Serenity: 2020

Sitting under the pomegranate tree at the end of Vathoudhi bay in the Volos Gulf

A favourite stop off for iced coffee in Milini on our way back from shopping

Looking out from our coffee stop and up towards the town of Volos

Dramatic skies over Vathoudhi bay

From the Volos Gulf we sailed across to the start of the Sporades and stopped off on the island of Skiathos. This was a beautiful beach with a nature reserve behind it.

Looking at this photo you would hardly believe that we were up at 5.00am because of the wind and rough water, thinking we would have to move elsewhere. Luckily it calmed and later that morning we took the dinghy ashore to explore the area.

The nature reserve at the back of the beach

Something you don't see everyday - swans on the beach!

Surfing swan......

..........and sunbathing swan

Views around the town of Skiathos

In Skiathos we came across The Blind Dog music bar.

These two started playing and singing at 10.30pm and were still going strong, without a break, when we left at 2.15am.

They were brilliant - mainly English songs - Eagles, Simon & Garfunkel and an incredible performance of Bohemian Rhapsody.

From Skiathos we crossed back over to Evia, stopped off in Orei on the north coast and then around to Loutra on the west coast down the channel.

This is the spa hotel Thermae Sylla with the hot water springs to the right. A very elegant place where apparently "Winston Churchill, Maria Callas, Greta Garbo, Aristotle Onassis, And Omar Sharif All Visit Thermae Sylla For Health And Rejuvenation. Garbo Lives To Be Almost 85 And Churchill Lives To The Ripe Age Of 90, Thanks In Part To The Rejuvenating Powers Of The Thermae Sylla Springs."

Where the water bubbles out it is too hot to keep your hand in

Making steaming streams, pools and hot showers as the hot water runs over the rocks and falls into the sea

Long, evening shadows

Amazing, coloured rock formations

Hot showers in the sea - some places too hot to stand under - and strange "sculptures"

From Loutra we stopped in Limni - a very small fishing harbour - skipper somehow managed to moor alongside between two boats with very little room to manoeuvre.

Next stop was back to Khalkis to meet Dave Stanley who was flying in to Athens to join us........

We anchored in Atalanta bay and then moved across to behind the island as the wind and swell came in. From there we continued north and anchored off the village of St George - again the only boat there other than the local fishing boats.

The village of St Georges

The church in the centre of the village. While we were here we met a couple from London (she was Greek and he was South African) who should have been getting married here today - another wedding postponed.

Love the health and safety in Greece!
Nice secure hand rails but a bit of a trip hazard at the top!

Sign seen on the way to the fuel station

Morning expedition ashore by dinghy and walk along the coast to the fuel station to pick up diesel and petrol - glad we have the shopping trolleys!

Stop off for iced coffee on the way back

Next stop was a rather roly but deserted anchorage in the south western corner of the Gulf of Volos

The town of Achillion

Jetty made of tree trunks and slats from a pallet - bit Heath Robinson but it works - for now!

Huge boulders of marble used as a breakwater

Anti-aircraft gun - Not something you usually come across on a town square!

A quiet spot in a very quiet town for ouzo and meze.

We met Dimitris, a very friendly retired local fisherman who chatted for a while, insisted we had three tomatoes out of his shopping and recommended we go to his friend's taverna at our next stop - he would contact him and let him know we were coming!

Knowing that there was bad weather coming in, we moored alongside a concrete jetty tucked into the bay on the small island of Palaio Trikeri in the south east of the gulf. Here we should be sheltered from the predicted north easterly winds.

A walk up to the top of the island took us to the monastery, seen here beyond the old olive groves.

The front view of the monastery and the resident cats outside

A mauve stinger jellyfish seen swimming past - I am definitely not going in there!

Once a week the taxi boat which was continually crossing from the island here to the mainland, brought across a couple and their fruit and veg stall. Then I think, the entire population (20 in winter, 30 in summer) came to stock up for the week. As you can see it was set out and filled the narrow pontoon next to the boat but, amazingly no one fell in - not even an orange rolled off the edge!

A visit to Dimitris' friend, Nikos' taverna - no shops just two tavernas on the island. Apparently Dimitris had phoned him twice to see if we had been yet.

A Tsipouro and meze included sea urchins which we had never tried before but were very tasty - a bit like crab - just don't touch the shells!

Tsipouro is an un-aged brandy, typical of this region and is made from either the pomace - the residue of the wine press - or from the wine after the grapes and juice have been separated. It can be plain or aniseed flavour which we had and tastes like strong ouzo.

The day the hurricane hit Greece. Thank goodness we were this side of the country and not in our usual Ionian islands. There they recorded winds of 120knts and there were many wrecked and sunken boats - we were so lucky to be on the edge of it but still it was wild, wet and windy. Torrential rain caused a lot of flooding, breaking bridges and even destroying a hospital nearby.

The not-so-sunny side of Greece.

Here you can see the wind churning up the water outside of the bay but fairly calm in here - just swell coming in and hitting the back of boat as well as being lashed by wind and rain.

Luckily not too much damage here - the corner of the roof torn and the steel holder for the umbrella snapped off. Plants and shelf units had to be fished out of the water and the pole holding the lights up smashed on the quay. The rib in front of us and the small fishing boats had to be bailed out but all survived.