Today the weather report looked more promising so we all got up early and got the boat ready to depart.
After the engine was warmed up we eased out of our mooring, and everything looked fine. Then Marie pointed to a bow line trailing from under the boat.
At first I thought it was caught around the prop, but I soon realized that it was actually stuck in the bow thruster!
So there we were sitting out in the channel tethered to the dock by an underwater rope. After numerous attempts diving under the boat, I managed to release the rope from the bow thruster.
So we continued. Now it was time to clear customs... this turned out to be the fiasco of the century!
The wind was pushing us away from the dock, so I approached as I normally would and went to use the bow thruster to push the bow into place... and wouldn't you know it... it's dead! A helpful guy who knew all the tricks help us bring Dune alongside. Later I jumped in the water again to inspect what was going on with the bow thruster... one of the propellers has fallen off...eeek! Yet another expensive exercise.
After clearing customs and then getting repremanded that Darren was still on the crew list, we were ready to go. Just as we were leaving another yacht arrived with Australian's on it. They were saying that the sea state was pretty bad on the coast. Another couple who we knew from the Marina (funnily enough, the guy who gasped at our bow thruster use) had also cleared customs and had traveled out into the weather and returned.
I think Marie's niece Kary has had enough of sailing at this point :) The idea was to go back to Croatia and drop her off in Split, but because of the weather that won't be possible. So tomorrow she will be leaving Dune and traveling to Dubrovnik by bus.
I have only just cleared customs again... inwards this time. These customs guys have got sighing and shrugging down to a fine art.
So we have been given an extension of a day... hopefully the weather is better by then.
Until then we are sitting on the dock being pounded by 40 knot winds pinning us against the pier. Every fender known to man is out to help protect Dune from being damaged... but it is hitting us beam on and quite violent. There are 3 yachts sitting here waiting for things to ease up a little. We will then be taking off "back" to Kotor...sigh!
I have a feeling we will be in Montenegro longer than anticipated. I would really like to get our bow thruster fixed before leaving again.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Montenegro - Budva
The weather is still threatening to be nasty, so today Marie, Kary and myself left the boat and took a bus to the neighbouring harbor of Budva.
As we waited for our bus we were happy to see all the buses in the station were modern and air-conditioned. Then ours turned up. The oldest bus you have ever seen, in fact I was surprised not to see chickens run out when they opened the door. Marie didn't look very impressed by the complimentary snacks left by the previous passengers either.
The trip to Budva only took about 45 minutes so it wasn't too bad. Budva is full of restaurants and bars, and you get the feeling that it doesn't get it's groove on until well after dark.
When we got there I was really hungry, but felt like something different. So when I saw a Halal Turkishesk establishment I persuaded the girls to stop there. Big mistake, I think it is only hours before the food poisoning sets in. It was horrible. Kary ordered fries, and what arrived was unidentifiable. I'm pretty sure they didn't use hot oil to cook them.
Eventually we found a great little bar on the water to sit and relax. The girls decided to have a swim but came back almost instantly because the water wasn't the 30 degrees that they were used to ;) So I ordered us a drink... and thinking I was funny ordered Marie a long island ice tea. It was a bit strong for her and I ended up having to drink it.... excuse me if the following recollections of the day are a bit fuzzy!
Afterwards we decided to walk around the corner to another bay. The water there was crystal clear and was the best beach we have been to yet!
We are now back at the boat and the clouds are getting very dark... I think we will be in for a storm tonight.
There are a few new boats which arrived today. We are all moored stern-to, but so close it feels like we are rafted together. We have russians on one side, and a croatian family on the other.
When we arrived yesterday we thought we were going to have to retrieve the bow lines, and organize the stern lines all by ourselves, but luckily the russian guy helped us out. The bow line he gave us meant that Dune sat rafted up to his boat. Not wanting to be so close we tried to reconfigure the lines. As part of the manuvere we used the bow thruster a little. The guy was muttering something in russian, I have a feeling it wasn't words of encouragement. In retrospect it was a redundant move, but it was funny to hear the russian equivalent of "Mama Mia"!
As we waited for our bus we were happy to see all the buses in the station were modern and air-conditioned. Then ours turned up. The oldest bus you have ever seen, in fact I was surprised not to see chickens run out when they opened the door. Marie didn't look very impressed by the complimentary snacks left by the previous passengers either.
The trip to Budva only took about 45 minutes so it wasn't too bad. Budva is full of restaurants and bars, and you get the feeling that it doesn't get it's groove on until well after dark.
When we got there I was really hungry, but felt like something different. So when I saw a Halal Turkishesk establishment I persuaded the girls to stop there. Big mistake, I think it is only hours before the food poisoning sets in. It was horrible. Kary ordered fries, and what arrived was unidentifiable. I'm pretty sure they didn't use hot oil to cook them.
