Another interesting encounter with Croatian mooring buoy fee collector

[RupertW]

When it comes to Croatia Richard the man , he been there for many years.
All I will say is , we have spend Six months in Croatia over two seasons , we anchored everywhere and only one time we ended up in a row with a guy who tried to Charge us for anchoring . We anchored everywhere for free .
There really no hassle , we love Croatia and although you have to pay for a permit it much nicer then Greece , with very clear seas , good fresh food at very good prices and great winds to sail ,
we would be there now if we wasn't trying to sell our boat .

That's my new experience too and after 3 years in Greece it's great to be back in Croatia. We never paid for moorings in 5 years in Croatia before we went to Greece.

Bit different this time as we've changed to a base marina near the Kornati instead of having South of Split as a cruising ground. Our first long weekend here ends with tomorrow but all 3 nights out from the marina have been paying to bouts. One was expected but then the other two not, but 2 were free as we were eating out.

But scenery, sailing and particularly food are so much better than Greece. And of course lazy lines are always there and always long enough and water and fuel and electricity always work.

 

[Sailor @ Argentina]

Hello from Argentina ... I am off to Croatia again this summer (July) and this time I will be sailing out from Pula on a 40 ft cat. Last year we sailed from Sibenik and did the Kornati National Park where we had to pay the entrance fee to the Park and then we either dropped the hook (for free) on a bay or got a buoy for free at a Restaurant (dinner or lunch).

This year I am planning on bringing the BBQ grill from my boat since we really like to cook on it (and rental cats don't have one) BUT I was wondering if there is any restriction in Croatia for open fires on boats. Would anyone please help me here?

Thanks,

Diego Becker
Buenos Aires, Argentina

 

[RichardS]

Hello from Argentina ... I am off to Croatia again this summer (July) and this time I will be sailing out from Pula on a 40 ft cat. Last year we sailed from Sibenik and did the Kornati National Park where we had to pay the entrance fee to the Park and then we either dropped the hook (for free) on a bay or got a buoy for free at a Restaurant (dinner or lunch).

This year I am planning on bringing the BBQ grill from my boat since we really like to cook on it (and rental cats don't have one) BUT I was wondering if there is any restriction in Croatia for open fires on boats. Would anyone please help me here?

Thanks,

Diego Becker
Buenos Aires, Argentina

Hi Diego ..... welcome to the Forum.

There is no problem with BBQ's on boats in Croatia.

We have one clamped onto our pushpit rail and we use it many times every year, mostly at anchor or when on a mooring buoy.

I think that using it in marinas might be a frowned upon but the only marina we use is our home marina and we have used the BBQ a few times even in the marina and the marina staff have not said anything. However, we always, speak to the boats near us in the marina and ask whether they have any objections as the smoke will drift across. The other boats have always said that they are very happy.

I assume that when you say "open fires" that's just something lost in translation.

Richard

 

[Bellacruiser]

I don't think Croatia has restrictions on open fires/BBQs (though National Parks might, particularly if you planned to use it ashore), but if you are chartering it may be prohibited in the contract. That's if they would ever know...

 

[BrianH]

Some thread drift - a weakness of mine - but I cannot resist the combination of the thread title of 'another interesting encounter' and the question of BBQs.

Way back in 1982 I had just bought my Trapper 500, based her in NE Italy and was sailing south down the Istrian coastline on what was a shakedown cruise. It was, of course, not yet Croatia and the entry procedures of Yugoslavia were quite gruelling with some very unfriendly, even surly, police and harbour officials interrogating us before granting our vignette. Included with it was a thick booklet with pages of forbidden areas, mostly military where garrisons and naval bases were.

South of Pula we were headed to clear the southern tip of Istria at the outlying Porer light when a Mig-21 swooped out of the sky and began strafing the sea ahead of us. It then flew low and banked to seaward as though intending to repeat the operation. Convinced I had inadvertently infringed one of the forbidden areas I was frantically searching through the list when a naval patrol boat was seen powering straight for us from inshore. Expecting to be arrested at the very least despite not finding any reference to the area in the list, but all that happened was that we were escorted towards the land and shown an inshore passage away from what we were informed was a military exercise further out to sea.

Changing plans to continue south that day - my inexperienced crew were considerably shaken up - we motored into the large Medulin bay at the very tip of the Istrian peninsular and anchored at the western shore amongst the pine trees there. Then later that evening, came the very same patrol boat that had come to our aid earlier. We were then invited ashore to a evening grill of fresh fish, bread and wine, where we found that Yugoslavians in uniform were not all the same thugs that we had met clearing into the country.

One of the sailors that evening confided that they had been remiss in not heading us away from the exercise area much earlier, they had been too busy catching fish inshore for their supper to notice us early enough.

 

[RichardS]

Changing plans to continue south that day - my inexperienced crew were considerably shaken up - we motored into the large Medulin bay at the very tip of the Istrian peninsular and anchored at the western shore amongst the pine trees there. Then later that evening, came the very same patrol boat that had come to our aid earlier. We were then invited ashore to a evening grill of fresh fish, bread and wine, where we found that Yugoslavians in uniform were not all the same thugs that we had met clearing into the country.

Medulin is a lovely sheltered anchorage with a lively town with at least an excellent restaurant called "Salt and Pepper" just a short walk towards town from the anchorage. It used the be called the Mediterranean and there are probably other excellent eateries in the town but we never get any further than Salt and Pepper.

The only negative is that on the occasions we've anchored there the water is murky rather than the clear blue we are used to in most of Croatia, which is a pity.

Richard

 

[Metabarca]

Hola, bienvenido Diego. Con el tiempo que tenemos en capital, entiendo porque estas soñando el verano en Croacia... Yo tengo mi barco en Trieste; se puedo ayudar en algo, mándame un mensaje privado. Donde tienes tu barco en BA?