We start this season back where we began our first full Mediterranean summer – in Santa Maria Navarrese on Sardinia’s east coast. This has become one of our favourite spots – relaxed, beautiful, great value, and with the perfect boatyard to winter Merryn, owned by Umberto in Arbatax.
Umberto, as before, had done a great job of looking after our boat. All the standard stuff (polishing, anti-foul, sail cleaning, and so on) was done to the usual high standard, and on top of that we got him to fit our wind generator on a shiny steel pole mount, in preparation for the coming Atlantic crossing.
We stayed a total of five days in Santa Maria Navarrese, re-commissioning Merryn and also taking the opportunities to relax and wander around. We met up with our friends Alistair and Dolores, who we first met when stuck in Gatwick airport waiting on a delayed flight to Sardinia two years ago. They divide their time between Santa Maria Navarrese and London, and it was lovely to meet up for a drink and to catch up. The weather (apart from one rainy day) has been superb, perfect for a walk along the coast to Pedro Longa, accompanied by goats on the path!
Moving on, our first full sailing day was on my birthday, the 4th of May, and we had a bracing sail in powerful westerly winds that kept the seas calm (an offshore breeze) but had us flying along at up to 8 knots. We made landfall in La Caletta, and Cate booked us into a fabulous new restaurant just beside the marina. We celebrated my birthday with a delicious meal of mixed seafood antipasti followed by a huge, freshly baked Grouper fish: yummy!
The winds had abated by the next day, so we had a calmer passage up to the North East tip of Sardinia and settled in to a calm anchorage in a bay called Porto Sole, with a meal on board as the sun set.
Today we have motored across the short stretch of water to Isla Maddalena, an archipelago between Sardinia and Corsica. We have come to the main town of the main island and plan to rest here for a couple of days. Strong Easterly winds are forecast, which will create nasty conditions in the Bonifacio strait, so we intend to play safe and wait for the winds to ease off before heading across the Strait to Corsica.
Fab!
Great to read that you’re back on the high seas, it all sounds wonderful.
Thanks Gary,
We are getting used to life back on board- it is not difficult!