Croatia 2009

Croatia 2009

This is our log of a week spent sailing from Lumbarda to Sustjepam (Dubrovnik) on a 33 foot Beneteaux yacht chartered from Neilson Holidays. During this week we sailed as part of a flotilla of 7 yachts, with each yacht acting autominously during the day and rendezvousing at a given location each evening.

Onboard Kathleen, David and Scott McWhirter

After flying into Tivat from Manchester we travelled north by transfer bus to the ferry port of Ploce from where we would cross over to the island of Korkua on which Neilson Holidays have a yachting base in Lumbarda.

Korcula has an area of 279 km² and lies just off the Dalmatian coast. Its 16,182 (2001) inhabitants make it the second most populous Adriatic island after Krk and the most populous Croatian island not connected to the mainland by a bridge. The population consists mainly of ethnic Croats. It belongs to the central Dalmatian archipelago, separated from the Pelješac peninsula by a narrow Strait of Pelješac, it is largely covered with Mediterranean flora including extensive pine forests.

Arriving late in Lumbarda on the evening of the Saturday we dumped our gear onboard ??? before going for a start of holiday drink at a local bar, where we sat and enjoyed the Mediterranean evening.

Lumbarda is a small village and a municipality located on the Eastern Cape of the Island of Korčula in Croatia, 7 kilometers away from the town of Korčula. A road passing through a picturesque area of pine woods and olive groves connects these two places. Lumbarda is surrounded by sandy vineyards (the famous white wine "Grk" produced from the native grape of the same name- presumably famous in Croatia!) and sandy beaches. Lumbarda is a tourist centre, many of its 1200  inhabitants are active in the local tourist industry, but they are also wine-growers, fishermen and stone-dressers. Lumbarda has a rich history preserved in written documents dating back to more than two thousand years ago.

Monday  - Day 1 – Lumbarda to Pomena.

Today we awoke to fairly windy conditiions with a soutwesterly 3 – 4 wind blowing. After a short morning briefing and buying basic provisions at a local store we set out under sail, but with a single reef in. This was a new experience as our previous sailing of “big boats’ had been in fairly gentle winds where no reefs were required and our dingy sailing exerience was based on an “all or nothing approach” entailing either getting very wet or breaking the boat – not really an approach that we wanted to replicate on a yacht!

Being one of the first boats to leave and with favourable sailing conditions, we decided to head around the south tip of Korcula and find a sheltered beach where we could anchor for lunch and a swim. After a couple of reaches and a bit of beating we dropped anchor in a fairly quiet sandy bay only a few miles by road from Lumbarda (the road cuts straight across the island). The local wind however was offshore (a local phenomonen) so our swimming was restricted by one of us staying on or immediately next to the boat as anchor dragging was a concern – coming from a dingy sailing background, anchors have never been a consideration before as you simply pull a dinghy up the beach or tie it to a handy tree!

After lunch we crossed to Mljet and the little town of Pomena where we joined the other yachts on the flotila and where we demonstrated our (my) lack of experience in reverse parking a yacht. The lead skipper made a point of having us do it three times despite us being properly aligned and positioned the first time (the second time was admittedly a mess!)

Pomena is a small village as well as a harbour located at the west end of Island of Mljet, about 2 km away from village of Govedari. Pomena has just over 50 permanent inhabitants, who live off farming, fishing and the tourist trade.

Pomena was initially founded by Govedjari people, as that was their nearest sheltered bay and access to the sea. They used to come to Pomena mainly to fish. However, since the growth of tourist trade in the area, and construction of a local hotel has became more of the tourist destination.

Pomena as a bay is a very safe place to anchorage as it is sheltered by tiny island of Pomestak, which acts as a local naturist beach too  ( we did not visit this ourselves!!)

Dinner that evening was at a local restaurant where we met a number of the other skippers and crews and where Scott made a number of holiday friends.

Miles sailed 15.5

Tuesday - Day 2 Pomena to Slano

Again we awoke to blue skies but with slightly less wind. A steady force 3 was blowing from the south west. With a longer passage planned for today this was ideal sailing conditions and after an early breakfast we headed out into the bay before turning south towards Slano.

