New to Motor Boating in Croatia

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pred02

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Hi,
We just purchased a 21 ft dual console motorboat to use in the summer in Croatia. Our port is going to be Korcula however we are keen to explore other islands in the vicinity including Mljet, Lastovo, Peljesac, etc.

1. Does anyone know of any good boating guides for this part of the Adriatic that we can use?

2. What are some of the gem / hidden islands / coves on Korcula / Lastovo or Peljesac that they can recommend?

3. Is there an official Croatian guide to maritime rules over there. I know in the US the USCG has all sorts of rules and while most are international, I would like to get acquainted with the local rules as well.

Thanks!
 
Hello and welcome

Several forumites have sound knowledge of those areas, unfortunately I'm not one, but will lift the thread back up the page so they may see it.
 
1) Croatian boating guides;
these two have been very helpfull for our exploration of south Croatian waters, every bay, every cove, every interesting village is in there

777harbourscollor.jpg


777harboursbw.jpg


in fact one of them will do, they are similar, but the first one is in color,
I believe you can buy them online, but I bought them in a local bookstore, most bigger bookstores have them in stock.

2) around Korcula, best places to visit are:
Mljet Polace
Vis Bisjevo (before12h) and green cave
Lastovo is nice
Hvar and Stari Grad are nice
oh and so many more...

3) never had an official guide with maritime rules, but in the books above are some basic guide lines and rules.
Some important practical rules:
- Make sure you have insurance on the boat,
- buy a Croatian boat vignette (yearly renewable)
- Never go on plane closer then 300m from shore, or in harbours
- Always’s look at weather forecasts, especially when doing longer trips, the Bora (NE wind) can be nasty over there, and can come very unexpected.

On this map are many interesting spots in the area:
http://maps.google.be/maps/ms?hl=nl...1068609896575183496.000467e974e1f1111daaa&z=9

here are a few links to our Croatian holliday reports:
these might give you some more inspiration :)

http://www.ybw.com/forums/showthread.php?t=212996
http://www.ybw.com/forums/showthread.php?t=257139

don’t bother about the size of your boat,
we started in Croatia 11y ago, with a 5m Rib, (3y) and the next was a 21ft boat (3y) on which we even did a few overnight stops…


now, after your holliday, its is your turn to post your report, with pics ofcause :)
 
Pedants corner here, pred02. Peljesac isn't an island, its a peninsula:) Coincedentally, we were in Korcula last week with our boat. Nice place

P5300081.jpg


BartW is very familiar with the area and has given you a lot of good info. I would just add the following. The 777 harbours and anchorage book has now been updated to 1300. See here http://www.more.hr/default.asp?ru=411&gl=201009030000012&sid=&jezik=2. We use a variety of pilot books but the well known one is this one http://www.imray.com/record.cfm?i_stock_code=IB0002 but even this book does not give details of all the available ports and anchorages in Croatia. There are simply too many.

As for places to go, Polace on Mjlet is lovely and definitely worth a visit. There are many anchorages on the south side of Korcula island which are supposedly also very attractive although I haven't visited them yet. We also like the Pakleni islands off the SW coast of Hvar island where there are numerous secluded anchorages. Note of caution. BartW did warn me that Korcula always seems to be windy and we found that to be correct. The Korculanski Kanal between Korcula island and Peljesac seems to funnel any wind and we found it quite choppy so take care to check the forecast before you venture out. The islands between Korcula town and Lombarda marina seem to offer some very sheltered cruising so that area would be a good choice for a windy day
 
Pedants corner here, pred02. Peljesac isn't an island, its a peninsula Coincedentally, we were in Korcula last week with our boat. Nice place
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You are absolutely right! My father being from Korcula and my grandmother living in Orebic - I should know that :)

Note of caution. BartW did warn me that Korcula always seems to be windy and we found that to be correct. The Korculanski Kanal between Korcula island and Peljesac seems to funnel any wind and we found it quite choppy so take care to check the forecast before you venture out.
Click to expand...

This I believe is the maestral wind that develops in the late morning and peaks in the afternoon almost daily. It's great for windsurfers but can make quiet a wet ride on the way back.

