Its All Greek From Here On

We left Montenegro as scheduled for the final overnight sail south past Albania and into the Ionian Sea to Corfu.  Had a great following wind and the forecast promised it would remain with us for the 30 or so hours for the sail.  Everything was going well.  We had cleared the bays of Montenegro and found the wind a couple of miles offshore.  There was a catarmaran three or four miles ahead which we were slowly overtaking.  Then silently the shackle connecting the Genoa to the halyard let go and the sail slid down the stay and into the water.

The skipper called all hands on deck.  The sail was still attached to the base of the stay so we ended up dragging it along for a short while until we could roll it onto the deck and secure it with sail ties.  Nic and Sam did a great job battling with the huge sail.  It is not until something like this happens that you realise how big the sails are on this boat and are thankful for the electric winches.  With the sail secured, we hoisted the staysail and continued, allbeit at a reduced speed.  Later as the wind dropped Scott went to the top of the forestay to retrieve the halyard but once we had re rigged the sail and were ready to hoist, the light had gone.  Luckily the wind picked up and the loss of the sail did not impede our progress too much.

Re-installing the Genoa

We arrived off Corfu the following evening and anchored off the eastern side of the old town below the walls of the citadel.  Corfu is an attractive island - very green with picturesque bays with wooded hillsides behind them in the northern part with a long tail of lower land in the south.  Corfu Town itself is a busy port and the city sits slightly elevated.  The old town, like all these places, is full of narrow streets, restaurants and tourist shops but Corfu has a more “real” feel about it.   There are still enough tourists around to make the place interesting without crowding it too much. 

One of the main streets in Corfu

Scott and Sam went into the port to check in with the authorities here in Greece.  As may be expected, even though Greece is part of the EU, there are still a few bureaucratic hurdles to pass through to get into the country.  One thing we need is called a DEKPA which is like a transit log that needs to be stamped by the port police every three months.  Well, Corfu had run out of these forms so we have to get one at the next port.  Makes you wonder just how important this is.

The day after we arrived in Corfu we picked up Andrew and Elaine, some friends from Australia, who were visiting us for a few days.  We got them settled onboard and then had a look around Corfu Town in the evening and enjoyed a great greek meal.  After a morning in town we headed south towards Paxos.  

Lunch in a Paxos Taverna

Thursday was referendum day in Scotland and we followed the election and even flew a lion rampant banner from one of our flag hallyards to support the cause.  Alas, it did not have the desired effect and we got the result on Friday morning that Scotland was still part of the UK.  As a friend of ours says, its a missed opportunity - still there is always next time.

We could not dwell on the election result as it appears that there are more and more charter yachts appearing and that always means there are some interesting nautical manoeuvres.  Anchored off Paxos we got the first indication when a boat anchored very close at night, got the anchor stuck and then just said “help”.  Eventually we sorted them out the next day by diving on the anchor for them.

Andrew and Scott indulging in a traditional Paddle-war

We visited spots on the mainland, Paxos and Anti Paxos with Elaine and Andrew and managed an outdoor screening of the very topical Captain Corelli's Mandolin which is a fantastic story about the occupation of Lefkas Island during World War Two.  The weather has been good and the water is still warm enough to swim.  We finished the trip by heading south and transiting the Lefkas canal to a place near Nidris on Lefkas Island where we anchored in a huge shallow and protected bay surrounded by very high hills.  After a great dinner at a local taverna, Elaine and Andrew got off the next day to continue their holiday onshore under their own steam.

The overall plan for us now is to first and foremost lay of the turps for a while.  As we have had guests almost constantly for a month we feel we have been indulging a bit too much - just to be good hosts of course.  So a bit of detox, a catch up on school (again) and then we will spend a few weeks in the Ionian Sea.  After that we plan to head towards the Cyclades to meet up with Nic’s sister and brother in October and complete the trip in Athens.  We are all enjoying Greece so far.  The people we have met have been really friendly and helpful and the food has been fantastic.  The costs are generally less than in the other European countries we have visited which is welcome.

Currently we are at the small island of Meganissi getting the boat cleaned and replenished - and laying off the booze - a bit.    There are literally hundreds of charter boats in this area - mainly in the 36 to 48ft range.  They seem to sail around in between the islands during the day and then make a bee line for the marinas and town quays at night.  There are a lot of boats stacked in the harbours so the season must be drawing to a close but at its height it must be manic.

We have opted for a couple of days in a marina so as we can get the laundry done, have close shops and fresh water to wash the boat with.  The marina is kind of small but we have a fantastic view out over the bay to the private island of Skorpios which is owned by the Onassis Family.  There is a small town called Vathy nearby which looks interesting and which we will check out tomorrow.