ocean-pilgrim

After leaving Santorini we spent our time managing the question ‘Do we stay in the wind or head for the heat?’ The windy Cyclades lived up to their name this year with the usual summer winds coming and going. They just seem to come more often than before. Not necessarily stronger but just with a little less of those perfectly calm days in between than there used to be. A quick hop up to Paros via Sikinos, and the Paros channel and we dropped anchor near the main town of Parikia at Krios Beach.

After 9 days of wind and another meltemi incoming in a few days we made the decision to head towards the mainland and to the less windy places around the Argolic and Saronic gulf. So we caught the good winds to have some sporty and fun sails heading first to Despotico, Sifnos and Serifos before jumping across to the Argolic.

As we arrived back to a small anchorage behind a tiny island on the mainland opposite Hydra two things happened.  First was I saw an ad for the exact outboard motor that Rick had been looking into buying for years that was being sold by some Aussies who were going electric and wanted to sell their 18 month old outboard. They were coming up past Hydra and we’d just anchored opposite and we met up, did the deal and had our new outboard installed on our dinghy before you could say deal done!  An hour later after a beer and a handshake and some euros they headed off on their way.  Couldn’t have been better.  And is he happy with it? Definitely.  The dinghy now goes like we always thought it should.  Fast!

The other thing which wasn’t so good was that Rick’s eye seemed to have gotten a scratch or perhaps an infection on his left cornea (perhaps all the dust in Paros that blew without cease onto the boat from a building site on the beach) and it had gotten progressively more painful and red.  When he woke up with blurred vision we decided it was time to find an ophthalmologist. Unfortunately we had sailed down to Porto Chelli which was further from good care so we turned around after one night and headed back towards Poros retracing our steps. Somehow it still felt worth it as our anchorage was just so beautiful and as the sun set the music from a classical concert at a waterfront home next to this church drifted out across the water filling the quiet with arias. It was like a dreamscape both breathtaking and otherworldly.

To find an opthalmologist we thought our only option would be to go to Athens but a super helpful lady on Poros at the optical store told us there was one locally so Rick spent ages sorting an appointment as we raced up the channel between Spetses and Hydra and the mainland as we high tailed it back in time for him to have his appointment before the doctor closed for lunch. He diagnosed him with Corneal Oedema and gave him 2 sorts of drops and instructions to return in a few days. So we settled in for a few pretty stressful days on Poros town quay but 3 days later the oedema had significantly reduced and with new drops and a few fairly loose and unclear set of instructions that left Cath doing a lot of research we were on our way again albeit carefully with no foiling (didn’t really matter as there was no wind) and not using goggles to swim with (which put paid to the daily swim).

We left Poros to head to our favourite Epidavros in the Saronic and had a cracking sail across until our jib sheet (the line that holds the jib in place to power the boat) snapped with a very loud crack! There was no chafe or damage and no evidence that the rope had deteriorated. It was easily dealt with but a reminder that the sun and UV and salt wear out everything in time. New ones next season! In fact, the Swedish high quality stitching on our dodger also came adrift this year as well as pretty much all the bimini stitching. The bimini needed to go to the sailmakers twice for repairs this year. Luckily we’d kept the old one and used this while we waited for the repairs as no shade at this time of year is only for the Italian sailors who seems to think baking and basting in all that UV and heat is just fine.

Oh, yes and the other thing that happened was our SUP popped! Sitting out on the deck for a few months a year isn’t great for the seams and glue and with a noise like a gunshot that was the end of our second SUP. So lots of running repairs and a SUP in the skip which was a bit sad.

When we arrived in Epidavros, we managed to secure our favourite anchorage there right outside the swim buoys, tied back to shore next to a lovely little beach.  The water was lovely, the fish jumping and it was all pretty relaxing. We took a visit to the ancient centre of healing and the site of the large amphitheatre that is still in use today about 20 minutes away on the bus. It was pretty otherworldly there.  The site itself holding a palpable atmosphere of peace and tranquillity.

When Rick’s eye had settled a little we felt like it was time to get back through the Corinth Canal and closer to where we haul out so we made the jump up to the entry on the Eastern side and anchored overnight.  We paid our fees of €275 and waited until morning.  As soon as the first boat announced to the canal on the radio that they’d like to go though we jumped in along with them and by 6am before the sun rose, we went through in perfect calm.  It was a fantastic trip with amazing colours from the yellow lighting and the rising sun. We popped out the other side just as the sun rose.

A slow motor and light sail up to Galaxidi took until 2 in the afternoon where we anchored off the point rather than going on the town quay.  It was super-hot and way better to be on anchor to catch the breeze and to be able to swim off the boat.

We spent a few days there trying to troubleshoot a blocked pipe in one of our toilets.  Boat toilets are never fun and pretty much always a source of either relief (when you’re using them and everything is working well) or suffering when something is wrong with them.  Let’s leave the details right there except to say that the awesome chandler in Galaxidi, Kostas came to the rescue by helping us to arrange a pump truck and getting us onto the town quay and being the go-between between the driver (who spoke no English) and us.  Problem solved.  Ten minutes to resolve an issue that had been ongoing for over a month. Phew.  Big breath out as it seems pump trucks are as scarce as hen’s teeth in Greece and we weren’t sure what would happen if we had to haul out without it being fixed.  Nothing good, that’s for sure.

We spent an overnight or 2 in Trizonia where we rinsed the salt off everything, cleaned and polished, vacuumed and tidied, got our jib down and packed away, winterized the new precious outboard motor, packed away clothes and food into well sealed containers and sorted washing and clothes to take with us. Phew.

We also found a great place to stay right next to the boatyard (after visiting some other yachtie friends staying there last season) and booked in for about 5 nights to make the process of packing up as easy as possible. and bearable doing all this work in stifling heat.  Once you are on the hardstand its up and down the ladder every time you need the loo, the washing machine or to do pretty much anything and cooking is almost impossible with no running water and dwindling supplies and no fridge so being on land in the little holiday house we call the Lighthouse meant not clambering over half packed bags and tools everywhere and being able to get a cold beer at the end of the day (important for one of us).

And even more importantly it meant an air conditioner to escape to during the worst of the days unrelenting heat.  It also has a great rooftop terrace where we spent our early mornings and the evenings after the sun set and we washed and scrubbed the sides of our sunshade that had tree sap all over them and about 10 kilos of accumulated dust and dirt. Rick put up a clothes line and washing went on heavy rotation. The beach was less than a stones throw away so we could dunk ourselves when we overheated too.

The last and hottest and hardest job is to get that damn cover on. The heat made it unbearable and we both melted especially when lacing up around the life lines. I’m always relieved when the lacing at the stern is done up signalling the very end of the hard work. The new hanging water bottle ‘tie downs’ worked really well last year and saved our topsides from damage from the ropes doing it up. So we went ahead with the same system this year.

It felt like a super busy season this year.  We covered a lot of miles. By the end of it I wondered when we would get to be those leisurely champagne sailors you all probably think we are! Whilst it was totally our choice it felt like a pretty full on one with little time for just hanging out on anchor and relaxing. Perhaps we will plan for a bit more of that next year…….