Logbook 2 Sailing Greece

Part 2 Kefalonia – Ithaca

This is part two of the yacht charters logbook that describes Lene Poulsen's suberb sailing holidays in Greece – Ionian.

• Part one: Lefkas – Kefalonia
• Part two:  Kefalonia – Ithaca
• Part three:  Ithaca – Lefkas

Saturday – Day five

No change in the weather.

After a nice breakfast (the choice was between fried eggs on toast and omelettes. I ordered fried eggs, freshly squeezed orange juice and coffee, and the order was accepted. When the waitress returned with my coffee and juice, she said “Sorry, no eggs. Only omelettes” – so I had the omelette!), we set out for Agia Effimia or Eufimia on Kefalonia.

Our first stop was at Pera Pigadia – a small island just off the west coast of Ithaca. There is a tiny quay on the island and we were fortunate to be there all by ourselves.

We secured the boat along-side, and went snorkeling. Crystal clear water, almost green in colour, and so many fish you feel like swimming in a fish tank (it helps feeding them a bit of bread as well!).

When we arrived at Effimia there was quite a strong gust of wind (from the west) in the harbour, which made anchoring a bit difficult.

First time we dropped the anchor, we weren't sure it was holding (not that much chain had been put out), so we pulled the anchor in again, and tried once more.
This time we had come a bit too far away from the quay before the anchor was dropped, so we didn't have enough chain (!), as there was still a couple of meters from the boat to the quay when the chain stopped. Third time round we got it right. We secured the boat and after friendly advice from a girl at the harbour, we tied springs on both sides of the boat as well, as we were told the wind could suddenly change 180 degrees in the gusts (which it also did later).

We had planned to stay for two nights in Effimia, as we wanted to make a small trip to the east coast of Kefalonia by road. Agia Efimia is a nice little spot and there are quite a few restaurants to choose from if you're eating out.

Sunday – Day six

We hired a taxi driver to take us to the beach on the east coast called Myrtos, just below Assos. It's not more than 8 km away from Efimia and the beach is absolutely spectacular.
As it was quite windy, the surf was awesome – it was actually too dangerous to take a regular swim, so we settled for standing in the surf and being tossed about by the waves. The colours of the water at Myrtos are indescribable – they go from dark blue, to blue, to turquoise, to green, to… it's really worth a trip. There is a small tavern by the beach that serves drinks and snacks (no regular meals).

We were picked up by our taxi driver in the afternoon again and got back home to the boat in Ayia Efimia.
After fuelling (delivered by a truck), we went out for dinner, and returned to the boat where we listened to Greek music from one of the nearby tavernas.

Monday – Day seven

We left Effimia at 09.45, and set out for Fiskardo. Quite windy all through the canal between the two islands Kefalonia and Ithaca near Port Polis, but the temperature had dropped to a more bearable level, and with the wind it made for a nice change. We were in Fiskardo already at noon, but despite being so early there were only few spots left on the pontoons and quayside.

Fiskardo offers good shelter from winds and is ideal for yacht charters, but is quite a noisy place in terms of ferries, tourist day trip boats and people.
It is beautiful though, and there are many restaurants to choose from and shops too for provisions. Again, depending on what you are looking for, Fiskardo is either a lively place or a bit too noisy. Regardless of what you think, it is a nice little town.

Kefalonia sailing holidays and yacht charters in the Ionian, Greece.

Logbook and photos by Lene Poulsen from Denmark.

• Part one: Lefkas – Kefalonia
• Part two:  Kefalonia – Ithaca
• Part three:  Ithaca – Lefkas