Tuesday 17 June 2014 - Porto Cervo, Costa Smerelda

We have decided to go today.  The weather forecast is better and we are bored here and need to empty our tank.  So we get up relatively early and make our way to the Sardinian mainland.  The weather is not at all bad.  Quite sunny, with just a bit of cloud.  We have a light wind of 6-8 knots and eventually Richard decides to put up the genoa (but not the main).  Initially we are motor sailing, but I suddenly spot a dolphin.  It swims right under the boat.  We then see at lest two more, but they are not near the boat.  We turn the engine off to encourage them, but they won’t come and play and we have to be content to watch them from afar.  We really thought we would see more of these lovely creatures here as this is a wildlife sanctuary where dolphins and whales are supposed to be protected, but no one seems to have told that to the dolphins!  Having shut off the engine we continue to sail on genoa alone as the wind builds a little.

We are only going 9 miles.  We have decided to come and see the posh resort here on Sardinia called Port Cervo on the Costa Smerelda.  It is apparently where all the ‘beautiful people’ come in the season.  But the season has not yet started, so that’s OK.  We think many people are put off by the pilot book which talks of having to pay 125 Euros to be on a mooring.  We checked with the web-site and it is much less than that.

We enter the harbour early at about 11:30am and call up for a berth.  They speak good English, which is a relief.  They ask if we want to be in the old harbour or new marina.  I ask what they recommend and she says the old harbour is right by the town, so I opt for that.  Richard is a bit concerned because he believes the new marina is the place to be, but we are taken to the old harbour, which is not old.  We are on a modern floating pontoon   right in the middle of everything.  We are the only boat on this pontoon.  In fact the only other boats in this part of the harbour are 6 Super Yachts!  We are helped to moor and have to do so using the anchor as there are no laid lines here.  Good practice for when we get to Greece.

We have a little look around.  It is all very twee.  Apparently the place has been designed by only top architects to blend in with the natural environment.  It reminds me of a very large Portmerion!  (but not so querky).  We find a supermarket to buy bread for lunch and then go to the boat.  By now it is really very hot.  I have put on one of my new sundresses.

After lunch we decide to walk to the new marina.  On the map it does not look like a bad walk.  Well, it was.  The temperature is up to 30C and there is no direct path.  We have to keep walking back to main roads to get there.  When we do get there, there is nothing much to see or do.  There are very few boats here other than large racing vessels outside the Yacht Club.  We certainly have made the correct decision in going into the old harbour!

Having had a long and uncomfortable walk here we try to find a way back by other transport.  The map says there is a ferry that goes between the harbours and that would be perfect, except it isn’t running yet!  We have also seen one of those little tourist trains which runs between the two ports.  We speak to a port worker who shows us where the train goes and we decide to wait for it.  However when it comes, despite it having a whole empty carriage, it won’t stop to take us on.  So all that is left is a taxi.  Problem with that is that we have left the Italian phone on the boat and Richard’s English phone is getting no reception.  Eventually someone at the Yacht Club bar helps us and phones a taxi, which takes us back to the old port.

We have decided to have dinner out.  The best restaurant is closed, so we just try one on spec.  It is ok.  The starter was very disappointing (3 prawns for 20 Euro), but the main of sea food pasta was good as was desert.  And as we are in Italy we get good decaf cappuccino.

Not sure what we do tomorrow.  As ever it depends on the weather.

Monday 16 June 2014 - La Maddalena

Well as predicted the weather is terrible as we wake up.  It has been raining and the sky is full of black clouds.  Unless it clears up we are here for the day.

This isn’t a bad place to be weather bound, except for the sanitary facilities.  They are not run or owned by the harbour.  There is a public block run by the town and they not only charge for the showers (we are used to that), but they charge a Euro to use the toilet.  So we will just use the boat and hope the weather clears before we overfill the tank.

So when the rain eases a bit we go into town.  We go first to the market.  There aren’t many stalls open, but there are three fish counters, so I am able to buy a nice sea bream for dinner.  Then we decide to find the supermarket an English lady on a neighbouring boat told us about.  On the way we pass a cute shop selling ethnic things including sun dresses.  I am still grieving for my old dress which fell apart last week.  So, I go in and manage to find a very light easy to wear dress.  The bust line

doesn’t really fit as intended, but that is par for the course, and it looks OK and the price is right, so I buy it.  Now I have two new light sundresses.  All I need is some sun!

