Spellbinder's Web Diary - Tuesday 24th May, Preveza, Greece

Tuesday 24th May, Preveza, Greece

Spellbinder

Thu 26 May 2011 13:36

Slipped from the northeast quay in Zakynthos harbour at 0730 on Tue 17 May. Onboard Henry, Charles Buchanan and Eric Thompson to make the passage to Vathi harbour in Ithaka. A brisk westerly had Spellbinder reefed down as the strait towards Cephalonia was crossed. In the lee of the island the wind became fickle but later allowed an enjoyable beat in gusts of wind up the east coast of Ithaka. Fun was had in an impromptu sailing race into the harbour. By 1600 Spellbinder was anchored in the south of lovely Vathi harbour after a good shakedown sail for the new crew. Hiring a car we spent a day exploring Ithaka and its connections with Homer and Odysseus. At the small museum near the village of Stavros a lady gave us a talk explaining that the area nearby may have been the site of Odysseus' palace(?). Further on, a team of archeologists from Athens University were found busily excavating what they considered to be the foundations of Homer's School - the Professor was in attendance.
By now high pressure was building over the central Mediterranean resulting in sunny days but little wind until a breeze got up in the afternoon. Spellbinder was obliged to motor the 14 miles to Fiskardho on Cephalonia, a pretty harbour but already teeming with charter boats so early in the season. Then it was on to Ormos Roudha on Nisos Lefkas. We sailed all the way on a flat sea under sunny skies and thoroughly enjoyed it. A trip ashore found the village of Poros just opening up for the summer and still delightfully quiet. A pleasant swim was enjoyed by all in water at 22 degrees C. We entertained ourselves with Upwords most evenings with many a dodgy word being tried on by the contestants.
Sat 21 May was another disappointing sailing day as the motor had to be used to an anchorage in Ormos Elias on Meganisi. It was a shock to find this small bay being used by charter boats for their lunchtime swim. That evening we had it to ourselves, however, and walked over the hill to another Vathi harbour that was quite busy but peaceful. Meganisi is a delight and the least unspoilt of the islands visited. The next day commanding winds in the southerly sector beckoned so decided to make for Preveza beyond the Lefkas canal. Motoring up the channel on Sun 22 May scores of boats disgorged themselves into the Ionian islands heading south. We could only surmise that the area was going to be very busy that week and were glad to be out of it. The northerly entrance to the canal was safely negotiated informed by dire warnings of buoys drifting out of position and yachts gashing holes in their sides on some ugly rocks there. The final leg to Preveza was fun on a F4 reach, glad to be through the canal. Two days were spent at anchor at Preveza to allow the hinterland to be explored and to appreciate the enormous significance of the sea battle of Actium. Just outside the harbour Octavian decisively defeated Anthony and Cleopatra who subsequently fled to Egypt. Octavian was to become the Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus and built himself a vast "Victory City" at Nikopolis just north of Preveza. To top it all he also built a monument to himself on the bluff beyond were his army had camped before the battle. All this is now very well presented in a magnificent new archaelogical museum 7km outside Preveza. In addition, the ancient site of Kassope was visited after a climb to the top of the cliff at Zalongo where women with babies jumped off to their death rather than become Ottoman slaves. A rather sad spot but worth visiting to understand the awful limited options if cornered in those days.
So that is it for now before sailing on to Nisos Paxos and thence Corfu for the next crew change. The weather is getting hot during the day and meals in the cockpit are now the norm.