Frank and Annie kindly offered us a loan of their bikes and pointed out a couple of routes we might like to try.
One was around the bay to see a boat that had floundered on the rocks and the other to a hilltop village called Olletto.
What they forgot to tell us they did them on separate days with a rest day in between !

The trip round the bay


                                                                                          Thats St Florent in the distance

Followed by a return to St Florent then a  14 mile return trip 7 miles relentless hill climb to a height of 1007 ft.

   
The town nestling in the hills is St Florent the one in the second is the hill climb. We made a couple of off track excursions to find an open Cave de Degustation to sample some wine direct from the vineyards but they were closed , boo !

However we did have some back on the boat later with Frank & Annie

That will probably be all from St Florent we hope to move on just as soon as weather permits more than likely this coming Saturday when we will round Cap Corse to Maccinagio or perhaps carry straight on to Elba. 

Our options today 28th May where to head for Port D’ Ile Rousse for the night before going on St Florent to wait out the expected bad weather front.
Even though we were both tired we decided to pass Ile Rousse and head on to find an anchorage not too far from St Florent  that would allows us time to get in on Sunday before what looked like an advancing front.
We originally tried Plage deSaleccia in the Anse de Faggiola but it was far too exposed so carried on to Plage du Lotto.
When we got there two further boats where anchored but left about 19:00 oooh err !
It was a wee bit rolly but the good old Rocna anchor held.
The water was beautifully clear and we were buzzed by a micro light with a dinghy attached.
We found out later in St Florent it was 120 euros per person per trip
  
Early next morning we motored the 3 miles up and into St Florent only to find Frank & Annie our French friends from Cagliari berthed two boats down.
 
Dinner that night was in the wee Bistro Vista , very nice.

The town again as you would expect is very French though the Corsicans might not like that particular thought.
 
 
All very picturesque and of course Petanc
 
It is pretty apt that since we were waiting out winds around cape corse of F8 lessening, the local priest came out on a boat and went around the harbour sprinkling holy water on all the boats.
 

Gordon rather cheekily has headed up his pictures on the PC as “Ministry followed by Moules” as that is what he had for his tea that particular night.

He is going to the bad fire even though he has been sprinkled !

This section is certainly the most impressive of the whole island as it is extremely rugged, mountainous and, in places, of awe-inspiring beauty. It is however a dangerous coast in bad weather there are virtually no harbours of refuge. With the exception of Calvi & Cargese and a few villages the land is virtually deserted.

Girolata entrance and moorings just around from our cala.
  
The coast consists of red rocky cliffs and steep sided bays and gulfs.
  
Louise thought the picture below looks like a bear
 
The battle of Calvi is where the then Captain Nelson lost his eye , having been struck by a piece of granite during an opposed landing .

In the next picture below the lowest piece of land you can see (middle right) is the bay Port Agro where Nelson landed his guns from HMS Agamemnon and hauled them over the hill to bombard Calvi .

The following pictures are rounding the cape with the citadel opening up in the distance

   
We were led to a  berth in the Port de Peche right under the citadel.
At first site we were a wee bit dubious but we were tired and as we were already moored up, and it was an impressive situation, we  just stayed put.

Big, big mistake !

We were also 200ft from Bar Le Tour, where from 20:00 to 24:00 three incredibly bad French singers performed, followed by music from the bar until 02:00 followed by night club music until 04:00.

 
Oh……. and then just as peace descended, the Corsican ferry berthed at the back of us in a maelstrom of wash & noise at 06:30.    lol

It was a very pretty and an obviously historically interesting town, bit it was an early quick escape from us unfortunately.

The next couple of nights 25th & 26th May were spent at anchor, firstly in Baie de Sagone, having braved the Passe de Sanguinaires between Pt de la Pareta & Ile de Porri. It is 200m long by 200m wide with a minimum depth of 2.8m.
We managed to sort the creasing out in the Genoa.
 
The landscape not altogether unlike the West coast islands of Scotland. The 1st night we spent anchored in a clear sandy bay with two other French yachts for company.
The rocks around here are beginning to show their characteristic redness.
 
The next day we were headed for Girolata. A beautiful setting and the only place that gives proper shelter between Calvi & Ajaccio, however we did not intend going into the moorings but rather a smaller cala just South of Girolatta called Cala Di Tuara.
It was beautiful and very peaceful with only some cows on the beach and an inquisitive young seagull for company.
  
