Novigrad – tide by tide

It was one of the best Transadriatica’s from Venice to Novigrad and back that anyone could remember. Winds in the northern Adriatic are notoriously fickle and changeable, and sometimes disappear for hours to leave a glassy calm. This time, apart from a brief lull or two on the way out, we had steady winds all the way.

Martin and I were sailing two-handed in his Spiuma, starting on Thursday evening in Venice and arriving in Novigrad early on Friday afternoon.

*Receiving our prize in Novigrad for the smallest boat to finish*

*Dinner out in Novigrad – we were with two other crews at this table.*

On the way home, over Saturday night, we managed to finish at the lagoon entrance at 0930 on Sunday. We were back in time for an early lunch, whereas usually we’d be lucky to make it for tea or an early glass of prosecco. The race sponsor was in fact Drusian, a wine producer from Valdobbiadene, one of the best prosecco areas, and each boat was given a bottle.

It was great to be back as crew in the Transadriatica this year, after two years suspension because of Covid.

The race is actually a double one, just under 60 miles out from Venice to Novigrad in Croatia, and back again after a day’s relaxation in the delightful little seaside resort – how can you beat that for a civilised way to compete?

Novigrad is in Istria, close to some excellent vineyards producing wine from the Malvasia grape. There is a strong Italian influence on the food and the architecture, reflected in the town’s other name of Cittanova. That goes back to the days before the peninsula of Istria was taken from Italy and handed to Yugoslavia after the second world war.

Tag: Novigrad

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