Kalyra

I had never heard of Spetses before a friend mentioned anchoring there. We had bypassed it for Porto Chéli. But I looked into it and we decided to take the ferry over instead.

Spetses is like the St Barths of Greece (ironically just featured in Vogue a week before we went). Old money still vacations there, and the clothing stores were lovely but wildly out of my league (we can cruise because I don’t shop in these places).

Nonetheless the town is beautiful and has quite a history. It was here that Laskarina Bouboulina was the only female naval admiral leading battles and supplying ships during the Greek War of Independence in the 19th century. Her home has been turned into a private museum and we got the chance to visit.

As expensive as the shops are in Spetses, it costs nothing to wander the streets admiring the architecture. We walked from the main square down to the old port along the water.

We found a bar with a view of the old port for lunch and sat and admired all the classic yachts at anchor (it turns out we had just missed the Spetses Classic Regatta by two days).

After a slow walk back to town, stopping for ice cream and another drink, it was time to head back to the boat.

What a shock, another night sail! This time we actually did get to sail. With a couple of big tacks to get around Spetses island, and a few reefs to slow us down so we would only come in during daylight hours, we had a great sail to Porto Chéli.

It’s a huge anchorage in a very practical spot – I liken it to a mix between the Great Salt Pond in Block Island and Rockland, Maine. It’s not pretty, but the anchorage is massive and the holding is good. We needed to ride out the edge of a meltemi (strong northerners) and decide what to do next, as our plans for Napflio were being thwarted by all these northerly winds.

We slept in & cleaned up, then I got a text from Steven & Kristy of s/v Dash – berth neighbors that we had last seen 1 1/2 years ago in Montenegro. They were also anchored here, and offered to pick us up later for drinks ashore. Great to catch up with a wonderful couple.

The next day, we dropped off laundry, cleared in with the authorities, had lunch, wandered around a mostly deserted town (it comes alive at night), picked up provisioning, got back to the boat for a swim, and enjoyed dinner in the cockpit. All in all a good day.

We were trying to head north to Napflio, but the winds were constantly coming from the north. Things would at least calm down toward the end of the day, so we’ve been in the pattern of moving early evening and doing shorter runs. Regretfully, on the evening that we left, the wind practically died so we had to motor. Unfortunately the alternator belt snapped two hours in, but I managed to get the boat pointed away from shore, and sailed along at a leisurely half knot pace while Trip got a new belt installed. Luckily there were only two boats in the anchorage of Fokianós when we got there at midnight, so our biggest problem was making out the buoys that mark the swimming zone before we dropped our anchor.

Fokianós is your typical Greek, stony beach with nothing on shore except two tavernas and a cafe. We were there long enough to treat ourselves to two of the best meals we’ve had in Greece, and for the most reasonable prices. During the day we’d swim and rest (brutal heat) and would then paddle in with the kayak for dinner.

It was a couple of lovely, quiet days tucked up in a beautiful anchorage

Another anchorage, another night approach. We had a nice sail from Elafonisós to Cape Maleas. And being a nice day, we had none of the horrid conditions that sailors report in this area (sudden high winds, confused seas). However the westerly winds we had expected never set in and we had to motor the last five hours up to Monemvasia. We arrived with the last scrap of daylight at 9:30pm and crossed our fingers as we dropped the anchor (you can’t see the bottom at this time of day to determine if you’re landing in grass or sand or on a rock). The anchor felt like it dragged just a bit and then set so we were happy, but the next day when I snorkeled I could see we were in weed, so I was happy that we wouldn’t be there during a blow of any sort.

We spent the day in the mainland town of Gefyra (Monemvasia is the high, rocky island connected to the mainland by a narrow causeway). We were doing mundane things like getting our transit log stamped by the authorities, filling up water jerry cans in the abandoned marina, provisioning, and enjoying a coffee and a smoothie on the waterfront. The heat was brutal – it was already reaching 100F, so frequent rests in the shade were a must. By the end of the day we had accomplished everything we needed, and, with the temperature finally dropping, we took the bus from town up to the walled city of Monemvasia for dinner and a stroll around.

