MEDITERRANEAN ISLANDS - Clean Breaks: 500 New Ways to See the World - page 79

105 kayak around The
maddalena arChipelaGo,
sardinia

adventure. There are seven main islands (five
are uninhabited) and over fifty islets around
which you can paddle for days in warm,
translucent water, searching for that ideal spot
to land along the wind-blown granite coastline
- home to gulls, cormorants and herons. The best
time to go is outside of the main holiday season
- either from early April to May, or better still in
September and October when the sea is warmer
and the water is clearest.

Much has been written about the celebrity
highlife of Sardinia's Costa Smeralda, as well as
the island's traditional cuisine and its distinctive
character and customs. Less well known is that
Sardinia has some of the best-conserved coastline
in the Mediterranean, thanks to government
legislation that bans building property within
2km of the sea around the entire island.
One of the best ways to enjoy Sardinia's
coastline is by sea kayak. Away from the hum
of the pleasure boats, paddling under your
own steam, you can reach some of the island's
most unspoilt beaches. In particular, the
protected islands of the Maddalena Archipelago
in the Straits of Bonifacio between Corsica
and northeastern Sardinia provide excellent
conditions for an island-hopping kayaking

Need to know British-run Location Sardinia hires
out kayaks for £30/ # 40 a day, and also organizes
week-long kayaking trips around the archipelago,
including accommodation and guide. For further
info see W www.locationsardinia.com; T +39 (0)
328 6156 352. Ferries go to Olbia from Piombino
(4.5hr), Civitavecchia (5hr), Livorno (6hr or
overnight) or Genoa (9.5hr): W www.mobylines.
com. For public transport and events on Maddalena
see W www.lamaddalena.com.

Spargi Island, Maddalena
Archipelago