APRIL 23 TO 25 THE FINISH
APRIL 23 TO 25 THE FINISH 
FROM VASTO TO CIVITANOVA MERCHE
I started at sunrise from Vasto, the sunlight is the most effective alarm for me. The wind took time to blow at reasonable speed but the prediction this time was that it would keep up gently all night. So I again made the plan to sail day and night for three days and reach the goal that was Ancona at that point in time. Vasto to Ancona is 102 miles so extra sailing time was needed and if the conditions were favourable I could again try the sleeping methods of singlehanded sailors. I did stay away from the coast mostly on the straight line between Vasto and Ancona but the whole night gave me only one hour of good wind and speed so I gained only 8 miles during the night but I avoided going back to the coast and any number of miles was good relative to the end goal. The next day the wind was nice and when it turned slightly head wind my asymetric spinacker surprised me taking tight angles to the wind like I had never experienced before. My friend Giannis Speis who was a great regatta sailor made over the phone the comment that the best spinnakers for such conditions are the star cuts that look like the Mercedes sign. And suddenly I realised that's what I had bought some years back not knowing it's value. So I ended up learning how to handle best the gentle winds of the Adriatic. Approaching Ancona I started investigating best port for unloading and putting PELAGO on land for the next two months during which I will sail the AVRORA during the Aegean Cargo Sailing 2018. Ancona and the ports close by did not sound very welcoming. Lack of spots on land and very expensive. After consultation with Wolfgang and Harry we concluded Civitanova Merche was the best bet. That shortened my route so much that I decided to sleep a long night on anchor some 15 miles south of Civitanova ratber than arrive late at he port and have a short night. I was fast asleep when the engine noise and even a horn blowing and flashing lights pulled me out of bed. It was the Guardia Finanza that wanted to do a serious control of the boat. So I helped attach the two boats together and they asked for the documents which they kept checking inside their boat for at least 20 min while they kept asking me all the relevant and irrelevant questions. Where I came from, where I was heading to, the ownership of PELAGO, my previous profession, how much cash I had, how many children and what they did in life and I kept feeding all the innocent stories including the 1000 liters of oil olive from Kalamata belonging to my friends from Zurich being delivered by wind and sail for the good of the environment and in preparation of the banning of fossil fuels. AND THEY CONGRATULATED US FOR DOING THE RIGHT THING. They assured me that was the only contol, we wished each other good sailing and I went back to sleep. After that I slept in peace knowing I was perfectly legal in our project. The next morning I sailed towards Civitanova where I arrived early to inspect and inform myself on the rail schedules for Fiumicino, the dry dock possibilities, alternative docking in the port etc. I docked right next to one of the cranes where I would not bother the operations and where we could possibly unload the olive oil the next day. The railway station is very close, the car access to the port is for permit holders only and the dry docking looked impossible. All local boats were on land, no spots left. The local Fishermen's club offered one expensive spot at the end of the floating quay. Wolfgang and his brother arrived late and exhausted to be seen only next morning.
I started at sunrise from Vasto, the sunlight is the most effective alarm for me. The wind took time to blow at reasonable speed but the prediction this time was that it would keep up gently all night. So I again made the plan to sail day and night for three days and reach the goal that was Ancona at that point in time. Vasto to Ancona is 102 miles so extra sailing time was needed and if the conditions were favourable I could again try the sleeping methods of singlehanded sailors. I did stay away from the coast mostly on the straight line between Vasto and Ancona but the whole night gave me only one hour of good wind and speed so I gained only 8 miles during the night but I avoided going back to the coast and any number of miles was good relative to the end goal. The next day the wind was nice and when it turned slightly head wind my asymetric spinacker surprised me taking tight angles to the wind like I had never experienced before. My friend Giannis Speis who was a great regatta sailor made over the phone the comment that the best spinnakers for such conditions are the star cuts that look like the Mercedes sign. And suddenly I realised that's what I had bought some years back not knowing it's value. So I ended up learning how to handle best the gentle winds of the Adriatic. Approaching Ancona I started investigating best port for unloading and putting PELAGO on land for the next two months during which I will sail the AVRORA during the Aegean Cargo Sailing 2018. Ancona and the ports close by did not sound very welcoming. Lack of spots on land and very expensive. After consultation with Wolfgang and Harry we concluded Civitanova Merche was the best bet. That shortened my route so much that I decided to sleep a long night on anchor some 15 miles south of Civitanova ratber than arrive late at he port and have a short night. I was fast asleep when the engine noise and even a horn blowing and flashing lights pulled me out of bed. It was the Guardia Finanza that wanted to do a serious control of the boat. So I helped attach the two boats together and they asked for the documents which they kept checking inside their boat for at least 20 min while they kept asking me all the relevant and irrelevant questions. Where I came from, where I was heading to, the ownership of PELAGO, my previous profession, how much cash I had, how many children and what they did in life and I kept feeding all the innocent stories including the 1000 liters of oil olive from Kalamata belonging to my friends from Zurich being delivered by wind and sail for the good of the environment and in preparation of the banning of fossil fuels. AND THEY CONGRATULATED US FOR DOING THE RIGHT THING. They assured me that was the only contol, we wished each other good sailing and I went back to sleep. After that I slept in peace knowing I was perfectly legal in our project. The next morning I sailed towards Civitanova where I arrived early to inspect and inform myself on the rail schedules for Fiumicino, the dry dock possibilities, alternative docking in the port etc. I docked right next to one of the cranes where I would not bother the operations and where we could possibly unload the olive oil the next day. The railway station is very close, the car access to the port is for permit holders only and the dry docking looked impossible. All local boats were on land, no spots left. The local Fishermen's club offered one expensive spot at the end of the floating quay. Wolfgang and his brother arrived late and exhausted to be seen only next morning.