Ragusa

We have now returned home to the UK where we will be until the end of February, I have sent Kevin back to work while I spend a few weeks at my daughters house and then move back up to Derby where I will be house sitting for a friend.

When the time came to leave ragusa we were really sad to go, for one the weather had been great, enabling us to continue swimming in the sea right up to the week we left, we had also got into doing Sabashi a form of Ti Chi on the beach in the morning after our morning walk and hope to continue doing this on our return.

The day after we arrived in Ragusa the wind and rain forecasted eventually hit, unfortunately for us we had gone out to get a few essential provisions, mainly beer and wine. The rain came down in torrents, it was like someone just kept throwing bucket after bucket of water over us we were drenched. The rain was so bad that the roads became rivers and steps turned into water falls, and we were walking ankle deep in water.

When we got back to the boat we had left the front hatch open to the bow cabin and on inspection the mattress was soaking so there was no sleeping in there that night or the next, we had to make do with the couches in the saloon area, mind you Kevin said he had the best night sleep in ages.

During the first week we started to tackle the many chores we had to do before going home, so both sails were taken down, as we are planning on having a new headsail we stored the old one and sent the main for cleaning and some maintenance work.

After a week in Ragusa we had an email from Helen and Marcel on Dakini asking if we would like to join them for a few days in Malta and then sail back with them, we quickly checked out ferry times and replied saying yes thank you.

We set of for Malta on 16^th October, when we left the marina it was early but warm and not a ripple on the water, by the time we got to Pazollo where we were to catch the ferry it was blowing force 7/8 creating quite a good sea swell, I was just glad we were not making the crossing on Miss Lilly. Whilst boarding the ferry we notice a large coast guard vessel with a very large number of refugees aboard, all being taken off one by one, searched, photographed and then loaded onto a waiting bus. Whilst we had heard news reports relating to the numbers of asylum seekers trying to enter Sicily, some of which died in the process I don’t think we fully recognised the enormity of the problem until we saw it with our own eyes.

The crossing to Malta was uneventful if slightly rocky at times, some people looked as if they had had one to many as they moved around the first level deck. We managed to get a couple of seats right at the front of the boat ensuring we would have a great view as we entered Malta Grand harbour, and we certainly weren’t disappointed.

Malta Grand Harbour

Once we arrived in Malta we had to find in which marina Helen and Marcel were moored in and then find our way there, thank goodness for the iPad and GPS. When we arrived at the marina, all the boats were swaying and rolling nicely whilst attached to the pontoon, I don’t think I have been on a boat that has moved about so much whilst being moored up, I certainly would not like to winter there.

The following day we set of in the hire care to explore a bit of the island, much of Malta feels like a concrete jungle and we had to drive a good way before we came to any open spaces, however we did come across some lovely old buildings and churches.

Later that day we were joined by Helens boss Adrian and his partner Caroline, who were staying until the Sunday. On the Saturday the Rolex Middle Sea race was due to take place, and so on the Friday Kevin and I spent our time trying to identify the best vantage spot, even taking advice from the race organisers. With best vantage spot identified (lower Baroque Gardens as we could see the start and the boats exiting the harbour) we were determined to be there early to ensure we got the best view, after arriving in Valletta we found a nice spot to have breakfast and then headed over to the lower Baroque gardens only to be told we needed an invitation to get in, so all our endeavours the day before had been for nothing. Undeterred we made our way along the city wall and found another vantage spot where we could see the start of the race but not the boats leaving the harbour.

I have to say I was like a big kid in a sweetie shop, Alex Thompson was taking part on Hugo Boss and having seen pictures of the boats I couldn’t wait to see it for real. There were several categories and so several starts, just before each start the yachts taking part edged their way to the start line trying hard not to go over it before the cannon went off, it was all very exciting and nail biting at times.

Rolex Middle Sea Race

Eventually it was time for the last category and there was Hugo Boss in all its glory, it made my day.

Alex Thompson in Hugo Boss

For lunch we went to a small restaurant in a side street called Ambrosia and had one of the best meals ever, it was a good job Adrian had booked a table otherwise we would not have got in it was that popular people were being turned away.

In the evening we all went out for dinner to a restaurant in the old town of Medina, the old capital of Malta, and the view from the top was spectacular you could see for miles.

The restaurant turned out to be another great find, and although not cheap, surpassed the meal we had at lunch time, the waiters were very attentive and every course was great.

Our time eventually over in Malta we set sail for Ragusa on Dakini our first time sailing on a catamaran, which we managed to sail a good part of the journey with the cruising chute up, we eventually arrived in ragusa at around 1800, a journey of 12 hours.

Our last remaining weeks were earmarked for completing our jobs on Miss Lilly, one of which was to get the water out of one of the back holds, Kevin insisted it was my job as I was the one that had managed to get the water there in the first place, however the size of the hold is quite narrow but deep and having long legs made it impossible for me to bend down far enough for me to complete the task so Kevin had to take over, (the excuses I come up with).

 Bev in a tight spot!

