Sailing Notes
Generic Check
- Passport / ID card
- Driving licence
- Boat booking confirmation
- Insurance
- Crew list
- Skipper licence
- Boat contract / charter agreement
- Cash
- Payment cards
- Nautical charts & manual navigation tools
Personal Checklist
Clothing
- Hat/Cap
- Sunglasses + strap
- UV protective long-sleeve shirt (sun on open water is intense)
- Short-sleeve shirts
- Shorts
- Long trousers (evenings, March-April)
- Swimwear
- Light fleece / hoodie (cool nights, early season)
- Windbreaker / windstopper
- Light rain jacket (squalls occur even in summer)
- Shoes for land + sandals / flip flops
- Light-soled shoes or deck boots for the boat
- Reef shoes / water shoes (rocky Med beaches)
- Sailing gloves
Gear
- Travel pillow
- Headlight (with red light)
- Snorkeling mask + fins
- Binoculars
- Powerbank
- Hammock
Hygiene & Health
- Towel (quick-dry)
- Sunscreen SPF 50+
- After-sun lotion
- Lip balm with SPF
- Insect repellent (mosquitoes are common in marinas at dusk)
- Rehydration salts / electrolytes (heat exhaustion risk)
- Antihistamines (fenistil — jellyfish stings, insect bites)
- Eye drops (sun and salt air)
- Soap / shower gel
- Medicines
- Nausea pills (ginger sweets / lollipops)
Entertainment & Extras
- Musical instruments / songbooks
- Books
Boat Supplies
Kitchen & Cooking
- Aeropress / moka pot / French press
- Thermos flask
Tools & Repair
- Rope / string (1m short + longer line)
- Matches x3 + lighter + candles
- Needle & thread + plasters
- Duck tape
- Carpet tape
- Screws
- Phillips screwdriver
- Soldering gun
Pre-departure Checklist
- Knots practice: cleat hitch, clove hitch, figure-eight, bollard tie, bowline
- Boat orientation:
- Lines in lockers — which does what
- Mainsail halyard
- Furling jib
- Main sheet & jib sheet
- Winches
- Anchor & controller
- Autopilot is used only on engine or when waves are calm and the boat is well balanced from a sail trim perspective
- Prepare helm for quick deployment
- Always keep everything secured — the sea is not always calm and everything follows gravity
- Install safety lines and safety net on railing (when Amelia is on board)
Rules
- The designated skipper is always right — he is currently responsible for safety and navigation
- Skipper is responsible for safety — follow instructions immediately, without discussion
- Do not stand on cabin steps
Handover inspection
- Rudder
- Boom joint
- Furling jib lift
- Aft leech tensioner
- Navigational lights (port, starboard, masthead, stern, anchor light)
- Navigational ball and triangle (day shapes)
- Anchor (condition, chain, windlass operation)
- Autopilot (function, drive unit)
- Speedometer / log
- GPS / chartplotter
- Fuses (location, spares)
- Tools (location, contents)
- Engine room (belts, hoses, bilge, seacocks)
- Oil level — engine (dipstick fully inserted to read) and saildrive (dipstick rested on thread, do not screw in)
- Toilets & black water tank (check integrity with a bit of saponate — look for foam or food coloring at through-hulls)
Adriatic Winds
| Wind | Direction | Season | Typical Force | Character | Hazards & Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bura | NE – ENE | Oct – Apr; possible year-round | 6 – 10+ (gusts >60 kn) | Cold, dry, katabatic; descends from Dinaric Alps; extremely gusty | Most dangerous Adriatic wind; strongest in Kvarner, Velebit channel, and Trieste; can appear with little warning; short steep seas |
| Jugo | SE – S | Autumn, winter, spring | 5 – 8 | Warm, humid, persistent; builds slowly over 1–3 days; long-period swell | Poor visibility, rain; seas become very rough and confused; subsides slowly; watch for prolonged forecasts |
| Maestral | NW – WNW | Jun – Sep (afternoons) | 3 – 5 | Thermal sea breeze; develops late morning, peaks early afternoon, dies at sunset | Reliable summer sailing wind; pleasant conditions; no significant swell; can build to F5–6 on exposed coasts |
| Tramontana | N – NNE | Autumn, spring | 4 – 7 | Cold, dry, continental; steadier and less gusty than Bura | Brings clear skies; chilly; can be confused with Bura onset |
| Nevera | NW – N (squall) | Jun – Sep | Squall: 7 – 10+ | Sudden violent thundersquall; forms rapidly over mountains in summer heat | Most dangerous in summer; little warning; waterspouts possible; seek shelter immediately when cumulonimbus build inland |
| Lebić | SW – WSW | Autumn, winter | 4 – 7 | Warm, humid; brings swell from the open Mediterranean | Rain and poor visibility; less common than Jugo; can combine with Jugo to create confused cross-seas |
| Ostro | S – SSE | Variable | 3 – 6 | Warm, humid southerly; precursor or variant of Jugo | Brings mist and cloud; often transitions into full Jugo |
| Burin | NE – variable (offshore) | Summer nights | 1 – 3 | Light nighttime land breeze; calm, dry; fades at sunrise | Complement to daytime sea breeze; useful for motoring out of anchorage at night |
| Pulenat | W | Variable | 3 – 5 | Moderate westerly; relatively rare in central Adriatic | Can bring short choppy seas on exposed passages |
| Levanat | E – ENE | Variable | 3 – 5 | Easterly; uncommon in central and southern Adriatic | May bring spray and choppy conditions; more frequent in northern Adriatic |
| Grego | Greco | NE (between Tramontana and Levanat) | Autumn, winter | 4 – 7 | Cold and dry; similar to Tramontana; can be gusty near capes |
| Vardar | — | NE – E | Winter | 5 – 8 | Cold, dry katabatic wind funnelled through river valleys in Greece/N Macedonia; reaches southern Adriatic |