The final expedition of 2025
As I sat down to write the first blog for 2026 I realised hadn't written the last blog entry from last year so here goes!
To recap, my last posting was at the beginning of September 2025. We'd got back to Aeginitissa Bay from Aghia Marina (on Aegina but on the eastern coast) on Friday 29th August but almost immediately more strong winds were forecast for the area. We needed to move to somewhere with shelter.
Saturday was a day of preparation. Supplies were running low so a victualling trip to Aegina town was needed. I stocked up with 40 litres of diesel, 25 litres of bottled water, white wine, beer, olive oil, fruit (lots), pistachios, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, bread, milk... etc etc... oh, and jubilee clips and new socks for Igor. Plus a refill for the gas bottle for cooking as we were running low. Nothing worse than not being able to have a cuppa!
We were aware that this could well be our last big sail before we left Greece as it felt like home was calling after nearly two months away. Why not be a bit adventurous, go further afield than our previous expeditions? We decided to head towards Ermioni. We visited once when we were chartering, around 8-10 years back. As I remember it was quiet, just a few restaurants and not much yacht traffic.
Sunday 31st August 2025.
Coming out of Aeginitissa Bay with Moni Island to starboard Libra rounded the Perdika headland then headed south. There was a decent wind and we made good speed, 6-7 kt under just our foresail (solent). We reached the first landmark, Petrokaravo. This is a huge rocky islet which from a distance looks like a ship. When the sun hits it the right way the rocky slopes look like a sail. The name means ‘Stone Ship’. Bet they took a while to think of that.
The destination was Ermioni and we aimed to be there in time for lunch but as soon as we passed Petrokaravo the wind dropped. Time to put the engine on.
You might expect the boat would go faster under engine than sail. The short answer is 'not necessarily'.
As with any engine, speed affects fuel consumption. The faster you go, the more you use. In a car this is just about money (along with the environment). In a boat refuelling involves walking to the nearest garage with empty 20 litre canisters, then carrying them all the way back to the boat, not something you want to have to do too often.
When the wind drops we don't hammer the engine. Instead it trundles along at around 2500 rpm giving about 5 kts, the optimal tradeoff between speed and fuel economy. With sails though, you take whatever the wind gives you. Some boats are faster than others, but with Libra any good breeze will carry you along at over 5kts (and it's completely free!).
Next, we headed between two islands then turned to our right.
This is what this looks like when you're on the water:
Along the way is a rocky outcrop called Frog Island. Can't think why.
We continued onwards, and about half an hour later the wind picked up so it was off with the engine and open the jib. Within half an hour the wind dropped again so it was back to the trusty engine. The sea was flat, the winds, though weak, weren’t against us. Slow and steady progress.
A couple of hours later we reached Ermioni, a narrow peninsula with bays either side. When we were here before we moored at the town quay within the smaller bay. A huge new marina is being built there. This time we went to the larger bay on the other side in order to anchor, a lot more peaceful.
The end of the peninsula is wooded parkland, then you see the quay, jam packed with charter boats and big yachts. Ermioni has got a lot busier since our last visit! A little further south we reached our destination. There was just one other sailing boat there, German flagged.
Land was a short hop in the dinghy, with the road to town and its shops, restaurants etc. By now it was late afternoon. We decided to walk into town for dinner, a couple of kms. The tender took us to the beach, where we lifted it out of the water and tied it to a rock.
The main road tracked the water’s edge, overlooking the beautiful bay.
Lots of friendly cats by the bins on the outskirts.
Ermioni is a nice little town. First we wanted to see the quay where we moored before. We walked through a maze of side streets to the other side of the peninsula. I didn’t recognise it, though Igor did. There were more sailing boats than our last visit. We could see where the new marina is being constructed. It will be massive.
We wanted dinner but most restaurants were closed or empty as it was still early. Using the rule of 'if in doubt, try the restaurant that’s busiest' we saw that Maria’s Restaurant had about five people sitting and eating, which was five more than anywhere else so that was the choice. Unsurprisingly there was no problem getting a table. The food was fabulous, excellent grilled sardines and a wonderful mix of oven baked vegetables, aubergine, courgette, tomato plus one of the best Greek salads we’ve had. Pretty much all of this is down to the freshness and quality of the ingredients.
We walked back to the boat very content. We put cushions on deck and sat enjoying the peace and quiet. It wasn’t hot now, a perfect temperature to sit in your t shirt and look at the sky. I was tempted to just sleep out there but the cockpit area is pretty cramped and floor has obstructions.
We liked it so much we stayed a couple of days.
Tuesday 2nd September 2025
We set off from Ermioni around 9.15am. One of the joys of sailing in Greek waters is that they aren’t tidal, so, as long as the wind is in the right direction you can just head off whenever you like. Around Britain the tides are strong so sometimes you absolutely have to get away at a very specific time or your sail will be at best uncomfortable and at worst dangerous. As they say, 'time and tide wait for no-one'. So, as we have no tides in Greece we have a lot more time for enjoying ourselves (or sleeping!).
