Trogir Sailing Journal by Kali, Nautilus Yachting

Fresh from passing my day skipper, I spent quite a while umming and ahhing as to where I should take the family for our first solo sailing holiday. But when a brand new (2022) Oceanis 40.1 popped up in Trogir during the October half-term, for under £1000, it seemed almost obvious our decision was being made for us.

Croatia is a country I have never been to before, and the opportunity to visit Europe's most popular sailing area seemed too good to be true. Also after speaking with a few friends, sailing from Split offered lots of possible itineraries, including lots of sheltered ports to run from the October weather. Perfect... Split it is!

Day 1 - Marina Baotic

The flight to Split was noticeably shorter than my previous flights to Greece. The journey was a little under three hours, from stepping onto the plane at Heathrow to stepping onto the boat in the Marina. A swift start to the holiday. Our flight arrived late in the evening,  and thankfully rather than searching among the 500 or so yachts in the dark, the office had left a really helpful personalised note, as to exactly where our boat was moored and a number to contact just in case. 

Once we had unpacked and were fed and watered,  we checked the weather for the week which seemed perfect.   Gentle and Moderate winds from the South East until Wednesday, before the winds reversed and Northerly Winds took over from Wednesday through to Friday.   Nigh on perfect weather for a gentle sail to Sibenik and back.

Day 2 - Trogir to Rogoznica (17nm)

On arrival into Rogoznica, I prepped our crew for mooring, the pilot guide on board helped select our quayside mooring point but as we approached I could see the Harbour Master prepping a spot for us. A stern too mooring spot with lazy lines. Reversing in I got my first mate ready to throw the stern line, the Harbour Master was ready to pass them a lazy line, and i was at the helm. After a tiny bit of shouting and potentially a little more panic than was required we were safely moored for our first night.

Day 3 - Rogozniza to Primosten (6nm)

Rogoznica seemed to be one of those small towns where the number of boats outnumbers the number of houses. Fresh water and electricity at the town quay meant we could stay clear of the dubious showers. Numerous shops and bars lined the quayside and that meant we could have a lazy coffee and pastry ashore rather than cook breakfast.

Our chart showed Primosten as just a few miles away and the weather for today was exactly as expected. Our sail today turned out to great day to get some miles under our belt and test out a few gybes with the crew. Fantastic winds ensued and we had winds of 10-12 knots throughout the morning, plus the chance to test out a few maneuvers with the crew. Following lunch on the water and a few maneuvers, playtime was over. We headed to Primosten nice and early, after hearing the marina was quite small. Thankfully there was plenty of room on this smaller town quay.

Again under the eyes of a keen Harbour Master, we moored for the day and within 20 minutes were all safely secured. Primosten offered lots to see and options to explore, following a brief visit to the beach and a strut through the old town. We decided that we have to stop here again on the way back to Trogir and give this town the time it deserved.

Day 4 - Primosten to Sibenik (11nm)

Sailing from Primosten to Sibenik, today was the day I was most looking forward to on the trip. I have heard about the National Park and Waterfalls in Krka for a few years now I felt this would be one of the days key to my time in Croatia. Keen to get going we left Primosten just after breakfast and 'sailed' to Sibenik. The winds were super light today (less than 5kts) and the journey was quite a short one on the motor. Arriving into Sibenik, I was suprised at how big the city was, it has a lively waterfront, a fuel station and to my crew's delight a Mcdonalds' within walking distance.

Once moored, for such a large town it was strange to see this was our first town quay without full facilities however the ability to get to Krka National Park certainly made up for it. We climbed into a local taxi and made our way to the National Park.

Lots of different paths of varying lengths make their way through the park and we very happily spent the rest of the day trekking past what felt like a new waterfall around each corner.

Day 5 - Sibenik to Primosten (11nm)

Now officially on the return leg, we could relax a little more, as we were simply heading back 'Home'. Our confidence on board was really high, also aided by winds almost Ionian in nature and the ability to motor along on smooth glassy water. All the scare stories of freezing 'Bura' winds of late October seemed a million miles away from 25 Degrees and less than two knots of wind we had on this return leg.

Pootling along, with almost no other boats on the water, we could have stopped to look at St Nicholas 16th Century Citadel on the way out of Sibenik but we were keen to get to Primosten as soon as we could.

Arriving at Primosten just after lunchtime we arrived at the same time as lots of Croatians that head to Primosten for a day out due to its great beach and relaxed feel. This time around we were going to make the most of Primosten and had enough time to hit the beach and explore the winding streets of its walled city and hilltop church.

Primosten is certainly a stop worth adding to an itinerary. I would recommend it to anyone heading North from Split.

Day 6 - Primosten to Trogir (20nm)

Due to time constraints, today was our final day sailing and our longest day on the water we needed to return to Trogir. We headed out of Primosten on the motor. Then after an hour of motoring, the wind picked up and we had a fantastic stretch of real sailing. Twelve to fifteen knots of wind pushed us along a sailing either a broad reach or running dead downwind. The sailing was nice and stable and that kept the crew happy while cruising along at between 4-6 knots was enough to keep almost any sailor happy. Compared to the non-existent winds of yesterday this was very much a welcomed change and by far the best sailing conditions for the week. A little under five hours later we pulled into the fuel station in Trogir for a top-up and back into the Marina.

Mercifully the easy berth that we left five days ago was available for us to slip right back into. I would never forgive myself if we had five days issue free and then caused a scrape in the final 100 meters. Needless to say, I should have had more faith in my crew as by now we were a well-oiled machine and piloted the boat, back into its spot with minimal stress.

Overall a fantastic break on the water, and the fears of Croatia being a very expensive, cold October destination were completely dashed. I have to admit we were really lucky with the amazing weather for the entire week but for the price, availability of yachts, and lack of other boats on the water I would happily recommend it!