Enjoying the fairly predictable afternoon winds on the north coast of Corfu.
Hi, Gerald.
....and here are the rather less predictable conditions 9 miles off the south coast of Corfu. The Dhiekplous Paxon, to be precise, where the Adriatic meets the Ionian and shelves from 1500 m to less than 100m over about 10 miles. The wind, apart from the odd Zephyr, does very little in the mornings but builds from about mid day to 2:30 – 3:00pm (you could almost set your watch) usually to about F4 or 5 but sometimes it just keeps going!
The sea state is the real problem. The local ferries hug the mainland in anything of a chop before nipping across to Gaios and in winds over F6 even the car ferry stops running. This August we had only one blow strong enough to do that. I measured gusts of 32 knots INSIDE Lakka Harbour! How did you get on, Gerald? If I had thought about it I should have put the Four Sisters on her trailer for a couple of days. As it was I had to spend a lot of time re-adjusting fenders as yet another small boat shouldered its way in behind the breakwater to get out of white water.
Photos (if they appear in the right order):-
1. Morning. Oily calm. Great for rowing, swimming, fishing or blasting south to Anti Paxos with the outboard.
2. Lunch, overlooking Lakka harbour. Also oily but in a very good way!
3. Afternoon. (c. 4:00 pm) Just between Lakka and Loggos. Wind only about F4, sea state rough. Shot from land with a telephoto lens.
4. Map.
I just love Paxos but I do not recommend it as a place for a small boat. You are MUCH better off 20 miles south in the Inland Sea (Lefkas, Ithaca, etc) or in the sheltered water between Corfu and the mainland, Kouloura and Kalami, for example. In between its ocean swells and a rocky lee shore all the way to Preveza.
Note. If you are thinking of towing out to this area book the Ancona- Igoumenitsa ferry very early to get a 45% discount on peak season prices. This year I missed the discount period by less than a week. Ouch!
