Sailing Nydri to Preveza the long way around – our last sail before winterizing the boat!

Sailing Nydri to Preveza the long way around – our last sail before winterizing the boat!

Hey everyone, thank you very much for joining Abil and myself as we cruise the Mediterranean in our first overse as live-aboards In this video, we slowly and begrudgingly make our way to Preveza to get Argo lifted out of the water for winter We last left you in Nidri on the Ionian island of Lef Gada after having just said goodbye to our friends Sean and Ali. We decided to spend a few days just at anchor in Nidri. We’d been moving around a lot, and we were looking forward just to having a place to sit and chill for a while. And being the off season, it was very cool. quiet and very relaxed. Let’s just say we very quickly became regulars at the local bakery and Yiros place Now, normally, taking a boat from Nidri to Provesa is as easy as motoring it up the channel that separates a Lefkada from the mainland. However, I had recently discovered that the opening and closing bridge that lets boats come up through the canal had been closed for some time. I later found out that this was because it was due for a safety check, but there was some kind of dispute as to who was going to pay for it And it was being deliberated over by the authorities for some time We, however, weren’t about to complain about taking the scenic route Besides, we had gotten to a really good habit of taking it slow What have we done today? Well, I did quite a lot. Oh. pretty much, but I still part of all this half. I quite like these days, lazing around the boat and not going anywhere. But I think I need to go for a run. But in general, we simply spent a few days relaxing on the boat, cleaning up a little bit, and, of course, visiting Greek bakeries. Our sneaky last Nydri Bakery…
Cafecito Bakery brunch. Eventually, the day came when we had to start making a move But if we had to go the long way around, we wanted to check out a couple of spots along the way We were thinking about going directly to Abelaki Bay, where we had stayed for the night with Sean and Ali, but we decided to check out a few more of the other inner islands. They’re all very close together and quite easy to access, but I probably should have done a bit more research as I erroneously entered the inlet around Scorpius Island without realizing that it was a private island, apparently owned by a Russian billionaire After the third or fourth, no anchoring private property sign, I decided I’d better hightail it out of there So we decided to motor directly south to Meganisi to check out a few bays that we hadn’t checked out with Sean and Ali. We checked out a Spartochori which was a very beautiful bay and likely a very popular hotspot during the high season But ultimately, we decided that we really wanted to go back to Abalaki Bay It was such a lovely anchorage when we stayed there four or five nights earlier And I really wanted to explore the town that was in the hills above And so we motored the few miles around to Abalaki Bay. Just after anchoring, I took the dinghy to shore while Abil chose to stay behind and finish her crochet blanket Because it was just me, I turned it into an opportunity to get some exercise and go for a run The plan was to run up the hill that led down to the bay and eventually make my way to the town of Katomeri, and then perhaps on the way back, visit a couple of the other bays You can tell by my heavy breathing that it either was very hilly terrain or I was just completely unfit after living aboard for about five months The town was very quiet, but obviously very cute. Most things had closed up for the winter, but there were some locals out and about having coffee outside cafes or their doorway entry. Once through the town, I came to a couple of small farms on the other side, but decided to walk on back through the town and take in the sunset that was taking place. Katomeri sits on top of a hill. So I had a really great view east towards Kalamos and the mainland behind it. Once back in Abelaki Bay, I ventured past the dinghy dock further out along the side of the bay, spying Wood a little busy at work in the cockpit while I was there. Even though I’m sure this bay is completely packed during the summertime, it’s definitely on our list to return because we spent yet another perfectly calm still tranquil quiet night at anchor. We just loved it. The next morning, we were on our way again, following roughly the same path that we had just taken with our friends, Sean and Ali. that is heading down the east side of Megissi and then arounding the very southern tip. Once we rounded the southern end, we could take advantage of the downwind sailing, raising the spinaker, and heading to our next destination, which was Vasiliki. The wind was very light, so we were going very slow, but we were happy to just cruise along at three or four knots and take it easy. Vasiliki is yet another town that we remember passing through on our first trip to Lefkada three years earlier. I remember going to a lookout up above the town and looking out at the channel there separates Lefua and Callonia and thinking how amazing it would be to be sailing out there in my very own boat Fast forward three years and here I was doing just that, although hoping just for a little bit more wind. In the Bay of Vasiliki, there was only one other boat in the area. And although there was a fairly strong wind spilling down over the hillside into Vasiliki Bay, we still slept