We had made a successful passing through the Corinth Canal in the morning of September 29, and were now heading for Salamis Island, where we were hoping to find a good anchorage for the night. We pretty much followed the coastline northeast towards the island, and passed inside of a few huge tankers, that were anchored and waiting to be brought into the oil farms. Looking ahead in my binoculars, I thought I saw a small ship coming towards us, but it looked strange. Once it got closer I could see why it had looked so strange; the only thing sticking up out of the water was the bow and the stern. The sides were just about submerged, so the ship almost looked like a submarine. We had never seen anything like it before and wondered what kind of ship it was? Later we found out it was a water ship, that brought fresh water to the islands that didn't have any! By evening Stress Relief and Thalassa had arrived to Salamis town on Salamis Island, and according to our cruising guide there was several anchorages in the bay. Not so, as we could see when we arrived! Since our book was printed, the main port at Salamis had been extended quite a bit farther out into the bay, and now we found both an outer and an inner harbor, well protected. We kept going all the way into the inner area, where we finally dropped our anchor in the middle of the harbor. No one ever complained, so we ended up staying like that for a few days and nights.

The big bay, that leads into Salamis town, was full of some strange looking jellyfish, that we had never seen before. Some were huge, maybe 12 inches in diameter, off-white in color but with a big brown spot in the middle. They looked sort of like a big button to me! The sides were maybe 6 inches thick, but not smooth and solid; it was swirls of off-white materials, and it reminded me of what the human brain mass looks like! From the bottom of the jelly fish tentacles hung, and they didn't seem to be very long. Consulting the cruising guide, I came to the conclusion it must be a variety of "cyanea lamarckii", that can grow up to almost 20 inches. Whatever they were, they were impressive, and I sure wouldn't have enjoyed a swim amongst them!

Once we were anchored and enjoying the scenery around Salamis' harbor, I noticed out of the corner of my eye, something big surfacing and then quickly disappearing below the water. What could it be? Once I got a good look; it was a big turtle that came up for air! One surfaced right in front of our boat, while we were out on deck doing something, and I got a quick glimpse of its size. The length might have been about 24 inches, and its neck was as thick as my upper arm, with its slightly bigger head at the end. During our stay in Salamis, we saw several of the big turtles feeding and gulping air around our boat. We even saw small groups of baby turtles, but when we got close to them, they all dove out of sight! We kind of wondered how they could survive in the murky water in the harbor, but they obviously were used to those conditions by then!

Dan had searched the island for boatyards, as we thought this area would be the last that could haul our boat and do the welding repairs to the out-drive leg lock-down pin again. He found a big boat yard on the other side of Salamis at Ambelakia, and that meant that we had to leave the protected harbor and go around the island to the east side. It was only about 23 miles, but took us over four hours motoring! On the east side of Salamis Island is a designated anchorage area for ships that are either coming or going from Piraeus, which is the big freight port for Athens. When we came around the south end of Salamis and saw the water dotted with ships of every size, I sure was glad they didn't move. We estimated it to be about 40 ships! Soon we had passed through the ship's parking-lot and rounded the narrow spit of land that sticks out from Salamis, and almost touches the mainland at Piraeus, and were headed straight west to the boat yard at "Theo Bekris and CO., Ltd.". The next morning Stress Relief was hauled from the water for the second time, and in a 100 tons travel lift! How small our boat looked in the clutches of that enormous travel lift, but I guess it was no question if it could make it or not! Actually the boat could not be hauled until Dan and the yard manager had obtained a "hauling permit" from the Greek Coast Guard, and the same procedure had to be repeated when the boat was ready to be launched again. As soon as our boat was placed on blocks on shore, the welder came to have a look! The man came on his moped, and later on the welding machine and gas bottles arrived from a rental company! Rest of that day the welder and Dan worked on the out-drive leg, but to no avail. I think they both agreed finally, that welding was out of the question. The next morning the welder returned, but with chunks of stainless steel plates. With those, a little welding, some drilling, lots of bolting and corking, the lock-down mechanism was fixed, and hopefully it would last till we could return to the US again? As soon as we had paid, Stress Relief was returned to the water, and we went a bit farther out into Ambelakia Bay to drop our anchor. By then Thalassa had arrived and was anchored in the bay also.

Friday, October 5, was the day we went sightseeing into Athens. We left Duke onboard and the boats at anchor in Ambelakia Bay, hailed down a taxi outside town and got a ride over to Paloukia, where the ferries leave for Piraeus. The ferry ride lasted about 45 minutes, and soon we arrived in the very busy port at Piraeus. I could see then, why they recommended in our cruising guide, that smaller yachts should stay away and find another harbor! The port was teeming with ferries, small and large coming and going constantly; big, huge cruising ships hugged the docks, waiting for new guests and supplies; and smaller supply ships and fishing boats squeezed in between them all. We could just get off the ferry and mix in with the crowds of people along the waterfront and on the streets, and try to find our way to the metro station, instead of having to find a spot for our boats. Our tickets were soon bought, we boarded the train and was on our way towards Athens! One lady on board the train heard us talking about the Acropolis, and she suggested we get off at the station at Thissio; that was supposedly the closest metro station! Soon our stop approached and we got off. A little hike along some uphill streets brought us into view of the magnificent mountain top with some of the ruins visible - how beautiful!