Slano is a village with a small harbour in the bay of the same name. It is located 27 km northwest of Dubrovnik. Slano lies on the main road (M2, E65). The area of Slano was populated already in the prehistoric period (ruins of a hill-fort and tumuli on the nearby hills) and in the ancient times (a Roman castrum on the hill Gradina; early Christian sarcophagi, today exhibited in front of the Franciscan church).

The planned mileage for today meant that a lunch stop was not on our itinerary  as we wanted to arrive in Slano in the late afternoon, which would allow us to explore before dinner.

Berthing stern to with no problems, we quickly tidied the boat and then Kathleen and I set off to walk around the village and up a nearby hill while Scott being the social animal that he is went swimming with his new friends.

Dinner that night was at a local restaurant – not the one recommended by the lead crew to which everyone else went like sheep, but one which was serving locals and which provided us with an excellent evening meal. Obviously Kathleen and I are not “party” people!

Miles sailed 33.8

Wednesday - Day 3 Slano to Sustjepan

Day three arrived with the anticipation of reaching Dubrovnik. The great sailing conditions of blue skies and light favorable winds continued and after breakfast we set off on  a leisurely  19 mile sail to Sustjepan and the marina where we would stay for two nights when we visited Dubrovnik.

The marina is located past the port of Gruz a few miles up a narrow inlet to the north of Dubrovnik, the entrance to which is marked by the impressive 518m long Franjo Tudman bridge spans the mouth of the inlet.

The Franjo Tuđman Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge carrying the D8 state road at the western approach to Dubrovnik, Croatia across Rijeka Dubrovačka near Port of Gruž. The original bridge design was developed in 1989, however construction was stopped at the onset of the Croatian War of Independence.

The bridge is 518-metre (1,699 ft) long, measured between the abutments. Substructure of the bridge consists of the abutments, a pier on the western shore supporting a pretensioned girder and an anchoring pier on the eastern shore.

Construction of the bridge started in October 1998. Construction was completed in April 2002, and the bridge was officially opened on May 21, 2002. The bridge construction costs were reportedly 252 million Croatian kuna (c. US$31 million) making Franjo Tuđman Bridge the most expensive bridge in Croatia.

Sustjepan is really part of Dubrovnik, located in the beautiful bay 4 Km south from the Old City walls. It is very well connected to the city with a bus every 20 minutes however we chose to walk each way to the city as sitting on a boat in the sunshine is not classed as exercise and we all wanted to stretch our legs.

As we wanted to spend all of the following day exploring Dubrovnik we went for a walk around Sustjepan and enjoyed the great showers in the marina before eating locally. For future reference Sustjepan itself is OK but not a holiday destination in itself.

Miles sailed – 19.4

Thursday - Day 4 – Sustjepam (stay in port and visit Dubrovnik)

This was a day of culture and walking. Setting off early we wanted to arrive in Dubrovnik before the main bulk of the daily tourists. Dubrovnik was under an hour’s walk from the marina. Obviously most people must use vehicular transport (including the plentiful supply of local buses) to get there as the footpath alongside the main roads was devoid of people.

Dubrovnik is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranean, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva County. Its total population is 42,615.  In 1979, the city of Dubrovnik joined the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.

The prosperity of the city of Dubrovnik was historically based on maritime trade. As the capital of the Republic of Ragusa, a maritime republic, the city achieved a high level of development, particularly during the 15th and 16th centuries. Dubrovnik became notable for its wealth and skilled diplomacy.

The beginning of tourism in Dubrovnik is often associated with the construction of the late 19th-century luxury hotels in Croatia, such as Grand Hotel (1890) in Opatija and the Hotel Imperial (1897) in Dubrovnik. According to CNNGo, Dubrovnik is among the 10 best medieval walled cities in the world.

In 1991 Croatia and Slovenia, which at that time were republics within Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, declared their independence. At that event, Socialist Republic of Croatia was renamed Republic of Croatia.

Despite demilitarization of the old town in early 1970s in an attempt to prevent it from ever becoming a casualty of war, following Croatia's independence in 1991, Yugoslavia's Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) attacked the Croatian military in the city. New Croatian government set up military outpost in the city itself.