A swim , a shower and unfair wine portions followed
 

Our friends Otti and Rosi from Cagliari told us about the small train which crosses the interior of the island through the mountains to Bastia. Jokingly called the TGV or Train of Great Vibrations. We did the round trip of seven hours, broken by two hours in Bastia, a long day but so so worth it.
The interior of the island is wild and densely forested, very popular for climbing and hiking. The islands highest mountain is Monte Cinto at 8,877 ft., seemingly you can ski here in the winter, must bear that in mind. In the centre of the island is Corte, the spiritual capital of the island, the Citadel here became the symbol of the islanders’ struggle for independence, which many of the islanders still want and is the cause of most of the troubles here.   Unfortunately, the photos taken from a moving train don’t do it justice, it was stunningly beautiful.

 
Corte station & Corte in the distance
 
 
The goats have to scamper off the one track system to avoid being a kebab
 
All of the old stations were built in the same fashion
  
Arriving at downtown Bastia for a quick two hours look around.
  
While we were here we walked along to investigate Port Toga ,one of the Bastia marinas.
We thought we might leave Corsica bound for Elba from Bastia. We have decided though just to cross from further North from Macinaggio, so this is our one & only brief tour of Bastia.
Unfortunately it clouded over on the way back so the mountain pictures are a bit obscured.
 
Finally arrival back at Ajaccio at about 20:00.

It was great to see the interior of the island , though Gordon’s coccyx is aching after 7 hours sitting. He thinks he must’ve  banged it on a winch or something! lol.

We seem to be in rather more typical Mediteranean weather now….all or nothing which is what we expected really. It would just be nice to have something in between a wee bit more often. The prevailing winds here are North, North West so we are straight into it a lot of the time and when the Mistral blows, it blows! On the plus side, the West coast of Corsica is far more interesting with more places to see.

So far we are not disapointed, it is lovely, very green, mountainous and very remote, only a very small percentage of the island is inhabited, the population is 320,000 and most of them are in Ajaccio, the capital of Corsica and Bastia.

Incidentally, Corsica has the highest crime and murder rate in Western Europe, including the inner-city streets of Naples or London. Hard to believe such a beautiful Island, nicknamed the “Isle of Beauty” is plagued by violent crime committted by organised gangsters heavily engaged in protection rackets and Corsican seperatist activities.

Anyway, back to the Corsica we see .

An early start from Porto Pollo.

Approching Ajaccio

  

We arrived in Ajaccio on a Sunday and the Capitainerie of the marina we went to is closed on Sunday’s so it’s a free for all as to which berth you take. After circling unsucessfuly for about a half hour looking we were helpfully directed to a small space which we were advised was free – but you’ve guesssed – it turned out to be someone elses. On their return later that day we had to up sticks and move. Gordon nicknamed the woman Madame Defarge  as she was beside herself shouting C’est ma place ! , C’est ma place !,  says he could see her sitiing knitting at the guillotine. Thankfully her husband was more understanding ,lol.

Marina and bike park, brilliant

 

The marina itself, Charles Arnano was nothing great, showers & facilities were shut so we transferred the following morning to the old port  marina, Tino Rossi which was closer to the town and handier for everything.

  

The town has a bit of a buzz to it, lots of restaurants and bars, a beach and lots of statues and monuments of Napoleon Bonopart, you wouldn’t forget he was born here, that’s for sure. We had to go and have a look at the house where he was born in 1769 and lived with his family until they were all expelled by Pascal Paoli. The Maison Bonopart is now a museum displaying family heirlooms.

 

The streets and buildings are very picturesque ,older parts

 

and more modern

 

The Feche museum created by one of Napolian’s uncles, and one of its exhibits.

 

We managed a good sail today from Pianotolli to Porto Pollo. We were underway for about eight hours, of which we managed to sail over five, tacking back & forth to clear Les Moines South Cardinal was the first job.
On the approach to the mooring buoys we were coming in on a nice beam reach with some great wind. The next thing we seen a kite surfer zooming towards us and very good he was too. I gave him a wave and on his return to shore he came up  from behind skirted us on our starboard side and did quite a spectacular jump turn which was going great till his board hit the water. But all credit to him he was up and away again before you really noticed it didn’t all go to plan. We gave him a round of applause and waved him on his way.
Nobody will be applauding our Genoa though, it developed a crease when reefed that we will need to sort out.

Porto Pollo was just a stopover, nothing much there to go ashore for so a quiet night, dinner on board and a 6.30 am departure which also allowed us to get off before they came round to collect mooring fees, if applicable . He He!   
 
Dinner , un verre de vin rouge & bed.

The original plan had been to head up the East coast of Corsica to Bastia and then across to Elba.
However since there seemed to be a settled patch of weather forecast we thought we would sail up the West coast which is apparently more scenic but also short of bolt holes if exposed to the strong NW winds.
First  we dodged the Sardinian Ferry arriving around the entrance to Bonnifacio as we left.