It wasn’t all hard work that last week we still managed to find time for swimming and socialising, and visiting Ragusa itself, which we were not that enamoured with, the town of Ibla is worth visiting though. To get there requires a good walk down numerous steps, too many to count, however you can catch a bus back up but they only run every hour. The town is made up of very narrow streets and has a beautiful cathedral unfortunately we arrived too late to go inside as it shuts for the afternoon, Marcel was very disappointed.

Ibla

With sightseeing over we headed back to the bus stop and Marina Di Ragusa, we were glad we had been to Ragusa and Ibla but didn’t think we would bother again. That night in the marina a Halloween party had been organised, we had already decided we wouldn’t attend, party poopers that we are, but at 17:30 we sat on deck and waited for the children to come round Trick or Treating. We had made sure we had plenty of goodies as we had been told there were up to 15 children in the marina, as it was only seven turned up.

 Not sure who is more frightened?

All too soon it was time to head back home, we made a tearful farewell with Helen and Marcel, and headed off for Comiso airport, it was a good job the marina laid on transport otherwise I don’t think we would ever have found it ourselves. The airport is an old military base on which a new terminal building has been built and though adequate is very sparse in relation to obtaining refreshments, it’s all vending machines, and not a lot of choice, even when it is working.

After arriving in the UK at Stansted airport we were met by my daughter Claire, with whom we are staying with for a short time. February seems a long way off but I am sure the time will fly by and it won’t be long before we are saying goodbye again, this time to our families.

Looking back over the year we still managed to clock up lots of miles even though we had said we would not do so many this year, however I don’t think we would change any of it, all right maybe the storms we got caught out in. We enjoyed the Balearics but I think so far our favourite place is Sardinia, there are so many anchorages to choose from and the ability to get shelter from the wind in any direction is so easy and can be achieved in about an hour. The scenery is great and the locals very friendly it is a place we will certainly visit again and would recommend that thus beautiful island is on any live-a-boards itinery.

Our Present Location: https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=36.782755,14.545542&hl=en&sll=36.780967,14.565725&sspn=0.057127,0.117159&doflg=ptk&mra=mift&mrsp=0&sz=14&t=m&z=14

Last Voyage of the Year

Our journey for this year is nearly over, we spent one day/night in Taormina on the east coast of Sicily due to the inclement weather forecast to descend on us in a few day’s time. We therefore took the opportunity to take the bus up to the village of Taormina high on the hillside.

The village is very touristy without being tacky, the views from the top are spectacular and the narrow streets a hive of activity.

Taormina bay

 In one of the plaza's there were some street musicians and thee seemed to be a party atmosphere all around us. We decided to have a meal out, but as it was early it was difficult to find a restaurant that was open, eventually we found one which looked quite quaint, unfortunately the food wasn't and so we were a little disappointed. We caught the bus back down to the small town at the foot of the cliff and had intended to stop off and have a drink before taking the dingy back to the boat, unfortunately nowhere was open and so we just headed back to the boat.

The following day we set off early for Siracusa which is approximately 30 miles further down the coast. As we left we could clearly see Mount Etna surrounded in a red haze it looked spectacular.

Mount Etna

It was obviously getting to the end of the season as we hardly saw any other sail boats the entire journey.

On arrival in Siracusa we set anchor in the south anchorage and initially decided to stay there for four nights, and take shelter from the storm expected in a couple of days. The anchorage was fairly sheltered but the water was not very clear and so not fit for swimming in. The following day we headed ashore in the dingy which we secured just by the marina, then walked into the centre of the town to get some provisions, the weather was not very good and at one point it started raining and so we decided to head back to the boat and tour the old part of the town the following day.

Back on board we shut all the hatches and spent a leisurely afternoon below decks. The next day we set off back to shore, this time we secured the dingy in the town harbour just under the bridge, however there had been reports of dinghies being stolen from around there and so we just hopped it would still be there when we got back. First task was to deposit the laundry and the laundrette before heading off to the old town.

The old town of Siracusa is again filled with impressive old buildings, very narrow streets, some of which no cars could possibly navigate.

 Old Town of Siracusa

Earlier in the day we had passed a very nice looking pub which we decide we would have lunch at, on arrival we took a table outside, within seconds we were inundated with flies which were driving us mad and so we decided to find somewhere else. We ended up in a small plaza just off the main one by the cathedral and had a pizza, I have to say it was one of the best we had had this year and the price was good to.

Before heading back to the boat we had to wait for the laundry service to open and so we took the opportunity to sit and watch what looked like a game of water polo in canoes commencing but after forty five minutes we came to the conclusion it was just a practice session. The other fascinating thing was watching the small tourist boats navigate under the bridge, passengers had to more or less lie down in the bottom of the boat in order to get under it

After a bit more sight-seeing we headed back to the boat, we decided to head off early in the morning for Ragusa as we felt there was not really any point in staying in Siracusa any longer, this meant another full day as it was 60 miles around the coast. We did however have the option of stopping of at Porto Pollo on route if we wanted.

During our stay in Siracusa we were entertained by a large fish which constantly jumped out of the water, Kevin nicknamed him “Jumping Jack Flash”, we were not sure what type of fish it was but if we were in Scotland we would have said it was a salmon, unfortunately we were not able to get a photo of our energetic fish.

