Sunday, July 31, 2016

July 2016

In which we continue round Sicily, pop down to Malta and back and head off towards Greece

On the evening of the 30th June, we saved ourselves 5 minutes effort by not laying a second anchor.  This worked well until the small hours when a swell built up from the south and we started rolling enough to disturb our sleep.  There was forecast to be an onshore wind the following night, so we elected to head for a marina at Licata.  This is in a huge harbour basin, with only about 1/3 of the proposed pontoons in place.  Our sensitivity to price is obviously decreasing as I hardly flinched at the cost of E50 (and that was after a 15% discount).  All very pleasant and clean and with an excellent shopping mall but a little soulless.  They are also offering discounts for winter stays but I think that it will be a few years before we are willing to spend 6 months in one spot.

We were looking ahead to our crossing to Malta, from where I had a flight booked back to Scotland, and the following Friday looked promising so we elected to continue slowly down the Sicilian coast.  Our next stop was going to be in the lee of the harbour at Scoglitti but we discovered, in time, that a huge area is prohibited around a pipeline so continued few miles further south and anchored about 500 metres off a tourist beach.  The wind was forecast to be light and along the coast and we anchored in the lee of a shallow patch, this time being careful to lay 2 anchors to keep our head pointing just a little offshore.  This worked well and, as there was no urgency, we took the next day off and enjoyed doing not very much, only slightly irritated by the music from the shore, the jet skis and power boats touting for custom.  The stern anchor had dragged a little, so we re-laid our mooring to ensure a quiet night.  This time, however, a swell caused by some distance disturbance grew from the west, hitting us on the beam.  We slacked back the stern anchor, hoping that we would swing but this failed and we had a very disturbed night. 


On rising, we found that the forecast for the following week now showed no prospect of sailing across to Malta so we decided to motor across and spend a few days over there.  This we did, taking the opportunity to each get a little rest.  With 15 miles to run, a beam wind sprang up and Elsie was able to get a decent sail for a few hours.  Malta is one of the few places in the EU where one has to clear in with customs so, rather than head to anchor, we went into Mgarr marina, Gozo, where Ruby was booked in for our trip back to the UK.  Our trip, as Elsie, with a newly arrived grandson, had decided to also pay a visit.  On the 5th, we set out for our tour of Malta, behaving rather like a dog passing lamp-posts, popping to every potential anchorage, of which there are many, on our way down to Valleta.  The wind was building from the south-west and after a tour of Grand Harbour, we looked forward to a downwind sail back to our chosen spot.  As we exited GH, the wind did a 180 so we followed suit and headed down to Peter’s bay, a scenic spot surrounded by sandstone cliffs.  There were about 10 other boats anchored as we arrived but, one-by-one, they left and we had a very quiet night.
Valetta


Vince, Deborah and friend


We had arranged a rendezvous with an old work colleague, Vince, who has settled here so were out the next morning to meet him and his Dufour. The idea was to do a little sailing together but, as we met, the wind died so, after a few photos, we went back to Peter’s bay and had a lazy afternoon and quiet night.  On the 7th, we continued our circumnavigation of Malta, motor sailing and once again popping into potential anchorages and finishing up in Mellieha bay, where we had seen Paul Allen’s mega yacht Octopus earlier in the week.  On the 8th, we motored back to Gozo, pausing for a swim on the way and started preparing for our trip back to Scotland.


Our flight on the 9th wasn’t until the evening so, while Elsie did some shopping, I decided to change the engine oil.  On opening up the engine compartment, I discovered that the bilge had sea water in it.  Time for investigation, which required the engine running.  I was very mindful of the two generator belts but must have had a lapse of concentration as there was a sudden tug on my left hand and a loud bang.  I looked down to see the auxiliary belt broken and my left ring finger tip hanging on by a thread.  Bugger.  Shouted for help but none forthcoming so had to put a temporary dressing on, restore the companionway steps, stop the engine, call for an ambulance and message Elsie.  It seemed most unlikely that we would make our flight and I cursed my stupidity.  However, the medical services were very efficient.  By the time I had done an initial mop-up (Elsie hates blood) and walked to the end of the pontoon the ambulance was arriving.  I was seen immediately at A&E and within about 90 minutes of the accident I was sewn together, topped up with anti-tetanus, X-rayed and discharged.  I could have done without the additional complication of a wind generator to hand carry but it had continued to make unpleasant noises and I had dismounted it a couple of days before.  If I didn’t take it now, it would be another 3 months before the next opportunity.  So, with a 10 Kg back pack we set of by ferry and bus to the airport.  Security were a bit bemused but let me take it on board and we were on our way.    


