Looking for the Bread Woman in Croatia

We said goodbye to Pete and Claire on Thursday 14th Aug.  They were catching an early morning flight to Geneva.  The rest of us took it easy for the day getting ready for the overnight shot across the Adriatic to Croatia.  We had about 125 NM to cover.  The winds were a bit on the heavy side 25kts to 30kts but from the north west which suited us although could be a bit tight on our bow.

We left Brindisi around 1600 in a light 12kt westerly breeze making a course slightly west of north.   It was a beautiful evening but once it got dark the wind increased to above 30kts and the seas took on a really nasty short chop which gave us all a gruelling night sail.  By morning we had Croatia in sight and by mid morning  we were anchored in the small bay off the town of Cavtat just south of Dubrovnik.  Cavtat is a very pretty small town built on a peninsula of land such that there are bays on either side of it.  It is a bit of a tourist place but still retains some charm with the old building and the cafes lining the quayside and green trees all around.  The place is obviously quite old but all the buildings which are granite stone with red tile roofs are in good condition.  We have been reading about the damage caused by the Serbian incursion in the 90’s but little evidence of that remains today that we can see.

Cavtat waterfront

Croatia is a member of the EU but we still had to clear in with customs, police etc.  This was something we had not done since arriving in Spain.  There was a customs dock which we had to come onto but which was quite busy.  We stayed at anchor waiting for it to quieten down but eventually had to get off anchor and “queue” with everyone else.  Once safely moored we cleared in with little hassle but when we came to move off the berth we found that the next yacht, a huge motor boat, had lain there anchor over ours.  So then we had to wait for them to leave to untangle our anchor chain which was picked up with their anchor.

Our chain on someone else's anchor

It’s interesting being in Croatia as we know nothing of the language and, even written, its difficult to pronounce as they have a definite over use of consonants.  I mean, Crkvice - how are you supposed to pronounce that?  Still it’s all good fun and luckily most of the people speak excellent english.

We stayed at anchor off Cavtat for a few nights recovering from the night sail.  There are some huge mega yachts moving around this part of the world. The quayside at Cavtat is not that big but these monster boats manage to tie up and dwarf any other vessels alongside.  When we arrived at anchor there was a nice boat called Karima stern on to the quay.  It was a fair size.  The fact that it had a helicopter on the back deck gives you some idea - maybe 40m to 50m long.  It looked pretty impressive.  Then a boat called Tango pulled in which was 77m long and appeared to be about as high.  Suddenly Karima was lost in the shadows.

Dulcinea being passed by super yacht Okto

We spent the few days here catching up on correspondence and school as best we could and also planning the next couple of weeks as we have some friends and relatives joining us.  On Sunday we headed north past Dubrovnik and into the islands, the plan being to take it easy until the first of our guests arrive in one week.  We sailed to the long island of Mljet stopping first at the south end at a bay called Saplunara and now at the north end in a national park called Polace.  Polace is beautiful.  Its a bay enclosed by four islands which makes it very calm.  The islands are all heavily wooded and there is a small town nearby.  In fact Mljet was the island that Odysesus reputedly stopped at and was held captive on for seven years by Calypso.

Cavtat - the other side

There are a number of boats anchored in the bay and off the islands the huge superyachts moor end on with lines to the shore.  We will go ashore tomorrow for a look around.

We are starting to think about the end of the trip now.  Only about 3 months to go.  It’s a bit daunting.  Plan is to get to Athens by the middle of November.  A delivery crew will then take the yacht to Palma to give us some time to visit family and get back to Australia in time for Christmas.  The boat will stay in Palma to be sold.  There are a few details to be ironed out between now and then and on top of that we need to complete the kids’ school before we leave - 3 tests to go!

The Aeolian Islands and Sicily

Its been a big week for us all.

We met up with Claire and Peter in Salerno as scheduled on the Monday evening after spending the day getting the boat ready.  It was good to have them back onboard.  The next morning we departed Salerno.  Nic and Scott went in to thank the club for the berth and to pay but they would not take any money for the three days we had stayed.  Really hospitable of them.  Similarly we then went to a nearby marina called Marina D’Arechi to get fuel and gas and again were given the berth for a few hours free while we went out and got our gas bottles filled.  In fact the marina staff were so helpful organising us a driver and finding out where we could get our big gas tanks filled.

