The time we spent in Sardinia was fantastic. If you have never been to the area of Stintino and the islands of Maddalena, it is a must for anybody who loves crystal clear water and a wide variety of anchorages. We left from Port Aranci, Sardinia, towards the island of Ponza, Italy, on Monday afternoon. The weather forecast was promising, with a nice breeze all the way. We left with one reef in the main and the full genoa. Anima II was flying at 8-10 knots towards our destination.

We started seeing thunder in the far distance in the middle of the night. When checking the radar, we realized that this large storm had started chasing us. The storm was about 40 NM long and about 20NM wide and approaching us quickly. First, we tried to outrun the storm towards the east, then turned south, but the storm kept moving towards the southeast. Eventually, we decided to return to the west to stay on the outskirts of the storm. The temperature dropped by 10 degrees within seconds, and the wind increased to 35 knots. We were luckier than the boats sending pan-pan and even mayday calls. Long story short, we stayed at the edge of the storm, and after four hours, we were able to get back on course towards Ponza. In the late afternoon of Tuesday, the lighthouse of Ponza and the fantastic volcanic landscape welcomed us to another beautiful spot to visit.