Paradise Regained. The last post.

Getting Mekićevica's mast down and putting her on the trailer was easy, with the help of the cheerful guys of the marina. They have now nicknamed me Ronaldo, after the Portuguese football player.
Once she was on the trailer I started the task of emptying her and preparing for the long way home. I was devastated at the thought that Mekićevica was leaving the Adriatic after performing so fantastically well and being complimented at every harbour and bay we visited. I was talking to her all the time and maybe my brain is getting soft with the age because I could swear that she told me that she would like to stay and that we had a wonderful together but time has come to move on.
So I breathed deeply, took courage, walked into the sailing school office and asked: "Do you know of anybody I could make happy by giving them a small sailing boat?"
Emil, the man I was talking to, didn't find my question strange at all. He seemed to read my every thought and feeling and assured me that he had done exactly the same thing with some of his previous boats. Before long, I was talking to a very enthusiastic guy named Hrvoje who was absolutely over the moon at the prospect of taking over Mekićevica.
The next morning, we dealt with the paperwork of the ownership transfer, and then drove Mekićevica to his family's place in the outskirts of Split where she was craned onto wood blocks.
So it was that I granted Mekićevica her wish to stay in the Adriatic, moreover in the hands of someone who will take good care of her. On top of that I made good friends in Split and received a life-long invitation to come and visit and sail Mekićevica whenever I want.
But I will miss that beautiful little boat....

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THE END

Paradise Regained. Alone.

In the morning I drove First-Mate to the airport, all the time feeling a knot in my throat at the thought that this wonderful vacation is over. Then I went to position the trailer for easy towing next morning and I set about preparing Mekićevica to be taken out of the water. It was as hot as when I first arrived,  and I re-entered the usual routine of finishing the day with a swim, a beer from the marina shop, and dinner.

Paradise Regained. Return to Split

We had a leisurely start and after breakfast aboard and a cappuccino in the marina bar we got out of the marina and immediately hoisted full main and genoa. Following the usual pattern, in the morning the wind was light and took a while to exit the Splitska Vrata. After that we were becalmed and had to motor for a bit, until the ripples on the water announced the arrival of the maestrale. For the rest of the way we made good progress and soon we were sailing into Split harbour. We still had time to go to the beach, and prepare to visit Joško and Duška at their Split home.

Paradise Regained. Leaving Hvar.

Our last morning in Hvar. With a heavy heart we dedicate ourselves to cleaning the house and loading the boat. There is still the sailing back to Split to enjoy and we were trying to leave the Paklenski Kanal before the maestrale kicks-up. All went well and we made it past Rat Pelegrin in a light southeasterly that continued with us until we entered the Splitska Vrata. There we decided to head for Milna on the island of Brač and sailed until we were right in front of the Vlaška marina. This is a very nice marina, reasonably priced and with a dock attendant who even speaks Portuguese!
We were still in time to go for a swim.

Paradise Regained. Good-bye to Jerolim.

The end of the vacation is approaching fast. Time to say our farewells to friends and family in Jerolim. We still passed a wonderful day there, and met some new people. For example the skipper of the beautiful Red Coral, who turns out to own also a beautiful gajeta I often admire in Križna Luka.
While swimming I noticed that Mekićevica's anchor was wedged in some rocks and sure enough when we tried to leave it was stuck. We immediately got help from several people and the situation was resolved by brute force: the speed boat of Mare's friend with its huge motor just whacked the anchor out of the rocks. We still had time for a short but enormously relaxed sail in the late sunshine, and weakening maestrale.
Tomorrow is departure day, so we payed the exorbitant price the sailing club charges for mooring at their peer overnight.

Paradise Regained. Solina.

The weather is back to the usual pattern and the temperature is rising again. We left Hvar sailed past the point of Jerolim and headed west along the Pakleni islands, close hauled into the light southwesterly with full main and jib. Had to tack a couple of times, and in front of Dobri island turned downwind to enter Solina bay. There were a few charge boats there, but we found a good place to anchor near flat rocks with good shade nearby. We took our stuff ashore with the dinghy and only than I realised that what I thought was a deep bay was actually a rather open bay and an island. Our anchorage would be exposed to the afternoon maestrale. That didn't take long to kick-up and suddenly there was mayhem as our anchorage became a lee shore. We left in a hurry, with the only casualty being the dinghy that got punctured by sharp rocks.
We sailed eastwards to the next bay, the well sheltered and fly now familiar Taršće, where we spent another relaxing day.

