Scenes through a Sunsail Window

The comment from Navionics about suggestions and ideas for updates to their iPhone charting application has got all sorts of mental cogs wizzing away, with sketches of screens, interactions, fields, parameters, etc etc to make it just what any offshore sailor would want, but alas these are still at the moment scribbles in a day book.

So today will just post these three pictures, which I'm calling Scenes through a Sunsail Window.

Basically while on holiday in Greece I'd look out of the little window each morning, and sometimes like the picture above we'd be moored all by ourselves and so just see the sea.

Other times we'd be moored stern too with other boats so could see them:

While at Skopelos was woken at dawn by this great big ferrry!

Aegean Mini Pilot: Pigadhi

Its the final day of the sailing blogs review group writing challenge, and its also the last of these mini pilots from the Greek Aegean. For those wanting more, you could check out the cruising wiki site here though it seems a bit out of date and the Orei page doesn't mention the magnificent marble bull.

The final port of call was the fishing village of Pigadhi on the mainland and an easy sail to the Sunsail base. Maybe because of that it seems all geared up for the many flotillas that find it a conveniently easy short day sail (as in this write up in the Daily Telegraph travel section).

As you turn into the bay in which it nestles as in the Navionics chart picture above, you can check where you are going the right way with two convenient landmarks.

Firstly there is a rectangular tower on the top of the hill to the left: this commemorates the local legend that Pigadhi is where Achilles left to fight the Trojan war. Secondly on the headland to the right there is what is known as Toad Rock:

Hmmm.. could be a bunny rabbit as well.

Pigadhi itself is a small fishing village, basic rather than pretty. Maybe because of the regular visits from the flots it didn't feel like it had to make much of an effort.

Yes a local did rush out to help with our lines, but there was a clear quid pro quo in that he just happened to be the owner of a taverna, and a taverna with a big Sunsail! flag, and with menu order forms conveniently labelled with boat name (useful for the larger flots).

And the food wasn't that great, either in range on the menu or quality when it turned up.

It was a winding down, tomorrow's the last day sort of place.

Summary

Harbour fees: none

Rating: *****

Best bit: er..... hmmm.... let me get back to you on that one.

Aegean Mini Pilot: Skopelos Town

Skopelos is a movie star sort of town. Actually it really is, being yet another of the places that was used as sets by the (in)famous Mamma Mia!

It really is very pretty, where the paint salesman asks whether you want your house painted in white or, er, white. And the pretty, white, houses are stacked up a hill, with lots of little alley ways between them.

And to make it even prettier there are churches. Lots of churches. In fact there are meant to be 123 churches and chapels in Skopelos!

Anyhow some pilot stuff. The port is very well protected against wind from every direction, with hills on most side, down which Katabatic winds come pouring down. But only for a short time, as always in Greece it quietened down in the evening.

There is a long quay side which gives plenty of room for a full flotilla plus the odd boat like us to get in with plenty of space for others. There are also protected anchorages where a big Oyster 65 decided to keep well away from us plebs: they even had staff in uniform with a tender to woosh the guests in for dinner.

And thats a very good idea - the dinner bit I mean - as there are lots of lovely bars and tavernas in this really amazingly pretty town:

The only down side for me was at this point my sea urchin embedded foot was beginning to say Oi! You! Stop walking, swallow a bucket of paracetemol and go to bed!

Fab town though.

Summary

Harbour fees: there were some! For our 423 it was maybe all of 2 Euros

Rating: *****

Best bit: The view from the bar we found (see pic above)

Aegean Mini Pilot: Steni Vala

We weren't sure how far we'd get and at one point almost stopped at Patitiri, but it looked too busy and not that attractive so pushed on to Steni Vala and we were so glad we had.

Steni Vala is a lovely little harbour half way up Alonissos with almost nothing there. In the Navionics chart above all you can see is that there is a submarine cable marked. It's almost as if its their secret hideaway and they want to keep it like that.

To be fair there really isn't that much there: a concrete quay side with mooring rings, a couple of tavernas, a few bars, a couple of shops, and thats it.

Oh, not quite: there are a couple of paths out, like the one below that takes you over a headland to a beach with crystal clear water.

And the tavernas and bars were just right: great food, friendly staff, so we had lovely fried battered cougettes, more sea food and chips and then headed off for a night cap beer under the stars at the bar at the far end.

