Brucoli

Mor Toad / Moy Toad
David and Jocelyn Fawcett
Wed 11 Oct 2017 14:37
37:03.63N
15:16.79E

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We set sail south after a quick walk into Catania yesterday morning before breakfast. Crossing the roads anywhere in Sicily even at zebra crossings which sometimes are barely visible on the road is a ' wing and a prayer' that the cars will stop - mostly they do but sometimes not and you really do have to have your wits about you - this morning was no exception with the commuter traffic. We needed to get some money, post our postcards which we'd had for 2 weeks but both struggled to write and get stamps for them and to buy a little more fruit - the peaches are delicious and freshly picked walnuts - ' belissimo' along with fresh mozzarella.

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The forecast was wind from the south so on the nose again but in the event from the east and we had a great sail across the bay to the anchorage we were aiming for - 8.5 knots at times. We weren't sure whether it was going to be just a lunch stop or suitable to stay overnight. Having had lunch and checked several weather forecasts we decided to stay put and in the event it was a relatively calm anchorage with minimal swell.

Sailing across the sea changed from green to turquoise to midnight blue - quite dramatic . On shore were long sandy beaches gone were the volcanic cliffs and inland fairly flat too ( most of the sailing along the north coast and the islands and down as far as Catania has been mountainous interior). Mount Etna still very dominant but behind us now.

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The anchorage was at a place called Brucoli - at the end of a small river and at the mouth a derelict castle and small lighthouse ( still functioning) . The village was a row of coloured houses along the shore with balconies over the sea and on the other side of the bay individual houses with gardens down to the shoreline.

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After lunch David and I launched the dinghy and went ashore first going up the river . Back to limestone cliffs and various pleasure craft and fishing boats moored along the side.

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We pulled the dinghy up onto a small beach and went and explored the town basically 3 parallel streets the one immediately behind the waterfront properties which turned out to be mostly restaurants and bars but all very very quiet barr a few men in front of some of the bars. Few shops and certainly none of the tourist tac which was a pleasant surprise. The other surprise was painted houses and many with murals on them instead of the usual crumbling walls, peeling paint and graffiti.

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Parked on the waste ground near where we'd left the dinghy were two camper vans from Poland and two Italian ones. After getting back into the dinghy we had a quick whizz round the bay and then back to the boat fora G and T and supper. In many of the places we have visited Bells from the many churches in each town and village have sounded out - in Riposta many sounded cracked and definitely not in sync time wise, in Catania again not in sync but a better sound but in this village at 7.00pm the bells played a tune for at least 2-3 minutes - a pleasant surprise.

After a swim and breakfast we took up the anchor and set sail for Siracusa. Big question would we get a sail ? We were warned by several people before we came to the Med. that winds were unpredictable and it would seem weather forecasts also.



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