The last post.....Putting our baby to bed for the winter.

We ended staying an extra day at the Grecotel. The weather had greatly improved and Sal and the kids only needed to catch their taxi from the marina at 4:00pm on the 24th September. And so it was. They were on their way home and I had until the 14th October to prepare the boat for next season and secure it all for a Greek winter, which apparently are more severe than I would have imagined. It snows here!

Sunrise on the 25th and the day she was to come out of the water and onto the hard. It was only due to come out on the 1st October, but at over 100 Euro a day in the water, "lets get her out!."

Haul out time was arranged for 12:00pm.

By 12:30 I'm thinking they must have been talking 'Greek time'. Not something I wanted to experience right off the bat given we would be leaving the boat in their hands for 8 months. I hopped on my hired scooter and bowled over to the office.

"Where were you Mr Wilkinson, the boys came to the boat, nobody there, the crane is waiting, where were you?". I must have been taking a shower and they'd arrived early! Things were looking up. Assisted getaway and into the slot for the crane to lift her out. There was a cross wind but no biggie.

This crane is capable of lifting 200 tonnes. The Summer Amy weighs 60 tonnes but the width requires the use of this Big Mofo.

And slowly away into this vast, desolate boat park only about a 25 - 35% full. Many of the boats obviously having been here for years and fast deteriorating, all giving the place the feeling of having been abandoned like so many businesses in Greece.

Ah well, I was only going to be here for another 20 days!

An immediate confidence booster was the arrival of the bum cleaning team only moments after the crane was removed.

While they got busy, I dropped into the office to explain I'd be here for a while and there were jobs I wanted done before I left and what to do while I was away.

This was seemingly a strange request... "Just leave me a list in the morning and we will get it all done during the winter"


Not acceptable and anyway, what was I going to do for 20 days. Change my flight date?

Early the next morning I popped over with my list. Nobody around? He didn't actually mean the 'next' morning, it was Saturday!

I started on those jobs I could do without the use of tradesmen and the more I looked, the more there was to do but all the kind of stuff I love doing. Back into the office first thing Monday morning, only to be told to leave the list and he'd be at my boat "first thing tomorrow morning."

So, we are already 5 days in...

Today, at 9:30, just about the time I was building up a head of steam, a delegation of six arrived. Sail maker, electrician, stainless steel dude, engineer, glass fiber rep and the Boss.

Not bad boys.... as the steam subsided.

We went through the lot and I am now hoping they all come through before I go. I did decide to use the last three days in Greece to explore Athens. Something I have never done. I booked myself into yet another Grecotel, a boutique version this time right in amongst where Athens 'happens' apparently.

And so, here I sit. All the Cats together...enough to do to keep me busy until I go and strangely I am enjoying this total solitude on the boat rather than in a hotel. I have everything here and a scooter to get me to the can...

Before I go, here are some statistics for the 2015 season...

Mileage sailed  - 1,415 Nautical Miles or 2,620 Kilometers
Places visited    - 46
Highlight           - Too many to choose. Most impactfull was anchoring in ANZAC Cove
Fuel used           - 1,610 liters
Total Engine hours - 364 (includes Port and Starboard plus Generator)
Fuel Usage        - 4.42 Liters per engine hour - not bad!
Guests               - 11
Page views on this Blog - 11,994 at this moment. Should pip 12,000 by the morning... Sincere thanks to you all, it's been fun.
I won't bother with the wine, restaurant and ice cream count, wouldn't know where to start.

A very different season than last but just as enjoyable. The Cyclades, The Corinth Canal, Albania, Montenegro, Croatia and winter in Venice next year... That's the plan anyway...

Bye for now!

Marmari to Lavrion. The final beautiful sail, spinnaker, blue skies a great way to end the season

At 11:30 on September the 20th in nil wind, we cast off, weighed anchor and made a smooth getaway for what promised to be a sedate trip to Lavrion on the Greek mainland about 20 minutes drive from Athens.

After getting through a narrow passage between two islands the sails went up all the way to the top in a light south easterly and the beginnings of what was to come the following day. At 2:00pm we put the Spinnaker up for only the third time this season. A truly wonderful sight against a blue sky.





















A perfect way on a perfect day. We fully expected to see dolphins just to top it all off.

I guess that was asking too much.




Feeling very relaxed, we reached Lavrion at 4:00pm, Filled the fuel tanks to avoid any condensation build up during the winter and got directed to go alongside the inner part of the outer harbour wall, miles from anywhere and we were not happy...

