Preparing the yacht for sailing
Preparations for the milebuilder began the week before the trip itself. We had decided to change the route slightly from previous years to visit some different islands in the Cyclades, so additional route planning was needed. We also compiled the usual lists of items to take with us – provisions, extra safety equipment, charts, … and the all-important teapot for the skipper’s tea.
Saturday
By 15:30 the full crew of ten had assembled on board Cronos, the Ocean Star 51 we use for the milebuilders. The crew was made up of people from all over the world – British, American (working in Germany), Russian, Norwegian, Albanian and Irish. They were divided into three watches – Red, White and Blue. Co-skipper for the week was Mark Cooper, also an RYA instructor.
The Crew of the Watches
Red White Blue
Kate Matheve (leader) Colin Bailey (leader) Mark Cooper (leader)
Chris Haywood Georgina Lawrie Isaac Boxx
Erion Doce (Niktarios) Yulia Klyukina Sarah Cullen
We loaded the stores and started the safety checks on the yacht and gear. I then gave an initial briefing, which included the weather and passage plan for that evening’s sailing, and an outline plan for the rest of the week.
We sailed at 16:35 heading for Loutra, on the island of Kithnos in the northern Cyclades. With just 10kts of wind I decided to motor-sail for the first few hours as we had 45 miles to cover to our destination.
We had an uneventful sail until we cleared Cape Sounion but, once out of the lee of the mainland, the wind quickly built up to over 16 kts. We were on a broad reach towards Cape Tamelos on the island of Kea so we turned off the engine and sailed at 7.5kts. By now it was dark but the cape has a lighthouse which made steering easier than steering by compass. It was also a friendly sight for those on their first night sail.
Once clear of Kea we sighted Cape Kefalos, the most northerly point of the island of Kithnos. Having sailed the area before I knew that, with strong north winds, we had a set pushing us south. In order to maintain our course we had to steer 10 degrees above our heading, rather than aiming directly for the point.
In the lee of Kea our speed had dropped to 4kts, so we motor-sailed again. However, as soon as we cleared the south of Kea the wind built up to 16-18 kts, with gusts of over 20kts, so we continued under sail with both sails reefed.
From Cape Kefalos our course was south to Loutra. Before altering course we put away the main sail and continued under foresail alone. The harbour entrance lights were soon sighted and, with Mark at the helm and myself below at the chart table, we carried out an almost blind pilotage into the harbour.
We had problems Med mooring as we had a strong cross wind and could not lay our anchor far enough out. The harbour is small and some of the yachts already moored had long lines ashore, blocking the main harbour wall. We decided to go alongside portside-to. Georgina found a nearby bar still open and after a few jars we returned onboard. We had covered 56 miles and the trip had only just started.
Sunday
Enjoying a drink ashore at the end of the day.
After a good night’s sleep we had the morning brief. We had planned to go to Tinos on the second day but, as we were talking about it, Chris had a telephone call from his wife informing him that his mother had been taken ill. After checking the ferry timetables we decided that the best course of action was to sail to Siros, the capital of the Cyclades, which has the best regular ferry services. This would be the quickest way for him to get to the mainland to fly home.
We sailed after breakfast. As it was still blowing over 20kts, we reefed the sails in a small bay outside the harbour. Once clear of Kithnos the wind and sea built up to almost 30kts wind speed and 4m waves. We had a broad reach to Ak. Velostasi on the SW corner of Siros. Mark photographed the boat speed log reading 11.4kts! South of the island the sea state dropped, but we still had good winds, and beat upwind for the last few miles, with the wind reaching 38kts as we came from the lee of Nisos Stronghilo, the large island outside the main harbour, Ermoupolis.
We entered harbour at 15:35, having come 42 miles that day on all points of sail. Chris caught the next ferry. We have not heard any more about his mother’s condition; everyone joins me in wishing her well.
By now the crew was very tired. We had travelled 98 miles in the first 24 hours in some big winds and seas. I decided we needed a de-brief and a good rest. Everyone had their say at the meeting that evening, and we decided to modify the passage plan in view of the heavy weather we had experienced. Colin then went looking for a restaurant. He found a lovely street with flowers hanging down from wires overhead, and a wonderful restaurant, full of Greek families (always a good sign), where the crew had a great meal with good local wine.
Monday
The beautiful marble square in Ermoupolis.
The morning brought lighter winds and sunshine. We planned to sail to Naxos, the largest island in the Cyclades, sometimes called ‘the garden of the Cyclades’. As this passage was only 30 miles the crew took a few hours out to look around Ermoupolis before we left. Ermoupolis is an interesting old town with two cathedrals – one Greek Orthodox the other Roman Catholic – that stand on two hills facing each other across the town. It also has a magnificent marble square outside the town hall and lots of small streets filled with little shops.
