Rathlin Ireland…

A brief round up after Lundy-
We sailed on to Cardiff, where we stuck around for two days enfolded in sponsorship stuff. After that we had a longish passage around to Liverpool, were the Voyage Crew for the first half had to get off, making way for the Voyage Crew for the second half.

The second half seemed as though the sailing and places would be much better then the first, with the promise of going to places like St Kilda and Orkney, I was very excited.

Whoever, as expected, the weather wasn’t always in our favour, so in Liverpool for example we were held up in Canning Dock for 4 nights. It would have been cool to get off and have a look around Liverpool, especially since we were in the heart of the city, right beside the Maritime Museum and the Liverpool cathedral. Unfortunately, this wasn’t possible, so our time there mainly consisted of safety briefs and lectures put on by the Darwin200 team and the ships officers.

At last though, we escaped the shackles of Canning Dock and we ventured back out into the Irish Sea. As we motored out in to the choppiness of the sea, I realised that although Liverpool was nice, the sea and its allure is better.

Our next stop was Stranraer, and our first stop in Scotland. Surprisingly, we were allowed to have shore leave here, though it wasn’t exactly the prettiest nor exciting place to go to. Nonetheless, it was great to be able to stretch our legs, especially since I had been cooped up on the boat since Lundy…

After Stranraer, we left that evening and anchored off a castle between Ayr and …
It was a cool Anchorage, though it we had decided to come here to let some bad weather blow through. Even in this protected anchorage we still had gusts up tom35 knots!

After that, we moved around to another beautiful anchorage that was just to the north of Campbeltown. Here was really the first time you could sense we were heading into Scotland’s hidden corners, and beautiful landscapes, since our trip there that day had taken us past some beautiful hills and lochs that had patches of fog hanging above them. It was also here where the temperature really started to change. On the south coast, we had enjoyed the warmth and even managed to wear shorts! From here however, gloves, hats and the wet weather gear became the norm.

After one night in the anchorage there, we were informed at the morning meeting that our next stop would be a place called Raithlin Island. Despite the common thought that it was in Scotland, I was surprised to find out that this little known place was actually a part of Northern Ireland…

Situated at the corner of Northern Ireland’s beautiful coastline lies the small, green island of Rathlin.

Straight opposite Ballycastle, Rathlin has a small harbour and village which is no wonder, bearing in mind the island only has a population of some 37 people.

Our trip there was very drama free, (like most of the voyages had been up to this point), and that evening we dropped the anchor off the villages Protestant church, excited to explore the island’s secrets and attractions tomorrow.

One of the most notable things about the island I soon discovered after landing, which I was pleasantly surprised about, was how green it was. However,as I soon came to realise, rain was quite a common occurrence in this part of the world.
Going off on a small tangent for a second, it has been lovely being to places where it’s green. Turkey and Greece are very arid countries, where rain is exactly a daily occurrence which of course means it’s dry 90% of the time. Unfortunately, because of this, walking/hiking isn’t a pastime Which you can d easily, since the landscapes are extremely dry, meaning you’re walking on prickly plants all the time or sharp, unfriendly rocks and single. This, despite it seeming like something very small to most people, is one of the things I’ve enjoyed most about being in the UK so far.

Getting back to Rathlin, it was intriguing to admire that despite being this small, unknown piece of land which really has very limited resources and infrastructure, that the people of the island really looked after one the the things which they are lucky enough to have…its wildlife and natural beauty.

Rathlins entire western side has been designated as a bird reserve, which at any one time, can be home to Arctic Terns, Cormorants, Shags, many varieties of gulls, Guillemots, Razorbills, Kittiwakes, Fulmars and also Puffins.

All these seabirds cram themselves on to the steep, jagged cliffs and stacks which litter the coast during the breeding season. Then in the following months, they set off back out to sea, in search for food.
I always find it incredibly that Puffins, these tiny little birds with wings that make it look as though it can’t fly, set out to sea in search of small fish.

