The beginning of July brought with it the first of this years “Meltemi” episodes. These winds affect the Aegean Sea area and usually start in late June/early July and end sometime in Sept/Oct. Our memory of them when we chartered in Greece [2000-2009] is that generally they lasted one or two days – and that was if we were unlucky enough to have one at all. I’m afraid that climate change has altered that… they often now arrive fairly regularly and last seven, or even ten plus days.
So on 5th July, after lots of studying of weather forecasts we decided that we would head for the island of Skhinousa, one of “Tis Mikrés Kykládes” [the small Cyclades]. Two of the forecasts I tend to prefer showed slightly less winds than in other parts of the Aegean and one [ICON-EU] suggested that Skhinousa, and the other small islands nearby, would have very little wind at all. We could only hope!
As there was still 36 hours grace before the winds started we decided to spend a night at Agios Géorgios on Iráklia. It is a very small harbour….
…… with room for only a couple of boats our size and we thought that we could not get into the one space available. Luckily due to the very light west wind that day the conditions were ideal for anchoring in a small cove just outside the harbour entrance.
It later transpired that following the departure of the evening ferry, it was possible to berth stern to the outer harbour wall… but we were happy in our crystal clear blue pool…..
…….watching a flotilla and other charter catamarans fighting for space.
The following day we woke once more to next to no wind from the west. At 10.30 am the boat turned and we started bouncing. A large motorboat had just passed and we assumed, as is often the case, that the movement was a result of their wake. However, it didn’t stop. In fact it got worse and we realised that out in the channel waves were beginning to get up from the increasing wind which was shifting to the north. The Meltemi was starting, so we raised the hook for the 2.5 mile crossing to our chosen anchorage – Livádhi on Skhinousa.
In the end we stayed seven nights. Where others were getting winds of 30+ and gusts of over 40, the biggest gust we saw in the whole of that period was 24, with the general wind being 10-12.
So, we managed to get out and about, enjoying walks up to the Chora for shopping, coffees, beers and some attempts at “arty photography” which could/should have been much better…
… a longer walk down to Skhinousa’s main [only] port, Mirsini…..
….and meals with a view in the taverna on the beach.
We enjoyed the whole experience so much that, when the next Meltemi arrived [21 July – 30 July] we returned to the same anchorage, this time accompanied by “Coriander”. At times we felt like fraudulent sailors because the winds didn’t seem that high. But we watched other boats bouncing like rocking horses as they passed the anchorage and other crews arriving in full wet weather gear. Two of the boats anchored with us “for the long haul” tried to leave before us… but returned within an hour of leaving shouting across that the waves were well up and that it wasn’t nice at all!
We entertained ourselves in the same manner as on the first occasion, though also shared drinks and late afternoon swims on the beach with Steve and Gill and had a nice evening out in the Chora.
So, where were we and what were we doing between these two visits to Livádhi? Well we spent one night at Kalantos, a wonderful anchorage on the south coast of Naxos.
What made it even more brilliant was the “taverna”….
….where the owners serve grilled lamb and pork from their farm. Excellent quality and quantity at a very reasonable price.
During the rest of the time we went to both Kato [Lower] and Pano [Upper] Koufonisias, revisited Iráklia – a different anchorage to the one I wrote about above – and found a new anchorage on Skhinousa.
Kata Koufonisia is largely uninhabited, at least for most of the year. However, in the summer it seems to be the go to place for nudist camping. In bays along its southern edge and along the top of the small cliffs were an abundance of tents. We went ashore to a small beach on both nights that we were there and tried not to scare the campers by wearing swimming costumes!
Some of the local inhabitants were only interested in seeing whether we had brought food.
Pano Koufonisia was, by contrast, quite a chic small holiday island – though we suspect that the same people went to both islands and either wore their clothes or didn’t.
On the southern side is a small harbour which we could have gone into but we preferred the anchorage outside where half a dozen or so boats can swing quite happily. What we were most surprised with was the town itself. It was really quite traditional and delightful to wander round by day….
….and to visit in the evening.
On the NE corner of the island is another great anchorage and we spent a very peaceful night there.
Given that it took only 25 minutes to motor from the south anchorage to this one, there was plenty of opportunity for exploring so Mike and I walked to see the “Devil’s Eye”…….
….and also came across a cave with two holes….
We are sure there is a name for such a structure but arch doesn’t quite fit either.
Back on Skhinousa we found shelter at Almyros which provided us with another beach for swimming and sun downers…
….and we then crossed to Livádhi on Iráklia. It is a bit confusing when all the islands have the same names for ports and anchorages but as “Livádhi” means pasture land it is perhaps not surprising that many islands have one.
When we had stayed in the anchorage at the port we had seen that there was a bus which went from the port to the Chora of Panagia via the Livádhi anchorage. We weren’t actually bothered about getting the bus as it was only 2.5 km and we wanted the exercise but we had assumed that if the bus went there then there would be something to see. Not exactly the best assumption we have made!
The walk was partly road but we then found an old donkey trail which cut off some of the corners….
….and, on reaching the top we were at the entrance to the village.
It total we saw five people and two of those ran the small café/shop where we stopped for frappes and some bread and onions for Steve and Gill. We had thought we would have been returning empty handed but there were basic supplies to be had which included local fava.
We had wondered what, other than short season tourism, might provide an income for these small islands and it seems that fava growing is the answer as both Iráklia and Skhinousa boast “Local fava” on their taverna menus.
Other than the shop there was a closed taverna and about a dozen houses. The most activity we saw was provided by the more prolific inhabitants… and that was limited to sitting, sleeping and the occasional stretch!
On our way back down we visited the remains of the fort….
…. mainly to get a decent view of the anchorage.
Unfortunately, I don’t think this post or my photographs actually do justice to these islands. They are well worth visiting and we enjoyed them all. In case you are wondering where they are, this rather strange “map” shows you.
I will let you wonder about the map as I actually took the photograph at our first destination after leaving this lovely island group and I will tell you more about it in my next post.
