In Pakleni, the Jugo caught us well and today we experienced the rain and thunder that Jugo traditionally brings. We were fine there at anchor, but the forecast was for the Jugo to fade away around 17:00 to give way to the sun, and for the land and sea to breathe again.
We left at 17:00, but this did not happen...
Instead, we got a 15m/s headwind that forced us to take 2 reefs, furl half the genoa and change the destination of what was supposed to be a short 11 nm sail to a sheltered bay.
We arrived at 21:00 in a crowded anchorage where we managed to squeeze in with a stern anchor.
We realised that the anchorage was crowded because the boat rentals run from Saturday to Friday, so on Thursday night most of the rental boats would be looking for an anchorage close to Split. And this has become such a successful business that the ACI marina in Split city centre is no longer accepting bookings for private boats on the weekends!
Uvala Sesula is a narrow bay where boats and yachts can catch one of the buoys that the local restaurant (konoba) has placed in their area. The buoys are connected to lazy lines on the shore so that you can tie the bow to the buoy and the stern to the shore. This reduces the turning radius of the boat and means more boats (and more customers for the restaurants) can be moored. But finding your way safely in this dedale can be a challenge... The buoys are reserved for Konoba customers and are free. Otherwise, they are included in the restaurant bill.
As we did not have a reservation at a konoba, we were left to find a place on our own, using the anchor at the bow and our 50 metre Swedish mooring flatline on a reel as a landline at the stern. A local helped us out and we had a gulash in the on-board restaurant.
By then the wind had died down and the night was perfect!
Boats on the left...
Boats on the right...
Leaving the anchorage the next morning was a little trickier as some bora had appeared and pushed us sideways towards an old floating concrete pontoon. I was afraid that the tension on the anchor line attached to the rocks would break due to the heavy friction, but it did not. Eventually we realised that an early bird had anchored in the bay this morning and his anchor chain was crossing ours. It moved and we were able to set sail safely.
Belisama close to the concrete pontoon, and the Austrian early bird having crossed our anchor line
We arrive at Uvala Kasjuni at 15:30 and moor on the main beach, well sheltered from the light bora winds forecast for tonight.
Uvala Kasjuni, Split
As of today, 1260 miles in 2023 on our way to Pula...
Incidentally, when I was bored in Pakleni, I noticed that a Swiss boat had a bucket hanging from the end of its boom, which was open all the way to the shroud. What could that be for? Cooling beer? Forget it, the water is 23°C.
Then I bumped into a crew member and asked him the reason. He told me it was a technique he had learnt in the Caribbean to prevent the boat from rolling with the waves. As soon as the boat starts to roll, the bucket is raised to counteract the movement. He assured me that it was a very effective technique! To be verified...
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