I'm feeling more than a bit guilty for not writing this up for a month, but my only excuse is that things were pretty hectic during that time (nothing to do with being lazy then.)
That was the end of the rat...thank goodness! We were worried that there may be have been more than one on board, but after a few rodent free days, it was clear that he was a lone operator, and we began to relax again. So far, the only evidence of his presence is the chewed mosquito screen - and as we heard about a yacht which ended up with seven thousand euros worth of damage after a rat got on board, we feel we got off quite lightly.
With Frank back after his trip to Jersey, we had just a couple of nights on our own before my Goddaughter, Sarah, was due to arrive. She was eager for a few days of sunshine, so we were aghast when we checked the forecast to discover that storms were scheduled to arrive soon after she did! And sure enough, after one beautiful day, during which we picked her up from Cavtat, motored down to Porto Montenegro and lazed around the pool for the afternoon, the clouds gathered, the heavens opened, the thunder roared and the lightning dazzled! The storm went on for 36 hours and was spectacular, with the wind rising from nowhere, battering the marina, and then falling away again. Once it had passed through, we hired a car and drove to Kotor, and then up into the mountains above the Boka Kotorska. The views were sensational, and the landscape away from the coast was amazing, especially the huge plateau at the top of the mountain. On the way back to Porto Montenegro, we got our first view of Sveti Stefan, the landmark island which originally housed a monastery and now a hotel, used in all the advertising blurb for this region.
By morning, conditions had improved and we were able to fill the tanks and retrace our footsteps up to Croatia. Having hoped to have a night at anchor off one of the islands, we were disappointed when the wind (which wasn't particularly strong) was all over the place, and so we opted to go into the creek at Zaton which had provided us with good shelter in the past. Sarah finally got some proper sunbathing in, but by evening the wind was rising a bit, and our anticipated meal at a restaurant had to be cancelled as we didn't fancy the dinghy trip or leaving Zaffina when she was getting blown around.
We ended up having a pretty appalling night! Huge gusts of wind kept pushing us around, seemingly coming from any direction, and the noise of the waves on the hull, combined with the anchor alarm which kept going off, prevented any of us from getting a good night's sleep. In fact, it was the worst night we can ever remember at anchor...and Sarah's first!! Not a great experience for her.
The next day we all flew home, as Frank and I were coming back to Jersey for Chris and Jenna's wedding. (What a fabulous occasion!) As Ken and Hilary were due to join us whilst we were still away, we left the keys for them and told them to make themselves at home till we got back! It was strange to return to Zaffina with guests already on board! As soon as we'd unpacked, we dropped the lines and headed out to sea, taking them to Sipan for our first night together, and introducing them to Kod Marka, the lovely restaurant which we have christened "fish or meat" due to the lack of menus. It was up to its usual standard, although I think the waiter, Gino, was pleased that we were a little less rowdy than last time...down to the company!
Croatia was determined to impress, and in lovely conditions we started the trek up towards Hvar, but as we went northwards, the wind came up again. With Ken at the helm, there was a sudden shriek as the bow cushions detached, flung themselves into the air and then into the sea! We had an impromptu and, I'm pleased to say, very successful man-overboard practice, rescuing both cushions before they got waterlogged and sunk beneath the waves.
With sea conditions deteriorating, we went into Mljet for the night and celebrated Ken's birthday with another good meal in the tiny village. Anchored in the pool nearby, Zaffina was inundated with wasps! Although they didn't seem inclined to sting, thank goodness, they were strangely attracted to the brightwork, and loads of them could be seen crawling over the rails, the wheel and elsewhere. They even landed on us, crawled around for a bit and then flew off. In the end, I made a jam jar trap which they were more interested in and kept them off us.
Our next stop was the lovely little town of Korcula, and the next episode in our eventful week - another rope around the prop! As we were directed into our mooring space, the marinero pulled up the line diagonally across the berth - and then wondered why it got tangled. Again, the marina admitted liability, and all was sorted amicably.
