Leaving The Black Hole Of Marmaris

• Log

A week ago, when we were supposed to have left for Egypt but couldn’t because of the weather, we were ready to leave. A week later we have a clear window, it’s the night before our departure and I’m running around like a loon, cursing that I need more time. Why the hell didn’t I do an engine check a week before, rather than at the 11th hour when the shops are closing and my electrician is halfway to Istanbul and therefore unable to replace my broken alternator smart charger?

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Weather Hampers Our Start Of Vasco Da Gama Rally

• Log

Ourselves and ‘Roam II’ were due to leave Turkey today with the aim of hitting Rhodes to fuel and provision, meet up with ‘Storm Dodger’ and ‘Rhumb Do’ and then head off SE on Friday to meet the Vasco Da Gama rally in Port Said, Egypt. Hmmmm. Have you seen the weather lately? I’ve animated a grib file (weather information) for your perusal to prove my point. In an unexpected turnaround of weather for this time of year the south of the Aegean is being hit with some vicious northerlies. Normally these die out by the time they hit the same latitude as Cyprus but these winds are whipping right across the eastern Med and across Port Said. I wonder how many leaving drinks we can get away with…

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Long Range Wi-Fi On A Boat: EnGenius 2610

• Boat Maintenance & Skills

The EnGenius 2610 is a magic box that provides a wired internet connection for the ship’s computer. The basic principle is that it is mounted at the top of the mast, or as high as possible, and it sees available wifi networks for your onboard computer to connect to… and if you’re not a yottie or interested in setting up a long-range wifi connection then you’ve probably fallen asleep already! The article for the yottie-geeks only…

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Constable Country

• Log

Constable had good reason to dedicate his life to the striking cloudy skyscapes of Suffolk. Two hundred years later and I’m re-discovering one of England’s finest seaside counties; not with oils this time but with my trusty Canon. The irony of the moody skies I captured, however, was that I had returned to England under my own dark cloud. There was but a whisper of a silver lining and the foreboding weather on the day we visited Woodbridge was about as symbolic as it could get.

This log entry is quite a departure from the usual followtheboat blog: it’s a pictorial account of my time away from Esper, not on it. The shots of the boats on the River Deben maintain some kind of nautical theme, and since we’ve just uploaded our ten thousandth image to the website it’s a good excuse to show off some wonderful photographs. This is England’s fair countryside at its best, captured in my favourite season.

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The Fertile and Picturesque Island of Samos

• Log

I have just had the sail of my life: I covered 73 miles in 13 hours in 25 knots of wind, passing eight Greek islands along the way. In all that time I passed just four other sailing boats in the glorious late summer sun. Sadly this was the end of my personal Greek odyssey. I am now back in Marmaris Yacht Marina (yuck) preparing to return to the UK. Permit me, then, to conclude my Greek log with my stay in Samos, which is mainly a bunch of photographs for your viewing pleasure (they’re so much easier to digest than words). The last of our summer log entries will culminate in Matt’s account of his visit with Candice, boasting some cracking photographs, but more on that next week. In the meantime I’ve adopted (nicked) Matt’s black border technique for a new-look image presentation. Enjoy.

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The Square On The Hypotenuse

• Log

As we left the island of Arki we were seen off by a pod of dolphins, some so big I thought perhaps they were pilot whales. They weren’t but they looked very big and very old too (two with lots of battle scars). It was quite fitting to be seen off by them, as if they were rewarding us with these favourable winds after the last week of motoring everywhere.

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I Feel So Reel!

• Log

I was very disappointed to read some of the comments you lot made about my dad’s efforts to line-fish off the back of the boat. You have to remember that whilst they look small to you, they are in fact a complete meal for a cat like me, so when he starts getting so good he pulls in not one, not two but three fish, one after the other, you have to admire his success. My dad’s great, I love him!

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A-OK in Arki

• Log

Our harmonious tranquil was interrupted by a very apologetic local who had rowed over to politely ask me to move. “Why?” I asked. “Because the water boat is coming to fill up our tanks. I have no water on my island”. In case you were wondering how all these little islands manage for water, there’s your answer. “So why do I have to move, where’s he going to dock?”. “Right there” said my new friend, pointing to the world’s smallest concrete jetty just a few metres away.

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Monastery Schmonastery

• Log

Not quite the polar opposite of Lipsi, but a busy island all the same. Welcome to Patmos, a pretty looking island with some of the best views in the Aegean. The anchorage was sheltered, with a couple of tavernas ashore offering some tender octopus salad and tsatsiki that makes you feel like the whole of Greece is partying in your mouth!

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Flaming Lipsi

• Log, video clips

Lipsi. A quintessentially Greek island untouched by the hoards of package holiday tourists that populate the bigger Dodecanese islands. I’d say the people here are a mix of holidaying Greeks, a few backpackers and a bunch of yotties, not forgetting the gentle locals, which makes for a very peaceful atmosphere indeed. These next few log entries, including a special post by Millie The Cat, cover the rest of the Dodecanese islands and start with Lipsi, which is littered with some of my fave photographs of the Dodecanese islands. Let me know what you think of them by leaving a comment at the end of the page!

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One Giant Bleat For Mankind

• Log

Emborios is a tiny hamlet with just a couple of restaurants who provide mooring buoys for yotties. Yep, you guessed it, another task as yet not undertaken single-handed. I think I performed it admirably, even if I say so myself, especially after tying up and watching a another boat make a real pig’s ear of it all: lost boat hooks, screaming skipper, trembling wife, usual story.

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Solo Anchoring Into A Harbour

• Log

Pserimos is a little island in between Kos and Kalimnos and is clearly a weekend hangout for the young Greeks from the neighbouring islands. The tiny bay in which I anchored was littered with RIBS, jet skis, speedboats and day-trippers. We enjoyed a sundowner at Sunset cafe, where the waiter graciously reduced our beers from €3 to €2.50, stating “I don’t want my restaurant to get a reputation as being expensive”. Even so, €2.50 for a large beer? Clearly I was going to have to do some adjusting, now that I am back in Europe.

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Take Me To A Gay Bar

• Log

“What are you doing in Kos?” my cousin asked over the phone. “It’s full of gay bars.” You’d know I suppose, Jay, I’m just here to use the internet. Easier said than done, mind. When we anchored off Kardemena, a sprawling town for chavs, the northerlies were hitting 30 knots. At least anchoring was easy but I was amazed at how much fetch could build in such a short space of sea. Rowing over to Odin for a beer was ludicrously difficult…

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