July 17
Hi from Tapestry,
Another day of low adventure. Yesterday we sailed to an island group called
Sanguinaires. It was near the birthplace of Napoleon. As it
was only a 20 mile
sail, we left at 8 to assure ourselves a good spot in the anchorage. We were
fortunate to be able to anchor in about 20 feet. The Island had towers on it
from the Sixteenth Century, probably built by the Genoans who occupied Corsica
at that time. There was a fort and a 19th century lighthouse as well. We
motored around the island in the dinghy and found it really interesting. The
water is crystal clear, much like the Bahamas, but it is deep, often 40 or 50
feet right up to shore. There are huge boulders and piles of rock along the
shore which make for interesting exploration by dinghy.
Like Sanguinaires, Cape Rossu is beautiful brown and red rock covered with
green moss and scrub. There are grottos along the water's edge that are often
deep enough to motor into with the dinghy. One such "cave" made
sucking and thundering sounds as the waves rolled into it. Neat. We explored
each nook and tiny harbor in our little 7 foot dinghy. The wind was about ten
knots and the waves less than 1/2 metre; still the spray splashed over our
heads. Had the waves been higher, the ride would not have been possible. It
was really neat.
On the way today, a large gray boat with an orange stripe approached Sugilite,
our friends from Seattle. Four men boarded them and did a thorough inspection
including lockers, tool boxes, bilges, anchor wells, etc. They checked all
their paperwork and made sure everything was in order. They were very thorough,
and spent more than 1/2 hour. When we arrived at Cape Russo, the same ship was
anchored here. After an hour or so they boarded Triumph, our friends from
Michigan. They inspected their paperwork as well as doing a brief check. We
had
the stars and stripes up and were ready for a visit as well. They paid no
attention to us at all. Must have been our deodorant.
Tomorrow we head for Calvi. A several day blow is on the way with winds in
the 20 to 30 knot range. We want to be sure we are in a safe place when that
arrives on Tuesday. We are loving the Med.
Hank and Julie on Tapestry, under a
half moon, close to a bold shore in a tiny cove near Cape Russo, Corsica,
France.