Volos Gulf to Skiathos and back to Khalkis

     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........