The only entertainment this spot gave us was a lone sailor having great difficulty anchoring. He would anchor and then drag, re-anchor and drag, over and over. We counted 6 tries before he finally seemed to make it stick.
The bottoms typically have patches of weeds that you can see in the clear water that show as dark areas and then areas of sandy mud that show as a light blue colour. The trick is to not drop your anchor in weeds and try to "plow the field". Your anchor won't hold and you end up hauling up a bushel hanging off the hook.
Tijesno shore
The next morning at about 08:30 we motored only a couple miles to arrive just as the small drawbridge from Tijesno to the island of Otok Murter was to open. It only opens twice daily for half an hour at 09:00 and 17:00. The bridge is right in the village so you are only a few feet from the streets and shops on each side. We passed through with a few other boats and with only about a metre to spare under the keel.
Rising up
We thought of anchoring at another island but it was full of mooring balls so continued motoring northwards to Otok Arta Mala where a few other boats had already dropped the hook. This tiny, horseshoe-shaped, rocky island is uninhabited with no facilities but a safe harbour from predicted winds, and surrounded by many other islands.
We braved the coolish water in the hot 36° temperature, and many daytrippers took up anchorage, swimming, sunbathing, and playing water games. But come evening, they all upped anchor and headed home. We were all alone except again for 1 other sailboat.
View from Arta Mala
These waters at this time of year are heavy with marine traffic so we can't just put the auto pilot on and not keep looking out for others.
With not much to do at Arta Mala, we next motored to Otok Zut, a couple of hours away, where we anchored in a cove that saw about 40 boats by evening. We anchored and backed up to shore and stern tied with 2 ropes. The bay was spotted with mostly summer homes and a couple of restaurants that serve summer cruisers.
The restaurants have looked more upscale recently but still with the casual island character. But the prices can be a shocker as we found out. At the waiter's suggestion, we chose 1 fish for the both of us, a plate of Swiss Chard, another of rice, 2 colas, and 1 glass of wine. The food was just okay, the wine was great, and the early evening setting was wonderful but the bill wasn't...$160 CAD! And that was for one mediocre fish dish that we shared. We should have asked for a menu first.
Extravagant eatery
Our rigid inflatable dinghy, now 6 years old, has a seam that seeps out air ever so slightly and each day it needs to have a quick pump up. The fix requires a special glue which we don't have, so we set off northeast to Zadar - but not before stopping off at 1 more quiet anchorage of emerald green waters (Otok Ugljan) where we both enjoyed a refreshing swim in waters that were, well...getting warmer!
Stunning green waters
Recent anchorages:
N43°47.890' E015°39.580' Aug 02 Tijesno
N43°51.111' E015°33.439' Aug 03 Otok Arta Mala
N43°52.337' E015°19.656' Aug 04 Otok Zut (Uvala Hiljaca)
N44°02.764' E015°12.988' Aug 06 Otok Ugljan (Uvala Lamjana Mala)
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