After a successful trip home (my medical checks, chandlery shopping and catching up on admin stuff: Elsie bonding with 4 grandsons in a rented cottage), we returned to Ruby a week later.  A couple of ex-pats from the local sailing club came round on Monday to assist on the investigation and repair of the leak and we were ready to move on.  Tuesday looked like a promising day to make the crossing back to Sicily.  It didn’t go as well as hoped.  We first had a one hour delay while the local immigration officials looked at our passports and graciously permitted us to leave (within the Schengen area!).  We should have then abandoned plans to complete the circumnavigation of Gozo but didn’t, which added a further hour.  And then the promised wind failed to appear so we had to motor most of the way across, anchoring outside Pozzallo at 2035.  We decided to stay for a day, as there was no wind forecast and set off next morning in the dinghy for a trip ashore.  After 200 metres, the engine coughed and died.  The carburetor bowl had fallen off!  My hand was still poorly so Elsie had to row us back.  As she did so, the local coastguard boat arrived and instructed us to move a further 500 metres from the Port entrance.  We were already well clear and, in the time we were there, there were only 3 movements of commercial vessels so believe this was just a ‘jobsworth’.  He was in charge so we complied, only to see a French yacht occupy our good spot and remain unmolested.  We had another trip ashore later, with more success, but were fairly unimpressed with the grubby town and, especially, the grudging permission for us to park our dinghy for no more than an hour.


On the 21st we picked up and sailed / motored 20 miles round the corner to Cape Passero.  Here, there was a choice of anchorage, either side of a sandbar running to a small island.  We elected to use the northerly one and had another quiet night.  It was time to head on to bright lights.  We wanted to see Siracusa but there were horror stories about huge fines to yachts who anchored in the wrong place so we researched carefully.  Called on channel 16 – no reply, but telephoning got us permission to enter and an approved anchorage spot which was a long way from where we wanted to land with the dinghy.  There was only one other yacht in the approved area and about 10 in the convenient but illegal one. On the evening of the 22nd, we dinghied ashore to canal separating the old and new towns and, after a long trek, found a supermarket for provisions.  We had heard a report of a dinghy being vandalised here, but Rubette was safe on our return.  The following morning, we went to the ‘Town Quay’ of the old town for a good wander round and a Gelato.

Siracusa sunset

On the 24th we, mostly, sailed up to Catania where I had booked us in for a couple of nights, not without some difficulty.  No English was spoken, so I had to get a spiel prepared from Google Translate.  The staff turned out to be very helpful and assisted us with changing gas bottle and disposing of old oil which I eventually changed on the engine.  I had carefully separated the filter and oily rags from the general waste but these were just dumped in the skip.  Tourist information was harder to come by.  There was an office in the port building but it seems that it is only open when cruise ships were in.  We wanted to go up Etna and it took a lot of traipsing around before we found which bus to take and where to buy a ticket etc.  We got sorted and on the Monday took the bus to the foot of the cable car.  Bus ticket very reasonable at E6.60.  Cable car, 4X4 bus and guide at the top less so at E63.00  but it was a one-off so up we went, only to find that it was too windy to be allowed to the crater rim and too cloudy to see much.  Oh well.

 

We stayed an extra day for a little maintenance, shopping and a look round the town.  There are some wonderful old buildings, mostly constructed of lava but, with a few exceptions in the touristy areas it is all very scruffy and grubby.

Out on the 27th and alternately sailed and motored up the coast to Taormina where there is a nice hook in the coast to protect the anchorage from northerly swell. Despite the light winds, this was considerable and we were concerned that it might work its way in but we were very comfortable and had a fine view of superyacht Vava 2 which, on arrival, opened up its stern to reveal a ‘beach bar’ with tasteful décor, mood lighting and elegantly dressed  guests.  But their cocktails probably tasted no better than our white port and tonic.  Another day of motorsailing took us back to mainland Italy and an anchorage picked almost at random at Palizzi on the bottom of the toe.  Although the day finished with a light south-westerly wind, we had another very comfortable night.

Vava 2



The plan had been to do another coastal hop or 2 before crossing to Greece, but looking at weather forecasts on Friday morning, it seemed that we were unlikely to get sailing winds in the ‘instep’ of Italy for the foreseeable future and for further on, there was no time like the present.   We set off with multiple plans, including just a day-sail (or motor), stopping off at Sa Maria, on the ‘heel’ or crossing to Corfu.  The first few hours went well, if a little slowly, under just cruising chute, then CC and main.  We then had to motor for 6 hours before the wind changed to north of west and gave us a broad reach.  There were many changes in wind, and sailplan, through the night.  A little motoring, some good reaching and reefs going in and out with wind changes.  At 0900 with a NNW’ly 4 on the beam and forecast for it to continue, I made the unilateral decision to head for Othoni, an island just NW of Corfu.  We just had to average 6 knots to make it before dark.  All went well for the first couple of hours and we averaged 7 knots.  At mid-day the wind dropped to F3 and the current changed to head us.  6 knots through the water but 5 across the ground.  We held our nerve, with just a couple of 20 minute motors when the wind dropped further and ended up with 2 reefs in main and genoa, achieving 7 knots with a NW’ly 5 gusting 6.  We were still 4 miles short at sunset but there was enough afterglow for us to weave into the anchorage and settle for a welcome meal, drink and good night’s rest.

We reckoned that we had earned a break and spent the 31st at anchor just amusing ourselves watching charter boats on their first day of freedom manouvering round the anchorage and marveling how white skin could be in the middle of summer.

Monthly stats:
Logged                 616

Over ground         583   

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