Passage to Sicily

With a north westerly force 6 forecast we set off at dawn down the east coast of Sardinia planning to stop for the night in a bay just south of Arbatax some 60 nm away. We were up early again the following morning but the forecast northerlies soon changed to south easterlies so we had to change our destination to a bay just short of the south eastern tip of Sardinia hoping the swell wouldn’t creep round the corner giving us too much of a bumpy night before our planned departure to Sicily.

Last dawn, Tavolara island, Olbia

Unfortunately the engine check before we set off the next day showed we had a big problem. We had heard an increased vibration noise and on closer inspection this proved to be a broken engine mount. The bolt had sheared through. We had no choice but to delay our departure and get the problem fixed. We decided to sail back north 15 nm to Porto Corallo which according to the pilot appeared to have engine repair facilities on site. It was too risky to start the motor so we sailed all the way only putting the engine on to manoeuvre into our berth. Within half an hour two guys were on the boat and jacking the engine up. Short of a couple of parts they promised to return the next day to finish the job. Sure enough they reappeared the following afternoon and the problem was fixed.  Amazing service and not too expensive either. Unfortunately we had now lost our ideal weather window so decided to head south to Villasimius where we could wait for the winds to turn westerly again.


Anchored off Favignana



Favignana harbour

Favignana harbour

Five days later we finally set off for Sicily and ended up having to motor sail part of the way to the Egadi islands. We anchored 30 hours later in a bay on the south side of Favignana island ready for a good nights’ sleep. We ventured ashore the next day and walked across the island to the harbour, the centre of the island’s fishing industry, on the northern side.  The Egadi islands are well known for the spring tuna harvest. It used to be a very lucrative business but sadly today the waters around the islands have been overfished. Unfortunately (or maybe not) we just missed the mattanza, the annual ritual slaughtering of tuna, which has become a tourist spectator sport. The town itself was a pleasant array of sandstone coloured buildings and lively piazzas with the now defunct tuna factory dominating the port. We even managed to find a couple of much needed supermarkets on our hot walk back to the boat.

Favignana

Summer at last

We had business back in the UK to sort out so instead of setting sail as planned at the beginning of May we extended our marina contract by a month so we could guarantee good post and email communications. The weather hadn't been too bad in April but it was a wet and windy May. In between gales we managed a quick break in a nearby anchorage and dived under the boat into the icy water, scrapers in hand, to remove some of the winter growth. Instead of the mussel farm we expected we found a thick shag pile carpet interspersed with barnacles. It is quite pricey to have the boat hauled out in Italy so we have opted to have this done in Tunisia. We still need to be able to get there at more than 2 knots an hour so it was important to remove as much of the growth as possible! We finally left the marina for good at the beginning of June after a couple of drinks dos with friends and a farewell pizza at Roxy's.

Ride of a Lifetime enjoying the turquoise waters

The wind had abated and the sun was shining. Summer at last. We set off for pastures new north of Olbia and chilled in Cala di Volpe for a few days. The pilot book promised turquoise waters and exquisite surroundings. We definitely got the turquoise waters up the sheltered creek. Bliss for a few days in June but no doubt very crowded in July and August. The superyachts were beginning to appear and ribs of all sizes flitted past night and day. With a decent weather window forecast it was time to leave the glitzy Costa Smeralda behind and head south down the east coast of Sardinia and over to Sicily. We returned to Olbia to pick up diesel and water and made our way to one of the numerous Tavolara bays before beginning our journey south.

Cala di Volpe and the superyachts