Excitement mounted as we walked to the airport at 16.00hrs to meet Sam’s plane. This was his first visit in nearly two years and we hadn’t seen him since March. Skype and mobiles are all well and good but nothing makes up for face to face time and we couldn’t wait to catch up properly with all the things that Sam has been doing over recent months, (At this point I will add that this blog entry is long and detailed as we don’t want to forget all the things we did with Sam!)
I felt quite emotional as we watched the Easyjet plane land and it felt like an age until Sam walked through the arrivals door. I am sure I embarrassed him totally with a big hug as soon as he walked through! We walked back to the bay where we had tied up Min and a short row later we were on Max and cracking open a cold welcome beer but not before Sam produced the drinking hats that he insisted Ian and he should wear. (Not as funny as he thought as the temperature was still in the mid 30, s!) We also had to include Helen, the drinking unicorn, in our rounds…don’t ask!!!!
Sam had a long list of places to re-visit from family holidays and things he wanted to do on this holiday which we discussed over a bbq on Max. Next morning we left Corfu and headed across to the mainland towards Mourtos, a place we hadn’t visited yet. The anchorage was really full so we decided to head south down the coast and try to find a quieter bay. We located a bay on the chart and made for it, as we entered it, it appeared to be deserted then we saw there was one other yacht. Not too bad we thought as we prepared to anchor. It was as we were about to drop the hook that Ian called out, “that’s Rampage over there’. We explained to Sam that we had been following their blog for the last three years but had never met them, what a coincidence they were here. After anchoring we couldn’t wait to swim over and meet Duncan and Julia in person, much to their surprise, as we were total strangers to them. After a lengthy chat in the water we agreed they would come over to Max for coffee in the morning. It was a great bay with some of the best snorkelling we have had so far, although the water had some big cold patches in it where fresh water springs were coming up into the sea.
After a peaceful night at anchor Duncan, Julia and Duncan’s sister Susie came over and we spent a great couple of hours getting to know each other and comparing sailing notes! It was strange to think how much we knew about this couple and their boat when we were unknown to them, but that is one of the joys of this life. We left for Parga later than planned as the morning flew by but by early evening we were anchored in the bay and preparing to go ashore for dinner.
Sam has a lucky knack of choosing good restaurants so we left the choice to him for the evening. We loved the views from the castle on top of the hill before we headed for a pre-dinner beer in a bar overlooking the rooftops of Parga. A little shopping in the winding backstreets as we made our way to sea level was followed by a delicious dinner in a tavern by the sea. The uphill/downhill walk back to Min gave us a chance to walk off our dinner before rowing back to Max for the night.
Sam was keen to head south and get back to the area where we had spent family sailing holidays so the next day saw us sailing down to Preveza. We had good wind and sailed most of the way and decided to use Preveza marina for the night and give Min a rest. Going through the Lefkas Canal the next day we decided to anchor in One Tree Bay, (official name I forget) and have another bbq. By now Sam was well into fishing, one of the main ‘to do’s’ involved catching a big one, and we had been trolling all through the trip with no success. Coming in to anchor we had forgotten the fishing lines and as we manoeuvred managed to catch one of the lines around the prop! Thanks to the Skipper’s quick action in putting the engine into neutral the resulting tangle was not too bad and, after throwing the hook down to hold us, Ian was able to snorkel and cut the propeller free – a good lesson learnt though. Fingers crossed it won’t happen again.
Heading back to Nidri, where our sailing holidays began, was as good for Sam as it was for us back in May. We were unable to get on the Neilson pontoon though, to his disappointment, but we anchored in Tranquil Bay, just across the small channel. We dinghied in to ‘hit’ Nidri for lunch and Sam managed to find a bar showing football, surprise surprise! After a frozen Greek yogurt, watching the match, Ian and I headed back to Max to get the swimming towels, leaving Sam to join us after it finished at the Athos Hotel pool.
Upon returning to Min we found that a space had just become available on the pontoon so we hastily returned to Max, pulled up the anchor, and rushed to moor before someone else took the spot! Fantastic! Now we were where Sam wanted to be! Sam, meanwhile, had only watched until half time and had returned to the hotel for a swim, wondering where on earth we were. He came down to the pontoon and found Min was gone and, feeling abandoned, he walked along the pontoon to try and spot us from the end, in the anchorage. What a surprise he got as he walked past Max, not seeing us, and we called out ‘over here Sam!’
