Cruising progress 2019 (Click to enlarge)
29th August 2019
The sailing skills of some charterers are a sight to behold! We watched one catamaran motor at high speed into an anchorage heading directly towards us and it came within a metre of hitting us, before going into full reverse. He then progressed in a series of near misses with several other boats, going full ahead and full astern. Apparently he had no idea that you can turn a catamaran on the spot, easing one engine ahead and the other astern. He then proceeded to barge his way into the busy harbour, blocking boats which were trying to enter and leave, before making three or four clumsy attempts to reverse on to the quay. This was one of the worst examples of boat handling we have ever seen. We never cease to be amazed at the lack of checks charter companies carry out on the sailing skills of their customers before allowing them to set sail.
We had a good sail up to an anchorage on the north side of Corfu town and went ashore in the dinghy for a wander around. However, as we walked up to the main road we spotted at least 30 - 40 rats scuttling around the sea wall and more around the rubbish skips. As this was only late afternoon and they seemed to have no fear of being seen, we decided to head straight back to Mistroma. This is the first time we'd seen rats since San Remo in Italy.
Mike had read on one of the sailing forums that there was a small river to the west of the anchorage and about 500 metres up it there was a large Lidl supermarket, so the following morning we went for look. The river was very shallow at the entrance but quickly deepened again. We tied up to a very rickety old platform and managed to scramble ashore and found the supermarket just across the road. It's always great when we find a supermarket near where we can leave the dinghy! We came back laden with supplies and motored back to the boat.
Our intention was to do a circumnavigation of Corfu, revisiting Paleocastritsa, where we'd stayed for our honeymoon a mere 46 years ago. However when we sailed up to the north of the island, the forecasts seemed to have changed to strong head winds for the next few days. We anchored in a very rolly anchorage for a late lunch and discussed our options and finally decided that we'd sail back down to Corfu town and hold on to our memories of Paleocastritsa in the 1970's. We had an excellent sail back under genoa alone, rocketing along at over 7kts with the wind strength increasing steadily. Once we'd furled the genoa away, we changed course towards an anchorage and suddenly started getting gusts of just under 40kts, luckily in flat water, but we were still being laid flat with each gust and thinking that it was going to be fun trying to anchor. Then as quickly as the gusts had come up they died down again to around 25kts so anchoring was no problem.
Engine starts were becoming more and more sluggish with the ten year old battery, so we headed back down to Preveza where we could order a new one from the same dealer who had supplied the house batteries in June. We anchored off the marina opposite the town quay, so we could check out local prices before placing the order. I was wakened about 7:00am by a bird shriek and stuck my head out of the hatch to find myself staring into the startled little face of a Least Weasel, looking a bit bedraggled. We assume it had been dropped by a bird of prey. It ran into the cockpit drain where it lay curled up for a while. After we'd closed every the window and hatch we tried to work out how we were going to get it off the boat. It may have looked cute but they are pretty vicious if challenged and can carry rabies - just what we wanted! Mike went out to have a look at it and it ran up the side deck and under the hatch garage and stayed there.
We decided to motor straight over to the town quay where we hoped we could flush it out with a hose. Maybe not the most sensible of ideas as it could have jumped on to a boat adjacent to us, but it was all we could think of at the time. After blocking up all the vents etc, to ensure there was no way it could get inside the boat, we flushed it out from under the hatch garage with a hose and it ran up to the bows, contemplated jumping off (they are good little swimmers) then ran back down the side deck and completely disappeared. We couldn't find it anywhere, so we came to the conclusion that it must either have jumped ship or gone back under the garage. We couldn't see it there but to make sure Mike removed the deck solar panels and then tried to remove garage which is easier said than done. The first eleven or so screws were no problem, but to take the whole thing off requires the removal of the mainsheet track, sprayhood, internal headlining panels and a few other bits and pieces. That was never going to happen, so he managed to lever it up just far enough to be able to confirm that it was weasel free. We have no idea where it went, but are just happy to be rid of it.
The engine battery was ordered but could not be delivered for a further week as it was a national holiday, so we stayed in or around Preveza for a lot longer than anticipated. It's now been fitted and the old one removed by the delivery company and hopefully we can continue sailing hassle free until the end of the season.
This loggerhead turtle was a frequent visitor and always caught the attention of the tourists as he swam past Mistroma.