Paradise Regained. Return to Hvar.

I was up early, but First-Mate was longing for a lay-in, so I went for a walk, guided by a local dog who took on himself the mission of guiding me. After breakfast we motored out of the bay, under the somewhat amazed looks of the crews of the big yachts who were not daring to go out.
We motored straight into the wind until we were sheltered by the hills of Hvar, and then hoisted main only with one reef. Close to shore there were no waves to seek of, but the NE wind was terrible gusty.   One minute we were becalmed, the next the wind was howling in the rig with Mekićevica heeling like mad while I hurried to ease the main-sheet. In one particularly vicious gust we had the boom in the water and we were as close as we have ever been to broaching. When the gust passed and Mekićevica was on her legs again, a very shaken skipper put the second reef on the main. And then the wind died. So, we motored into Dubovica bay for a swim and wait for some wind. After a while we were surprised to see cousin Mare arriving with her friend in their boat.

View from the cockpit in Dubovica bay.

Eventually we saw some movement in the pine trees and decided to proceed. Not enough wind, so we had another stop in Zoraće.

It didn't take long for the afternoon maestrale to kick-up and we set-off again. I had hardly finished setting the sails when another vicious gust had me putting second reef in a hurry and reduce the jib to the balance point. From there it was challenging sailing, but with everything under control, beating into a gusty northwesterly, with reefed sails. At the lighthouse we decided we had put-up a decent fight and it was time to start the motor for the last few hundred meters.

Paradise Regained. Sailing again.

The weather continues to improve, although the northerlies are still pretty stiff. We went to Palmižana again and were pleased to see that the waves are nothing like the monsters of yesterday.
In the marina I had a pleasant chat with Josip, the skipper I helped dealing with the charter havoc of yesterday. He was full of compliments for Mekićevica and crew, but when I asked his advice about setting off for Šćedro, he thought we shouldn't go. We decided to give it a try anyway. We could always take shelter in one of the bays on the south coast of Hvar.
We motored out of the marina, and hoisted main with one reef. The wind was about 5Bf and aft of the beam, so we were going well. The only problem was that the waves continually increased, to the point when careful steering to avoid a gybe was becoming very difficult. So we decided to stop in the small harbour of Sv. Nedelja and wait for the waves to calm, as they usually do in the afternoon.
We had some light meal in the restaurant (octopus salad and a delicious, local ham), chatted to people in other boats and by 6pm we decided the sea was calm enough to proceed.

Sometimes, sailing a small boat in big waters requires patience: waiting for the sea to calm-down in Sv. Nedelja.

We started cautiously with two reefs on the main, but soon we were back to first reef and even some jib for the final, beam-reach approach to Šćedro.

Šćedro used to be out of the beaten track, but somehow it has been "discovered" and there were many boats at anchor. Little Mekićevica motored past them all, moored at the peer among their dinghies, and we just had to walk a few steps to be served a delicious dinner of freshly-caught, grilled fish.

During the night I was awaken by the slap-slap noise of waves on the hull. Waves coming into this deep bay in the middle of the night can only mean one thing: the bora is back.

Paradise Regained. Still trapped in Palmižana.

In the hope of setting sail, we took the taxi boat to Palmižana, but the waves we saw on the way there clearly showed that would not be a good idea. Some of them would have capsized Mekićevica if they had caught her on the beam.
Instead of sailing we just went for a walk along the island to Taršće.
Back in the marina we watched the usual Sunday chaos as the freshly out of Split, Kaštela, Trogir, and other harbours on the mainland arrive to Palmižana. A huge Beneteau with inexperienced crew arrived with a jammed roller-furler and a piece of genoa out. In the fresh wind, that was too much for the bow trushers and they caused havoc in the marina. They ignored or didn't understand the advise to release the genoa sheets, and ended-up with a mooring line fouling their keel. By then the professional skipper from the neighbouring boat had jumped aboard and was trying to regain control of the boat. I saved the situation by going into the next boat, releasing the mooring line and freeing their keel.

Paradise Regained. Waiting for better weather.

The gale passed, but left colder temperatures, still a lot of wind and big waves. We took the taxi-boat to Palmižana and spent most of the day reading in the boat, with just a short walk to the bay on the south side of the St. Clement island.

Paradise Regained. Gale.

