Cruising progress 2022 (Click to enlarge)
31st July 2022
We enjoyed our stay in Messolonghi, with a visit to the Garden of Heroes which is in a lovely setting with some interesting statues, but unfortunately there were no leaflets available for any information on the statues. The majority of our time was spent trying to catch up with outstanding jobs, which always seem to take much longer than anticipated.
From Messolonghi we motored all the way back down the Gulf of Patras to Petalas , a very peaceful and secure anchorage where we stayed overnight. The following day we set of for Astakos about 12 miles away. The wind kicked in after a short while and built up steadily until we were beating with both sails double reefed in gusts exceeding 35kts, which blew out the wind sensor. We eventually furled the sails away and motored the final few miles to Astakos and tied up at the town quay for a couple of days. It's a small fishing village and is the main ferry link to the Ionian Islands.
Mike spent the afternoon checking out the sensor wiring at the base of the mast and decided that the problem was at the top. The following morning I hoisted him up the mast where he discovered the problem. The plastic nut holding the sensor in place had fractured and fell into the sea when it was loosened. Mike had to fix it with anything he had with him, which happened to be fine line to retain his tools and self-amalgamating tape. Hopefully it will last until the end of the season as a new sensor is about ₤500. Whilst he was up there he also replaced the bulb in the anchor light which was faulty. Thankfully both items are now fully operational.
We returned to Vathy on Ithaca to re-provision the boat before beginning the long slog round to Argostoli on Kefalonia. The wind got up steadily as we approached the town and anchored in the middle of the bay. The following morning we motored into the unfinished marina which was pretty empty and tied up alongside, the first time we'd been able to do that for quite a few years. Normally the wind gets up every afternoon in Argostoli but this year it seemed to be considerably stronger, but being in the marina meant we were able to use the bikes to get around as it's quite a distance from the town over the De Bosset bridge.
One evening when it was still quite windy, a 54 foot Grand Soleil came into the marina with four aboard and had several unsuccessful attempts to go alongside the wall ahead of us. The owner was on the helm and the three others didn't seem to know anything about sailing. The man at the bow had to throw a line to Mike, but he threw the whole thing in a ball which landed in the water. They repeated the procedure with the same result. At the third attempt the bow line still fell short when the girl at the stern threw her line. Another chap with Mike narrowly missed catching it and both then looked on in amazement as the other end of the line also disappeared over the side of the yacht. Obviously it hadn't been tied on! A lot of shouting ensued and the yacht departed the marina never to return. Next to arrive was a single hander in a 42ft yacht and Mike raced round to the other side of the marina along with two Germans to help to get him alongside. It took quite a while for the three of them get him safely tied up with the wind gusting 34kts. It's quite interesting watching the antics of various nationalities of sailors!
We left Argostoli and returned once again to Vathy, which seems to be our jumping off point for all destinations this year. The morning we left we saw a huge motor yacht anchored at the entrance to the bay (unfortunately too far away to photograph). She was O'Ptasia (280ft in length), available for charter for a mere €800,000 per week plus expenses, so best to allow at least €1,000,000! She's also up for sale at €100,000,000 if you're interested. Annual running costs will be around €10,000,000
Nice toy on nearby motor yacht. A board with foil, powered by a handheld kite.
We then headed back up the Gulf of Patras to Messolonghi as I'd received a text to say my residence card was available for collection any weekday morning between 9.00 and 13.00. Mike sent an email to confirm the documents required and stating we'd be there at 9.00 on Tuesday 26th July and promptly received a reply advising that the cards are only issued on Wednesdays. Just as well we hadn't arrived on Wednesday as we would have had to hang around for a week before being able to collect it. However I am now the proud owner of a Greek Residence Card which is valid for five years. I'm just happy that the whole process is finally completed.
While in Messolonghi we met up with our friends George and Anne on Coco and spent a week in their company, catching up with all the news over the last year or so. I think that we will be here slightly longer than them but we'll catch up with them again as we're both going further up the Gulf of Patras until nearer the end of August, as it's much quieter here.
