There is only one way to cool off when you are at sea!We douse the spinnaker after a 5 hour run from Rhodes with Sam claiming the record top speed of 11.4 knots. Fethiye Korfezi opens out in front of us and we take a turn to port into the enclosed area of Skopea Limani. We motor into the picture postcard pretty and sheltered Kapi Creek for a look, then continue up to Round Bay for a swim. We don’t really like the look of this for an overnight anchorage, so haul up the anchor and head back south to Tomb Bay where we tie stern-to ashore in the NW corner and sit on boat watch while our visitors climb up to the nearby Lycian Tomb for a close encounter with the history of this region.
While they are ashore, the wind freshens only slightly, but it is enough pressure side-on for us to want to pull ourselves out further from the shore, up on the anchor. By the time they all return which is relatively quickly, we are ready to get out of there. We are never comfortable when tied stern-to and cannot understand the popularity of this method of mooring in the Med except in flat calm conditions.
As we head out of beautiful Tomb Bay, we find ourselves in the face of a fresh westerly breeze just right for a night tied up on the pontoon at Wall Bay. We enjoy drinks ashore in the rustic restaurant and a secure and peaceful night on the pontoon, with a walk ashore planned first thing in the morning.
Wall Bay and Matelot on pontoon in the background...
Wednesday 10 July 2009
By 8am we are off the boat and walking in search of the ruins of ancient Lydae which we don’t find. However a visit to the ruins on the water’s edge in Ruin Bay and the sight of Sam and Luke leaping from the top of a tree into the still clear water where Cleopatra once swam, makes for a memorable morning.
Soon we are on our way to Fethiye where we spend two nights swinging at anchor amongst many other boats close to the marina. We enjoy visiting this delightful tourist town and there is a fair bit of stuff ferried back to Matelot. We eat ashore and explore the bazaar, shop and provision. It is very hot and the wind gets up on the second afternoon so we move further up the bay to get off the lee shore. We are soon visited by the Coastguard rib boat with cameras out zeroing in on us. We have noticed an oil slick in the harbour the previous day on arrival and they seem to think we might be the guilty party. We assure them it is not coming from our boat and sit nervously while they hang around for a while. Eventually they go away, and we relax. We are sure it is not Matelot but are very nervous of the huge fines which we have heard can be imposed with very little proof of innocence being noted.
Friday 12 July 2009
Needless to say we are happy to leave Fethiye the next morning for one of our favourite places, Gemmiler Island. We are looking forward to showing this lovely region to our friends. Karen’s mother found some treasure on this island when visiting it a few years ago and hid it there. Karen and the Bullock family go looking for it unsuccessfully and are soon back on board ready to move on. In their absence we have been surrounded by day-tripper boats and it is like Piccadilly Circus. Our lovely anchorage around the corner in Bestas Limani is unfortunately full up so we cannot stop and visit the deserted ancient village of Kayakoy, written about in “Birds Without Wings”.
Saturday 13 July 2009
The boys do some swings from the spinnaker pole into the water as afternoon entertainment... for us all!We spend a peaceful night in Karacaoren Bay before departing early the next morning for a 54 mile sail to Marmaris.
As the afternoon wears on and the wind freshens to a westerly F5 to 6 Beaufort, we reduce down from full main and genoa in several stages to as much reefs as we can do, eventually bringing the sails down and motoring the remaining 5 miles. The sea is steep and we are bashing into it to lay Marmaris eventually arriving at 6.30pm and anchoring off the beach in our usual place.
Sunday 14 July 2009
We spend one night here, then catch up on a few quick emails while the Bullocks visit the bazaar the next morning and enjoy the attentions of a local barber and the atmosphere of Marmaris. Some more provisions are ferried on board and we depart for Ciflick 13.3 NM away.
On arrival the wind is still westerly F5-6. We have not visited this anchorage before and it is truly lovely, however the strong gusts coming off the high hills surrounding it make for a nervous night and not much sleep on board Matelot. When the gusts hit they make an ear splitting noise! Richard is up on deck at 3.00 am putting out another 10m of chain.
We are assuming this wind is the Meltemi which peaks in July and August each year and can reach F7-8 Beaufort. It is now a constant companion each day and night and makes our westing just a little more eventful! We are gradually feeling more confident that swinging at anchor overnight is a good plan. Our 20 Kg Bruce Anchor and plenty of chain (6 or 7 to 1 skope) has so far proved to be a failsafe move. However, we are not yet at the stage when we can sleep through it!
Wednesday 15 July 2009
Simi Harbour is a great favourite with all of us. Karen and Pippy love the designer clothes stores...! Pity about that dress that did not make it on board - the one Karen will always dream about!Today we are going to Simi Harbour 31 NM away. It is going to be a fairly boisterous on the wind sail but with all our crew on board we feel we have the team for it! With various sail combinations, mostly reefed, and winds gusting up to 40 knots, we enjoy the sailing with our very competent crew. We motor the last couple of miles into the welcome shelter of Simi Harbour and tie up stern to the Town Wall in the lee of a huge motor yacht which shelters us nicely from the wind gusting into the harbour. Matelot looks like a very little boat against others nearby. We love the charm of Simi and the reasonable cost to tie up of 6 Euro plus power and water. The town is interesting with lots of lovely shops to explore and walks to take.