The word "acropolis" actually means "high city", and in the high city the king usually lived, while the population inhabited the surrounding plain. In the event of an enemy attack, the people hurried to the fortified hill for protection. The most famous building on the Acropolis today is probably the Parthenon, and when I think of Acropolis, that is what I envision. Actually, the Parthenon is only one of numerous temples and buildings on top of the mountain. The second most notable building is the Erechtheion, with "the porch of the Maidens", and it was awesome to be able to walk among these magnificent ruins and imagine what they looked like when they were built. Most of the damage to the Parthenon was inflicted when the cannon ball from the enemy attack fell on it, back in 1687, causing an explosion of the gunpowder stored inside. Now they are trying to restore the Parthenon to its glory, and even with scaffolding and cranes all around it, it was majestic! The museum on top held the best preserved artifacts, and I hurriedly walked through it, while Dan waited outside. The view from the Acropolis over the city was also magnificent, even though the city in itself didn't look that great. From a viewpoint along the stone wall surrounding the Acropolis, we could see the city spread out below us. A layer of haze seemed to hover over the city, and to many people Athens is the worst city in Europe. Because of the geographical situation similar to that of Los Angeles, Athens has a serious smog problem also, which is often worse than that of the smog capital of the US. It probably doesn't help that about half of the population of six million plus people live in Athens, leaving the rest to occupy the vast country and numerous islands. The Acropolis impressed me a lot, the city not!

After our tour of the Acropolis we had lunch, wondered around a bit in the city, before we got back on the metro and headed back towards Piraeus. The metro train was packed with people, but we punched and shoved our way in like the rest, and the doors barely closed. The smell in the metro was not the best, as it was a sunny and hot day, but I tried to aim my nose in the direction of the least sour smell! At one stop along the route, most of the people got off; we thought it was great, as we could now sit down! Some people tried to tell us something, and eventually we understood that it was the last stop for the train and everyone had to get off! The next train that stopped was even packed worse than the one we got off, so we opted to wait for the next, which wasn't quite as full, and we managed to get on. Soon we were back in Piraeus, but since Dan wanted to find a Honda dealer, we walked over to Zea Marina, where one was supposed to be. Dan needed some part for his moped! It was a nice long walk over to the marina, but no Honda dealer was there. The only one was located in the city of Athens! Before we started the hike back to the ferry, we decided to eat supper at a small outdoors restaurant. Since we had been walking all day, a trip to the ladies room seemed in order! Joan and Dan disappeared and returned quickly, then Harry, and while Harry was doing his thing, I decided to do mine. The bathroom had one main entrance, and once through that door, you could choose one of two other doors. Harry was in the common area washing his hand, when I arrived and chose one of the small rooms. At least it was a regular toilet to sit on, but the door wouldn't close. The handle just flopped when I tried to close the door, but eventually the latch stuck. Harry said that he would stand watch outside till I was done, and thank goodness he did. When I tried to open the door to get out, it would not open. I tried and tried, but I could not release the latch, and Harry couldn't open the door from the outside either. Harry finally had to go and get our waiter, who came and helped me out! I wasn't afraid, as I could have escaped through the small window, but it was some fun excitement! Soon we had eaten our dinner and walked back to the ferry docks, where we waited for our ferry to bring us back to Salamis Island. Once back at the island, we tried to find a taxi to take us to the shore close by our boats, but we couldn't find one. One very helpful gentleman offered us a ride in his personal car, and brought us to Ambelakia Bay. Duke had been alone the entire day, so at once we opened the door to the boat, we were attacked by a deliriously happy dog!

Time to continue the following morning, and since we were heading south to the island of Aigina, we had to pass through all those anchored ships. More ships were arriving as we went through the anchorage; the ships had started out as small specks on the horizon, but soon they loomed big and awesome close by, and we hurried out of their way. We had pretty favorable winds, WSW, so we made the 19 miles crossing in four and one half hour! The harbor and its quay in Aigina was not very big, and only a few spaces were available. As we were backing into one spot at the end of the quay, another big sailboat came zooming in, threw over its anchor and proceeded to back up where we were. Our boat got jammed up against the next smaller sailboat, and I don't think the captain of that boat was too happy. I know Dan was not! Finally Dan decided to pull out of there and try to find another spot, which we did farther in. The holding in the harbor was not the best, and with the arrival of a flotilla of racing sailboats towards evening looking for someplace to tie up, it got very confusing. Anchor lines got crossed and pulled up, anchors got stuck on the bottom, and tempers flared! That night we were ok, but the following day, after Dan and Harry had gone ashore without bringing their small VHF radios, the wind picked up from a totally different direction. In so doing, our anchor dragged, consequently smashing the nose of our boat into the cement quay. Where was Dan when I needed him? I got help from Joan and some other people, and by starting the engine and putting it in reverse, tying off the front lines differently, I was able to keep the boat off the dock till Dan returned. By then the starboard wooden nosepiece was smashed to smithereens, but no other damage did we encounter! When one big Prout catamaran left the wooden dock the next morning, we hurried over and tied up in its place, alongside the dock with plenty of lines, and then finally I felt safe again.

