CORFU’S GORGEOUS PALAIOKASTRITA

At the time of posting we’re on the hardstand at Lefkas marina in the final stages of preparing Envoy for winter storage. This posting takes us to 19 September.

If you want to cut loose from normal life, and start experiencing and enjoying this lifestyle of cruising the Med aboard a rugged passagemaker, there is only one Nordhavn 46 for sale in the Med, and she belongs to friends of ours. She is fully equipped, currently cruising, and for an investment of Euro 280,000 (about US$363,000) you could jump aboard and start living your dreams too – in the Med and anywhere in the world you want to cruise. Email me (admiralfw@gmail.com), and I’ll put you in touch with the owner.

We’d never been around the western side of Corfu Island, so after the weather settled we left our haven at Avalaki, and headed around there to a spectacular area called Palaiokastrita, where there is a series of about five beautiful bays with golden sandy beaches set between rugged rocky bluffs. Some of the beaches were still in their natural state while others had quaint tavernas and guest houses scattered around. From Envoy’s anchorage the views in all directions were stunning, and we were the only boat there.

View of beautiful beach from Envoy's anchorage at Palaiokastrita

Envoy in the setting sun. We had our flopper-stoppers out as there was a bit of a roll coming from the sea open to the west. A bit cloudy this day

The nearby village of Lakones, 450m above sea level, can be reached by a five km long road or a steep, stony mountain track, and we chose to walk the track for a bit of exercise.

This track to Lakones got steeper and steeper although the photo doesn’t really show it

 

We should have ridden this friendly donkey up the hill

These goats also seemed a cheerful herd

The view down on Palaiokastrita from Lakones was stunning, and in the photo below we were anchored just out of picture to the left

We did some shopping up at Lakones, and laden with groceries decided to be cheeky and ask somebody for a lift back to sea level by car. We spotted a driver, who’d stopped to look at the view, and asked for a ride. It turned out the driver was a British tourist who lived in Bedford, very close to where I was born, and near where my parents used to live, so he was only too happy to oblige while we had a chat about the Bedford and Luton regions.

We noticed this unusual looking pedal boat passing by

Village behind Envoy's anchorage

Leaving Palaiokastrita we headed nearly 40 miles south to Paxos Island, trolling a lure, and landed another three small tuna. The main bay at Paxos is called Lakka, and although we had sufficient room to anchor, there were 55 boats anchored in total, of which all but two of us were sailing yachts. This is quite typical as there are very few cruising motor vessels. Lakka is a great place to anchor with good shelter, shallow and clear water, and interesting surroundings. The village is interesting to wander around, with some nice tavernas to enjoy a beer as the sun sets.

Lakka Bay on Paxos Island

Envoy anchored in Lakka

Lakka village

Another shot of the picturesque village

Here we met some Kiwis from a Wellington yacht, Largo Star, doing a circumnavigation. They are great friends of our mate, Brooke Archbold, who spent a few days with us in July. We had also seen them last year in northern Turkey, and although the Med is a huge area, you do seem to meet people again unexpectedly.

TECHNICAL: Again nothing to report to this time.
LOG: Up to 19 September had spent 173 days aboard, and cruised 1,602 miles for 310 engine hours.