Also at the western side of the island is a very perculier light house, which has been built “upside down”. Built in 1912, it even had a small railway going from its position,on the cliff, to the cliff top above. What also makes the lighthouse unique is that it uses a red light instead of the typical white lights generally used by lighthouses. Unfortunately in present times, we were unable to go inside and have a look around, but it has at least incentivised me to go back and visit Rathlin.

I had planned after visiting the western tip to hike quickly over to the east side, but unfortunately the true British weather made an appearance and instead we retreated to the local pub for a drink in the warm!

Rathlin, like I say, is certainly somewhere I want to come back to. It’s really quite a special place, perhaps because it’s so close to mainland Ireland, yet so isolated. I suspect the virus has only added to the sense of isolation on the island, as visitors had only started going to the island two weeks before we had arrived.

The adventure around Rathlin finishes here. There’s still a long way to go on my adventures, so expect blogs soon.

Please like and share if you enjoyed!

Lundy Island…

The Hidden Gem Of The Bristol Channel…

My tale of Tallship exploration continues, this time exploring a lesser known island off Britain’s coast.

Having departed Southampton, we continued our trundle along the Channel. The Needles, Portland Bill, Start Point, Lizard Point and Lands End were all observed, and We had brief stops in Plymouth, Falmouth and the Isles of Scilly.

In the Scillies, we had planned to go ashore. Unfortunately, the weather was not in our favour, and the fog made visibility almost impossible. The sound of the bell ringing became a constant, and as we left Scilly, the mood was glum. The first place we could have got ashore properly, we didn’t…

The was some good news though, as enroute to Cardiff (our next destination from the Scillies) we had planned on stopping off for a night anchored off an island called Lundy.

This remote, isolated island has a permanent population of 30, and is somewhat of a haven for natural observations and research.
As I’ve mentioned in a previous blog, it’s a place I’ve always wanted to visit, mainly because of the fact it is meant to be an incredible beautiful place.
Let me tell you something…I wasn’t let down!

Landing on the island takes place at the aptly named Landing Bay. From here you can see how high the rocky cliffs are, and it makes you appreciate why not many people would want to live here. It also makes you appreciate why so many people have shipwrecked their vessels on the shore. To think that sailors all throughout history have been caught out by the weather and have ended up smashed up on the rocks is frightening to think about, especially considering that emergency services and lifeboats weren’t available.

As you wander up the road towards the village, you have a great view of Landing bay and the incredible rock structures that decorate Lundy.

Seeing Pelican anchored in the bay made me feel really pirate like, and I was glad to know the other people I had landed with felt the same!

An interesting observation a pal of mine made was the fact there were 0 trees on the island, I suppose it’s no wonder, bearing in mind the island is situated right in the middle of the Bristol Channel with zero protection from the prevailing wind and weather. (This probably also contributes to the incredible coastline and weatheredness of it!)

My intention on Lundy was to explore the island as much as possible, unlike the vast majority who either went straight to the pub or stayed down at the beach (though who could blame them, since during our time onboard there hadn’t been any alcohol permitted, and nobody had yet gone swimming)

I was lucky enough to walk all the way from Landing bay to the northern tip. On the 2 mile walk, I was really impressed by the incredible natural beauty and wildlife.

Beautiful green pastures and rocky tors littered the landscape, as herds of goat, sheep and highland cattle all wandered calmly around the fields. It was interesting to observe that despite being so rugged, there is a somewhat beautiful and elegant charm about it, especially through the sense of hearing….

One of the things which really stood out to me on the walk to the north point was the peace and serenity of the nature. All that you could hear was the crashing of the occasional wave hitting the cliffs below, the occasional mooing of a stray cow, and the rare motor from one of the few cars on the island.

After exploring the inland and northern tip, I took leave to the pub for a drink and snack, before continuing to walk around the island.

Another point of interest I visited was the church, which I always like to do when I’m somewhere new. Unlike in the Greek islands where the monasteries are adorned beautifully with gold and authentic frescoes, Anglican churches are somewhat calmer with the extravagance of the gold and colours. However, it was really lovely to see some Stained Glass windows, which you don’t get in most Romanian, Greek or Bulgarian monasteries/churches.

