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| Sunday Lunch with many friends |
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| Is the anchor in? |
After much socialising and waiting for the right weather, wind direction as well as temperature, we finally managed to slip our lines from Leros. A little lump in the throat and tear in the eye, we'd been on the island for six years and had got to feel at home there. Not too much time to dwell about it as sails were raised and equipment altered and checked.
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| Flat Calm Cyclades! |
We were enjoying our first sail of the season with a beat to windward in a gentle force 3 breeze, lovely but it was chilly with jumpers and coats needed. Needless to say the next day we were reefed down (less sail) and crashing into a big lumpy sea, this was the Cyclades after all!
The Cyclades is notorious for being windy with big seas hence we had waited for
the window to cross in the best weather we could. One trip we were
sailing, cracking along at 6-7 kts on a beat when the wind turned off
for twenty minutes and then filled from totally a different direction
and much stronger. A 90' course alteration and change of destination led
to a much longer day at sea but a more comfortable ride. Thankfully a
very safe anchorage was at the end of that 45nm trip.
Next day flat calm! We took the opportunity to visit Delos or rather look at it from the sea, we've done so many ancient sites we didn't feel the need to go ashore. We continued to cross the Cyclades in relative calm, some sailing and some motoring covering 220nm in 7 days.
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| Poros |
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| Ancient Epidhavros |
We arrived in Poros with a greeting from Frank and Jenny on Marinerme, needless to say a few drinks were had and some cruising together for a few days or rather sitting out some strong winds together in the idyllic fishing village of Vathi on the Methana pennisula.
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| Transiting the Corinth Canal |
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We picked up our first guest of the season, Anne Marie, in Poros where again we sat out some very strong winds and heavy rain before moving on to anchor and to call in at Palaia Epidhavros. We opted not to visit the large theatre about 30km away but made do with the smaller ancient Epidhavros a short walk away. Unfortunately we didn't find the sunken city, we were looking in the wrong place!!
A couple of anchorages and then we were heading for the Corinth Canal. An early start saw us transiting the canal at 8am in the company of a tall ship and its pilot boat. We've done the canal before but still an awesome experience and we remembered to take the bimini down this time for a better view.
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| Corinth Canal |
We were now in the Gulf of Corinth on our way to the Ionian and there was no wind so Anne Marie was motoring on her sailing holiday stopping in Andikiron and Galaxidhi before dropping her in Itea for her trip back to Athens on the bus and for us to stock up at the supermarket before carrying on west.
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| Looking down on Galaxidhi |
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| Galaxidhi just before the rain! |
