April, and a second day costs the rest day at Sagres. The Costa Vicentina is not a coast to be caught on.
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
Sines marina
37°57.0′N
008°52.1′W
06:30 WEST
Depart at sunrise.
1
Sines approach
37°56.3′N
008°52.3′W
193°T
0.7
0.7
06:39 WEST
Clear of the port. Head south.
2
Off Porto Covo
37°50.0′N
008°51.0′W
171°T
6.4
7.1
07:42 WEST
3 nm off the Ilha do Pessegueiro.
3
Off Cabo Sardão
37°36.0′N
008°51.5′W
182°T
14.0
21.1
10:03 WEST
2.5 nm off the light (Fl(3) 15s).
4
Off Aljezur
37°20.0′N
008°55.0′W
190°T
16.3
37.4
12:45 WEST
3.5 nm off. No shelter between here and Sagres.
5
Off Cabo de São Vicente
37°00.5′N
009°02.5′W
197°T
20.4
57.8
16:09 WEST
2 nm off. Inshore of the traffic scheme. Wind and sea often build here. Check on the chart
6
South of Ponta de Sagres
36°58.0′N
008°57.0′W
120°T
5.1
62.8
17:00 WEST
2 nm south of the point. Turn north-east into the lee of the cape.
7
Baleeira approach
36°59.6′N
008°54.8′W
048°T
2.4
65.2
17:35 WEST
South-east of the breakwater. Check on the chart
8
Baleeira, Sagres
37°00.6′N
008°55.5′W
331°T
1.1
66.4
17:58 WEST
Anchor in the bay north-east of the breakwater, or moor in the harbour if the port allows. Position approximate. Check on the chart
Tides and time
Sines · Mon 26 Apr · WEST (UTC+1)
LW
00:20
1.0 m
HW
06:34
2.5 m
LW
12:24
1.1 m
HW
18:50
2.6 m
Sagres · Mon 26 Apr · WEST (UTC+1)
LW
00:05
1.0 m
HW
06:22
2.6 m
LW
12:09
1.2 m
HW
18:37
2.7 m
From the Lagos Algarve station.
Monday 26 April 2027, 6 days after the full moon: springs easing, range about 2.0 m.
Sagres uses the Lagos station, 14 nm east. The Baleeira anchorage has good depth; tide makes little difference to it.
Streams round the capes. Expect a set round Cabo de São Vicente and Ponta de Sagres; there is little tidal stream along the open coast. 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 Sines 06:46 WEST. Sunset at Sagres 20:20 WEST.
Weather
The Costa Vicentina. 60 nm of cliffs and beaches with no harbour a yacht can use. Porto Covo and Vila Nova de Milfontes are fair-weather shelters only, and the Milfontes bar is badly silted and dangerous.
Cabo de São Vicente. A northerly accelerates round the cape and the sea is steeper there. Once round Ponta de Sagres the wind usually eases and the sea flattens in the lee.
The Algarve. South-facing, sheltered from the north. Afternoon sea breezes from the south-west are common in summer.
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.
IPMA high-seas area 18 São Vicente.
Hazards
No shelter. From Sines to Sagres there is no harbour a 1.9 m yacht can rely on. Decide at Sines, not at sea.
Traffic off Cabo de São Vicente. The Cabo de São Vicente traffic separation scheme lies offshore. This route stays inshore of it, 2 nm off the cape. A sailing yacht must not impede ships in a lane and crosses at right angles if it must cross. Check the scheme's limits on the chart. Check on the chart
Fishing gear. Pots and nets all along the coast, and fishing boats off the capes.
Protected areas. The Costa Vicentina natural park has no-fishing zones round the Ilha do Pessegueiro, Cabo Sardão, the Ilhotes do Martinhal and Cabo de São Vicente.
Ponta da Piedade. Sea stacks and arches off the point. Keep 1 nm off; look at them from there.
