Logbook 1
Sailing Greece
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Part 1 Lefkas - Kefalonia
This is part one of the logbook that describes Lene Poulsen's sailing holiday in Greece - Ionian.
Part one: Lefkas - Kefalonia
Part two: Kefalonia - Ithaca
Part three: Ithaca - Lefkas
Introducing ...
skipper Gudmund, and crew: Sten and Lene.
We have sailed in Danish
waters for the past ten years, but have always had a dream about
sailing in Greek waters – especially since visiting Lefkas island
four years ago on a holiday. Early this year we made contact with a reliable
chartering agency, and chartered the
Alexandros -
a 33 Bavaria cruiser built in 2006 - for two weeks at the end of the main charter season. We flew to Lefkas
(Preveza airport) Monday evening on the 27th
of August. Outside the airport a taxi driver was waiting to take us
to the boat in Lefkada marina, where we arrived close to midnight.
Tuesday – Day one
In the morning
we had a closer look at the boat – everything looked fine. At 09.00
a man from the company – Andreas - arrived and explained about the
boat in detail. Having taken care of the final papers, we finally set
off at 11.30 and sailed through the canal towards Meganisi, our first
stop. Very hot day – no wind at all, so motoring all the way. At
14.15 we went into Spartakhori harbour (port Spiglia) – we had been
there previously on a boat trip, and had been quite taken by the
relaxed atmosphere. We had an easy start – the pontoons have
moorings, and a man from the restaurant near the harbour helped us to
get the boat in nice and smug. Port Spiglia has very little to offer
– or very much; depending on what you are looking for. If you are
looking for relaxation, peace in mind and a quiet time, this is the
place to go! The owner of the restaurant in the harbour, Babis, runs
a tight ship, and is one of the most welcoming and friendly Greek
people we have met (more on that later, as we return to Port Spiglia
towards the end of our trip). The food is good and you may use the
toilets during your stay in the port. You can also take a shower (the going rate for showers in
Greece is about €3). Above the harbour you can climb 150 or so
steps to the village, Spartakhori – it's a beautiful spot, and
worth the climb. Also there is a very pleasant beach at the bottom of
the bay, so naturally we went swimming as well.
Wednesday – Day two
Still no wind,
and very hot. We sailed out of Port Spiglia next morning at around
09.30 and headed towards Kalamos island where we arrived at Kalamos
harbour 12.30. In the harbour we had our first experience anchoring.
Maybe I should explain that in Denmark you either go long side (if
there is room), or you secure the boat to four poles, the boat in the
middle of these. We had been quite anxious about anchoring (reading
about something is not equal to actually doing it), but it worked out
fine. Again a friendly Greek man came on the quay and guided us how
far away from the quay we should drop our anchor. In less than five
minutes we had the boat safely secured with the anchor and lay bow-to
at the quay. We took the dingy out and went for a swim outside the
harbour.
In Kalamos harbour we also met our first flotilla... We
have come to the conclusion that they are the inevitable downside of yacht charters – regardless
of your planning, you will run into flotillas in the Ionian Sea. Most
often they sail 10-15 boats together and they make an awful lot of
noise coming in and out of the harbours. We got quite a bit fed up
with the flotilla guides standing on the quay and talking (too loud
and too clear) into their walkie-talkies, saying for the 10th
time “when you come into the harbour, you will see me standing in a
green T-shirt on the west side of the quay...”. They usually
anchor bow- or stern-to in a bundle, and if your boat is close to
their camp, I'd suggest you keep an eye open, as many of the
sailors on the flotilla boats have never sailed before (or have very
little sailing experience). We did see quite a few incidents where
things could have gone horribly wrong, had it not been for
experienced captains of other boats nearby. Enough said about
flotillas: You cannot avoid them, it seems, so you just have to be a
bit careful if you're close to them. The one good thing about
flotillas though is that their guides always have an updated weather
forecast.
Thursday – Day Three
Hotter still,
and no wind. After untangling our anchor chain from one of the
flotilla boats (they had dropped theirs on top of ours), we left
Kalamos harbour at about 10.15. We sailed down towards the end of
Kalamos and up the east coast of Kastos Island, where we dropped our
anchor in Vathi Vali and made a snorkelling-/bathing stop. This bay
has crystal clear water – lots of fish and sea urchins. If you like
snorkelling the spot is fantastic.
At 14.00 we arrived at Kastos
harbour. Kastos Island is a very relaxed place – the owner of one
of the restaurants told us that because it had been so dry this year,
he had not been able to offer showers to the sailors for the past two
months. Nothing really happens here – you have the choice between
four restaurants – there are no shops at all, and only the sound of
an occasional donkey or fishing boat. In the late afternoon the wind
picked up a bit (westerlies), but died down again rather quickly.
Friday – Day four
Same old, same
old – hot and no wind whatsoever. We left Kastos harbour at 09.30
and sailed towards the island Atoko, just east of Kefalonia & Ithaca. Reaching the island we made
another snorkelling-/bathing
stop at One House Bay, which is a most beautiful spot.
There is a
small church near the beach, and just one house (apparently owned by
a local fisherman). We sailed further south-east, headed for Vathi in
Ithaca where we arrived at 14.00. Having spent the first three days
in very small places it was quite a change to come to Vathi – it
seemed like a big city compared to the other three places. We
anchored again, bow-to, near the offices of the Coast Guard. In Vathi
you have a number of restaurants and shops to choose from, so it's
a good place for eating out and buying provisions. There is also
plenty of room in the harbour, as the bay is quite large. You may
anchor a long way from the town and its noise, if you wish (i.e. at
the north-east corner of the bay).
We asked one of the Coast Guard
officers about a weather forecast and got this: “4-5, north
westerlies”. When we asked how hot it was (we were getting curious
as it seemed to grow hotter every day), the reply was “Sorry, no
temperature – only wind” (!). A shopkeeper, though, told us that
it was 40° C, and would be even hotter next day.
Ionian (Lefkas) sailing holidays and yacht charters.
Story and photos by Lene Poulsen from Denmark
Part one: Lefkas - Kefalonia
Part two: Kefalonia - Ithaca
Part three: Ithaca - Lefkas