The following day we set off at 04:00, it was still dark and Kevin had to navigate around the shallows and rocks, along with the small fishing boats in order to get out of the bay.

When daylight broke we found we had two stowaways on board in the guise of flying fish, unfortunately they didn’t survive, and so we initiated our first and hopefully the last burial at sea with Kevin as the skipper doing the honours.

The overall journey was quite uneventful, and we did manage to sail about 50 percent of it which was great as this was to be our last sail this year. We arrived in Ragusa mid-afternoon, the entrance to the marina is quite silted up in places and so we had to follow the direct line of the marianaro into our berth, as we entered the channel for our pontoon Kevin informed me that we had nothing under the keel which was a bit scary, however we  managed to secure up without a hitch and were met at our berth by Julie and Dave from Carla Christina, it was great to meet up with them again.

Berthed next to us was a large catamaran owned by an American couple named Rick and Barbara and the berth the other side was empty in readiness for the arrival of Marcel and Helen on Dakini due to arrive in a couple of weeks.

Marina Di Ragusa is situated on the south west coast of Sicily and I have to say is far better than we had been led to believe. The marina is clean and well run and the staff are very friendly, the toilet block is not the twenty minute walk away we had been led to believe, it's more like five minutes. The small village is a short walk and there are sufficient shops to get all you need, the locals are lovely and again very friendly, there is also a lovely beach which is also a short walk away, so all in all we are very pleased with our winter mooring.

Stormy clouds at Marina Di Ragusa

There appears to be a lot going off here, and there is quite a large live-a-board community of varying nationalities and so we are looking forward to meeting up with people, making new friends and attending the various activities before we head back to the UK on the 7th November.

Our Present Position: https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=37.062574,15.29151&hl=en&ll=37.057232,15.317602&spn=0.05692,0.117159&sll=37.057232,15.301208&sspn=0.05692,0.149775&mra=mift&mrsp=0&sz=14&t=m&z=14

Through the Messina Straits

On our way South along the West coast of Italy we ended up staying in Marina Carmelo for five nights until the weather conditions improved so that we could sail across to Stromboli, we needed good weather conditions for our sail around the Aeolian Islands of which Stromboli is just one.

During our stay in the marina we took a train one day with Helen and Marcel to Tropea, which is approximately 20 miles further along the coast and is supposed to have a really lovely old town sitting on the cliffs above the marina there. The reason we didn’t sail there was the cost per night in the marina would have been very expensive compared to Marin Carmello, and actually when we saw it we were not that impressed.

The old town of Tropea is very nice with its very narrow streets and old buildings many of which need a great deal of TLC, some really good renovation projects around if anyone was interested.

The town itself is very touristy with lots of shops selling tacky souvenirs which in a way took the shine of the place, there are also lots of restaurants to choose from which are very reasonably priced, along with coffee bars and Gelateria’s. We stopped off at one and decided to treat ourselves to iced coffees, when they arrived they looked great and we couldn’t wait to tuck in, unfortunately they were not as nice as they looked and we ended up leaving most of it.

After spending a couple of hours walking around Tropea we decided to head back to the station, and all agreed that although the buildings in the town were nice to look at, on the whole we were not as impressed with the place as we thought we would have been.

On our final day in the marina we decided to get some jobs done, one was the washing and the other was someone needed to go up the mast to get the measurements for the new head sail, as it was a calm day I volunteered.

So with all safety gear on Kevin winched me up, at the top I worked with Kevin to take the measurements form where he indicated (or I thought so) and then took the necessary pictures. It seemed to take Kevin ages to write down the measurements and by the time we had finished my groins were killing me where the straps from the harness were digging in to the point I was begging Kevin to get me down. Helen stood on the side lines shouting encouragement and once I was back on the ground indicated she wouldn’t mind having a go and so Kevin assisted her into the climbing harness and hoisted her up.

Unfortunately I hadn’t taken the measurements correctly so it then meant I had to hoist Kevin up the mast so he could do it properly, I am not sure what the marina staff made of all this tooing and frowing up and down the mast.

Miss Lilly and Dakini left Marina Carmello early the next day and we said our farewells to the very helpful marina staff, it was a shame that there was not a little more to the town Vibo Valenta.

As we crossed over to the Aeolian Islands we could see Stromboli in the distance, and approximately every twenty minutes you could see smoke rising from the crater as it let off mini eruptions. When we arrived at one off the anchorage sites we did not expect to see the second as in the pilot book they look to be two very separate anchorages when in fact they are just a few meters apart.

At first we dropped the anchor with the trip line attached, but somehow it got caught around the rudder and so we had to release it and set the anchor again, on the second attempt Kevin decided not to bother with the trip line. By the time we were sorted Dakini who had been a good thirty minutes behind us were anchored and ready to go ashore.

Once ashore we climbed the hill to the town at the top, very narrow streets which only three wheeler electric cars and trucks can get through. Again the town was very touristy, which spoilt its potential charm and neither Helen nor I were particularly impressed with it. We found a restaurant with a good view over the bay to have our evening meal before going back to our respective boats, we needed an early night in readiness for our early start to see the volcano irrupting in the dark.

