Monday 14th September... LINDA -
So here we are again in the lovely Egadi Islands. A nice colourful array of boats in the buoy field this morning. Thesee on the left, the red boat is German, and the white boat...well i'm not sure... But a beautiful peaceful morning to wake up to, not too hot either.
Dean asked at the dive hut whether they would rent him a dive cylinder for the day so he can carry on scrubbing the hull. They said no, so he's back to his snorkel. The water here is so clear and warm, apparantly 26 degrees, and a lot of fish...so i won't be going in then.
The small boat harbour near the dive hut
Bird on a hot tin roof
Cat on a hot concrete wall
Our friends Fiona and Nigel on Winsome came back from the other island and moored next to us this afternoon. Late afternoon we had yet another big squall preceded with winds of about 30 knots. Dean was in the water scrubbing at the time, but came out just before as he could see the white horses building. It was rough for about 30 minutes then started calming and then the rain came and lasted a couple of hours. After it had all passed, Fiona and Nigel came over for a drink for a couple of hours and we drank wine and got to know each other. They are from the Southampton area and have a Discovery 55 yacht... Nice.
Dean taking the plunge
Our visitor's arrival, by dinghy
Followed by a super sunset
Tuesday 15th September... LINDA - Saffy's Big Day Out !! What an adventure we all had today walking into the town (like we did last time we were here). It's a super 20 minute walk, along the road but still lovely. Saffy can't do 20 minute walks these days, so Dean bestowed a new form of transport upon her.
Trolley dog
Thanks Dad x
This is great Dad
Trolley Dog did indeed work a real treat and Saffy sat there quite happily looking at the goings on as she was wheeled into town, being smiled at by all the cyclists and passers by.
Once in town we headed straight for the quayside to check out costs for mooring for a couple of days next week. We have an anchoring/buoys permit which lasts until next Sunday evening, so after that we will probably go on the quay if we're happy to stay longer.
At the harbour, near the Tuna museum
La Darsena mooring pontoon
The main square
and another piazza here
Looking for a lunch stop
We had already stopped for a nice coffee and croissant in the main square and after a walk about tried to find a place for lunch but as always, i didn't like the look of anything they had to offer so we carried on and went back to the beach. Here there was a quaint beach bar so we had a beer and a nice glass of vino bianco. Liquid lunch.
Zooming in on the grand hilltop castle
Happy Lunchtime Drinky
10 euros but worth it i think
...with views like this
Even though Saffy got wheeled all the way back she was still shattered and promptly took herself off to bed on her puppy pad.
Good Girl
Crafty stowaway
It was time to move on to another island north of here called Levanzo, it's one of the Egadi Islands so our weekly permit still covers us for buoys and anchoring. Before we left the shores of Favignana we popped into a small bay on the south east of the island called Cala Azzurra. We took a buoy for an hour or so, put the kettle on, and indulged in elevenses. With a lovely sandy seabed the water was a gorgeous clear blue. Too much for Dean to resist and in he went with his hull scraper.
Moving on we turned north and up along the east coast where there are more buoys but it's very open. However, still lovely blue sea and cave escavations in the rocks.
So onwards for a quick hop across to Isola di Levanzo and yet another buoy field for tonight's stop.
Thursday 17th September... LINDA - Another day spent in Levanzo today beginning with a very short trolley dog ramble around the bay.
Friday 18th September... LINDA - It was a lovely sunny morning here in Levanzo. Very calm in the bay. We've had 5 days out of 7 so far and still only done 2 out of 3 islands. We made a decision that it was not calm enough to head across the 10 miles or so to Isola di Maretimmo, and so took an anti-clockwise route around Favignana instead to see the north and west sides. The sea was quite confused in-between the two islands for a while, and we rolled around a fair bit, in fact at one point i had to stop Saffy sliding off the seat.
A favourite swim stop for the tourist boats
Hey, you're supposed to be hull scraping!
About to get to work...
...whilst i picture the scenery
Almost there
Wasn't expecting to see a pyramid today??
Here come the ferries
It's just a small fishing village
By late afternoon all the buoys were taken and the latecomers all had to anchor. There were 11 boats here in total in our bay called Cala Freddo. We had to dinghy around the small headland to get ashore on the quay for a Saffy walk, where we met a cat that was the spitting image of our late Tibby, bless.
