Cala di Pollara – Salina

The Pollara anchorage: nature’s spectacle and striking sunsets.

Below Punta Perciato, at the N endord Ovest of the island of Salina is a spectacular inlet with high cliffs and a black beach called Cala di Pollara.
The anchorage is located at the most picturesque point on the island, far from urbanized areas, west of the center of Malfa. From here you can witness what is considered one of the most beautiful sunsets in the world.

The once wider beach has now been reduced to just a narrow strip of pebbles, but this does not detract from the charm of this enchanting cove. Evergreen shrubs typical of the Mediterranean maquis grow along the coast, characteristic of which is the caper that grows wild almost everywhere on the island.

The bay of the Pollara anchorage lies within a prehistoric crater, which in ancient times was split in two by a collapse. The part that has remained intact is the one on which the town of Pollara stands today, while the other half has sunk into the sea.
It is advisable to anchor in the center of the small inlet, almost in front of the village and give bottom between the Point and the Faraglione, on rocky bottom in 7 metri of water. La rada offre riparo dai venti provenienti da levante, anche se non ottimale in presenza di onda. Come in tutte le rade delle Isole Eolie, il vento può essere molto variabile, per cui bisogna monitorare attentamente le previsioni meteo e tenersi pronti a cambiare riparo se il vento dovesse cambiare direzione. In case of favorable weather conditions, Pollara’s anchorage remains the ideal place for a summer anchorage immersed in the picturesque setting of the Aeolian Islands.

Pollara Bay offers a truly spectacular panoramic view of the western side of the archipelago. From the anchorages, in fact, the islands of Filicudi and Alicudi can be seen in the distance, preceded by the Faraglione rock that borders the bay. Along the coast, to the north one immediately encounters the striking rock of Punta Perciato, with its characteristic arched shape reminiscent of an elephant’s trunk. South of the anchorages of Pollara, flanking the wild coastline that drops steeply to the sea, we reach the village of Rinella.

Finally, in the middle of the bay are the charming fishermen’s shelters of the village of Pollara, accessible from land by a pedestrian path dedicated to the unforgettable Massimo Troisi. The anchorages of Pollara were in fact the setting for some of the most touching scenes in Troisi’s film Il Postino, including the chats between the letter carrier and Poet Pablo Neruda and the unforgettable recording of the sounds of the sea.