The alarm was set for 0400 and we were up prompt, made our preparations and then started to lift the anchor at the same time Helen was lifting Dakini’s. However at the ten metre point our anchor got stuck and we weren’t going anywhere so we sat down had a coffee and watched as Dakini sailed out of the bay. We did try to radio them to inform them of our predicament but as it turned out their radio was not on. Eventually they realised that we weren’t following us and radioed us, after a few brief discussions they turned around and picked us up and we sailed with them to view the volcano.

Unfortunately it was quite cloudy and our view was obscured, and then when it did erupt we were unable to get a really good picture of it, we did however get a great photo of the spectacular sunrise.

After our sail to see the volcano it was back to the bay where Miss Lilly was caught fast on something, in daylight we could see that the anchor was caught under either a cable or chain. Helen and Marcel prepared to get ready to dive to release it for us when with a little amount of maneuvering we were able to release it ourselves, with that sorted we set of for Vulcano another volcanic island as its name suggests. We have now however set an objective to learn to dive for ourselves in case we ever get in this situation again as it can cost anything up to 400 Euros to get a diver to release you.

On arriving at the anchorage on the east side of Vulcano the heavens opened and we were in the middle of a thunder storm with lightening all around us, fortunately it was short lived and so we didn’t get too wet setting the anchor.

The bay in which we anchored was lovely and you could see the steam rising from the crater of the volcano and so we decide we would all climb it the following day.

So it was another early start, not as early as the previous day though, we picked up Helen and Marcel and headed for shore, there was a slight breeze and much of the climb was in the shade and so was quite pleasant.

At the top you could smell the sulphur fumes and the smell was disgusting, we walked around the rim of the crater trying to avoid inhaling the fumes where possible, having never climbed a volcano before and always being fascinated by them I truly thought it was a great experience so good that Kevin and I climbed it again a few days later.

On the way down we passed the mud baths again the smell was awful and so we decided we would give them a miss, even though they are supposed to be good for you, from where I was standing they did not appear so.

The following day Marcel and Helen took us in their RIB across to Lapari another island just a short distance from Vulcano, again a very picturesque town with narrow streets but not so touristy this time, even though there were a large number of tourists arriving by the ferries off the mainland every few minutes or so it seemed.

The bay off the town though is not a very good place to anchor and the marina prices extortionate and one day was all that was needed to see the town.

Our next sail was to Salina and an anchorage on the North West coast although, this one is not mentioned in the pilot book. The anchorage is over rocks and so this time we did set the trip line when we dropped anchor. There was not much of a village at the top off the cliff as Kevin had expected and we were surrounded by cliffs which were made up off various rock formations, enabling you to see the lava flows from previous eruptions, it was quite fascinating.

As I was not that impressed with the anchorage enough to stay longer we made a decision to head back to Vulcano and then west to Milazzo to take shelter from the storms forecasted before sailing down the Messina Straits.

We informed Helen and Marcel of our decision, they too had changed their minds about sailing to the other two islands and had decided to head for Cefalu 50 miles west on the mainland as they needed to get over to Tunisa to get their papers stamped outside off an EU country. We said our goodbyes wished each other a safe passage and would see them again in Ragusa, by the way the score in Brandi Dog stands at five four to the girls.

We waved them off and gingerly raised the anchor to ensure it wasn’t wrapped around a rock and set off back to Vulcano. We anchored in the same bay as previously as this afforded us the best shelter, our intention was to stay there for two nights before heading to Mizallo. In fact we only stayed the one night, we got up early to climb the volcano again, and then back on board Miss Lilly we checked the weather again, the predicted storms seemed to be approaching sooner than originally forecasted and so we decided to lift anchor and set off for Milazzo that afternoon.

We managed to sail all the way there even though no winds had been forecasted which made a nice change from having to motor, which seemed to have been the case most days recently. We arrived in Milazzo early evening and although the sun was shining it still looked a grimy place with its oil refinery taking up much of the east side of the coastline. However the anchorage had good holding if not a little noisy at times due to the ferries with the associated swell as they passed by. This all stopped after about 2000 and so we did manage to get a peaceful night, although a little smelly at times due to the oil refinery.

The following day we went ashore leaving our dingy in the marina, the staff there again very helpful, they said we could leave our dingy where we wanted no problem a very rare occurrence indeed. Ashore the town did not change our initial impression, there is an old castle at the top of the hill but we chose not to visit it, we are starting to get castle and church fatigue.

As Milazzo is the last anchorage site on the north east coast of Sicily before the straits it’s a good place to stop, but we didn’t find anywhere where we could stock up on provisions, maybe because we went ashore on a Sunday, and although there were several shops open selling bread we could not find a big supermarket.

On our last day in Milazzo the storms predicated did not arrive although it did become overcast, our intention was to set off the following day at 0400 hours so that we could start to head down the Messina straits at 0800 and get the best out of the south going current. At 0100 the thunder storms and the rain hit, we got up and put all the portable communication equipment in the oven with the intention of going back to bed for another three hours, however the rain had come in through the small vented window and the bed was soaking and so I had to strip and remake the bed before we could get back in. the storms kept me awake for most of the night and managed to just nod off when the alarm went.