We rented mopeds on the island of Aigina one day and set out to find and have a look at some boat yards on the north shore. Harry and Joan were looking for a winter home for Thalassa, as they eventually had to return to Canada by plane. Dan also wanted to find a Honda repair shop, as we seemed to have problem with the ignition on ours! The Honda repair shop we found pretty easy, and Dan made arrangements for the repairman to come to our boat later on that afternoon. The boat yards on the north shore were nice, but Harry and Joan didn't make any commitments. Instead, we soon continued to the town of Souvala, where we stopped for lunch. Farther east to the beautiful ruins of the "temple of Aphaia" we went and had a look, and at the same time we had a gorgeous view over the east side of the island. The "temple of Aphaia" has been called "the most perfectly developed classical temple in Greece", according to our cruising guide, and it was beautiful where it sat as a crown on top of the mountain. That same day we made it all the way down to Perdika, which is a small town and harbor at the southwestern end of the island. While we were there walking around, Dan got a phone call from the Honda repairman. He had been to the boat earlier, but at that time he couldn't fix the ignition; seemed he had gone back to his shop and found new parts to replace the corroded ones and managed to get the ignition working. By the time we came back to the boat, the man was already there, working on Dan's moped. The salt air and water had done a job on the moped, but what is to be expected when it is tied down on the bow while under way! Anyway, Dan was very happy to get the moped working again!

While we still were on the island of Aigina, we had been in contact with our friend Tom, on his boat XTC. He was farther south on the island of Poros, and that's where Thalassa and Stress Relief set course for on Tuesday, October 9! We were favored with following winds the entire distance to Poros, and it seemed we arrived in very short time. It was only 17.5 miles between Aigina and Poros, and it had taken us about three and one half hour from when we pulled up anchor, until we dropped it in Poros Bay. As soon as we were secure on our anchor, Tom came over for a visit, and it sure was nice to see him again. It was almost two months ago he and his son had departed from Italy and left us behind! We had lots to catch up on, before we all went ashore to check out Poros town. Poros town covers a small island beside the bigger Poros island, and a bridge over a narrow channel connects the two. You hardly noticed the bridge when you crossed it, so it all seemed like one island. Poros town is totally geared towards tourism, and since we were there at the end of the tourist season, a few restaurants and souvenir shops had already closed up. The small island of Poros is separated from the mainland Peloponnisos by a channel, which is very shallow in spots. The deeper water can be found along the town quay in Poros town, and that's where the hydrofoil and regular ferries hug the shore, when they arrive from or going south. The town of Galatas sits opposite Poros town on Peloponnisos, and there everything is much cheaper to buy than in Poros! Regular ferry service connects Poros with Galatas several times a day, and the charge for the ten minute ride one way is about 35 cents per person. Our boats, and quite a few others, were anchored in the northeast corner of Poros Bay, close to a naval cadet school. Every morning and evening, about five, six big rowboats came out from the naval school, full of young men. It looked like they were practicing rowing and carrying out commands from the officers, who barked them out. The last time we saw them, the young men were all dressed up in white, shining uniforms, and some kind of ceremony was carried out in the naval yard. We understood later on, that it was the last day of the school (boot camp) and families and friends were allowed to come and enjoy the day with their young men! Once the ceremony was over, the restaurants in town were packed with dressed up naval cadets and their families, and extra ferries had to be put into service to carry everybody off the island.

As soon as we could, we brought our boat up to the town quay and removed the moped. From then on and until we left Poros town, the moped was locked to a lamppost ashore, when Dan wasn't using it. Dan went everywhere on it, but I only had three longer sightseeing rides on it. The first trip was around the bigger Poros island and over to the Peloponnisos. The second trip we went as far as Epidavros and back, and the third ride took us south and over to Nafplio!