Eventually we found a great little bar on the water to sit and relax. The girls decided to have a swim but came back almost instantly because the water wasn't the 30 degrees that they were used to ;) So I ordered us a drink... and thinking I was funny ordered Marie a long island ice tea. It was a bit strong for her and I ended up having to drink it.... excuse me if the following recollections of the day are a bit fuzzy!
Afterwards we decided to walk around the corner to another bay. The water there was crystal clear and was the best beach we have been to yet!
We are now back at the boat and the clouds are getting very dark... I think we will be in for a storm tonight.
There are a few new boats which arrived today. We are all moored stern-to, but so close it feels like we are rafted together. We have russians on one side, and a croatian family on the other.
When we arrived yesterday we thought we were going to have to retrieve the bow lines, and organize the stern lines all by ourselves, but luckily the russian guy helped us out. The bow line he gave us meant that Dune sat rafted up to his boat. Not wanting to be so close we tried to reconfigure the lines. As part of the manuvere we used the bow thruster a little. The guy was muttering something in russian, I have a feeling it wasn't words of encouragement. In retrospect it was a redundant move, but it was funny to hear the russian equivalent of "Mama Mia"!
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Montenegro - Kotor
We travelled south down the coast towards Montenegro. There were some nice places still left to see in Croatia, but we were not allowed to stop there as we had already cleared customs. They have a radar station keeping track of everyone to make sure you don't deviate from your course.
Eventually we crossed the border between Croatia and Montenegro. The border is a peninsula which we rounded and proceeded to the first customs port which was Zelenika. We pulled up to the customs dock, the wind had picked up a bit, so we had to round up into the wind and dock port side. The dock was quite obviously designed for cruise liners with its huge rubber fenders. But we found a nice spot nestled between them. I jumped off the boat to see customs who directed me to see the harbormaster.
After checking the ships documents we were issued with a 7 day cruising license (vignette). I then went back to the customs office. The customs office had both the port police and customs officials there. They were very friendly and started talking to me about New Zealand wine. He was speaking in a mix of english and Montenegrin (similar to Croatian), so I couldn't understand much. But I got the idea that we liked drinking lol! I bet he was angling for a free bottle of NZ wine.
He asked me where we were planning on going, and suggested that we visit Kotor.
After we cleared customs we decided to take his advice and visit Kotor.
Kotor is a town nestled on the eastern side of the main Montenegro harbor. As you progress through huge mountains appear on all sides. Houses litter the coastline but are close to the water. The height of the mountains are incredible, and dwarf the settlements below.
Kotor itself is built around a castle and it's fortifications continue up the mountain sides.
When we arrived we though we could anchor but we were directed to moor at the pier. The price was only 45 euros a night which was quite cheap compared to what we were used to. And for the first time since Rimini, we had shore power and water!!
The following day Marie and I walked up the mountain fortifications. We did it in the middle of the day which was blisteringly hot!
We ended up staying a couple of nights in Kotor, just relaxing and enjoying the scenary.
Darren left the boat to continue his adventures by land. Thanks dude, it was a blast!
The girls and I decided to take the opportunity and clean the boat before continuing.
I also mounted our EPIRB and fixed the floor boards in Darren's room.
We left Kotor and motored around to a neighbouring bay called Morinj, where we had our first swim in Montenegro.
Eventually we crossed the border between Croatia and Montenegro. The border is a peninsula which we rounded and proceeded to the first customs port which was Zelenika. We pulled up to the customs dock, the wind had picked up a bit, so we had to round up into the wind and dock port side. The dock was quite obviously designed for cruise liners with its huge rubber fenders. But we found a nice spot nestled between them. I jumped off the boat to see customs who directed me to see the harbormaster.
After checking the ships documents we were issued with a 7 day cruising license (vignette). I then went back to the customs office. The customs office had both the port police and customs officials there. They were very friendly and started talking to me about New Zealand wine. He was speaking in a mix of english and Montenegrin (similar to Croatian), so I couldn't understand much. But I got the idea that we liked drinking lol! I bet he was angling for a free bottle of NZ wine.
He asked me where we were planning on going, and suggested that we visit Kotor.
After we cleared customs we decided to take his advice and visit Kotor.
Kotor is a town nestled on the eastern side of the main Montenegro harbor. As you progress through huge mountains appear on all sides. Houses litter the coastline but are close to the water. The height of the mountains are incredible, and dwarf the settlements below.
Kotor itself is built around a castle and it's fortifications continue up the mountain sides.
When we arrived we though we could anchor but we were directed to moor at the pier. The price was only 45 euros a night which was quite cheap compared to what we were used to. And for the first time since Rimini, we had shore power and water!!
The following day Marie and I walked up the mountain fortifications. We did it in the middle of the day which was blisteringly hot!
We ended up staying a couple of nights in Kotor, just relaxing and enjoying the scenary.
