[ 04:29 thursday 29 september – island of levrnaka, croatia ]

i’m sitting on the limestone ridge which runs like a spine across the island. the air hangs motionless and warm. on every side below me the sea is an indigo mirror, its surface punctuated by the silhouettes of islands comprising the kornati archipelago.  the sky above me is a flood of stars, overwhelmingly dense and brilliant. the sea is so perfectly still that the reflected patterns of constellations can be seen laid out across it. a white anchor lamp atop the mast of a yacht in the bay below is the only artificial light in my whole field of view. i doubt there are more than fifty people within ten miles of this rock where i’m sitting.

on saturday i met my parents in split and we travelled up the coast to zaton to pick up a yacht. since then we’ve been sailing each day and stopping each night in a different harbour. this evening we moored at levrnaka in the early evening then took the dinghy out into the channel to watch the sunset. i went to sleep around midnight but half an hour ago i woke and felt an urge to see the sky. trying not to make any sound that might wake mum or dad i pulled on some shorts, crept off the boat and picked my way up the path to where i’m sitting now. the night is so profoundly still that as i was getting off the boat i could hear the crackle of fish nibbling weed below.

as a child i used to sail with my parents in the solent and later in cornwall. more recently dad and i have done little voyages together in cornwall each summer. but this is the first time the three of us have sailed together for a whole week. it’s a testament to my parents’ patience that they can survive being cooped up with me in thirty-three feet of fibreglass for such a long time. it’s wonderful that we’re able to share experiences like this together.

in general this has been a magnificent summer for me. in june i travelled to the island of linosa, far to the south of sicily, with clarence. in july i spent a week sailing around the coast of brittany with arthur and gregoire. then in august i spent a week in cornwall with my family. between these trips i’ve made lots of small forays by foot, bike and kayak from my base in london.

these days in the croatian islands will be my final burst of sunlight and broad horizons before returning to london and the autumn. now it’s time to put my phone back in my pocket and sit perfectly still, allowing myself to dissolve into the magical stillness of the night and the stars.

: c :