Lightshow at Corfu Garitsa
Logbook: 2024.06.21-23 Paxos – Kaliviotis – Corfu / Garitsa
Time to leave Paxos and the beautiful Lakka bay. Wind picks up nicely. No waves and cruising with 5-6 knots. The Jolie FLeur is performing excellent in those conditions, easily leaving behind some fellow (competitor) crews.
Stop over for a night at Kaliviotis beach with an excellent dinner at the Aristos Taverna Kaliviotis.
Looking at my hands, realizing that they get stronger and the soft office skin is gone. Roughed up by pulling ropes and setting anchors. Sailing with its rewards of nice places, good meals and sunsets needs to be earned 🙂
Further on to Korfu Garitsa bay is not the best place to park. Waves from ferries, sometimes it smells like toilet, and the bottom doesn’t provide good hold for the anchor. But it is a large bay and with easy access to the city.
I had to try 5 (!) times to find a suitable spot to anchor. Since the Jolie FLeur is not equipped with a anchor windlass, it is all manual work to set and lift the anchor. The anchor is some 9kg and the chain another is 40 m with some 20 kg or so to lift. My back hurts and the fingers burn. I already hate this place.
When arriving from Albania and doing all the customes paper work, I was told to get a departure stamp from the harbour master befor leaving Greece. So I get the SUP to water, take a 30 min walk at 36C. Sweating. Thirsty. The harbor master “no need for a departure stamp, just leave whenever you like”. Grrrrrrr. Lots of sweat and awful mooring for nothing.
Strolling the city. It’s weekend and the city offers lots of attractions and entertainment. Get some street food and enjoying the busy crowd. With sunset, illumination of some major landmarks and historic buildings provide a different impression. Classic music is played. Also the harbor got colorful, with the larger vessels showing off with underwater lights and the sailboats illuminating the mast.
Planning to sail further north leaving Greece behind. Either to Italy or Croatia. However, needing a window of opportunity to get through the Canale d’Otranto, the straight between Albania and Italy. A narrow passage with the wind getting strongly pushed through, with high waves and lots of traffic. I do have quite some respect of that passage.
Waiting. Currently it looks like in 3 days there is an opportunity for a hop (80nm) to Italy. That will take some 20 hours or so. I will than have to wait another day and on Friday there should be a strong wind right over to Croatia. I intend to stay another day at anchor and than go a day into the Gouvia Marina to fill up fresh water and Diesel.
5h/4h sailing, 19/12 nm
Wind 0-15 kn,W, sun
