Teulada was so lovely and peaceful we stayed another day but the wanderlust was calling (and the nearest shop being 8km away too!) and so the next morning we left after breakfast for the 30 odd mile passage to Calasetta on the north of Isla di St. Antioco. Only half a mile from port we were hailed by a military boat who came alongside. Very politely but firmly, they told us (after much pigeon English and Italian) to alter course and stay at least 2 miles offshore around the next two headlands. There was a military exercise today and it was for own safety. As we didn't fancy being shot we did as we were told!
Like our last passage, the sail to Calasetta started in light winds but then contrary to the forecast they increased to 25kts on the nose, but this time in much choppier seas as we are now on the exposed west coast. We beat into the wind for quite a while but were making slow uncomfortable and very wet progress. Five miles from Calasetta we dropped the sails and motored in. Even with the throttle on high, we could barely make 4.5kts because the wind and waves were directly against us. We got soaked. It was a great relief when we finally reached Calasetta and moored up alongside a pontoon. We couldn't get hold of the marina as we approached and so thought we were set for the night, but after a short while a marinero appeared and insisted that we move to the quay opposite. Unfortunately the strong winds were blowing us tight onto the pontoon and getting off wasn't easy to say the least. When we finally moored up on the quay and put the boat to bed it was 7.00pm. It had taken us nearly 10 hours to move 36 miles. A hard day.
Calasetta is a lovely little town with the old part spread around the harbour, lots of narrow streets, a pretty church and a medieval tower with lovely views. We've walked out along the coast in both directions from the town and were rewarded with fantastic views, beautiful beaches and even more flamingos. On our walk South East of the town we came across a number of small farm houses on the beach, and we spent a little while discussing the possibilities of living the pastoral life here when we retire...
We took the bus to the island's capital Sant Antioco on a sunny and windless day. That bit was perfect but nearly all the tourist sites with the exception of one were closed, despite signs saying they were open! We did manage to visit a tophet, the site of a Punic memorial site where stillborn and newborn babies that died in their first few days of life were cremated (so their souls could return to the gods) and their ashes stored in hundreds of earthenware jars in cracks in the rocks. The museum and videos at the tophet did a good job of explaining the history and showing us all the things that were closed. We had an al fresco lunch by the harbour in lovely warm sunshine before returning to Freya.
As many of you will know my father has been ill for some time, and while we were in Calasetta he took a turn for the worse and I booked a flight home. Sadly the night before I was scheduled to fly he passed on. Lorraine stayed on for a few days securing Freya, before flying back to join me and the family for the funeral.
Lorraine had a mostly quiet time on the boat before joining me, doing a few walks, painting and practising her guitar. However her peace was disturbed one night when she was woken by strange noises on deck. There was a man on the back of the boat leaning over the outboard and dinghy. She shouted something "polite" at him, and he immediately run along the boat to the bow and tried to jump onto the quay.....he missed and fell into the water. Lorraine was just debating with herself whether she should rescue this bloke that looked as if he was trying to steal our outboard or leave him to drown when some of his mates appeared and pulled him out of the water. They jumped into a car and drove off. Needless to say Lorraine didn't get any sleep that night. She reported the incident in the morning and the marina staff took it very seriously. They were apologetic and helpful, but they really could do little more than be sympathetic. Lorraine went back to Freya and on closer inspection in daylight could now see a fishing line and lure wrapped around the dinghy. In all likelihood it was no more than a fisherman trying to recover his kit. He shouldn't have been on the boat without permission, but at least it wasn't anything more sinister.
After a couple of weeks in the UK we returned to Freya a couple of days ago and the weather is now settled, sunny and warm. Yesterday we took the ferry to the even smaller island of San Pietro and it's only town, Carloforte. An even prettier harbour town with nice shops and harbour side cafes. We spent a few hours wandering around, looking at flamingos in the salines and a long slow lunch in a pavement cafe.
We then set off down the coast heading to the northernmost point on the island. The road and path soon run out but we continued on along the beach which got narrow and narrower. It was beautiful with the clear blue sea and sweat peas growing wild in the grass. We couldn't turn inland as the shore was fenced off or walled in by the gardens of large shoreside villas. We could either turn back or push on over the narrow rocks. We chose the latter option but finally admitted defeat when a third option presented itself. We went over a tumble down gate and walked through the garden of an empty house to get onto the cliff top and eventually onto a road where we flagged down a passing bus in the middle of nowhere that took us back to Carloforte, where we had just enough time to enjoy an ice-cream before catching the ferry back to Calasetta.
We took a months mooring here when it became clear that we needed to return home. So we will be staying for a few days yet, before we start heading north to Alghero where we hope to meet up with some visitors from home in mid May.
Click here for the interactive map of our travels