SV ICE BEAR

The day before we left Brindisi we decided to top up the fuel tanks but we didn't want to move to the fuel dock. It took us days to get the bow lines tight enough to stop the stern from hitting the dockso down into the depths of the starboard bow locker we go to find the
fuel cans that came with Ice Bear. ha we found 4 20l cans. Once they were cleaned and inspected we commandeered a cart and an attendant. It took two trips to the fuel dock to fill the tanks not bad. We left Brindisi before the sun came up the next morning the water in the harbour was deceptively calm but we knew better. The forecast
was accurate not much wind but swells heading for the beach. We were travelling almost parallel to the beach for a few hours before heading off into the Adriatic sea not really all that comfy. When we finally turned away from the boot towards Corfu everything calmed down. We boiled some water and had a quick mr noodles for lunch everything was going as planned until about half way across. Did you know waves can come from three different directions at the same time? I didnt. and When these three waves meet they sent a spout of water 20 ft straight up into the air. We thought running parallel to waves was uncomfy try being above those three waves when they meet. The hull slap was slightly alarming. I'm not sure I have mentioned hull slap its a multi hull thing. When a boat moves the water
separates around the hull and creates two waves a multi hull creates four two of which travel out under the center of the boat and when these waves meet in the middle they create a sort of water lump in an ideal world this happens behind the boat but we don't live in an ideal world so this often happens under the main cabin and if it is big enough it will hit the underside of the deck creating a slap which is a little startling the first time you hear it. Well the thing hitting the underside of the boat this time was created by the three waves meeting under the boat and it was jarring.
Luckily in the 5 hours it took us to pass through these weird seas we had less then a dozen of the big slaps and about the same number of waves rolled down the deck and under the bimini soaking everything they hit. About 8 hours into the passage the waves started to flatten out and we could see Albania. While it wasn't our destination it still shared the same coast line. Now that everything had calmed down we started to check Ice Bear for any damage or signs of stress caused by the passage. Two of the hatches let some water in and some things found their way onto the floor but all in all it looked really good on the Port side. We flashed up the stove and started to heat the turkey stew made for the passage and went to check on the starboard side oohh seems the freezer door opened in
all the banging and tore off its hinges. A quick inspection found no damage to the door other then the two broken hinges so we secured it in a spare berth to be delt with later.
The rest of the trip down the Albanian coast to Corfu was quiet and for the most part in the dark we side tied at the Gouvia marina and called it a day.
In the morning we did an inspection of Ice bears outside she looked really good except for the poor trampolines they had pretty much been blown through by the waves. We spent about an hour re stitching them just enough to get us back to Cleopatra marina for the winter haul out. We went to customs to check into Greece and spent the rest of the day wandering around the old town. Seems we lucked out most of the stores only opened in the winter when a cruise ship was scheduled to be in port and it looked like there was two that day. The next day we went to Gaios on Paxos the Quay was free and with help from cruisers from the Netherlands we were able to plug into some power so we could have heat. We spent two days here preparing Ice Bear for storage we removed the main sail and cover,
did some work on the engines and winterized two of the heads. All was going well until we were boarded. The Paxos pirate was nearly silent taking advantage of the distracted crew. All hands were called and the intruder was shooed off the deck and down the passarela. You could tell this wasn't going to be the only encounter as we watched the Pirate slink toward the only other cruising boat at the quay. Every time we left the passerala down the pirate snuck back on board. These brazen day time purrings were getting distracting. Before we left Paxos we went to a olive oil merchant and bought some oil. He had three large vats in his room. He opened one and it was full of the clearest of olive oil. He said it was from the first pressing of the year only green olives were used.
This oil was to be used for salads and things like that not for cooking with. Perfect. The next morning we did a quick check for any stow aways and headed off to Preveza. It was only a few hours away yet some dolphins still found time to play at the bow distracting us from the haul out prep. That night we spent our final meal with the couple we met in Paxos. Good company and good food what more could you ask for. The haul out the next morning was done with the skill and professionalism we have come to appreciate from the people at Cleopatra Marina. They parked us in almost the same spot as last year We spent the rest of the day and half of the next securing, turning off, unplugging, wiping down and stowing hopefully everything that needed to be stowed. Then off to Athens.