Baleeira. A fishing harbour and a recognised refuge for recreational craft, sheltered from north and west by Ponta de Sagres but open to the south and south-east. Berths for yachts in the harbour could not be checked. In a southerly, move on to Lagos. Check the pilot book
Ports of refuge
Port
From the route
Use it when
Notes
Sines
Start
Within the first 2 hours
An unrestricted shelter.
Porto Covo, Vila Nova de Milfontes
At waypoints 2 and 3
Not for this boat
Fair-weather shelters only. The Milfontes bar is badly silted and dangerous.
Baleeira (Sagres)
Destination
First choice
A recognised refuge for recreational craft, in the lee of Ponta de Sagres.
Lagos
14 nm east of Baleeira
Wind going south
Marina, entrance dredged to 3.0 m at low water springs, +351 282 770 210.
Pilotage
Leaving Sines
Leave the recreational port under engine at no more than 5 kn.
Head south, keeping well clear of the oil-port breakwaters.
Make sail and settle the watch: it is a long day.
Into Baleeira
Round Ponta de Sagres 2 nm off and head north-east into the bay.
Approach the breakwater head from the south-east, watching for fishing boats.
Anchor north-east of the breakwater in sand, clear of the harbour entrance and moorings, or call the Delegação Marítima de Sagres (+351 282 624 210) about a berth. Check the pilot book
Lights on the way
Cabo de Sines
Fl(2) 15s, 56 m
Milfontes
Fl 3s
Cabo Sardão
Fl(3) 15s, 68 m
Cabo de São Vicente
86 m. Characteristic: Check on the chart
Ponta de Sagres
Red, 1 s on and 1 s off, 53 m
Baleeira breakwater
Flash every 4 s, white or red by direction Check on the chart
Ponta da Piedade
Fl 7s, 51 m
Lagos east mole
Fl G 5s
Lagos west mole
Fl(2) R 6s
Communications
Sines port control
VHF 12 and 16
Capitania de Lagos
+351 282 788 464 · Lagos harbour VHF 9 and 16
Delegação Marítima de Sagres
+351 282 624 210
Sagres lifeboat station
+351 282 625 221 or +351 919 670 204
Polícia Marítima, Lagos
+351 916 613 499
Marina de Lagos
+351 282 770 210 · [email protected] · VHF channel: Check the pilot book
AMN working channels
AMN channels on this coast: VHF 16 calling, 11 Capitania and Polícia Marítima working, 67 search and rescue working.
Emergency
VHF 16, DSC 70 · 112
MRCC Lisboa
+351 214 401 919 · [email protected] · watches VHF 16 around the clock
Contingencies
Behind time at Cabo Sardão. If waypoint 3 is passed after 10:30 WEST, turn back to Sines (2.5 hours).
Wind rising off the cape. Reef before waypoint 5. Once round Ponta de Sagres, Baleeira is 2 nm away in the lee.
Fog. Fog routine. Stay 3 nm off the coast and keep radar and AIS watch for ships rounding the cape.
Engine failure. Sail on: the wind is fair. Anchor off Baleeira in the lee of the cape.
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
Meals for an 11-hour day prepared the night before
Fuel for 13 hours under engine, plus a reserve
Water, food and hot drinks for 13 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
Costa Vicentina no-fishing zones: PNSACV leaflet, Capitania do Porto de Sines (amn.pt).
Sines and Milfontes: Plano de Salvamento Marítimo and Edital 245/2016, Capitania do Porto de Sines (amn.pt).
Lagos and Sagres: Capitania do Porto de Lagos page, Edital 173/2016 and Plano de Salvamento Marítimo (amn.pt).
Marina: marinadelagos.pt.
Lights south of Sines: The Lighthouse Directory, Southern Portugal (ibiblio.org/lighthouse/pts.htm).
Bar status: Marinha, Estado das Barras, marinha.pt (all bars on this stretch shown open in October 2026).
Local warnings: Instituto Hidrográfico, geoanavnet.hidrografico.pt.
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.