The weather can be pretty funky in the 284 miles between Sicily and Albania, with winds shifting every few hours. (We opted not to stop along the boot of Italy based on the distance it would add). The first day was unexpectedly lovely with several hours of beautiful sailing with light winds and no seas. Even if it meant shifting from close hauled (N winds) to close hauled (E winds) to beam reach (SE winds) to broad reach (S winds) to wing-on-wing (SW winds), there were lots of sea turtles passing us that made for a great distraction.
The second day involved way too much motoring, but we had expected it. And then came the Ionian Sea. We knew the winds were going to pipe and the seas would get choppy and she did not disappoint. Unfortunately we tore the main as we were putting a reef in the main, but the sail held despite the 20-25 knot winds. We considered stopping in the Ionian Islands north of Corfu, but the katabatic wind gusts into the high 20’s at midnight had us moving on. Just past the islands the wind and sea calmed, and we motored into Sarande, Albania just after dawn.
Recent Comments