Leg 40 of 97 · Passage plan · RYA Yachtmaster standard
Porto-Vecchio to Elba
The longest open crossing of the summer: about 84 nautical miles north-east across the Tyrrhenian Sea, west of Montecristo and east of Pianosa, to Marina di Campo on the south coast of Elba.
05:45 CEST from Porto-Vecchio. At first light, 5 minutes before sunrise (05:48 CEST), after the weather day at Porto-Vecchio.
Arrive
About 20:17 CEST at Elba. In the evening, with only about 40 minutes of daylight in hand (sunset 20:59 CEST). The tightest arrival of the voyage.
Tides
Range about 0.2 m: no practical effect
Wind
Light in settled summer weather; a libeccio (south-west) would be fair but bring a sea
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. A 14-hour day: meals prepared ahead
Track and waypoints 1 to 3, with ports of refuge as squares.
Go or no-go
Decide the evening before and confirm at 05:30 CEST. Go only if all of these hold:
Settled forecast for the whole day: no wind above force 5 from any direction, and none from the south, which Marina di Campo faces.
Marina di Campo berth confirmed, or Porto Azzurro as the plan.
Crew rested: this is a 14-hour day.
This is the leg the weather day at Porto-Vecchio is for. If the forecast is still wrong, wait another day; Elba to Giglio is short and can be joined to the next leg.
Route and waypoints
Waypoints are planning positions in open water, checked against a 1:10m coastline to be at least 2 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
Porto-Vecchio marina
41°35.4′N
009°17.0′E
05:45 CEST
Depart at first light.
1
Gulf of Porto-Vecchio entrance
41°36.0′N
009°24.0′E
083°T
5.3
5.3
06:48 CEST
Out of the gulf.
2
East of Pianosa
42°35.0′N
010°11.0′E
030°T
68.6
73.9
18:14 CEST
4 nm east of Pianosa, outside its 1 nm closed strip. Montecristo is 15 nm south-east of the track, well clear.
3
Marina di Campo approach
42°43.5′N
010°14.5′E
017°T
8.9
82.7
19:51 CEST
In the bay. Check on the chart
4
Marina di Campo
42°44.8′N
010°14.3′E
354°T
1.3
84.1
20:17 CEST
Harbour at the head of the bay. Position approximate. Check on the chart
Tides and time
Porto-Vecchio · Tue 15 Jun · CEST (UTC+2)
HW
06:17
1.4 m
LW
12:55
1.2 m
HW
19:03
1.3 m
From the Solenzara station.
Elba · Tue 15 Jun · CEST (UTC+2)
HW
07:14
0.2 m
LW
13:31
0.0 m
HW
19:51
0.2 m
From the Marina Di Campo station.
Tuesday 15 June 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.
Elba uses the Marina di Campo station.
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 Porto-Vecchio 05:48 CEST. Sunset at Elba 20:59 CEST.
Weather
Open sea. 70 nm with no shelter except the islands, most of which are closed to boats.
Settled in summer. Light winds are likely; the leg may be a long motor.
Forecasts to check
Météo-France coastal zone Corse (BMS côte 02-04), with microzones Bastia to Solenzara, Solenzara to Chiappa, Chiappa to Sant'Amanza, and Bouches de Bonifacio; port forecasts for Bastia, Porto-Vecchio and Bonifacio. meteofrance.com/meteo-marine.
Italian forecasts: Aeronautica Militare Meteomar and gale warnings (avviso di burrasca), meteoam.it. Forecast area Mar Ligure. Zone names and issue times: Check the pilot book
NAVTEX Roma: 518 kHz, station R, at 0250, 0650, 1050, 1450, 1850 and 2250 UTC. Cagliari: 518 kHz, station T. Check the times on the receiver.
Italian coast radio VHF weather broadcasts: Check the pilot book
Hazards
Montecristo. A strict nature reserve: navigation, access, mooring and anchoring are banned in zone 1, which takes in the island and its waters out to about 1 km. Landing is limited to guided visits. The route passes well west of it.
Pianosa. Fishing, bathing and the passage of boats are banned within 1 nm of the coast. The route passes 4 nm east of the island.
Marina di Campo. The bay faces south. Berths, depths and VHF could not be checked. Check the pilot book
Pelagos Sanctuary. The Ligurian Sea, from Toulon to northern Sardinia and Tuscany, is a sanctuary for whales and dolphins. Follow its code of conduct: keep a safe distance, slow down, hold a steady course, and never approach a group with calves. Fin whales and sperm whales are seen on the crossing to Capraia. Report sightings to the Pelagos secretariat (+377 92 16 11 55).
Ports of refuge
Port
From the route
Use it when
Notes
Porto-Vecchio
Start
Within the first 2 hours
Marina.
Porto Azzurro
8 nm east of Marina di Campo
Campo full or exposed
Marina, VHF 9, +39 0565 914797, 3 kn, fuel.
Portoferraio
On Elba's north coast
Alternative
Marina Esaom Cesa, VHF 10, about 300 berths, 6.5 m.
Pilotage
Leaving Porto-Vecchio
Leave at first light and follow the channel out of the gulf.
Set the course north-east for the gap between Pianosa and Montecristo.
Entering Marina di Campo
From east of Pianosa, head north into the bay of Marina di Campo.
Call the harbour for a berth. VHF and phone: Check the pilot book
Have the boat's registration, insurance with an Italian addendum and a crew list ready: Elba's marinas ask for them.
Behind time. If waypoint 2 is not reached by 13:00 CEST, turn back to Porto-Vecchio or bear away for Bastia rather than arrive after dark.
Weather mid-crossing. Run for Elba's south coast; do not approach Pianosa or Montecristo.
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
French notices to mariners (PING) and Italian notices to mariners (Avvisi ai naviganti) 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
Meals for a 14-hour day prepared
Insurance with an Italian addendum aboard
Fuel for 15 hours under engine, plus a reserve
Water, food and hot drinks for 16 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
Montecristo: islepark.it (regole di fruizione); DPR 22 July 1996.
Pianosa: DM 19 December 1997 (islepark.it).
Porto Azzurro: sacomar.it. Portoferraio: esaom.it. Marina di Campo: not checked.
Lights in Italy: Wikipedia, List of lighthouses in Italy (characteristics, heights, ranges); check against the Italian Navy list of lights (Elenco dei fari).
Italian harbour ordinances (Capitanerie di porto) could not be read for this plan: guardiacostiera.gov.it was unreachable. Check the pilot book
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.