Heading North

Luckily I can still use the old Blogger interface for writing posts, so here is next part of our sailing and snorkelling adventure. I hope I'll manage another post soon.

On Wednesday, September the 2nd, once the weather got better, we left Rogoznica. We sailed to island of Zmajan to uvala Zaražanj. It is a pretty sandy bay, with good snorkelling. We were too late and the light was already fading, so snorkelling had to wait for the next day. But in the evening we got a pretty sunset over neighbouring island of Kaprije.

This is how Uvala Zaražanj on Zmajan loked in the morning.

The snorkelling didn't disappoint. A group of Annular seabream or špari (Diplodus annularis) was waiting right under our boat.

Under some rocks I found Ostrich plume hydroid or morska peresca (Aglaophenia spp).

There were plenty of gobies around, this one has a suitable name - Red-mouthed goby or rdečeusti glavač (Gobius cruentatus).

Didn't see lots of these guys this year. It is a Mediterranean cardinalfish or morski kraljiček (Apogon imberbis).

I'm always happy when I find this pretty sponge - couldn't find the English name, in Slovene it's
mrežasta spužva (Clathrina clathrus).

Another sponge that I don't know the English name of - ledvičasta spužva (Chondrosia reniformis). Sponges can propagate also asexually - they just let a part of it to separate, first hanging on a long stringy thing, and it then starts a life on it's own.

This is my first this year - a tunicate, the Colonial sea squirt or prstasti plaščar (Aplidium tabarquensis).

And this as well - Acquisitive sponge or vijoličasta zobčasta spužva (Dysidea avara) of very elegant pink colour and delicate structure.

We stayed on Zmajan for two nights, we were enjoying nice late summer weather and clean water after spending so much time in Rogoznica. On Friday we sailed on to Murter and we anchored in front of small island Hrid Bosnjak near town Jezera.

I went snorkelling again and found lots of Flounders or morski jeziki (Arnoglossus spp.).

Weather was really mild and warm and lots of boats came out of the marina on Saturday, also some older pretty ones.

In the afternoon we moved to the bay in front of town of Jezera.

In the evening we rowed our dinghy into town and had a good meal and did some shopping.
Next day, on Sunday, we moved to Uvala Kosirina on Murter. Normally it is very full of boats, but now, in September, it was not too crowded.

Although bay was very sandy and shallow, water was so inviting I couldn't resist going snorkelling. In the night, when the breeze changed direction, our boat got back to the anchor.

In the rocky SW end of the bay I found Cushion coral or jadranska kamena korala (Cladocora caespitosa)...

...and plenty of gobies, as this Giant goby or skalni glavač (Gobius cobitis).

This guy was so persistently swimming behind our boat, I had to take a photo. And he got a bit of bread after our lunch.

in the afternoon we moved to bay Uvala Vela Luka on mainland just N of Murter. There was some stronger NE wind, burja, forecast for the night, and we wanted to be well protected for it. Bay is not particularly pretty and water not very clear, but it has a muddy bottom that provides for great holding and is closed almost from all sides. Evening was still very calm and we had a beautiful sunset again.

There was some stronger wind in the night, but nothing to worry about. We woke up a couple of times because of whistling of wind around the mast and through the stays (pripone), but didn't get up since we knew we were anchored well.
In the morning we sailed on to islands Mali i Veli Zavinac near Pakoštane and made a stop for swimming and snorkelling in clear turquoise water.
I know I posted lots of photos of Slender goby or peščeni glavač (Gobius geniporus) already, but this one was without a doubt the fastest one and deserves a photo as well.

These two guys are Sargo or progar ali šarg (Diplodus sargus).

I finally learned the difference between these two - the Slender goby or peščeni glavač (Gobius geniporus)...

...and Buccich's goby or pikasti glavač (Gobius bucchichii), as I've seen so many here side by side.

These two were the catch of the day, I was so happy to have spotted them - they are nudibranchs, in Slovene kodrasti perjaničar (Hypselodoris picta), I couldn't find an Enlish name. I hope they'll have plenty of babies, although I disturbed them while they were making them.

And one more very pretty tube worm, in Slovene peščeni cevkar (Myxicola infundibulum).

I haven't seen many of these yet this year - the Mediterranean fanworm or Spalancanijev cevkar (Sabella spallanzanii).