Leaving Bonifacio we were heading to Anse de Roccapina as recommended by Peter & Luccia who where also planning to anchor there. NE of Les Moines, a very dangerous area of islets, exposed awash & covered rocks. However a two plus metre swell was making it very uncomfortable to even reach the passage so it was a short motor sail of nine miles to Pianotolli in the Baie di Figari instead.
This is a two mile long inlet relatively deserted at its outer end and with many rocky patches and shallows on the approach. In strong S to SW winds the entrance would be dangerous. It looks nothing in the pictures though!
 
The pilot book says that on arrival, the harbour master will come out in his rib to help tie up – not today!  I did eventually manage to haul up the lazy line attached to a chain that would have done Nelson’s ships proud. We are getting better at this.
Anyway, it is a lovely wee place, quite remote but very pretty and the harbour masters pal did give us a lift into the village.
  
There was a “short cut” that led down & down to nowhere so back up ! You were able see the moorings in the distance though,through the rain forest!

As we were recuperating in the usual fashion and feeding the fish, Peter & Lucia arrived. They had decided to give the swell a miss too. That’s them tucked in behind the islet in the distance.
 
We would have liked to stay here another day or two but we’re getting on in the season and the prices are going up as we go along, so onwards and upwards quite literally.

We tried leaving for Bonifacio on the 16th May but eventually turned back to La Gavetta. We were flogging a dead horse, the wind was on the nose with a very confused sea. We tried motoring, with the engine revs set usually sufficient for an easy 5.5 kts  we were only managing 2.0-2.5 kts speed over the ground into the swell & wind. Another day!
 
On returning to La Gavetta we tied up beside a Moody  36 owned by an English couple, Sarah and Steve. We had drinks with them that evening and the following. Then eventually departed for Bonifacio on the 18th May, what a difference.
 
We managed a gentle sail to within four miles of Bonifacio entrance. Wow! what an entrance. I think Bonifacio harbour would be hard to beat for drama and majesty. Medieval houses precariously teetering on the edge of the imposing limestone cliffs.
 
The actual entrance to the harbour is equally striking with the Citadel looming above you.
   
The old town is a maze of irregular streets and alleyways with medieval houses five or six stories high yet often just one room wide, All this is enclosed by the ancient walls of the Citadel.
 
 
The town itself is a bit touristy but nice all the same. Some fairly expensive souvenir and jewellery shops are interspersed amongst the old houses, bars and restaurants. In the evening, the Citadel is lit up which is lovely to see from down in the harbour. Oh and a picture of our new boat only £160,000 to charter for a week , better chill the Krystal.
 
  
We had a nice couple of days here just wandering and soaking up the atmosphere. Another thing I loved was we were back to French supermarkets, the choice is so much better than in Sardinia. Mmmm, lovely French cheese!
  
The next day was blustery & overcast , so its not ALL sunshine tout le temps. We went for a walk along the cliffs.
 

The wind is still blowing a hoolie and as expected getting stronger as we approach the weekend.

However the sun was forecast to be out so we hired a scooter and set off on a tour of Maddalena & Caprera islands.

Peter Fonda eat your heart out

On route we spied a yacht hiding from the wind in Cala Francesi and took a detour down a dirt track and did some scrambling up some rocks to get a picture. On returning we bumped into two French guys who wanted to know how long it would take to walk into town… it was their yacht.

The morning was spent circling Madalena and then back to the boat for a coffee and some fleeces|

The frontage of La Gavetta is pretty with loads of restaurants to supply the daily visitors from the Palau on mainland Sardinia 20 minutes away by ferry. Some of the prawns are quite ferocious though.

In the afternoon we headed back over to Caprera Island, though it is now joined by a causeway to Madalena.

This is Stagnali a wee village on Caprera

There are some fantastic beaches and old fortifications

Spiagio Rellitto and the fortress on the southern approaches.

Nelson wanted the admiralty to use this as the Mediterranean base because of the wide natural harbour but they turned him down in favour of Malta. The Americans had a naval base here until very recently.

We were successful in visiting Casa Garibaldi this time.

The house is far bigger than you would expect. It was a very interesting tour and the place very peaceful. The big tree in the early pictures was planted in memory of his daughter who died very young. The calendar shows the date of his death & the clock has been stopped at the time 6:21 PM. He wanted to be cremated but this wasn’t allowed at the time so he was entombed beneath a big chunk of granite.

The boat in the final picture was a gift from the Sardinian navy that he used to cruise the surrounding waters and also to visit Madalena before the causeway was built.