First of all we had a look at the other side of the bay where we’d anchored. It's very popular but there was hardly anything on the land, just a few houses. I prefer convenience, to be able to go to town on foot I feel like it.
At the end of the bay was a narrow channel with a small island on the other side. The depth dropped to just a few metres, plenty for Libra’s shallow draft with the keel up. Somebody had built a shack on the island, it looked like they’d constructed it from scavenged building materials, what my Dad used to call a ‘rubadee’.
We motored for about 3½ hours and ended up in a tiny bay near a place called Kostas. It was so pretty, surrounded by beautiful mansions. Most of these were closed and shuttered. We were the only visitors. Igor went snorkelling and spotted a massive ground anchor chain across the entrance to the bay. It was sheer good fortune that we didn’t foul our anchor on that. I felt a bit exposed, as if I was one of those inflatable flamingos that people put in their swimming pools.
The water was calm and blue. We had a dip and decided to take it easy and head off to town later to get a meal. Nope. It was a gated community with no public access so we stayed on the boat and ate the last of our tinned French food, chicken and merguez couscous. Very nice apart from the couscous.
It was an odd place. Libra felt like a toy in a rich person’s bathtub. We weren’t tempted to stay a second night.
Wednesday 3rd September 2025
We left the bay at 8.50am, motoring for an hour or so to Porto Heli. This has a massive bay, lots of boats on permanent moorings and a decent sized and well equipped marina too. We dropped anchor. It was very, very hot but the water was a murky dark green colour, not inviting even to those of us who were brought up thinking swimming in the English Channel was the bees knees. We jumped into the tender and went to explore the town.
It was an interesting town, lots of details to catch the attention.
And of course there were cats:
Although there were a decent number of restaurants it didn’t feel particularly touristy. We got ourselves excellent spinach pies and some bread from the bakery. They were among the best we’ve eaten. Sitting eating something delicious in the shade, protected from the hot sun, was a little moment to realise how good life can be.
We went back to the boat and, not wanting to swim, had a nap with the air conditioning on, waiting for the sun to go down and for it to get a little cooler. A swim would have been perfect, but not in the water here.
Come evening we went and looked for a restaurant. The tourist season was almost over so there wasn’t much choice but we ended up in a place called Chill and Grill where we got massive plates piled high with meat and chips for about 10 euros.
Washed down with a cold beer it was pretty good. The best value for money we’ve encountered so far. Stumbled back to the boat in a haze of kebabs and too much heat.
Thursday 4th September 2025
Time to head back to Aeginitissa. As usual we were away around 8.25am and 20 minutes later raised the main and jib and turned the engine off. We had one reef in the jib, experimenting with the best sail plan.
Around 9.30 we passed Kosta, not tempted to go in again. Instead we ate breakfast and watched the world go by.
At 10.00 we took the reef out. The winds had dropped and it was no longer necessary. In fact, they dropped so much that a few minutes later the engine was needed again. 15 minutes later the wind picked up to 17 kt. Up with the sails, a slight course alteration to make the most of it and half an hour later we tacked (made a 90 degree turn) but you guessed it, the wind dropped so on with the engine again.
There are so many megayachts on the water. Each one looks bigger and flashier than the last. To amuse myself I look them up and marvel (if that's the word) at what's included. I wonder, how does it feel to spend say $20 million on a boat and then see something bigger and even more expensive?
Usually it's straightforward to see who the owner is and how much they paid. This beauty, however, seemed to have no presence online.
Approaching Ermioni the wind picked up again so the last bit was under sail, in fact there was so much wind the jib was unfurled only half way and we needed 2 reefs in the main but...it dropped again as we got into the bay.
I mentioned earlier that we passed a small island when we set off for Porto Heli. Returning to Ermioni we could see more. Extending from the island, hidden if you approached it from the bay, was a wide streak of pale blue water with breaking waves. As a sailor, if you see breaking waves near the shore it’s often an indication of an underwater obstruction like a big rock. Something like this would normally be marked by buoys in the UK, but here was a whole reef, maybe a couple of hundred metres long, with nothing to warn you that it was there. If it was dark or you weren’t paying attention you could easily come to grief.
When we left Ermioni we had been motoring with our keel raised so we were fine to pass between the headland and the island, but under sail with our keel down this wouldn’t be safe. We had to take a long detour up one side of the reef and down the other.
We anchored just before 1pm. Also in the anchorage was the superyacht Flying Mantis. This is a 42 metre beast with all the bells and whistles you’d expect at an asking price of 10.9 million euros. They had to reduce the price by 2.6 million euros to complete the sale. Bargain. Oh the woes of the super wealthy. Another superyacht arrived and anchored nearby, this one the $40 million dollar plaything of an American billionaire. I'm not saying these boats were huge but the tenders (the small boat you use to get from the boat to the land) were nearly as big as Libra.