In Byzantine days of the 6th century, this town was carved out of rock on the side of the island (now connected by a causeway). It’s considered one of the oldest, continuously inhabited, ‘fortress style’ villages in Europe. It was established when Sparta underwent a raid by the Slavs, and the inhabitants picked up, moved, and founded Monemvasia (apparently not all that uncommon of a thing to do in those days).

There is an upper and a lower town, and we spent an hour or so wandering the lower town and finding a place for dinner. Despite the fact that it was late June, a reservation wasn’t necessary, and it’s still easy to walk into any restaurant with a water view (which is most of them), and get a table on the spot.

The next morning we got up early and caught the first bus up to town, as we wanted to hike to the citadel on the very top of the island, and temperatures promised to be brutal again.

We could hear a violin playing as we climbed the path, only to come upon a man named Nikolaus playing a startlingly pink violin, and his partner, Danae, filming. They’re traveling around Greece for the month and he’s performing in beautiful remote locations for their YouTube channel. It was a hauntingly beautiful way to start the day.

We continued to climb, wondering at the extent of the ruins indicating just how big a fortress existed at such a height. And it was amazing to see the condition that the Hagia Sophia (built in the 12th century) was in, given its age and the fact that it had been a Christian church, a Muslim mosque, a Catholic Church, then a mosque again before being handed back over to the Greeks in the War of Independence.

We continued the climb up to the peak, where ruins of the citadel still stand. From that height we could look back down at Kalyra, still safely sitting there in the anchorage.

The next day, as we headed north, we got the chance to see the city from the water. The lower city and the upper city were easily distinguished along with the fortress walls, and we could truly appreciate both the climb we had made, and the history of this special place.

Laundry is very hit or miss in Greece. I found a reasonable place in Pylos that would wash but not dry for 10 euro a load (a little expensive but not bad). Monemvasia, our next stop charges 3 euro per kilo, so I won’t be doing laundry there. We have to wait till Napflio (where there are self service machines) to do everything.

How do I know? The NoForeignLand app is crowdsourced and it rates everything about anchorages, marinas, clearing in procedures, restaurants, services, and shows me exactly where I’ll be able to do laundry along the way.

Luckily I have plenty of sheets and towels on board, and we both live out of swimsuits and dresses or shorts, so it’s just underwear I do by hand every few days and hang to dry. And fellow cruisers are pretty much used to laundry hanging out to dry on any boat they pass by…

We’ve met so many people along the way that have raved about Elafónisos Island. The water is the purest turquoise, and it’s one of the few places with an actual sand beach (the Med is more famous for rocky beaches). We were headed west, but needed a place to sit out strong winds from a Meltemi, so we decided to check it out.

The location didn’t disappoint. There were several boats already at anchor, but it was easy enough to find a good spot, and the sandy bottom meant good holding when the winds would start to blow.

We took the kayak and paddled ashore to check out one of the tavernas, where we had a tasty lunch in the company of a really chill family of cats.

Then it was back to the boat to enjoy the sunset and prepare for the winds.

When leaving Koroni, what was expected to be a motor (no wind), and then a sail (good wind), started with an unexpected pleasant sail with winds that filled in much earlier than expected. This was followed by motor sailing when we thought we’d have good winds, which in turn was followed by big winds and big seas, which were expected, as we entered the small village of Porto Kagio.

The point of land just below Porto Kagio was considered the mythological end of the world, the entrance to Hades (the afterlife), and it’s the southern-most point of mainland Greece.

Tucked in this anchorage are a handful of hotels (built to look like fortresses that dot the hillside from years of isolated living) and a few restaurants and one bar.

First thing, we needed to repair the mainsail, which Trip had noticed was ripped along the edge. The winds were 20 knots as we had approached the anchorage, not outrageous, but I think the sail is simply tired after a lot of years and miles in sometimes ‘sporty’ conditions. Luckily we keep plenty of repair tape on board, and we only had to take the sail off the mast and not also the boom, so the repair was done somewhat quickly.

After getting the sail sorted, it was time to dinghy into ‘town’. We opted for a walk up the hill to the local bar Spilia. Sipping beer and ouzo soon led to a dinner of hot dogs (we can never resist a hot dog and the Greeks have really tasty sausages) as the sun set.

