With only three weeks left until we fly
back to Australia, we were determined to slow down before the final week or so
of packing up the boat. Since we plan to
head east to the Aegean next season, we wanted to feel like we had ‘done’ the
Ionian thoroughly (is that even possible?).
We stayed in Katelios for a couple of days and then motor-sailed north
to Ithaca where we rediscovered what is probably now our favourite anchorage –
Pera Pighadi. Why is it a favourite? Surrounded
by fairly high hills and cliffs, the water is crystal clear and there is an
abundance of fish life as well as sea stars, sea urchins, sponges, etc. There are a couple of beaches (pebble,
admittedly, but at least a place to go ashore if one wants to) and it’s rarely
crowded. The disadvantages are that
there can be a swell from the east as the fast ferries from Patras to Italy go
past in the night, and the depths are such that you have to anchor in 8m or
more of water. There is also a scarcity
of clear patches in which to get a good ‘grab’ with your anchor so first in is
definitely best anchored! This time
around, we were the first ones in so we were able to secure a great spot. The
winds were slight and the ferries did not bother us so it was with great regret
that we left the next day and moved on.
We stopped briefly at Vathi, the main town on the island, to drop off
rubbish and pick up a few grocery items (including some wonderful baklava from
the local bakery – I have become quite addicted and don’t know what I will do
when I get back to Australia! Perhaps
learn to make it myself??). Our
anchorage that night was in Ay Nikolaos in the north end of Ithaca and we were
subjected to some fairly strong gusts until sunset but again, only a couple of other
boats were there with us.
The crystal-clear water of Pera Pighades on the island of Ithaca
Beautiful sea life on the ocean floor
One thing we have noticed as the ‘season’
draws to a close and the weather cools, there seem to be a lot more
Scandinavian boats around. As September
nears its end, many of the British yachts and their occupants are headed to
Levkas and Preveza to haul their boats or close them up for winter. The last low-cost/charter flights (EasyJet,
RyanAir, etc.) stop flying from the regional airports such as Preveza and Corfu
at the beginning of October, and so for the POHMS the season is over. Apparently, though, this is when the
Scandinavians either return or come over to begin their season – they don’t
like the crowds and heat of July/August and prefer to sail from September to
November and from March to May.
Being a solar worshipper and a
‘heat-seeking missile’ (Tad’s words), I can safely say that I don’t think I
will be cruising past mid October unless I am a long way south. Even last year in Tunisia, we found that
although the water was still warm and the days comfortable in the mid-twenties
Celcius, the nights were definitely cooler. Here, that much further north, we
have started to get cooler winds, and some heavy-duty rainstorms.
More spectacular sunsets with the coming of autumn
This week alone, we had two separate
occasions where we had high winds and thunderstorms with heavy rainfalls. Recently, we had two straight days of
rain. It sounds crazy to be complaining
about two days of rain, but when you haven’t seen an overcast sky for several
months, it feels strange!
So with barely a week to go before we fly
back to Australia, we have settled ourselves back in “Bungalow Bay” about 2
hours’ motoring from Bisou’s winter home, and will begin to dismantle the boat.
At this stage our plan is still to head to
Turkey next year, but who knows what will happen in the meantime? There is so much unrest and so many problems
in both Turkey and Greece at this point in time that things can change. We will be starting our season later next
year as we have family commitments until mid-May, but we hope to continue until
mid-October next year so we’ll still get our 5-6 months of sailing in.
No comments:
Post a Comment