Although you could still see the lightening around us the sky above was clear and so we decided to stick to our original plan and head for the straits. We arrived at the planned time, Kevin radioed Messina VTS to inform them of our intention to sail down them, apparently if you do not do this then you can be fined 2000 euros on the spot.

 As we rounded the headland we had our first good view of the Straits, they didn’t look as scary as we had heard, the rain had stopped and the sea was calm.

As we motor sailed down the straits there were not as many ships as we expected, we did wonder how the Italians would manage if they had to monitor the shipping lanes in the English Channel. We timed our passage well and had 2 knots of current in our favour and at one point we got a top speed of 9.2 knots. Our passage went smoothly and we did not encounter any of the whirlpools or swirling currents other yachtsmen have told us about.

We reached our destination Taormarina at 1315 hours. We picked up one of the buoys for 30 Euros only because by now the winds were gusting to 26knts as we wanted to go ashore and were not sure what the holding was like if we anchored, when anchoring we normally stay on board for at least an hour to make sure things are secure before leaving the boat.

First impressions of Taormarina are good although the plan is to only stay one night here before heading south to Siracusa where we plan to spend a few days chilling out before we decide to head to Ragusa or make a detour to Malta for a few days.

Distance Travelled 2012: 2471Nm

Distance Travelled 2413: 2311Nm

Total Distance: 5182Nm

Our Present Position: https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=36.782617,14.545186&hl=en&sll=36.793065,14.563751&sspn=0.114373,0.234318&mra=mift&mrsp=0&sz=13&t=m&z=13

South Down the Italian Coast

We have now started our journey towards Sicily and our final destination for this year Ragusa, from Rome we headed south 26 miles to Anzio and anchored outside the Marina, there were only three other yachts anchored in the bay so we had a great deal of space to choose from and the holding was good.

We settled down for a relaxing evening and watched the sunset, just as we were about to call it a night the Coastal Guardia came along side and asked to see our ships papers and passports, whilst these were being checked Kevin got chatting to one of the Guardia. Apparently he was from Sicily and started showing pictures of his family, and told us he didn’t much care for mainland Italy he much preferred Sicily but there weren’t any jobs there. Suddenly they decided they needed to move off as there was a boat in the vicinity without any lights, they were in such a hurry to get going they forgot to give us our papers back, so Kevin told them “no papers No mooring line” the papers were swiftly handed back and Kevin threw them their mooring line, we waved them goodbye and they wished us a safe journey.

The following day we set off for the Pontine Islands and the island of Palmarola, on arrival in the bay we agreed it was one of the nicest places we had been to, we anchored off and then set off in the dingy to explore the caves within the bay.

Caves at Palmarola

We got so carried away that we ended up circumnavigating the whole island without having to fill up the outboard with more fuel, back in the bay we spied Dakini, our friends Helen and Marcels catamaran, and so we pulled up along side to say hello, they were quite shocked to see us and welcomed us on board for a drink.

Later that day Marcel took us swimming into one of the caves which got narrower and narrower and was pitch black inside, but once you got so far in there was an opening in the cave letting the light in. have to say I was a little frightened as I just could not see anything and when the flash of Marcels camera went off I screamed in sheer terror, which both Kevin and Marcel found very amusing.

We stayed for two nights in Palmarola before making our way across the Ponza, we anchored up in the bay and although not as nice as Palmarola it was still quite a lovely setting if not a little busy with the small tourist ferries and the speed boats. On the Sunday there it was heaving but by the evening everyone had gone.

On the Saturday we went to get some provisions and explore the town which is quite quaint, small narrow streets with lots of tourist shops, and you are able to stock up on provisions however the choice is limited. We also found a laundry service there but at 20 euros per wash we decided to give it a miss.

On the Sunday we got up early as we wanted to walk over to the light house on the headland, so Marcel and Helen picked us up in their dingy at 0800, at one stage we ended up in the cemetery which was interesting but not in the direction we needed to go, so we turned around and back into the town.

We eventually seemed to be going in the right direction as we followed Kevin’s lead, and then we came to a fork in the road and the dilemma of which road to take. At that point and Italian women in her car stopped by us and Marcel asked for directions, the next minute we were all piled in her car and heading to her house, which she informed us had the best views on the island and was also on the way to the path to the lighthouse.

The journey to her house took us up one of the narrowest roads I have ever seen with sharp corners and very steep, I wouldn’t fancy driving up it myself.

She wasn’t wrong about her house having the best views, from one point you can see Palmarola one side of the island and the bay of Ponza on the other. We never did make to the lighthouse as she offered us coffee and water then showed us around her house and gardens, Marina was lovely woman.

From Ponza we headed with Marcel and Helen to Capri, which is supposed to be the most beautiful in the Med, the journey was approximately 50 miles and we arrived at 18:30, at first we tried the anchorage just outside the marina but the depth was far too deep for us to anchor safely. We radioed to Marcel and Helen who were bringing up the rear and agreed that we would move to the south anchorage. As we sailed around the island the views were spectacular and you could see why it had got the reputation.