By evening the parasites, I mean superyachts, had moved on so we had the bay all to ourselves which was wonderful. Dinner was a tin of French chicken curry which has been sitting in the cupboard looking unappetising for about a year. Tweaked it a bit, it wasn’t too bad. We'd thought about going into town for a meal but hey, gotta start saving that $40 million for the next boat!
As we sat on deck after dinner we had a proper talk about going home. We were missing people. The spells of northerly winds were coming more frequently. The prospect of home is growing ever more appealing.
We stayed for a second day in the bay. We went for a walk in the opposite direction to the town and made a new friend. We thought he wanted us to adopt him.
On Saturday 6th it felt like time to head back to Aeginitissa.
Saturday 6th September 2025
Before we left we emptied the rubbish, taking a quick walk to the bins on the mainland. Along the route was a house for sale. The door was open. We’d passed it several times before but this time decided to peep inside.
The exterior was a bit shabby but when we went inside it would be generous to say it looked like a building site. Bare brick walls, rubble, wires, not even a proper floor. Any dreams of owning a seaside property in Greece vanished as quickly as it took to have a glance.
We raised the anchor around 11.15am and much like all the previous sails it was a question of repeatedly raising the sails then lowering them again because the wind had dropped.
We saw an ‘old friend’ along the way, the pirate ship that had blown into us in Methana earlier in the season. We recognised them, they chose not to acknowledge (or hit) us.
The sailing intervals started to get a bit longer and the engine intervals shorter. By 5.15pm we were confident enough in the conditions to raise our gennaker. This is a massive, lightweight sail, red in colour, which helps you go faster than the standard jib or foresail. Seeing it open, with the wind moulding it to a perfect curve, the red sail against the blue, blue sky, it's one of the prettiest sights there is on the water.
You can practically feel the power of the wind just by watching the sail pulling you. Libra felt like she was enjoying herself.
We weren’t objectively going particularly quickly, but to achieve a boat speed of 4kt in only 9kt of wind is pretty good. Plus the way the boat was moving through the water was a world away from going under engine.
Adding to the fun, we were listening to BBC Radio 2 which was broadcasting the ‘Party in the Park’, lots of live bands playing in Chelmsford which is almost next door to where we live (by ‘almost’ I mean about a 45 minute drive). No neighbours to worry about so we could turn it up loud for the (many) good bits. Talk about sailing with a big smile on our faces. The weather (and Libra) seemed happy too, with her speed creeping up to near 10 knots. (To give you an idea how fast this is, our first boat felt like she was really pushing her speed if we got 5kts out of her).
On reaching Aegina we overshot Aeginitissa as we were having such a good time, but like all good things it came to an end and we had to turn back and anchor.
There were already 10 boats in Aeginitissa Bay and they'd taken all the best spots. There wasn't much space for us. You have to allow a decent distance between yourself and the other boats as everybody moves with the wind on their anchors, but not necessarily in sync.
As we're familiar with conditions in the bay we usually manage to set the anchor properly on the first or maybe second attempt. There's an element of skill to dropping the anchor to the seabed and getting it to bury itself securely enough to hold your boat safe through whatever the elements decide to give you in the way of wind.
The only place we could find didn’t have great holding and it took us 5 attempts to achieve success. Oh well, if we hadn’t been having so much fun we’d have arrived a lot earlier but why would we want to do that?
A brilliant final sail of the season, celebrated with a meal in the fish restaurant overlooking the bay. By the time we returned to the boat there was a full moon, magical.
Over dinner we talked some more and decided that yes, we were ready to go home. After 2 months when the temperature didn't fall much below 30C the idea of cold and damp felt quite appealing. Plus we were missing our wonderful family, felt like we'd been away a long time.
On the Monday we booked our flights and contacted the Asprakis boatyard to arrange for Libra to be lifted. Next morning we motored along to the boatyard and by 9.50am Libra was back on dry land.
Four days later we were back in England.
So it was back to reality for the next eight months. The blue sky and sunshine of Greece gave way to the greys and cool of England. We were near the people we love and had the comfort and beauty of where we live.
Don’t get me wrong, I loved our Greek sailing summer but there's nothing like being on a boat to make you truly appreciate your house.
Have you ever stopped to appreciate having unlimited running water? Not worrying about using two electrical appliances at the same time? Not pooping into a tub of coffee grounds? Being able to have a chat with the shop assistant when you pop out to buy something? Not feeling like a melting pile of wax 90% of the time?
In the words of Dorothy from Kansas: There’s no place like home!
*when we were sorting out the tender we found this little fish in it. It must have jumped out of the sea escaping from a predator and landed on the floor. By the time we got to it the sun had dehydrated it. Dried fish is a delicacy enjoyed with beer. Igor gave the fish a fitting send off.
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