After a while you forget where you are, what day it is and what time it is!! or it’s just the early onset of dementia!! I asked Claire where we went after leaving Nidri only six days ago, both of us could not remember good job I keep a log. Leaving Nidri behind we sailed down the west coast of Meganissi to Papanicolis Cave it was so massive we could almost sail into it but it was defended by pirates!! after a battle that lasted 2 days which ended with Claire scabard in mouth swinging on the rigging across to there boat and slaughtering the whole crew we sank their boat and headed off with the spoils to the mystical island of Ithaca the birthplace of Odysseus who just like us went on a boat journey round Greece wrote about by Homer (the Greek philosopher not Barts dad)

On route we stopped and anchored off the island of Arkoudhi for a snorkel and standard dinner of Greek salad and Mythos

We carried on to Ithaca and hugged the north east coast looking for somewhere to stay for the night we dropped anchor just off Marmakas beach about 1 mile north of Frikes it was a semi circular beach with a small island in the centre with a church on it, we rowed out to it in the dinghy which we have named Alice after Claire’s mum. In fact we have named a few things on the boat the anchor is called Big Bella because she won’t move no offence to anyone called Bella but I just imagine Bella being a big fat woman that won’t move. Our auto helm we gave the name Tim a good friend of mine who I never got chance to sail with but he was good at doing what instructed.

Another great anchorage and free 😁 Most mornings I’m up before 6am so I leave Claire on the boat and go exploring the coast with Alice the dinghy I love to be up before sunrise and sit and watch, it means I’ve survived another day😁

After an early morning swim we had breakfast and set off to Kefalonia we didn’t know where in Kefalonia to head it depended on wind, we had a good wind but choppy sea but still managed 6knts with headsail only

We rounded the northern tip of Ithaca and decided to head for Agia Effimia which is half way down the east coast of Kefaloni we moored on the town quay and was charged €15 for the night☹

we mooched around the harbour drinking and eating having a lovely chilled day and night then decided to set off early the following morning to Zante. Claire even refused a top up of wine

Awake at 5.30am got the boat ready for passage to Zante set off and no wind I’d checked the forecast before departing 10kn from north west!! the sea was like a mirror and I the air still I didn’t fancy 40mile on the engine so I changed my mind and headed east to the island of Kastos via the island of Atoko

We arrived at Kastos and started looking for somewhere to drop the anchor we needed shelter from the wind which we should have had earlier we found a nice sheltered bay so we dropped anchor and took 2 lines to shore to secure us

for the night. The next morning I was woken by the sound of bells it was a herd of goat on the beach drinking sea water

we decided to stay another night in the bay and do nothing so we just lied in the sun reading and when it got to hot we jumped in the water sometimes it’s great to do nothing

The next island to visit was Kalamos only a 6 mile sail so we set off with great wind sails up as soon as we left the bay 15 minutes later no wind at all so we motored round to Port Kalamos on the east of the island, its got mountains on it so after getting moored up we decided to go explore. The next day we were up before dawn to set off uphill, the first attempt ended after half an hour following near vertical goat tracks we hit a sheer rockface Claire was not amused so I said you guide us up then, so she did the sensible thing and found a track to follow which got us up there in the end

Claire was guided to the summit by hundreds of butterflies, at the top there was a small church with fantastic views

Kalamos was such a beautiful island we decided to spend a few days there it was free to stay on the quay so we were secure and could leave the boat and explore. We found a great beach…

When you are sailing with no fixed plan you can basicly go where the wind takes you so with a north westerly wind forecast for the next few days we decided to sail down the west coast of Corfu which is quite exposed to the weather and swell with not many places to anchor. We headed for a place we could not pronounce and still couldn’t after staying 3 days Palaiokastrita and like a lot of places in Greece it’s spelt different in every book. It was a small resort surrounded by mountains

When we got there there was room for a small one on the town quay so we reversed in between 46ft German and a 56ft Frenchman when entering most harbours you don’t know if you will get charged so when no one came to collect money we decided to stay for a few days

We were just having a mooring Mythos and got chatting to a couple from Wigan who couldn’t believe that people from Burnley had yachts in Greece so we invited them on board to prove it!! ended up spending the next few days exploring Palaiokastrita with them.

