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Trip Report #3-2003: Back to GreeceFiled from Nidri, Levkas, Greece38 42 N 20 43.9 EJune 13, 2003
Photo: The Temple Tholos, Delphi, Greece, ca.4th century A.D. After we checked out of Turkey, we sailed to Keci Buku, one of our favorite places, and anchored in the bay there. We had cocktails on board Laudance, a Niagara 35 (one of the boats on our short list before buying our Valiant) from Canada, with Britta & Mike, our hosts, and Syd and Rebecca, fellow Ocean Cruising Club members who sail Doveka, a Hallberg-Rassey 38 from Virginia. The next day we left at 6 am on a cloudy day with the wind from the Southeast. We sailed wing-on-wing along the Datca peninsula with the wind at 15-18 knots most of the way. At one point a freighter from Beirut passed very close to us headed in the opposite direction. It was loaded with what we thought were stalls filled with cattle and bales of straw. As they passed us, we got a good whiff of the cargo - definitely cattle. After we rounded the point of the Datca peninsula, the wind switched into the north at 15 knots. As we approached the island of Kos in Greece, we took the Turkish courtesy flag down - a sad event, knowing we would not be going back - and raised the Greek white and blue courtesy flag. As we sailed along the southeast coast of Kos, the wind increased and there were tremendous gusts coming off the tall cliffs lining the coast there. We found ourselves sailing with reefed main and staysail in 35 knots with higher gusts and in 2 meter waves. Not very pleasant, but as soon as we rounded the end of the island at Ak Fouka, the wind and waves diminished considerably, though still about 20 knots and still on the nose. We came into the marina at Kos and were directed to a berth next to Bunny & Bill, on a U.S. boat, a Norseman 43 named Onset. Bunny and Bill are a great couple - wish we could have spent more time with them there. They're planning on staying in the Cyclades this summer.
Photo: Tom, Bunny & Bill at Pineapples in Marmaris on the occasion of Bunny's 60th birthday (photo by Peg) Checking into Greece was no problem at Kos. It just cost us money. We paid $30 to the Customs office and then $80 to the Harbor Patrol, and we were issued a Transit Log, good for 6 months. We left Kos intending to sail to Levitha, in a northwesterly direction, but as the day wore on, we found ourselves having to beat into the northwest wind and decided that the north tip of Leros might be better. We actually anchored that night in a beautiful bay on the island of Archangelos, just north of Leros. The water was so clear, we could see our anchor at the bottom in 28 feet of water. The next day, we headed for Mykonos, but once again, the wind that built in the afternoon was coming directly from there, so we decided to go to Naousis on the northeast side of Paros instead. Another pretty harbor with lots of room and good holding.
Photo: Lighthouse at harbor entrance, Naousis, Paros Tom had been reporting our intended route on the Mediterranean Cruiser's SSB Net every morning. People were beginning to think our navigation skills were terrible, because we always ended up someplace else. But the next day, we made it to Kea, our intended destination, and anchored in Ayio Nicolaou (St. Nicholas) bay.
Photo: Ayio Nicolaou bay on Kea The night was surprisingly cool, great for sleeping, and when we awoke, the boat was covered with dew. This is something that we boaters who anchor most of the time really welcome. As we motored away from Kea in calm seas and no wind, we used that copious dew to wipe the boat down and clean off dirt and salt.
Photo: A welcome coating of salt-free dew on Starboard Home Our next stop was Athens, to see the Acropolis. There were several marinas near Athens, including the Zea Marina, which would fill the bill for us; but friend, Ian, on Mardler, recommended staying on the island of Aigina in the middle of the Saronic Gulf and taking a ferry to Athens (actually Piraeus), which we did. Aigina is a very pretty port town with a lot of room on the town quay. There is also a large new marina in front of the town harbor, but it is full of private yachts with no room for transients. We put out our stern anchor, a Danforth 20H, and tied bow to the quay, firmly moored before the afternoon wind whipped up; and then we watched the techniques of other boaters as they carried out their Mediterranean mooring procedures.