I found it quite interesting comparing Lundy to some of the small Greek islands I’ve visited, especially the likes of Kasterlerizo, Psara and Halki. One thing remained true to all those places, which was the sense of community between the residents, and there welcoming spirits. They differed historically, geographically and naturally, but the everyone on Lundy was extremely friendly and welcoming.

Lundy island is certainly a place I’d recommend to anyone who considers themselves an intrepid adventurer, and bearing in mind Lundy is so small, unfortunately not many people know about it!
Anyone who has the chance, make sure you go!
Thank you Lundy Island!

(To conclude this blog, I’d like to once again stress the fact that I’m sorry I’ve not published in a while. It really is difficult to find the time, especially since when you have internet there is always something that has to be done. Then when there isn’t much to do, which is generally at sea, we are to far away from land to get any internet connection. So you all know, I’m currently writing the blogs offline, and as soon as I have WiFi, I’m publishing them.)

Please leave a like and share!

Learning The Ropes Of A Tallship…

“It is not that life ashore is distasteful to me. But life at sea is better.” Sir Francis Drake

Having set off from Sharpness at 19:00, I was very excited to see what Tall ship sailing was all about.

Our first destination was Folkestone, a total of 447 miles, and we would take 3 nights because the permanent crew and captain wanted to use the trip as a training session for the new crew.

As we departed the Severn estuary, and passed underneath the grand Severn bridges, I observed how I had now started a once in a lifetime experience. It’s been something I’ve always wanted to do, sail a Tallship, ever since I watched ‘Master and Commander’ and the Hornblower series, so the fact I’ve been able to take part is a dream come true. What’s even more amazing is it’s a circumnavigation of the British Mainland, so I will get to know my homeland from the sea, which in itself is quite incredible, but doing it on a Tallship is even more special.

My first watch was from 4 am, so luckily for me I had a full nights sleep.

When my watch did start, we were just passing Lundy island and Bull point on the north Devon coast. Lundy island is somewhere I’ve always wanted to visit, but seeing it from afar makes me want to visit even more. It’s rugged cliffs and amazing bird life are meant to be incredible, and from afar it’s easy to confirm both!

As we trundled down the coast under engine (because we were heading into the prevailing wind and weather), we observed how the seas became busier as we approached Lands End and the Traffic Seperation Scheme which protects the shipping from passing the dangerous Isles of Scilly and Cape Cornwall.

Ironically, I had only sailed past this piece of coastline three weeks before, when I skippered a 32ft yacht from Levington to Milford Haven.

It’s quite annoying in some respects, because how the night watches are organized, all the days seem to merge into one. And also because the crew keep us all busy, it’s as if I skip days. For example, we be just south of Penzance, and then suddenly we’d be at Portland Bill.

However, you’ll be glad to know we arrived safe and sound at our first destination, Folkestone.
With the tall grey breakwater that extends out from its sandy beach, Folkestone seems like quite a quaint and precious seaside town. I imagine on really clear days, you’d be able to spot France, but when I was there it was a little to misty. Dover was visible however, and seeing some of the massive ferries and ships which skirt in and out of the large intimidating port is really a sight to behold. As I mentioned in the blog about my yacht delivery, I well done to Dover Port Control for making sure all the shipping is kept safe and organized!

What I’m enjoying most about the trip is meeting new and interesting people, all from different places and stages in their lives. It’s quite fun to be at one moment talking to a marine biologist about an areas water ecosystem, and then to a Tallship watch leader about rigging and sail setup!

Just so you all know, I’m trying my best to keep up to date with blogs, but because of the watch system it’s been quite difficult to find the time.

If you enjoyed this blog, please share!

Life On A Tallship…

The Pelican Of London…

This week has been amazing!

For those who aren’t aware, I have been fortunate enough to have been chosen to take part in a circumnavigation of the British Mainland onboard a Tallship!

The Tallship in question is the “Pelican of London”. This beautiful vessel was once a fishing trawler vessel, that was built in France in 1948. The ship was then a small freighter and cargo runner, but it’s career was cut short when on a trip from Finland to Norway, she was impounded for smuggling Vodka(!)…in 2003 she was converted into an incredible tall ship, and since 2008 has been operated by the sail training charity ” Adventure Under Sail “, who operate the ship with an impressive rigging and extremely freindly and efficient crew. They have been more than happen to show me the ropes and take me under their wing, albeit very stressed and tired wings!

