Fools Afloat. Day 14.

Day 14 Friday 15 June 2018.

0525hrs. Reveille. We can hear Tim and by some miracle David, up and about. Unusual. David will normally sleep on and allow me more ‘learning space’.

There is a brew on. Mike opens the hatch above the stairwell and peers out. Daybreak is approaching. Just about visible in the gloom, leaving harbour is ‘The D.J. Fisherman’. Always has his radio playing way above what everyone else in harbour considers necessary.  All four of us sit on deck and finish our tea. We can skip breakfast. Someone says “I see no reason why we shouldn’t leave”. With that David takes the helm and starts the engine, Tim has gone forward, retrieved the anchor remote and looking back at David awaits the command to ‘weigh anchor’. David gives the thumbs up, the anchor chain can be heard rattling down into the chain locker, Tim turns, gives the thumbs up to the Helm ‘Anchor up’ and at 0550hrs we leave Patriamos Harbour.

There is no wind for about the first hour and a half. We motor on. The darkness lifts and the sun rises away to the East over Turkey. We are all in Tee shirts. It’s not cold but Mike has been feeling abit chilled this morning. Once again the Garmin has been playing up but thanks to David’s tinkering he soon has us back on! Mike has been helming for a reasonable time now and needs a Jimmy. Handing the bat to Tim he disappears below. My it’s nice and warm. He grabs his Rab jacket from beneath the bunk and is about to put it on when he thinks, ‘I’ll just stretch out for a few moments to get warm’. He’s zonko in seconds. The last thing he remembers is Jackie asking “Are you OK?” “Of course I am, just putting my jacket on, I’m feeling a little cold”. Two hours later there was much crashing and banging which awoke the poor man. I lay there for a while, all seemed ok, probably just changing tack. I thought I best go aloft and make sure all was well with the helm. Emerging I am subject to much ridicule from all. Jackie must have gone straight back up and told them I was feeling ‘cold’. Well you know what it's like on these long sea passages. Someone has to be the duty whipping boy. Today it was me. "Have I missed anything?" I ask in all innocence. All three then hit me with stories of sharks, killer whales and even mermaids swimming beside the boat, all of which I had missed. All fabrications of course. Mike turns away, as much to avoid the ribbing, to look for the Rhodes coast away in the distance and immediately sees  a large ‘fish’ perhaps six feet long leap out of the water twice, about hundred meters out from the boat. Black body top and white underbelly. "Did you see that?" "What?" I explained. Nobody else saw it and so I was immediately accused of sleep walking and dreaming, even hallucinating after entering bright sunlight after having spent hours below in a dark cabin. Bollocks!

Panda has the helm with David.

The tack we are on should take us to the Northern tip of Rhodes Island. Just on the Eastern side of the peninsular is the new harbour. On shore there is mile upon mile of hotels and high rise. Rhodes is the largest of the Greek islands and very popular. This is witnessed by the hundreds if not thousands of people crammed on the beaches in front of the hotels on sun loungers or beneath umbrellas. Why would you wish to have a ‘holiday’ like that?

A study in concentration.

1315hrs Arrive at Rhodes New Marina. Here we refuel as the refuel jetty is to one side in the harbour mouth. E33 odd of diesel. There is a strongish wind blowing into the harbour and it is easier to go astern from the fuel jetty rather than try to push off into the wind to clear it.


Tim meanwhile has made contact with the marina on Channel 71 and has been allocated a berth. There are lazy lines and David reverses into our spot. Whilst Tim and David go to the office to pay for two nights,  Mike cracks a few tinnies and Jackie has a wine.

Arriving Rhodes Marina.

Within a short while David declares he is hungry and so we wander ashore to a rather nice bar/resto called The Naval. It is quite plush compared with most of the tavernas we have been eating at. All marble floors and champagne buckets. Salads seem to be the choice for all bar Tim who opts for a crab and potato moose. Initially Tim sat apart at a table trying to both power up his computer and log on. Power was OK but there was a glitch with the internet. He will try latter and joins us for a pre-lunch drink.

1530hrs. Back at the boat various members disappear below decks for a kip. Jackie packs the holdalls in anticipation of the Stopportons flight home tomorrow. Mike who caught a 'few minutes' sleep earlier today writes up the diary. There is a strong wind blowing, warm but strong from the South. The weather is said to be changing these next few days.

1900hrs We catch the taxi into the old town. E8. It immediately starts to rain. In fact it is lashing down. No sooner have we entered the old walled city, another St John fortress, when we decide we can no longer move forward. The rain is horrendous. People are taking shelter all over in shop doorways café entrances. An enterprising young Moroccan looking guys soon appears and is offering umbrellas for E5. We clap and applaud him but soon a shopkeeper is on hand and admonishes him. The chat must have been something like "Push off, I pay rates for my shop you pay nothing."


Again we are unable to locate the resto that David assures us is one of the best in the old town. We wander up and down various streets and alleyways asking all and sundry. To no avail. On the verge of giving up David asks one more time. "Ah yes, I used to work there with the chef who now works here in this Resto, it closed last year." A an old informs us. Sounded like me to be a ploy to get us into his establishment.  We ate in this guys restaurant and a very nice meal it was too. The Amazon of a 'woman' who was our waiter seemed very 'manly' to me. I would have sworn 'she' was a fella. Towered over us boys! In fact the whole experience was that good that Tim and David booked a table for tomorrow night in anticipation of dining out with the two new crew members. Not even gone yet and almost forgotten.

Mike starboard helm, Jackie port helm and Panda checks the Garmin.