quite well, although not quite as calm and peaceful as Abalaki Bay. Although we had more than enough time to make it to Preveza that day, we really wanted to stop for lunch in Aus Nikitas, a small little fishing come holiday town that we’d visited a couple of times in the past couple of years. We emoted the 3 miles or so down to the southwest tip of the island Once rounding it, however, we were treated to some excellent wind and we spent a couple of hours sailing up the the west coast with between about 13 to 18 knots of wind making for some reasonably fast fun sailing given that it was probably the last time that season that we would be properly sailing, I was really trying to soak it up. We passed by Porto Katsiki and the beautiful Egrimi Beach, where we actually spied a sailboat washed up on the shore. By the time we were approaching Aus Nikita, the wind had dropped off quite a lot, so we started to motor sail, coming in nice and close to see a beautiful Milos beach, which is just around the corner front. Agios Nikitas. The water at pretty much all the swim spots along this side of the coast is spectacularly aqua blue and we were really wishing we could jump out and have a really long day swim It was, however, pretty much already winter and far too cold for that. But we were happy to settle for anchoring just outside Agios Nikitas and having some lunch outside this beautiful. town. So, where is this beautiful spot we are? Agios Nikitas What’s the significance? We’ve been here.. twice? Oh, we love it. We love it. It’s not a super well protected anchorage, but it’s a really nice day stop and a beautiful little village. Yeah, it’s beautiful. And just around the corner from, Milos beach somewhere around there. Abril had just finished putting the very final last touches on her crochet blanket. So I thought I’d get a good shot of her showing it off on the four-deck of Argo Before too long, however, we were underway once again, motoring the last 10 miles or so to Preveza even though it was the long way around the island, we were certainly happy to do so. Catching up on all the spots that we had visited a few years earlier, but could now do so from our own. If only we were a couple of months earlier to enjoy the warmer weather, too. After going through the channel that leads to Professor Harbor, I was finding a little difficult to find the entry to the marina because it was being blocked by this giant cargo ship. But did find it eventually I managed to reverse Argo into our tight marina spot with only minimal assistance from the friendly marina crew. and pretty quickly set out to explore the town Then I would have to wait a little longer than anticipated, however, because Abril came across an amusement parlor and Abril goes crazy for amusement parlors Especially when they have claw machines. I think this stems back from a moment on Our Greece trip few years earlier when Abril actually won two toys in a row on these claw machines. So I think she’s under the false belief that she has incredible talent in operating them. I’m starting to believe the opposite is true Now, we did have some extensive boat upgrades planned, but given the amount of money Abridel pumped into this core machine, I think we’re going to have to put it off a season or two. In the morning, I took a run through the town, and then Abril and myself went and got some washing done. With that taken care of, we could put it off no longer. We had to start winterizing Argo. I started first by taking down all her sails as it was going to be a lot easier to do it in the marina than in the boatyard and then set about cleaning out all the lockers, giving the dingy eff. thorough cleaning and everything else on deck. During breaks, I made friends with a local boat cat. who wasn’t particularly interested in my pathetic offer of cheese. Another jog through town early morning the next day, where I found some fishermen are feeding the local cats, but then it was straight back to work continuing to winterize Argo. There was quite a few things that we planned to do after she had been left out of the water, but I wanted to prep up as much as I could. lunchtime on day two of winterizing Argo. Cushions here are still drying. The dingy.y is washed, and I’ll be putting it down. Soon, the jib is off and storeed below. The main is also off. I think I’m going to keep the lazy bag there. That’s all I’ve got the battons all out here. I put them down below. before we go. I just. I just rinsed out the outboard motor with fresh water using the as little muffs. So I sort of I have it all set up with the fuel tank. I had to take the line out of the dinghy, which would be a bit annoying to put back for next season, but, yeah. It shouldn’t be too hard. And then other than that, it’s just tidying up all these lines, drying stuff out, one more wash. This afternoon, yeah, the bimini’s off. It looks very naked with no sails and an bimini. This winterizing business, much just prefer to stay on board, yeah. After a couple of days of nonstop boat work, we thought we deserved a night out There were so many good looking seafood restaurants in Pravesa, even in the off season when it was already cold. So we’re pretty hard pressed to find a place to eat, but we eventually chose, well, What are you looking like that? So much food The size of those anchovies. Shrimp sangaki, grilled octopus Really good..
