GOING NORTH AND DAMAGE

Having connected up the new solar panels with thanks to Johann from the amazing catamaran NUMBER ONE, and stocked up with fresh provisions and petrol we felt no need to linger in Preveza, which for now seems to be our home port.

We set off with a west wind rising to force 4, later 5, for the 20 miles NW towards Two Rocks Bay where we should find shelter. We enjoyed this lovely spot last year.

Unusually the sea already had one metre waves in the normally calm morning, from the west wind continuing to blow all night, whereas normally it would be flat in the morning from the land breeze.

5 miles north of Preveza we had a metal failure, the vertical bolt connected the port side tiller to the steering arm connecting the tillers. In seconds I took the arm in my free hand as two waves which had passed under the windward hull crashed with force against the leeward hull, and at the same time lifted the dinghy in the davits. In consequence the major weld holding the two parts of the davit together broke, leaving the front of the dinghy in the water with the broken davit arm sitting on it.  I slowed the boat by letting out the sails and step by step took control of the situation. The davit arm with dinghy had ripped open a piece of the fibreglass main beam. 

The only place to sort out repairs was Preveza, so with motor and much reduced sail we limped back, anchored and inspected the damage. We had lost the thwart (seat) of the dinghy and I had seen an orange shape in the water, one of the wooden deflectors from under the bridge deck which stop much of the water being sent through the cockpit drains into the cockpit.

In the evening Teo the fibreglass repair man came to see the damage saying it is a big job, the boat will need to be out of the water and that it is no problem to continue sailing for the time being. I prepared a first notification to the insurance company of our pending claim.

Next morning we set off again. 

The swell was minimal and in lighter winds, sometimes with motor we sailed to Two Rocks Bay. There was some swell coming into the Bay despite the main flow of sea and wind passing outside.

Next day it was uncomfortable but we did not want to go against the weather, so lived with the perpetual motion which became less by evening.

Waking the second morning the swell was rolling in again so we soon departed with a south wind to the next Bay to the north for a swim stop. It was calm, but we did not find a suitable place to anchor in the shallow bay because of many rocks 3 or 4 metres down. We continued to our goal of the summer, to enter the Archeron River, in Greek mythology one of the rivers leading to Hades, the Underworld, through which the dead must pass.

The river is narrow and flowing to the sea, and has a 2 knot speed limit, so we edged forward past the fishing boat quay and village past yachts tied to an old distorted boardwalk, and some tied just to trees through the reeds, looking for a place to tie up. Without someone ashore to take and secure a line it was really not possible so we crept upstream enjoying the nature. Ahead was a slightly wider place with slipway and notice that only with permit can motor boats continue further. With a challenging maneuver we turned without touching the branches on either side and drifted back to the sea with just enough speed to steer by.

It was indeed  a beautiful and peaceful place and we wondered if we should have tied up to a yacht already moored. Clear of the river mouth we turned into the shallow bay and anchored just outside the swim zone for a swim in the water feeling much cooler than south of Levkas. For a few hours we had a gentle south wind so decided to use it to sail west to Paxos, until four miles away the wind headed us as predicted by the forecast. .

Monganissi offers us a shallow anchorage which no-one else will use, except open day boats, and sheltered from each wind direction and we enjoyed three nights sleeping on flat water.

I am always interested in the other boats around me, especially the multihulls. One catamaran with Dutch flag anchored close to us and I was feeling this must be a design of Erik Lerouge, a French designer who used to sail over the attend our MOCRA rallies in Cornwall in the ‘80s. The curved forward beam is his style. I took the paddleboard and coming close spoke with the French owner, who confirmed my identification. He told me it is a K12.9 model. As we spoke another Lerouge design came to anchor nearby, Igloo, apparently built in Lithuania.

One evening we walked the two miles of so to Port Gaios where many large yachts seek quay space to the in the midst of the local restaurants and small shops. We were lucky to find live music at Bar Atheni, and sat for into the late hours enjoying the Greek singer, guitar player and double bass player. She sang in many languages. We tried their wi-fi but like many other places it did not work properly. Port Gaios is an attractive place but we prefer the quiet anchorage at Mogonissi we had also enjoyed last year. One evening we enjoyed a pizza and wine at the waterside, very close to our boat at Carnayo taverna. Owner Dimitri is very welcoming and the music they play is always good to listen to.

Most afternoons there are strong NW winds especially blowing through the gaps between the islands. We picked a day with some west wind to cross to Corfu and enjoyed a good sail after a slow start until we reached the lee of Corfu Island. 

Pahi 42 MOTHER OCEAN -

With lighter winds we continued up this shallow coast turning west as the sun came low and anchoring at Petriti. 

This fishing village has low key tourism and shallow waters to anchor. We know where there is a tap to fill our portable water containers.

Despite being protected from NW winds, and enjoying a peaceful night there last year we rolled with swell from the side curving into the shallow bay. Seeking more comfort for the second night we anchored further out but the wind was not dying for the evening and it was really uncomfortable. 

At 11 pm we weighed anchor and re-anchored right inside the protection of the port close to the dinghy jetty, in just one metre of water. No-one else would anchor there and our world immediately became calm.

We moved out next morning, enjoying the bay and paddleboard, and again moved inside just before dark as all the other yachts rolled and pitched further out.

The small Center Market supplied bread, some fruit and some tasty tomatoes. We don’t find many tasty tomatoes or cucumbers in Greece, mostly the ones grown with chemicals.

It was time to move north again, and with a few days in hand, before the family join us, we chose a remote inlet right by the border of Albania and mainland Greece, which satisfied our desire for flat calm water, green trees and the bonus of herons, egrets and the wonderful kingfisher.

One farmer has cattle there. There is one holiday home, which the occupants left after the weekend, and we were free to enjoy the naturist lifestyle most of the time. As evening comes we put on long sleeves and trousers to minimise mosquito bites of course.

We enjoyed three nights in this forgotten paradise, without internet before sailing slowly across the six miles to the little island of Vido just off Corfu town.

Finally we sailed to the large Garitsas Bay south of the Fort ready for the family arrival to the airport 10 minutes’ walk away, and a chance to stock up at Lidl.