The ship has been recently refitted, so when I joined the crew I was immediately put to work and over this past week or so, I’ve been deep into the bilges playing a very difficult game of Tetris with multiplying red boxes which I somehow managed to get stored. I’ve also ascended aloft into the rigging, where the Bosun, Pete, was enthusiastic to let us gain confidence up in the sails.

So far the Tallship preparation experience has been really different from what you’d expect of a yachts refit and preparation.
I suppose the finest example of that is the sails…
Pelicans sail setup is really diffferent to most tall ships, primarily because she has been rigged with upwind performance in mind, which is really rather difficult for most tall masted vessels.

Now some of you may be wondering why, and what I’m doing.

To put it simple, the Pelican of London is working with a company called Darwin200. The aim for Darwin is to commemorate Charles Darwin’s voyage abroad HMS Beagle, and follow his world Voyage to not only see how they’ve changed, but also to spread awareness for climate change, the impact of single use plastics, and overall changes in the worlds seas and respective wildlife because of our earths industrialisation.

THE U.K. VOYAGE

This UK voyage is to whip up support for sponsors and followers to get involved with the world trip, to see what the organiser, Stewart McPherson, and his willing team of scientists and naturalists discover and explore.

It’s been quite surreal to take part in this. Already I’m loving it, especially since everyone has been so kind and welcoming. The officers have also been so enthusiastic to make us work and learn!

Of course, I shouldn’t jump to conclusions, but at the moment I’m 90% certain I’m going to fall in love with tall ship racing. Let’s hope I do, since I’m on here for 2 months!

Expect a blog over the next few days, since this evening we are leaving for Folkestone, and at long last, my new adventure has began!

My First Yacht Delivery…

This past week has been VERY busy.

As I mentioned at the end of my last blog, I was skippering a yacht delivery from Levington in Suffolk to Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire, Wales.  Spoiler alert, the trip was successful, and as I’m writing this now I’m snug in my bed with a cup of coffee and a crumpet, thinking back on what an incredible experience it was and how lucky I am to be able to do something like it.

The boat was a Beneteau, which was good, because I know my way around the “Plastic Fantastic” French Yachts.  The only difference to our yacht ‘Steady on Jean’ however, is the yacht I was delivering was somewhat smaller….32ft to be precise!

Now anyone who sails will realise that packing liberally for a sailing excursion is essential, especially since Yachts in general have very limited space.  So I spent Monday evening last week organizing things to take on my epic voyage half way around Britain.

So Tuesday comes along, I get up at half past five in the morning, prepare the last things and tidy up the apartment I’m staying in, jump in my ride down to the marina at seven o’clock, and away we go by seven thirty…

Not quite.  I certainly jumped in my ride at 7 o’clock, but in typical sailor fashion no one was there.  The boat I’m delivering is locked, so I can’t even brew the kettle!  I walked up to the sea schools office that is organizing the delivery.  No one there.  So I sit, and wait…

After some considerable time of twirling my fingers, admiring a Halberg Rassey in the boatyard, and checking over the last bits and pieces of the yacht, my crew and voyage companions arrive.  So we get the boat sorted, prepare the last few odd things, fuel up, and (at last) we’re off…only an hour behind schedule!

Now before I continue, you’re probably wondering why a 16 year old is taking charge of a 32ft sailing yacht on a 500 mile (800km for my Continental followers) trip.  To answer that, in a none superfluous and simple way (which I will find extremely difficult as I like talking!) basically, I am qualifying myself to do an RYA Yachtmaster Coastal exam, which needs the person to have done a 400 mile trip in Tidal waters, acting as 2 days as captain, and must have lived on a yacht for a minimum of 30 days(hahahahaha), along with 12 night hours…

Out of those 4 things, the only one I needed to get was to have done 400 miles in Tidal waters.

So now you understand why my first sailing trip in UK/Atlantic waters in 6 years or so is quite the baptism of fire!

