We have decided that we have really done everything we want to do here,
so we will move on. The weather
seems lovely, with a clear blue sky, but there is some wind. Richard checks the weather forecast on
the internet and it says it will be sunny with a force 4 wind, no gusts and
only .5m swell. So we will start
to explore the Maddelena Islands and the national park.
We do some last minute shopping and then off we go. We must first find a port where we can
buy a license to stay in the National Park. We know there is a place in La Maddalena, where we stayed
the other day, but we would prefer to go somewhere different. So we go to a little port on the
mainland called Palau. We enter
the port and we don’t want a proper berth because we only want to stay for
about half an hour. I call up the
harbour office on the radio and luckily find a lady who speaks quite good
English. She directs us to an
alongside berth right next to the town.
There is even someone to help us take lines and tie up.
Richard goes and gets our permit and then persuades me to join him in a
giant ice cream. It is hot enough
and we won’t get any lunch for a while.
So we set off to the islands.
But minor disaster strikes as we leave our mooring. Richard shouts to me to see what is
wrong with the dinghy, which we have been towing behind the boat. I suddenly realise that it is floating
away. I rush to get a boat hook to
try to retrieve it. I can see what
has happened. The painter (for
those who don’t speak ‘Nautical’- that is the rope which attaches the dinghy to
the boat) has gone under the boat and has been cut by the rope cutter on our
propeller. So it has floated free. Richard does a good job getting the
boat to the dinghy and I manage to grab what is left of the painter with the
boat hook and we re-attach it to the boat. But we will need a new painter.
So now we are really off. The plan is to stop for a swim and some lunch
and then to go off elsewhere for the night. So we make our way to Isola Caprera. Of course it is now after noon and so
the wind has got up. It is behind us and we are sailing nicely on just Genoa,
but it is strong. At times it hits
a force 6! This is not what the
forecast predicted and not what we want for a day an anchor. We find the bay we were heading
for. It is still blowing quite
strong. The wind in the bay is
only about half of what it was out in the channel, but it is still very windy
and the boat is rocking a bit. I
am freezing. I have to put on a long
sleeved top. I don’t understand
the people in the boats next to us.
They are skinny dipping in the water!
Although the anchorage is nice, it isn’t that comfortable and there seem
to be dark clouds coming. I am
certain I can hear thunder. So we
revert to plan A and proceed up to the east side of Maddalena Island where
Richard is sure there will be more shelter and there are supposed to be buoys
to pick up, which will be more secure for the night.
The trip is only 6 miles, but it is not nice. It is now blowing a 5 gusting 6 and it is on the nose. There is a lot of spray and we have to
put up the spray hood. I am so
cold I have put on long trousers and a fleece! The sky is going very dark. When we get to the bay, we see the mooring buoys and then
someone comes out in a rib and tells us it is a private bay and we have to pay
30 euro for the night. We are
pretty sure this is a con, but we have no choice. The weather is definitely closing in and we need a secure
place for the night. So we pay up
and he helps us get our lines on the mooring buoy.
Almost as soon as we settle down the rain starts. There is thunder and lightning. Some other boats arrive in this mess
and all are in full rain gear. We
did manage to get here just in time.
We are told that the winds might be quite strong tomorrow, so we are not
sure what we will do. It is a
shame, because this is lovely bay with a nice beach and it would be nice to
stay and swim.
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