Month: July 2021

We left the Aeolian Islands on July 23 and made way back to the Italian coastline. There was no wind so we mototed all day in the heat allowing skipper to repair 2 winch handles along the way. We stopped along the way for a swim in the Tyrrhenian Sea with water temperature 29 degrees!

Because of our battery problems, we were forced to stay in more marinas than we hoped. However, as we went up the coast we noticed that there were not many protected anchorages in any event. Most were exposed to the north and west, the prevailing winds. Because we were now in the heart of the Italian vacation summertime, we needed to book our stays at marinas 3-4 days in advance, especially on the Amalfi coast, when previously, only the day before or that day was needed to book a spot. We were generally successful in finding a spot but sometimes we had to move onto the next harbour to find a spot.

We stayed at the marina in Cetraro [it was all fenced in for some reason] where a helpful neighbour gave advice on anchorages and marinas along the Italian coast and booked us a berth in Pisciotta (Italian only speaking port).

Next stop was Scario which was busy with boats. We were first directed to a small space but after a couple of attempts, we told them it was too small and we moved onto a larger spot. Harbourfront was busy with Italian tourists.

This coastline is very rugged with lots of small boat activity around the caves and small calas.

Pisciotta is a small town clinging to the cliffs overlooking the sea. The harbour was also small and very shallow requiring the center board up all the way. We med moored against the breakwall. We walked up the steep hill to the town in the extreme heat. It was not a welcoming town but very quaint with narrow windy streets and many cats. It also had a PA system through the town streets where a local politician was droning on. Quite strange. We had a good dinner at the top overlooking the harbour at Tre Gufi (3 Owls).

We moved onto Agropoli where we picked up some fuel ($1.65/litre) before making our way over to the marina dock for a tight squeeze between 2 large yachts. We had our first cuoppo (Italian fresh fish and chips) at a take out restaurant Cuopperia Tuffiamoci Qui. Deeelish.

Next day was a good sail despite low winds. We used Pink Panther and the mainsail to get 5 kt speed. We stopped at the picturesque town of Amalfi nestled in the cliffs. Beautiful! We moored with our stern against a tall cement wall and used a large marina passerelle to exit the boat with the dinghy moved to the bow. We walked into town. Like all of the places along the Amalfi coast, it was very busy. Lemons were abundant and were the size of grapefruit. The lemon Granitas were most refreshing in the hot afternoon. We also had our first taste of Limoncella. Nice dinner at Taverna Buonvicino.

On July 20 we left Scilla for the Aeolian Islands. Our first stop was at Yacht Harbour at Lipari. Our plan to anchor was aborted by some battery issues that started early morning as we left Scilla. Many mega yachts moor in this harbour and nearby stores are filled will crew picking up supplies. Wine on tap is popular! We had quite a wind leaving Lipari and the marina staff assisted our exit with a push from their dinghy.

Our next stop was Salina where we anchored in an area just north of the harbour. Pleasant spot. There were many boats when we arrived but most boats left around 1900. It was a beautiful night but it became very rolly over night – the first of many rolly nights to come at anchor.

Our next stop was Stromboli. We had a good sail to the west side of Stromboil (the lava side) which is one of 3 active volcanos in Italy. The wind was strong when we were tieed up to the mooring ball. We took a water taxi to shore and walked up to the church in search of supplies. The streets were narrow with lots of taxis and scooters keeping us on our toes. Roadside bars were quite popular there. It was another very rolly night.

We waited 3 nights in Roccella for the right weather to go through the Strait of Messina (a narrow crossing with strong currents between Sicily and Italy). We set out on July 19 at 0458 (it was already hot) for a 12 hour trip to ensure we crossed the strait near slack water and during daylight. Unfortunately we motored the entire way with no wind until we rounded Riace Capo where we had 15-18 on the nose. The wind was great for the kiters who were surfing back and forth across the strait but it was of no assistance to us.

