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Sailing Squib - We'll take care of the rest on the way - From the Danube Delta to Mangalia /22
19 March 2026 · 29 min · 2K views · Sfântu Gheorghe (Danube Delta)
Sunset over Black Sea from sailboat during golden hour
What this video covers
Squib departs the Danube Delta at Sfântu Gheorghe and enters the Black Sea for the first time, making a roughly 50-mile overnight passage to Mangalia, Romania's southernmost port. The exit channel runs through breaking surf over sandbars, with depths fluctuating between 2.5 and 12 meters in irregular underwater swells; the crew holds a 140-degree course southeast until reaching 10–20 meters depth.5:41 Wind stays light at 3–6 knots with three conflicting swell systems, allowing only about 90 minutes of sailing before motoring the rest of the leg.10:59 The crew arrives just after 0500, navigates in by following lit buoys after getting no response on VHF Channel 16, and pays €18 for two nights at Mangalia marina.16:03 In port, they troubleshoot a port-engine oil-pressure warning light that glimmered during the night watch — the raw-water intake filter is fouled, likely with freshwater vegetation from the Danube; cleaning the filter and flushing the intake resolves the flow restriction.23:05 They also re-rig the Windpilot wind vane's control line routing through the stern ladder to redirect load downward onto the tiller linkage.19:38 The crew plans to depart Thursday morning for a 160-mile run south-southeast toward Bosburg in forecast 20–25 knots of northwest wind, timing departure to let southerly swell subside.14:41 A fouled raw-water intake filter can trigger an oil-pressure sensor warning even when oil level reads normal.
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