Sardinian Passage

Early start; we left Trapani at 06.00 hr, June 10th bound for Sardinia. Sailing past the beautiful Egardi Islands gave us time to wake up. The unsettled sea motion made me feel very queasy, even Chris talked to the sea. Apart from my watch I spent most of the time in the prone position either in bed or on deck topping up the tan. I was woken up at 11 am by the whizzing noise of the fishing line. A fish… all stations on alert. We hoped it would be tuna for lunch. Once the fish was aboard we had to decide the catch of the day: mackerel or bonite?? The decision had to be quick: mackerel would get a reprieve and be returned where it came from (the awful indigestion we had from the previous one was still fresh in our mind) bonite would make a nice lunch. The size of 45 cm confused us, surely mackerels are not that big! It was time for me to go to the bow, out of sight, whilst Captain was dealing with the killing and gutting. After 2 hours, the strong smell of mackerel disproved our deduction. Sushi would not be on the menu that day. On consulting The Mediterranean cruising handbook later, it describes mackerel’s maximum length at 50cm. Live and learn!
The rest of the trip was uneventful with at times not enough wind to sail. The engine got an airing. We dropped anchor in Carbonara Bay, the most southern tip of Sardinia for a well-deserved rest, after 31hrs at sea, with a distance of 176 nm.