Early afternoon we headed south across the bay.  We were heading for the Aeolian Islands just off northern Sicily.  We stopped overnight on the mainland and then continued on Wednesday making landfall in the early evening off the northern most island called Stromboli.  The Aeolian Islands are a group of seven islands which were or still are the remains of volcanoes coming up from the sea.  A couple of them at least are still active and Stromboli is one of these.  Its norther side is constantly moving with what looks like lava slowly moving down the slope.  We had a sail past on the way into the anchorage and watched red hot boulders come crashing down the slope, kicking up puffs of smoke as they disturbed the lava surface and then disappear into the water in a cloud of spray and steam.  All very impressive.

Stromboli from afar

Stromboli looks exactly like what you think a volcanic island should look like - triangular shape and smoke coming off it.  There is a settlement of all white cube like buildings which contrast sharply with the black sand and lava rock.  The island is very steep so finding an achorage is tricky.  Once you are at an appropriate depth you are too close to the shore if the wind should shift.  There are some shallower parts but invariably these are the first to get crowded with visiting yachts.  We percevered and eventually got moored south of the other boats.  We had some dinner and watched the glow from the volcano.

The next morning we were up early around 0400.  The plan was to motor around to the northern part of the island to see the volcanic activity while it was still dark.  As soon as Nic went to get out of bed early in the morning and put her feet on the cabin sole (floor) she noticed that something was not right.  Underfoot it was very gritty.  Coming on deck it all made sense.  Never anchor in the lee of a volcano!  The boat was covered in a thin layer of very fine ash.  All the hatches had been open and so down below under every hatch including all the bunks also covered in ash.  We postponed any cleaning, got the anchor up and motored to the north of the island.

The morning after - covered in ash

We could get in quite close and it was a pretty spectacular show.  The top of the moutain was a red glow in the darkness which was reflected in the sky off the clouds of smoke issuing from the crater.  Just below that was a red lava field which was a solid red at the top and slowly dimming as it cooled moving down the slope.  But chunks of lava were falling off from the top and tumbling down the side of the mountain sending showers of sparks into the air where they disturbed the lava flow.  Finally there was a big plume of steam where the lava met the water.  It really was an incredible scene and great for everyone to get close to.  There are walks to the top of the crater which would be interesting.

Stromboli in the early morning

We headed off as it became light for the next island in the chain called Panarea.  Panarea is a bit smaller and lower than Stromboli with a small settlement on one side.  We stayed at anchor off the port for the day and visitied the town after trying to clean the ash from the boat.  The town is a one street affair of mainly clothing and trinket boutiques.  The island is supposedly a bit of a get away for the Italian uber chic and the town and clientele certainly give that impression.  Nice island and town though.  Late afternoon we pushed on to the island of Lipari and anchored off the main town of the same name.

The gang in Panarea

Lipari is the main island in the Aeolian chain and the town is suprisingly big.  It covers a large portion of the bay and is dominated by a church built within old Norman ruins on a cliff in the middle of town.  We anchored again with difficulty due to the sudden drop off.  The next day we had a look around the town which was really interesting from the marble piazza at the port to the narrow streets, old ruins and great collection of shops.  The town is busy due to it being the height of the season but not oppressively so.

Lipari town

We had a final day stopover at another island called Volcano enjoying the beautiful water and then pushed onto Sicily.  We all really enjoyed the islands and would recommend them to anyone looking to travel to Italy.  There is quite a bit to see and do and the numerous ferries would make it pretty easy to visit even without your own boat.  We also had perfect weather, light breezes during the day and then it calming off completely at night.  We would have liked to spend more time but our schedule called.

On the 9th August we left early moring and headed to Taormina on the east coast of Sicily.  Due to self imposed time constraints we have canned spending much time in Sicily.  Instead we will visit just Taormina which is kind of on our path heading east.  Its a pity we cannot see Sicily but we have to make the best use of the time we have left and would have needed a good three weeks or more to see Sicily which then would have meant rushing over to and around Greece.

So we sailed - motored - to Taormina through the Messina Straits between Sicily and the Italian mainland.  The straits were flat and calm and a far cry from the stories of the ancients which told of a giant whirlpool called Charybdis on the western side which could suck whole ships under and a cliff dwelling monster on the east side called Scilla who could reach down and pluck unlucky sailors off the deck of a vessel as it transited the straits.  Maybe we just hit it on a good day.  

