A bay to remember.
Serafina
Rob & Sarah Bell
Fri 24 Jul 2009 09:33
Quieter start to the day than forecast, but before long the wind was back
gusting at 30 knots, but our improvised anchor angel has made quite a
difference and although Serafina is still sailing around at anchor, the
extremes have been reduced. We both went swimming before lunch and were able
to view the angel at work under water and we certainly are on the right
track!
Lazy day again enjoying this superb bay which we have all to ourselves
still. Sarah swam to the beach and had a good look round, reporting that it
was the best sandy beach she has ever seen in Greece, which somehow makes it
all the stranger that there is nobody here. A few couples have turned up
briefly during the two days we have been here, but apart from having quick
swims they none of them stay long.
After lunch Sarah swam over to one of the sides of the bay where there was a
lone fig tree (The entire island is barren rock with no vegetation to be
seen anywhere, except the very rare tree or bush) which she hoped would be
heavy with ripe fruit. Of course it wasn't, and had two large goats and some
spectacular hornets in attendance, but it was an energetic swim anyway.
In the evening, following a fruitless hour's fishing, we settled down to a
quiet drink and to watch the setting sun, but suddenly a large military
helicopter came roaring out of the valley and over the beach and close past
us, lower than the top of our mast and skimmed across the bay staying lower
than the surrounding rocks and headland. It hovered briefly at the far side
of the bay before continuing round the headland, still staying below the
rocky outcrop presumably on a training flight practising staying below the
radar. Limnos is the central command post for the Hellenic Air Force, which
has explained the jet fighters wheeling around in the sky on occasions and
presumably this helicopter exercise.
On a military theme, Limnos also played a key role in the Gallipoli campaign
as the allied invasion fleet was based here throughout. There are two
military cemeteries here containing over 1000 graves of allied servicemen.