Well actually 31 August but it fits better this way.
Sicily to Sardinia.
This passage was planned to be between 30 and 36 hrs. Which, looking back from 14 years later is quite surprising as up to then I had done very little singlehanding. I had very good copy on a number of boats from Kemer on Mednet.
The wind had dropped and the forecast for Sunday was light winds, force 1 or 2 N or NW. So mostly engine probably. Estimated foul current of about 3/4 kt.
31 August Sunday. Aweigh Favignana 0645. Calm. Course 295C.
0900 Sea lumpy wind NNW f1. Is.Marettino abeam. Frenchman ahead doing pirouettes. Mechanical Marco (automated Italian weather station) gives NW f4 later. Pity. NAVTEX from Kaliningrad - nothing from Rome!!
1030 Doing 6.6kt by log but only 4.5 kt over the ground which is unfriendly. By 1500 the current had nearly died. We were using main and Perkins as course almost dead to windward and v. little wind.
1945 Sunset dead ahead, sickle new moon.
To: "wiksberg" <john.kirkus@kolumbus.fi>
Subject: Tyrrhenian Sea
X-MID: 1073_m0jrk
X-Type: Email; Outmail
Date: 31 Aug 2003 20:54:19 -0000
X-From: m0jrk
X-Status: Sent
X-Via: HF.PA3DUV
X-Date: 2003/08/31 20:54:20
Hello from the middle of somewhere
It really is still quite busy even though it is half past midnight. A large liner has just passed and there is a fishing fleet off to starboard. The wind is from ahead of course but not enough to help us through the lumpy seas so progress is a little slow. Hopefuly we reach somewhere in Sardinia by midday (Monday).
The sunset was dead ahead and beautiful, followed by the young moon. The stars are now fantastic and the phosphorescence sparkling out astern.
I have the Watch alarm on the autopilot switched on which means that every four minutes I must go to the Autohelm control and cancel the horrid peeping. Still it does keep me awake.
Hope your day with Teddy went well, maybe she has left for work already.
Will sms when in range.
A pos report shoüld also come
POK
PN
1 September Monday
0030 Position reports via Winlink..................
Thereafter slowly doing washing up and a hair wash to help me stay awake.
0700 13-15kt wind on the nose. Motor sailing tacks.
0830 Wind almost gone, all over the place.
1200 Anchored in 5m outside Villasimius marina.
Sleep
2 September Tuesday
This was supposed to be a gentle potter around to Cagliari main harbour.............
0830 Aweigh Villasimius. WSW 25kt.
0930 One reef, wind veering and heading - should have had more reefs but this was ridiculous for such a short trip!
Engine and main only
1030 Wind f6 true. Bumpy.
1300 Moored Cagliari main wall. Very friendly and helpful folk.
1730 Our new crew Jori Kaunisto and Maria Holm arrived exactly on time
4 September Thursday
Having got ourselves settled in and filled fuel and stores on Tuesday we prepared for a short introductory passage to Malfano - approx 30nm
0900 Departed Cagliari heads. Wind offshore, we set full main and genoa for a useful and fast sail
along the coast and into the eastern bay of Malfano.
1330 Anchored in 6.4 m.
5 September Friday to Menorca
0645 weighed anchor- as usual I didn't reckon this as a Friday departure having already left port on Thursday! This manoeuvre had twice before not worked - instead it produced nasty thunderstorms. Watch this space.
0900 Wind gusting 35kt ENE 3 reefs and plenty of rolls in genny. Going rather well!!
1330 Wind has been up to 40kt (true) Main furled and very small genny. Going like a train.
1700 Wind all over the place and guess what, thunder all around. Not quite so pleasant.
2000 Wind variable. Perkins. Jori on watch
2359 JRK on watch. Trip 101nm
Saturday 6. Sept
0300 Temporary course change more southwards to try to get around lightning.
0400 Maria on watch. Perkins and genny. Looks as if we are past the lightning.
0630 Dawn, sloppy sea
1000 Main and genny. One reef owing to missing batten wedge.
1700 Wind gone, Perkins only, motoring home. Pretty evening, a few showers ahead.
2045 Anchored 5.5m in our well-known cala Teulera / Longa, excellent holding as always but a little crowded. Amulet already here.
