Leg 49 of 97 · Passage plan · RYA Yachtmaster standard
Sapri to Stromboli
The longest day of this stretch: about 79 nautical miles south across the open Tyrrhenian Sea from the Gulf of Policastro to Stromboli, the active volcano at the north-east corner of the Aeolian Islands.
05:30 CEST from Sapri. At first light, at sunrise (05:31 CEST), after the weather day at Sapri.
Arrive
About 17:54 CEST at Stromboli. In the early evening, with about 2 hours 35 minutes of daylight in hand (sunset 20:28 CEST).
Tides
Range about 0.2 m: no practical effect
Wind
Light in settled weather; the maestrale (north-west) is fair. A scirocco is on the nose
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 13-hour day: meals prepared ahead
Track and waypoints 1 to 2, with ports of refuge as squares.
Go or no-go
Decide the evening before and confirm at 05:00 CEST. Go only if all of these hold:
Settled forecast for the whole day: no wind above force 5, and no northerly or easterly above force 4, which make Stromboli's anchorages untenable.
Stromboli's alert level and any sea exclusion zone checked: see Hazards.
Crew rested: this is a 13-hour day.
This is the leg the weather day at Sapri is for. If the forecast is still wrong, wait. Tropea, on the Calabrian coast 30 nm east of Stromboli, is the alternative landfall.
Route and waypoints
Waypoints are planning positions in open water, checked against a 1:10m coastline to be at least 1.5 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
Sapri
40°03.8′N
015°37.7′E
05:30 CEST
Depart at first light.
1
Sapri approach
40°03.6′N
015°37.3′E
230°T
0.4
0.4
05:36 CEST
Out of the harbour, south across the gulf.
2
East of Strombolicchio
38°49.5′N
015°17.0′E
192°T
75.8
76.2
17:15 CEST
Open sea the whole way, about 70 nm. Keep Strombolicchio 1 nm off.
3
Stromboli, off Scari
38°48.2′N
015°15.2′E
227°T
1.9
78.1
17:54 CEST
Anchor or pick up a mooring off Scari or Ficogrande. Position approximate. Check on the chart
Tides and time
Sapri · Tue 29 Jun · CEST (UTC+2)
HW
05:11
0.3 m
LW
11:54
0.1 m
HW
18:09
0.2 m
LW
23:58
0.1 m
From the Palinuro station.
Stromboli · Tue 29 Jun · CEST (UTC+2)
HW
05:08
0.3 m
LW
11:47
0.1 m
HW
18:21
0.2 m
LW
23:36
0.1 m
From the Strombolicchio station.
Tuesday 29 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.
Stromboli uses the Strombolicchio 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 Sapri 05:31 CEST. Sunset at Stromboli 20:28 CEST.
Weather
Open sea. 70 nm with no shelter.
Stromboli has no harbour. The anchorages off Scari and Ficogrande are deep, close in, and open to the north and east.
Forecasts to check
Italian forecasts: Aeronautica Militare Meteomar and gale warnings (avviso di burrasca), meteoam.it. Forecast areas Tirreno meridionale, Stretto di Sicilia and Ionio. Zone names and issue times: Check the pilot book
NAVTEX Augusta: 518 kHz, station V. Roma: station R. Check the times on the receiver.
Italian coast radio VHF weather broadcasts: Check the pilot book
Hazards
The volcano. Stromboli erupts continually, with explosions every few minutes and occasional larger eruptions, lava flows down the Sciara del Fuoco on the north-west side, and tsunamis from landslides into the sea. Civil Protection raised it to its highest alert level in July 2024. Any exclusion zone at sea off the Sciara del Fuoco, and any limit on approaching or anchoring off the island, could not be checked. Read the Civil Protection bulletin and the Capitaneria's ordinance before sailing.
Night viewing. Boats gather off the Sciara del Fuoco after dark to watch the eruptions. This plan is daylight only: watch from the anchorage.
Aeolian Islands reserves. Strombolicchio, Lisca Bianca and Basiluzzo are integral nature reserves: landing is allowed for science only. Panarea and the rocks round it are in a reserve on land. Whether a marine protected area or anchoring bans apply round these islands in 2027 could not be checked. Ask the Capitaneria at Lipari before anchoring.
Hydrofoils and ferries into Scari from Milazzo, Naples and the other islands.
Ports of refuge
Port
From the route
Use it when
Notes
Sapri
Start
Within the first 2 hours
Harbour.
Tropea
30 nm east of Stromboli
Weather turns or Stromboli closed
Marina. Check the pilot book
Lipari or Vulcano
20 nm south-west
Stromboli untenable
Harbours.
Pilotage
Leaving Sapri
Leave at first light and head south-south-west out of the Gulf of Policastro.
Set the course for Strombolicchio, about 70 nm.
Arriving at Stromboli
Pass south of Strombolicchio, 1 nm off.
Anchor off Scari or Ficogrande in sand, clear of the ferry landing; depths drop off fast. Moorings, operators and depths: Check the pilot book
Lights on the way
Capo Palinuro
Fl(3) 15s, 206 m, 25 M
Strombolicchio
Fl(3) 15s, 57 m, 11 M
Communications
Sapri harbour
VHF 16 · +39 0973 033472
Stromboli moorings
Check on the chart
Emergency at sea, Italy (Guardia Costiera)
VHF 16, DSC 70 · 1530
Emergency on land
112
Contingencies
Behind time. If the halfway point is not reached by 12:00 CEST, turn back to Sapri or bear away for Tropea.
Eruption or alert raised. Stay well off the island and go on to Lipari or Vulcano.
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
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
Stromboli alert level and Civil Protection notices checked
Meals for a 13-hour day prepared
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
Aeolian Islands: Italian Wikipedia pages for Stromboli, Strombolicchio, Vulcano, Panarea, Lisca Bianca and Basiluzzo (secondary).
Stromboli alert level: English Wikipedia, “Stromboli”; check the Civil Protection site, protezionecivile.gov.it.
Capitaneria di porto ordinances for Lipari, Milazzo, Messina, Catania, Siracusa and Pozzallo could not be read: guardiacostiera.gov.it was unreachable. Check the pilot book
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.