Capri

However when we got to the anchorage on the south side the swell was quite big which meant it would be a rocky rolly night so we continued on to the east anchorage, again the swell was quite big and the depths too deep and so we ended up going back to the south anchorage. By this time it was dark and Kevin felt it was too risky to try and anchor in a bay that went shallow quickly, where half of it was bouyed off and there were rocks nearby. After several discussions between us we decided to head to the main land and into the bay of Naples and anchor in a place called Marina Mata, a small bay with good shelter. By the time we arrived there it was nearly half past ten and we were all shattered.

The lesson we learnt from this is that although the pilot book indicated there were anchorages around Capri depths weren’t given, therefore next time we need to research the anchorages before setting off and have a plan B.

The next day we headed off to Agroploi, Marcel had worked out a deal that we could stay in the marina for 50 euros a night instead of the usual 70. When we arrived we headed to the pontoon we had been directed to, the marinara was there to assist us with mooring, however he was the most sullen person we have met so far. As Kevin tried to set up the plank, which is our passerell the marinara was straight there informing Kevin that he had to lift the end of the pontoon and keep it off, which is not easy when you are trying to set it up.

It appeared that each pontoon was managed by a different Company as Marcel and Helen had a very different experience to us, their marinara couldn’t have been more helpful and even loaned his car to Marcel  so that we could visit the ancient site of Paestum the following day.

On first impressions the marina and town did not seem up to much, however our initial impression changed after we walked into the old town, the main street was pedestrianised with cafes, bars and restaurants lining the sides, very picturesque.

In the afternoon we set off for Paestum and paid our 10 euros each to go into the museum and then to walk around the ruins. The museum was interesting to a point, but not set up in any chronological order of how the ruins were discovered and the workings of the archaeological site. The ruins themselves had three almost complete temples one each for Zeus, Hera and Athena, they were quite spectacular and made us wonder on how such huge buildings like these were constructed without all the machinery used today for construction.

From Paestum we set of for a small village in the mountains called Carpaccio, the roads were very narrow and steep and we did wonder if the little car would make it up, especially at one point when we stopped half way up. On arrival at the village we parked the car and headed off to get an ice cream which we ate as we admired the view down the valley to the sea.

Carpaccio view to the sea

The next day we left Marcel and Helen and we made our way to Scario, and I think I had one of the most hair raising journeys I have ever had. About a third of the way into the sail we started to see the clouds thicken and darken, at one point we saw a tornado behind us, which thankfully was going in the opposite direction to us.

As the clouds got blacker and blacker we decided to take down the sails and the Bimini, don our wet weather gear, life jackets and safety clips, no sooner had we completed this it was like someone had thrown a switch, we went from no wind to Force 7/8 winds, torrential rain and a very unpleasant sea state. I huddled in the corner holding on for grim death with a few tears trying to get some shelter from the spray hood to no avail, it wasn’t long before both of us were soaked to the skin, and even though Kevin told me to go downstairs I couldn’t leave him on his own on deck.

After about an hour things started to calm down a bit and eventually the sun came out but the swell was still quite big and so we decided to spend the night in the marina at Scario rather than at anchor, again the marina wasn’t up to much, no showers or toilets as in Agropoli, but at least the marina staff were very friendly and it was a more reasonable 40 euros a night.

At night we took a stroll along the marina front where there are cafes, bars and restaurant’s, there was very little activity and there did not seem to be any soul to the place. We only stayed one night as the town clock kept us awake for most of the night as it chimed the hour and every 15 minutes after that, the pilot book had indicated it only chimed during the day but that does not appear to be the case. The next day we moved over the bay to Sapri.

Before we set off for Sapri we ventured into the centre of Scario, our initial impression didn’t change much from the night before, but we did find somewhere to get some provisions, and the cobbled streets leading down to the harbour looked quite quaint.

Back on board we set off across the bay, on arrival we both agreed this was a much nicer town than Scario, we anchored just outside the marina and waited for the arrival of Helen and Marcel who had emailed us to let us know they were on their way.

So the next day we all set off for Cetraro another 40 miles down the coast, the coast line is quite stunning with its beautiful mountains as a backdrop with small villages perched on top.

Unfortunately there is also a lot of litter floating in the sea, we have come across a large amount of polystyrene boxes that the fishermen use, empty bottles, and other assorted rubbish which is a shame. Especially when the Italians have a large number of marine reserves along the coast which you cannot anchor in. However Kevin thinks this is just a ploy to get you to use the very expensive marinas as there is usually one just by a marine reserve.

On arrival in Cetraro we anchored outside the marina about 30/40 metres off the beach, initially the water although not clear due to its chalky bottom appeared clean but on closer inspection there was quite a significant amount of debris floating about and so our planned swim was abandoned.

After looking at the weather forecast we decided to stay at anchor for two nights and then make our way further south on the 16^th September, and so on our second day there we ventured ashore for a walk along the beach, the walk into town was quite some way and so we didn’t venture that far. We did however stop off at a very popular Gelateria and indulged in some rather good homemade Italian ice cream which Marcel treated us to before heading back to the boat.

