Greece - Gulfs of Patras & Corinth
There are two way to get from the Ionians to the Cyclades – through the Gulfs of Patras and Corinth or below the Peloponnese. We had been told by several other boaties that below was a good way to go, less visited and more wind friendly – however with crew coming and going over the upcoming week we needed to be close to Athens – so the gulfs it was! Six hours across the sea from Zakynthos to the mainland and the Gulf of Patras – what a difference a few nautical miles can make, from the green Ionians to the dry barren sunbleached mainland coast.
Messolongi is quite different – a narrow, low lying muddy inlet entrance lined with old fishing huts on stilts (pelades), some converted into holiday homes, and leading up to a derelict looking town with concrete bunker type buildings. It was obvious that Messolongi is not famous for its architecture, so what is its claim to fame? Well it was the site of a dramatic and heroic siege by the Ottomans during the 1820s Greek War of Independence and where poet and philhellene, Lord Byron, died. Highlight of the obligatory hot Sunday afternoon wander through town was an old ouzo factory established in 1907, complete with marble serving counter, glass rings etched in stone and owned by a delightful older couple, yes I bought some ouzo, and yes it is still untouched in the cupboard.
Heading eastwards across the gulf and under the Rio-Antirrio bridge we had a good current with us and cruised an easy 9 knots. The bridge is beautiful, completed in 2004 for the Olympic games it is the longest multi-spanned, cable-stayed "suspended" deck bridge in the world. We took the middle span as directed and arrived outside the delightful 500 BC medieval town of Nafpaktos. An easy tender to the small semi-circular stone walled harbour, local fishing boats, cafes, and trees, then a leisurely, sweet pine smell wander up to the old Venetian/Ottoman/Greek castle overlooking the town. Caught up with mates Mon Desir and Tigger and shared festivity on NOETA.
Nicky needed a bus to Athens so it was south back across to Aigio – yes a handy bus stop, but a sad town, evidence of 1995 earthquake apparent in beautiful old ruined buildings, the earthquake measured 6.4 and 26 people were killed - lots of marble and graffiti. Nicky’s last night dinner was at Oréstēs, delicious food, lots of cheese dishes, menu in either Greek or French (carefully handwritten in school exercise book) and a wonderful host George who gifted us 2 bottles of wine!
North back across to Galaxidi, fish farms at the entrance, barren beautiful iron ore red rocks. It is a small picturesque town with limited provisioning, a dry gum and pine hill park (no camping allowed) and cute duck house. The location provided easy access to Delphi but we didn’t have the energy for wandering extensive Greek ruins. Water 27 degrees, air temp 38.
The Corinth Channel, what a great experience, we waited outside the entrance, holding into the wind for about 30 mins before we were given the go ahead, then it was 30 mins of hot, hot, still, narrow cruising, eerie quietness only broken by the sounds of cicadas and water (oh and our motors). The channel was completed in 1893 after 11 years digging at sea level, it is 6.4km long and 21.4 m wide, effectively separating Peloponnese from the Greek mainland. Then it was an extremely easy pay and diesel fillup at the other end before heading along the south coast of the Saronic Gulf, past fish farms to Korfos, a small seaside town where we were greeted and then treated to a delicious dinner at Korfos Taverna.
I opted for the Greek salad - the trend seems to be a whole feta slab placed on top rather than cut up through, I couldn’t finish my meal – too full! The next morning we headed back across the gulf to a good beach and anchorage at Glyfada - a suburb of sprawling Athens, and a shorter bus ride from the airport for our next crewmate Minny Green – she managed to find a way to get from the airport to us and I have an endearing picture in my mind of her trudging along a hot sandy beach, suitcase dragging behind, having just managed to negotiate a very busy main road. The hot northerly Meltimi wind was starting to pick up so we found a sheltered anchorage west of the Souniou Temple of Poseidon on the Cape headland, it was good holding and a great place from which to jump off to the Cyclades.