Island hopping in the Aegean

In July we left the boat high and dry.

Summer commitments in Vermont (family and camp) and a summer cottage on the Baltic Sea in Sweden take us away from the boat every summer for a couple months. These annual summer plans also coincide nicely with the massive influx of tourists to the Greek islands and the intense summer heat in the Mediterranean. We chose Syros in the northern Cyclades because it would be a great spot to return to in September and start our fall sailing season. We found a family-run boatyard in Ermoupolis, the main town on Syros and also the administrative center of the Cyclades. The yard stayed in contact with us over the summer which is always reassuring and when we returned to the boat it was ready to sail again, except for the very thick layer of dust and grime coating the entire exterior. The winds blow hard all summer long in the Aegean and combined with the dry, dusty islands, the boat was dirty. It took a couple rounds of powerwashing and elbow grease, but after a few days the decks were clean.

Didimi

The small, uninhabited island directly east of Syros was our first stop. It felt so good to be floating again and getting back into the cruising mentality. Matilda found a couple abandoned shacks on the beach and spent most of her days exploring the little island. The meltemi started to blow and while the anchorage was protected from swell, the wind funneled straight through the bay. We sailed a couple miles south to a more protected spot.

Vari, Syros

Back to the bigger island of Syros and we stayed put for a couple days while the Meltemi really blew. Both Freja and I were feeling under the weather, surely we picked up some kind of virus as we traveled from Sweden back to Greece. I spent a couple days in bed sleeping and feeling generally crummy. Not exactly what I hoped for upon return to the boat, but not surprising and at least we were home.

Rineia and Delos

Delos has been a highlight of our time in the Cyclades so far. The ancient Greeks believed that Delos was the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis and for about a thousand years (900 BCE to 100 CE) it was a site of religious pilgrimage. It later became a central trading hub in the Greek islands. Ancient artifacts abound, including the iconic row of lions that watch over the sacred lake. In order to visit Delos, we anchored at the neighboring island of Rineia, beautiful in its own barren ruggedness, and went on a long-ish dinghy ride to Delos. We unfortunately arrived at the same time as a tour boat filled with cruise ship passengers from neighboring Mykonos. The woman working at the ticket booth suggested we visit the museum first to avoid the crowds. Then we hiked up to the highest point on the island and saw why it was called the center of the Cyclades--it was like all the islands circled around Delos. (To be fair though, I think you could say that from the high point of almost any of the islands in the Cyclades.)

The ancient city of Delos.

Gorgeous, ancient jewelry

The craftsmanship was amazing. Marble statutes with fabric that appears transparent.

The original lions. The replicas are outside.

Paros

After Delos, we sailed down to Paros to drop Hans off at the ferry. It was time for him to go back to work for a few weeks. This was a longer stretch of time than usual, a full three weeks, and it felt like even longer because we didn't have any friends around. It was just me and the kids for three long weeks. The quiet was beneficial though because it was the end of September and we really needed to buckle down and get some schoolwork done. The kids worked for probably 6 hours a day, diligently and with little to no complaints. I always worry that the long summer break will leave them unmotivated to start school and also out of practice with focusing and steady work, but this year it proved the opposite. They were ready and willing to start school. Freja is now in 9th grade and is feeling the pressure to take school seriously and learn everything she needs before university.

We spent a few days in the main harbor after Hans left and then sailed south to a small cluster of islands just south of Paros. There was no wind in the forecast for a couple days so I wanted to take advantage of the calm conditions and anchor in the more open anchorage. It was absolutely packed with day trippers from around 10AM to 6PM, but the evenings were so quiet and peaceful. Our first night was very rolly so I summoned my inner Hans and set a stern anchor with the dinghy to keep us stern-to the swell. It worked like a charm and we had barely any motion on the boat. I also inflated the paddleboard and paddled all around the anchorage, marveling at the crystal clear water.

watching the day trippers from the cockpit.

Strong north winds were forecast so after a few days we sailed back to Paros and anchored on the southern shore. The town was very very touristy but it was nice to have a meal out and restock some fresh food. We walked to a museum just north of town that was a collection of art a local resident had made over the years. He started making model fishing boats for his wife and then expanded his portfolio to include miniature versions of life on Paros and also other Greek replicas like the ampitheater on ancient Delos.

Replica of ancient Delos's amphiteather

replica of Delos's lions

A miniature, and working!, ouzo still

part of Matilda's english curriculum involved making sourdough bread.
This is round 1.

Morning run on Paros

After a few days it was back up to the main town on Paros where we ate out a couple times, spent the afternoon at a beach club, restocked fresh food, and did more schoolwork.

exponent rules

The first real southwesterly winds of the fall season were in the forecast so we sailed to the northern end of Paros and anchored in a bay with great protection from southerly winds. Instead of all the charter boats we had become accustomed to, we were finally surrounded by other cruising boats. We had strong winds and rain, so a couple days of daytime TV watching and not much else. When the weather cleared we hiked to the site of an ancient acropolis and got great views of the harbor. The landscape on these islands is very barren, dry, and rugged, but the real beauty comes out at sunset when the reflections of the sun turn the normal tan/brown islands pink and orange.

The bad weather gave us some very dramatic skies.

We started on a hike but had to return before we reached the lighthouse because the sky got very very dark!

the usual scene for us parents when we want to go off the boat.
Sitting in the dinghy waiting for the kids.

More dramatic skies.

I came across a goat farm on my morning run.

Sunbathing and reading after the skies finally cleared.

Walking around Naousa with Freja

brunch

the view from the hike to the Acropolis

Naxos

We'd (I) almost made it through the three weeks. We moved over to the neighboring island of Naxos a few days before Hans was scheduled to arrive. We rented a car one day and explored the island and did a big grocery shop. We returned to PW and the wind really started to pick up, much higher than forecast and the basin we were anchored in developed some kind of nasty current and wind driven chop. Hans arrived the next day and I picked him and the multiple suitcases of our stuff in the dinghy in 25+ knots of wind. Yay boating!

Island hopping in Greece part 2 in the next post.