It is always good to catch up with old friends. And it’s great to spend time with them, especially when you’re treated to an overnight stay at their beautiful apartment with stunning views! That’s what happened after the long lockdown finished. Our good friend and patron Michel and his beautiful wife Canan, invited Barry, Kev and myself to their apartment which sits high on the hills overlooking Kas bay, the marina and views over to the Greek island of Kastellorizo.
The weather was perfect and we all enjoyed some great conversations, belly laughs, excellent food and wine and of course a swim in their pool. As twilight approached, a family of boars nuzzled around the grounds outside of the apartment. The piglets were delightful and I couldn’t imagine how such cute little babies could grow up to be fearsome looking adults! Baz got some fairly close up video footage of them which you can see in this week’s video.
As the evening drew near, we were treated to a colourful sunset which dipped to inky black dotted with the twinkling yellow lights of the town and marina. Baz also captured a fabulous time-lapse that you can see as well.
What do 40 knots of wind look like in a marina?
Some days before we left our home marina at Kaş to set out north (again), we had a wild and windy day with up to 40 knots of wind. A B Sea was safely secured with storm lines in the relative calm at the middle of the pontoon. But at the end of the pontoon things were a lot more intense.
One catamaran which was tied to the pontoon by only one line (not doubled), was bumping precariously close to one of our Turkish friend’s boats and Umit the owner was very concerned. He called for the marineros who came as quickly as they could. While he waited, he and another friend held onto the cat’s line. Neither had gloves on and I could only imagine how harsh that was with the salt water and the slipping line, on their hands. I put the camera away, got on my sailing gloves, and did my small part as ‘anchor woman’ behind them, hoping to be able to take some of the strain. The marineros arrived, and one jumped on board the cat and did a stellar job of securing the stern line.
All’s well that ends well.
Sunshine and calm water
The following day was a perfect early summer morning with sunshine, warmth and calm seas. I took some footage of that too to show how quickly things settle down. There was even a guy swimming in the bay.
Fully working mangle
Do you remember back in December 2019 when the mangle (hand wringer) that I ordered arrived when A B Sea was hauled out in Sipiada, Greece? I’d wanted a *Calliger hank crank clothes wringer but could only get a Chinese version (which I wouldn’t recommend – very poorly put together) delivered to Greece. But if you’re looking for a hand wringer for your boat, here’s a link to my first choice.
It’s been a bit of a process getting the mangle attached so it will actually work. A lot of the delay was caused by many other major boat maintenance issues that needed addressing. But May 2021 was finally the time for the mangle to have its day! We’d fitted a mounting block to the push-pit and I put the mangle on to it. Then I tested a few clothes that I’d hand washed. And hey presto! It worked! Great job. I didn’t really need it while I was in the marina as they’ve got a laundry, but it’s great to have now that we’re (real time) out sailing and anchored out. I’ll be able to rinse the salt out of our towels and give them a good squeeze before drying them in the hot Turkish sunshine.
Heading north (again)!
Finally the day arrived when plans and weather all came together in our favour and we slipped the lines to head off north, hoping to perhaps get as far as Çeşme before returning to Kaş mid-August. Our first stop was in the Karacaören/Gemiler area, to a bay that we’d heard was well worth a visit: Butterfly Valley.
With Kev as our sailing buddy on his yacht Barbara Ann, we slipped the lines and headed north. First of all we had to get fuel because the notorious north wind had begun to blow and we were going to have to use the iron sail, which I know a lot of our viewers who haven’t sailed the Turkish coast can’t understand.
The wind generally either blows from the north or south depending on the time of year. Mainly from the north in summer. If we’re heading north the wind is on the nose. If we have a long passage and we want to arrive in daylight, we won’t tack to catch what is often fickle wind, we’ll just turn on the engine, perhaps with a sail for an extra knot of speed, and head off. Otherwise we’d be waiting for days or weeks for the right moment and obviously wouldn’t be able to make as many videos of different destinations. Enough said.
Back to the fuel dock. When we arrived the fuel guy was on a break, so my job was to jump off the boat while it was still moving, taking the bow line with me that I’d secure onto a forward bollard. Then I’d race back to Baz and take his stern line and attach that to another bollard. Surprisingly to me, I managed to do all of that without any hitches. I quietly felt quite chuffed with myself. I know Baz was happy that A B Sea got tied to the dock easily.
An idiot with a fishing line!
So we’re happily heading north west past Patara Beach when a guy who is sailing casually in his yacht close to the headland, decides to alter course and go directly in front of us. He had right of way so we began heading to pass his stern.
Then Baz and I suddenly saw a yellow filament floating in the air high up; it was visible against our headsail and also the sky. We both suddenly realised it was a fishing line and it was getting taut and about to cut into our headsail. Baz did a sharp 180 degree turn to steer away from it. By the time I’d got a knife out to cut the line, it had passed over the bimini and was sliding along the AIS antenna, causing it to bend backwards! Fortunately Baz pushed the line and it slid off.
But what an idiot. We were so angry and shocked that someone would be so selfish to do something like that. Apart from causing damage to our sails, or a person if they were in the wrong place at the wrong time, if the line was just sitting in the water, when that guy cut across our bow like that, the line could have wrapped itself on our prop.
Calming interlude
We recovered. And fortunately Kev didn’t get caught up in it either.
Beautiful Butterfly Bay
This is a stunning bay and reminded me of something out of the movie ‘Journey to the Centre of the Earth'. With high cliffs, deep turquoise water and a sandy beach, it is definitely a place we want to stay at. However, that particular day the swell was too great so we decided to return another time.
Our GPS malfunctions
While we were in the bay, our GPS decided to have a brain fart and when Baz looked at our position on the chart plotter, it showed us travelling across land. I reckon it had something to do with that stupid man’s fishing line bending the antenna. Whatever. Baz rebooted the system and thankfully, we found ourselves back in the water.
Karacaören beckons
With Butterfly Valley being out of the picture we headed to Karacaören, where we, along with Kev on Barbara Ann tied up to Can Can’s mooring buoys for the night. Happily safe in this delightfully picturesque bay we looked forward to that evening when we would call Can and he’d pick us up to take us to their rustic restaurant overlooking the bay.
Until next week, I wish you health, wealth and courage, as you take the actions to bring your dreams to life.
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