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Trip Report #2-2001: Sicily and The BootFiled from Corfu, Greece39 39.61N 019 51.26EAugust 15, 2001
We left Malta on July 24, 2001. It was hot, humid and dusty in the boat yard when we left and we were happy to be finally under sail in the light breeze outside the harbor. Our destination for the night was the Blue Lagoon on Comino Island, part of the Malta archipelago, and only 15 miles away. We thought it would be a little shakedown sail to a quiet anchorage before setting off for Siracusa, Sicily. When we arrived at the Blue Lagoon, just before sunset, there were a few sailboats at anchor and a number of people from day-tripping motor boats hiking on the island and swimming off the beach. The water was crystal clear and very inviting. Once anchored, in sand with good holding, we had a swim and then a leisurely dinner watching a pleasant sunset. After dark, several large tour boats filled with vacationers arrived. They took some people ashore, while others sat on the boat, danced or listened to the music that each boat played very loudly. There was nothing for us to do but sit back and try to focus on the music we liked best - they were all different! Around 11:30pm, the tour boats went back to Malta and the Blue Lagoon was quiet and peaceful for the night. The next day, "Mardling", a 40-ft. Joe Adams- designed, steel boat, with British friends Terry and Sue on board, waited with us until evening. We left together at 7:30 pm for the overnight sail to Siracusa. There was very little wind and then, only off and on, and we motorsailed most of the 84- mile trip. As we rounded Cabo Passero in the early morning, we noted a very acrid aroma in the air, which we presumed to be from the ash of smoldering Mt. Etna.
As we pulled into Siracusa, we saw friends from Malta, Nick and Betty Borg, on their boat, "Captain Pepper" a Cal-30.
Photo: Nick and Betty in the cockpit of "Captain Pepper", in Siracusa And "Mardling" was right behind us. We pulled into the new marina there and spent 3 days together in Siracusa, a wonderful old city with a rich history. Dinner that first night was enjoyed by the six of us at a restaurant within walking distance from the marina. One of the pasta dishes included a unique fresh ravioli stuffed with swordfish, with an oil, garlic (of course) and lemon sauce that was surprisingly good.
Photo: Tom, Peg, Betty, Nick, Terry and Sue -- The Siracusa Six at Dinner After dinner we joined the "passagiata" and walked through the old city high on the hill overlooking the harbor, enjoying the cool breezes after the heat of the day. The passagiata is a mediterranean custom that involves the entire (seemingly) population of the area coming down town, usually along the waterfront, and walking, meeting friends, bringing family, and often dressing quite formally. It's a very enjoyable custom, pleasant in the night air, and generates a real sense of community. We took buses around the city after purchasing tickets (ride all day for 1500 lire, about $.75 US) at the local tobacco shop. We had a great time exploring the Archeological Park with its' Greek and Roman theatres and "The Ear", a great stone cave, carved by prisoners in Dionysius' time, in a labyrinthine shape, with acoustics good enough to allow the prisoners' guards to hear even whispers. We also spent hours in the Museum of Archeology, marveling at the pottery, statuary, tools and objects of everyday life that were found, evidence of earlier Greek and Roman civilizations, in every settlement along the east coast of Sicily.
Photo: Betty and Nick in the Greco Teatro, Siracusa
Photo: The "Ear", a labyrinthine cave built as a prison, Archeological Park, Siracusa The new marina in Siracusa is very nice with laid moorings, good potable water at the dock and electricity. We paid $35 per night while we were there during the high season. There are alternatives to the marina: One can tie to the wall beneath the old city, which usually requires putting out an anchor and securing to bollards on the wall. Occasionally, there is enough room to lie alongside on the quay. There is a stone shelf along the wall just beneath the water level that bears watching, particularly if there are southerly winds and surge. Friends of ours were lying on the quay in southerly winds when a motor boat coming by exaggerated the oncoming swell and knocked them against the wall, blowing up every fender they had! After spending a few nights in the marina, we then went out and anchored in the northeast part of the bay, close to the marina. Siracusa has one of the best outdoor markets that we've ever seen. We found the most perfect fruits and vegetables, olives, fresh pasta, fresh fish and a variety of cheese and bread. Nick and Betty were delighted with the prices of the produce, about half what we paid in Malta. On the harbor, near the anchorage area in the northwest corner of the bay in Siracusa, is a grocery and wine store where one can provision and buy in bulk quantities at discount prices. There is also a fish store next to the grocery, where shaved, edible ice may be purchased very inexpensively: you must bring your own bag (of any size) in which to put the ice. Cruisers may dock their dinghies nearby and load up, or take a taxi back to the marina for about $5 US. The only bad thing about Siracusa was the daily dusting of the boat with a