A Pit Stop in Olbia

Morning on the west side of Porto della Taverna (just off Punta Don Diego)   

All looked well at our anchorage off Punta Don Diego in Porto della Taverna first thing on Thursday 29 June. Over breakfast we discussed our options. The fridge was starting to look very empty and the wind looked like it would pick up strongly over the weekend. Based upon our recent experience of the wind blowing in all directions we wanted to find an anchorage with a supermarket and all-round protection from the wind and swell. That seemed likely to be a tall order and so we started with tackling the food issue. There was a village about a mile away from where we were anchored with a (reported) good supermarket but we also needed a new Camping Gaz bottle and we had no idea if this would be available in the village. Olbia, however, was about 10nm away and, we knew, would have everything we needed.

Northeast Sardinia in the summer – really? Looks more like the UK   

So, with that in mind we set off towards Olbia with some good sailing but slightly disturbing dark clouds in the sky. Everything looked dark and gloomy and we even had to get out our jackets for some rain showers!

Things did not improve as we approached Olbia and the jackets were on again as we worked our way up the narrow (one-way only for ships) entrance channel. We’d stayed here for a few days in June 2014 and knew that the old commercial quay was the closest place to the shops for us to moor BV and so that's where we headed to see if there was space for us. There was actually lots of space but still very few mooring rings or bollards. Other yachtsmen came to help us with our lines and we got BV tied up securely, though perhaps not in ‘standard’ RYA style.

(L) BV alongside the commercial quay (R) Pretty German yacht leaving the quay for the night but definitely coming back for the weekend   

The old commercial quay can be used free of charge, or for the cost of a nominal ‘marco di bolo’ as in Carloforte, depending on how the Guardia Costiera are feeling. However, the Cruising Association’s forum tells of numerous thefts from boats alongside the quay in recent years so we didn’t want to leave BV unattended and therefore didn’t really want to stay in Olbia for any length of time. Nicky went off to the supermarket to purchase supplies whilst I guarded BV and chatted to one of the yachtsmen who had helped us with our lines. He warned me that if we were planning to stay in Olbia for the mistral which was forecast over the weekend, then we should consider staying put now or, at least, coming back early on Friday; ‘the quay fills up very quickly when a blow’s forecast’ he said.

Nicky returned with enough food to feed an army and I was dispatched to buy the heavy stuff (vinegar for descaling the heads, beer and wine). When I returned a strong southwesterly wind had sprung up and was pushing us hard against the quay. I went off again to exchange the Camping Gaz cylinder and by the time I got back the southwesterly had become an easterly but only about 6 knots again! We discussed the options. By now the commercial quay had filled up [Ed: for the night? Or for the weekend?] and yachts were starting to raft up. Where we were we should have been blown off the quay by the mistral but only a small change in direction would see us being blown on to it. With relatively few rings/bollards there were few options to add extra lines to hold the boat more secure in a blow and if we ended up part of a raft we could get squashed or have to take all the weight of the raft, neither of which were appealing thoughts. On the other hand, we know that we have good ground tackle and that there are plenty of anchorages further north, some of which should have good protection from the mistral as well as good sand into which to dig the anchor. We decided to move on.

Leaving the narrow Olbia channel at ‘ferry rush-hour’   

We left Olbia just as the evening inbound ‘rush-hour’ was on and so sneaked along the channel just outside the port-hand markers and just inside the fish farms. Our plan was to spend the night at anchor in Liscia della Saline, a large bay just outside the start of the entrance channel, before moving on to our intended ‘hurricane hole’ early the next day.

Olbia, Sardinia, Italy