They invited us out to a Greek night at a local taverna

The following day we went snorkelling at a beautiful bay La GrottaThe next day we had arranged to do a trek up a local mountain to an ancient church Angelo Castro but when we woke up our batteries were almost flat and we had no fridge so I said to Claire you go while I sort out the boat problem it makes it easier on your own working on the boat. So Claire set off up the mountain with our new friends and I got stuck into boat maintenance. I don’t think she realised how far it was 8hr round trip but she said it was worth it

I managed to sort the boat problem out it was a bad connection in the solar panels we have a fridge again.Time to move on there aren’t any other safe anchorage on the west coast of Corfu so it was 33mile sail South to Paxos we anchored up on Orkos beach just south of Lanka and had the most amazing sunrise we’ve ever seenAfter a morning swim in crystal clear waterit was time to weigh anchor we decided to go to Ligier on the mainland but because of wind direction we could not make it so I just set my sails and just headed where the wind took us which looked like Parga but a last minute wind shift took us to a sheltered cove just south of Parga where there was a shanty bar on an amazing sandy beach so we took the tender across for an anchor mythosIn the evening we decided that we need to stock the boat up with water, fuel, food and get some washing done the wind was looking good for sailing south it was 40 mile to Nydri but we knew we can get all we need there so it was up at 6am to do a boat check a brew and breakfast and weigh anchor at 7am for a 9hr sail. We had a fantastic sail in 10 to 15 knot winds from the east

7 hours later we were entering the Lefkas canal in 25kt gusts just the thing you don’t need!! To get into the canal you have to get through a swing bridge that opens on the hour you have to time it perfect to get through without stopping because when you stop a sailboat you have no control over where it goes, just before you get to the bridge there is a small basin with room for 5 or 6 boats to manoeuver while waiting for the bridge to open in strong winds you have to keep moving so there are boats going round in circles forward and backwards looks like a barn dance for boats a siren goes then all the boats form a line and go through in a line the bridge only opens for ten minutes and if you are at the back when the siren goes you can’t go through so have to wait another 50 minutesthrough the canal its just 7 mile to Nidri once anchored up we set off in the tender to get provisions we had to transport 30ltr of deisel 2 trips and 140ltrs of water 7 trips plus take the washing to the launder the and do the shopping.It was great to meet up with all our friends here and catch up after all the work was done it was party night at the Tree bar

We will spend a few days here before we start planning part 2 of our Greek Odysseus the Southern Ionian islands

Continue reading “Heading North” →

We have been living on the boat for a month an insight into how we cope with living in such a tiny space 24/7

The boat Lesanda

The boat is 9 mtr long by 3.2 mtr wide and we have 1.8mtr headroom there are 2 double bedrooms

We sleep in the rear cabin which is massive haha and use the spare bedroom for clothes
and a galley (kitchen)

Saloon sitting area with drop leaf table

and most important out here a fridge for the beer that is massive and is below the chart table.

Power wise we have 4 batteries on board 3 x 110amp for powering fridge,pumps,lights,instruments and anchor chain winch and one 90 amp just for starting the engine a Yanmar gm20 twin cylinder 16hp diesel engine these are all charged by 2 x 100watt solar panels and an engine alternator. We have to be careful about energy use the fridge is the only thing left on 24 hrs We charge our phones and tablets during the day when we have free power from the sun.

We get our hot water from a black bag

which gets laid out on deck every morning and is heated with the sun we can also get hot water if we run the engine through a heat exchanger. We have to be very frugal with water as we only carry about 170ltr on board. We have a deck shower with cold water to clean ourselves also a bowl and a kettle for washing ourselves for the weekend!! clothes washing is done in a bucket 1 wash 1 rinse then hung out and is dry in a couple of hours

For cooking we have a double gas hob with oven and grill which is gimmbled (thanks Harry) so we can cook when the boat is leaning over when sailing. We eat on the boat most days and eat out once a week We have a chart table and navigation area for planning passages

We have plenty of storage space under seats and in lockers for food and clothes of which you learn to use less of both