On October 1, 1991 Dubrovnik was attacked by JNA with a siege of Dubrovnik that lasted for seven months, the artillery attacks on Dubrovnik damaged 56% of its buildings to some degree, as the historic walled city, a UNESCO world heritage site, sustained 650 hits by artillery rounds. The Croatian Army lifted the siege in May 1992, and liberated Dubrovnik's surroundings by the end of October, but the danger of sudden attacks by the JNA lasted for another three years.

Following the end of the war, damage caused by the shelling of the Old Town was repaired. Adhering to UNESCO guidelines, repairs were performed in the original style

Arriving just before 10am we enjoyed morning coffee in the sunshine in a beautiful little square, before setting off to explore. One of the things to do is to walk the walls which offer stunning views of the surrounding countryside and seaside as well as over the roofs of Dubrovnik itself. Looking over the city it was amazing to try and imagine the damage caused by the fairly recent war as all sign of it was gone apart from some of the roofs looking newer than others.

During the course of the day we enjoyed further coffees and a picnic lunch and having explored the walls and the many streets and backstreets we found a local restaurant for dinner (Italian!)  before walking back to the boat.

 Miles sailed - 0

Friday - Day 5 – Sustjepam – Luka

After breakfast in the sunshine we set off back down the inlet towards the open sea under motor. Our journey north and back to Lumbarda had begun. Although we still were enjoying glorious blue skies, the wind had dropped to Force 2 (at best) and our progress was leisurely to say the least. As we passed Gruz, we marveled at the sheer size of the cruise ships that were docked there – how anyone can do that for a holiday is beyond me. The dockside was covered in tour buses which were obviously ferrying passengers in their thousands to Dubrovnik for the day.

Today’s navigation course basically consisted of two tacks after passing once more under the still very impressive Franjo Tuđman Bridge. Due west out past a small un named island and then northwards to a small passage between Korcula and Otok Jakljan (a narrow, long island to the north of Korcula).

With little wind we drifted albeit with direction in the sun. The main excitement of the day was when I knocked my binoculars over and they bounced through the open transom into thousands of feet of water. This caused a few choice words to be uttered, but it was no one’s fault but my own!

Luka is located on the western side of the island of Korčula at the bottom of a wide bay which has many indented coves. Luka developed at the beginning of the 19th century in a deep sheltered bay. Its name means "big harbour". Inhabitants of the Island of Korčula and Pelješac often refer to it simply as "Luka" (the port/harbour). It has several hotels and a medical centre for rheumatic disorders & rehabilitation. The inhabitants are farmers, fishermen and workers in tourism. The town has a shipyard and other smaller industrial plants.

Arriving late in the afternoon under motor as the wind had finally died, we anchored stern to only a few yards from some splendid local bars and restaurants. For entertainment the lead crew had organized a fun event for the kids on the flotilla which involved tenders fancy dress and getting wet in the harbor. Kathleen and I went for a swim while Scott and his friends did their stuff

Miles sailed 18

Saturday Day 6 – Luka to Trstenik

With only two more legs to get back up to Lumbarda today’s leg would be potentially the longest of the holiday. Under continuing blue skies but now with a north wind which started as a Force 2 we set off early, conscious that we had a long way to go. Determined to sail all the way we spent a good while tacking out past Otok Olipa which had a sizeable headland and very channeled winds.

Once out clear of the smaller islands we found ourselves behind most of the other boats which had elected to motor north – presumably sailing upwind was not the favored means of propulsion for the group we were with!

As we were basically sailing up a wide stretch of water between the mainland and the island of Kljet we were tacking every seven miles or so, and were making good progress as the wind had risen to somewhere around Force 4. By late afternoon we had 42 miles or so under our belt and only 6 miles to go. However mindful of the lead crew’s request for all boats to be in harbor before dark (8.30pm ish) we decided to motor the last few miles so that we could arrive and berth in daylight. Arriving just after 6pm we rafted up with the other boats. The space available for yachts was restricted as the locals were going to play water polo and had cordoned off a sizeable area of the inner harbor for their pitch (water polo “pitch”?).