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The entrance to the strait was very busy with crossing ferries between Sicily and Calabria. The ports on each side had a number of privately owned ferries which were on different schedules and destinations. That made it difficult to avoid them. We arrived at narrowest point 45 minutes before slack water and the crossing went well.

According to Greek mythology, mythical sea monsters named Scylla and Charybdis were on opposite sides of the strait. Because the strait is so narrow, they were considered an inescapable threat. Scylla was a six headed monster on the Calabrian side who plucked sailors off boats which passed too close but if passed too close to the Sicilian side, Charybdis was there, who was a whirlpool monster that swallowed ships. In Homer’s book, the Odyssey, Odysseus was advised to sail by Scylla and lose only a few sailors, rather than risk losing his ship to Charybdis. We took Homer’s tip and even managed to escape the clutches of Scylla.

Once we passed through the strait we were intrigued with the traditional swordfish fishing boats. Very strange looking boats. They have a mainmast about 25 metres high, at the top of which is one of the crew looking out for swordfish which at times swim near the surface. The boat also has a very long bowsprit where the fishermen perched ready to hurl harpoons with a long fishing line to catch the fish. Fresh swordfish in the summer is always on the menu in Sicily and Italy.

Swordfish boat in action

We settled into our mooring in Scilla, Italy not far from the Strait. No marina at Scilla. There is only a small harbour for the local fishing boats. We used a mooring ball and tied off the bow and stern for 50 euros but hey they did collect garbage as part of that fee and provided a water taxi to and from the town.

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Scilla is a quaint town which climbs up the step rock wall above the harbour and also has a beach front area for tourists with restaurants . We took a lift up to the main town for supplies where there was a beautiful view of the sea and The Ruffo Castle, a fortress built by the Dukes of Calabria. This is also the traditional site of the sea monster Scylla of Greek mythology.

We walked down with supplies and had dinner at a restaurant clinging to the rock wall on the water. Charlie had swordfish, of course. While eating we watched one of residents in a neighbouring house go snorkeling and later came back with octopus and fish for their dinner.

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After a pleasant night at anchor in Othonoi, Greece we left for Santa Maria di Leuca, Italy.  Our stops along Italy’s southern coast were the same as our trip to Albania except for a stop in Gallipoli.  We tried out the free mooring in the Gallipoli commercial harbour.  A few spots are reserved for transiting boats and we were able to snag one.  We med moored and stern tied (without assistance on the dock) to the high wharf wall beside the fishing boats, We had not done a Med mooring with anchor for sometime and with the not so helpful wind we provided a great source of entertainment as we settled into our spot for the night. We met Ralph on the cat Frida moored next to us. We were impressed with his repair skills. Their throttle cable broke while docking and he had to quickly jury rig a new one. His one-handed bowline hanging off the wharf wall with the other hand as he was helping in another boat impressed us further and made it clear we have a long way to go with our knot tying.

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We didn’t venture far from the wharf but from what we saw Gallipoli was a very vibrant spot with unexpected crowds in the streets which we hadn’t seen before.  It was a bit more of a tourist place that we were anticipating. We had dinner at a great restaurant, La Lampari, close to the marina where you picked out your raw seafood and they grilled it.  This turned out to be our best seafood dinner along our journey. 

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We had some good winds from Gallipoli to Crotone.  En route to Roccella we had strong winds and were entertained by pirate music along the way. As we approached Rocella, we could see there was a fire in the hills behind the marina we were going to stop at. We waited to see what the fire was going to do before we entered the marina. The weather had been extremely hot and dry this summer – this was not the first fire we had seen while sailing the coastline.  The Italian forestry department quickly responded to the fire. We saw for the first time the Canadair water bombers in action putting out the fire with very short turnaround times. We had a good dusting of ash on the deck of our boat by morning but fortunately it cleanly washed off.  

We stayed 3 nights in Roccella as we waited for the right  weather to pass through the Messina Strait.  It gave us time to do some boat chores including servicing the two stern winches, do laundry and walk into town (2km) for supplies. We had a light rain for the first time but it did not last long. We would not see rain for many days thereafter.