That night we were wined and dined on Dakini and the girls were once again beaten by the boys at Brandi Dog, as we said our goodnights we agreed to set our alarms for 0700 in readiness to leave at 0800 and joked about the possibility of being woken earlier by the swell which had been predicted to increase around 0600. What we hadn’t expected was for it to start at 0100, or for it to get as high as it did, by 0230 we decided that it was no longer safe to stay in the bay. Our options were to head into the marina or head out to sea, we decided against the marina due to the direction of both the wind and the swell as it potentially could bash us against the harbour wall and so out to sea we went.

The conditions continued to get worse, as I went forward to raise the anchor the bow of the boat was banging down into the waves requiring me to hang on for grim death, anchor up I crawled along the side of the deck back to the cockpit and Kevin slowly made his way out of the bay, his concern being that with the wave height and shallow depth we could easily go aground. Once out of the bay there was no going back and we headed out to sea, for the first two hours we didn’t seem to be making any headway at all, the waves by now were a good 2 to 2.5 metres high and coming from all different directions making it difficult for Kevin to steer the boat so that we weren’t slamming directly into them. At one point we were caught by a rogue wave as the boat slammed back down into the water the spray came right over the boat and poured of the sides and back of the bimini, I thought our time had come.

At the same time the rain was coming down in torrents and there was lightening all around us, for the second time in two days the computer, iPad, hard drive and phone were put in the oven just in case we were hit by lightning.

By daybreak the storm which at its height reached force 8 seemed to be easing, but the swell and the rain continued for the remainder of the journey, so we were glad when we made it into one of the marinas at Vibo Valentia. Initially the charge was 55 euros but after some discussion/haggling Kevin was able to get the price down to 35 euros per night as we intended staying for more than one night.

The staff at Marina Carmello couldn’t have been more helpful, with one of the marianero’s coming on board to secure the lazy lines, whilst the other helped tie off the stern lines and then provide us with a plank to get on and off the boat. We also had access to toilets and shower facilities which although basic were clean, so we agreed for the price we had good value for money compared to Aggroploi and Scario.

In the evening we were treated to a coffee cream ice cream with compliments of the marina staff, we have never experienced that before and our impressions of the marina continued to improve.

Our intention from here is to sail across to Stromboli to see the volcano there provide us with a spectacular light show as we sail around it at night, but having looked at the weather for the next week we may end up staying put until conditions improve as it is forecast for continual rain until next Tuesday, thunder storms, and a sea swell of about 2 metres, and for the moment I think we have had our fair share of sailing in stormy conditions.

Distance Travelled 2012: 2471Nm

Distance Travelled 2013: 2311Nm

Total Distance: 4782Nm

Our Present Position: https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=38.715519,16.128689&hl=en&sll=38.705807,16.109047&sspn=0.036906,0.077162&mra=mift&mrsp=0&sz=14&t=m&z=14

Corsica & Rome

Our last week in Corsica was spent with Kevin’s brother Steve his wife Madeline and their two children Sophie and Harry, they were staying in an apartment near to the bay of Porta Vecchia  so we anchored in the bay for the duration of their visit. As stated in my previous entry the bottom is quite foul but the holding is very good, which was a godsend as we experienced some very strong winds our first night in the bay, requiring Kevin to check no other yachts anchor was dragging our way. At the same time other yachtsmen were checking/repositioning their anchors or moving to a different part of the bay altogether.

On our first day with Steve and Madeline the weather was not too good and the winds were still quite strong and so we spent our time either at their apartment or sitting by the pool. The following day however we set off early for a bay about 14 miles away called Porto Nova. The bay had clear blue waters but it was very cold something we had not been used to, that didn’t stop the kids however and they were soon in the water whilst the adults did a bit of chilling out and sunbathing.

Madeline relaxing in the sun

Prior to coming out to see us Madeline had done some research on which bays she would like to sail to, one of which was Santa Giulia, a bay which we had considered going into before but is buoyed off making it difficult to get anywhere near the beach to anchor, so we went in the car. The write up in the pilot book gives it a great description but in reality the bay is semi-circular with a very small strip of sand around, the water is crystal blue which means you can see the amount of debris floating in the water. The beach was packed and it was difficult to find anywhere to park ourselves. In the end we found a small patch of sand and plonked ourselves down, and so not one we would visit again.

Santa Giulia Beach

The weather although hot was unpredictable, the winds never blowing in the direction forecast, and not at the wind speed predicted either and so more often than not we would plan our schedule for the following day according to the forecast and then find we would be sailing with the wind on our nose which meant we had to put in several tacks to get to our destination.

Another bay we visited by boat was Anse de Cola, about nine miles north of Porta Vecchia, on the way we were treated to an aerial display by two fire fighting planes, as they flew above us and then down onto the sea to pick up water before dispersing it again back into the sea, the kids were beside themselves at the spectacle and took loads of pictures.

Anse de Cola is a much nicer beach than Santa Giulia, again crystal clear waters, but not busy at all. Whilst there Steve, Madeline and the kids took the dingy to explore the bay, and on return Madeline was wet through, Sophie had been driving the dingy into the waves, which broke over the front of the dingy soaking Madeline to the skin.

Of all the bays we visited with Steve and Madeline I think our favourite all round was Golfe de Rondinara. Again crystal clear waters and a lovely sandy beach, once anchored Kevin set the plank up as a diving board and Harry was the first off followed by Kevin, Steve and Sophie.

