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Marzamemi,
Sicily (Heikell page 317) A well sheltered port but very pricey! We arrived in SW5 and berthed bows to the
NE-facing side of the outer pontoon – there are laid moorings. We were relieved to be moored in complete
shelter as the wind was still rising but we felt that the 70,000 lire requested
was much to high for April though it was reduced to 60,000 lire when we
complained. The port is built in the
middle of nowhere and there are no facilities other than water and electricity
on the pontoons and a rubbish skip. If
you just need an overnight stop and the wind serves, Porto Palo is a cheaper
(free) alternative.
Catania,
Sicily (Heikell page 310) A
comfortable over-night stop for a reasonable price making us feel that Heikell
is much too damning of the place. We
stayed in Club Nautico NIC, (YC3 on the plan in Heikell) where we paid 36,000
lire including water and electricity and use of the showers. It was a longish walk to the shops through
the port but worth the effort to see the now-faded but once very splendid
buildings in the centre.
Naxos,
Sicily (page 306) A stunningly beautiful anchorage set between
Etna and Capo Taormina. Unfortunately,
the wind acceleration zone to the north of Etna produced severe gusts off the
land and, despite the wind being from the north-west, we were disturbed by a
north-easterly swell.
Roccello
Ionica, Toe of Italy
(Heikell page 342) A modern marina with
finger pontoons. It has still not been
completed and it is still free! There is
water on the pontoons, but no power.
Having read of a sand bar building up off the outer breakwater (April
Yachting Monthly) we treated the outer breakwater as if it were 200 metres
longer in a WSW direction. We kept well
to the SW in the approach, rounded the imaginary end of the breakwater and
approached the entrance to the north of the reported sand bar. We had a minimum of 3.3m in the approach and
2.9m at the entrance. The marina is open
to the WSW so the outer berths are exposed.
However, the two north-south (approx) jetties are solid walls (the
east-west ones are floating pontoons) so we moved to a finger on the inside
face of the most south-westerly pontoon where we are well tucked in behind the
solid quay. There was still some
movement, but much less than on the outer fingers.
Crotone,
Toe of Italy
(Heikell page 345) The whole of Porto
Vecchio is in the process of being transformed into a ‘Pleasure
Harbour’. An ‘Apron Jetty’ has been built around the
inside of the outer harbour wall from the elbow 60 metres NW of the ‘Office’
and running SE, then SSW as far as the fuel quay. This apron, approximately 3 metres wide, is
built out over the rocks at the base of the wall. In due course, two jetties will be built out
from it running in an east to west direction.
However, in the meantime, along the majority of its length, it suffers
from a lack of bollards and a surfeit of small local boats indifferently moored. In consequence, mooring is limited to the
angle either side of the ‘Office’ where two or three very dirty pick-up lines
remain. We moored there free of charge
for one night but were rudely awaken by shot-blasting work on what may well be
the new ‘Office’, just to the NW of the old one. Friends stayed overnight on the fuel berth
free of charge but were asked to leave once it re-opened in the morning. The Yacht Club in the SW corner has already
been refurbished but it only has one berth for visitors: it is at the NW end of their outer
pontoon. The Boatyard next door had a
couple of vacant berths when we were there, one of which we occupied for 4
nights. It had no pick-up line but we
rolling-hitched a line onto the lines of the vessels to either side of us and
were quite secure. Friends paid 27,500
lire at the Yacht Club; we paid 25,000 lire at the Yard, both including water
and electricity.
Santa
Maria di Leuca, Heel of Italy
(Heikell page 354, Thompson page 427) We
found this much as shown in the two pilots but rather better protected than
suggested in either. We arrived in
strong southerlies that veered through west to north-west, but we were not too
troubled with swell. Having said that,
as the harbour was fairly empty, we moored alongside the outer pontoons facing
the entrance and used the pick-up lines to hold ourselves off. Had we been forced to moor bow or stern-to,
such swell as did enter would have been beam-on and no doubt would have
troubled us far more. We paid 27,500
lire per night including water & electricity. A few yachts moored on the inside of the
outer wall on the section marked ‘Trawlers’ in Heikell. There was no possibility of mooring behind the
inner breakwater as he suggests – the berths there are private and fully occupied. Some new pontoons have been constructed in
the area marked ‘Laid Moorings’ in Heikell but we saw no indication of their
future use.
Otranto,
East coast of Italy
(Heikell page 358, Thompson page 424)
This was our least favourite port on our journey to Croatia. Two new pontoons have been built in the
south-west corner of the harbour running parallel to the outer breakwater. The fuel station has been re-sited close to
the root of the more north-easterly of the two new pontoons, approximately 50
metres south-west of its original position.
The pontoons belong to the Yacht Club and they bear large notices in
three languages making it quite clear that visitors are not welcome. We attempted to berth but, despite there
being plenty of free places, were turned away and sent to the ‘Town Quay’. This is the small section in the south-east
corner where Heikell shows a boat moored to her anchor. It is not possible to moor on the inside of
the outer breakwater as shown in Thompson as this is entirely occupied by
Official Boats of varying hues. When we
went to the Town Quay it was occupied by a laid-up Fishing Boat lying alongside
to which we made fast. We were secure
enough in a physical sense, but we did not feel that it would have been safe to
leave Retreat so we remained on board.
The inner anchorage shown in both Pilots may have been possible but the
gaps between the two huge warping buoys used by the ferry, the rocky patches
and the randomly-scattered moorings did not leave much swinging room. In quieter conditions the outer anchorage
shown in Thompson may well be tenable.
Brindisi,
East coast of Italy
(Heikell page 359, Thompson page 422) A
very useful port of call with plenty of room to moor - much nicer than
suggested in Heikell. However, both
pilots show the Town Quay used by yachts in the wrong place. The plan in Thompson shows a straight run of
quayside past the steps as far as the Harbour Master’s Office: this is incorrect. Fortunately, Heikell shows the layout
correctly so I will now refer to his diagram.
Heikell shows an anchor symbol on the NE-facing section of quay below
the steps and opposite the entrance.
Moor here at your peril for it is used by a huge fleet of fishing boats,
which return around 1800. The berths for
yachts are at the NNW end of the ENE-facing section of quay immediately in
front of the Harbour Master’s Office where Heikell has written ‘Ferries’. (The Ferries berth at the SSE end of this
section of quay.) It is possible, of
course, that things are different in the summer when more ferries run but, at
the time of our visit, this was the case.
There is a new alongside fuel berth on the short stretch of NNW-facing
quay between the two 10 metre spot depths on Heikell’s plan. The main shopping street runs inland at 90
degrees to the shore from the Ferry Terminal, 100 metres SSE of the Town
Quay. Much of it has been pedestrianised
and is very clean and pleasant to walk down.
There are two large supermarkets along this road, the first less than
200 metres from the Town Quay.