I'm guessing it might get a bit packed if more than a few boats head in there. There were only a few while we were there, including a Sunsail cat with four young Italian couples who wore swimwear all the time - so "ciao" to them.

Three words of warning:

1) There are rocks close to the quay that mean the depth guage can be misleading. We parked so that the rudder was just over this lump that we bounced on once or twice and had to move out a few metres. But the water is very clear so you can look under the hull to see them

2) The water maybe lovely clear but there are sea urchins there too!

3) The bars mix a mean gin and tonic.

Steni Vala was our favourite stop anywhere, even with sea urchins.

Just look at this water....

Summary

Harbour fees: none

Rating: *****

Best bit: Steni Vala was the best bit

Aegean Mini Pilot: Koukounaries

After Orei we next stopped at Koukounaries on the south coast of Skiathos. It's main claim to fame is is apparently "one of the top ten beaches of the world", so you'd have thought it would be a good place to stop.

Alas we were not that impressed. Firstly there was the problem of where to park - check out the chart extract above from Navionics. The harbour was tiny and of the limited space about half was taken up by fishing boats, while the rest during the day is taken up by day tripper tourist boats.

As they leave in the evening there was a rather inelegant rush to get one of the two or three berths along side the quay. We decided not to join the scrum and anchored off the south side with shore line wrapped round a lamp post.

It was rather exposed especially to the south and alas that was not only where the wind was coming from but also a mysterious tsumani like short burst of swell (probably from one of those fast ferry cats passing by way out to sea).

It felt very dramatic as the yacht bounced up and down and waves crashed onto the rocks but a quick check of the depth guage showed we went from an even 2m under the keel to ranging between 1.8 and 2.2 m.

Not knowing when it might hit us again we decided laying the kedge as well would be a good idea:

After all the day trippers had gone home the bay quietened down considerably and it was time to check out the famous beach.

While we had our faithful Nemo to hand, but of course to one who will happily jump into piranha or sea urchin infested waters there was clearly a better way to get to shore.

The water was lovely and clear and it was noticable how much warmer it got the closer in we swam.

But when we got there it was just another beach, with a slightly forlorn, deserted feel to it: empty sunbeds, closed stalls and sun shades angled at random.

So it was back to the boat for dinner on board while the sun set and the stars came out.

Summary

Harbour fees: none

Rating: *****

Best bit: the peace and quiet in the evening after the day trippers have gone

Aegean Mini Pilot: Orei

First of a series of reviews of the places visited in the Sunsail bareboat sailing trip, which I'm calling a mini Pilot as aspire to a Pilot Book level of detail but alas only have a time to type a few paragraphs. But hopefully they will be of use to someone nethertheless.

Anyhow starting off with the chart above, thanks to the Navionics iPhone app. As you can see there is good shelter when winds come from most directions apart from the south-west, and when we were trying to get in there was a thunder and lightening (very very frightening) coming from the - you guessed it - the south west. Our first two goes at mooring up were the stuff that is more fun to watch than execute.

However as happens most of time the clouds blew by leaving a nice sunset and we were soon walking along the quayside.

Orei isn't a particularly pretty town: more workmanlike than picture postcard. However there is a nice pedestrianised stretch of road by the water's edge with many tavernas and comfy chairs that tempt the passer by to linger over more than a few glasses.

We were promised a good (as in cheap) supermarket but think the "super" is over doing it as it wasn't much different from the stores at the other places we went to. It was however definitely cheaper than the shop by the Sunsail flotilla base, and they threw in a six-pack of water bottles free.

The supermarket can be found behind the church (the northerly one on the chart above) which is pleasant rather than amazing and there was a service just finishing as we walked by so heard some nice Greek Orthdox plain chant.

The best reason to go to Orei is the Hellenistic statue of a bull (below) which is on display in a glass and wood display just next to the church.

It is a full size marble bull full of lovely details that dates from the 4th Century BC, and was dredged up from the harbour.

Summary

Harbour fees: none

Rating: *****

Best bit: the marble bull so if that doesn't float your boat go elsewhere.

Review: Bareboat Sailing with Sunsail in the Greek Aegean

After the last sailing blog group exercise of thinking up sailor-changing-light-bulb jokes (to which my answers were none, none, and none) - its on to the next which is to write a review. Pretty much any post can be made into a review (e.g. the sunset here tonight gets ***** i.e. 3 stars out a possible 5) however that is not much use to the general reader.