It had been a little bit of a rolly night with moderate winds (katabatic winds come racing down the saddle between hill tops and hit us with more force than originates on the other side), and we had an opposing swell. We were hobby horsing (dipping front to back) rather than rolling (side to side), but we’re a heavy, full-keeled boat, so it wasn’t that bad. Things had eased up considerably the next day, so we decided to stay one more night. Much to our delight we went from being one of 10 boats in the anchorage to the only one!

We did a little tour around the bay by dinghy, and went past a really cool pair of stone houses that looked like they might once have been fishermen’s homes, but were now summer cottages.

Then it was back ashore to walk a little bit, and to have dinner at one of the restaurants. After dinner it was back to the boat for a drink all by ourselves. Well, one other boat had come in, but dropped anchor way over at the far end of the bay, so it still felt like it was all ours.

Greece is not a difficult place for provisioning, but we have by choice stayed in some anchorages with nothing more than a taverna (if that). I usually keep enough fresh produce on board for a week or so. But I remembered that I could always augment with sprouts (I still have the bag of buckwheat and oat sprouts from neighbor Joanne). I had gone through herbs given to me earlier in the season by cruisers Bev & Simon, but still had the potting soil and container. So I dropped a mixture of seeds in and let them go for a couple of days.

I plant everything together, and the arugula is already the first to pop. It was nice to have a fancy touch of micro greens for my sautéed veggies with feta over polenta.

Founded in ancient times, Koroni has served, along with Methoni, as the eyes of the Venetian Republic. A Byzantine fortress was built on the hills above the town in the 6th century AD. It became most famous during the 13th century under Venetian rule when it became the main stopping point for traders, as well as for pilgrims traveling to and from the holy land. Its popularity continued once it passed to the Ottomans in the 16th century.

For our first night, we treated ourselves to a nice dinner with upscale Greek food at the restaurant Carina, finishing our meal with a glass of aged tsipouro, while gazing up at the fortress.

Koroni is unlike other Greek towns with fortresses, it has homes built right up against the outside walls along the path leading to the fortress gates.

And once inside the fortress walls you quickly realize the interior is still in use. The stone streets are still maintained and there are plots of land, houses still inhabited, and olive groves still tended.

There is one church that is still in use for funerary processions and a beautiful cemetery next to it. However the really special place is the Monastery of Timi Prodromos.

Built in 1918, the monastery is currently inhabited by an order of nuns.

The nuns tend to beautiful gardens and olive orchards. You can buy a number of products made directly within the walls of the monastery. We were excited to find Mirto (made from Myrtle berries), which we had only associated with Sardinia.

Deep inside the walls, there is a path up to the remains of the original castle. The views from the top are amazing – looking down through the village to the anchorage and beyond. From the other side you can look back over the entire monastery.

Coming back down the walkways, there is a path that goes around the base of the fortress. You can see massive remnant chunks of the fortress that have fallen away and the filler that’s been put in place to save the fortress. I had guessed that earthquakes might have caused this damage, but later read that it was caused by an explosion during World War II when the Germans were fleeing (they had used the fortress for much of the war).

Koroni was a really cool little town and we had a great time hanging out there for a few days. We later found out how lucky we were that the winds were in our favor, as other cruising friends had reported bumpy conditions that wouldn’t allow them to get off the boat to visit.

Cruising friends Chris and Christine told us not to miss Finenkounda, and it was only a few miles down the coast from Methoni, so off we went. There’s nothing historical there, it’s simply a really cool small Greek coastal village. We couldn’t resist and stayed a few days.

The water was so clear we didn’t even need to dive to check the anchor – we could see it directly from the bow.

It was hard to know where to leave our dinghy when we came into town, luckily someone was working on his boat and told us to tie up right next to him on the wall.

Town was small but fun to wander, especially at night when things cool off.

A fellow cruiser had recommended snorkeling nearby so we packed our snorkeling gear and took the GoPro to go explore. Amazing rock formations, and lots of fish, there was plenty to entertain us underwater.