Trip on Elise starting 2017-06-06

Route

Sailing report Kos 2017   – report by Becky Goddard

Yacht Elise  , a Bavaria 45 (2012); 4 cabins 3 heads.

Skipper: Bob Buchanan 

Crew: Becky Goddard  , Hugh Hayward  , Colin Evans  , Kevin Lay  and Dave Winks 

We decided to start our sailing straight away this year instead of staying in an hotel so flew from Gatwick (courtesy of Tony the Taxi) arriving in KosMap mid evening on Tuesday June 6th.

After a decent sleep Bob and Colin did the handover the next morning, while I went to finish off the provisions shopping, most of which I had ordered in advance.

Leaving about mid afternoon we dropped anchor in a very wide bay called NeridaMap on the south side of Kos having had to motor due to lack of wind. During the night the wind got up and blew from the SE making our position a bit precarious so we upped anchor and had to motor to NisyrosMap as the wind died again! We berthed stern to in the little harbour opposite the office of a local vehicle hire company womanned by the lovely Poppy – they told us that sometimes a lady came for the mooring fees sometimes she didn’t!

This is a volcanic island with a large live crater so we booked a trip for the next morning to tour the island and in the meantime asked for a taxi to the recommended restaurant on top of the mountains called Emborious. The views were spectacular and the food excellent especially a dessert of yoghurt and sweet preserved tomatoes!!

The next day was a comprehensive tour of the island with the volcano as centrepiece – some of our party walked down into the crater to sink in the sulphorous mud ! When we returned to the boat the lady had arrived for the mooring fees E5.44 for the two nights!! We had a taxi that evening to another small but shallow harbour to a restaurant serving fish off the local boats.

The next day there was more wind but the sea state got very steep and as the wind was behind us the sailing even with preventers was very lively! We hit 10.6 knots at one stage.

At the island of KhalkiMap just north of Rhodes we went to drop anchor in the recommended anchorage but were chased off by someone in a rib who said we were in the way of the ferries! We moved to another inlet (which was not in the pilot book) and actually found a much more sheltered and peaceful spot for the night!

After swimming and breakfast the next morning we set sail for Rhodes but after an hour we had to motor as the wind had died. Our charter company had booked a mooring in the old harbour (MandrakiMap) which apparently got very full and angry in high season with crossed anchors and other hazards! The mooring fees were still steep E27.22 for two nights (with water and electric)! And on our middle day we visited the crusader castle and the Grand Masters Palace. Fascinating.

The next day we had a good sail to Symi but struggled to locate the bay we had chosen for the night as both the charts and chart plotter were pretty naff. We ended up in Marathouda BayMap which boasted one small taverna and a lot of goats! This was the first time we had used the dinghy and outboard and we were settling to our first beers ashore when some armed soldiers standing on the beach called to us that they could smell fuel – on inspection the fuel was pouring out of the outboard even though the engine wasn’t running. This meant we would have to row back to the boat later – very annoying! The taverna had told us to arrive at 6.45 and there were only a few things on the menu including goat two ways! It was delicious.

This was a delightful place and we enjoyed swimming next morning before leaving for NisyrosMap. Poppy was still in the car hire office by the quay which pleased most of the crew!

The next day we sailed close hauled to Kamares BayMap on SW Kos where we had a last night eat and drink up of the contents of the two fridges and last swims the next day before sailing and motoring back to KosMap town. We refuelled with 75 litres and reached our final berth about 5 pm.

As the boat wasn’t going out the next day we were able to have a lie in on Saturday after a special meal ashore Friday evening. Our last day was not very active as the temperatures had rocketed. We flew home that night and reached Gatwick just after midnight where Tony the taxi met us.

This particular boat handled very well but the cabins were all on the small size – the forepeak was divided into two – not very good if we had been a larger crew. Also the boat had an electric bathing platform with a very narrow and short removable ladder. We all struggled with it and Hugh who has new knees only swam once as getting out was so painful!

Another great trip Thanks Bob.

Kos  36.8929,27.3008
Norida Kos  36.8099,27.1827
Nisyros  36.6194,27.1707
Khalki  36.2208,27.6044
Mandraki Rhodes  36.449,28.2271
Marathouda Bay Symi  36.5831,27.8058
Nisyros  36.6194,27.1707
Kamares Bay Kos  36.7436,26.9754
Kos  36.8929,27.3008