With a few days of strong Northwest winds in the offing we chose to stay put and get to know the Pilos area. Our entry to its huge natural harbor called Navarino Bay was marked by a distinctive and much-photographed group of rocks which had a "key-hole opening" (top left).
Of course the bizarre idea of trying to thread the needle with Sangaris emerges from the Captain's cranium - which is why we also have the Admiral on-board. So, needless-to-say, going around, not through, the rocky structure, we were greeted by a spectacular view of the Neo-Kastro ("new" castle) fortress in Pilos town (top right looking out over the bay, after we got there).
But, with the looming NW blow, we decided to skip town for a bit and anchor in a protected corner of Navarino Bay with a spit of land separating us from the huge fresh water Giavola lagoon. We read that Gialova is home to 20,000 assorted migratory waterbirds ... between September and March. Oh well, no flamingos, ducks or heron in sight but we still loved the view and enjoyed a couple of days whilst the wind kept things fresh.
But the town's free marina and access to town beckoned, so we weighed anchor and spent another couple of days tied to a pier end - a bit odd as we stuck out 20 feet on either side of the pier, but we were snug. (Look closely at the end of the dock at left.) With easy access to town, the fortress grounds and gorgeous hilltop sunset vistas, we also made a fun connection with new cruisers Pauline and Ian aboard "Arcadia Too". This very enthusiastic and ambitious couple had literally just sailed all the way from England in the last two months - some 3000 miles! Good on you guys for making it happen!
Here's a couple of shots of "Neo Kastro" as we walked through. It was built in 1573 by the Turks and then occupied by the Venetians, before being taken over again by the Turks. That ended with the dramatic "Battle of Navarino" where 26 allied English, Russian and French ships-of-the-line sailed directly into the midst of the enemy Turkish and Egyptian fleet with three times that number - and proceeded to win the battle!
This 1827 battle is what ended Greece's war of Independence from Turkey and was well documented in the castle's museum. The castle grounds remain in good condition with formidable walls, a citadel, a mosque converted into a church and a courtyard surrounded by dungeons used as a prison until the 1990's.
And here is the view from the hillside above the town - great sunset & sundowner spots at the "Hotel Pierre" and the "12 Gods" taverna, both up a winding track of road above the "marina".
We topped off our week in Pilos by returning to the anchorage so we could dinghy ashore do the serious hike to the summit of the mountainous point, up to the next bay and then back alongside the Gialova lagoon. Setting off early with sturdy shoes and bottled water it was up the rugged Korphasion Hill to the Paleokastro (old castle) ruins at the summit.
There was amazing scenery both near and far - the far bit being out to sea and across the Bay, as you'd expect, but the amazing near scenery was just above our heads all along the path.
Check out this picture - those things that look like big black dots are actually HUGE spiders in their webs and there were literally thousands of them wherever you looked. They were always either above or outside of the path, never in our faces, thank heavens, but talk about creepy - gives us shivers just thinking about it.
So narrowly escaping the killer arachnids (we're sure) and arriving at the castle (which you can see in the background if you can take your eyes off the spiders) we ducked inside to the extensive but crumbling ruins. After a fair amount of searching - this isn't your groomed US/UK hiking trail - we found a "challenging" rocky path out the other side. It was pretty much straight down, sometimes on all fours.
Halfway down we came to "Nestor's" cave, which may have been the one mentioned in the Odyssey where Nestor and Neleus kept their cows and where Hermes hid Apollo's sacred cattle. Back to the opening montage, in the bottom middle picture you can see Kath checking out the inside of the cave. She couldn't picture anything other than goats (or crazy cruiser's) making their way to the cave, but those guys were all gods and could do amazing stuff.
None too soon, thankfully, the path turned into soft white sand dunes high above a perfect horseshoe bay, again referring back to the opening montage on the bottom left, with its gorgeous white-sand Voidhokoilia Beach. Then a good path alongside Gialova lagoon took us back to the beach and dinghy. What a mix of terrain and what a good workout topped off with a welcome swim in our "pool".
You can see larger versions of these pics and more in the gallery.
Cruiser's Notes:
Free marina (no services) in Pilos. User friendly Port Police for check-in. Easy fuel deliver to main quay by small truck and unlimited water for 5E - pay at Mayor's office or call posted number.