Winlink extract: ( 7 Sept)
To: "wiksberg" <john.kirkus@kolumbus.fi>
X-Type: Email; Outmail
Date: 07 Sep 2003
Subject: Mahon and things
X-MID: 1079_m0jrk
X-From: m0jrk
X-Status: Sent
X-Via: HF.PA3DUV
X-Date: 2003/09/07
Hello Flower
The anchor seems well in, the bottom is sandy mud and most of the boats around are long distance people. Amulet will leave Canaries after Christmas.
Jori and Maria have been a most cheerful and positive crew. We had a couple of patches of very windy and bumpy weather and they coped wonderfully. In fact the only domestic problems were mine......I spilled coffee twice and a large lump fell off a tooth!
The barometer is now falling but the grib files give favourable and moderate winds for tomorrow. Midday Tuesday is supposed to be Westerly but not above f4. So at present I plan a 50nm passage to E Mallorca for Mon and then if poss a coastal 50nm to Arenal, as before. Then there is expected to be gale or worse from NNW. I do not intend to be out in that. The wind should ease on Thurs possibly allowing me the 50nm to Ibiza on Friday.............it looks a bit tight but only time will tell.
Pleasant day, long dinghy row in to town. Our helpful and cheerful crew on their way home.
Planning for crossing to Mallorca tomorrow.
8 September Monday
Harbour nerves this morning. Unfriendly sky and wind whistling in the rigging. Still....
0715 Aweigh Cala Longa (tight for single hander but ok)
0900 Wind fading. Main, genny + Perkins.
Thereafter no wind at all. Motored into Porto Colom.
18.30 Anchored on what seemed a rocky bottom but was in fact disused concrete mooring blocks!
9 September Tuesday
Discovered that the chain was wrapped around one of the blocks.
Re-anchored further out in 9.5 metres with 50m out. Motored it in for full 5mins at 2000 revs.
Wind rising from North. Shower and hair wash. Slightly nervous study of GRIB files.
10 September Wednesday
Good that we got away from Mahon - it is closed by a storm....
Our forecast NNW 4 which should do nicely for the short 13nm passage round to Porto de Campos.
Anchored in 3.8m off the beach in the rather open bay
And left again in a hurry - the choking stench at 3am was so bad it woke me and I simply had to get the anchor up and go.
11 September Thursday
0330 aweigh - see above. Wind light NW.
On passage to Ibiza to meet Christel.
0645 first glow of dawn competing with full moon.
A worrying message from Göran suggesting he and Pia might be splitting and therefore not able to crew the Atlantic.
Light winds continued.
1700 Moored Marina Botafoch Ibiza
12 September Friday
Christel, having had a day's stopover in Barcelona landed in the early afternoon.
No modification to the ships papers were needed - a bit odd that the Crew List would be incorrect.....
We did some shopping and prepared to leave on the morrow.
 |
| Ibiza drops astern |
13 September Saturday
A really pretty morning.
10.30 Left our moorings and motored Southwards.
We decided to take the quicker route through Ibiza's satellite islands to the South and were encouraged that a sailing regatta was also taking the same passage.
19.40 Reset the main to reduce rolling - which it did. Almost zero apparent wind from astern.
 |
| W Crossing the Greenwich Meridian E |
14 September Sunday
02.15 Crossed into Western Hemisphere, in about 38 degrees North.
A night with much shipping including fleets of purse seine fishermen.
Little wind.
A pretty approach to the mainland coast - passing within a few miles of Bosse and Nilla.
