Sicily and the Messina Straits

Riposto with Mount Etna behind

 

29^th May We left Argostoli at midday on the 27^th May and arrived at Riposto in Sicily at 10.30 this morning.  We had a mixed voyage, with big, lumpy seas, strong wind on the nose, then light winds on the beam and finally no wind at all. We now have a splendid view of Mount Etna from our mooring here in the marina.

Taormina old town

30^th May Today we took the train to Taormina, a picture postcard town perched on a rocky promontory high above the sea. It’s a lovely place, with carefully restored medieval buildings and former palaces that are now upmarket hotels. But it was also very hot and packed with tourists, so we were quite glad to return to the peace of Riposto.

Restored palace in Taormina

31^st May Our next challenge was to sail through the Messina Straits, a narrow, 1 ½ mile gap between Sicily and Italy where the Ionion and Tyrrhenian seas meet. Our pilot book warned that a combination of strong tidal streams, whirlpools and sudden gusts of wind can make this a tricky place to sail. We had heard of boats literally sailing backwards in the current, so it was essential that we got our timing right and travelled through with the tide behind us.

We crept out of the marina at first light at 6.15am, it would take five hours to reach the Straits and the plan was to hug the Sicilian coast for as long as we could. After a pleasant hour’s sail the waves began to increase and the wind veered so that it was almost on the nose. The boat soon became uncomfortable and we decided to change course and head across to the Italian coast. At first the motion improved, but then the sea state deteriorated until the waves were so steep that Sandpiper’s  nose was being buried deep in the waves while her stern was raised so high that the propeller was barely touching the water. At the same time waves crashed over cockpit and we crouched under the sprayhood trying to avoid getting drenched.

These were some of the worst sea conditions we had faced, and we briefly discussed whether we should turn back, but we decided to keep going in the hope it would improve. Three hours later, as we neared the Italian coast the wind finally began to ease and the waves reduced. By the time we entered the Strait itself, the sea was almost flat and there was only a whisper of wind. 



Rather blurry photo of a sword fishing boat

As we headed towards the little Italian port of Bagnara, our destination for the night , we passed several traditional sword fishing boats. They have surprisingly tall masts with men on a lookout platform at the top, and a very long bow sprit with another man precariously balanced on the end, ready to harpoon the unsuspecting  swordfish. The hull of the boat is quite narrow and you wonder how on earth they manage to keep the whole thing upright. Oh, and talking of keeping upright, I almost fell over the side of our boat trying to take this picture!


The beach at Cefalu

The lovely old town of Cefalu

3^rd June We are now in the pretty resort town of Cefalu on the north coast of Sicily. We were glad we arrived early yesterday as there is a big regatta this weekend and by 6pm the marina was full.  We’ve had a pleasant day exploring the old town, relaxing on the beach and watching the boats race offshore. Tomorrow we hope to leave for Sardinia.

6^th June We left Cefalu before sunrise with a promise of light winds on the quarter. The wind soon died and we were forced to motorsail for the whole of the two day trip across to Sardinia. On the morning of the second day the engine suddenly stopped and we discovered oil in the bilges. After an hour with his head in the engine bay Cliff eventually found the source of the problem – a leak in the oil pump gasket. He was unable to fix it so we decided to top up with oil every few hours. There was no wind and we were getting through oil at an alarming rate, so it was touch and go whether we would make it to port without the engine stopping.  I found this particularly worrying as our approach to land was littered with dangerous rocks! Luckily we just managed to limp into Villasimius and got a birth overnight.  Then this morning we bought more oil before sailing on down to Cagliari where we will leave the boat for three weeks while we go back to the UK for our son’s wedding.