For the first sightseeing trip, Tom, Harry and Joan also rented mopeds and went with us. After the three mopeds had been filled up with gasoline, we all set off along the southwestern shore on Poros island. We went by beautiful bays, where a boat could anchor, and in one, Russian Bay, Tom had spent some time before we arrived. That's where his cat "Scottie", decided that he had had enough of the sailing adventure. One day he never returned from his excursion ashore, and it didn't help how much Tom called or looked for him, Scottie was gone. On our moped trip, we even stopped and called out "Scottie" a few times, but no cat was visible. We all hoped he had found a good home somewhere on the island! Right after Russian Bay, the nice asphalt road ended and now we were bumping along a very dusty dirt road. The road also climbed uphill with every turn, and the view became spectacular. A few times the road was either blocked or crossed by goat herds, but they didn't stay around for long, so we could continue. When we finally reached the asphalt road again, we were close to Poseidon's Temple, so a quick visit up to the ruins was in order. It was not much to see at this site, and we were soon on our way again. We wound our way down the other side of Poros island and ended up at a restaurant in Ormos Porou, where we stopped for a late lunch. Since the day was still fairly young after we had eaten, we decided to take the moped along on the ferry to Galatas, from where we continued out into the countryside. Someone had told Tom it was worth a visit to Trizina, a small village at the bottom of some steep mountains. There we found an old Hellenic tower, and farther up the canyon, we came to "The Devil's Bridge". It was basically a natural bridge spanning a very deep gorge, but it wasn't much to see really. We hiked the trail a bit farther up the canyon, but since there literally was only rocks and trees to look at, we soon turned around and went back to our mopeds. We were not ready to return to Poros yet, so instead we headed for the Methana peninsula, and the town of Methana in particular. As soon as we rounded the last curve and the town spread out in front of us, the smell was almost unbearable. It was a horrible rotten-egg smell, that came from the sulphuretted hydrogen bubbling into the harbor! People with rheumatic diseases come to take baths in this water, and of course we had to try. At least Harry, Joan and I were brave enough to wade into the hazy water up to our knees, but two elderly ladies and one elderly gentleman were totally immersed and seemed to really enjoy it. By then the smell didn't seem so horrible! In our cruising guide, it also states about Methana, that "boats moored in the harbor, are said not to have fouling problems as the sulphur in the water kills off weed and barnacles". Wonder what it does to your aluminum chain and anchor? By now it was getting late in the day, and the rented scooters had to be back in Poros by 1900, so it was time to return to the island and our boats!

Our second day of sightseeing took place on Saturday, October 13 and that day we had decided to try to find the ancient theater at Epidavros on the Peloponnisos. We got quite a late start, as it was a question if Harry and Joan were coming with us or not, but once they decided to stay in Poros, Tom, on his rented moped, and Dan and I on ours set out on the expedition. Across the channel to Galatas we rode on the ferry, but as soon as we set foot on the mainland, we hopped on our mopeds and headed out of town. The road followed the coastline for awhile, but soon it started climbing up the side of the mountain. The road was quite smooth, and in some spots it looked like new asphalt just had been put down. Even so we couldn't go that fast, partly because it was pretty steep uphill and partly because we were weighted down. The edge of the road just disappeared into oblivion on the seaward side, without as much as a guardrail, and that I didn't like. I refused to look down! The jagged rocks on the land side of the road, didn't look that much friendlier, so it was safest to look straight ahead! Of course we had marvelous views over the Saronic Gulf the higher up we drove, and at the little village at Fanari we crested the mountain, and in front and below us a valley stretched out. Going down hill was just as slow as going uphill, as the curves had to be negotiated with care, but eventually we arrived in the valley. There we connected to a bigger road that was going towards Nafplio. We followed it until we saw a sign that pointed the way to the ancient theater in Epidavros. The huge parking lot at Epidavros was almost empty, as this late in the season not many tourists were about, so we had no trouble finding a spot for our mopeds. Tickets had to be bought before we were allowed through the gates, and a short walk uphill brought us in front of the magnificent theater.

The theater is supposedly the best preserved theater in all of Greece, and considers to be the finest piece of classical architecture in existence. Some restoration has been done to the theater, but it is mostly original. The acoustics are marvelous, as one piece of paper rustled on the stage, or a coin dropped on the floor, can clearly be heard from any one of the 14,000 seats. A few German ladies tried out the acoustics by singing a song, and Tom, among others, clapped his hand; the sound seemed to reverberate throughout the entire theater! The ancient site at Epidavros was not renowned for its theater, but as a religious center for curing the sick and infirm. Extensive temples, hospitals, sanatoriums and bath-houses covered the site, with only the outlines of the buildings visible today. Restoration is carried out to some buildings, and even excavation is still on-going, but mostly the site is a confusion of rocks! There is a museum on location, which holds the best preserved finds. The specifics on the Epidavros theater comes from Rod Heikell's cruising guide, and our awareness of the site we got from Harry and Joan, as neither Tom, nor Dan nor I had ever heard of it before! It was well worth the long trip on our mopeds to see it!

On our return trip from Epidavros, we followed almost the same road, with the exception of a short detour. We thought we would be cutting across another mountain towards Poros, but obviously our road map wasn't that good, as we soon came out on the same road we had arrived on. It was getting late in the afternoon by the time we had returned to Fanari and crested the mountain pass, and at once it got quite chilly. The sun stayed on the other side of the mountain, as we descended into deep shade! It was almost downhill all the way to Galatas, so it didn't take that long to reach the ferry, cross over to Poros town, get into our dinghies and motor out to our bigger boats. It was very nice to get back to a warm boat, and Duke's hard breathing, in excitement over our return, helped to warm us up also.