Photo: Part of the harbor at Aigina
Photo: Waterboat in Aigina in the evening and again following morning We've decided that American boaters have quite a bit of trouble with this type of mooring, because we're just not familiar with it. A couple on a charter boat came in and took about three hours to moor. They had lots of help and advice (perhaps too much) from other boaters and had to set and reset their anchor 3 times, once because it was pulled up by another boat as it was leaving. Through it all, they were such good sports. We learned that they were from Los Angeles and Newport, R.I., and on their honeymoon. This was their first night on the boat.
Photo: Pierre & Chris, from LA, honeymooning in Aigina, Greece The ferry ride from Aigina to Piraeus took about 40 minutes and we were able to walk about 5 minutes from the ferry dock to the metro. On the way to the metro, we saw this sign, the only one like this to date (at least, that we've been able to read).
Photo: Hopefully, a minority sentiment The metro took us within a very pretty walk, uphill, to the Acropolis. We just happened to arrive there on International Clean Environment Day and admission was free on that day only. There is so much work going on at the site, to reconstruct some areas and to make it safe for the crowds that are expected during the Olympics in 2004. The scaffolding and cranes and other machinery distract somewhat from the grandeur of the site, but it is still magnificent.
Photo: Scenes at the site of the Acropolis, Athens
Photo: The Agora in Athens, as seen from the Acropolis The afternoon wind whipped up, as usual, and Tom began to get nervous about how the boat was faring in Aigina Harbor, so we took the high speed hydrofoil back. It cost about $4.50 each, compared with $2.60 each for the morning's ride on the regular ferry, and took about 25 minutes. We could see from the ferry landing that Starboard Home was fine. The next morning, and every morning, the fuel truck very conveniently came to the harbor in Aigina, and we topped off. We took on 225.7 liters at a cost of .73 Euros per liter, about $3.45 per gallon. The newlyweds left without advice from others and without a hitch (maybe that means something). And we followed soon after, on our way to the Corinth Canal. Our plan was to anchor in one of the nearby bays, but it was still early as we approached the canal and we decided to take a peek at the entry. The arrival dock, where one pays the fee for going through, was almost empty. So, we tied up and checked in with the bridge authority. We filled out the forms and paid 138.23 Euros, about $163 USD. He said we were to go immediately.
Photo: Tied to the pier at the east end of the Corinth Canal The Corinth Canal is only 3.2 miles long, so it is a very expensive transit fee, but we were only going to do it once. The canal is 81 feet wide, 23 feet deep, and the limestone cliffs from which it is cut are 250 feet high on both sides. The canal was started by a French company and finished by Greece in 1893. It is crossed by a railroad bridge and a road bridge. The gate is lowered into the water, the 2 red lights at the entrance are turned off and 2 white lights appear, signaling that it is okay to proceed through. The canal gatekeeper told us to keep the boat moving at full speed, as there was a freighter to come through after us.
Photo: Gatekeeper at the Corinth Canal
Photo: In the Corinth Canal, Greece By the time we exited from the canal, it was 4 p.m. and the wind outside was about 25-30 knots, with higher gusts. We sailed another 10 miles and found a small cove just before Cape Melangavi and anchored there. The wind stopped as it grew dark and we had a pleasant night's sleep. Our next stop was in Galaxidhi, the prettiest little town and harbor. Again, we moored bow to the quay. There is a harbormaster here, who came to the boat, stamped our transit log and charged us 10 Euros. We stayed here for 3 days and used it as our base for travel to Delphi.
Photo: The harbor at Galaxidhi, Greece
Photos: Scenes from Galaxidhi From Galaxidhi, we took a very inexpensive bus ride, with a transfer in Itea, to Delphi. The town of Delphi is high up in the mountains with spectacular views all around. There are many pensions and hotels and we must admit that if we had an overnight bag with us, we would have stayed the night and spent more time. We could then have spent time hiking around the site at the Temple of Apollo and the Temple of Athena in the morning and in the evening, rather than in the middle of the day. As it was, the day we were there was one of the hottest days we've had to date, and we were definitely wilted that evening. But we enjoyed Delphi even more than we did the Acropolis.
Photo: Peg & Tom at Delphi
Photo: Site of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi We are now on our way toward the Ionian islands and Corfu and traveling pretty rapidly - for us. Yassos everyone 73's, 88's, love & hugs- Peg & Tom Maynard aboard s/v Starboard Home
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