14.00 Mazarron, Anchored off the beach 3.5m. Trip 154nm. But we moved in to Club Nautico pontoon in the evening. Which was fortunate because we got a thunderstorm gusting 27kt in the night.
15 September Monday
09.00 Took on 250lt diesel.
10.00 Cleared Club Nautico. Things then got a little troublesome, the belt for the second alternator failed. Replacement fitted - warm work!
Thereafter things went fairly well till we came to anchor inside the harbour mole at Garrucha. 16.30. (Not a marina in those days) Trip 30.7nm
The anchorage was pretty full and we re-anchored twice to ensure a good distance from other boats. There was much other activity with tugs and gravel-carrying barges.
The final anchoring place in 6.7m felt rather foul.
It was.
16 September Tuesday.
Ahead, astern, hard to port, hard to starboard. Nothing would shift the anchor.
Skipper went for a swim and discovered a barrel full of concrete. Nothing was going to shift it.
Ashore by dinghy.
Mate afflicted with very heavy cold and fairly heavy gloom.
However we got the promise of a diver, HOY even.
And indeed he came with his mate in a small fishing boat.
And all we needed was a llave inglesa.
Which seemed pretty appropriate. (Adjustable spanner)
and 120Euro which the mate deemed well worth it!
Garrucha
17 September Wednesday
0630 Aweigh Garrucha
Helpful wind around 18kt. Full genny only.
0830 Pta de la Media Naranja
1030 Pta de Loma Pelada
 |
| Not too sure these photos are in the right order! |
11.45 Cabo de Gata
17.10 Moored Almerimar marina.
18 September Thursday
Here we hired a little Citroen for a two day inland tour.
We pottered upwards through Berja and eventually escaped the plastic "greenhouses". Stopped for picnic at Ugijar where views were starting to be splendid.
We had heard that Tim and Jenny were thinking of buying a plot high up in the hills near Berchules so we thought we should visit the village.
And to everyone's total amazement ......we turned a corner and there they were!!
Beer and tapas in the square then up to see the "plot"
What a location - what a huge project.
What bravery!!
,Breathtaking panorama.
Back down to the village. We booked an overnight at pretty Mirador beyond Cadiar and joined Tim and Jenny for dinner in very popular inn.
We wished them all the luck in the world. Gosh.
20 September Saturday
0800 Dropped moorings Almerimar
Pottered along the coast in zero wind. Skipper with lousy cold.
Mate went over for a swim.
Skipper trying the towed generator to discover how serious the drag might be. We lose about 0.25kt at 6kts. Subsequently realised this would make no difference if sailing at hull speed in trades.
Anchored just W of P de la Mona with the sun setting on the other side of the bay
Pretty time for a sundowner
or two.
sms from Iso. She arrives Gibraltar 12/10 so we have time in hand.
sms from Tim. They have provisional planning permit. Splendid.
21 September Monday
0820 aweigh.
Calm seas, no wind. Retracing outward journey with Butta in 1995.
Past Malaga. Good.
Onward to Marbella
Anchored again off open beach 3.2m. Sand.
Marbella about 4nm towards the sunset. Looks better after dark.
22 September Tuesday.
0825 aweigh.
Dull and grey to begin with.
Then a breeze began to fill from WNW not quite freeing us. Idle skipper decided against tacking all the way in!!
 |
| The Rock |
1600 tied up at customs jetty almost beneath the runway.
Thereafter shifted to Queensway marina.
Looks quite opulent.
Smells quite bad.
Surprisingly restless mooring, just inside the entrance.
The rest of September was spent mostly working on the boat. We also climbed the rock of course and did the tunnels tour which was really interesting.
Boat work included a rig check - passed satisfactorily.
Opening life-raft (fine) and full service.
 |
| Nice new chain. |
Minor drips around genny track and windlass fixed - the fixing was a lot less minor than the drips.
Built collision bulkhead in forepeak.
Chain marked and anchor painted white.