The harbor was behind a large stone breakwater of the type we normally see in Scotland, but not so much in the Mediterranean. This proved a great location for the kids to jump from and any surplus energy was quickly used up running and jumping before a swim back to the steps in order to do it again.

Trstenik is a village situated on the southern coast of the Peljesac peninsula. It is connected to the Croatian mainland by the coastal road. The village is located in a deep, south facing bay under the tall Peljesac hills, with a large pebble beach at the base of the bay. The bay is an anchoring spot as it has well protected pier, though it is not recommended in times of Jugo, the strong southern wind.

Trstenik is about 90 km away from Dubrovnik and due to it’s unique gorgeous and un spoilt location, is considered as one of the most beautiful villages of Croatian coast. The sea here is crystal clear, and is rich in underwater life. Numerous small bays and beaches that can only by boat are in the near vicinity of Trstenik.

History of Trstenik: Trstenik was in 19th and beginning of 20th century important harbour for transportation of grapes from Peljesac’s isolated southern vineyards to Italy and beyond. At that times the only way to transport grapes at harvest from southern slopes of Peljesac was to load them on donkeys and carry them over the mountain to the wineries in Potomje (village on Peljesac that has well known winery) , or along the steep southern ridges to Trstenik to be loaded on boats and transported by sea to Italy or Split and Dubrovnik.

That evening being the last night of the flotilla, we went out to dinner as a group. The restaurant chosen had been selected / recommended by the lead crew and was to be fair – OK. Croatia we found was a bit like Greece when it came to food – most was OK some was good and some was poor. As long as you did not mind what order things came in or whether it was hot when served you could enjoy most meals.

The one disconcerting thing about Trstenik was the number of empty houses. Probably 40 – 50% of the houses were just shells with no roofs, doors or windows. Inside there was no debris, no rubbish or signs that anyone had ever lived there. All the timber, roof tiles etc had been removed leaving a clean shell. These houses had been owned / lived in by presumably Serbs either killed or displaced during the recent war. Bullet holes were still evident on the outside of many of the village buildings. A village with no atmosphere at all.

Miles sailed 48

Sunday Day 7 – Trstenik to Lumbarda

Our final day on the flotilla!

We were due back into Lumbarda early in the afternoon, before which we had to refuel the yacht at a boat filling station – another new experience! The weather once again delivered blue skies but no wind, so with our sails stowed we set off under motor parallel northwards towards the town of  Korcula on the island of the same name, where we would refuel before turning west along the coast to Lumbarda.

Motoring does not have the same appeal as sailing, but in the absence of any wind we had little choice and soon the seven boats in the flotilla were spread across a mirror like sea all heading north.

After refueling – a fairly simple and hassle free job- we tied up back in Lumbarda at lunch time.

All good things as they say must come to an end! With the boat to be vacated by 14.00hrs to allow it to be turned around for the next “guests” we spent our final hour or so on board packing before we took our bags to the collection point at the end of the jetty. The transfer bus would pick us up early that evening to take us back to the airport.

With an afternoon to spare we borrowed some bikes and set off to explore Korkula. The cycle was a great way to see a bit of the island. Korkula itself was a pleasant little town with some fairly old buildings and a small local market. Had time permitted we would have spent a bit more time there, but unfortunately we had to return the bikes and get back in time for our coach transfer to the airport.

Miles sailed 19

We had a great holiday in Croatia. It was especially nice to have Scott with us for the week. Although an accomplished dinghy sailor this was his first time on a yacht. We hope he enjoyed it and that he will come with us again one day.

Having holidayed in Greece numerous times it is too easy to draw comparisons between Croatia and Greece as they are both coastal Mediterranean countries. The recent war in Croatia and the splitting of the former Yugoslavia into a number of smaller countries has obviously had a massive effect on the country which is only just now trying to rebuild its tourist industry.

I personally found the Croatians to be not as outgoing as the Greeks and more reserved (friendly?). The unpainted villages appear drabber when compared to the traditional blue and white colour scheme that he Greeks seem to paint everything in.

The sailing was good and we would love to come back and head northwards from Lumbarda towards Split – but that is for another year!

Total Mileage = 153.70