My entire wardrobe

One thing we have learnt is that you seem to be constantly working on the boat, maintenance takes up much of our time, replacing control lines, repairing sails, windows, pumps electics and pipework oh and the heads !!! The toilet on a boat is not like the one you have at home where you push a button and everything just disappears. It looks like a small version of one at home but the process of flushing is much more complicated especially when sailing, imagine walking into you bathroom and everything is leaning over 30° You first of all have to get the position right then you have to lower your pants with one hand while holding your position with the other because the room is constantly moving now you can drop the bomb while remembering that liquids stay level how ever much the boat heals over. Bomb on target it’s by no means over yet!! you can’t put paper down a marine toilet it has to go in a bin with a lid, on a moving boat at 30° with one hand, all cleaned up now the ordeal is still not over you now have to get rid of the bomb which is sat there looking at you and not wanting to move! you now have to pump the bomb away with a small handle on the side of the toilet each pump sucks a little bit of the bomb away a standard bomb will take 5 or 6 pumps an atom bomb you could be there all day. As you pump the bomb travels through a 50mm pipe and into a tank with the bomb out of sight you now have to flush the toilet with the same handle but first you have to turn a lever then pump 5 or 6 pumps which draws sea water through a pipe and into the toilet then you have to turn the lever back and pump to clear the sea water from the bowl all done No! washing hands can’t be done with one hand so you have to prop yourself up with your forehead while washing hands!!! It’s much easier to not eat!!

One of my least favourite jobs was to replace all the pipe work and clean out the tank of this porcelain devil

Haha sailing the Med “sounds fantastic” try it

How much does it cost?

Apart from staying on the pontoon when we had visitors we have been careful where we moor so we havnt had to pay anything yet and in a month we have only run the engine for 10 hours costing about £15 in diesel all the rest is free energy from the sun and we just travel in the direction of the wind, food shopping is similar to UK so by cooking ourselves we don’t spend much, one of our biggest expenses is alcohol which anyone who knows Claire will understand!! we don’t need it but comes in handy in the hot climate. Ice cold Mythos hard to refuse

Claire is writing the next installment because I need to give my finger a rest after this blog.😁😁

Time to weigh anchor again this time we will head north out of Nidri backtrack the route we took down from the boatyard past Preveza and into the Ambracian Gulf an inland sea not really on the tourist trail but looked interesting on the chart. On route we had a following wind of up to 25knts

which turned interesting when trying to furl the head sail it got jammed we tried turning into wind but it got the wind behind it and began to flap violently, at the same time so did Claire by the time I got the sail rolled in the damage had been done, the leech of the sail had burst it’s seam and was gaping open!!! We pulled into the port of Vonitsa with strong winds off the quay with only one small gap and we made it in to the safety of the harbour

Vonitsa turned out to be a real Gem of a place the small harbour overlooked by an impressive 17 century Venetian castle the front has a few tavernas and is very Greek unspoiled by tourism. Once tied up it was a beer and then an explore, a walk along the beach took us to a bridge which went out to a small island covered in pine trees with a church which we walk all way round

The next morning was spent wondering around town looking for a needle to stitch the sail together in the end I borrowed one from a French man in the next boat. First task was to remove the sail then set about sewing, the only way I could do it was to hold the needle with pliers shove it in then pull it out the other side with the pliers i was sewing through 2 layers of canvas plus the dacron sail!! 7 hours later the job was complete as I got myself a beer to applause and shouts of tres bon from our neighbours

Thanks Mum for teaching me to sew when I was a kid I can now make my own sails 😁😁

Work done it was time to do some exploring which always means heading uphill this time it was steps up to the Venetian fortress that stands high above the town it was in excellent condition for over 400year old

In the evening we were invited to a local taverna by a man with a brightly coloured peg leg named Geoff who who lived on his boat and sang songs from the sixties we drank Tsipouro a local brandy and entertained the locals with our dancing to Delilah

After a week on the pontoon it was time to say good bye to Mum and Dad get back out on anchor and take the car back to the Godfather and do some serious walking. We decided to hike up the mountains we could see from the boat but we had no map so I decided to follow the river upstream as far as it went. We followed the sign for Nidri waterfalls the walk starts from the town centre and then meanders west through orange and lemon groves then through olive groves you then enter a big canyon with waterfalls and rock pools and near vertical rock sides hundreds of feet tall

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Re tracing our route we searched for a way to climb the gorge to get above the waterfall on the way back I noticed A small path leading near vertical with an old rope dangling down I said “this must be it” Claire said “no way am I going up there” so I grabbed the rope and said come on not knowing what it was attached to we had to pull ourselves near vertical up a sandy track for about 200mtrs then arrived at a track we could walk on. We carried on up this track not knowing where it was going only that it was heading steeply uphill after about a hour we came upon a clearing with spectacular views

and a small dusty lane which we followed still steeply uphill. As we walked past a wall a head popped up with a mass of curly grey hair and said “would you like drink and a biscuit” this is half way up a mountain in the middle of nowhere, we were hungry tired and thirsty so could not refuse.