The weather deteriorates as we return to the boat.  It has been pouring with rain most of the day and we are stuck inside.  I decide to do some domestic chores.  First I iron two shirts for Richard which were in the laundry loads I did yesterday morning.  Yes, I do have an iron and ironing board on the boat.  Only little travelling versions, mind you.

Then I decide to do some cooking for lunches over the next few days.  As it is cool, cooking is fine.  So I make a large bowl of Pepperanato (roasted peppers in oil dressing) and Tabouleh.  So we have nice bits to eat with cold meats or cheeses for lunch.

At teatime the weather cheers up a little, so we stretch our legs and walk around the town.  Everyone is sitting in cafes watching World Cup games.  Today Germany v Portugal.  The Italians here keep telling us about how they beat England the other day!

We still don’t know what we will do tomorrow.  The weather reports all say different things.  So we shall just have to see.  The choices are the most luxurious and chic resort at great expense, or the national park.  If the weather is OK, we will do the latter but that is a big if.  

Sunday 15 June 2014 - La Maddalena, Sardinia

The plan was to get up fairly early and make a start to Sardinia before bad weather set in.  But it did not work out like that.  We were woken by a huge thunderstorm at 6:00am.  It lasted a long time and the rain was very heavy.  The Straits of Bonifacio, the water lying between Corsica and Sardinia are said to be the most treacherous waters in Europe.  So we were not keen on crossing through them in thunderstorms. 

We turned over and went back to sleep, but when we got up just after 8:00, it was still raining and there was thunder.  So we decided to wait and see.  In the meantime I had a big bag of laundry piling up, so we decided to use the morning to do a couple of loads.  That all finished just before noon, when the sky cleared and the wind seemed to drop.  So we quickly made sandwiches for lunch under way and set off.

As we set off we did not know what to expect, but the weather forecast was for a south-westerly wind of between force 4 and 5.    Well, it was not that bad and the wind was in the East.  With such unreliable forecasts, we don’t know what to do.  In the end we had a ripping sail.  Most of the time we were on a reach with a force 4-5 breeze and doing 7 knots.  The wind got up to 20 knots, so we took a reef in near the end, but that didn’t slow us down.  The sea was biggish with waves up to one and a half metres, but they were on the beam and the boat took them well.

So we sailed to Maddalena Island.  It is part of an archipelago off the Sardinian mainland, which is also a nature reserve.  The marina is nice and very reasonable.  The town is sweet and with plenty of shops where we can provision.  We would leave tomorrow, if the weather was OK, but it is predicted to rain heavily, so we may be here for a day or two.  Not a bad place to be stuck in.  To explore the islands we will have to buy a special pass, but that will also be fine.

So, dodging showers we searched the town and then came back to the boat for dinner.

Saturday 14 June 2014 - Bonifacio

We have spent the last two days in Bonifacio.  We set out on Friday morning a little later than planned.  The good dinner with too much wine made us rather tardy in getting up.  At first Richard thought Bonifacio would be another 20 or so mile hop, but on more careful plotting we find that it is nearly 35 miles.  So we have a long day on the sea.  When we started off there was a little wind, but it was more or less on the nose.  So we wound up motoring again for about half the day.  Eventually we turned away from the wind and as usual it got up in the afternoon.  So we had a steady 3-4 on the beam for a couple of hours.  Then we turned so that the wind was dead behind us and though it had freshened, we were only doing under 4 knots, which would get us into port too late.  So we wound up motor sailing again.

Bonafacio is a fascinating site.  It is a fortified ancient town on top of limestone cliffs.  The port is in a calanque (a mini fjord) at the base of the town.  All very dramatic.  The port is organised more like the ones in northern France.  That is to say, there are a number of visitor pontoons and it is up to you to find a space on a first come first served basis.  So we make our way to an empty space on a pontoon, stern to as usual.  This time there is no marina man to help, but other yachtsmen on the pontoon take our lines and we get in fine.

It is rather late and very hot.  We sign in at the office and pay for one night.  But this is a place that deserves more than a couple of fleeting hours to look at.  So I persuade Richard we should stay for two nights.  The mooring fees are not bad and there is a toilet block with free showers (though Richard finds that the showers in the mens are cold, I am luckier).  The harbour is very lively with lots of bars and restaurants and two little supermarkets plus a bakery, so we can top up the stores.

It is a fast day, so we eat a meagre dinner on board.  There is a very loud disco going, but we manage to sleep OK.