We sailed at 11:15 and had a broad reach all the way to Naxos. On the way we sighted dolphins and porpoises. The dolphins put on a wonderful show for us, shooting out of the water in pairs and splashing with their tails. We had lovely sunny weather and a fresh wind giving us an average speed of 6.8kts. Arriving at Naxos in the afternoon, we were met by Kostas, the harbour master and an old friend. At the evening debrief, in Skippers bar, everyone said they had had a wonderful day. There was still some daylight so most of the crew set off exploring the town. Naxos has an ‘old town’ and it is delightful to walk around the tiny streets that are too narrow for cars, or even motor cycles. That night we had a tasty meal in the old town area of very fresh fish, local starters and lamb – all at an excellent price.
Winching the sheets on Cronos.
Tuesday
The day started with light wind and clear skies. We left after breakfast, heading for the island of Milos via Sifnos. Once clear of the land, the wind freshen to 10-12kts, so we set the sails and switched off the engine.
We had a long sail, passing the islands of Ios, Folegandros, and Thira (Santorina) to the south, and Paros, Serifos and Sifnos to the north. South of Sifnos the wind dropped, so we motor sailed up into Vathi, a tiny bay on the southern tip of Sifnos.
This bay has nothing but clear blue water, a rugged landscape, and a tiny white church. We dropped anchor, then launched the dinghy to put a line ashore. This was successfully done by Kate and Yulia as part of their Competent Crew course. Once we were safely moored to the shore, some swam while others sunbathed and made lunch. A large shoal of sardines came swimming and flying out of the water past our bow, followed by tuna (also flying out of the water) trying to catch their lunch. After the dolphins the day before the crew thought I had arranged a wildlife trip.
We left the bay in mid afternoon, motoring the last 18 miles to Milos, where we arrived just as the sun was setting. Milos is a lovely island. In fact it is made up of three large islands, Kimolos, Polyaigos, and Milos, which are all inhabited, and Antimilos which is not. There are also many smaller islands which I have spent many happy hours sailing through and exploring in the past. The area was a pirate base in the 14th and 15th centuries, home to mainly Turkish pirates who wrought havoc in the eastern Mediterranean.
The little bay with a church on Sifnos.
Milos has one of the world’s largest natural harbours. It is nearly 2 miles X 5 miles and surrounded by large cliffs. During the First World War the Royal Navy had a large base here, and British and ANZAC forces stayed on the island in early 1915, before the ill fated Gallipoli campaign. The terrain is very rugged, and the high peaks have wonderful colours in their rocks. Marble and emery are still mined, and the hills are dotted with lovely old Greek villages, painted white and blue. The statue of Aphrodite of Milos, better known as the Venus de Milo, was found here in 1820.
Wednesday
Superb fish for the crew on Milos.
Our total mileage now stood at 188nm. We decided to have a rest day before a long night sail that evening. During the forenoon we carried out small repairs, washed the yacht down, and filled up with water. Some of the crew decided that they would like training in handling the yacht under power, so we spent a happy few hours in the afternoon on Med mooring, MOB drills, confined space manoeuvring, reversing and picking up a buoy, while other crew members took the day off to explore the island.
We had 80 miles to cover on overnight passage to Hydra, with the watches taking three hour shifts. We sailed with White watch (Colin, Georgina and Yulia) on duty until 21:00, then Blue watch (Mark, Isaac and Sarah) to midnight, followed by Red watch (Kate and Niktarios) until 03:00. We were all to have a very busy night …
The passage started quietly enough, with flat seas and little wind. The night sky had no moon, and was full of stars. Wonderful!
During Mark’s watch the wind came up from the south and he put out the foresail, making 4-5kts running with about 8-10kts of breeze. At midnight Red watch came on duty. After fixing the yacht’s position they settled down for a quiet sail. Speed was not important as we had over 12 hours to make the journey. We did not want to arrive in the small harbour on Hydra before 09:00.
At about 01:35 Kate woke me as she was concerned about a vessel on our starboard side that did not appear to be giving way to us as it should. On deck I found that we were doing 3.5kts, running, with a 2 -3 metre sea. There was indeed a vessel at the 2 o’clock position from us, about two miles away but heading in our direction. It would pass very close to us. I started flashing a light at our sail to raise their attention, but had no response. I tried calling them on the radio – still no response.
I considered our options. Going onto a broad reach either to port or starboard was not going to get us much further away from their track. Turning around would not help as we would be beating into the wind, and still in their path. Heaving to would also leave us too close to the vessel. Our best course was to continue in the direction we were heading as fast as we could. As we still had only our foresail up, I started the engine to increase our speed and we motor-sailed down wind, switching on our steaming light. I tried to raise them again on the radio, and at the fourth attempt they responded. They never did give their ship’s name but we did get a ‘sorry’ from them as they passed 300m from our stern.
I remained on deck for the remainder of the watch. We stopped the engine and continued running with only our foresail up. When White watch took over at 03:00 I turned in. At 04:05 the lighthouse at the east end of Hydra was sighted.