Dinner that night was Sam’s early birthday dinner from us! We wanted to take him to Te Kalamia, the no menu restaurant that we had loved when we went there in June. Isabelle and Vanghel remembered our names from June and made us feel very welcome as we introduced Sam. Sam tried the tuna, which he doesn’t eat, and loved it, we had to share three ways and ate mussels that he hates and enjoyed those too. He personally thanked Vanghel for cooking them so well that he would now eat them again! We were pleased to report that the food was just as innovative and delicious as the first time and we hope to come here again before we leave the Ionian.
Unsure about whether to move on or not we were delighted to have the decision made for us by Dragonfly turning up next morning. They had come to Nidri for Phil to fit their new stainless steel gantry. Thrown into the deal was meeting Sam and dinner on Max for five that night. It was a pleasure to introduce Sam to our cruising friends and for him to put faces to names he has heard.
Friday morning, and one week into his holiday Sam was keen to explore further. We sailed to the end of Lefkada and anchored in Poros Bay, on the left hand side near a small beach. Sam was delighted when all the other boats departed late afternoon leaving us alone overnight. We put the hammock up on the foredeck, he set up his fishing rod, went swimming and did all the things he hoped he would! Ian did another great bbq and the beer stock got further depleted! Sam had also discovered our 10litre Nero D’avola red wine from Sicily and was planning how he would finish off the box. Sitting on the foredeck watching the stars and sipping wine helped! What a great night!
We left early the next morning as we were heading to Fiskardo on Kefalonia. It is notoriously difficult to get on the quay here in the summer so we decided to arrive when last nights boats may be leaving. Fishing lines out on the way across, great excitement when we got a bite, major disappointment when the ‘big one’ got away by snapping the 30lb line, meaning we lost the lure as well! Being lucky enough to get on the quay only partially made up for the sense of loss but by the time we stepped off Max straight into the restaurant for lunch the memory was receding.
Fiskardo was the only town on Kefalonia not affected by the 1953 earthquake that devastated the island as it sits on a bed of limestone; consequently it has beautiful older buildings around a small quaint harbour. Its popularity means that it is crowded and cruisers either love it or hate, a bit of a marmite spot! Sam and Ian love it!
Further down the coast Sami was waiting for us, or more accurately George was. We topped up with fuel again from George’s JETOIL tanker and found a lovely tavern further out of town for dinner. The next morning we took a taxi and visited the two sets of caves near to Sami: Dhrogarati and Melissani. Melissani is partially submerged in brackish water which emerges from a fault that starts right at the other side of the island in Argostoli. To see the entire cave we had a short boat ride with a very knowledgeable oarsman who gave us lots of facts and figures about the caves. The taxi driver waited for us and then took us, via the scenic route, to the Dhrogarati caves. The taxi driver was full of local information as we drove the 8km and the journey passed quickly. The Dhrogarati caves were very different, an impressive stalagmite-bedecked chamber which is occasionally used for concerts, with great acoustics.
We had promised Sam a beach barbeque and we knew just the place: the bay where we had barbequed with Will and Carole on Ithaca. Monday saw us anchoring in the same bay and enjoying the snorkelling and swimming before a lovely bbq on the small beach there. Sam packed the iPod and speakers so we even had music! Very civilised!
The next few days saw us anchored in Port Leone on Kalamos, over to the mainland at Paleros and then back through the Lefkas Canal to Preveza where we caught up with Muskrat and enjoyed dinner in town with them. We had managed to visit all the places Sam wanted to see south of the canal and now needed to start to head north as we wended our way back up to Corfu.
We spent two nights in Gaios on the beautiful island of Paxi where we were once again able to get on the town quay. Gaios was even more packed than our last visit and provided amazing entertainment as the, mostly Italian, boats came in late afternoon and ‘fought’ over mooring spots as the six large tripper boats tried to pick up their anchors, manoeuvre and leave in the narrow channel.
Sunday the 4th of August was Sam’s last full day so we headed up to Corfu, stopping on the way in an area where the sea shallows to a metre, for a swim and snorkel. It is so strange to see boats anchored off shore, in about 4m of water and then see people ‘stood up’ in the sea quite close by! Put us in mind of Bramble Bank in the Solent where it dries sufficiently for an annual cricket match to be held there in the middle of the channel.
Arriving back in the bay below the castle in Corfu we had chance for one last bbq with Sam. It was an inevitable late night and it was tough to get up early next day to get Sam to the airport. His time with us had flown by and we were sad to see him go, but we have some wonderful memories of his time on Max this year, back where our family sailing started. As he flew back to his busy life in the UK we realised we now had a few backs to relax, get a few early nights and prepare Max for our next visitors, Ben and Matt, arriving on Friday.
Thanks Sam for a great ‘holiday’! x x x