Leg 22 of 97 · Passage plan · RYA Yachtmaster standard
Valencia to Columbretes
About 58 nautical miles offshore to the Columbretes, a ring of volcanic islets 30 nm off the coast of Castellón, a marine reserve and nature reserve, to lie on a buoy inside the crater of Illa Grossa.
08:00 CEST from Valencia. 1 hour 15 minutes after sunrise (06:45 CEST).
Arrive
About 18:07 CEST at Columbretes. In the late afternoon, with about 3 hours of daylight in hand (sunset 21:08 CEST).
Tides
Range about 0.1 m: no practical effect
Wind
Light to moderate in early June; a Levante or a north-easterly would make the island buoys untenable
Boat
35 to 38 ft sailing yacht, 1.9 m draught, 6 kn under sail, 5.5 kn under engine
Crew
Skipper and 3 crew, 2 watches of 2. The night at the Columbretes needs written authorisation: see Hazards
Track and waypoints 1 to 2.
Go or no-go
Decide the evening before and confirm at 07:00 CEST. Go only if all of these hold:
Written authorisation to use the reserve's buoys in hand, including for the night.
Settled forecast for 36 hours: no wind above force 4 from north-east round to south, which makes the crater bay untenable, and no Mistral or Tramontana forecast reaching the area.
Visibility 3 nm or more: ships cross between Valencia, Castellón and Barcelona.
Without authorisation or a settled forecast, go instead to Castellón or Burriana for the night (about 35 nm) and sail on to L'Ametlla de Mar the next day without the stop.
Route and waypoints
Waypoints are planning positions in open water, checked against a 1:10m coastline to be at least 1 nm off land except at the harbour ends. Distances and courses are calculated from them. Plot every one on the current chart before use. Courses are true.
#
Waypoint
Latitude
Longitude
Course
Leg nm
Total nm
ETA
Notes
0
Real Club Náutico de Valencia
39°25.6′N
000°19.6′W
08:00 CEST
Depart.
1
Valencia approach
39°24.0′N
000°17.5′W
135°T
2.3
2.3
08:34 CEST
South of the port. Cross the approach to the commercial port at right angles.
2
Columbretes approach
39°53.0′N
000°42.5′E
058°T
54.6
56.9
17:40 CEST
South-east of Illa Grossa, outside the 0.5 nm restricted zone. Report entry to the reserve on VHF 9. Check on the chart
3
Puerto Tofiño, Illa Grossa
39°53.8′N
000°41.5′E
316°T
1.1
58.0
18:07 CEST
The buoys inside the crater bay. Under 3 kn. Position approximate. Check on the chart
Tides and time
Valencia · Tue 18 May · CEST (UTC+2)
LW
02:27
0.2 m
HW
06:12
0.2 m
LW
11:43
0.1 m
HW
19:52
0.2 m
Columbretes · Tue 18 May · CEST (UTC+2)
LW
02:33
0.2 m
HW
06:23
0.2 m
LW
12:01
0.1 m
HW
19:59
0.2 m
From the Sagunto station.
Tuesday 18 May 2027. Tides. The range here is 0.1 to 0.3 m: tides make no practical difference. Wind and air pressure move the sea level more than the tide does.
The Columbretes use the Sagunto station, 45 nm west.
Tide times are predictions made for this plan from the TICON-4 harmonic constants (DGFI-TUM) with the Neaps tide predictor, because the official 2027 tables were not yet published when it was written. Tested against the official APDL table for Leixões on 23 July 2026, the predicted times were within 8 minutes and the heights 0.1 to 0.2 m lower. Heights are above lowest astronomical tide. Check every time against the official 2027 table before sailing.
Daylight. Sunrise at Valencia 06:45 CEST. Sunset at Columbretes 21:08 CEST.
Weather
Offshore. 30 nm from land, with no shelter but the crater bay, which is open to the east and south-east.
Early June. Mostly light winds and sea breezes near the coast. North-westerlies from the Ebro valley (the mestral) can reach the islands.
Forecasts to check
AEMET coastal bulletins, aemet.es, predicción marítima: “Costa de Valencia y Murcia” (Aguas costeras de Valencia, de Castellón) and “Costa de Cataluña” (Aguas costeras de Tarragona, de Barcelona, de Girona). High-seas areas Baleares and León.
