A day on anchor – Porto Koufo

Just a pictorial representation of a day, dawn to dusk on anchor in Porto Koufo, which came about as follows:

A normal day starts with Lily meeowing at dawn, trying to get us up.

We usually ignore it and eventually she will settle back down to sleep usually across Louise for another couple of hours.

She was particularly vociferous this day so I got up to see what the issue was.

Now I’m not a cat psychologist but I am absolutely sure that (she) having been prowling the boat all night “guarding it “ believes that it’s our turn to get up and “guard”, because no sooner are you up she settles down for a kip, without fail !

So given I was up I thought I would have a coffee & take a few pictures at different times throughout the day.

06:00

Early morning – the Austrian’s are leaving for Lemnos and we have the bay to ourselves.

07:00

Sunrise creeping over the hills

At lunchtime we were joined by an Italian hen party on a catamaran that we think had been rented for a day out. They left late afternoon.

18:00

A Hen Cat or is it a Cat Hen?

and we were then joined by another couple of yachts for the evening.

20:00

A gin & tonic would be nice about now except we dont have any!

Before we head ashore and (she) having slept most of the day gives me a look that says “Aye, same again tomorrow, make sure you’re up”

Halkidiki here we come

Tuesday 26th July 06:30

Up with the larks – well at least with George, Barbara, Fiona & Peter who were also heading off back south again to Sigri on Lesvos on route to their eventual winter base on Crete.

We were sailing back up north to Halkidiki where we had been a few years earlier. Our initial destination was Ormos Sikia, a large open bay near the bottom of the 2^nd finger (waypoint #1).

The trip was just under 50 miles and the wind strength and direction was looking favourable for a large part of the way but we were expecting it to die about three quarters of the way across.

As it happens we managed to sail (& on one tack) for all but the last 3 hours of a 12 hour journey and about 40 minutes of that engine time was faffing about not being able to get our anchor to hold in Skala Sikia (too much weed) before eventually moving across to just off the beach in sand at the other side of the bay where we had anchored securely before.

Our final stopping place in Ormos Sikia

Skala Sikia in the distance across the bay where we couldn’t the anchor to hold

Mount Athos – the holy mountain at the foot of the 3rd finger

Sunset at anchor

This was the spot a few years back Lily came ashore in the dinghy and made a break for freedom into the campsite across from the beach – disaster only being averted by a rugby tackle and the carry out pizzas being covered in sand!, lol.

We ate on board this time. A nice guy from Bulgaria swam out to chat to us. Not all the way from Bulgaria you understand, just from the beach.

We stayed a further night and the following day a biggish swell had crept in and we were bouncing wildly – but Louise had a video call with a “pain management physiotherapist” (and she was a pain – a right one!) all part of the process for her to get her back problem seen to. She has to be willing to go through all the steps and this was one of them. We put an anchor rode on to steady the boat a wee bit into the waves.

The consultation finally finished about 11:00. Louise was sea sick and the swell was worse, also the engine temp gauge had been ominously climbing on the last few uses so the motor out of the bay now a lee shore with shoal reefs either side was interesting.

It was not a pleasant 3 hour trip around to Porto Koufo which was the opposite direction from our intended destination further to the north but that’s sailing.

Again we couldn’t get the anchor to hold at the northern end of the landlocked bay so we moved to the quieter and more scenic end at the south where the swimming would be better anyhow. There was only one other nice couple on an Austrian yacht for company.

You can get water at the root of the quay at the northern end in the village, so we usually combined dumping the rubbish, filling up our water jerry cans and provisioning at the minimarket with our dinner in the taverna. We have visited a couple so far but these are pictures of the Dolphin which has a landing platform for the dinghy.

Picture #1

You can see the distance we had to come in, that’s about half way in picture #1 There was no way we would have risked the old two stroke engine and Avon dinghy. The platform, new dinghy & motor have been a game changer.

Time to go

After 34 days (for me) in lovely Moudhros it was time to go. It was now Friday 22^nd July.

I was getting known in the village and when the carry out pizza man sends over a carafe of wine when you are having lunch with your wife in a taverna how do you explain that, lol.

We left at 08:30 and managed to sail two hours of it. We caught one small tuna near the entrance to Moudhros bay but put it back.

We arrived in Myrina, the capital town of Lemnos just after lunch time and anchored off the beach with 1.2m under us.

The usual laundry, fuel, provisioning at Lidl etc. having all been completed in preparation of a further move when the weather allowed.

We were sitting one evening having a pre-dinner ouzo meze at our favourite “corner taverna” when George & Barbara of Pipe Dream from Orkney snuck up on us. These were the friends we first met in Mytilini and later bought the paddle board from in Lipsi.