Entrance to the Messina Straits - Sicily on right

The Straits are quite narrow, only 1.5NM across in the north and there is significant traffic which is regulated by the maritime separation scheme and so relatively orderly.  There are also a number of fishing boats around, the strangest of which were the swordfishing boats with huge lattice frame masts and bowsprits.  (see picture).

Swordfishing Boat in the Straits

We had to motor the whole way to Taormina as the wind just died on us and ended up anchoring in a big shallow bay just south of the town aptly called Taormina Bay.  The coastline is very rugged here and Taormina is perched 200m above the water high on some very steep slopes.  The whole area is dominated by Mount Etna which sits inland a few miles, looking very benign apart from the tell tale smoke clouds above the summit and the red glow you see at night.

Taormina has been a settlement since around 400BC and has been Greek, Roman, Arabic and Norman.  It is a spectacular town and as a result a very popular tourist attraction.  One of the main attractions is the amphitheatre which is located on the hillside right in town  with stunning views over the water and Mount Etna.  They still put on shows here in summer.  We spent a couple of days anchored in the bay relaxing and managed a visit to the town, a meal ashore and a potter around the nearby caves whilst struggling to get some school done and trying to work out a plan for dropping off Pete and Claire whilst still getting eastwards.  Eventually we settled on heading to Brindisi about 265NM away on the east coast of Italy.

The greek theatre in Taormina

So we have just pulled into Brindisi this morning after motoring for the last 40hrs.  Good exercise for the engine but not very exciting and bloody expensive in diesel. There were a couple of moments though.  Early on, the drive belt for the engine water pump came off and so we had an overheating issue on the engine.  Luckily Pete noticed it before it became critical and it was a simple fix after letting the engine cool down a bit.  Then on the first night we got buzzed by the Italian coastguard.  This high speed launch headed straight for our starboard side and then when it was about 50m away it turned side on and a powerful searchlight raked us.  Then the light went out and the boat roared off.  Other than that it was plain sailing or motoring - flat seas, sunny days and bright nights.  Everyone helped with the night watches which made it quite relaxing.

Pete and Claire head off tomorrow and the rest of us will cross to Dubrovnik in Croatia.  And we are still trying to get rid of the ash from Stromboli.

Rome's Rotto to the ruins of Pompeii

Non australians will not understand part of the title of the blog.  Off the coast of Perth, Western Australia, is a small beautiful island called Rottnest which in true Aussie verbal fashion is abridged to “Rotto”.  Because of its proximity to Perth it becomes very busy at weekends and especially during the summer holidays when a sizeable proportion of Perth’s population  make the short crossing to enjoy the wonderful beaches and sparkling clear water.

We moored off an island called Ponza which lies in the Tyrenhian Sea equidistant between Rome and Naples and about 20 miles off the coast.  There are a few different small islands nearby (in a group called the Pontine Islands) and they all were originally the rim of a huge volcanic crater.  Given its proximity to Rome, Ponza is the get away place for the inhabitants of Rome and apparently has been since famous Roman times,  There are caves here which have swimming platforms carved out of the rock which were made by the Romans of old.

The island of Ponza

Obviously the island is more accessible now and the of town Ponza is well established around a semi circular port in the south of the island.  The town is typical old coastal Italian but without a fort.  Pastel coloured buildings line the harbour and gradually terrace up the steep hillsides.  The harbour itself is filled with fishing boats and tourist day boats used for visiting the various caves and coastal attractions.  The island itself is slightly curved in a general north/south direction and is quite steep sided.  On the protected east side the cliffs are all different colours of stone and with amazing shapes having been created by the erosion and weathering.  Below the cliffs are sheltered bays of sparkling blue water.

The Roman swimming Caves

We had sailed from the east coast of Elba a few days prior stopping off at an island called Giglio first and then a tiny island called Genutri which was so good we stayed a couple of nights just relaxing.  We also managed to catch up with a couple running a Swan 65 called Uxorious which we had seen in Guadeloupe earlier in the year and then in Capraia.  We left Genutri and sailed overnight to Ponza.  The weather was very fickle and during the night we were caught in a patch of thunderstorms with the wind going from a pleasant force 3 to gusts of 40kts.  It was pretty horrendous for a few moments until we got the sails  reefed and under control.  Then we just had horizontal rain and lightning.  At one point we were running before the wind at 7kts with just the staysail and a scrap of main flying.