While they were frigging around trying to get these ancient power boxes to work, Sal laid it on thick. She sat hunched on the poop seat right at the front and just glared at them until they finally relented and moved us to a much nicer spot on an inner pontoon which somehow materialised. Onya Sal!

This is not a Marina like Kos where you are close to town and there is at least life at the marina. This is a huge, sprawling, desolate place, miles from town and with three days before her and the kids flew home was a great incentive for Sal to get Googling.

She found this very nice (read expensive) hotel down the Sounion Peninsular with views across the bay to the Temple or Poseidon

Just to underline the need to get somewhere a little more pleasant and the reason we arrived a day earlier than planned.... This is what a big Southerly looks like!

Its a case of... 'We'd rather be in here wishing we were out there, than out there wishing we were in here.'

Miserable! Imagine sailing in this? Trying to refuel, dock and deal with the administration about 300 meters away!

Arriving a day early was one of our better decisions and it shows just how accurate 'Predict Wind' our weather app is.

So, Sal booked two nights at the Grecotel ,we hired a car, packed the best clothes we have... secured the boat and headed south down the peninsular

Nice choice Sal. A really beautiful property, our accommodation a longish but pleasant walk, from these buildings. The weather was no better here, but there was an indoor heated pool with all manner of water massages. Reasonable wifi in the main building so the kids could 'device' while Mum and Dad kicked back..(read, test some interesting Greek cocktails) The Athenian being my favourite.

The food was brilliant, even an Asian restaurant which our systems have craved for months.

We did need to stop and think though that we were looking at a really famous monument over 2000 years old.

Poseidon's Temple built in honour of the God of the Sea served as the last sight of 'civilisation' on the way out and the first sight of 'home' to seafarers back then, but it is the place in Greek Mythology where the Aegean Sea got its name..

By chance we got the other end of this story when we were in Crete last year... A sad tale indeed.

King Aegeus had arranged that his son Theseus drop his black sail and hoist a white one on his return from Crete to show he had survived the terrors of the Labyrinth. 

Theseus did survive but forgot to hoist the white sail, his mind having been otherwise occupied by a young maiden aboard. When King Aegeus saw the fleet returning and noted the black sail, grief stricken he hurled himself off the cliff just below the temple into the sea....

And so the Aegean Sea was named after the sad King Aegeus.

Karavos to Marmari - One hell of a sail and the toughest docking ever.... Meltimi madness!

We left Karavos at 12:20, only a 28 mile run, the wind on the port beam looking like 10-15 knots. By 12:30 the sails were up all the way to the top but still motoring in the light breeze. At 1:10 the engines were shut down in a growing wind but at 2:30 we turned into the wind and dropped the main to the first reef. At 9-10 knots it was still feeling like we had too much sail up so into the wind again and dropped it to the second reef. Basically half the normal mainsail area and we only let the headsail out to about half way...

We were still doing better than 9 knots but were comfortable with the balance. It was now blowing 30 - 35 knots, gusting over 40! Probably the biggest we've sailed in, but a short fetch to the shore, so it was smooth enough and most enjoyable.

The journey went way quicker than expected, but she was still howling when we reached Marmari and as the Book says, it is well protected from the Meltimi but to expect some 'vicious' gusts coming down off the peaks.. Well 'vicious' understated the situation we faced.

There were a few mooring options, but we decided to take the one with the most room, much against Will's wishes. He wanted to be closer to the action. A long wall running away from the ferry terminal, but the tie up options were limited and deceiving. It took ages to position and ready the boat in the cross wind. It was going to need Will to hop from the dinghy to the shore when we got close enough in order to take the lines, thread them through very low, old, rusty hoops halfway down the wall and clogged with old rope.

We got there. Will hopped no shoes. First mistake. The concrete was too rough for even his tough little feet. No time to winge son, just get that line through that hoop, I'm losing her... Poor little guy. Then along came a helper, he got the line through, double wrapped it to stop the boat from sliding along the wharf and left. It would have taken a hour to get it all sorted but we finally did. High fives, cold class of Rose' and then the dreaded....... "Captain!"


Port police on the wharf. "When did you arrive?" "How long are you staying because there is a problem, you can't stay here".

A huge ferry was about to arrive and with this wind, the Captain was apparently worried he'd hit us!

"Bit late for that darling!" he was already there, reversing. No time to move, just watch and hope!

He did an amazing job to the general relief of all spectators, not least of all, us.


One of the spectators happened to be 'Serial George' who spoke good English, had some experience in tying up yachts, which was liberally dispensed as he suggested what we should do whilst in Marmari. Where we should go, where we should shop and where we should eat. He finally left us to get on with our lives.