Less than an hour later I was woken by a lot of noise from the sails. Thinking we might have gybed, I went on deck. I found Colin at the helm and Georgina trying to bring in the foresail. In very little light all I could see initially was the foresail flapping. I then realized that we had lost the foresheet on the starboard side. We did not know where it had gone so could not start the engine in case it was in the water. I asked for a torch and prepared the furling line to bring in the foresail. By now we had no steerage way. We started furling the sail away while Yulia found the end of the unattached sheet and brought it in. Once it was fully on deck we started the engine and completed putting away the sail.
We now had steerage again but still had to find out what had happened and fix it. The wind was 10-12 kts from the southeast. Inspection of the sheet proved that it had not parted but the bowline had come undone. Also the lazy sheet (portside) had become trapped under the dinghy. I sent someone below to shake Mark, and had Georgina clip on to go forward to clear to port sheet. Once it was clear and she was back in the cockpit I took the yacht about under power, and then put the sail out on a starboard tack in order to have the clew low enough to re-secure the sheet. Mark was now on deck. He clipped on and went forward to secure the sheet. Once it was fully secured we went about once more, to resumed our course toward Hydra lighthouse.
Some discussion took place about what had happened to the sheet. Colin had noted early on the previous day, while doing a small repair, that the bowline knot had very little tail. He also noted that the sheets were very stiff with salt dried into them. We were very unlucky it came undone. Never since I started sailing (1961) have I ever seen a bowline give way.
Mark stayed on deck and started his watch at 06:00. At 07:55 we cleared Hydra lighthouse and turned west towards the main harbour. The crew were shaken from their bunks and we prepared the yacht for entry into harbour, and were moored up on the town quay by 09:20.
Donkeys are used for transport on the island of Hydra.
Thursday
We remained in Hydra for people to look around until after lunch. Everyone enjoys picturesque Hydra and, at that time on an October morning, it was free of hordes of tourists. The island has no cars or motorcycles so everything is moved by donkey, mule and pony. As we had tied up next to the cargo unloading slip we had a first class view of the loading and unloading of the animals. Some of the crew climbed to the top of the mountain to see the monastery, while others spent a few hours shopping in Hydra’s harbour side shops.
After lunch we sailed to the uninhabited island of Dhokos for a swim then on to Mandraki, on the Ermioni peninsula. Our total mileage had now reached 269nm. We secured the yacht opposite the ‘Millennium’ bar, owned by an old friend, Nektarios, who kindly allows us to fill with water and connect to his electricity supply. We had a de-brief on the day, and on the previous night’s events. All agreed they had learnt a lot during the passage. We had sailed over 85% of the way on a wonderful starry night. We saw over 20 vessels and eight lighthouses, and ended the passage on Hydra, one of the most visited islands in Greece.
The crew sat having a few drinks while everyone took turns to use the showers. Cronos has three showers but, if they are all used simultaneously, the pressure drops. We booked a table at Joseph’s restaurant, a short walk across the tip of the small peninsula, where we enjoyed a great meal with swordfish a lá Spetses (a local dish of steamed swordfish on a sauce of tomatoes, onions, and herbs), wonderful salads, veal, local lamb and wine. Some then went to their beds while others stopped off in the ‘Millennium’ for nightcaps.
Friday
Some of the crew in a relaxed mood at the Millenium bar.
There was little wind in the morning so we motored the 18 miles to the attractive island of Poros, where we took on fuel. The crew looked around the shops and bought charts on which to mark the route we had sailed. After lunch we headed towards Aegina, 13 miles away.
The wind picked up north of Methanon, an old volcano that still has hot water springs, and we turned the engine off and started sailing with 7-9kts of wind. Knowing another of our school yachts was in the area we contacted them by radio and arranged to meet them and sail in company the last few miles. We arranged for a local photographer to photograph the yachts sailing together outside Aegina harbour.
As Aegina is our base port, Melody and the office staff arranged a table for the crews of Valentine and Cronos at an unusual restaurant called ‘Hippocampus’, which serves a mix of Greek and Egyptian food. Egypt and Greek have been close since ancient times, when boats traded sponges, olive oil, wine, etc.
Saturday
The next morning we sailed early from Aegina to Kalamaki to hand the yacht back and say goodbye to the crew.
A great trip was now over for another Season!
We had covered 367nm, visited nine islands, the Peloponnese, and mainland Greece. We had sailed in the Cyclades and the Saronic Gulf. The maximum wind speed had been Force 8 for a short while. Unusually, for the most part we had the wind with us!
My thanks go to all who helped make the milebuilder a success
This is a typical leather boat shoe as sold by marine chandlers. They are made for use on board with soles of a non-marking material.
Leather boat shoes need to be regularly cleaned and cared for to keep the leather supple and in good condition.
A word of warning ….