All along Dan had been monitoring the weather, and since it looked good for us to leave Poros town on Sunday, October 21, we decided that one more day of sightseeing on the moped was in order. This time only Tom came with us again, as that day Thallasa was being brought up on "the hard", and both Harry and Joan were busy getting their boat ready for winter storage. Friday, October 19 was a sunny and beautiful day, and soon Tom, Dan and I set out to explore the coastal road going south from Galatas. Once we left the town behind, the houses thinned out and only here and there we could see signs of people. The land was covered in pine trees, with very long needles, so it made the trees look fluffy. The road wound its way along the shore, and small islands shone like emeralds on the calm sea! Once we came down along the southern coast, we could see the bigger island of Hydra, which we never got a chance to visit. In the town of Thermissia we stopped for some hot coffee and a break, but soon we continued. Once we reached the city of Kranidi, we got directions from a young man on a tractor, who showed us the way out of town towards north. The road slowly seemed to rise, until we arrived in the big valley around the town of Didma. Didma sat in the middle of the valley, and all around we could see fields after fields, but nothing growing on them this late in the season. We followed the road across the valley and on the other side it started to zig-zag up the mountain again. Once we reached the crest, I made Dan stop, so I could take pictures and admire the beautiful views in both directions. The valley spread out below us to the south, and to the north high mountains rose even higher! On a big flat area at the crest where we stopped, we encountered a herd of goats, with an old man as the goat herder. Another time we had seen an older woman riding her donkey, while keeping an eye on her flock of sheep. Those times I really felt I was far from civilization! Back on the mopeds and continuing, and almost every turn of the road brought some unbelievable beautiful sights; my internal camera was clicking away, and all I have to do is close my eyes, and the pictures are revealed!

Our turn-around place was going to be Nafplio, and by early afternoon we arrived in that city. Lunch seemed in order, as we all were hungry by then, but soon we got back on the mopeds and followed the road towards the port. The port was not very big or deep, but it was dredged close to the quay. Even so, it was only deep enough for shallow ferries; the big cruise ships anchored out! In the middle of the entrance to Nafplio port sit a small island, Nisis Bourtzi, with a fort covering most of the island. High up behind the city, the majestic Venetian citadel, Palamidi, was visible, with its 1000 steps leading up to the wall. No way we were going to climb all those steps! Instead, we opted to find the road that must lead up to the fort, and after numerous wrong turns, we finally arrived at the main entrance to the citadel. Again, according to our cruising guide, "the citadel is the most finely preserved piece of Venetian military architecture in existence, but unfortunately the citadel was militarily out of date not long after it was completed." The view from the high walls was worth the trouble in finding the fort; from the high stone walls we could see way out over the sea, the city as it spread out below, and inland far away towards the mountains!

We didn't have time to do anymore sightseeing of Nafplio, as it was getting late in the afternoon by the time we were done at the fort. Since we had at least two hours drive back to Galatas in front of us, it was time to start back. On our return trip to Galatas, we basically followed the main road, and sights we had seen on our trip to Epidavros, soon whizzed by. As we arrived in the port at Galatas, we went by the spot, where a vehicle had caught fire in the morning. All we could see now was a black spot in the road, but not so earlier. The vehicle was a small truck with an enclosed cap, and when we saw it in the morning, the hood was open and small flames started shooting up from the engine compartment. Already people gathered around to watch, but no one did anything about it. Maybe they were waiting for the fire department? We stopped to watch also for awhile, but when the flames got bigger and bigger and engulfed the entire front end of the truck, with thick, black smoke pouring off the tires, I didn't want to stay around any longer, so we took off on our sightseeing tour! I don't think it was a chance the vehicle could be saved by then, and obviously it was removed by the evening, when we returned. Soon we had bought our tickets for the return crossing to Poros, and during the short ferry ride I started talking to another lady. Small world; she and her husband were Swedes, and her husband originally came from the part of Sweden I come from. It felt nice to end this wonderful day, jabbering in Swedish!

On October 9th we arrived in Poros, and by the 20th both Dan and Tom thought it time to move on. Tom, of course had been there much longer than us, and if we were to continue while the weather was still good, it was time for me to get used to the idea of moving again. Plans were discussed when to leave, and to which island we would be crossing on the first leg! Any one of the islands was quiet a long distance from Poros, so it all depended on which direction the wind blew the day of departure! Of course Thalassa would not be continuing with us, as Harry and Joan were running out of time, and had to return back home to Canada shortly. We sure had enjoyed their company for almost two months, and I would miss Harry's long renditions about all the historical places that seemed to surround us everywhere in Greece!