The bora continues to freshen-up and is forecast to raise to gale force, so we are staying in Hvar. I am a bit nervous about Mekićevica's anchor, and keep going to the harbour to check it. It seems like sixth sense, because eventually I find that one of the fishing boats displaced our anchor with theirs and Mekićevica is banging against the store harbour wall, with a friendly passer by, trying to move the fenders. Moreover, the fishing boat than tied his line behind her, pinning her to the wall. Unravelling that mess in the freshening wind was a hard task, even with the friendly help from the staff of the restaurant where we were the previous evening.
Eventually we got Mekićevica free, decided we had had enough of the mess of Hvar harbour for now, and motored to the Palmižana marina.
That evening the gale came down and we arrive for dinner with Šime and Zuleika completely soaked.

Paradise Regained. Bora, Vrboska, and Stari Grad.

Overnight the yugo turned into a fresh bora and it is forecast to get stronger. It cooled down a lot as well. So we decided to take a bus to visit two places on the North of the island: Vrboska and Stari Grad.
Vroboska is at the end of a very sheltered bay and it a charming place. After all the crowds in Hvar it was blissfully quiet.

A very sun-tanned First-Mate in Vrboska.

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The Skipper is always fascinated with traditionally-rigged craft.

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Another nice corner of Vrboska.

After Vrboska we went to visit Stari Grad. This is a larger town and the capital of the island but rather interesting.

While walking along the harbour we had the following exchange of exclamations.

      — Skipper: Look, a small boat with Belgian Flag.

      — First-Mate: It's a Marieholm!

      — Skipper: It's Dreamer!

Dreamer is the boat of an Italian internet friend who has very similar tastes in boats and cruising destinations. Check his website: http://www.marieholm26.org

Dreamer, a beautifully maintained and upgraded Marieholm 26.

Back to Hvar to have dinner out with local friends, Joško and Duška.

Dinner with friends in Hvar.

It is always nice to meet people who share the same attitude to life.

Paradise Regained. Yugo.

Anticipating a freshening Yugo, I changed the headsail from Big Genny to the small jib. It turned out I was too eager and we were under-canvassed. Sailing towards Mekićevica was a sedated affair. This time, to avoid inflating the dinghy I dropped First-Mate with our stuff at the small cement peer. Just at that time big waves from the wake of a ferry rolled in. Result: another small scratch on Mekićevica's side. After that I picked-up a buoy and we spent a relaxed day at the beach.

Another great day at our favourite spot.

We had arranged to go and visit Šime and Zuleika. that evening, so we left early. We shouldn't have. The Yugo was now definitely freshening-up and we were back in record time.

As we were in a hurry, I dropped Sandra and started morning in a different place than usual. Just as I had finished, a boat arrived claiming that was their place and I had to find another place. Just to be kicked-out again. In desperation I remembered we have an offer to leave the boat in Jerolim whenever we want. So I motored to Jerolim. By than the wind had kicked-up big waves that were coming right into the bay and breaking on the beach. Jerold was not an option, so I returned to Hvar and finally managed to find a place, with First-Mate's help who by now had come back to the harbour looking for me.

Paradise Regained. Mlini.

There is no doubt: jugo conditions are developing. Temperatures rising, horizon getting hazy, and the southerly wind almost imperceptibly strengthening. Beating out of Hvar bay was hard work with all the traffic. Eventually we made it past the eastern tip of Jerolim, sailed towards Mlini beach and dropped the hook. Another relaxing beach day.

Anchored in Mlini.

On departure we tried another trick: weigh anchor under sail. It worked really well.

Paradise Regained. Another day in Jerolim.

The weather continues great. Little sailing today. We just went to Jerolim to visit Mare, Šimič, and friends.

Paradise Regained. Return to Hvar

In the morning, after the usual jump in the water, we motored to a small peer in the village to have a cappuccino ashore. After that we sailed the short distance to the Green Cave, on the small Ravnik island. There were a few boats around, but nothing like the madness of Stivina. First-Mate swam into the cave while I stayed at anchor watch duty.

The entrance to the Green Cave.

Then we started our return to Hvar. At first there was little wind right behind us, and it was very hot. We almost gave up when the maestrale kicked-up. From then on was great sailing to Hvar. That evening we had dinner at home.

Paradise Regained. Blue Cave and Stivina

One of the famous attractions near Komiža is the Blue Cave, on the Biševo island. Rather than sail there, we decided to join an organised excursion by RIB. It was my first time on a speed boat and I am not impressed. That they are fast is the only thing to be said for the damned things.
But the Blue Cave really matched the expectations.

The surreal Blue Cave.

