37:27.82N 25:19.58E

Early morning we had enough rolling around and pulled anchor to head for Siros.  Surprised at the entering waves since there is only a small direction this could happen, but we were correctly placed.  Such is life.

Motoring out we heading to the north end of the island keeping well offshore since the charts show some hidden reefs.  I will never trust the Greek charts since most are so old that things are incorrectly charted or the ground has moved.  Yes with many earthquakes in the area the depth are not the same as they were when they were charted.

Getting to the north end of the island the winds grew up to 20 knots.  Many times the winds are higher near the capes so we motored around the cape expecting the winds to die down.  They did not.  But the winds were fairly steady, not gusty so first out came the mainsail while motoring.  This added one knot to the boat speed, now 7 knots.  But the winds continued to be steady so out came the headsail and off with the motor.  Set the headsail with two reefs in 18 knots on a beam reach.  Waves were tolerable and we managed now 8.5 knots with periods of 9+ knots of boat speed.  Had the cap rail close to the water and of course things in the cabin that were not fully secured found a new lower position with a bang.

This was one of the best sails so far, smooth, fast and steady.  Also this is faster than motoring and obviously save fuel.

Our destination was the island of Siros.  Not actually required but it would be a nice place to stop for the night after not getting the best sleep in the prior anchorage.  The anchorage we chose called Grammata on the north end was supposed to be usable.  As we entered the cove the charts and Pilot guide said the water would be 10 meters deep, dropping to 5 meters and having a sand bottom.  As we entered I was still recording 35 meters depth.  So I moved further in to check the depth.  Still recorded 25 meters.  At this point we should have been in 5 meters according to the charts and Guide.  Obviously things have changed and we said we’re outta here.  If the charts are this wrong today I do not plan to find the area where they are wrong the other way and we run aground.

Turning north around the island we headed east.  To our surprise the winds in this short time changed direction and grew in strength.  What was pleasant sailing an hour before now was a rough ride.  Our new destination was Mikonos, 21 miles away.  Winds now were directly on our nose and the sea was growing with 2-2.5 meters waves.  Sailing was out of the question so we motored directly into the chop.  A bit of spray but the well designed dodger and bimini kept us totally dry.  A few hull slaps on the way.

As we approached Mikonos the winds were now 28 knots but the island kept the seas down.  The “marina” we were headed for has been modified since the pilot guide and charts so entering was different that shown but we knew that.  Pat set up the fenders and lines for almost any type of berthing.  Entering the marina it was quite full.  We took a look further in and decided that the alongside berth was the best bet.  With the wind behind us berthing was fairly sedate.  Pat lassoed the stern bollard and things were easy after that.

Good place and we were glad we got one of the last berths.