By 0700 on Sunday, October 21 we were following behind XTC, as we both were powering around Poros town and heading out through the shallow channel. Since we would be going fairly close to the boat yard where Harry and Joan were on Thalassa, I called them on our VHF to say thank you for their company and good-bye. They were awake and looking for us; seemed they could see us, but we could not pick out their boat amongst all the others. When they blinked their searchlight at us, we finally saw them and waved! Soon we went behind a small island, and no more blinks from Harry and Joan could be seen. XTC and Stress Relief were now underway again, and we soon came out into the open water and could raise our sails. We helped our boat along with the engine, as the winds were not very strong, and snails pace would not bring us across to the first overnight stop! We were heading for the island of Kithnos and in particular to a bay on the northwest side called Ormos Fikiadha. Since Tom was sailing only, we left him behind, but when we had problems with the steering later on, he soon caught up to us. All of a sudden the auto-pilot started beeping. First we couldn't figure out why, but then Dan noticed we were way off course. He tried to correct the course, but nothing happened. That's when we found out we had absolutely no steering of the boat! Dan removed the cover over the nut, where a manual steering arm can be connected, but of course we didn't have a manual steering arm. Instead Dan clamped the vise-grips over the square nut, then duct tape and stainless steel wire tied the tool to our table leg and outboard motor handle. At least we could steer, but it wasn't that good. By the time XTC and Tom arrived, we had tried steering with Dan's invention, but since Tom had an one inch socket and breaker-bar, we borrowed it and a long piece of tubing. The socket worked much better, and Dan could now stand up on the stern steering, while I handled the power according to Dan's instructions. That's how we made it into the bay before nightfall. We were only about ten miles out when the steering let go, and we could see the island, but if we hadn't been able to steer, we might never have reached it. The reason we lost the steering was a leaky gasket to the hydraulic cylinder between the rudders. We had seen drops of oil on the water for quite some time, but we never thought to check the steering. Dan opened the cover over the hydraulic cylinder and found the bottom in the compartment full of hydraulic fluid, which we soaked up, but how to fix the leak so we could continue? The next morning Tom came over to our boat in his dinghy, and with him he had a repair kit for his hydraulic steering. Between Dan and Tom, they soon had the cylinder apart, and replaced the worn out o-ring with a new one. Dan assembled the cylinder, connected it to the hydraulic lines, filled the chamber with oil, pressurized the chamber, bled the air out, while Tom was reading the instructions and turning the steering wheel plenty of times. Finally everything seemed to work great again, if maybe a bit stiff! This time it was Tom that came to our rescue, so again we were reminded how good it is to travel with another boat, just in case!

Since it was still pretty early by the time our steering was fixed and the tools put away, we decided to try to make a run for the next island. We had to round the north point of Kithnos before we could change course more towards southeast and head for the island of Siros. We had pretty nice southwesterly winds, so most of the 35 mile distance we were able to sail. Once we got closer to the island the wind shifted and came straight at us; time to start the engine! By 1800 we had arrived and anchored in the harbor at Finikas. After we had eaten our supper, Tom came by in his dinghy and picked us up. We all wanted to go ashore and have a look at the town. A few more charter sailboats were tied up at the docks, but mostly there were local fishing boats. The town was just about deserted; most of the restaurants were closed up and the ones that were still open only had a few patrons or non at all. It didn't take us long to walk around the town, and since it really wasn't anything to see, we soon made our way back to the harbor and returned to our boats.

According to the weather report for the following day, it was supposed to blow northwest-north wind, force 3, which is 7 to 10 knots, and that sounded good for our continuing journey. Once we left the harbor at Finikas, we had to motor until we had rounded the southern shore and moved away from the island of Siros. At once we were in open water, the wind wasn't blowing force 3, but rather as high as force 7. The wind force reached as high as 31 knots, and we had quite an exciting sail over towards the island of Mykonos. The last five miles or so seemed never to end, as by then we had to turn more into the wind and the waves, and I didn't think we were making headway at all. We wanted to go to the south side of Mykonos to Ormos Ornos, where we planned to anchor and wait out strong winds that were expected to blow in a day or two. Eventually we got closer and closer to the bay, and by 1430 Stress Relief and XTC were anchored in Ormos Ornos. The bottom was sand and very good holding, as we found out when the strong winds arrived. The buildings, that dotted the land around Ormos Ornos, finally looked like typical Greek buildings to me; pure white washed walls, with blue shutters for the windows and blue doors. I think postcards and pictures in books from Greece had distorted my expectations of what the buildings should look like! The small village in Ornos bay was very quiet by now, as all the hotels were closed, and only a few local people lingered about. They did have a grocery store and a bakery that still were open, and there we bought our food and the most delicious pastries and bread.