But having just got back from a Sunsail bareboat charter in the Aegean, that might be of interest to those who are thinking of doing the same. So here it goes, looking at flight out, the boat, water and wildlife, islands and towns, the weather, and an overall score.

1. Flight Out *****

The flight was with Thompson and was pretty awful. Firstly there's the lack of leg room which means that anyone over 6 feet are forced to sit bolt upright to avoid grazing their knees on the seat in front. At which point the head rest is pretty irrelevant and so you'll end up dozing with a crick in your neck.

Also there is a proper meal for some but they don't tell you if it's you until it arrives towards the end of the flight - after they've gone around selling sandwiches. So you can take pot luck and hope you are one of the "lucky" ones with a microwaved in-flight reconstructed meat or play it safe and buy some of their sandwiches or do as we do and buy a sandwich and regret it as to full to do more than poke at the unwanted plastic tray afterwards.

You arrive at the tiny airport at Skiathos where there is only room to park 3 aircraft and the island is only just big enough for the runway so take off and landing are interesting (the pic above is of another charter company that took and landed at London Gatwick with 15 minutes of us).


2. The Boat *****

We had a Oceanis 423 which was very comfy with three large double cabins and three heads so that was pretty much en-suite. There was a good bimini, huge fridge and well stocked kitchen (ok, it had the most important thing which was a cafetiere). No choice of sails - just main with 3 reefs and furling headsail. There was a single reasonable sized wheel with throttle nicely placed on pedestal so could easily manoeuvre her forward and backwards. The on deck chart plotter was rather cool though to be honest rather unnecessary given the distances sailed.

There was one big failing, which was that the anchor chain was not the right size for the windlass which was totally rubbish as meant couldn't get the anchor in as the chain kept slipping and had to resort to manually pulling it up. We guessed that someone had lost the anchor and chain and Sunsail had just put one on that was close but that's really not acceptable given how important an anchor is, hence the one star less.

There were some minor things which bugged me but everyone else just shrugged there shoulders:
- If you have GPS and DSC it makes sense to connect them up - after all it is a lot more useful if you hit the DSC button if people know where you are rather than just "there is a boat in trouble somewhere in VHF range". However the Sunsail rep and my two ex flot sailing friends didn't seem that bothered
- The instruments didn't have a lot of the numbers needed while racing like true wind angle & speed let alone VMG. Ok, this is a relaxing cruising holiday but it can be fun to play around with trim...... ok it is fun for an ex-racer!


3. Water and Wildlife *****

Again pretty good: the water was lovely and crystal clear and we were treated to dolphins playing around the bow. If you looked under the water at the harbour you could almost always see lots of fish of a range of sizes.

The one star is taken off as didn't see a huge amount, though maybe if we'd gone further into the national park we'd have seen more. For example we saw a hut where we could learn more about seals - but alas it was closed and we didn't see any.


4. Islands and Towns *****

It was lovely sailing - a number of islands with pretty little Greek villages, all white painted with Greek Orthodox churches scattered around like pebbles and rows of tavernas along the water front with fresh local food. You'd see fishermen out catching the dinner for tomorrow, and go behind the counter with the taverna owner to select your fish and haggle over price.

There were antiquities if you are interested (though not that many) and clubs for those of that nature (well is Skiathos anyhow). And unlike the Ionian it wasn't crowded out - we could always get into which ever harbour we wanted.

Lovely - really can really recommend it as a sailing area.


5. Wind and Weather *****

Mostly ok. The pattern was for no wind first thing in the morning, then gentle, then around 4 - 5 ish in the afternoon it would really blow for an hour or so, sometimes with exciting storms with thunder and lightening (some on our boat used words other than exciting).

After the blow it would settle down and by late evening it would be quiet again. However we learnt that mooring up time was often "interesting" and it can be useful to get in earlier or wait outside till the wind drops (which it will).

We did once put in a reef when it was F5 or something but to be honest if anything felt we could have done with a bit more wind, though again it might depend upon temperament.

The only annoying time was the day we had a nice blow but it was directly on our nose all day long and it was a very long leg so we couldn't afford to tack tack tack hence motored. Boring.


6. Overall *****

There were some niggles - the flight and the anchor / windlass problem springs to mind - but there were minor. The price off season was particularly good, so we paid about half what the Sunsail web site is currently quoting for August. Though of course you with children at school will probably be muttering at this point, so what can I say but sorry.

In general very happy with the package and would be happy to sail with them again.