Back in Komiža, we sailed out of the bay and then eastwards along the south coast of Vis. The next intended stop was the Stivina bay, a small pebble beach behind a narrow gap in the rocks. Apparently it is very popular and the space in front of the bay was a real traffic jam of boats. With some regret, we turned around and continued our route.

The ridiculously crowded Stivina bay.

After the southeast tip of Vis, we sailed between Vis and the small Ravnik island and entered a nice bay where we picked-up a buoy under sail. The rest of the afternoon was passed swimming, lazying in the afternoon sunshine and then having dinner aboard and sleep afloat.

Paradise Regained. Vis to Komiža.

We sailed out of Vis bay under genoa only, and in the open we found a moderate northwesterly. Under full main and with a few rolls in the genoa we made good progress along the north coast of Vis island, as the wind backed to the south. It was fun tacking between Rat Barjan and the small islands, then continued close-hauled away from land until we had the Komiža bay behind the beam, tacked and sailed into the bay.

Sailing past the old monastery in Komiža.

 Komiža is home to the famous gajeta Lisboa and her sister.

Komiža harbour.

That evening we looked for a more modest restaurant where I had the best grilled sardines I have had for a long time. Since the ones I had in Jerolim two years ago, to be precise.

Paradise Regained. Hvar to Vis

For this vacation, we planned to stay around Hvar... except for two short trips. One of them was to go to Vis. Even First-Mate who in her childhood spent many summers in Hvar, has never been to Vis.
The forecast was for weak NE wind, giving way to the a northwesterly afternoon maestrale.
Sailing along the south side of the Pakleni islands we noticed that yesterday's wind had left an agitated sea, which became more disturbing as the wind got weaker. We almost gave up the idea of sailing to Vis, but decided to check if the waves got smaller as we got into deeper water. And smaller they did and we were rewarded with great sailing, accompanied part of the way by dolphins.
Around 2pm the maestrale started as suddenly as if someone had flicked a switch, and we scrambled to reduce the genoa and continue towards Vis, now at a much higher speed.

Sailing into Vis harbour under mainsail.

View to the west side of Vis bay.

We even got there in time to walk to the beach on the opposite side of the bay for a swim. In the evening we treated ourselves to a huge, grilled San Pietro in the best Dalmatian restaurant.

Paradise Regained. Zoraće.

It is a sign of ageing that I like routine in my holidays: get up and seven, have a glass of juice and shave, and than go to the vegetable market and meet of few people that became familiar enough to exchange greetings. All the time trying to use as much Croatian as I can (which is very little).
Than breakfast followed by cappuccino at the cafe frequented by the locals, a couple of them rapidly becoming friends. This morning the only unusual thing was than the wind started to turn gusty.
As we sailed out of Hvar harbour heading east, we could feel the freshening west wind behind us. We were sailing under main sail only, going pretty fast and feeling over-canvassed.
Soon we were in the Zoraće bay, the ideal shelter from westerlies. A local offered us to moor at the peer, and we settled to another day of swimming, sun-bathing, and reading in the shade during the hottest part of the day. One of the local restaurants looked so nice that we decided to go there for a light meal (octopus salad, yummy) and chat to the very friendly young lady who owns it. She generously complimented my Croatian and reciprocated with a few words in Portuguese.

My beautiful crew in the restaurant overlooking Zoraće bay.

Getting away from the peer was a bit troublesome. Local boats overlook the fact that unlike them we have a keel and a mast and freely put mooring ropes in ways that unintentionally cause us trouble. Trying to disentangle us First-Mate had a nasty fall over the pulpit, for which she had blue bruises for the rest of the holiday. Ouch!
The return was great, challenging sailing. With one reef in the main and a very reduced genoa Mekićevica was slicing trough the waves. The big chartered boats were all motoring and one of them, crewed by a bunch of big guys, came really close to give the thumbs-up to Mekićevica's performance.

Paradise Regained. Mekićevica.

Another sunny day. Today we are going to Mekićevica, the bay our boat is named after. There was only a weak wind, that vanished completely when we passed between Hvar and the lighthouse. We had to motor the rest of the way. In Mekićevica we were offered to pick-up a buoy, took a few things ashore in out little dinghy and spent the day swimming, sun-bathing, reading. Very relaxing. In the middle of the day we went to say hello to the people in the restaurant, who of course were puzzled by our boat's name.

Mekićevica bay.

The sail back was really fun. We waited until the maestrale had decreased to just the right strength and then sailed in two long tacks with full main and genoa.