You happy? First thing in the morning, we were off to make our scheduled liftout just across the bay. We were a little bit concerned about how this would go because we knew that we had to reverse in and it was quite windy, but it turns out we had nothing really to worry about. Getting Argo lifted out of the water. But we’re really worried about we have to have to reverse it to the slip for the lift out, but it actually went really well. there.. help us. These guys are pros, they’ve done I think 1,000 And also, our guys will to sit down several, so she’ll be OK. just be that so nervous. While we were waiting, I had a really great chat with a gentleman from Germany who was getting his boat lifted out just before us. And in fact, he would end up being one of our boat yard neighbours. We were marveling about how well we had timed our lift out Given that the weather had changed quite dramatically that very morning becoming much colder, rainier and windier. The liftout actually went perfectly smoothly, but I wasn’t without my nervous moments, of course This was actually the first time I’d seen Argo’s hull out of the water, because when I had the initial survey done prior to purchasing, I wasn’t actually present I had sent an engineer along and had gone through the detail of his extensive report, but But it just didn’t make sense to fly all that distance just to witness the liftout and survey The dock workers got started on the usual high pressure wash on Argo’s hull. and did such a great job of it. It made me really want to put Argo right back in the water so I could test out how much faster she would be with a clean belly. It was only about 8 o’clock in the morning and already a couple of other boats had lined up behind us. It is this season to be lifted out. After the pressure washing, it was done, Argo was moved a bit further back out of the slip and across the road, where she was then transferred to another trailer to be towed by a tractor. After about 10 minutes of carefully repositioning Argo on top of the trailer to ensure the greatest amount of safety Argo was on the move again this time to her place for the off season in the boat yard And it turned out to be a much longer journey than expected And at one point, we thought we might actually lose Argo and the tractor and have to search for her in and amongst us some massive boatyard. I think we must have been one of the last people to book because we’re right out in the… The last corner. The last spot. How long has been walking for? Half an hour. We thought we might be approaching our spot when the tractor started to reverse, but it turns out it just needed to back its way down this particular part of the road. Eventually, however, she did come to her halt, and the incredibly professional team set about propping her up for the winter with the liftout having gone smoothly and with a whole heap of boat work ahead of us, we decided to take a quick break for a late breakfast slash lunch at the cafe that’s near Cleopatra Marina The first thing I wanted to do was winterize the engine Brief me When the tub is full, I’ll. Just turn on the engine as normal. What do you do here? As’s normal. And then just listen out for me to tell you.. So I don’t put the clutch in at no point. No. Clutch always out. Yes. So the idea behind this part of the process was to run fresh water through all the parts where seawater would normally get pumped through With the experience of already doing the same for the generator at the marina, this one went quite smoothly and I was quite happy with the result The winter weather had truly set in, and as the sun was setting, the wind was really picking up. And in fact, all through the night, it was shaking and fell like like it was rocking Argo while it was up on its stand. Look at these miserable conditions Can really see the white caps on the waves Somehow we got to get our covers on this wind. as we have got to go to love. It took us the entire day and some hours into the night to get everything that we wanted to do get done done, but eventually we made it and decided to treat ourselves to one last night. meal and Preveza and I think we deserved it. So, we’re a bit thirsty, are we? I’m tired. So, I think we’ve been this winterizing a boat over two days. We deserve to be double parked. Cheers. Chin, chin, chin chin. And so first thing the next morning, we were on a bus heading for Athens And even though the weather was pretty bad and sailing season well and truly over, we still felt bad about leaving Argo without being 100% sure of the exact day to we be able to come back on board.

After the most incredible 5 months of summer and into the winter months, it was time to have one last sail for the year!

We needed to sail from Nydri to Preveza, which would normally only take a couple of hours. However, with the Lefkada opening bridge closed, we had to take the long way around the island!

We were more than happy to take our time, stopping in Meganisi, Vasiliki, and Agios Nikitas along the way.

00:22 – Passing time in Nydri
02:22 – Nydri to Meganisi
04:00 – Exploring Meganisi on Foot
04:57 – Katomeri
06:03 – Sailing Meganisi to Vasiliki
07:54 – Sailing Vasiliki to Agios Nikitas
10:22 – Lunch anchored at Agiod Nikitas
11:23 – Agios Nikitas to Preveza
12:17 – Gaming arcade in Preveza
13:53 – Winterizing Day 1 – Preveza Marina
14:50 – Winterizing Day 2 – Preveza Marina
16:34 – Dinner out in Preveza
17:06 – Leaving marina to be lifted out
18:30 – Argo gets lifted out
22:08 – Winterizing in the boat yard Day 1
23:05 – Winterizing in the boat yard Day 2
23:40 – Dinner out in Preveza
24:08 – Bus to Athens
24:45 – Up next – Dubai and Argentina