We didn't stay long on the islands of Kithnos and Siros, only overnight, so we didn't have a chance to see anything of those islands, but on Mykonos we ended up staying seven days, and that was plenty of time for sightseeing. One day all of us walked the few miles into Mykonos town, and we followed the coastal route, from where we could see smaller islands along the coast and across to the island of Tinos. Once we reached the town and walked down between the whitewashed houses, the atmosphere was definitely Greek! All the houses were white with blue doors and window shutters, and stairs going up to the second story on the outside of the buildings. The streets were just very narrow alleys and not wide enough for cars, only mopeds and pedestrians. In some areas, someone had been patient enough to sit and paint the cement white, between the rocks on the street! It looked cheerful and made a distinctive square pattern. From balconies hung beautiful, red bougainvillea and all kinds of other flowering trees and bushes, which gave the alleys a homely and cozy atmosphere. Eventually we walked through the town and ended up down by the sea, where we stopped to eat lunch in a restaurant. Off to our left we saw five distinctive looking, but old, windmills, and to our right we saw the houses that was built right by the sea. The waves slapped up on the foundations, and I wondered how high the waves would reach in a good meltemi, which is a very strong northwesterly wind? Once we were done with our lunch, we continued our exploration of the town, and eventually ended up by the port. I didn't see many cruising sailboats, if any; mostly the port was filled with ferries and local fishing boats. Almost the entire waterfront was filled with restaurants, that had their tables and chairs set up under huge canvas canopies. Hardly any patrons enjoyed the afternoon in the sun, but then the tourist season was just about over. Only stragglers like us and a few other foreign speaking people mingled with the locals! On top of a small boat, which was overturned on the beach, two very big and beautiful pink pelicans pruned themselves, oblivious to the onlookers. Duke was very interested in sniffing them, but the birds didn't even bother with as much as a glance at him; guess they were used to dogs and people by then. It was getting late in the afternoon when we had seen enough of Mykonos town and decided to head for our boats. Neither Dan nor Tom was enthused about walking back, so they opted to wait for the bus, which would take them back to Ormos Ornos. Duke and I decided that we would hike back, so we soon set off and took the high road back. From high up on the island, we had spectacular views over the island and beyond, and we also saw some interesting house decorations. On almost every chimney small rocks were placed at each corner, or bricks making sort of a teepee on top; I wondered if it had some significance or just looked pretty? I never found out which! Duke and I soon returned to our bay, where we enjoyed the sunshine, until Dan and Tom came back on the bus, and we all returned to our boats.

For a few days we didn't leave our boats as a strong meltemi was blowing, and it was better for us to stay onboard. Once the weather calmed down some, we rented two mopeds in town, cheap enough not to bother removing ours, and set out to see the island. All along the southern coast of Mykonos are beautiful sandy beaches, and some caters to specific sun worshippers. Which beach caters to the nudist and which the gay community we couldn't figure out, as the beaches was mostly empty, and the few people about were dressed! The island is kind of barren; a few thorny bushes grew here and there, but no trees at all. The beaches are what draw the crowds in the summer, and the night life in Mykonos town, as the island really don't offer anything else.

On our moped ride we explored a big part of the island, and after the mopeds were filled up, we set out to the north side. We had to turn around at Agios Sostis, as the road ended. There we experienced a very angry sea, which pounded against the shoreline and churned up the sandy bottom. Even though the winds had calmed down somewhat, it takes a bit longer for the waves to diminish. What force! Back on the mopeds and bumped along small dirt tracks until we reached the bigger road. As we were heading into the middle of the island, towards Ano Mera, the traffic slowed down to a crawl, and up ahead we could see lights flashing from police cars and ambulances. As we were getting closer to the accident scene, bloodstains were visible on the road, and soon we could see a man laying across the opposite lane. His head was covered in blood, and he didn't move! People were gathering around this man, and some were bending over him, but nobody seemed to do anything. Maybe it was too late? We didn't see any smashed vehicle, car or moped, so he could have been a pedestrian that got hit! As we passed right along the man on the road, I couldn't look, but Dan and Tom did, and they told me later that the side of the man's face was smashed! We continued by and stopped in Ano Mera to drink a cup of coffee and try to forget the horrible sight! Back on the mopeds again and we then found the road that started climbing the high mountain Anomeritis on the southeast side of the island. We drove along the road as far as we could; a military site occupied the very top, and we weren't allowed to go there. Even so we were high up and had a beautiful view out towards the island of Tragonissi, and the valley that stretched out to the south. We could see quite far along the coast, but eventually the land disappeared in the haze. Along the south side we drove on many small roads that led down to the gorgeous beaches, and I could easily imagine the crowds that would be there in the summer. All the hotels were closed up now, and it was only the caretakers there fixing and painting and getting things ready for the following season. Mykonos has a pretty big airport, and we went by it when we returned. From the airport it wasn't far back to Mykonos town and out to our boats in Ormos Ornos, where a lonely Duke eagerly waited for our return.

