MARCH 18-22 THREE ATTEMPTS TO REACH MONEMVASIA
MARCH 18-22 THREE ATTEMPTS TO REACH MONEMVASIA
On my birthday March 18 I decided to offer myself the gift of passing from Poros to Monemvasia in one day that would be a nice exploit to be proud of. My plan was to sail on the north side of Hydra while the strong south winds were blowing in the morning and emerge at the west end onto the open sea towards Monemvasia when the winds were forecast to turn and decrease in the afternoon to make it late to the port. It did not work quite like that. First in the Hydra straight I faced head winds and had to tack a few times delaying my advancement and then the south winds continued pushing me past Spetses to the Fokianos protected bay on the Peloponnese coast from where I would restart my route the next morning.
On the 19th I started with very little wind that increased gradualy from the south west to reach force 6 in the open sea while the wall of very vertical mountains that form the east coast of the Peloponnese were gradually covered with menacing clouds indicating katabatic winds. So when I could see the hill of Monemvasia at 15 miles I did not dare approach the port against winds that could easily become force 9 at the foot of the mountains. Only solution: turn back to the next port that was Spetses some 6 hours away. Fast, rough sailing, skirting a couple of local storms 'Bourinia' and finally arriving in Spetses under a Bourini that drenched me while doing the anchoring manouvers. Bad luck again, not knowing the ports of Spetses well, I decided to anchor in the area between the old and new port and go straight to sleep. The port police made me understand by flashing their car lights on the sailboat than I was in the wrong place and as l verified by calling their office phone I was too close to the dock of the local ferry and I had to move to the old port. It was past midnight when I finally went to bed exhausted. The next day the winds were prohibitive so I was able to rest for a day.
The third attempt was successful and I sailed with medium south west winds, to arrive late that night in Monemvasia. I moored on the east dock and went straight to sleep. Fortunately at 3 in the morning a local fisherman woke me up flashing his lights and honking to tell me to move else where because the east wind that was coming would send waves over the wall and cover my boat. Local fishermen are the greatest store of knowledge. Next morning I took pictures of the killer waves spraying over the exact place where I had docked in the night. We became friends with the fisherman in the morning when he came back to say hello.
The weather forecasts were forbidding any progress in the next three days and it was doubtful I could even try the following days. At the same time it was announced that the Corinth canal would reopen on March 26, so we decided with Hary, Kaliopi's father, that he would bring the oil the next day to Monemvasia and I would then sail back and pass through the gulf of Corinth, faster and safer compared to sailing by the south and west of the Peloponnese.
On my birthday March 18 I decided to offer myself the gift of passing from Poros to Monemvasia in one day that would be a nice exploit to be proud of. My plan was to sail on the north side of Hydra while the strong south winds were blowing in the morning and emerge at the west end onto the open sea towards Monemvasia when the winds were forecast to turn and decrease in the afternoon to make it late to the port. It did not work quite like that. First in the Hydra straight I faced head winds and had to tack a few times delaying my advancement and then the south winds continued pushing me past Spetses to the Fokianos protected bay on the Peloponnese coast from where I would restart my route the next morning.
On the 19th I started with very little wind that increased gradualy from the south west to reach force 6 in the open sea while the wall of very vertical mountains that form the east coast of the Peloponnese were gradually covered with menacing clouds indicating katabatic winds. So when I could see the hill of Monemvasia at 15 miles I did not dare approach the port against winds that could easily become force 9 at the foot of the mountains. Only solution: turn back to the next port that was Spetses some 6 hours away. Fast, rough sailing, skirting a couple of local storms 'Bourinia' and finally arriving in Spetses under a Bourini that drenched me while doing the anchoring manouvers. Bad luck again, not knowing the ports of Spetses well, I decided to anchor in the area between the old and new port and go straight to sleep. The port police made me understand by flashing their car lights on the sailboat than I was in the wrong place and as l verified by calling their office phone I was too close to the dock of the local ferry and I had to move to the old port. It was past midnight when I finally went to bed exhausted. The next day the winds were prohibitive so I was able to rest for a day.
The third attempt was successful and I sailed with medium south west winds, to arrive late that night in Monemvasia. I moored on the east dock and went straight to sleep. Fortunately at 3 in the morning a local fisherman woke me up flashing his lights and honking to tell me to move else where because the east wind that was coming would send waves over the wall and cover my boat. Local fishermen are the greatest store of knowledge. Next morning I took pictures of the killer waves spraying over the exact place where I had docked in the night. We became friends with the fisherman in the morning when he came back to say hello.
The weather forecasts were forbidding any progress in the next three days and it was doubtful I could even try the following days. At the same time it was announced that the Corinth canal would reopen on March 26, so we decided with Hary, Kaliopi's father, that he would bring the oil the next day to Monemvasia and I would then sail back and pass through the gulf of Corinth, faster and safer compared to sailing by the south and west of the Peloponnese.