Saturday, 16 September 2017
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
First Video Uploaded
Uploaded the first video from the holiday tonight. This one is a collection of shots I took using the drone. I am planning on doing another video in the next week that will include footage from all of the cameras we used.
Tuesday, 5 September 2017
Photo collection
I have created a Flikr group so that people can share their photos if they wish. I went for Flikr as it allows the photos to be downloaded at the maximum resolution and doesn't change them like Facebook does.
You will need to set up a Flikr account if you don't have one to contribute but its free. Upload the pictures to your account and then add them to the group. I have put all of our photos in there. The URL is https://www.flickr.com/groups/ionianflotilla2017/
You will need to set up a Flikr account if you don't have one to contribute but its free. Upload the pictures to your account and then add them to the group. I have put all of our photos in there. The URL is https://www.flickr.com/groups/ionianflotilla2017/
Sunday, 3 September 2017
Day Fourteen
After some breakfast we all took a walk up the hill to the
town to be rewarded by some fantastic views of the bay and the distant Skorpios
island. I was itching to get back to the
yacht as today was the last chance to get some shots of the yacht using the
drone whilst it had it sails up and I wanted to do it before the wind picked
up. I had left it to the last day just in case, it was do or die. As soon as we were out of the harbour we got
the sails up and I launched the drone out of my hand standing on the back. I had originally planned to use the circle
function of the drone but I was getting some decent video with manual control
so left it at that. Once I had the shots
I needed I brought the drone to the back of the yacht and then tried to match
the speed so I could reach out and grab it.
Thankfully all went well.
We were off to Nidri today, our final destination. It was only a short journey, around 6
Nautical Miles so decided to take our time and just take it really slowly and
hug the coast. It was refreshing to be able
go slow and not have to rush somewhere and just enjoying our surroundings.
We were the first to get to the hotel Iris in Nidri and we
moored up and Diane made a bread based pizza with some of our remaining food
supplies. When we were finished the lead
boat had arrived and said we were ok to go and use the Hotel. Amy went off to explore the pool while we cleaned the yacht for a bit and then went to join her.
We spent the afternoon by the hotel pool unwinding, enjoying cocktails
from the pool bar and reflecting on what a great holiday it has been. It was good to have the hotel as a base as
the water around where we were moored was slimy and full of jelly fish.
That evening the lead boat had organised a final farewell
group BBQ. A fantastic way to get
everyone together on the last night, lots of reminiscing of tales past and a
bit of somberness about the impending dread of back to normality, work and
school runs. During the meal we had an
award ceremony where the boats where awarded trophies for things like Dancing
King, Man Overboard, Best Parking and we picked up the trophy for Wildlife
spotting due to the two turtle sightings and the dolphin sighting. The drinking and socialising went on until
the early hours. We said our goodnights
around midnight to get an already tired Amy off to bed.
Friday, 1 September 2017
Day Thirteen
We decided that we would head towards Spartahori on Meganisi Island. We had a choice of a few destinations but this place looked beautiful and on the quieter side. Several of the other boats on the flotilla also had chosen this destination so we knew we wouldn't be alone. We didn't leave Fiskardo until around 11.20, this was due to a lot of anchor issues with the flotilla. We ended up leaving our kedge anchor lodged in the harbor and marked with a fender as the lead crew couldn't retrieve it when the rush was on for everyone to get out in the morning. They said they would collect it before they left and pass it onto us tomorrow when we all meet up at our final destination of Nidri tomorrow.
About 30 minutes into our journey we were very excited to see dolphins, we frantically tried to grab some video footage but unfortunately they kept popping up in different places and for the briefest of moments.
As the day went on the wind steadily increased and we reached a top speed of 8.9 knots on a beam reach which wasn't as tippy and everyone was enjoying the increased pace.
Just short of Spartahori we found a nice little sheltered spot and anchored up for a quick swim.
As we made our way into Spartahori we spotted Gerry waiting for us,. Gerry owned the local taverna and was very calm in helping us moor between two other boats.
