Tuesday 8th May

Tuesday 8^th May

We sailed back to Preveza having looked at a couple of spots but they didn’t look that inviting, when we set off there was hardly any wind just sun but it gradually built to the point we ended up with two reefs and still hit 5.1 knots.

Viv went searching for a dongle whilst I stayed on the quay drinking orange in a bar watching the boat.

We went back to Cleopatra for the night but didn’t fancy the boat tent having sailed for four and half hours so ended up camping on the beach under the walls of the old Moorish Fort that guards the entrance to the gulf. Thought we would be alone but there was Greek fisherman on the beach all night unfortunately he caught nothing except a sight of us popping out for ablutions!

Had a really nice Mousaka in the marina restaurant.

Tuesday morning we packed up the tent and headed back to the boat early to try and make the bridge at Lefkada for 10:30. A really nice couple we had chatted to the night before made us a kettle of boiling water for tea and coffee on a boat called Diva.

We motored over to Lefkada with Viv helming all the way and tied up at 10:10 to wait for the bridge to open. It’s a strange set up with a car ferry parked across the channel. When the boats want to pass it lifts the ramps swings across the canal and the boats pass to one side, not really a bridge at all. Viv took us down the canal and then we hoisted sail and found a little beach for a paddle and lunch.

After lunch we set off and had a bit of a coming together with rocks to the side of the beach so I had to paddle for a bit, lesson learnt use the motor it makes things easy. Once out in the channel again the wind rose from a pleasant 2 to a good 4 gusting 5 and swell quickly built up to about a metre. Putting 2 reefs in hove to was interesting and then we headed for shelter at Nikiana although my intention had been Ligia.  Got in to the harbor with a terrific swell running bouncing the poor boat about all over the place and had to anchor bow on then 2 hours later flat calm again.

After a visit to the shop we sailed over to a deserted beach and pitched camp, Greek sausage and fresh veg for dinner on the beach. I can understand why it was deserted as it ponged a bit but we were too tired to go any further.

I think we both came to the same conclusion it might be nice to get a room in a tavern in Nidri tomorrow for the night and have a day off, we are ready for it.