Paradise regained. Taršće.

Another sunny morning with weak winds. After my routine trip to the vegetable market and breakfast we set-off to sail south of the Pakleni islands to Taršće. This is beautiful and well protected bay where small boats with good skippers can find good anchorage deep into the bay. we moored with bow anchor and line ashore next a beautiful, local boat: Red Coral. I complimented the skipper on his boat and in turn he asked why did we have a Belgian flag but a local name. During this whole trip Mekićevica turned-out to be a good way to meet local people. Her good looks, good sailing and name got us apart from the average tourist.
Than it was just another great day enjoying the sunshine, the clear water and the beauty of this place.
The return was a run in the afternoon maestrale, and then an attempt to negotiate the strange winds between the islands of Marinkovac and Planikovac. Despite trying to copy the sail setting of a local skipper we had to give up and motor the last bit. In my defence, I'll say that he had a taller mast and was better able to catch the "cleaner" airs above the trees.

Evening back home, enjoying the view from the balcony: full moon over the arsenal and the happy crowds in Hvar.

Paradise Regained. Jerolim

Our aim for the day is the south side of Jerolim, a bay where Mare, First-Mate's cousin has the most delightful beach bar: Kordovan. In the hustle and bustle of modern Hvar this is an oasis of calm. No loud music, just the sound of the cicadas and the sea. And being one of the oldest and best nudist beaches means you can wear whatever you want or nothing at all.
Jerolim is right in front of Hvar but we still sailed around the island in weak wind, entered the bay under sail, dropped the anchor and took a line ashore, mediterranean style.

The lighthouse in front of Hvar.

For the rest of the day we enjoyed the company of the fantastic bunch of people who gather there to... well, enjoy each other's company in a relaxed setting.

Paradise Regained. Settling into beach life

I called it magic island but many promote it as party island. During the night the whole town of Hvar turns into a wild party with loud music, lots of drinking and the resulting, incoherent shouting. We are right in the centre and refuse to install air conditioning, so we sleep with open windows and exposed to all the noise. It takes more than that to prevent me from sleeping after a day out in the sun, and I go up at 7am to go to the market. I love markets and doing the shopping is an excellent opportunity to practice and improve my rudimentary Croatian.
As in a typical day in Hvar we check the weather forecast and decide where to go that day. The nice thing this time is that instead of taking a taxi-boat we sail there.
There is a weak northeasterly, so we decide to go along the south of the Pakleni islands and pull into one of the many bays. In the weak wind progress was slow and the sun biting our yet not acclimatised skin, so when we were passing in front of Stipanska we decided to go no further. Dropped the anchor,  look a line ashore, inflated our little dinghy to take stuff ashore and settled for our first day at the beach.
This involves a lot of swimming and sunbathing until early afternoon when the sun becomes too hot and we shelter in a shade reading to emerge in the late afternoon for more swimming and enjoying the mellow light.

Stipanska: rowing the dinghy ashore.

When it was time to go, we weighed anchor under sail and ghosted back to Hvar harbour to face the usual pandemonium of trying to find a place among the local boats.

Paradise Regained. The crew is complete and we sail to our magic island

On Thursday, First Mate is finally arriving to Split and I met her at the airport. To celebrate the fact that boat and crew are all ready and in holiday mood we went out for a dinner of grilled fish and calamari.

On the next morning we finally are casting off. The weather is on the usual summer pattern around here. Hot sunny, weak winds in the morning, completely dying in the middle of the day before the maestrale, the moderate, westerly, thermal wind starts.
At first we were beating into the weak southwesterly in busy traffic and took a while to get away from Split. At last the wind picked-up a bit and we sailed close-hauled towards the Splitska Vrata, the channel between the islands of Brač and Šolta.

Remembering the wind pattern of our previous times in these waters, we were expecting it when in the Splitska Vrata the wind went from moderate to nothing in less than a second. So we motored through to find that south of the Vrata there was a nice southwesterly. A few rolls in the genoa and off we go to the most delightful sailing in a long time, in a straight course to Rat Pelegrin, with the hills of Hvar to port.

In the Paklenski Kanal the wind was a bit weaker and progress was a bit slow, not least because of the  wake of the many ferries and speed-boats. But eventually we entered the bay of Hvar. Here we are at our magic island.

Entering Hvar harbour and sighting our beautiful, little pink house.

After the expected trouble finding a place among the local boats we unloaded and settled at home. Again we have reasons to celebrate: we are in Hvar and it is our wedding anniversary.