Spartahori is an absolutely perfect little harbor. One harbor side restaurant, one beach side cocktail bar, a safe little sand and pebble beach and a short walk to a lovely village. We like Spartahori.
We ate a Gerry's in the evening and made the most of a wonderful sunset in the bay. A perfect free sail day. We even found a great use for the Avon Skin So Soft that we had bought with us a mosquito repellent. It works great as a lubricant to stop a squeaking mooring ring.
About 30 minutes into our journey we were very excited to see dolphins, we frantically tried to grab some video footage but unfortunately they kept popping up in different places and for the briefest of moments.
As the day went on the wind steadily increased and we reached a top speed of 8.9 knots on a beam reach which wasn't as tippy and everyone was enjoying the increased pace.
Just short of Spartahori we found a nice little sheltered spot and anchored up for a quick swim.
As we made our way into Spartahori we spotted Gerry waiting for us,. Gerry owned the local taverna and was very calm in helping us moor between two other boats.
Spartahori is an absolutely perfect little harbor. One harbor side restaurant, one beach side cocktail bar, a safe little sand and pebble beach and a short walk to a lovely village. We like Spartahori.
We ate a Gerry's in the evening and made the most of a wonderful sunset in the bay. A perfect free sail day. We even found a great use for the Avon Skin So Soft that we had bought with us a mosquito repellent. It works great as a lubricant to stop a squeaking mooring ring.
Fiskardo
Dolphins.... honest
Swim stop
Spartahori
Thursday, 31 August 2017
Day Twelve
After the 9.30 briefing I went to get a few drone shots of Agia Evfimia before we set off. There wasn't much wind again in the morning so we headed off on the motor. The sea was incredibly calm, a stark contrast to yesterday. The destination for the day was Fiskardo. We headed north towards a bay on the West side of Ithaki for a swimming stop. We managed to get the anchor down to free swing in the bay. There was a lot more fish here than we had seen so far but seemed to be fairly limited in type and size.
At around 2.30 we left the bay, the wind had picked up and we got some great sailing in. We had to be in at 4.00 today and it was a shame to leave all that wind and come in. The water was fairly flat today and there was some really nice gusts to get our lean on. We had to queue to get in as the harbor was very busy, the lead crew did a great job of getting everyone in again. We are moored stern too with the bow anchor down and a long line attached to some rocks.
We were told of some caves near by, so we got our water shoes and torches and took the tender to explore. We drove the tender into the cave and moored up just inside on a rocky beach. We followed a pathway through the caves for about 5 minutes. There were large caverns with bats on the ceiling and it was completely pitch black in side.
We took the tender into this evening for a cocktail briefing and then came back to the yacht for some food. Tomorrow is a free sail day and will be the first time we are arriving at a destination without the lead crew.
Agia Evfimia
Swim stop
Cliff jumping near the cave
Wednesday, 30 August 2017
Day Eleven
Woke up this morning and the forecast of the thunderstorms had disappeared. It was still gusting a bit of breeze but the forecast for the day sounded like we may get some good sailing in. We went for the briefing to be told our destination for the day was Agia Evfimia on the island of Kefalonia. Even though it was a bit breezy I chanced some cheeky drone time to try and get some pictures of the sailing holidays raft and the super yacht that was still anchored from the night before.
In anticipation of a choppy day we closed all the windows, threw the paddle board inside the yacht and put the life jackets under the cabin seats just in case. When we got out of the harbor the wind was there although it was coming from the direction we wanted to go. We had plenty of time so we put the sails up and started to sail. The swell was quite big and the boat was getting tossed up and down on the waves. Sailing was frustrating, there wasn't quite enough wind to go fast enough, it kept swirling and changing direction and we weren't making much progress upwind. As it wasn't enjoyable after about an hour we gave up and powered onwards. The swell made everyone feel a bit sick and going was slow.
Once we had rounded the southern tip of Ithaki the swell started to ease and as we closed in on our destination we had a few good enjoyable runs.
