LEVKADA (LEVKAS), CANAL, INLAND SEA AND PRACTICALITIES OF LIFE AFLOAT – Days 93 to 96

LEVKADA (LEVKAS), CANAL,  INLAND SEA  AND PRACTICALITIES OF LIFE AFLOAT – 30 JULY 2 August, Days 93 to 96

Living on a small boat in a hot summer climate is wonderful but also drains energy. People ashore keep out of the hottest sun but everywhere is alive in the cool of the evening until late.

However we needed to buy supplies so took the dinghy on Monday to a place closest to Masoutis Supermarket in Preveza and stocked up for the days ahead. I also bought more petrol to carry from the nearby Shell petrol station although they had run out of expensive Unleaded 95 (1.59 euro per litre) so I had to take the more expensive  “power” version at 1.67. Petrol prices in Italy and Greece are really high.

After siesta and deep sleep we came ashore in the evening to the lovely Preveza town, took our showers at the “Yacht laundry” and went to a hardware store for a few items before eating again in the delightful Satan’s Bazar street listening to the wonderful music of Xaris Alexiou. They offer a good fixed price meal including drink at 10 euros.

We left the anchorage on Tuesday morning at about 08.40, motored out of the buoyed channel and into the open sea. There was a light NE wind and turning south at the penultimate marker buoy we could sail and put off the motor as the fridge was down to temperature. Just ahead was Bill on “Kyle” sailing his large yacht alone. I had helped him taking his mooring line as he came to the town Quay some days earlier.

Slowly we overhauled the larger yacht on the calm sea. The road bridge at Levkada Town opens on the hour to let boats enter and leave the canal which passes through the wetlands joining Levkas to the mainland. I wanted to pass through at 11.00 so put on the motor to increase our speed under sail which was falling. Of course the batteries needed it too.

We arrived minutes before the bridge opened and waited patiently with about 6 boats until we could pass through. More were coming north.

We discussed the possibility of going to the town Quay for two days to charge batteries again but we just came from a town and really wanted to get back to “swimming” places. I had a task to perform to deliver a spare belt to the Levkas marina office which I had brought all the way from Marina di Ragusa for Paul, so we anchored with other small boats between the marina and town Quay and I took it to the office, meeting in the marina Andrew and Jane, our Ragusa neighbours from “Stonehenge” who had stopped in the marina.

Job done we ate fruit and Greek yogurt then motored south along the canal with awning over the boom for some shade. It was a good experience passing though like we were on the motorway. 

Here is the gateway to the Inland Sea, with mountains and other land on all sides. We spent a long time getting here. It feels like being in Switzerland or Norway.

The light wind was against us and since Anita was feeling low energy and was sleeping in the shade we did not attempt to sail once past the canal. We headed along the coast the Nidri, now a bustling holiday resort with strong sailing connections, and once off the town we saw space in the quieter Tranquil Bay and anchored in the only shallow spot we could find of about 4.5m. The bay is home to some wrecked yachts and commercial vessels. 

Many yachts are anchored with line also to the shore and seem to have been there a long time.

We watch the comings and goings of inter-island car ferries, tourist boats and many yachts. The narrow channel has it’s share of open powerboats and jet skis passing much too fast for safety, even close to anchored boats where there could be swimmers in the water. Their wake also disturbs the anchored boats. It never ceases to amaze me  how they fail to show courtesy as they race past and leave boats rocking in their wake. Actually I doubt they ever look back and realise it.

At one point I looked towards one small wrecked yacht and saw a family of three sitting on a paddleboard removing the anchor and chain from the wreck. They even had a hacksaw to help their task.

In the evening we rowed over to Nidri and walked along the waterfront of many restaurants, then the parallel main street. It was lovely to be there but just once. It seems like a low rise Benidorm but has some romantic waterfront places to sip cocktails by candlelight.

On Wednesday we motored further south into the enclosed bay and anchored well away from the shore off Vliho. We came to realise that most anchored boats are just left here as a safe place, some being watched by boat service people ashore.

The bay is spectacular with mountains, trees and green water. Really we could be on a Swiss lake. The isolation is ideal. No one bothers us. We walked ashore in the evening to see what services are on the main road.

On Thursday we stayed put, I swam twice to scrub off the fast growing garden from the hulls and we are trying to keep a balance of fridge working, with keeping batteries up, helped by running the motor a few times a day. Life is simple and delicious. We came ashore in the evening to take a drink at Vliho Yacht Club, take showers (2 euros), and to charge appliances up again.

Temperatures are now above 30 degrees each day as it is August. To survive this we need to keep good ventilation through the boat, keep out the sun from the cockpit, and sleep siesta each afternoon. Swimming cools the body. We eat water melon and mostly cold food.