We decided to head for a marina to be safe if a storm developed. Our various forecasting apps were giving very different predictions of what was to come. Zut is part of the Kornati National Park and has a remote and austere character but it is well-protected on almost all sides.
We arrived safely and secured ourselves pretty tightly. We started to get worried when one of our weather models started to predict winds of over 100 mph - the others showed nothing like this. Then I took a look at broader area and the odd model predicted the same kind of weather for almost all of northern Europe - for an hour! Somebody was clearly having data quality problems. But we had other models still showing some bad weather ahead.
Many smaller super-yachts started to arrive in anticipation of the storm. In the end we stayed in Zut for three nights and only had really windy conditions for one morning. But bad weather is predicted again for the upcoming holiday weekend in Croatia. Glad to see that it happens for other countries too!
Zadar is an attractive old town with many yachting associations but it can tend to be very busy. So we parked (very badly) over the channel in a little town marina at Preko. We have been hoping to finally do our laundry and get some work done on the boat. The laundry was successfully executed but the upcoming holiday makes getting work done a bit of a problem.
This is not Lori or I doing the laundry. It's a curious subject for this local statue.
The marina here is tight and badly affected by the wash caused by the local ferries; it can be very rolly at times. Fortunately the ferries don’t run at night but the daytime can be quite challenging. The nights have their own issues - a party on the town quay on the evening prior to the holiday. The live music started about 8:00pm and continued until 3:30 am. Frankly, there’s only so much Euro-pop I can stand. We didn’t sleep much.
We don’t like the prospect of staying here with a strong wind blowing, so we will head to another marina across the way for at least a couple of days of the weekend.
The Marina Dalmacja is really very well laid out. It is spacious and managed by pretty helpful staff. Looking at the weather we have decided to stay here for four nights. Sunday is showing gusts of up to 50 mph - not the kind of weather in which to be uncertain of the security of your mooring. Apparently this marina is quite sheltered compared with even close-by locations on the same coast. We should be able to take advantage of this as the weather unfolds.
They also have good number of services here. There are a couple of things I’d like to get fixed. Not least of which is the master toilet. It’s annoying (and messy) if things get blocked up. I’ve managed to clear it all but haven’t been able to identify the location of the blockage. Fun times!
Red sky at night is not always a good sign ...
It is Sunday and the wind is blowing as strongly as predicted (perhaps a little more so). We won’t go far from the boat today until the wind lessens sometime in the afternoon. The (heavy) wooden boat upwind of us has only two fenders out and neither of them at the widest part of their boat.. We compensate by adding six of our own between us. People should be better equipped and prepared.
The showers in this marina are about the best we have seen. The shower block is architecturally well-designed and the notion of showering in a stall with one clear glass wall to the outside is striking! The only parts of the facilities we would criticize are the restaurants - few and not very special - and the supermarket - tiny and under-stocked. There doesn’t seem to be anything close by either but we will investigate.
Lori got a pedicure in the spa here and now has cute pink toes.