Passage: Taormina, Sicily to Gallipoli, Heel of Italy ( 198.6, nm )

Crew: Frank, Jackie and Karl 

Weather: fine and sunny; little hazy; Wind: SW 4 forecast

11:00 Picked up our anchor and left the bay on motor setting a course of 82 degrees. After 6 weeks in Sicily, we leave this beautiful island.

13:00 Engine off The promised SW arrives and we pull out our sails achieving an average SOG of 6.5 kts

15:00 Switch engine on Wind has dropped taking us down to some 4.4 kts so necessary to motor sail with an rpm of 18:00 to maintain our 6.5kts.

17:00  Engine off. The wind has picked up so with mizzen and genny set for a run we switch off engine and continue to achieve our 6kts plus.

20:30 38:10.35N 16:21.78E Still sailing on genny and mizzen with weakening wind up the chuff; SOG: 5 to 5.7kts. Watches: K 9-12; F 00.00 – 03.00hrs and J 03:00 hrs – 06:00 hrs

20:30 set genny and mizzen sails to a‘goose wing’ configuration as wind veered to the west and directly behind us.

23.25  38 22 38N 18:3476E Switch on engine. With the wind having dropped and with the boat speed down to 4.3 kts the sails are brought in and the engine started. With 18:00 rpm we are making. Off Monasterace 2.6nm to port and half way up the toe of Italy.

Total engine hours for the day:4.4 hrs – say fuel consumed 20 litres.

Monday 26 August 2013

00:00 38:25N 16:39E Watch change from K to F. No wind, now purely motoring with sails in with a SOG of 7.8kts at 1800 rpm. DTG:120nm ETA 16:00 hrs

J took over at 2:45. A beautiful, uneventful night with calm seas, motoring at 1800rpm. Passed a few fishing boats and were passed on a parallel course by a large cargo vessel.

A fine morning with cloudless skies and little or no wind. Did boat’s brightwork which has been badly needed for a while.

Noon 39:31.85N 17:37.48E

14:30 39:49.47N 17:48.64E  Motor sailing. SOG:7kts CSE 26 degrees     DTG: 14nm ETA: 16:40

17:00 40:03.56N 17:59.427E Gallipoli Took some time on arrival to identify selected marina. Finally found the hole and slipped in effortlessly. The local yacht club marina wanted 150 € per night whereas this place charges, whilst far from worth it, our selected marina/boatyard,  Darsena Fontanelle came in at 90 € per night.

Gallipoli is made of the old town huddled on an island separated from the mainland by a small bridge. It is covered by a warren of narrow streets and stairways dividing the tightly packed merchant houses that are nowadays mostly apartments. The castle and fortifications originally byzantine was later much modified. It occupies a key position at the harbour entrance and was used as late as 1809 when it drove off a Royal Navy squadron.

The old town is packed with young Italian holidaymakers as we enter it on this our first evening ashore.  

The new town across the bridge is by contrast – reinforced concrete and non – architecture comparing badly with the elegance of the old town.

Tuesday 27 August 

Spent day in marina doing various chores. In the evening we had a delightful table overlooking the sea and farewell dinner for Karl at the Risacca restaurant local to the fortress.