That evening we wondered into town. Nice place. The wind had settled, kids were sorted in one of the two playgrounds and Sal and I found a neat waterfront cafe for an attitude adjuster.

Who should join us? You guest it... Old mate George. Night fell and another ferry arrived! "You'll be fine" says George. "I'll take a look anyway thanks bud". "Take my bicycle" he suggested. I did.

Another great piece of captaincy by the ferry driver, just a lot of wash but we were pretty well secured so no biggie.

Serial George

"Ok George, where should we eat?"

We had to say, he came through. Down a back street to the best steak we've experienced in Greece. We would never have found the place even if directed.

Packed with locals, George acting like a regular, the waiter apologising that he only served meat. No apology needed mate, fillet steak medium rare please, and it was perfect.

George pulled up a pew, drank half of Sally's Red but didn't eat. He did tell us his life story though. Two children, one Colombian, one French etc, etc, etc.

We had two more days to get to Lavrion where we intended to winter the boat but our Wind App told of a massive southerly on the day we planned to sail there.

Not wanting our journey to end but safety being the first consideratio, we reluctantly decided to make the next day's sail our last for this season....

We woke to this serine, surreal scene realising how it could all have gone so horribly pear shaped at the final bell, but instead turned out to be a delightful last stop.

....and if you think they ever update the menu in Greece, here is some rock hard evidence to prove otherwise!

Khalkis to Karavos... Looks can be very deceiving

The 'Book' warned of the dreadful vision that greets you on arrival at Karavos. It does go on to say that it's a very nice, friendly place however...

The zinc smelter south of the harbour looks like a troubled space station on some far off planet in one of those old sci-fi movies. This photo above doesn't really cut it, trust me, it is the ultimate eyesore.

Then a couple of hundred meters from town is the abandoned coal power station... By now we were contemplating plan B.

As we neared the mole (Rock wall... not you ya mole!) it began to look acceptable, specially because we didn't really have a Plan B

We Med Moored. It was after 2:00pm and so siesta time. The place was utterly deserted, but once again a dozen tavernas along the quay, all with way too many tables sprawled across the promenade, all ready laid for dinner... Really quite eerie.

Wishful thinking on the taverna owner's part we thought as we made our way to a beach on the opposite side of town from the monstrosities.

We entered a building which, from the boat on approach, had looked abandoned and in need of a paint job.

We were headed for a beach further along, but to our amazement, the inside of this building was a very nicely furnished, well stocked beach bar/cafe' opening to a clean pebble beach, the water equaling the best we had seen anywhere.


Beach beds, thatched umbrellas and enough of the locals to give it all some life.

Now that the kids have done their introductory dive course, masks and snorkels are mandatory and in no time at all they were squealing inaudibly through the snorkels at the abundant sea life only meters off the beach.



Really not sure what they are doing here but at least you can see the water clarity. It's the only photo I have ok??

As we headed back to the boat at sunset, a smattering of human life began to emerge. By the time we'd got ourselves presentable to dine, it was difficult to find a table...

No idea where these people come from, the town just isn't big enough to accommodate them all and hey, aren't these guys supposed to be broke?

Khalkis. A very famous, very narrow swing bridge, a 9 knot current and a late night traverse....

Alongside on the northern side of the bridge.
That is it between the palm tree and the boat.

This is the only place in the Mediterranean where there is a tide. It is less than half a meter but enough to create a current through the 35 meter gap between Evia Island and the Mainland so strong that at its zenith Kayakers run it as if shooting rapids.

A swing bridge spans the 35 meters and the whole deal of traversing this gap gets very interesting.

It only happens at night so as not to disrupt heavy traffic and it can happen any time between 9:30pm and 3:00am depending on slack tide.


A moment so difficult to predict that Archimedes himself was said to have thrown himself into the current out of sheer frustration at not being able to work it out.

Port Police... At the end on the right!
You can just see Sally standing outside

If, like us you are heading south, you are to tie up alongside a red pained wharf set aside for the purpose. If there are too many yachts, you'd simply need to raft up next to each other.

Just getting alongside was a strange experience. The boat just would not do what I was telling it to until I realised it was the unseen current that was moving in the opposite direction to the wind.

Once tied on you are to visit the Port Police and pay for the bridge crossing. They are not easy to find, in a totally unmarked building up a back street...The crossing cost us 56 Euro.

You are to maintain a radio watch from 9:30pm onward. You will be called by boat name and told when to move.