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Plan ‘A’ to visit Tunisia was changed as it was closed due to a large spike in Covid cases. So Plan ‘B’ – Albania was put into play. From Siracusa we did an overnight passage to Rocella just up the coast of the toe of the Italian boot. We had good wind to start and the usual dodging of cargo ships along the way. Did not get much sleep as it was too hot. Little did we know that very hot days and nights were to be the norm. The wind died shortly before dawn and the sails came down. Fortunate as about 0500 the wind unexpectedly picked up reaching 38 kn as we approached Rocella. The tired crew waited for a break in the wind before entering the marina. The marina was well protected. Much to our surprise the marinara was a Toronto Maple Leafs fan!

From there we made a dash across the bottom of the Italian boot in two long hot days stopping at Crotone and Santa Maria di Leuca. Nothing special about these marinas but all pleasant. We had brief periods of good wind but in general a lot of motoring. Along the way we enjoyed good pizza, the Italy/Spain semi final match, dinner in a lovely courtyard in Santa Maria (Hosteria del Pardo), and we even worked in a few boat chores including servicing 2 winches.

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We finalized details with the Albania agent at Sarande Summer Tours. Albania was doing well with Covid so no quarantine or testing was required.

On the morning of July 10 we left Santa Maria, Italy at 0530 for a 12 hour sail to Albania. It was a great sail with 15-18 kn of wind most of the way.

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We arrived in Sarande at 1730 and made way to the Customs dock on the west side of the large city harbour. We were able to dock alongside the concrete customs dock where we met our agent. Our checkin process went smoothly (only 30 minutes) and our agent arranged for a fuel truck to arrive the next morning as well as a Covid test for getting back into Italy. Very impressed with Jelja’s service! We were able to moor at the Customs dock for our 2 night stay. This was much more secure than anchoring in the harbour bay and we could not be any safer than being in the secured customs dock. We were only there a couple of days but the custom guards got to know us.

We were busy with fueling, Covid tests and getting supplies so we didn’t venture too far into Sarande but enjoyed the Albanian food at CACI (lamb with yogurt, squid). It was a busy place and many families out strolling the seawall at night. No particular interesting architecture as most of the buildings were in the post war Soviet style. It was a good visit.

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Our exit papers were prepared for the morning of July 12. We decided to break up the trip back to Italy by stopping at an anchorage we saw on our way over – the Greek island Othonoi. There were a few boats in the bay when we arrived but they all left by nightfall and we had the bay to ourselves. Beautiful! Charlie thought he heard the Sirens calling during the night but he did not succumb.

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After a long a 9 month separation due to Covid, we were reunited with Chinook again in Marina di Ragusa. She was miffed about us abandoning her for such a long time but after a good washing of the deck, all was for given. She spent the winter in the water with a watchful eye from Sam. We began the neverending tasks of getting her ready to sail once again.

On July 1st we left the docks and started to sail the coast of Sicily. First stop, an anchorage at PortoPalo and then to Siracusa.

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Enroute to Siracusa we stopped by the beaches at Pachino where the 48th Highlanders (Charlie’s old regiment) landed during the invasion of the Sicily during World War II.

The wind picked up in the afternoon and we roared into the Siracusa harbour at 9 kn with no relief from the winds. While sailing in that wind was exhilarating, it made it difficult getting the sails down and complicated the mooring at the marina (Yacht Club Lakkios).

Siracusa is a must see in Sicily – really enjoyed it. Very ancient city rivaling ancient Athens in its day with many layers of following civilizations. The narrow streets were charming and also provided some relief from the ever present sun. Cod da Saretta was a very small restaurant in the old city that served wonderfully fresh seafood: sea bass, swordfish (Charlie’s favourite), langostina, mussels (Kathie’s favourite) and of course, pasta which was great even in the marginal food places we hit on our trip. Euro 2020/2021 was on at this time and we caught the Belgium Italia game outdoors in Piazza Archimede. The Sicilian fans were infectious with their enthusiasm.

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