The Pontine Islands

It was time to leave our little retreat in Porto Misano and start heading for Rome, so we upped anchor and set out to Procida, a small island just outside the bay of Naples. There was a delightful anchorage and town there, so we stayed the night.

Pavvie, in a lovely cove in Procida

The main town in Procida

Closing on the main town

Our friendly Uber driver, John

Just off the port of Procida

The Pavlovians and the Seadogs land

Procida was one of those insanely picturesque towns that draped itself over a steep hill like a gown on a marble Roman goddess, so we just had to walk all over it to take in the stunning views of the bay of Naples.

Climbing the main street of Procida 

M2 & M1 take a breath

Main square of Procida

Small harbour in front of the town.

Panorama from the top of Procida

View over the Bay of Naples with Vesuvius in the distance

Old church/fort/jail??

After a calm night in Procida, we headed to Ischia. After several attempts to firmly anchor the boat in a very rocky bay, we accepted a poor anchorage in weed, so I stayed on the boat as anchor watch. Megan went in with the Seafoxes, so I have no photo's.

Seafox in front of a church/castle in Ischia

Next, we headed out to the Pontine Islands. We did a drive by Ventotene, and anchored off the main town on Ponza. Ponza's main claim to fame, apart from being named after Pontius Pilate (there is still a grotto owned by the family and named after him), is as the place of exile and execution for Nero Ceasar. 

Main town of Ponza

Beach, Pavlov in the background

Port crowded with local boats

Swordfish sold off the boat

Harbour promenade in Ponza

Ponza is a popular resort for Roman revellers, but for us, the charm of the place was the beautiful anchorages along the coast line. Ponza is the remnant of a volcanic crater, and the limestone cliffs have been carved by wind and wave into beautiful surfaces.

Our anchorage in Ponza

Looking the other way... 

Beautiful coastline of Ponza

A magnificent wooden yacht

Little island off the end of Ponza

We sampled the wares in the tourist town, met with John and M2 in Ponza, and thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful anchorage. Then it was time to get serious, so we headed back to the coast, sailing to Anzio, site of the US Allied invasion into Italy. Roma, here we come!

Ponza tourist shops

Purse seiners carry little boats to tend the nets

A dolphin surfacing just off Pavlov's stern