The sky is again clear and blue, and the wind gauge reads 0.0 m/s. Sailing is not looking good today. We can hear the mourning doves in the trees, it is our daily symphony. Often we awake to a concert of doves, swallows, sparrows, chickens and roosters, and occasionally the odd donkey braying in the distance. Beats the sound of sirens.
There are two sounds that have driven us nuts since we arrived. The first is an occasional generator like sound. We finally traced that one to the groove in the boom. When the wind is at just the right angle, it makes the boom vibrate in the weirdest way. Yet another reason we have decided that we prefer a traditional sail configuration.
The other one has eluded us. It only happens in certain ports and it sounds like a fire crackling all night long through the hull. We figure it has to be free electricity. Must be murderous electrolysis here.
We head for Kythnos today. Not completely decided on if we will go back to Merikas or to Loutra on this side. Rounding the corner of Seriphos we see six boats in the distance, all heading around the south end of Kythnos. That’s it, we go north to Loutra. The travel books don’t speak highly of it, mention it as a 19th century hydrotherapy spa that is in disrepair and devoid of tourists. It is referred to in Greek Island Hopping as a “mildly depressing place”. If that’s the case, our theory is that few people will be there …perfect!
Watch out for ferries, we have decided that Greek ferry captains actually like to torment charter boats. They sneak up on you from behind and give you absolutely no warning that they are there. If you are lucky (or observant) enough to be watching all around you all the time, you won’t be caught off guard and left trying to wildly get out of their way.
We came out of Seriphos into 7 m/s winds …enough to get a sail in! Of course as soon as we pulled, they died. So we motored in a straight line for Kythnos. We made another attempt and found that although we had enough wind to move us slightly, when we came about, we were on exactly the same line. Not going to make any headway that way. Down the sails came and the winds dropped to zero.
We were visited by another dolphin just out of Loutra. A big one, jumped high around us a couple of times, circled once or twice and moved back to its companion who did not come visit. We circled back and it came close but then veered back to its friend. It was no longer interested in us and we felt that we were now bothering it.
We turned into Loutra and discovered that it is a wonderful place. An Aussie pair were docked in a catamaran, the woman came over to catch our lines. They are at the end of one leg (3 weeks) of a nine week holiday. Wow, now that’s a vacation. It’s ironic. This is the first port that we have come into that doesn’t see any ferries, they dock on the other side of the island at Merikas, yet this is the nicest and most modern dock we have seen yet. Water and power are free, not that we need either. The only trick is that there is only one outlet for each, so unless you are right in front of it, you will need one very long hose/power connector. The basin is well protected and although you can hear waves rushing up onto the rocks ten feet away, it is absolutely calm in here.
The temperature is over 30 degrees though and there is no wind to cool you off. We go for a walk to find the hot springs that are said to be down at the south end of the beach. We find a small channel leading into the sea with a small pool, just big enough for two ….unfortunately it is occupied. Maybe in the morning we will go have a dip. It looks iron rich.
Looking back into the basin we can see a flurry of boats arriving, we got here at the right time. One is a boat containing four guys from Sweden who were across from us yesterday. They left hours before we did, yet arrive much later. Apparently like us, they were trying to sail without success.
We went for a walk around the community and found two stores for provisions, we just wanted some vegetables for dinner. The higher of the two shops was in the care of the sweetest elderly Greek woman we have met yet, She tried to wave us in but we indicated we would come back. She blew me a kiss. We wandered in later and she greeted us each with a kiss on the cheek. Now if that isn’t a slick sales tactic we don’t know what is. Of course we are going to buy something now! I went to get some feta from the cooler and she seemed offended at my choice. Said “Feta?”, I said “neh” she shook her head at me, took it away and said “Kythnos feta!” Apparently she had something better. She hauled out a big bucket from the back of the cooler, took off the lid and pulled out a hunk of feta. She broke off a small chunk and gave it to me, definitely more flavourful. She broke off another small piece and Kirk tried to take it, she pulled back and made him let her feed it to him. Ah that Kirk, he’s a magnet for the chicks. So, we now have more feta than we need, but such is life.
Back to the boat for dinner and some reading, hauled out a blanket and napped. Went for an ice cream but the tavernas didn’t have any, The woman we asked went back in and a moment later the owner of the second market came out and unlocked her shop so we could buy one. Now that’s service! Where else is someone going to open their store hours after they close, while they are in a restaurant, so you can buy an ice cream.
In bed, Kirk and a mosquito are at war. I rarely get bug bites, my theory is that for 18 years I’ve had Kirk around as bug bait. For the next hour Kirk is flicking the light on and off trying to find the creature. They grow them smart here, it hides every time he turns the light on. For hours the mosquito is taking stabs at Kirk. From my perspective, it’s kind of funny, but he is not amused by my amusement so I try to keep it to myself. I’ve rarely seen him so furious. Doesn’t help that he is getting eaten alive while tucked securely under a sheet and I have arms and legs hanging out and am untouched. Guess he’s just sweeter than I am.
