With our small boat rather encapsulated lie between larger ships, we wait until our neighbors leave. There is hardly any wind, so we are not in a hurry. At 10:30 we leave the harbour, and at 11:00 we hoist the sails. There is a very light breeze, so it’s almost floating.
Between the islands we pass a small fishing boat that just took in its net. We follow it with interest. According to the news, the catches along the Croatian coast have plummeted this year. It is not yet certain if this is due to the extremely hot summer, with the sea temperature therefore higher than normal, or whether it is because of overfishing. These small fishermen catch very little. But one fish pleases him. It is a Lica (Lichia amia), according to his cries at least four pounds (dva Kila!). While shouting ‘Lica! Lica! Lica’ he dances on his boat. I understand his joy. First quality fish sells for 350-400 kuna per kilogram in the restaurants. Assuming he gets half of it, he certainly has reason for rejoice. 400 Kuna is more than EUR 50, which is still a lot of money here.
Around 11:30 pm we reach Rt Ražnjić. A little after noon, the wind increase slightly, 4 to 5 knots from SW (Jugo). The next few hours we sail with a speed of about 2.5 knots along the always quiet south side of the island of Korcula. Sadly the wind completely dies down at 16.00 and we have to continue on engine.
At 17:00 we sail into the port of Brna. This is a small town in a bay in the central southern coast of Korcula. Not really a popular destination for sailors. There is a small quay which is occupied in part by a local fishing boat. Electricity and water are available. We put out our anchor with 35 meters of chain, and moor the boat stern to the quay. A little later we are joined by another ship, a Sun Odyssey 32. When the harbormaster pops up, the port turns out not to be cheap, it is charging the same rate as Vela Luka. I pay 220 Kuna (EUR 30) for our boat of 33 feet. That is excluding water and electricity, for which 50 Kuna to be paid extra. The tidal difference is rather larger for Croatian standards, nearly half a meter. Because the quay is quite high this ensures some thrilling scenes when boarding that evening after a hearty dinner with some nice wine…