The trip in general wasn’t particularly hard, but there were some parts that were difficult.  Most notable, there was crossing the Thames estuary, were you’ve got to avoid the innumerable amount of Wind Turbines.

There was also the Goodwin Sands, which can be quite difficult in strong tides.  Luckily, the only thing we had to worry about were the UK Border Force, who had a nice good look at our boat from afar.

After that, Dover, and the worlds busiest shipping lane, the English Channel.  It’s standard practice as a yacht to call up Dover Port Control and ask permission to cross the entrance of Dover port, since the traffic is really quite incredible.  Ferries, tankers, cruise ships diving in and out, passing you on all sides.  I can only imagine the hard work the people at Dover Port Control have to cope with, so well done and thank you!

Passing Dover was quite mystical, since the sun was setting and the silhouette of Dover castle stood menacingly over the outrageously busy docks.

Once we passed Dover, our beautiful, warm sunny day turned into a traditional English day, as it rained all throughout that evening.  Thankfully, by the time the night watch sessions began, it had cleared, and during the night it held off.

My watch session was 3 o’clock the next morning, so I settled in to a deep sleep, ready for what lay ahead.

Wednesday came along.  The boats still floating, so obviously my plan worked haha!

As I start my watch session, we’ve just passed Beachy Head and passing Brighton, heading towards some flashing red lights (which later turned out to be ANOTHER wind farm!).

We had originally planned to stop in Brighton Marina to fuel up, but it seemed like the old girl still had some miles in her!

As the day rattled on, we passed the Isle of Wight, where a massive cruise ship lay at anchor, redundant due to Covid(!), Poole and eventually the day ended just off Portland Bill.

Still no need to fuel up, so we set our sights on Plymouth for the next day.  I had the 9 till 12 watch tonight, which was good fun since off Portland Bill and the Shambles there was a considerable breeze, so I managed to get us sailing at six and a half knots over the ground…  I don’t know how many of you have sailed at night, but if you ever get the opportunity to, do it.  It’s so peaceful and quiet.  Especially that night since there was no traffic and light pollution, which meant the stars were incredible!

Besides my spectacular night watch, Wednesday in round terms of the whole trip was probably the most boring, since navigationally, it was pretty much straight lines…

Next morning, I take watch from six o’clock.  We’ve made it across Lymes Bay, and we were just off Start Point and Dartmouth.

As we round the headland and start our approach for Plymouth, we get amazing wind.  Bearing in mind it’s a delivery, we want o be as quick as possible.  However, since all of us onboard were fed up with the whirring of the Yanmar engine, we started beating upwind towards Plymouth Sound.

What we found to be the biggest nucance throughout the whole trip was the placement of fishing pots.  It seems as though the fisherman aren’t very concerned with where they place them, since they are right in line with the approach from Salcombe to Plymouth Sound.  Luckily, unlike the Turks and Greeks, the fishing pots are bright orange balls, which are somewhat easier to spot…

After many hours of great sailing, the wind, (in its typical fashion) died off, leaving us to drift.

So we cranked the engine back to life, and followed the Eastern channel towards Queen Anne’s Battery Marina, right on the Barbican, where the Mayflower set off from.

I hadn’t been to Plymouth in many years, so it was nice to see the Plymouth Hoe and it’s iconic Lighthouse again.  I was looking forward to be right In The centre of town and go for an explore that evening…

Unfortunately for us, QAB had no fueling pontoon, (or at least they had a fueling pontoon but no fuel), so we quickly came up with our next plan of action, and decided on going around the corner to Mayflower Marina.

This marinas a bit too far out of town, but nonetheless, it’s a secure place where you don’t get thrown 5 feet into the air every time you go over a wave…

So we had done 302 miles so far, in four days…not bad going, especially keeping in mind we were going into the prevailing weather and wind!

So back out to sea on Friday.  Rounded some very significant headlands today, such as Lizard Point (the most southerly part of the British mainland) and Lands End (the most westerly part of the British mainland).

Both headlands are significant aswell for seafarers, as they represent very dangerous areas where the sea can whip up and cause many problems.  Lizard point is sometimes known as the “Graveyard of Ships”.