Thursday 16 July
The next morning we all take walks up the hills around the village and explore the area. We have decided to move on to the town of Datca for tonight and the 8.5 NM sail is going to be short and sharp. We have some difficulty getting out of the harbour as a large catamaran has anchored over us and we have to pull up their chain to release our anchor. This is a nerve-wracking process and is always accompanied by owners of other boats in the area standing out on their bow issuing shouted instructions not to drop the offending anchor over theirs, not to go near them etc etc! We sympathise with them but do wish they would shut up as it is not at all helpful. Crossed anchors are part of the territory in these tiny harbours. Richard and Luke on the bow succeed eventually and off we go. Goodbye Simi. The wind is on the nose, so we motor this stretch.
Datca puts on its best face for us and it is interesting for Richard and Pippy to see the differences in the town from when they visited here in March of this year. It is festive and lovely. We tie stern-to on to the town wall for a charge of TKL30 and Karen and Pippy get off the boat quickly and explore the shops in the immediate vicinity, purchasing honey, almonds and fresh vegetables.
We dine ashore at a restaurant table set up on the beach in the fading light. It is so very pretty.
Friday 17 July 2009
Unfortunately, sleep on board Matelot is a little disturbed by loud music into the small hours and some of us are a little jaded as we head out for Palamutbuku the next day.
Our departure from Datca is a hurried one. A large catamaran on our port side leaves before us and lets off the wrong stern rope first, slewing across into the side of Matelot with their protruding steel gangway and ripping all of our washing off the lifeline. Fortunately this is the worst of the damage and Richard takes a dive to retrieve most of Pippy’s undies and a few pegs! However we are now exposed to a gusting breeze on our port side and very quickly Matelot starts to fall sideways back on to the town wall. We take up on the anchor but to no avail and get off the wall as quickly as we can.
Palamutbuku is another of our favourite destinations. It is rustic and unspoilt – so far – and we enjoy the hospitality of our friend Altan at Mirhaba Restaurant.
The standard of the food here is we think, superior to that at Datca and better value for money. Altan is a charming host and we always enjoy our time here. Pippy purchases local olive oil and Karen contributes a local delicacy Kegiboynuzu pekmezi – a honey flavoured treacle-like sauce, which is said to contain health-giving properties.
There is a small sandy cove over the breakwater from where we are berthed in the harbour and we make full use of it and the deck chairs on the beach. Some entertainment is provided when the French skipper of the boat moored next to us catches a reasonable sized octopus with his bare hands and gives it the prescribed 100 wallops on the rocks before taking it home to be cooked for dinner.
Saturday 18 July 2009
Today we must truly ‘turn for home’ (Kos Island) but not without a compulsory stop at Knidos for a swim in the cool waters and a chance to explore the ruins of this ancient and fascinating site.
We hear that Kos Harbour is full up and so is the marina. Oh well, we will have to anchor out tonight. The wind comes up to low 30 knots during our sail across from Knidos to Kos and we arrive around the north eastern corner with all reefs in place and the headsail rolled up to a handkerchief. We are offered an option to tie up alongside the wall in the last position available but it is very turbulent water so decide to swing at anchor just off the entrance, in close proximity to a string of night-clubs which keep some of us awake into the night. After dinner on board we take a trip ashore – 2 ferries of the dinghy – to explore Kos Town at night and it is in full tourist season with all shops open for business. We explore the delightful alleys of the old town and have ice cream deserts all round.
The Bodrum – Kos Regatta is in full swing this weekend, comprising an off shore yacht race, speedboat and jetski racing and also kite surfing.
The town is alive and jumping. Pippy has the biggest thirst!
Sunday 19 July 2009
Our friends the Bullocks and Luke are due to depart for Lake Garda, Italy tonight on the Athens Ferry. They have two days of travel ahead of them and we have a quiet relaxed day. Straight after a late breakfast we move on to the town wall in a sheltered spot well within the harbour.
Pippy is upskilling on the boat handling side of things and under Richard’s instruction and with great support from all the crew, successfully reverses Matelot stern-to (Med style) on the town wall. It is hot and still and waves of heat are rolling off the castle wall nearby.
Our canvas sun awnings help to keep us cool and it is a quiet boat for the afternoon. We all take a 4 pm swim off the beach then bags are soon packed and up on deck. We enjoy an early dinner and last minute ouzo’s all round before farewelling everyone, wishing Luke and Sam luck in the 420 Worlds, then watching our friends disappear into the bowels of the massive vessel at around 7.45 pm.
Richard and Pippy stand in the darkness and watch with amazement, the efficiency of the loading of this huge Blue Star Ferry. Large trucks wizz on and off the ferry taking the removable trays loaded with containers with them then coming back for the next one. We dodge the action as motor-bikes and cars also roll on in a seeming riot of confusion. However, everyone seems to know where they are going and in very short time the wharf is empty and the ferry is on its way. We watch as it disappears into the night and then return to a very quiet Matelot a few hundred meters away on the town wall.
1 comment:
Great read
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