This was Helga the mountain woman from Germany she had towed a caravan up this steep dirt track parked it up and then built a house round it!! totally self sufficient she invited us in and we sat round a concrete patio table and seats chatting about ours and hers experiences later she showed us round her house and a guest house she built, an amazing woman.

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A great day up the had lunch at a table with a view of the mountain we had just walked up

and we still had the party at the Tree Bar to look forward to staring the local band the Ugly Potatoes

I dont know what it is with me but somehow I do things and it almost ends in disaster. First it was the sail across the Atlantic and this time it was a drive up into the mountains. Having arrived back in Nidri to get ready for the royal visit I went to hire a car not from Hertz, Avis or Budget but from Vasalis an old Greek guy who talked like Marlon Brando in the Godfather “I give you good car my friend very cheap” he didnt even ask for my licence but cheap it was he was happy and I was happy he handed me the keys to an old Fiat Punto with 175000 miles on the clock. So off we went ,I said to Claire we “will just go a little drive out” so as I could get used to driving on the right before we pick up my mum and dad from the airport. I got a little carried away and we ended up 3200ft up a mountain road at a monestry beautiful scenery lovely day!!! On the way back down the mountain suddenly without any warning clunck the suspenssion colapsed and I had no steering the car just skidded to a halt one wheel facing starboard the other to port!!!!

We survived that but we were stuck up a mountain miles from anywhere and we didnt know where we were so i rang the Royal Navy and they sent HMS Queen Elizabeth who diverted 2500 mile pulled onto the pontoon in Nidri and deployed a chinook helecopter to airlift us off the mountain………..

To tell the truth we just rang Vasilis and told him to find us and get us a better car which he did after first having to find an interpreter 2 hours later we had a new car and free petrol for the week and we were still alive!! In evening we were told about a Nortern Soul gathering with friends from all over Europe with a common interest meeting up every year at a different Greek island for the week and dancing the night away to northern soul music

The following morning we weighed anchor and motored over to the IBA pontoon which would be our home for the week, its directly across the road from the Athos hotel where my mum and dad are staying, in the evening we picked mum and dad up a the airport and got them back to the hotel at 11.30pm and then they insisted on a large Mythos before bed.

Thursday morning we went for a gentle stroll down the quay to the beach stopping of a taverna for a liquid lunch and the free tapas of crisps, nuts and cinnamon coated apples then back to Lesanda for the full tour of our new home, they were very impressed and wanted the double berth in the bow. In the evening we went to the Presta cafe and we introduced them to our new friends mainly livaboards where we drank wine chatted and feasted on the most amazing free tapas in Greece thanks to Bas.

Sunday was sailing day and we left the jetty at 11am and sailed south to Poros bay then sailed north to Meganisi where we got some shelter from the strong northerly breeze in a beautiful sheltered bay and had dinner the water was crystal clear but still a little chilly for a swim. We sailed back with dad on the helm in 18kn winds on the beam topping 6kn. The evening was spent on the boat with a pasta and wine

The day after we drove all the way round the island clockwise stopping at Vasiliki , Cape Lefkas and Agios Nikkitas beach for the most expensive pint on the island lucky it was dads round

A fantastic week great weather, great crew and great sailing we all explored the sea and the land laughed, drunk and made merry and met some great friends!!