Kayakers shooting the currents

Khalkis is a bustling town but a surprisingly enjoyable place to be. Other than the bridge it is hard to understand why it is even there at all? We stayed one night to explore before checking in with the Police. There was plenty for the kids to get up to.. Carnies along the wharf.

Morning tide!

By 9:30pm the following evening we were ready for the call. Only the lines to release and we'd be away. We took the chance to feed the kids at a local hamburger joint thinking it would be quick. I took the hand held radio along with us but started getting a little edgy as it ticked past 10:30pm. We finally got out of there and literally as we set foot on the boat the call came.

We were first away, out into almost flat water and headed for the gap. The bridge which had now opened, all we could hear on the radio was the port police trying to tell a large boat on the south side to wait his turn and get out of the way!

We could see it sitting right in the middle of the seaway south of the bridge making no attempt to move.

Now committed we kept going but instead of moving this guy just decided to head north through this very narrow gap!

We crossed right in the middle with very little to spare as the Port Police's tirade became more and more hysterical...We made it, moored alongside on the very well lit south side with no dramas. All in all and entertaining experience.

The morning revealed a wild current coming south with fishermen riding the eddies and fishing the fast water like they would have done for centuries.

We waited for the current to subside somewhat before heading out into it. Not easy as it tried to force us back against the quay.

Using the motors and one line still attached we got away from the wall, released and rode the current toward the new bridge that handles the larger traffic heading to and from parts other than Khalkis.

Two stops to go and our journey for 2015 ends.

Orie and southward between Evia and the mainland

Only 19 miles southward through the mouth of the Gulf of Volos and across to the northern end of Evia to the very comfortable little harbour of Orie.

Comfortable because it is easy to get into, loads of room on a new quay to go alongside, a few long term sailors to swap stories with and a laid back hamlet adjacent to the harbour. We cast off and weighed anchor at twenty past one in the afternoon, the wind behind us and a cruisy motor sail all the way.

There is nothing particularly remarkable about Orie, we went there to check out a place where a few sailors we met winter their boats and raved about it. It would only cost us around 2000 Euro whereas, Olympic will cost us 4,700 Euro for 8 months on land, so worth a look. About a kilometer west of the harbour I could see some masts protruding through the trees on land so I got the bike out and peddled over.




No photographs for you, but.....

Heath Robinson on Afghani Black would cover it. A huge trailer that gets re-welded to fit each new arrival is reversed 50 - 60 meters out, no ramp, just gently sloping pebble beach.... Float the boat onto the trailer and it gets winched up to a waiting tractor which then positions the boat in a visually nightmarish field/boat yard guarded by a Rottweiler, a
Bull-Terrier and a vicious looking Bitsa chained at the extremities of the yard.

Thanks guys... couldn't care less if it was FREE!

Orie was so pleasant however, we stayed a couple of nights. There was a decent beach, tavernas and chandlery.

I finally managed to get to the bottom of the smell coming from the guest toilet. A faulty non-return valve was the culprit and has now been replaced. Apologies to any guests who experienced the unpleasantry and didn't say anything, I seldom go that side of the boat....

Only a few days left before we had to get to Lavrion and the Olympic Marina so three, maybe four more stops...

The first would be another anchorage recommended to somebody by somebody else. Kolpos Atalantis, tucked behind a little island on the mainland side, protected from a growing South Easterly looked idyllic.

A 35 Mile run so a good 5 hours, most of it under sail, we cast off at 12:45 on Tuesday the 15th. A few things happened this day, two of which were; Summer lost a tooth and Sally finally finished the Istanbul Food Tour blog!

It wasn't quite what we expected. Not overly protected so we anchored in close assuming the wind would persist and hold us off. Well, you know what they say about assumption!

Well after setting a camp up for the kids on the starboard trampoline, a swim, home cooked dinner and moonless darkness I went out on deck only to find the wind had done a 180 degree change and we were, once again headed for the shore!

Nothing for it but to up anchor in pitch black, rely entirely on the navigation instruments and steam slowly over to the protection of an adjacent island occupied by a large fish farm, the extent of which was impossible to either see nor judge.

We anchored well off in fairly deep water, waited and watched using a powerful torch to ascertain whether or not the anchor had bitten and eventually crashed for the night.

The morning showed we had pulled it off with plenty of room for a wind change and a good distance from the fish farm. The kids had slept well and were still out till well after 9:00am by which time we were surrounded by these amazing jelly fish. Ugly from a distance but really beautiful up close with tiny fish darting amongst the tentacles... They looked as if they were playing 'chicken'...

