Holed up in Palumut waiting for the storms to pass over...

Photos:

Matelot and Deep Blue at anchor at Palumut
Richard stealing green almonds
Andy pointing from the top of the hill over Palumut
Andy and Brenda and "Hopeful Hound"


Following is Brenda's letter to all her family and friends which is much better than what I would have written...

This part of the Datça Peninsula is very windswept and sailing round it reminded us of rounding the Lizard. Palamut is a little oasis just off the tip of the peninsula, very sheltered for yachts with a few over-wintering here, including one beautiful wooden boat that is the very one they used in the film Multiluk (Bliss). In the summer they get 25 visiting yachts every day and there is a small waterfront of restaurants and grocery shops. This makes it sound touristic but it is very shanty town – there is a man who sits looking out of the open window of a caravan on this street and he looks like he is selling something. We went to ask what and he said “I sleep here”! A lady lives on the outskirts of the village in a shed made of plywood, guarded by a HUGE dog. Chickens run free and the men sit and smoke. The main industry is Almonds and this week is a special week as the green almonds are just at the stage where they are picked and eaten as a very special delicacy. The nut is jelly and the shell is crunchy, all with a piquant flavour they complement with sugar and chilli. We have been invited to go picking later.

Our second morning in Palumut dawns clear and sunny with light breezes from the north, however inclement weather is forecast for later in the day so we delay our trip to Datca and our check in to Turkey.

We take advantage of the lovely morning and walk uphill through twiggy old thyme bushes with fresh green leaves on them, flowering wild lavender, red anenome flowers and prickly vegetation until we are on top of the hill overlooking the valley filled with almond and olive trees and the marina below. The view is fabulous and we shoot off loads of photos.

That night we go on board Deep Blue to watch a Turkish film called “Mutluluk” which translates to “Bliss” in English. It is a powerful and moving film which unfortunately we do not see the end of because the DVD is scratched. However it does help us to recognise the large green yacht we are moored next to which features in the film which was made in these parts of Turkey.

Thursday brings a freshening southerly and Richard pulls up on our anchor to ensure we are well off the quay behind us. Unfortunately this makes the gangway a little precarious as the boat jobbles around in the wind and it slips on and off the quay. It is fastened to the main halyard with shock cord which keeps it lifted, but will not hold the weight of a person if it slips off the quay while being crossed. We plan a walk to the almond trees this morning and I make it over the gangway, but sad to say although I am holding on to it as much as I can, Richard lingers on it a little too long and as the boat lunges, the gangway falls down into the water taking Richard with it. He manages to save himself on the concrete quay but his thumb and fingers are rather lacerated, so we have to apply some first aid before we continue on our way. Also, his sunglasses have gone into the water below the boat….bummer!

Gastronomically speaking Palumut is a little paradise. The fishermen appear to be constantly on the go hauling in fish but we are not quick enough to buy some and it all very quickly gets spirited away probably to Istanbul or markets closer. Alten tells us the fish are plentiful at this time of the year including large barracuda and swordfish. He also tells us it is time to harvest green almonds – a period of around 2 weeks when the tiny luscious fuzzy fruit form the nut inside. They are harvested and sent to Istanbul and other large markets, where they sell for E10 per kilogram as a popular delicacy eaten either as is, or carefully peeled to expose the delicate nut within which is then served for example with sweet melon and parma ham accompanied by a crisp white wine. We walk along the road gathering a small quantity, munching on them as we go…delicious.

The southerly howls and blows for the remainder of the day and it is precarious getting on and off the boat until Richard rigs up a safety line around the gangway which will take the weight if it comes off the pier with all the movement. The calm when it comes around 11pm is a welcome break until the northerly fills in this morning and now we are having a gale from that direction! However, we do have some success this morning when Richard rows and from the back of the dinghy, Pippy leans over with a snorkel and mask on, head and shoulders under the water, sights the errant sunglasses on the bottom and manages to “sweep” them up to the surface with the long handled broom attached to the boat hook. Brenda is a bit slow with the camera because apparently it is all a bit of a sight – she is much too kind to expose Pippy in that light! The water temperature is 16ºC and the air temp is 12 ºC, so it feels quite warm under there. There are lots of wet clothes to dry out as a result!

We take another big walk today over the hill to the next bay, through almond groves, blossoming trees, wildflowers, past stone walls, old springs and crumbling deserted stone cottages. We have left the dogs Speedy and Leuticia behind in Kos, but are now accompanied by another of their species which we have named Hopeful Hound. She follows us everywhere on our walks and demonstrates her ability to point when she flushes several partridges from the undergrowth along the way.

Tomorrow we may move on to Datça, weather permitting. The forecast until next Wednesday appears to be favourable, so we plan to cruise this coast and arrive in Marmaris around then.

This is SY Matelot signing off for now.