The lightning is pretty scary when you are at sea as the boats mast is the highest point for miles around.  Luckily the lightning must have been centered pretty far away even though it seemed as if it was overhead.  The next morning we anchored off Ponza in a bay just to the north of the town.  There were boats of every sort anchored around us - from 30ft sailing boats and small runabouts to 200ft mega yachts.  Ponza was busy both in the town and in the anchorage but it did not feel crowded.  It was a delightful place and we stayed for a couple of days, just enough time to visit the town, have a look around and do some exploring with the dinghy. 

Ponza Town

Next we headed to the Bay of Naples.  Nic was really keen to see Capri.  We motored the whole way as the wind just never came in and passed the islands of Ventotene and Ischia which were spectacular but nothing like Capri.  Capri is a beautiful island rising vertically out of the sea on all sides.  It is a small island with a dip in the middle to form a saddle shape and the settlement is located there and accessed via a fernicular railyway from the port.

Our plan was to anchor off the harbour and visit the town for the day, the mooring fees in the marina itself behining prohibitive.  There was so much traffic however that anchoring was not really an option.  There were ferries going into and out of the harbour creating wash over an already unsettled sea.  together with that were small pleasure craft moving about in all directions.  We tried to move around to another anchorage but again the volume of visitors made it just uncomfortable.  In the end we decided to see Capri another day and kept moving to make anchor off Positano on the Amalfi coast.

Positano is another beautiful spot.  The anchorage was a bit rolly but the scenery took your mind off it.  The coastline here is steep steep cliffs interspersed by ragged ravines.  Every here and there the land levels off ever so slightly at the waters edge to allow a small pebble beach to form and small towns to spring up.  Positano is one of these.  

Swimming off Positano

The town radiates outward from the beach with houses taking up more and more precarious position on the hills as they increase their elevation.  All the houses are white or muted pastel colours.  The beach is absolutely covered in beach umbrellas - not one square inch is left uncovered - so that its colour is now orange.  Off the beach small local boats bob at their moorings and beyond them lie the bigger superyachts.  Positano is a famous tourist spot and you can see why.  The whole area around here is stunning but probably best veiwed out of the high season.  At night the land takes on a magical appearance with the lighting of the houses making it look light the hillsides are covered in fairy lights.

The next day we pushed on to Salerno.  Two reasons for visiting Salerno were as a stop to  allow us to get off and visit Pompeii and to pick up Pete and Claire who are joining us for a couple of weeks.  Entering Salerno harbour was a bit confusing and we asked a passing dingy where we could berth.  He proceeded to guide us towards a private club, (which is called the rowing club) and let us moor at the end of one of the docks.  Its a perfect location and the guys could not have been more friendly or helpful.  Later Sam helped a guy berth his big power boat on the same dock and was given some pasta for his troubles.  Turns out the guy owns a pasta company.

Yesterday we got up early, sussed out the local transport and headed to the ruins of Pompeii.  Pompeii was absolutely amazing.  Of course everyone has heard of Pompeii - Roman city buried in the ash from the Mt Vesuvius volcano erruption of AD 79 etc etc but what we failed to realise is that the archaeological site comprises of just that - the whole city!  Not just a few buildings, or a section but the whole walled city.  Because the ash that fell on Pompeii was so soft no further building was carried out on top of the site.  Instead the town was rebuilt around the old buried city and hence the site is so unique.

Amazing Pompeii

The ruins are amazing.  You walk down old Roman paved roads flanked by high sidewalks through the different districts of the town lined with buildings which were shops, houses, baths, brothels etc.  You can recognise each of them from the layouts, decorations, positioning etc with help from the guide book of course.  Then there are the huge public buildings like the temples, stadiums, theatres etc which are awesome. Obviously the roofs are missing from most buildings except where they have been recreated, but the layouts of the buildings are clearly visible and many of the features such as ornate fountains, frescos and mosaic floors are clear.

One of the villas

This looks like it was used only a few years ago

Tired but happy

We stayed in Pompeii for the best part of the day before indulging in a very late but well deserved lunch and then heading back to the boat.  Pompeii is well worth a visit but should be done in the cooler months as it was very hot.  The crowds were not such a problem except in some of the more popular houses where big tour groups would clog up the spaces.  Outside the crowds actually gave the whole place a bit of realism by having people wandering the city streets.  This is definately one of the trip highlights.

Today we get the boat ready for the arrival of Pete and Claire and will then take off tomorrow bound for points south.