Fri 7 Sep to Sun 9 Sep – Capraia to Elba

On Friday we sailed from Capraia to the island of Elba; a 30 mile trip which would take about 7 hours. We started on a nice beam reach then as we left the lee of the island the wind came around further behind us so we trimmed the sails and continued towards Elba on a broad reach. After about half an hour it came around even further to almost dead aft so we thought we’d see if we could goose-wing (without poling the jib) which actually worked pretty well. From then on the wind was a bit all over the show until it was so light we decided to get the gennaker out. We went to furl away the jib but found it to be completely stuck. Somehow the furling line had managed to skip out over the drum and wedge itself between the bottom plate and the guard. Luckily after a few solid tugs it came lose. We also managed to break the other lazy jack shackle as we dropped the main, that’ll need fixing tomorrow. After all this faffing about, by the time we hoisted the gennaker the wind had vanished almost completely so after about 2 minutes we doused it and it was on with the engine for the last few miles.

The forecast predicted northerly winds for the upcoming days so we opted for the south side of the island, home to Elba’s second largest town, Campo. Our plan was to head straight there and anchor off the beach but as we came along the coast we saw a welcoming looking bay so decided to stop there for the night and head to Campo on Saturday. Just as we arrived the day boats were leaving so we bagged ourselves a perfect spot.

During the early hours of Saturday morning the wind picked up so we stuck our head out of the hatch to make sure all was well. We were sitting fine and the anchor alarm app confirmed we weren’t moving. In the morning I wrote the newsletter, which seemed to take hours. Sometimes I can bang them out in an hour or so. Some days, like today, I completely over think it and no matter how many times I re-write even just the simplest of sentences, I’m just not happy. Finally I got it to ‘good enough’ and sent it out.

After lunch and a trip up the mast with a new shackle for the lazy jack, we packed up and got going to Campo, an hour down the coast. We had a nice downwind sail under jib and arrived late afternoon. We were running low on food so we went ashore to do a Big Shop, had a few drinks then came back to the boat to find the anchorage packed! Elba is only a short hop from the mainland so probably people sail here for the weekend. We sat in the cockpit admiring the twinkling lights of the town and listening to the sound of very average karaoke coming from a neighbouring boat. The Italians on their boats, they do love to sing!

Sunday started off a bit later than usual, so by the time we paddleboarded to the beach for our workout it was already pretty busy. Not fancying setting out our mats in between the sunbathers we looked for a quite spot, and found one on the banks of where a stream looks like it usually runs into the sea. Flat and shaded it was. Aromatic it was not. The nearby evidence suggested it looked as was probably where the locals drunks and their four legged friends hang out. We zipped through the routine in record time and paddled back to the boat.

After lunch, during which we were tormented by the local birdlife we we went ashore for a walk. Early evening we had a paddle across the bay then over dinner made a plan for the upcoming days.