Vitudden's Kanotvarv
CROSSING THE MALTA CHANNEL BY KAYAK
POZZALLO TO VALLETTA – 19/20 JUNE 2009
Preparation for paddling across the 52 nautical mile stretch of water that separates the islands of Sicily and Malta had been in hand for quite some time.
In April, as part of our training, we paddled around the Maltese archipelago, i.e. the islands of Malta, Filfla and Gozo, covering the distance of 60 nautical miles in 18 hours. Although we did stop at the Inland Sea in Gozo for about 40 minutes, the rest of the time was spent in our kayak, paddling.
I suppose that it was here that we confirmed our correct choice of kayak when we opted for the VKV Anita K2.
The weather was always going to play an important part in our plans and as the target date drew closer, scrutiny of the weather grew more intense. We were helped in no small way by the forecasters of the Meteorological Office at the Malta International Airport, who patiently explained the conditions we would find en-route.
Looking back, the conditions they forecast were spot-on. On the 18th June our support boats, “Tallulah” and “Katy Jane” skippered by Joe Brincat and Ivan Grech Mintoff respectively, sailed from Valletta for Pozzallo to await our arrival there the next day.
Shortly after dawn on the 19th June, the two teams – Dorian Vassallo and myself Albert Gambina, together with Mark Bugeja and Michael Gellel carried our kayaks on board the fast ferry that would take us to the Sicilian seaside town of Pozzallo. The morning there passed by very quickly and after lunching on a superb plate of aglio, olio e peperoncino, we soon were setting up our kayaks for a 1600 departure. Our friend in Sicily, Francesco Petraglia, came to see us off and at the appointed time, the long months of anticipation came to an end with the first stroke of our paddles.
1615 is the time recorded when abeam to the Pozzallo breakwater and moments later we were out in the open sea. We settled into a steady cadence, the support boats in formation, one ahead and the other astern of us. We experienced a low easterly swell and a slight sea, hardly any wind, conforming to the forecast given to us by the Malta Met Office, a few hours earlier.
The Sicilian coast slipped into the haze astern of us as the sun set slowly. The only bit of excitement we had was when a small coaster passed quite close to us; apparently he wanted to have a better look. The further south we paddled, the calmer the sea became, enabling us to maintain a steady pace. Our first stop shortly after 7 pm brought relief in the form of food and water.
The night lay ahead of us and we decided to have rest stops at shorter intervals.
As darkness gradually set in the horizon became one with the starlit sky. Initially we felt a little disorientated in the complete darkness. However we paddled in the loom of Tallulah’s stern light, with the close proximity of the support boats providing reassurance. We got used to it after a while, however as the night entered into the early hours of the morning, the lack of sleep and long hours of paddling began to take their toll. Our morale was kept high thanks to the endless repertoire of Maltese songs sung by Michael Gellel. At each stop we doused our heads with cold water to revive ourselves. Things began to look up when at about 0300 we could see the flashing light of the Gozo Gordan Lighthouse; we knew then that the end won’t be too long in coming. The weather helped in no small way, since midnight we had been paddling in a flat calm sea, the beam of our lights picking out large swathes of jellyfish floating on the surface. An hour and a bit later the moon rose while more lights from the Maltese shore became visible. This seemed to have given us the necessary impetus as both kayaks increased speed as if wanting to go home. We maintained this pace all the way up to the harbour entrance, passing the Valletta breakwater at 0740 and then slowly to the Valletta Waterfront where family and friends awaited us.
Thanks are due to Sullivan Maritime Limited and Vituddens Kanotvarv of Sweden for sponsoring Dorian Vassallo and Albert Gambina personally. Their continuous help and support was crucial for the successful conclusion of this event.