Darren left the boat to continue his adventures by land. Thanks dude, it was a blast!
The girls and I decided to take the opportunity and clean the boat before continuing.
I also mounted our EPIRB and fixed the floor boards in Darren's room.
We left Kotor and motored around to a neighbouring bay called Morinj, where we had our first swim in Montenegro.
Cavtat - Clearing Customs
Today we are leaving Croatia and heading to Montenegro.
The best place to carry out exit formalities is a town further down the coast called Cavtat.
We arrived in Cavtat and decided to anchor to stock up on provisions before clearing customs.
After which we proceeded over to the customs dock. There were quite a few boats waiting, and they started to raft up to each other. There was a space available between the rafter's and the next boat which was moored stern-to. So we decided to drop anchor and back into the space. There was a guy there ready to help, so we threw him the stern lines. I pulled up the anchor a little and we were sitting nicely. Well done crew!
Clearing customs took forever! I was directed to see the port police, who then instructed me to see the harbormaster. There was a captain in the harbormasters office whose documents were not in order so I had to wait until they had sorted him out. I then went back to the customs office (port police) who then noticed that we had 3 people on our crew list, but 4 people were leaving. Kary had just joined the boat. So he then sent me back to the harbormaster, who was out to lunch! I got Kary added to the crew list and went back to the customs office.
They then cleared us to leave... Whew!
The best place to carry out exit formalities is a town further down the coast called Cavtat.
We arrived in Cavtat and decided to anchor to stock up on provisions before clearing customs.
After which we proceeded over to the customs dock. There were quite a few boats waiting, and they started to raft up to each other. There was a space available between the rafter's and the next boat which was moored stern-to. So we decided to drop anchor and back into the space. There was a guy there ready to help, so we threw him the stern lines. I pulled up the anchor a little and we were sitting nicely. Well done crew!
Clearing customs took forever! I was directed to see the port police, who then instructed me to see the harbormaster. There was a captain in the harbormasters office whose documents were not in order so I had to wait until they had sorted him out. I then went back to the customs office (port police) who then noticed that we had 3 people on our crew list, but 4 people were leaving. Kary had just joined the boat. So he then sent me back to the harbormaster, who was out to lunch! I got Kary added to the crew list and went back to the customs office.
They then cleared us to leave... Whew!
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Dubrovnik
The last time we had visited Dubrovnik the weather wasn't good and there was no way we could anchor outside the castle in the old town.
This time the sea was calm and we found a nice spot just outside the channel entrance.
We took the tender in to have a wander around and take in the sights. Marie and I decided to do the walk around the castle wall.
As you walk around the wall you can see on one side the people bustling around inside, and outside, picturesque views of the bay. Fantastic!
After we had finished we joined Darren for a Pivo (Beer), and then had some dinner at a Irish bar of all places.
Marie left us to take a bus to the Airport to pick up Kary.
Darren and I had a few drinks and found a bar which had live jazz. It was great, I even bought their CD! (we needed music for the boat)
We made friends with a couple of guys who were visiting from Spain... real characters, who were only in Dubrovnik for the naturalist beaches. Europeans, gotta love em!
Marie and Kary turned up, and disappeared again to grab dinner. Afterwards we jumped in the tender and cruised back to the boat.
The next morning a guy arrived on a boat and let us know that our anchorage would cost 50 euros, and that we better take off. Woohoo nice guy!
This time the sea was calm and we found a nice spot just outside the channel entrance.
We took the tender in to have a wander around and take in the sights. Marie and I decided to do the walk around the castle wall.
As you walk around the wall you can see on one side the people bustling around inside, and outside, picturesque views of the bay. Fantastic!
After we had finished we joined Darren for a Pivo (Beer), and then had some dinner at a Irish bar of all places.
Marie left us to take a bus to the Airport to pick up Kary.
Darren and I had a few drinks and found a bar which had live jazz. It was great, I even bought their CD! (we needed music for the boat)
We made friends with a couple of guys who were visiting from Spain... real characters, who were only in Dubrovnik for the naturalist beaches. Europeans, gotta love em!
Marie and Kary turned up, and disappeared again to grab dinner. Afterwards we jumped in the tender and cruised back to the boat.
The next morning a guy arrived on a boat and let us know that our anchorage would cost 50 euros, and that we better take off. Woohoo nice guy!
Mljet - Ulysses Caves
After breakfast we set out to find the Ulysses caves. We had a fair idea where they were, but didn't know exactly. The caves were meant to be only accessible by boat. As we progressed it was obvious that we had gone to far, so Darren spotted a fisherman, and proceeded to take tender over to see him. Speaking no english, Darren eventually understood that the caves were back about 6km.
We turned around and eventually spotted some people sitting on rocks. If you didn't see the people, you would never know that there was anything to see. We got close and dropped the anchor... I reversed back until we were close to the rocks and jumped in to secure a stern line to the shore.