NAVTEX Cabo de la Nao: 518 kHz, station X, in English. Further north, La Garde (France) on 490 kHz, station S, in French. Check the times against the Admiralty List of Radio Signals. Check the pilot book
Hazards
Columbretes marine reserve. Navigation is free throughout the reserve, but speed must be under 3 kn in the integral and restricted-use zones. Illa Grossa (Columbrete Grande) is a restricted-use zone 0.5 nm in radius. The Murall del Cementeri and the Carallot islet are integral reserves, for authorised science only. Anchoring is prohibited everywhere in the reserve except in an emergency.
Buoys and the night. The reserve's mooring buoys may be used only with authorisation, applied for to the Spanish fisheries directorate (Dirección General de Recursos Pesqueros y Acuicultura), and following the reserve service's instructions. Official, scientific, fishing, organised and dive boats have priority over other boats. Overnight stays are prohibited on the buoys at La Ferrera and La Foradada. Whether a yacht may stay the night on the Illa Grossa buoys is not stated in the order.
Reporting. Report entry to and exit from the reserve to the reserve service on VHF 9 (08:00 to 22:00), or on VHF 16, giving the boat's details.
Landing. Visits ashore are allowed only on Illa Grossa, under the nature reserve's rules, which could not be checked. Check on the chart
Fishing. Only surface trolling, with an authorisation applied for at least 10 working days ahead. Diving needs authorisation; night and shore dives are banned.
Ports of refuge
Port
From the route
Use it when
Notes
Valencia
Start
Within the first 2 hours
Real Club Náutico de Valencia.
Castellón
About 30 nm west of the islands
No authorisation, or weather turns
Commercial port with yacht berths. Check the pilot book
Columbretes
Destination
Settled weather only
A buoy in Puerto Tofiño, with authorisation. No shelter from the east.
Pilotage
Leaving Valencia
Leave the club and head south of the port, keeping clear of ships.
Turn north-east for the islands and make sail.
Arriving at the Columbretes
Raise the reserve service on VHF 9 before entering the reserve.
Approach Illa Grossa from the south-east. Inside 0.5 nm of the island, under 3 kn.
Pick up the buoy you are given in Puerto Tofiño. Do not anchor.
Wind rises from the east at night. Leave the buoy before it becomes dangerous and run for L'Ametlla de Mar or Castellón. Plan the escape course in daylight.
No buoy free. Do not anchor. Go on to Castellón.
Fog. Fog routine; radar and AIS watch.
Person overboard. Shout, point, throw the danger buoy, press MOB, DSC distress alert, Mayday on 16.
Before leaving
Forecasts read and logged before the go or no-go time
Spanish notices to mariners (Avisos a los Navegantes) checked for the route
Waypoints entered and checked against the chart
Ship's log started in UTC
Crew briefing: route, watches, safety gear, MOB, fog
Columbretes authorisation printed and aboard
Food and water for a night away from shore
Fuel for 10 hours under engine, plus a reserve
Water, food and hot drinks for 24 hours
Lifejackets with crotch straps, jackstays rigged, harnesses
Liferaft, grab bag, flares in date, handheld VHF
Radar, AIS and navigation lights tested
Passports, boat papers and insurance aboard
Sources
Columbretes marine reserve: Orden ARM/3841/2008, amended by Orden AAA/1493/2014 (boe.es).
Nature reserve: Spanish Wikipedia, “Reserva natural de las Islas Columbretes” (secondary source).
Valencia: rcnv.es.
Catalan ports: ports.gencat.cat port pages and their internal maritime plans (Pla interior marítim).
Lights: The Lighthouse Directory, Spain (ibiblio.org/lighthouse/esvc.htm and esct.htm).
Tides: predictions from TICON-4 harmonic constants (Hart-Davis, Dettmering and Seitz, DGFI-TUM, 2025, doi 10.17882/109129) with Neaps (openwaters.io). Check against the Instituto Hidrográfico 2027 tables.
Sunrise and sunset: calculated (NOAA method).
Lights: The Lighthouse Directory (Rowlett), ibiblio.org/lighthouse, Portugal pages revised August 2024. Cross-check with the IH List of Lights, volume I.