Leg 78 of 97 · Passage plan · RYA Yachtmaster standard
Skradin to Hvar
Down the Krka and out of Šibenik, south-east past Primošten and Rogoznica and between the islands of Drvenik and Šolta, to Hvar, the island's Venetian harbour town under its fortress.
07:00 CEST from Skradin. 1 hour 5 minutes after sunrise (05:56 CEST), after the rest day at Skradin.
Arrive
About 17:05 CEST at Hvar. In the late afternoon, with about 3 hours of daylight in hand (sunset 20:03 CEST).
Tides
Range about 0.3 m: no practical effect
Wind
The maestral (north-west) is behind the yacht in the afternoon
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
Track and waypoints 1 to 10, with ports of refuge as squares.
Go or no-go
Decide at 06:00 CEST. Go only if all of these hold:
No bora or wind above force 5, and no jugo (south-easterly) above force 4: Hvar harbour is open to the south.
Hvar berth or buoy confirmed, or ACI Palmižana.
Visibility 2 nm or more.
If the weather is wrong, stay at Skradin. Rogoznica and the Šolta bays are on the way.
Route and waypoints
Waypoints are planning positions in open water, checked against a 1:10m coastline to be at least 0.8 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
ACI Marina Skradin
43°49.0′N
015°55.4′E
07:00 CEST
Depart.
1
Prokljan
43°48.5′N
015°53.0′E
254°T
1.8
1.8
07:22 CEST
Down the river.
2
Krka, below the bridges
43°46.4′N
015°53.5′E
170°T
2.1
3.9
07:47 CEST
3
Šibenik harbour
43°43.9′N
015°53.4′E
182°T
2.5
6.4
08:17 CEST
Call Šibenik Port Control on VHF 9.
4
St Anthony channel
43°43.3′N
015°51.8′E
243°T
1.3
7.7
08:37 CEST
Out through the channel.
5
Šibenik channel approach
43°43.0′N
015°50.5′E
252°T
1.0
8.7
08:49 CEST
Clear of the Jadrija light. Head south.
6
Off Primošten
43°36.0′N
015°51.5′E
174°T
7.0
15.8
09:59 CEST
2 nm off.
7
West of Rogoznica
43°30.0′N
015°55.5′E
154°T
6.7
22.4
11:06 CEST
2 nm off.
8
Between Drvenik and Šolta
43°25.0′N
016°06.0′E
123°T
9.1
31.6
12:37 CEST
Check on the chart
9
South-west of Šolta
43°18.0′N
016°15.0′E
137°T
9.6
41.1
14:13 CEST
Across the Split channel approaches. Ferries.
10
Pakleni channel
43°10.6′N
016°22.0′E
145°T
9.0
50.1
16:01 CEST
Between Hvar and the Pakleni islands. Keep well clear of the Baba rock.
11
Hvar town
43°10.3′N
016°26.4′E
095°T
3.2
53.4
17:05 CEST
Town harbour. Position approximate. Check on the chart
Tides and time
Skradin · Wed 11 Aug · CEST (UTC+2)
HW
15:35
0.4 m
From the Split station.
Hvar · Wed 11 Aug · CEST (UTC+2)
HW
15:35
0.4 m
From the Split station.
Wednesday 11 August 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.
Both ends use the Split 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 Skradin 05:56 CEST. Sunset at Hvar 20:03 CEST.
Weather
Maestral fair down the coast in the afternoon.
A jugo sends a swell into Hvar harbour.
Forecasts to check
Croatian marine forecast: DHMZ Marine Meteorological Centre, Split, meteo.hr, for the North, Central and South Adriatic, with warnings.
Split Radio: weather and safety broadcasts at 05:45, 12:45, 19:45 and 00:45 UTC on VHF 7, 21, 23, 28, 81 and 84. Dubrovnik Radio: VHF 7, 19, 4, 85 and 28 by area.
NAVTEX Split: station Q on 518 kHz in English, at 02:40, 06:40, 10:40, 14:40, 18:40 and 22:40 UTC.
Hazards
Hvar harbour. Small and crowded in August, under the port authority of Split-Dalmatia county (+385 21 339 825). The booking system, fees and VHF could not be checked. ACI Palmižana, 2.4 nm away on Sv. Klement, takes boats up to 15 m and was running at reduced capacity during reconstruction.
Baba rock north of the Palmižana entrance, marked by a black and red beacon (Fl(2) 10s). Keep well clear, especially on its north side. The passage between Borovac and Sv. Klement is unlit and under 5 m.
Ferries and fast catamarans between Split and the islands.
Bora (bura). A cold, gusty north-easterly that falls off the mountains. It is strongest and most frequent in winter but can blow in summer, and can start suddenly from a clear, calm sky. Signs are a cap of cloud on the mountains and a short, steep, white-crested sea. In a bora warning, stay in harbour or tuck under the lee of the mainland, never under the lee of an island in a channel.
Ports of refuge
Port
From the route
Use it when
Notes
Skradin
Start
Within the first hour
ACI marina.
Rogoznica
Waypoint 7
Weather turns
Marina Frapa. Check the pilot book
ACI Palmižana
2.4 nm west of Hvar
Hvar full
VHF 17, +385 98 398 853, up to 15 m.
Pilotage
Leaving Skradin
Go down the Krka and out of Šibenik by the St Anthony channel, on VHF 9.
Into Hvar
Approach through the Pakleni channel from the west, clear of the Baba rock.
Call the harbour for a berth or buoy. VHF and phone: Check the pilot book
Lights on the way
Jadrija
Fl(2) 6s, 11 m, 9 M
Baba rock (Palmižana)
Fl(2) 10s, 7 m, 4 M
Pokonji Dol (Hvar)
Fl 4s, 20 m, 10 M
Communications
Hvar town harbour (port authority)
+385 21 339 825
ACI Palmižana
VHF 17 · +385 98 398 853
Harbour master's branch, Hvar
+385 21 741 007
Harbour master Split, 24 hours
+385 21 362 436
Search and rescue at sea, Croatia (MRCC Rijeka)
VHF 16, DSC 70 · 195
Emergency on land
112
Contingencies
No berth at Hvar. Go to Palmižana or anchor in a Pakleni bay in settled weather.
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
Croatian notices to mariners 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
Hvar berth or buoy booked
Fuel for 10 hours under engine, plus a reserve
Water, food and hot drinks for 11 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
ACI Palmižana: aci-marinas.com.
Hvar harbour master: mmpi.gov.hr. Port authority: lusdz.hr.
Croatian harbour masters: mmpi.gov.hr (Pula, Rijeka, Zadar and Šibenik offices and branches). Vignette: mmpi.gov.hr; enautika.pomorstvo.hr.
Croatian lights: plovput.hr (official list). Radio and NAVTEX: plovput.hr.
ACI marinas: aci-marinas.com.
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.