So… we were headed to charming Porto Azzurro on the east side of Elba. But … plot twist … the marina canceled our reservation. Apparently, no room at the inn for catamarans! Winds weren’t playing nice in that area for anchoring either, so we bailed and tucked into Pozzarello on the mainland near Santa Stefana. Tried calling a few marinas between Talamone and Rome. All booked … alas, they didn’t take catamarans either.
So, our plan for 7 nights split between anchor and marina hopping around the Tuscan Islands (Elba, Giglio, Gorgona) has turned into 7 nights on the hook at anchor. Fine by us – we’re basically off-grid pros at this point: making our own water and electricity! Now we’re also living on leftover groceries we bought mostly our first week in France. Of course, we can always dinghy ashore for café fixes, though its become a bit of a game for us trying to think of what we can prepare with our relatively small and random stash of items onboard.
Could we fish? Technically, yes. But these waters are pretty barren. Just ask Buzz – three weeks of noble fishing effort, zero results! We do still have bait in the freezer though, so if things get dire, we might need to pull that out. Haha! Oh Evan, I can hear you all the way across the Atlantic scoffing at us … “You’re doing it all wrong!” … so hop a flight and come show us how it’s done! For lunch today we did finally break into the canned salmon. Gourmet grilled fish sandwiches, anyone?
But the real excitement? Today’s anchor drama!!!
I’d been low-key proud of my anchor game last season. But this season, I had gladly handed over the reigns to Buzz while he was aboard. Now I’m back in action. Dropped anchor? Nailed it! Yesterday Doug let me sleep in and raised it. Today was my moment. Brought it up? Almost. Then… oh no. Was doing everything right, but right toward the end I forgot to clear the mounting chain in the anchor locker (sailors will understand!). Chain jams in the windlass. Cue the “Oh sh*t” moment. Did I mention anchoring is our only option for the next FOUR nights?
Doug and I tried everything – ropes, levers, objects of questionable suitability. Luckily, two Gen-X engineers on board and YouTube isn’t just for the kids. While Doug tackled the windlass, I mentally spiraled into Grey’s Anatomy scenes (which I’ve been rewatching these past few weeks) – windlass suddenly grinding to life, fingers or limbs trapped, lots of blood …
Eventually, with some solid teamwork, anchor nearly up, and 85 lbs of stainless fury secured by the safety latch, we took apart the windlass (power disconnected!), freed the chain, and lived to tell the tale. Barely.
Evan, (yes YOU again!) if you’re reading this … I have a great idea for a new sailing class … Anchoring for Couples: Because Therapy Is More Expensive!… (Actually Doug remained fairly chill, thank goodness!) Shoutout to SailTime Houston (https://sailtime.com/location/houston/) for teaching us everything… but it’s been a few years since I took classes and I clearly need a refresher!
Stay tuned… there may not be a few land tales ahead for the next couple of days, but who knows what sailing stories the sea still has in store. And let’s be honest – those are always the best kind. 😉