Minding out for ferries on our dinghy dash
Tibby's double
Can i take you home please?
Not a lot here but some nice decor
and a good pathway
Painted tiles depicting Levanzo
It's just a tiny fishing harbour with a quay for the ferries. What amazed us so much was that the water in the harbour was crystal clear.... very unusual for a fishing harbour.
Looking down from the pathway
Waterside bar
Notice the clear water
Rusty old boat crane
Still in use i might add
Painted tiles depicting the old times
Tuna nets north of Favignana
Bit of a bumpy ride for Saffy
Lovely clear blue patches of water
Short stop to take in the scenery
Of course, Thesee gets in the picture
Ooh a better blue patch photo here
Not sure what or who's this building is but it's quite grand
On the way back, painted fish souvenir hangers
An elderly couple stopped to chat as we were taking the scenery stop. They were Italians living in Milan but have a summer home here on Levanzo, i think. Anyway, they loved Saffy dog..... everybody does.
One more photo from today is of the cemetary which you can see on the shore from where Thesee is moored.
The cemetary
Every day the mooring staff come round in their rib taking the money and checking off who's paid. We like to watch them knowing they will just tick us off the list having paid up for the week. There were three boats anchored as all the buoys were full, and as far as we know anchoring is not allowed over night. Sometime around 5pm the anchored boats all left and went into the harbour where they had obviously had permission to tie up to the local moorings. I think Dean wished it could have been us because he loves to just sit, relax, and watch the comings and goings of the fishing boats.
First thing this morning
Fishermen setting their nets
They set them in a circle then pull it all back in
You can see the floats
Just after we passed the conspicuous lighthouse on the north west corner of Favignana we popped ourselves into a lovely bay called Cala Grande, dropped the hook, put the kettle on, and settled down to elevenses. Dean had a swim of course. The water was super clear. It wasn't very scenic but all around the waters edge was very rocky and pretty to look at. We were surprised when a helicopter came flying past at low altitude.
The lighthouse
The bay with lots of snorkelling nooks and crannies
The helicopter
We only stayed for an hour or so because tonight's destination was a buoy in another bay called Scindo Passo. We like this particular area very much, it's on the south side of the island. We were the only boat there and had a choice of about 12 buoys. It was very dark at night at the side of the big cliff. In fact the cliff reminded me of the film 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'.
The small rocky beach
Here's the 'Close Encounters' cliff
Fantastic variety of rock formations
It's quite spectacular
We had to motor to get there but it was a chance to charge the batteries so we didn't mind. We arrived at midday. The bay is quite spectacular, with a small beach that is impossible to get off and go anywhere. So the idea we had to be able to walk to the town went out of the window. The rock formations are mesmerising and make up for the fact that there is zero phone/internet signal here.
Thesee in Scindo Passo
before departure this morning
It was a little rolly on occasions in Marettimo but i think probably the best you could get out here, after all it's the last stop off before the jaunt to Sardinia. The water once again fantastically clear. Dean was in his element and took a lot of underwater photos on the Go Pro camera whilst he was boarding and snorkelling.
Arrival at high sided Cala Conca, Marettimo
Crystal clear blue water
Someone's dinghy went awol
but they swam for it
Dean on the board
Now where's he off to?
Disappearing behind a rock
Ah that;s better, he's back
and having a laugh with Saffy
Here's the Go Pro camera photos... Dean likes to check what's holding us.
Our floating buoy attached to the submerged buoy
Good connections, rope to chain
The submerged buoy close up
Guess who's bottom this is?
Another good shot near the surface
The submerged buoy is held in the sand
but we're not sure how it's done.
The sandy seabed is perfectly clean
Here's a good shot
Here's a great shot with our swim ladder deployed
In the rocky shallows
Later on, a very large sailing yacht called 'Squall' (that we've been stalking) came and anchored not far off shore. Out here the nights are very dark and i kind of like having other boats around. There were in fact about another 6 boats with us, which was a good job because Squall left just before sunset (after it seemed that they had only stopped to walk their dog).