fine, cindery, black ash from Mt. Etna. We left there and had a 67 nm slog into oncoming waves, motoring in light winds on the nose. Not one of our favorite ways to go! But we arrived that evening in Taormina and anchored in the bay there in sand with good holding. We could see Mt. Etna about 10 miles away with cinders and smoke spewing out of several craters, but we were slightly upwind and there was very little ash on the boat. We could, however, see fingers of red, fiery lava coming down the mountain at night. The little yellow Smoky planes were kept busy landing on the sea in our anchorage to take up water and then dropping the water on the fires caused by the lava. Apparently, the authorities had also dug trenches to divert the molten lava from nearby villages. The villagers appeared to have a fatalistic approach to all of this and seemed to carry on with life as usual. Photo: Mt. Etna from the anchorage in Taormina, Sicily We left Taormina, intending to cross the Straits of Messina, round the Cabo Sportivento on the toe of Italy, and turn more NNE to Rocella Ionica. The wind was forecast NW Force 5. However, the local winds funneling through the Straits of Messina were Force 6, gusting to Force 7 and from the NNE. Waves were 2 meters and close together. We were sailing well under shortened main and staysail, taking an occasional dousing with saltwater as we did things on deck. We realized, however, that when we turned around Cabo Sportivento, we would then have a 32 mile beat into the wind. We decided we didn't like the prospect of that and turned back to Taormina - had a wonderful reach back at 8 knots-to await moderating or changing wind conditions. On our return, neatnik Tom decided his life vest and harness were just too covered with salt water, so he flooded it with clear water - and WHOOSH - it inflated in the cockpit. Apparently, it was one of our newer vests that inflates on serious contact with water, unlike our older vests which require manual inflation. Well, Tom is here to tell you that this new-fangled thing works! Somewhere we have another cartridge and the instructions for it. While we waited for weather conditions to change, we explored Taormina with Terry and Sue. The old city is full of shops and boutiques and a lot of fun to wander through. There were lots of good restaurants with very high prices, but we elected to have a very tasty Sicilian pizza for lunch at a nice little sidewalk cafe, perfect for people watching and reasonably priced. Later that day, after spending a hot afternoon walking through the Greek Theater, we enjoyed an Italian Gelato - they make the very best ice cream and sorbets! The Greek Theater is still in fairly good condition, high above the seacoast with a great view of Mt. Etna, and is still used for performances. They were getting sound and stage ready for a performance by a contemporary musical group while we were touring.
We left Taormina, Sicily, on August 2 at 5 am with winds of 15 knots from the NE. As we crossed the Straits of Messina, the wind continued to build until we had 26 knots but from the N. We crossed the Straits, rounded the Cabo Sportivento in lightening winds and as we headed NNE to Rocella Ionica, the building cumulus clouds over the land helped bring in the sea breeze from the SW. We put up the spinnaker and had a great sail, arriving in Rocella Ionica about 6:30 pm. Rocella Ionica is a fairly new, modern marina with finger piers and it is free. There is good water at the dock, but no electricity. There are plenty of available slips and it is easy to get into if is one is careful to allow about 100 meters for silting around the outermost green-lighted mole. There are showers available for a small fee and there is a restaurant with a varied menu for very low prices. One night, four of us had 2 gigantic, delicious pizzas, water and drinks for about $12 US. The town of Rocella Ionica provides a free shuttle bus from the marina into town, 3 km away, and back four times a day. There are at least two places in town to connect to the internet, both electronic/computer stores with one terminal and fairly fast connections. There are also grocery stores and other services. There is also a large well-supplied supermarket about 3/4 of a mile from the marina. For some reason, we could find no mustard in any of the stores in the towns in Sicily, but we found we could do without it. Terry and Sue left us here to continue their journey up the Adriatic Sea to Dubrovnik and we'll certainly miss them. The day before they left, Jim and Sandy Fitzgerald on Erin O'Lyrr sailed in from Tunisia and it was a really pleasant surprise to see them! We left Rocella at first light on August 7 and sailed all the way to Greece in 14 to 25 knots of wind from the NW with a full moon shining all night long and with very little freighter traffic. We had 3 meter waves in the middle to end of the sail, waves that had a long fetch down the Adriatic Sea. As we closed on Corfu, we were treated to the sight of green islands, so different from the arid, sandy lands we had just left. We sailed directly to an anchorage on Maurtos on the Greek Mainland across the Corfu channel. We intend to spend a few days here in Corfu before going south to Paxos and Cefalonia and other points in Greece. Until then - yassos! Peg & Tom on s/v Starboard Home
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