Malta update 2014

Malta update 2014: Msida Creek Marina

www.marinamalta.com

I just received some updated information from the largest marina in Malta, Creek Developments PLC.

All the pontoons have been replaced, washroom and toilets are complete, a laundry service is available but a coin laundry should be in place by the fall of this year. The washroom are yet not shown on the marina map but they are available near the break wall at the entrance the administrative office will also be moved there.

They will welcome foreign yachts that want to winter in Malta with some incentives 5% discount for a 3 month booking and further discounts for longer stays. Electricity is metered at 0.35/KwH and water is at 4.50/ton (1000L)

My wife and I love the location of this marina close to all amenities and a short walk to all the major chandeliers in Malta. Contact them for tariffs or to book a slip. The rates are very reasonable compared to most marinas in the Mediterranean. 

Contact info:

Sarah Gauci Carlton

Commercial Manager

Creek Developments plc

53/1, Ta’Xbiex Seafront,

Msida, MSD 1515, Malta

T: +356 2133 7049

M: +356 7933 7149

www.marinamalta.com

Mario Borg

www.maltesefalcon.ca

Italy Anchorages and Marinas: 2013 Part 3 of 3

Italian West Coast and the Islands

In our last report we terminated at the picturesque island of Ventotene, from there we moved east towards the mainland coast of Italy stopping at the beautiful islands of Iscia, and Procida then down the mainland coast of Italy and then eventually to our winter spot at Marina the Ragusa in Sicily. We are now into September and the weather has been very nice but some lows offshore were creating swells at the very open anchorages that we stopped at so we had to spend a few night in marinas and or harbours. We still did a lot of motoring as the wind close to shore where light most of the time.

Il Castello North, Isola d'Iscia:            N 40 43.996

Italian Anchorages and Marinas 2013 Part 1 of 3

Italian Anchorages and Marinas

 2013 Part 1 of 3

Anchoring is our preference when we are cruising, we like the evening breeze, the lack of mosquitoes and the free space around the boat but not all countries offer ideal locations for anchoring like those found in the Eastern Caribbean where the wind blows from the East 95% of the time, so leaving your boat in a busy anchorage is not too stressful.

We started our 2013 summer cruising  season in May of 2013 from Cap Monastir Tunisia where the Maltese Falcon spent the past ten months tied up to the pontoon. From Cap Monastir we headed to Malta to get all the gear, new upholstery we had in the apartment where we stayed for the past ten months and loaded back on the boat and replaced all the standing rigging.  Due to the topography of Italy it will be very hard to find comfortable anchorages at all the stops so be prepared to have options for your stays at some marinas especially along the west coast of Italy.

Our aim was to head north from Malta and anchor near Marina DI Ragusa, so on July first we left Malta and head north for a 52 nm leg to

Marina the Ragusa, Sicily:             N 36 46.753

Italian Anchorages and Marinas 2013 Part 2 of 3

Italy Anchorages and Marinas: 2013 Part 2 of 3

Corsica and Italian coast

Started out early in the morning out of Budelli island, with a slight land breeze from the SSW, we picked up a mooring at Lavezzi, at Cala di U Crecu but then we found out that the tour boats go in there with 500 tourists on board and it gets crazy, so we scouted the area by dingy and could not find a nice place to anchor as it is all very deep with big boulders and a few sand patches in this part of the island, there is a couple of very nice anchorage to the south of the island but you will need to anchor outside the bay as it is reported to be shallow in close.  So we decided to head to the island of Corsica. 

Corsica as most of you know is part of France but since it was on our route we decided to include it in this report. Corsica’s east coast does not offer many anchorages or marinas especially north of Porto Vecchio, the west coast does offer more anchorages but weather watching becomes a major priority because of the strong and frequent mistrals putting your boat on a lee shore. We decided on travelling up the east coast and it worked very well. Lavezzi and Cavallo Islands are also part of Corsica, at Cavallo’s south tip there is a marina with very good protection from the Northwesterly. Keep a good lookout at the weather forecasts before crossing the Strait of Bonifacio, as this area can get very nasty during a strong mistral.

Punta de Sperone, Corsica:         N 41 22.198