This morning we were up early and after breakfast made our way up the hill to see the old town and citadelle.  We get audio guides from the tourist office and do a fair job on seeing the main sights.  It is still early.  We have passed a restaurant that is recommended in the guides and decide the best plan is to have a leisurely lunch and just then a light supper on the boat.  So we do that.  We get back down to the boat after 2:00pm and just sit in the cockpit for a while before picking up some bits for supper and stopping at an ice cream parlour where Richard has a huge Café Liegoise and I just have a citron pressé.

So now we have to plan our last month.  We will probably set off for Sardinia tomorrow, though the weather is looking a bit iffy.  However after two days sightseeing in very hot conditions, I am looking forward to going somewhere we can stop for a swim.

Thursday 12 June 2014 - Propriano

So up fairly early to make a reasonable start.  But we have a lot to do.  We need to fill up with water and buy bread for lunch.  We also need fuel, as we have been motoring so much.  That could be a problem.  When I get up I see a large tourist boat (vedette) on the fuel pontoon.  It is taking up all the space and there are at least 3 small motor boats plus 4 or 5 ribs all waiting to get fuel and they are fed up.  For a long time nothing seems to move.

However, by the time we are ready to leave the queue has finally gone down.  We make our way to the fuel pontoon to find it empty.  So we fill up and get petrol for the dinghy outboard and we are off just after 10am, not bad.

We go about ten miles by lunch time.  There is no wind to speak of and what there is is on the nose again, so we are motoring.  But we find a nice bay near a beach to stop for lunch.  We put the anchor down and have a lovely swim around the boat.  Then lunch.  This is getting to be the life.  Problem is that the weather is about to turn.  Well, we can’t have everything perfect can we?

We have about 10 miles to go to get to our destination.  As usual the wind has come up in the afternoon and we are able to sail virtually all the way.  As we come in to Propriano, our destination, the wind has got up to 17 knots gusting 20.  We are on a dead run and going really well.  There is flat enough water for us to take down the sails and we make our way into the harbour. 

This harbour is a bit of a mystery.  There are two bits, east and west.  None of the books make it clear where visitors are supposed to go.  Richard decides that the books seem to indicate going to the east basin, so we head for that.  We cannot find anyone to direct us to a berth, so I call up on the VHF only to be told that we are in the wrong basin!  Well that is a first.  So we make our way to the other part of the harbour and are given a berth.  That doesn’t go as well as usual.  Firstly there is another boat in the berth assigned to us.  We ask if we should go into the next one, which is empty and we are told to do so.  But there is no one to take our lines.  I am quite proud of myself, because I manage to lasso one of the cleats to hold us on.  Then the man from the marina comes and makes an awful mess of trying to get us tied up.  The problem is that there is a fairly brisk wind pushing us back on to the pontoon.  We do finally manage to sort ourselves out. 

We check in with the harbour office and pay for the night and go into town.  It is a very nicely appointed little place.  It has a small supermarket where I buy a few essentials.  There are lots of nice little shops. I buy myself a new sundress because the old very light one I have had for nearly 20 years ripped yesterday.

We make our way back to the boat to shower and change for dinner.  We are here because there is a Michelin rosette restaurant and we are having a postponed posh dinner for Richard’s birthday.  The restaurant is only a 15 minute walk form the boat, which is good.  We have a lovely meal with too much to drink.  Hope we are able to make it up at a reasonable time tomorrow.  We are trying to beat the bad weather coming in and get to Sardinia.  We shall see how we get along.

Wednesday 11 June 2014 - Ajaccio

On Tuesday morning we left Cargese in beautiful weather.  As we left there was even a bit of wind, blowing at 9 knots.  We started to sail and Richard decided to put up the cruising chute.  But after 45 minutes the wind died completely and we had to put the motor on.  Eventually we made it to a lovely bay to stop for a swim and some lunch.  There is another boat here on the other side.  It is a huge motor boat, but not a super yacht, but it does fly a British flag.  But we have nothing to do with each other.  Now this feels like a proper Mediterranean holiday.   We have a proper swim off the boat and lunch.

So after lunch we set off to Ajaccio.  We get there in fairly good time.  There are two marinas here, but one is well out of time and we want to be in the one in the middle of the old city.  As we enter the harbour there are a few problems.  Firstly a large P&O cruise liner is on the way out.  When we finally come in there is utter confusion.  There are four other boats manoeuvering about and no one giving directions where to moor.  We can’t take that.  The problem is that none of the books gives a VHF channel for the marina and there is no mention of a channel on any of the signs on the way in.  So in desperation I phone the marina.  They don’t speak English but make it clear I should call up on VHF channel 9 and on doing so we are immediately given a berth.  I have no idea what the other boats are doing!

