SY Equinox 2026

We contemplated just forgetting the world and staying for ever in Polace, but eventually reality kicked in and we set off for another of our favourite anchorages, at Ubli on the island of Lastovo.  There is bad weather coming over the next few days, and we are confident of the shelter that this enclosed bay will offer.  It also has good holding for the anchor, so hopefully all will be well. It was a perfect day of sailing, with enough wind to sail properly and it coming from a helpful direction.  As there was no pressing time target, we just enjoyed the relaxed conditions.  Not far from our starting point we were joined by a lone dolphin.  We have seen dolphins each day we have sailed, along with turtles as we crossed the Adriatic.  Some of the dolphins have played in the bow wave for a while, and todays one seemed content to do the same, even though we were not going fast. When we encounter dolphins, there is always the dilemma of whether to just watch and...

The schedule dictates that we move on, and todays heading was to a well sheltered bay on the island of Mljet.  We have visited this bay before and were able to contact one of the konoba (taverna) owners in advance to book the use of their mooring buoy.  This is a lovely guy that we were recommended to by our good Croatian friends.  Apparently he told them that these days he only cooks for old friends when the restaurant is not open.  Our friends asked to become "new" old friends and we have now joined this exclusive club.  As the restaurant is not open, Polo volunteered to bring the food to the boat, which was most welcome.  He said that we would have to eat from the fish menu,  the menu being whatever he had caught that day. The food duly arrived, at the agreed time and contained a starter, a main course enough for 2 meals, and bottle of chilled whine and 2 miniature bottle of a local digestif. Polo said that the fish had been caught within the last 3...

Now we are really getting on.  We left Montenegro this morning via the Customs dock and the formalities were all carried out with minimal fuss and maximum good cheer. The entrance to the bay is guarded by forts on each side, presumably they once complimented each other in denying access to the Bay of Kotor.  Now however, one is in Montenegro and the other in Croatia.  Both look forbidding, but as far as we can tell, they are no longer used for their original purpose. Travelling up the coast of Croatia, eventually we get to a point where the mobile phone signal realises that we are back in the EU, and we can start to have a more reliable and consistent service. The sailing (motoring) was very straightforward,  keep the land on the right and stay outside the islands.   Montenegro has such fantastic scenery On arrival in Dubrovnik, we encountered a fleet of racing yachts and had to pick our moment to cross through the pack.  We are very sympathetic to the...

Our first couple of days here were characterised by rain, some hail and strong winds.  Overnight the boat had bounced around a little and extra lines and fenders were deployed to keep everything in place. Thursday however dawned bright and sunny, with clear blue skies and the temperature rising quickly.  This is what we came for!  The days were spent either walking to Herzog Novi just for the exercise or to get provisions.  The local market place has a couple of fish vendors and we splashed out a cool 3.5 Euros for 2 sea trout.  Super fresh and clearly just caught that day,  they were delicious.  This does down as one of the nicest marinas we have ever stayed at.  The resort complex is beautifully laid out and maintained without being pretentious. The staff are all cheerful, helpful and plentiful.  The resort also offers access to a beach and spa facilities,  which we have not used. It will be a shame to leave, but we must move on. ...

Sleep, sleep, sleep.  The alarm clock was turned off and with nothing particular to do, Tuesday was primarily catching up on the rest that we had missed the previous day. The marina we have chosen is excellent. It is part of a hotel resort complex and is well kept and beautiful.  It certainly feels very luxurious. Our previous visits to Montenegro had shown us that it has fantastic scenery, but is very wet and sure enough, overnight we had a thunderstorm and heavy rain.  The weather changes so quickly here, on minute it can be warm sunshine and then the next, the clouds come in over the hills and the rain starts.  It does keep it very green! We walked into the old town of Herzog Novi, where we had berthed on our previous visit.  It was good to stretch the legs after a period with only a different sort of exercise. Miles today                  0 Miles this season    117 Steve (and Tricia)

Final preparations and shopping were the first priorities, getting as much of the fantastic Italian food as we would need for a few days. We were confident that all of the work had been completed satisfactorily, but we were keen to have a shakedown sail to prove this.  The weather on Saturday was against this, but Sunday morning dawned very peacefully and was ideal.  We slipped away from our mooring and out of the harbour, Equinox was once again in her true element and form. We spent a happy couple of hours going through a range of manoeuvres, which assured us that all was well, before returning to the lifting dock to make our exit simpler. Thereafter on Sunday we had our main meal at our favourite local café and then tried to rest as much as possible.  The alarm was set for 01:00 on Monday morning, and with all possible preparations previously done, we slipped away from the boatyard at 01:20. The crossing was about 106 nautical miles, so that is the equivalent of 1 3/4 c...

Fixing the wiring for the cables that come down the mast wasn’t entirely straightforward. After several hours on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning, we finally had all systems working. This included the various lights, wind instruments, AIS and VHF. Amongst all this, it came to light that our backup, emergency battery charging system had been switched on, without anyone being aware, and resulting, the theory went, in too much charge going into our brand new batteries, causing them to overheat, and potentially damage them. At the same time, the air conditioning system, which we use in reverse to give us heating, stopped working. Was this coincidence, or had a discharge from the batteries caused damage to circuit board in the AC control unit? After many hours of investigation, including calling in aircon experts, no solution was found and a message sent to the manufacturers to see if parts can be sourced. However, two days later, on switching all power to the boat off, suddenly the ...

In the network of narrow streets in Napoli the small shops have everything the locals want or need to buy. One block back from the main shopping street in the district of Toledo, there are greengrocers, butchers, fishmongers, etc, and, of course coffee shops. We joined the locals for our breakfast coffee and cornetti, packed into the small shop, with immaculate presentation and staff in branded uniforms. A walk through the old city can take you to one of the many churches, one housing several Canaletto paintings and works of other artists from the same era. The institution uses the income generated to support the poor and needy. Napoli has a plethora of museums and galleries, unsurprisingly when there are so much historical stories to be told. It seems that the way to get around is by motorbike The royal palace, dating back to the days of Spanish rule The local food includes a lot of deep fried pasta and pizza, yet people are not overweight. A delight to enjoy at aperitivo time, late...

None of us had been to Pompei, and it seemed like an essential trip, to a truly unique place. We booked onto a guided tour, led by and archaeologist, who was tremendous. We were told of the timescale of the eruption and the speed with which the town was engulfed. Archaeologists have been working here for 200 years, since its first discovery, and I would guess that not even half has yet been revealed.  The scale of the town is breath-taking.  We were able to see houses of both rich and poor, public baths, taverns, fast food places and even a brothel.    The pictures will do most of the talking today, it was just amazing. The market square with Vesuvius in the background. Ash covered the town and the people, and once the flesh had decayed, left voids. These have been filled with plaster, to reveal the people who had died. This one covering his face to avoid the gas which would have suffocated him. The ornate and well preserved public bath house The entrance to a rich p...

So, at last, the day came when the mast would be refitted. There were a couple of other boat movements to go through the lifting dock, but our call came surprisingly promptly.  We retraced our previous path from the side of the jetty that we are moored, around the end and then to the lifting dock.  It seemed like a mammoth voyage of at least 300 metres. The mast had already been positioned and so as soon as the boat was secured, the process of lifting it began.  It is not an easy proposition, lifting a 24 metre pole, without either end touching the ground.  A long strop is positioned below the top two sets of spreaders and secured against slippage. The length of this is just longer than the remaining height of the mast, so that the cranes hook, when attached to the strop, is just above the top of the mast. The lift begins, and the lower end is attached to a forklift truck, also by a strop As the crane lifts the top, the forklift ensures that the base is just above th...