The wind was still whistling when we awoke but was subsiding as had been forecast. The morning was filled with passage planning, visits to the marina office, Turkcell, Carrefour and the laundry. The laundry proved to be the most troublesome, with promises that we could collect our gear at 09:00, which ended up to be 12:00 and then two towels were missing. As nice as the people were, we walked away minus our towels but with one of someone else's, being reminded of the risky side of using commercial laundries.
It felt so good to cast off from Bodrum marina and head south once more. We were soon hoisting the sails and running before the wind doing 9-10 knots in 20 knots of wind. Trilogy came alive and we all relished the great ride she gave us. We crossed the Gulf known as Gökova Körfezi, passing by the Greek Island of Kos and rounded the Dorian Yarimadasi (Dorian Promontary), which has quite high peaks and greener vegetation than previously encountered.
We anchored in a quiet bay called Mesudiye Buekue just as the last rays of sun cast soft shadows across the valley and township. We were all keen for a swim and without hesitation, we were all frolicking in the clear blue water. Kat and Jack prepared some tasty savoury snacks to have with our drinks, as we watched a glowing sunset across the water with a quarter moon also heading for the horizon.
Dinner of fresh whole sea bream was enjoyed in the cockpit while the moon sent its beam of light towards us. A game of 500 was soon underway as we listened to some gentle, lilting music to close the day.
The morning was clear and calm and it was the first time we'd had a bay to ourselves overnight. The bay had a small town nestled in behind it and there seemed to be five or six small beachside restaurants. We all had a lovely pre breakfast swim and then up anchored to motor further south, as the wind had dropped out. We passed close by Simi Island (Greek) that we had visited last year and then back into the Turkish waters for a night at Bozuk Bükü. We are seeing more yachts sailing this coast since leaving Bodrum, as this is very beautiful cruising ground and popular with yacht charterers. Bozuk Bükü is a popular anchorage as it is a sheltered bay with a narrow entry between two high headlands and then opens out with deep water until the last 100 metres, which shallows to around 17 metres. Another swim, another round of drinks as the sun set and another lovely meal prepared on board.....what could be better? Kat and Jack took off for the tavern on shore to rub shoulders with the locals and next thing we're told they are staying for a lobster meal....half their luck!