08 July 2022 | Italy, Rocella Ionica, Porto delle Grazie (position: 38 19.266'N 16 25.835'E)
05 July 2022 | Sicily, Siracusa (position: 37 03.382'N 15 16.675'E)
04 July 2022 | Sicily, Portopalo (36 40.184'N 15 06.769'E)
30 June 2022 | Sicily, Marina di Ragusa (position: 36 46.863'N 14 32.701'E)
10 March 2022 | Sicily, Marina di Ragusa (position: 36 46.863'N 14 32.701'E)
05 March 2022 | Sicily, Marina di Ragusa (position: 36 46.863'N 14 32.701'E)
01 March 2022 | Sicily, Marina di Ragusa (position: 36 46.863'N 14 32.701'E)
10 January 2022 | Sicily, Marina di Ragusa (position: 36 46.863'N 14 32.701'E)
16 December 2021 | Ashton under Hill
16 August 2021 | Sicily, Boat Service Trapani (position: 38.00.840'N 12.31.297'E)
14 August 2021 | Sicily, Trapani (position 38 00.427'N 12 30.245'E) eastern anchorage behind southern breakwater
12 August 2021 | Sicily, Cornino (position: 38 05.712'N 12 39.510'E)
09 August 2021 | Sicily, Terrasini Sud (position: 38 09.412'N 13 04.709'E)
07 August 2021 | Sicily, Palermo, Nautica Galizzi (position: 38 07.372'N 13 22.218'E)
01 August 2021 | Sicily, Termini Imerese (position: 37 58.851'N 13 42.872'E) & Artemar Marina
27 July 2021 | Sicily, Cefalu (position: 38.02.042'N 14 02.463'E)
25 July 2021 | Sicily, Contrada Rais-Gerbi (position: 38 01.673'N 14 08.546'E)
24 July 2021 | Sicily, Capo d'Orlando, S.Carra (position: 38 09.354'N 14 47.674'E)
15 July 2021 | Sicily, Milazzo (position: 38 13.206'N 15 14.741'E)
10 July 2021 | Vulcano, Spaggia di Cannitello - Aeolian Islands (position: 38 22.318'N 15 00.287'E)
Sicily, Portopalo to Siracusa
05 July 2022 | Sicily, Siracusa (position: 37 03.382'N 15 16.675'E)
Bruce & Caroline Trott
our first catch since we entered the Mediterranean 6 years ago
Yesterday's unexpected sail gave us false hope that today we'd possibly have similar conditions contrary to the actual forecast of very little wind. Unfortunately it was accurate so we had to motor to our next port of Siracusa located on the southeast corner of Sicily. Despite the lack of wind the highlight of the day was landing a fish, an albacore tuna no less and a perfect size for the two of us. Hurray for us! It's about time too given the amount of lures that we have squirrelled away in lockers. It was such a shock that we were totally unprepared in every aspect from landing it through to our method of dispatch. Without going into too much detail we chose the quickest but not necessarily the cleanest of methods. Needless to say that we will be better prepared next time.
Upon our arrival in Siracusa we chose yet again to radio the Port Authority for permission to anchor for fear of receiving a fine. It's something that we've always done and is now probably justified given that the port is now frequented by MSC cruise ships. Having made contact with the Port Authority we were subsequently issued with exact GPS coordinates that of degrees, minutes and seconds! With said coordinates duly documented in our paper logbook (yes, we still maintain a paper logbook) we took on the challenge to find our alloted GPS position dropping the anchor exactly to those coordinates!
The anchorage in Siracusa provides wonderful goopy and silty mud so with the anchor well dug in we then waited for a suitable forecast to take us eastwards occupying our time by frequenting the town and routine checks aboard Flirtie. We also had a thorough paperwork inspection by the Guardia Finanzia which included showing our ICC document (International certificate of competence) along with the usual Ships Registration, Insurance and Passports. For extra measure we threw in our Italian ID cards given that we have no stamp in our passports. It felt unnatural to hand our documents over in a fishing net but far easier than them coming alongside and onboard.
Total distance this season: 62.16 nautical miles