However, Cornwall in general isn’t that hospitable to ships, since it is thought that on Cornwalls 250 mile coastline, there are an estimated 6000 shipwrecks!

It’s no surprise really, especially if you consider the county’s position and how unprotected from the Atlantic it is.

Lands End was very impressive.  Not only the fact it symbolizes the end of Britain before the expanse of ocean, but also the phenomenal cliffs, that are incredibly jagged.  It’s no wonder countless ships have been wrecked!

However, we safely rounded both points, and that evening we settled in for the last leg of the passage.  A simple straight line from Lands End to the entrance of Milford Haven Basin.

I had the 12 to 3 o’clock watch, which was good fun, especially since we were sailing really well in 17-25 knots of wind.

Funnily enough, I managed to see the distant lights of my hometown Newquay, so for my Newquay followers, just know that I waved hello!

So, Saturday.  The last day of the trip was very rolly, bearing in mind we had a some big Atlantic rollers coming in.  At this point we were still sailing, and had been for the past 10 hours-it wasn’t until we entered the basin of Milford Haven that we dropped our sails, and that wasn’t for another 3 hours!-though what made the last leg even better than was for about an hour and a half, we were surrounded by about 40+ Dolphins, who gleefully danced and lept out of the water really rounding out an epic and impressive voyage.

I love seeing Dolphins, especially when they seem so cheerful and happy to play on the bow of the boat and cruise alongside us.  If they could make it more obvious when they are jumping out of the water, that would be better, since they’re really difficult to get good pictures of!

However, in true Welsh fashion, there had to be a bit of rain.  Luckily for us, the trip in general had had very little.  Certainly at night it was chilly, but I had thermals, gortex, gloves and coats layered on to deter wind chill.

It was only in the last 2 hours of our approach to Milford Haven that the rain really started throwing it down, which dampened the mood considerably.  But after following another one of my great passage plans (the other one being entering Plymouth Sound) we made it safely through the bouyage and through the lock into Milford Marina.

And there we go, my great baptism of fire for sailing in British waters again, and first time as skipper without the security of going out with my sailor friends in Turkey or my family.  It was really a great experience, and certainly one I will remember and cherish for many years to come.

If I were to be critical of my approach, which every captain after a voyage must be, then I would change only a few things.

Firstly, I would have made the nightwatches fixed times, whereas on this trip we were on a router, which not only messed up our sleeping schedule, but also meant there was a lack of discipline as such on board.  As you can imagine, being on a 32 ft boat out of sight of land can be quite boring, so knowing you have set times adds some organisation, which is essential on yachts.

Secondly, I think (and the people I were with agree with me), that my way of waking up the crew was a bit….gentle.  What I mean by that is if that person wasn’t on watch at a particular time, I’d be doing it for him.  I suppose I should of stuck to my guns, but hey ho!

I won’t chat about the drive back or Milford Haven itself, since regarding both things there isn’t actually much to talk about.

However, I will leave this poem here, since I find it quite poignant and I hope whoever’s reading this will appreciate that it really shows how I feel towards the sea, and boating.  It’s a really beautiful poem:

“I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,

And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;

And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking,

And a grey mist on the sea’s face, and a grey dawn breaking.

 

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide

Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;

And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,

And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

 

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,

To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like a whetted knife;

And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,

And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over.”

Sea Fever by John Masefield

Keep an eye out for my future blogs, as I will soon be documenting my travels on the Pelican of London…

If any yachtsmen are reading this, I’d be really interested to know how you organize you’re crew for a long haul delivery.  Leave your comments down below!

The Start Of A New Chapter…

So it has been quite a while since I last wrote a blog, but time has not stood still.

The last year or so has been predominantly sailing around Turkey.  Warm waters, sun all day, good winds, no tides…!!!

Life’s been going well.  I completed 4 of my IGCSE exams last year, so I’ve been free from school for a little while.

Anyway, the reason for my surprising and long awaited return is because I have some great news.  On the 10th of July, I flew back to Britain, to experience a once in a lifetime opportunity.

