Well, what started as a peaceful anchorage turned into rough night. The wind had picked up and by 1 o’clock in the morning Arctura was being pushed up and down by the easterly wind and swell coming into Cala di Zeri. That’s the price one pays for overstaying our welcome and not taking a close look at the upcoming weather. For those at the bow, especially, it was a rough night and even in my stern cabin, it wasn’t too pleasant.

We eventually weighed anchor at 0923 and because the winds were predicted to increase, decided against visiting Budelli and set course for La Maddalena, arriving at 1334, after a cracking sail.

We moored up in Marina Gavetta, a pleasant marina, in the centre of town, with great staff taking our lines and helping us moor up. At €35 per night, it’s pretty good, but not as cheap as anchoring.

There is nothing to do here, apart from restaurants and souvenir shops and you can view the entire town in under an hour. We found a pizzeria for lunch “Sergeant Peppers”, which was average, but on our walk through town, we discovered a restaurant, which looked interesting for an evening meal. Although closed for lunch, I called later and booked it for 2100.

Whilst here and with not much to do, I took advantage of the free time and had a haircut.

The restaurant “Del Genovesse” was a good choice. family run with pleasant staff and full of locals and no tourists insight, apart from us. The food was excellent, with a spaghetti vongole starter and swordfish main course.

The next morning, it was raining heavily, so we decided to stay another night. After a few hours on board, we ventured out for the afternoon, into the heavy rain and were soaked through within minutes. Another restaurant beckoned and another Vongole.

La Maddalena, is a good place, as a retreat from bad weather, but apart from that there is nothing here to write home about.