Our Circumnavigation of Isla di Elba
We left Marcianna on the 23rd July to go around the western part of Elba to Fetovaio, under sail the whole way. The bay, which has beautiful clear turquoise waters was not surprisingly very full of boats on anchor, but we still managed to find ourselves a sheltered spot to chill out. There is nothing there but a beach and a couple of houses, so we used the time to attempt a 3rd repair of the paddleboard, it now has the olympics rings in patches down one side. A float in the water to stay cool! It also made a refreshing change as we had no internet, with no distractions or interruptions, just perfect, albeit for one night!
Fetovaio
The next day we set sail again, albeit with the iron spinnaker as there was no wind, for 7NM’s to Lacona Bay, somewhere much larger, therefore quieter in terms of boats for the afternoon and night. Not sure it was our wisest move as we did have a bit of a side swell during the night, not enough to make everything inside the boat rattle, but enough that it wasn’t the best night’s sleep!
Lacona Bay
We had at this point thought about sailing southwards to visit the islands of Pianosa and Montecristo, (we have previously been to Giglio), but again research told us that that wasn’t such a wise idea.
Pianosa was originally Planasia due to the fact that its territory is practically completely flat, and the highest point is only 29 metres above sea level. Up till 1997 there was a maximum security prison on the island so access was forbidden. In the first years terrorists were imprisoned there, then the murderers of Falcone and Borsellino, and finally dangerous mafia criminals. Whilst the prison was closed down for good in 2011, there are still very strict regulations concerning access to the island, primarily for conservation reasons, above all the last mile as you approach it, in other words we weren’t allowed to sail within 1NM of it, let along anchor and go ashore!
Montecristo, uninhabited but still famous thanks to the novel “The Count of Montecristo” by Alexander Dumas was a similar story in terms of access, a no go area , so we continued with our circumnavigation of Elba and headed to Porto Azzurro on the east coast.
Porto Azzurro
A wonderful natural harbour. only open to the east and even then with some protection from the mainland which was only 15NM’s away. Having anchored off, we jumped in the dinghy to go ashore to find this lively vibrant town absolutely charming, but then we would given its Spanish influences, because up till 1947 it was called Portolongone, given to the town when it was founded in 1603 by Filippo III of Spain who wanted to to make it into a fortified town to defend the territory. Today, with a population of about 3800, it is a typical fishing town with lots of narrow lanes in the old part where it was hard not to notice the magnificent buildings of the past.
In the heart of this old town we came across a very quirky shop with nothing but fridge magnets on metal boards in the shape of people, boats and all sorts, my sis Tina would be in her element!
We were still quite early in the evening but the time we had finished our wanderings, so we stopped for a cocktail, one Mojito and one Sea Breeze. The Mojito certainly had spanish measures in it, and on an empty stomach, I wasn’t as steady on my feet when we got up to leave, David has never been quite the cheap date that I am, so he was fine, thankfully! Dinner out was definitely in order, before returning back to Seaclusion for a very very peaceful calm night.
We woke early to some clouds gathering, but fortunately they soon passed and we had a relaxing day on board in the sunshine, the only negative being that the third attempt of fixing the paddle also didn’t work, Patch has now become its new, albeit unoriginal nickname!
We stayed in the bay of Porto Azzurro for 2 blissful nights and then set sail towards the north eastern tip and into the bay of Portoferraio, although we didn’t go ashore, the scenery from the water was beautiful, both as the sun started to set and rise in the morning.
Once the incessant ferries had stopped for the evening, we had another fantastically peaceful night on a millpond! But time is marching on, so as the forecast showed good winds to go across to Corsica, we set sail again to complete the circumnavigation, passing Marcianna again and headed out into the Tyrrhenian Sea , hmmm, sadly the forecast wasn’t so accurate this time!
28th July 2024