Agia Evfimia has everything you need close at hand, bakery, ice cream shop, supermarket, shops and tavernas all right next to where we have moored up. As I sit typing this at 23:40 the music is blasting out form the bars through the open hatches on the yacht.
The lead crew had organised a punch party for us which went down really well with everyone and made for a thoroughly enjoyable evening.
In anticipation of a choppy day we closed all the windows, threw the paddle board inside the yacht and put the life jackets under the cabin seats just in case. When we got out of the harbor the wind was there although it was coming from the direction we wanted to go. We had plenty of time so we put the sails up and started to sail. The swell was quite big and the boat was getting tossed up and down on the waves. Sailing was frustrating, there wasn't quite enough wind to go fast enough, it kept swirling and changing direction and we weren't making much progress upwind. As it wasn't enjoyable after about an hour we gave up and powered onwards. The swell made everyone feel a bit sick and going was slow.
Once we had rounded the southern tip of Ithaki the swell started to ease and as we closed in on our destination we had a few good enjoyable runs.
Agia Evfimia has everything you need close at hand, bakery, ice cream shop, supermarket, shops and tavernas all right next to where we have moored up. As I sit typing this at 23:40 the music is blasting out form the bars through the open hatches on the yacht.
The lead crew had organised a punch party for us which went down really well with everyone and made for a thoroughly enjoyable evening.
Vathi
Yacht in swell
Punch Party
Tuesday, 29 August 2017
Day Ten
This morning the briefing was at Georges restaurant where we ate last night so we indulged in a hot breakfast whilst listening to the lead crew tell us where our next adventure would be. We were bound for Port Vathi, a small town on the island of Ithaka. We set off heading for an island about half way called Nisos Atoko. On the way Amy spotted another turtle, we circled around it and got ready to jump in but this one wasn't having any of it and dove below the surface before we got get any decent pictures. At Nisos Atoko we moored up at One House Bay which was aptly named due to the number of houses there. Here we had a play with the paddle board and did some more snorkeling. I got chance to fly the drone again. Just as we were about to leave Amy noticed a couple of small jelly fish near the boat so we tried to get a few shots using the selfie stick from the tender.
After a bit of lunch we set off again. On the 2nd leg of the journey the wind picked up and we reached around 8.2 knots and got a bit of a lean going on. The wind was fairly steady so it was an enjoyable experience.
We arrived in Port Vathi at around 4.30. We had been told we were to build a miniature raft and sail it in the flotilla raft race at 7 so we set about making a raft out of mainly a wooden fruit crate we had picked up that morning and some other bits of rubbish we had laying around. Come 7 o'clock everyone presented their rafts. The rafts were taken out about 50m from shore and let loose.
Tonight as the wind was still about and it was cooler than most nights we decided to eat on the yacht. As we ate our dinner a massive supper yacht moored in the bay about 100m away and we got a good view of the side of it opening up to reveal a launch which was winched out of the boat and then drove to the back to pick up a few people and whisk then to town.
Possible storms for part of tomorrow so we shall see what that brings.
After a bit of lunch we set off again. On the 2nd leg of the journey the wind picked up and we reached around 8.2 knots and got a bit of a lean going on. The wind was fairly steady so it was an enjoyable experience.
We arrived in Port Vathi at around 4.30. We had been told we were to build a miniature raft and sail it in the flotilla raft race at 7 so we set about making a raft out of mainly a wooden fruit crate we had picked up that morning and some other bits of rubbish we had laying around. Come 7 o'clock everyone presented their rafts. The rafts were taken out about 50m from shore and let loose.
Tonight as the wind was still about and it was cooler than most nights we decided to eat on the yacht. As we ate our dinner a massive supper yacht moored in the bay about 100m away and we got a good view of the side of it opening up to reveal a launch which was winched out of the boat and then drove to the back to pick up a few people and whisk then to town.
Possible storms for part of tomorrow so we shall see what that brings.
One House Bay
raft race
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