The amazing kindness of strangers continues. I paddled around from the Old Town to Uvala Lapad beach where Darko and Ivana were waiting for me in the rain. Surfski paddlers from Dubrovnik who I’d never met, they’d arranged for me to stay in a hotel, an incredibly generous gesture. The hotel receptionist offered me a choice of rooms, and I told her I’d go for the attic apartment so I could hear the rain – it’s what I’m used to in a tent. Any room was a luxury really, but it was delightful to listen to the rain lash against the windows while staying warm and dry.

Fresh fruit and veg is too big and heavy for me to carry much of it, so it was great to have a proper kitchen and I made a big salad of chickpeas, leeks, sweetcorn, tomatoes and cottage cheese. Unfortunately this sent my blood sugars high and although I injected loads of insulin, they just wouldn’t come down until the morning when they crashed, and I began a rollercoaster.

It was bright and sunny in the morning and I had a coffee with Darko and Ivana and got some useful info about which islands to visit – there’s a lot of choice!

A headwind was blowing as I hopped between the Elaphiti Islands, an archipelago of 13 islands with nothing but Mediterranean forest and the odd fishing village and church. I had a clear view of the mainland to my right, and felt that was enough – I needn’t paddle every kilometre of coastline.

I headed out to the island of Mljet, a 7km crossing, but a strong crosswind was blowing and I felt intimidated by the 3 metre swell that was crashing against the cliffs and obscuring the horizon on every rise and fall. I at least wanted to consider this crossing a bit more so after a few kilometres I turned back and looked for a campspot as the air grew cold. A pebble beach with just enough room for my tent on my own private island was ideal. I found a bottle of Rakia and poured it on a pile of driftwood, then I put a match to the alcohol to get a nice fire going. A much better use for this filthy drink, although the locals may disagree!