Greece - The Cyclades
Nísos Kíthnos
Órmos Apokriosis 46nm, 7hrs 45min, sailed and motored
Saturday July 6 - Sunday 7
Free anchorage
Saturday July 6 - Sunday 7
Free anchorage
Kíthnos, a barren rocky island. What more can I say, other than we weren't sure what the attraction was in the next bay over but there was an awful lot of boats there.
We got to listen to a choice selection of 80s underground music compliments of the beach bar, and dropped the pick to New Order's 'Blue Monday'. One of my faves.
Click images to enlarge
We got to listen to a choice selection of 80s underground music compliments of the beach bar, and dropped the pick to New Order's 'Blue Monday'. One of my faves.
Click images to enlarge
Nisos Páros
Off Monastiri Beach in Órmos Áy Ioannou 50nm, 8hrs 15min, sailed and motored
Sunday July 7 - Tuesday 9
Free anchorage
Sunday July 7 - Tuesday 9
Free anchorage
Paros, our new favourite place! Friends who have a house here have been telling us about it for years, and now we see the appeal. Vivid blue water against a rugged landscape with starkly contrasting white buildings overlooking the bay. We also saw vegetation we'd not seen anywhere else, but as I went to take a photo of a praying mantis on a plant my camera battery died! Aaaarrrrgh! I coerced Colin into a photo shoot the next morning and joy of joys the little critter was still there, all lined up for a photo shoot.
Not only was it beautiful to behold but we had a chance to catch up with folks we've been in touch with regularly on the MedNet (SSB/HF radio group for Mediterranean cruisers) who have been holed up here for a while. What a delight! We caught up at the Monastiri Beach Tavern on Monday evening and got to meet the crews from Lulu (Louise and Gary) and Feisty (Jackie and Mel) as well as friends of theirs on Splendido (Michael and Daniel) and numerous folk from other yachts in the bay. Feisty and Lulu recounted first hand their horrendous ordeal during a recent meltemi (strong northerly wind) where a 100' motor boat decided to leave (who leaves in the middle of a big blow???), caught Feisty's anchor as it pulled up its own, lost control and smashed into the side of her. It sounded absolutely terrifying as they dragged in circles wrapped together underwater then collected another couple of boats in the process, namely Lulu and another poor unfortunate. All anchors and chains had to be sacrificed for the boats to get untangled, hence the long stay in Paros waiting for new ones. Luckily no-one was hurt (or worse) but they were all still shaken from it.
We often see people scratch their heads when they read our boat name but then see the Aussie flag, and as Miss Tiggy passed us (an Oyster 575) someone aboard asked if we were Scottish or Australian. Turns out they had Scots and Aussies aboard, but all seemed equally enamoured with Colin's bagpipe performance later in the evening. The mingling was a fantastic way to share all sorts of information, including a legal loophole we learned about from Wendy and Kevin on Talisman (another Oyster 575) that allows non-EU yachts to stay 180 days, not the 90 in 180 allowed for normal non-EU travellers. Oh joy! The problem, I think, is that not all Greek officials understand these rules, but it's there in black and white in the Transit Log so we're going to put it to the test.
On the last few islands we have noticed the uniformity of the buildings, and the town of Náoussa was no exception. Turns out it's because the local administration has introduced very strict building regulations to protect the island's unique local architecture. All new buildings have to follow the typical Cycladic architectural style in order to preserve the beauty of the island. This includes, amongst other things, the number of floors (not to exceed two, with first floor equal to or less than 1/3 of the ground floor), doors and windows being made of wood and conforming to certain aesthetic standards, and buildings being white washed. It makes for very pleasant viewing.
Click images to enlarge
Not only was it beautiful to behold but we had a chance to catch up with folks we've been in touch with regularly on the MedNet (SSB/HF radio group for Mediterranean cruisers) who have been holed up here for a while. What a delight! We caught up at the Monastiri Beach Tavern on Monday evening and got to meet the crews from Lulu (Louise and Gary) and Feisty (Jackie and Mel) as well as friends of theirs on Splendido (Michael and Daniel) and numerous folk from other yachts in the bay. Feisty and Lulu recounted first hand their horrendous ordeal during a recent meltemi (strong northerly wind) where a 100' motor boat decided to leave (who leaves in the middle of a big blow???), caught Feisty's anchor as it pulled up its own, lost control and smashed into the side of her. It sounded absolutely terrifying as they dragged in circles wrapped together underwater then collected another couple of boats in the process, namely Lulu and another poor unfortunate. All anchors and chains had to be sacrificed for the boats to get untangled, hence the long stay in Paros waiting for new ones. Luckily no-one was hurt (or worse) but they were all still shaken from it.
We often see people scratch their heads when they read our boat name but then see the Aussie flag, and as Miss Tiggy passed us (an Oyster 575) someone aboard asked if we were Scottish or Australian. Turns out they had Scots and Aussies aboard, but all seemed equally enamoured with Colin's bagpipe performance later in the evening. The mingling was a fantastic way to share all sorts of information, including a legal loophole we learned about from Wendy and Kevin on Talisman (another Oyster 575) that allows non-EU yachts to stay 180 days, not the 90 in 180 allowed for normal non-EU travellers. Oh joy! The problem, I think, is that not all Greek officials understand these rules, but it's there in black and white in the Transit Log so we're going to put it to the test.
On the last few islands we have noticed the uniformity of the buildings, and the town of Náoussa was no exception. Turns out it's because the local administration has introduced very strict building regulations to protect the island's unique local architecture. All new buildings have to follow the typical Cycladic architectural style in order to preserve the beauty of the island. This includes, amongst other things, the number of floors (not to exceed two, with first floor equal to or less than 1/3 of the ground floor), doors and windows being made of wood and conforming to certain aesthetic standards, and buildings being white washed. It makes for very pleasant viewing.
Click images to enlarge
Nísos Skhinoúsa
Órmos Gagvávi (we think) 30nm, 4hrs 30min, motored
Tuesday July 9 - Wednesday 10
Free anchorage
Tuesday July 9 - Wednesday 10
Free anchorage
It was a painless motor from Paros to this small island south of Naxos, and a very pleasant and quiet anchorage after the busyness of Paros. There were only two other boats in the small bay when we arrived, and only five in total for the night.
In my opinion this is the best island name so far!
Click images to enlarge
In my opinion this is the best island name so far!
Click images to enlarge