We arrived in Vathi on the island of Meganissi opened a can and congratulated each other on a successful mooring. One of the most stressfull things about sailing is mooring and anchoring which to do successfully you have to work as a team and if we get it wrong its the teams fault and not one person, so there is no arguing and no one to blame I will explain the process

A typical way to moor a boat in Greece is known as “stern to mooring” which consists of preparing the boat before entering a harbour by tying on 3 fenders to each side of the boat to protect your boat or in case you crash into the multi million pound yacht which you are squeezing in next to then you get 2 x 10mtr mooring ropes cleated to the stern of your boat and coiled ready to throw to anyone kind enough to help when you get to shore, the next step is the recci you motor into the harbour very slowly eyes peeled looking for room for your boat once you have found a place you then head directly away from it, you then put the boat in reverse and judge where to drop your anchor which has to be 30 to 40mtr away from the quay but exactly dead in line with where you will end up or you could lay it over the top of another boats anchor which causes big problems when leaving the harbour. Now you are ready to start the manoeuvre!! Claire will be stood on the front of the boat controling the anchor as we reverse she lets out the chain until I say stop then when we get a couple of metres from the quay she has to run back along the boat and throw the mooring lines to a helper or if no one to help she has to jump off the back of the boat with the lines pass them through a hoop or round a bollard and back to me to tie on the boat. If this is not stressfull enough you have to perform this mammoth task in front of hundreds of people sat in the surrounding tavernas cameras and phones waiting for something to end in disaster. Once moored up safely there is nothing better than to share a cold can!!!!

Our next stop is Meganisi the north of the island has dozens of small bays to anchor in with white pebble beaches it lies about 6 mile east of Lefkas and is a paradise for boats.

We arrived in Port vathi on Meganisi on Wednesday moored up and decided to stay for a few days exploring the many bays and beaches on foot, after securing the boat and having a beer we set off to walk the coast heading east to Abelekia Bay a fantastic coastal walk with different veiws and beaches every 100mtrs

After the walk we stopped for a beer in Vathi at Patrinos and paid €9 for 2 beers spoilt my day!!! Can’t really complain as it is free to moor on the town quay and the wind to get us here is free.We arrived back at the boat about 6pm and had Spannish omelete for tea with Greek red wine then I did some maintenence work on boat while Claire did some baking.

Sunday I was woken by the church bells at 7.30am I rushed over to the church climbed the bell tower and tried to deaden the sound so Claire could have a lie in!!!😊 Lovely sunny day we decided to walk west and to Port Spillia and Spartochori and climb to the highest point of the island another walk with even more amazing views not only Meganisi but the surrounding islands too. We stopped for dinner on the way down and admired one of the best veiws in the Ionian ,we walked back via the old village of Katomera where we got lost in the maze of streets and alleyways but got rescued with an old woman dressed in black who guided us back to Vathi we arrived back just before dusk and opted for a can of Mythos on board.😊

I’ve just taken this picture now while writing this in the habour just to prove its not all sunshine we are in the middle of a heavy thunderstorm !!! Tomorrow we head back to Nidri to prepare for our first guests my Mum and Dad are flying out on Wednesday to stay in Nidri for a week

Well after 6 days living and working on the boat in the yard its time to untie the lines and break free on the deep blue sea. We’ve cleaned and polished her and got all the jobs done that cant be done when she is afloat, serviced seacocks, serviced the engine fit new anchor and remote winch control and now she is ready. Last night we treated ourselves to a meal out at Panos the local taverna after a great meal and a litre of wine we got chatting to Bob who used to live in Burnley he invited us back to his boat Torvic for a nightcap and he gave us plenty of tips on where to anchor out didnt get back to our boat until after midnight

Up at 6am today sun shining no wind so we got chance to put the sails on feeling very excited for the launch at 10.30am got all the lines and fenders ready unpluged the shore power and disconected the water we are now completely self sufficient with 3 x 110 house batteries and 200w of solar panels 140ltr water tank. The yard guys put her in and after checking the boat was water tight we were off

After leaving the Preveza buoyed channel we get the sails up and head south towards Lefkas swing bridge and into the canal which takes you to the South Ionian and Islands of Ithica, Kefalonia, Zante and many more!!

After a fantastic 4 hour sail we see the small islands of Sparti and Madouri protecting the entrance of tranquil bay which will be our home for the next few days We have now dropped anchor and taken 2 lines to shore and now relaxing enjoying a beer. The town of Nidri is just across the bay about 400mtr

Ive sorted a tracker so that you can follow us http://www.greenalp.com/RealtimeTracker/index.php?viewuser=yrag1958 it should work if it doesn’t let us know.