This marina has a very different form of mooring.  There are finger pontoons!  But when we go in we find there are no cleats on the fingers.  So even with pontoons the form of mooring is stern to with laid lines.  I work this out as I get off the boat to tie up and see the lines on the end of the finger.  But having fingers means that I can get off the boat on the side using our fender step.  Heavenly, especially after yesterday’s efforts of getting on and off at the bows.

The most urgent thing is get some laundry done.  There is a launderette right on the harbour front, but it only has two dryers for 7 washing machines!  But we manage two large loads and will do one tomorrow.

It is scorching hot, to such an extent that I can’t cook until very late. 

Today is Richard’s birthday.  I wake up early and cannot rouse him so I get up and go in to town to get pastries and bread for breakfast.  I even find a birthday card in English!  When I get back I rush to the launderette to put the last load of laundry in.  That finishes just about when we are finishing breakfast. 

We then go in to town.  We have found that the local Spar supermarket delivers to boats for free, so we go there and stock up on lots of drinks and heavy things.  We also find the Orange shop, but we get there one minute after they close for lunch for 2 hours! 

We still haven’t done anything about dinner.  We can’t find a decent restaurant locally.  They are all very touristy and the ones in the guide are miles away.  So I am looking for a fishmongers.  The supermarket tell us that there is a fish market.  We get there just as they are closing, but do succeed in getting two large langouste (crayfish), so Richard will get his birthday lobster dinner.

When we get back to the boat, we find the supermarket van here ready to deliver half an hour before they said they would.  But that is fine and allows us to go to local little restaurant for a light lunch then off to the beach.

After a few hours on the beach and a couple of swims we go back into town to the Orange shop.  Finally get our internet device topped up.  Back to the boat, where it is too hot to cook again.  Finally at about 9pm we decide to try to kill the crayfish.  We have our big problem, we can’t kill the damn things.  You know how many lobsters we have killed over the years.  But this is different.  They damn are so lively that we cannot get a knife into them.  One just literally jumps off the counter when we try.  So in the end we take the advice of recipes on the internet and plunge them into boiling water for two minutes just to kill them, and then split them to grill.  It seems to work out just fine.

So we have our fish and enjoy them enormously.  Not a bad  birthday after all.  And we have something special planned for tomorrow but more of that then.

Thursday 5 June 2014 - L'Ile Rousse

Up fairly early to get away.  First we have a quick walk into town to buy a nice fish to grill for our dinner.

We set off in lovely weather.  Bright blue sky and not much wind.  We had expected light winds, but they were not supposed to be on the nose as they now are.  Richard says I am not to worry because we just have to go north to get out of the bay and then we turn south west when we should be able to sail.

But of course when we change course, so does the wind and it is still too close to sail.  However, as we have to go out to sea to dump the holding tank, Richard heads us away from the wind so we can do some sailing.  At first there is a bit of wind but soon it dies.  Richard decides to use the calm conditions to do some fishing.  When he tries to get out his fishing gear he unpacks the whole locker with all the bits and pieces we have left of our warps.  He then decides it would be useful to do some rope maintenance under way.  While he is cutting and whipping ropes the wind starts to get up.  It is top of a 3 now and we hope to sail, but it is still on the nose.  As the wind is building Richard decides to put all the ropes away.  Just as well, because suddenly for 2 knots of wind we now have 17 knots!  Where does this fluky wind come from?  We can’t understand it.

Now it would be nice to sail in a 4-5 if the wind were in the right direction, but as always it is not.  Richard said that the advice is to go around Corsica anticlockwise to have a following wind, but that is not working for us.  So we tack.  The sea is also getting bigger and very rolly.  After about an hour when we have only progressed about 2 miles to our destination we give up.  We head in towards the shore to get a bit calmer water and take the genoa down and motor straight in to the wind.  It is still pretty lumpy, but as we both agree, at least we are headed in the right direction!  But with the wind in our face, we are cold!  This is despite the sun.  It is so bad that I take refuge below to get warm.

So at about 3:30pm we finally make it to L’Ile Rousse.  We have decided to have a night at anchor, so we don’t go into the harbour.  There is an anchorage right outside the town opposite the beach and there are 4 other boats here.   The wind has dropped to nearly nothing, but the swell is still making the place rather lumpy.  I guess I will survive.

We have our nice fish and are now contemplating an early night.