36:43.36N 025:16.44E

Left Vathi early with a lovely sail in NW 4-5 kts wind.  As the forecast indicated a one day weather window before 2 more days of meltemi we decided to skip Thira and head straight for Ios and hunker down there.  The port was pretty full of boats, our neighbour from St Malo managed to ricochet off another French boat and broke their stanchion and burst a fender so he was not very popular!   Ras from SY Crystal Stream, who have been living aboard for 11 years, donned a wet suit and kindly took a look at our anchor only to discover that it is fouled on a laid harbour chain so we plan to try and unsnarl ourselves tonight and move to a nearby bay so that we can make an early start tomorrow for Milos.  Sadly the Tweds will be leaving us there and if the forecast is correct we shall have another day sheltering before making a dash to Cape Meleas on Friday and hit the Peloponnese.  Sailing to a time-table, as we are doing now, is very different from the last 3 years of Zen Dog ââ He knows not where heâs going, For the oceans will decide â Itâs not the destination...Itâs the glory of the ride.â  But we have to be in Zakynthos by 30th May, when we fly back to London to finalise the renovation of Jay Mews, so we have to press on whenever we have an opportunity.  These winds should not be with us until the end of June but the world weather has gone crazy and the Aegean is no exception.

Ios is green, with pretty sandy beaches and a hilltop Hora. It is a backpacker haven, so loads of bars and tattoo parlours though with the dramas going on in port we have not seen very much.