|
Interview: Jane Cody, co-author of the Croatia
Cruising Companion
Jane Cody
Jane Cody is a British ex-pat now living in Split, Croatia. With co-author John Nash, she has written a guide to sailing in Croatia.
Cil:Tell us how you came to be living in Split?
John and I both lived in Brentford Dock and became a couple in early 2001. A few months later he went to Zadar for an interview as marina manager. The job didn't happen but he fell in love with Croatia. A year later we both quit the London rat race, rented a flat in Trogir and set up a company providing marina equipment and services (www.marinafacilitysolutions.com). In 2003 we moved to Kastela near Split.
Cil: Is there a growing British ex-pat community in Split and Dalmatia?
There weren't many ex-pats to start with but now the community is growing fast. In our first couple of months we met a retired
couple who have lived here for over 20 years and we now have a wide range of ex-pat friends of all ages and from many different walks of life. Some are involved in property, some in the marina and charter industry, a couple with thriving restaurants, a champagne and wine dealer, a few more who have retired or bought second homes here and a number of
Australians with Croatian roots. It's a very sociable and open community that welcomes newcomers and we've made quite a few new friends through my blog, www.croatiaonline.blogspot.com
Cil: How did the idea of the guide come about?
The publishers found us via a mutual contact. They were looking to develop a series of cruising companions in various destinations and needed authors in Croatia. John is an experienced yachtsman, I'm a freelance journalist and we were getting to know the Dalmatian coast and islands inside out in the course of our work and travels. They thought we made the
perfect team and we jumped at the chance to be involved in what proved to be a challenging but intrinsically rewarding project.
Cil: What information will it contain for sailing enthusiasts?
Just about everything! Geographically it covers Croatia's sailing heartland - the Dalmatian coast and islands between Zadar, to the north, and Molunat in the south. As well as overview charts for each chapter, there are detailed charts of the marinas
ports and anchorages, approach and pilot age notes, details of facilities and plenty of colour photos including aerial approach shots. We've tried to cover every conceivable location that might be considered a suitable place to drop anchor, moor or berth and, with John's inside knowledge of the Croatian marina industry, we've been able to indicate likely new marina developments and plans to improve facilities.
It's different from most other guides in that it also has plenty of in depth information on what to do and where to go onshore. Even in the most remote locations there are often seasonal restaurants and places of cultural interest and, in the bigger towns, we've tried to highlight the best places to go and the tourist traps to avoid.
Although we believe it's the most up to date and detailed book of its kind on the market, we're planning to keep it fresh and current by publishing news, updates and readers' comments on our blog, www.croatiacruisingcompanion.blogspot.com. Wiley Nautical, our publishers, intend to use this and other sources to build up an online community forum to accompany The Cruising Companion Series.
Cil: Is sailing a growing business in Croatia?
Continental Europeans, for example the Germans, Austrians and Czechs, discovered the Croatian Adriatic a long time ago. More recently it's firmly on the radar for British, French, American and Australian sailors. John, who's sailed almost everywhere, believes it to be one of the best cruising areas in the world for a number of reasons - spectacular scenery, crystal clear waters, a huge variety of discovered and undiscovered islands, and much more. It's also a relatively safe cruising area - tides and currents are normally gentle, you're never very far from land, and the weather is generally clement as long as you respect the mighty Bora (NE wind) and the more predictable occasional summer storms.
It's a great place to learn to sail and the charter companies are increasing in number and capacity. Beginners are cottoning onto the fact that they don't have to blow their bank accounts to charter a boat with a professional skipper. In July and August the more popular ports and anchorages can get quite full but you can still find peace and quiet, if you know where to look, and we've done our best to give readers a range of choices in each area.
Cil:Where in Croatian waters is your favourite sailing area?
That's a tough question! There's something for every mood and preference and always plenty of surprises. If we had to choose just one favourite it would probably be the Kornati Islands. The sometimes bleak but always spectacular wilderness of this myriad of islands and islets hides a number of great summer restaurants, many with moorings or berthing facilities. It's trickier sailing here than in the rest of Dalmatia, as there are so many islands and rocks to check off on the charts, but it's worth it.
Closer to civilization, Pucisca on Brač Island, near Split, was a great discovery. It thrives on the profits of its white stone quarry so has great facilities (berthing and onshore) and a life all year round. It's not dependent on tourism for its prosperity so, for us, it's real Dalmatia. On the downside it has the loudest church bells we've ever come across!
Croatia Cruising Companion by Jane Cody and John Nash
Published by Wiley Publishing
9781904358282
256 pages. Ł24.95
Buy it from amazon.co.uk, by clicking here.
|
-web.jpg){kind=logo}
