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SHOW NOTES: This is the first of several episodes which contain various recordings during my voyage this summer in Greece. Neil Fletcher and Jack Andrys were my guests and are also previous contributors to this podcast. During the week that they were sailing with me we made several recordings of observations and stories we had tell along the way. Our trip took us through several of the Dodecanese Islands, located just a little west of the Turkish coast. There are twelve large islands in the Dodecanese group (dodeka means twelve in Greek), plus about 150 smaller ones. We sailed southwest from Leros to Astypalaia, about a 45nm trip, and then due east to Nisyros, about another 40nm, where we stayed for two nights in the charming small harbor at Palloi and toured the island on rented scooters.
From Palloi we headed north, skirting the busy island of Kos to Kalymnos, where we dropped anchor in Vathi (also known as Vathys). The locals call the tiny harbor entrance ‘the Fjord’ and you can see why. It’s a tiny cut intersecting the barren cliffs of the island, very sheltered and no more than 400 meters long from the entrance to the harbor wall, and about 100m wide. There are moorings for about 15 boats and its free alongside the wall. Here is a brief video of the harbor entrance:
We also enjoyed a great meal here at the Aigaio Pelagos, which Neil proudly informed us means Aegean Sea. Turns out Neil studied Ancient Greek at University, and 25 years later, it looks like it’s finally come in handy. The service was friendly, the retsina was cold and the calamari – served whole – was quite delicious. As for the setting, looking out over the port with the hills to our left and right, it really couldn’t be bettered. We enjoyed a leisurely lunch there, followed by pre-dinner drinks, followed by dinner, and we even met the proprietor, a charming lady named Soula from whom we will hear more in a later podcast. We were also befriended by another Australian – the third in two days – who worked at the restaurant. Aigaio Pelagos has several rave reviews on TripAdvisor, which you can read HERE.
We’ve also enclosed a rather crude map of Kalymnos with Vathys circled. If you are sailing in the area don’t miss it. It was certainly a highlight of the trip for us.
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©2015 Franz Amussen all rights reserved
Sailing in the Mediterranean Website
https://www.medsailor.com
Audio Sailing Lessons by Franz
Sailing! Learn to Sail: Basic Keelboat Certification Lessons for the ASA 101 Exam
https://gumroad.com/l/Eiig
Sailing! Learn to Sail: Basic Coastal Cruising; Lessons for the ASA 103 Exam
https://gumroad.com/l/PvOYK
Sailing! Learn To Sail: Bareboat Cruising Certification Lessons for the ASA 104 Exam
https://gumroad.com/l/bwXh
Sailing in the Mediterranean Website
https://www.medsailor.com