Swimming Story: Nemo and the Sea Urchin

A bit late in the day to add to the host of swimming posts, but here is a story from the Greek sailing holiday: Nemo and the Sea Urchin.

One day we were leaving a wonderful little bay in which there was not much more than a few tavernas, and which was filled with spectacular clear water, when the inflatable somehow became detached from our yacht.

The girls on our boat had previously worked for one of the big sailing companies running flotillas (or "flots") in the Ionian, and it is fair to say this is not the first time this had happened to them or one of their guests.

Indeed it was such a common thing that the whole "where's the inflatable got to?" had turned into a catch phrase - they were off "finding Nemo".

So soon all inflatables were nick-named "Nemo" and ours was no exception. In this case it wasn't hard to find Nemo, as the bay was very small and the wind had drifted him (hmm.... calling a boat a "him" - interesting) between another yacht and a fishing boat.

It being a hot day, the water tempting, and being known as one to jump into the water at a moments notice (even when piranha infested) I of course was in my swimming trunks and jumping to the back of the boat before you could say "is that engine in neutral?"

It didn't take long to swim over to Nemo, grab his leash and then there's the question of how to get in.

Alas the brilliant idea the brain came up with at this point was to swim to the quay side, just a few metres away, and then jump from that into the boat.

All went er... swimmingly (groan, sorry) ... and was soon rowing the boat in triumph back to the yacht and we were on our way.

Except.... hey guys.. I'm bleeding!

For alas getting to the quay side I had stepped on a sea urchin, and now my foot was looking like a pin cushion.

Over the next few days we tried every possible way to get them out, from soaking in salt water, to ammonia, to tweezers, to pins, to digging with nail cutters, till earlier this week my GP announced there were only a few left and they should eventually dissolve.

The moral of this story is that in places where there are sea urchins and you find yourself moved by the urge to leap into water - and please do, its wonderful - it doesn't matter if you do or do not wear your costume, but please remember those shoes!

ps - if you do alas find black bits of sea urchin spine broken off in your foot there's some great advice here about what to do.

Sailing in Greece - Video of playing dolphins

Click here to see in HD on YouTube.

Sailing in Greece - Ionion vs Aegean

None of us on the boat had sailed the Aegean sea before.

We had all at one time or other sailed in the Ionian sea - myself once about twenty years ago a few few years ago while "the girls" as they were known had both worked as flottila skippers there for a season or two for one of the big sailing holiday firms.

And to be honest none of us would go back as it was just what a sailing holiday in Greece should be. Isolated bays or little harbours with white painted houses, mooring up with plenty of spaces just along side a row of tavernas, good food, local fish from the clear waters.

Ok it was at its best, being warm yet not high season as the schools hadn't broken for the long summer break. But in the Ionian even at this time of year the marinas would have been packed.

For the record the route below was about 160 nautical miles and we stopped at Oreoi, Koukounaries, Steni Vala, Skopelos and Pigadhion.

Sailing in Greece - what and where

This is the boat we were sailing. No, not that one (which is for sale - check the sign), the one on the right (which is for sail - groan, sorry about that).

It was an Oceanis 423 with three double cabins and three heads, and I had an on-suite all to myself which is just plain decadant after previous hot bunking in cot bunks.

And we didn't even do any overnight passages nor needed a watch system. Felt a bit like a holiday!

Ok, it was a holiday.

It was a Sunsail bareboat in the Greek Aegean sea, and we pottered around the islands as in this Google Earth pic:

Mamma Mia Sailing

This picture comes from the film (movie to you non Brits) Mamma Mia! which has become the best selling movie (film to you Brits) in the UK.

It managed that feat despite being loathed by about half the population, for I've yet to meet anyone who is male and liked it. Phrases like "ghastly" and "worst film I've ever seen" are typically what they will say, and I count myself fortunate to not have been dragged to see it.

But there clearly are those that differ, and in particular the female film goer.

I'm not entirely clear about the plot, but understand its some form of Rom-com around the songs of Abba, and was originally a musical. One thing I do know about it is that it was filmed in Greece, and in particular around the islands of Skopelos and Skiathos, which was where we went sailing last week.

A host of posts to come, which will aim to avoid the "Sailed to Skopelosseloss. Moored up. Had dinner. It was fantastic...." bla bla bla.

But there will be the story of Nemo (as in the finding of) and the sea urchin, plus some playing dolphins, thunder and lightening (very very frightening), and selection of pics.