This is SV Squall
.... it's a biggie
Late walkies, we find megaliths
Nice cove for landing
but nothing else here
On our way back to Thesee
Some of the rocks
More rocks
Too high to climb
Sunday 20th September... LINDA - I had to give in because I couldn't resist the blue water lagoon any longer, and out came the bikini! Yikes, one step braver than the swimming costume. In I went and it was only 8.30am I might add. Mind you only a quick dip as I am still not very confident in the sea. We hadn't even walked Saffy yet.
Dean had a brilliant idea as we wanted to visit the town about a mile up the coast, but couldn't get over the big rock. We moved just around the headland and took a buoy in Cala Marino. This would be good for tonight's southerly wind too. From here we could easily just dinghy into town instead of walking, and that's just what we did. But first Dean had tried a new method of picking up the buoy and it worked perfectly. Hard to explain but here's the photos. He used our super duper boat hook, but instead of hooking a line through the loop he attached a clip instantly. This meant we were were held and could mess around with the lines afterwards.
Clever stuff
Step 2
We got to the town (village), it was pleasant enough for a walkabout, but nothing really to rave about. But whilst we were here we bought a few groceries and picked a good coffee stop overlooking the marina. Well just a dodgy pontoon really but surrounded by local fishing boats. In fact we were a little underwhelmed but it was ok, and we were both pleased that we made the effort to get here.
The Church as always
centre of attention
Streets (with no litter)
things are looking up
I love the way the homes have their own
painted nameplates
Here's another
Bar in the side streets
So once again, back to Thesee and I took these photos looking towards the town. You can see how mountainous the island is. Apparantly great for hiking, and we can see why.
After some debate we chose to leave and go back to Favignana this afternoon. We had a lovely calm sail back at 4.5 knots. As i said, our week's permit was expiring at 6.30pm today so we went back to Favignana to go in the free anchorage. Dean got in again and finished the hull scrub. He's a happy bunny now.... honest.
Monday 21st September... LINDA - We're planning our route back to Licata but the weather isn't right until about Wednesday or Thursday so we moved to the north of Favignana and onto a pontoon concession in the harbour. Last night we didn't get a lot of sleep due to the boat rocking, and when we reached the pontoon berth i had a good hour and half kip.
This morning's sunrise
The sea much calmer now
The ferries come into the port quite regularly, and as we approached one was just leaving and one arriving, so we had to slow down and wait for them to get out of our way! There's a lot fewer tourists around than when we were last here at the end of July, so i can't understand why the ferries are still so regular.
This afternoon we got the bikes out. First time in about a year we reckon. We set off on about a 20 minute ride to Lido Burrone which is a very popular beach and beach bar place. Again with crystal clear blue water. Saffy enjoyed her bike ride. I think it's less bumpy for her on the bike than on the shopping trolley.
View from the beach bar
Ready to set off again
We didn't want to go back yet so we found our way through the country lanes to Cala Rossa on the north of the island. It was quite spectacular because there is a lot of quarrying, and it looks like there was an underground village cut out of stone all around this area in times gone by.
Cala Rossa, yet another lovely bay
Me and Saffy dog enjoying ourselves
Dean trying to plan our route back on his phone
Looking towards the mainland
The underground villages
Can you see the steps?
A fascinating story must lie in these ruins
More steps
Almost back in town... an open air theatre
Tuesday 22nd September... LINDA - Loads of lightning at 5.30am. For about an hour it was flashing at about 5 second intervals, but hardly any thunder at all. Sometimes i didn't even count to two seconds before the next flash.
We tried twice to go to the Tuna museum (the number one attraction in Favignana). First they were closed for their 3 hour lunch. When we went back at 4.30pm it was open but they wouldn't let us in because they said they were only doing tours in Italian today. They asked could we come back tomorrow afternoon? No sorry we can't. Well that's another 12 euros we shall keep in Dean's pocket then instead of spending it. Saying that, we ended up in a bar so i guess no money saved after all.
This is Villa Florio Antiquarium
whatever that means
Back at the harbour once more
Oregano for sale
Not like we buy in the UK
Quite a quaint spices shop
The next blog post will be called 'Change of Plan'
Great photo of you, Linda, and Saffy, enjoying yourselves. Xxx
ReplyDelete