Always’s look at weather forecasts, especially when doing longer trips, the Bora (NE wind) can be nasty over there, and can come very unexpected.
Click to expand...

What are some good sites or other resources for checking the weather forecast?

Some important practical rules:
- Make sure you have insurance on the boat,
Click to expand...

Any recommendations on the insurance agency to use in Croatia - I know Allianz has an office on Korcula, but not sure of any others. Do you get 3rd party or Kasko insurance?
now, after your holliday, its is your turn to post your report, with pics ofcause
Click to expand...

Absolutely! We are going there on holiday end of July and I cannot wait! Our boat is going to be a Boston Whaler 210 Ventura - which is on it's way from Cape Cod, MA to Croatia as we speak (note that the boat will be making a one-way journey). Will post some pics of the boat later on when back at home!

Any rules on the usage of VHF in Croatia - is it used mostly for emergencies only or do people actively use the channels to communicate?

Thanks!
 
What are some good sites or other resources for checking the weather forecast?
Click to expand...

Try here http://meteo.hr/index_en.php


Any rules on the usage of VHF in Croatia - is it used mostly for emergencies only or do people actively use the channels to communicate?
Click to expand...

Same rules as UK. Ch16 for calling and emergencies. Use other channels for chat. Marinas do respond sometimes on ch17 but I use my mobile phone often
 
pred02 said:
This I believe is the maestral wind that develops in the late morning and peaks in the afternoon almost daily.
Click to expand...
Blimey, and you were asking for advice? You are a real connoisseur!
I was going to post exactly the same comment after reading the post from Deleted User.
In fact, in my experience that channel does get frequently choppy with NW wind, but it's never as bad as some other areas where NE winds can build up some interestingly steep waves.
Around Korcula, what can really force you to stay put are SE storm winds, but they are rather rare in summertime, and usually predictable.
 
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The problem is that though I have been boating since I was 6 years old around those parts, it has all been confined to the Korcula Archipelago as we had a much smaller boat (about 4.25m with 4hp , later 6hp engine) so my experiences are confided to that area. The maestral winds can be indeed strong, especially if crossing the channel in the afternoon. I remember going from Peljesac back to Korcula in 1997 and almost being being stuck because the 4hp Tomos did not have enough 4hp to push me and 6 friends.

But now we bought a much bigger and more powerful boat with which we hope to expand our range to places such as Lastovo, Mljet, maybe even Vis for day trips. The Boston Whaler Ventura 210 is a beefy American boat, it should be seaworthy and safe for this part of the Adriatic, but I just want to be safe and unassuming.

The southern wind - Bura - is the real unpredictable.

A couple of more questions. I know BartW did the Adriatic crossing with his single engine Karnic. It's a 60-70nm stretch between Lastovo and Italy, I was wondering what is the radio coverage like in the channel. I presume there would be no mobile coverage and not sure of VHF. Just checking in terms of contingency, thinking a catastrophic engine failure in the middle of the channel can yield trouble.

Thanks for all the info, it's really helpful and it's got me in the right mood for the 29 July arrival to Croatia. Our Whaler is departing Baltimore today and is on it's way to Livorno!
 
MapisM said:
Around Korcula, what can really force you to stay put are SE storm winds, but they are rather rare in summertime, and usually predictable.
Click to expand...

Mmm, I dont know about predictability. When we motored SE from Mjlet to Dubrovnik last week we encountered an unforecast SE wind at about F6 on the nose for a while which made all our guests seasick but I had good fun driving the boat through the waves:) Yes I know F6 isn't a storm but it surprised me because the forecast was for winds less than 10knots!
 
pred02 said:
But now we bought a much bigger and more powerful boat with which we hope to expand our range to places such as Lastovo, Mljet, maybe even Vis for day trips. The Boston Whaler Ventura 210 is a beefy American boat, it should be seaworthy and safe for this part of the Adriatic, but I just want to be safe and unassuming.
Click to expand...

pred02, the Boston Whaler range of boats has a really good reputation, not just for unsinkability but for good seakeeping. I think its an excellent choice for boating on the Croatian coast
 
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