Harry

Sophie

Steve

Even Madeline was willing to have a go but chickened out at the last minute, I on the other hand didn’t even make an attempt preferring to gracefully descend into the water using the bathing ladder.

At one point in the day Kevin started to feed the fish with some bread and shortly afterwards Sophie who was in the water was surrounded by a large number of fish.

Throughout their time with us they were also treated to displays from “Macho Man” as described by Rod Heikall in his book Italian Cruising Waters. These are usually but not always Italian men with more money than sense who drive speed boats and who frequent places where others are quietly enjoying themselves, arriving and departing at high speeds creating  a huge wash that then sends those boats at anchor rocking and rolling over the place, requiring the occupants to garb any articles not secured down so as to reduce any breakages. These macho men also have a habit of zooming past you at high speeds as close into you as they can get whilst you are trying to sail, creating the same problem, only this time the helmsman has try and ride the wash whilst the first mate tries frantically to ensure nothing gets damaged. On a couple of occasions when this has happened to us we have ended up with broken glasses in the cupboard so now we stuff them with tea towels to stop things moving around.

All too soon their time with us was over, the night before Steve and Madeline departed for home and we made our way to mainland Italy, we went up into the old town of Porto Vecchia, it was lovely, it certainly changed our initial impression of the place and is well worth paying a visit. That night we had a meal in a restaurant recommended to Steve, where we had the house special, I think we all agreed afterwards although very nice it was one of the dearest lasagnes we had ever had. Back down at Steve and Madeline’s apartment we said our goodbyes and headed back across the bay to Miss Lilly and the next leg of our journey.

The following day we were up bright and early and made our preparations to cross to mainland Italy and our first destination Di Roma Marina 139 miles away. Again we had planned our crossing according to the weather forecast and once again it was different than had been predicted and so instead of sailing all the way as over as planned we did have to motor sail for about 50% of the journey.

As we approached the mainland there was something serene about the coast line, and the waters were a beautiful aqua colour and flat calm. On entering the marina we were met by the marina staff in their dingy who escorted us to our birth and assisted with mooring up, they couldn’t have been more helpful, and the cost per night was 34 Euros including water and electricity which we thought for mainland Italy was good value for money.

The next day we set off to visit Rome a place I had always wanted to visit, and where Kevin had been several times mainly for work and so it was the first time for both of us to do the sightseeing bit. So at 0900hrs we boarded the bus to the metro and caught the train into Rome, have to say the roads aren’t up to much, certainly very little has been spent on them unlike Spain. On route we stopped off to get a map and guide book and over a coffee planned our day.

First stop was the Colosseum, as you come out of the metro station there it stands looking very majestic. Once we had found the entrance we joined the queue to get our tickets and video guide, which took about 30 minutes. There are several ticket touts outside the Colloseum trying to get you to buy tickets to get access without queuing but the cost was quite steep and so we declined.

Inside the Colosseum it was huge and we were glad we had paid a little extra for the video guide as it helped put everything into context regarding its history and its use, along with how it used to look.

On our planned list of must see sights were the Roman Forum, Monument to Victor Emmanuel II, Fontana Di Trevi, Vatican City and the Sistine Chapel. The Trevi Fountain which is my daughters favourite place in Rome was crowed and took some of the shine of the place, however it was still worth visiting and as it was very hot it was great to run your fingers through the cool water and to the traditional thing and throw a coin into the fountain thus ensuring our return.

Vatican city was just how I imagined, St Peters Square is vast and so was the queue to get into the Sistine Chapel, after a fairly lengthy debate we decided it was far too hot to stand in the queue that was moving towards the entrance very slowly and would take a couple of hours, and so we made our way back to one of the metro stations to head back into the centre of Rome. All in all though this was the only sight on our must see list that we didn’t get to see.

By now my feet were killing me and so we made our way to a little coffee bar/gelateria and had a well earned ice cream before heading off to have a look at some sights that were not on our list. Along the way I spied a nice pair of shoes in a shop window and went in to have a look, having tried them on and got a nod off approval off Kevin I decided to buy them for 22 euros more than half the original price, bargain. I also noticed a lovely dress which I also purchased however this was not in the sale so not quite such a bargain.

We would have liked to finish our day with a meal at one of the restaurants but as we were unsure how long the trains would run back into Ostia where the marina was we decided to head back and have a meal at one of the restaurants around the marina, on hindsight this was a bad choice.

We had originally planned to spend a couple of days in Rome, but after a full on day the day before plus we had managed to see most of what we wanted to see we decided to continue our journey south and over to the Pontine Islands. With hindsight I think if I was to go to Rome again and hopefully we will it would be easier to stay in the city, that way we could have taken a little bit more time with our sight seeing and had that meal in one of the restaurants. 

Distance Travelled 2012: 2471Nm

Distance Travelled 2013: 2029Nm

Total Distance: 4500Nm

Our Present Position: https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=39.510133,15.94165&hl=en&sll=39.484965,15.982018&sspn=0.073,0.154324&mra=mift&mrsp=0&sz=13&t=m&z=13