We finally completed our trip to Hvar the next day, returning to the lovely marina at Palmazana which was almost empty. When we went across to the town - the taxi was a high speed rib this time, rather than the slow boats on the route in the summer - we discovered that it was a local saint's days and there were massive processions around the harbour, bishops, monks, choristers and locals, singing and chanting as they headed into the cathedral. It was quite a sight to behold. In the evening, we went to a fabulous concert in a Fransiscan Monastery, where we sat beneath the stars in the cloisters and enjoyed an excellent programme of music. By contrast, when we came out and wandered back to the square, there was a live rock concert blaring out at full volume!
Ken and Hilary opted to get a ferry back to Dubrovnik so we could continue our wanderings around and north of Hvar for our last week, but when we enquired about the timetable, we discovered the last ferry had left several days earlier and the next one was due next year! The winter timetable simply didn't exist, and the only solution was for us to take them back to Korcula, where they could get a boat and bus to the airport. So, over a beautifully calm sea, we returned to Korcula town.
Hilary and I were shopping in Korcula when she suddenly realised that she had lost one of her diamond earrings. We went back to all the shops we'd visited and then back to Zaffina but there was no sign of it. The only possibility we could think of was that it had dropped into the water when she jumped down from Zaffina (we were moored side to) so the following morning, our heroic skipper armed himself with a mask and jumped into the marina. After his first foray into the deep he emerged with a battered tea spoon and we sent him straight back in again, but the second time, amazingly, he was triumphant and returned to the surface bearing the diamond earring in his hand. I'm going to send him down for treasure more often! Hilary was delighted.
We checked the forecast and realised that last week would have to be curtailed - high winds were on their way and it was time for us to start heading back towards our winter berth. Ken and Hilary departed on the 6am bus and after watching the sunrise, we dropped our lines and headed back to Mljet, where Frank nosed into an inlet we hadn't been in before. It was sensational! A tiny hamlet, with a few restaurants, a couple of hotels and a handful of houses, faced a little port, completely sheltered from just about every direction. We anchored in an adjoining bay and spent a glorious night on board, watching the sun go down over a completely flat sea. It was hard to believe that things were going to change in just a couple of days.
For our last night out of port, we returned to Jakljan, another favourite, and it seemed as if Croatia was trying to persuade us to stay, conditions were so perfect. During the afternoon, Frank backed Zaffina up to a tiny pontoon in the anchorage, I leapt ashore and he paraded our lovely Azimut in the bay in front of me, whilst I took photographs and videos for Motor Boat & Yachting Magazine. In the evening we watched the sky melt from blue to lemong to gold as the sun dropped and the night descended. We promised ourselves a swim with the sunrise, but when we got up in the morning, the day was beautiful but the sea was not - a passing boat must have emptied its black water tanks in the vicinity, and there was no way we were swimming in that! So sadly, we pulled up the anchor and returned to Dubrovnik Marina.
We had just 24 hours to clear the boat ready for our return home. In fact, it was more like 4 hours as the sun was still out when we got into port, and I spent most of the day lying out on the bow, taking in the last of the glorious weather, before rushing round, getting packed and clearing us out! By morning, the wind was starting to come up and things felt a bit cooler. We went to the office to check the time of the lift - Zaffina was being taken out of the water for the winter - to be told that the rate we'd been quoted didn't include the use of the crane! A rather large argument ensued, during which Frank threatened to take the boat down to Montenegro for the winter, whilst I blanched at the thought of making the journey again, until eventually they backed down and peace broke out. After that, everything happened remarkably quickly; we took Zaffina around to the lift out dock, manoeuvred her into position and then she was lifted. It's quite an emotional experience, seeing your home being removed from its natural environment, dangling overhead, and then put away for the winter! The hull was amazingly clean, barely a barnacle in sight!
And that was it, summer over.
Roll on 2012!
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