Mainland Greece and Evia Island

Evia island is the second largest Greek island, Crete being the largest. It runs North South roughly paralleling the Greek Mainland down to Athens with a really tight little gap between the island and mainland at Khalkis which I will be telling you all about soon enough.

This map covers the remainder of our journey this season but I won't be covering it all in this post.

Above the northern end of Evia is the Gulf of Volos. All very interesting geography and a nice way to slowly end the season.

We left Skiathos at 11:10 on the 10th September and motor sailed in dreary overcast, windy, cold weather. By the time we reached the planned anchorage, our collective mood seemed to match the conditions.

Vathoudhi was the anchorage we had chosen, it sits in the south eastern corner of the Gulf and looked super protected from the Meltimi.
We felt it was time for an anchorage, a Sally special home cooked meal and a swim.

The reality was quite different. Vathoudhi is a place where SunSail used to have a charter base but now the bay is a place where people leave their boats when they go home to somewhere they live in Europe and it has the feel of a desolate graveyard.

We anchored none-the-less but almost immediately the wind changed direction putting us on collision course with another anchored yacht. An omen. We simply up anchored and headed for another secluded bay a little further south.

Much better... We woke to one of those mornings you could bottle, but in no time another wind shift pushed us into shallow water, so it was time to go.

Volos is a huge city right at the top of the Gulf, read like it was Naples so not for us. We decided that one more stop in the Gulf would do us so we headed for Amaliapolis on the western side. We had no idea what to expect though because detail in this part of Greece is not readily available for some reason?

Well, another little Gem. We met some Athenians who holiday here sitting on the wharf as we docked and they gave us the full rundown. Where to eat, "mention our name", where to shop, where to swim.


We ended up staying two nights.

Something we still struggle with in Greece is the siesta time... We usually arrive in a new place after 2:00pm and of course the place always looks and feels like a ghost town. Everybody is asleep.

There always seems to be way too many Tavernas with way too much seating. Then, at around 8:00pm as if out of the woodwork, the population swells to well above what the whole town looks as if it can accommodate!

The Tavernas fill, the playgrounds overrun with hoards of squealing kids and the roads gridlock with cars and scooters??

This town closes off the main drag at 9:00pm so it looked and felt like one big street party going down.

Skiathos, the party island...

Any place labelled 'the party island' and the vision of loud discotheques playing 70's garbage that every lager lout can sing along to... very loudly, in unison and out of tune...
Despite this we had heard some good things too so decided to give it a whirl.

There is a number to call as this is a charter boat harbour, not to be attempted on weekends when the charterers are changing over and the harbour is full. We called the number and a very friendly chap suggested I call on approach which I did. We waited while circling.... and waited. I called again. "I'm here but I can't see you" he said. "we are the only catamaran right in the middle of the harbour" I replied. Turned out he was on Limnos over 100 miles away! No idea why his number was where it was?
We found a spot and med-moored in it. Power, water and nice neighbours.

There are two harbours here, the old and the new. The old being for fishing and tour boats, a nicely paved promenade with interesting bar's cafe's and restaurants a little different to what we are used to and heading up market. The tourists are predominantly British but older so over the lager lout stage perhaps because we are not out of the high season.

The new harbour wall is for our type and larger motor cruisers and then there is a long jetty for the charter yachts. Whilst the promenade is nice, the adjacent hostelries are not as nice as along the old harbour.

But then, running behind it all is a lovely pedestrian marble tiled road where all the up market shopping and 'not so Greek' restaurants are. Sal's nose found the spot where we enjoyed one of those top ten in Greece meals.... Twice!

















The Meltimi came in which meant we'd be here for a couple of days so with no real plan in mind we hired a car and just headed out. This was way different to anywhere we have been in Greece or Turkey.

The climate, like the Black Sea, is Baltic not Mediterranean. Good rainfall, lush flora with four distinct seasons. Most of the roads were dirt and with the recent rains, just the way I like them. It felt like we were out bush, nobody around and nothing like we expected.

We did find a beach protected from the wind, good spot for adults.. and great spot for kids. Banana Beach with beach chairs, umbrellas, attentive waitress and plenty for the kids to get spoiled with. Peddle boats, kayaks and a flying couch behind a fast speed boat. They had a ball.

We came away from Skiathos with a much better impression than when we arrived. If you're looking for a fairly up scale holiday where English is understood and it is not too hot... Skiathos.




At 11:10 on Thursday the 10th we headed for the Greek Mainland for the first time since Preveza back in April last year. Here are some shots of how our acrobatic children entertain themselves in rough-ish seas en-route.

                                   




















Its this wave action that USED to make us and them very nervous.....