The winds had come and gone and it was time for us to continue again, so on Tuesday October 30 we got ready to leave the island of Mykonos behind. As soon as we left the bay at Ornos, we had 10-15 knot wind from the north, and as we were heading southeast towards the island of Dhenoussa, it was perfect sailing weather. By 1700 we had arrived to an open bay on the south side, Ormos Dhendro, where we cautiously anchored. Our cruising guide showed a partially sunken ship up towards shore, where we had to go to anchor, but nowhere could it be seen. The bay was very small, and once XTC came and anchored a bit behind and off to our side, the bay seemed to be full. About 0500 the following morning, while it still was dark, I woke up from a boat arriving and anchoring in front of us. No lights were on in the boat, but I could see men moving about, and I was concerned with who they were? I woke Dan up, and he went on top and aimed our searchlight on the boat, just to show them we were aware that they were there. We could see then that it was a fishing boat! Eventually the fishing boat laid down a net behind the boat as it was making a big circle, but when they pulled the net in and had caught no fish, they moved along to another spot. We could go back to sleep again for a few hours, before it was time to wake up and continue our journey.

For the second day in a row we had good sailing weather and by late afternoon on Wednesday, October 31 we had come an additional 35 miles farther southeast to the island of Levitha. On the south side, in Ormos Levitha we tied up to laid mooring balls. According to our cruising guide, you could anchor there and be very protected from any direction. Since the installation of mooring balls, there was no room for anchoring way up in the bay, but farther out towards the entrance in 50 feet of water there was still room. There was plenty of mooring balls available, so we tied up to one, and Tom did the same to another one. Four other sailboats lay on anchor and rafted together outside the mooring field, and only one more powerboat arrived during the night. The people on the rafted boats told us there would be a minimal charge for the mooring, but we didn't see anybody coming to collect the money, and the next morning we moved along again. The island was pretty desolate and only a lighthouse keeper and a few fishermen inhabit the island, but the bay is a great stop over for boats coming and going between islands in the Cyclades.

According to our cruising guide, the Port Kalimnos on the island of Kalimnos supposedly have facilities to check boats out of Greece, and that's where we were heading on November 1. The favorable winds didn't last, three days would have been too much to expect, so we were back to motor-sailing. It was not good going, and the boat pounded along, but eventually we reached the south side of the island, and the winds calmed some more. Tom didn't give in and motor-sail; he tried to sail the entire distance, so we saw him fall off the wind and disappear towards north much more than us. When we reached the port at Kalimnos, the town quay was full of sailboats, big fishing boats and smaller powerboats, and we didn't want to squeeze in between them. Instead we threw over our anchor in one corner close by small fishing boats, and we thought we were ok. Not so, as we soon noticed a big hardbottom dinghy coming our way and on top of a rack, a blue light was blinking! The port police came to tell us we couldn't stay there. Since the town quay was full, they said that we could go over to the other side of a newly built quay in the commercial port, where some boats were tied up already. We went alongside and tied up, and Tom did the same when he arrived. A walk around town later on, where we found the grocery store and the Internet, and stopped to eat a very delicious pizza in a restaurant. Early the next morning Dan and Tom went ashore to find the port police and to check out! They weren't gone very long before they returned, and Dan was not happy! The port police couldn't check our boats out after October 31; we had to go to the island of Kos to do that now. Instead they charged us for tying up to the unfinished quay without any facilities, and that didn't sit well with Dan.

We were now in a hurry to leave Kalimnos and head over to Kos to check out, but would we make it to Turkey this day? The sea was pretty calm when we left Kalimnos, so we had to motor. As we came close to the island of Pserimos, on the very farthest point east, we saw a Greek military installation. Seemed they had been watching us in their binoculars, as I did the same to them. A big huge Greek flag was painted on rocks ashore, and I guess it was to let everybody know you were either leaving or arriving in Greek waters. Looking at the island of Kos in our cruising guide, it has the shape of a whale, and the port of Kos lies where the imaginary eyes would be. We were going for the eyes, but before we could reach them, we had to round the top of the head. It got very shallow there quite a long distance off the point, so we had to keep altering our course several times. We did not want to get stuck! Once around the shallow area, we could almost see the port at Kos, and at the same time we noticed some very dark and threatening clouds. All of a sudden the wind came howling from the south and a sheet of rain obliterated everything outside a two hundred yards radius. No way were we going into a strange harbor under those conditions, so instead we headed into the wind and basically waited out the storm. Eventually the strong winds and rain moved along to the north, and we could see around us again. Time to head into the port, find somewhere to tie up and start the check-out procedure. We found a spot along the quay, where hydrofoil ferries normally tie up, and there Duke and I watched our boats, while Dan and Tom went to find the authorities. They had to go to three different places to check-out and pay a nominal fee, but finally they came back, and we were free to leave Greece. Since it was getting late in the day and we would never make it up to Bodrum, on the Turkish coast, while it still was daylight, we decided to head across to a small bay on the Turkish coast and stay overnight. Leaving Greece behind us after a little over two months in their waters, and still so much to see and so many more islands to visit; maybe on our return trip out of the Mediterranean!