We were set, sitting right in front of the cave entrance. We jumped in with our goggles and flippers and swam through the cave.
As you swam in it didn't look very spectacular, but as you neared the end of the cave there were millions of fish swimming all around you.
When you turned around the true beauty of the place revealed itself. The sunlight from the entrance of the cave shone through, and the colour of the water took your breath away, it was like something you would see in a movie. Absolutely stunning!
We spent the afternoon there swimming, diving.. and the odd halyard swing.
It was then time to head to Dubrovnik about 30nm down the coast. Today we were picking up Kary, Marie's niece who was arriving from Brazil.
We turned around and eventually spotted some people sitting on rocks. If you didn't see the people, you would never know that there was anything to see. We got close and dropped the anchor... I reversed back until we were close to the rocks and jumped in to secure a stern line to the shore.
We were set, sitting right in front of the cave entrance. We jumped in with our goggles and flippers and swam through the cave.
As you swam in it didn't look very spectacular, but as you neared the end of the cave there were millions of fish swimming all around you.
When you turned around the true beauty of the place revealed itself. The sunlight from the entrance of the cave shone through, and the colour of the water took your breath away, it was like something you would see in a movie. Absolutely stunning!
We spent the afternoon there swimming, diving.. and the odd halyard swing.
It was then time to head to Dubrovnik about 30nm down the coast. Today we were picking up Kary, Marie's niece who was arriving from Brazil.
Monday, August 23, 2010
Mljet
This afternoon we left Korcula and travelled across to the island of Mljet. Darren wanted to see the blue caves on the opposite side of the island. Normally you would avoid that coast because there is no shelter and is very exposed, but as luck
had it the weather was very good and our good old Navtex told us that the outlook for the following 24 hours was excellent.
We entered the bay where we intended to spend the night, and according to both the chart and the chart plotter there was enough depth to get around the corner into a smaller lagoon. I really didn't trust it, and decided to anchor and swim over to see how deep the inlet really was.
As I predicted it was shallow, I could stand up to my waist! So we stayed where we were.
Darren decided to take the tender around to a neighbouring bay. On the charts it said the area was prohibited and you couldn't enter. But he wasn't concerned and took off, he eventually returned with news that he had found a small village and he had made arrangements for us to have dinner there later that evening.
We all piled into the tender and set out for dinner. I have no idea how Darren found the inlet because it was hidden. The rocks on both sides camouflaged the entrance and it just looked like the bay continued around. As you got closer the entrance appeared. It felt like we were in a pirate movie! There was a big sign with a propeller with a cross through it symbolizing that no engines were allowed, but Darren had seen fishermen going up the inlet with their engines, so we did the same.
We pulled into a tiny village, and had a great dinner surrounded by wildlife. Next to the table were bushes covered in flowers with tiny hummingbird's flying around savoring the nectar. Huge moths were flying around (you could mistake them for birds!), one of which got stuck in the netting surrounding the light above the table, it fluttered with futility covering us and our wine glasses with the dust from it's wings.
Not a huge fan of seafood, I had grilled squid which was fantastic. The prices here were far better than anywhere we had been before.
The best nights we have had have been at places off the beaten track, away from the glitzy tourist spots.
had it the weather was very good and our good old Navtex told us that the outlook for the following 24 hours was excellent.
We entered the bay where we intended to spend the night, and according to both the chart and the chart plotter there was enough depth to get around the corner into a smaller lagoon. I really didn't trust it, and decided to anchor and swim over to see how deep the inlet really was.
As I predicted it was shallow, I could stand up to my waist! So we stayed where we were.
Darren decided to take the tender around to a neighbouring bay. On the charts it said the area was prohibited and you couldn't enter. But he wasn't concerned and took off, he eventually returned with news that he had found a small village and he had made arrangements for us to have dinner there later that evening.
We all piled into the tender and set out for dinner. I have no idea how Darren found the inlet because it was hidden. The rocks on both sides camouflaged the entrance and it just looked like the bay continued around. As you got closer the entrance appeared. It felt like we were in a pirate movie! There was a big sign with a propeller with a cross through it symbolizing that no engines were allowed, but Darren had seen fishermen going up the inlet with their engines, so we did the same.
We pulled into a tiny village, and had a great dinner surrounded by wildlife. Next to the table were bushes covered in flowers with tiny hummingbird's flying around savoring the nectar. Huge moths were flying around (you could mistake them for birds!), one of which got stuck in the netting surrounding the light above the table, it fluttered with futility covering us and our wine glasses with the dust from it's wings.
Not a huge fan of seafood, I had grilled squid which was fantastic. The prices here were far better than anywhere we had been before.
The best nights we have had have been at places off the beaten track, away from the glitzy tourist spots.
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