At the end of this month, I will be joining a 45 metre Tallship, called ‘Pelican of London’, and venturing on an epic voyage all the way around Britain.  We will visit the beautiful Isles of Scilly, the far flung St. Kilda and the mysterious Orkney and Shetland islands

On the trip I’ll be helping out as crew, hopefully learning the ropes of a tallship, which I’m sure will be different from a 45ft “Plastic Fantastic” Beneteau!

The crew and captain are really experienced and have done this trip before, so I should learn a lot.

Currently I am at the East Anglian Sea School, which is one of the largest and most respected sea schools in the UK.  

At the weekend I did a Powerboat Level 2 course, which I passed, and today I did a First Aid course, which I also passed!

This blog is quite short, because tomorrow we are delivering a yacht from Levington in East Anglia, to Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire.  This is about 450 miles (720 km) and we will probably do it nonstop unless we stop for fuel.

For now, I’m going to leave it there, so in the next few days, expect a blog about my trip to Milford Haven, and more about the Tallship voyage.

Really looking forward to my adventure this year, and I hope you can join me for them!

Cesme’s Impressive Fortress…

Standing impressively on a slight hill, with a strategic view looking out through the entrance of Cesme bay and towards the Greek island of Chios stands Cesme Fortress. The fort was built in 1508 under the order of Ottoman Sultan, Bayezid the Second.
Despite being relatively new compared to other Castles in proximity to Cesme, it has been the centre of many conflicts involving the Ottomans. It was most recently damaged extensively by the Russians during the 1770 Russo-Turkish War-(Not to be confused with the 1877-1878 Russo-Turkish War that I wrote about in my Battle Of Shipka Pass blog).

After some renovations and alterations by the Ottomans until their demise in 1920, the castle continued to play a key role in Cesmes five year hundred year history.

Before I continue with the history of Cesme Fortress, I will tell you about visiting the castle and what to see at the place.

From the outside, Cesme Fortress doesn’t seem very big. However, your perception immediately changes as you enter through the small arched doorway. When you proceed through the castle, the first thing you’re expected to look at is the three room archeological museum.

This museum exhibits artefacts found in the surrounding areas archeological sites and the artefacts include; very small glass jars, ceramic amphorae, Roman, Hellenistic and Ottoman coins, and a small selection of stone statues.

As you walk up the slight incline, you come across the first courtyard area. When we went, there were workmen planting and repaving the small garden area, which also exhibits a selection of Ottoman gravestones and should be most impressive upon its completion. From here, you can head up and along the castle walls, where from the top there are amazing views of the town, the Greek island of Chios, and surprisingly, you can see the Northern coast of the Karaburn peninsula.

The castle also has two more exhibition areas. One is in the bottom left tower, called the … tower, which contains Roman and Ottoman gravestones, and Greek statues.

The other exhibit room is at the bottom of the castle. This one was particularly interesting to me, as it detailed the Battle of Cesme of 1770, during that Russo-Turkish war.

It’s interesting to hear this battle is sometimes considered by the Russians as their Battle Of Trafalgar.

In the exhibit there are paintings, portraits, uniforms worn by both sides, coins from both countries during the time and information about the leaders of both countries and captains that took part in the battle…the most famous of which is Cezayirli Gazi Hasan Pasha.

Born in Algeria, he was a fleet commander during the Battle of Cesme, and despite the Turks losing most of the Ottoman fleet and the destruction of the castle, Pasha became a Grand Vizier, and later Admiral. If you’re interested in him, he’s a bit like the equivalent of Admiral Nelson!
Cezayirli Gazi Hasan Pasha began his sailing livelihood as a Barbary pirate and ended it during the last battle high he fought in which was during the Russo-Turkish war of 1787-1792, where – at the age of 85 – he orchestrated his fleet on three different occasions-(may I add, however, that he lost all of those engagements!).

Outside the castle, there’s a statue of him beside his pet lion, which he actually domesticated, and it went everywhere with him.

What’s most notable about the exhibit, is how it explains Russia’s rise as a world power and the desires of the Tsars and monarchy for Russia to become a global colonial power. It’s examples of this were the several wars Russia had against Turkey/the Ottoman Empire, and its wars with Poland.

Cesme castle then, is an incredibly interesting place to visit, and a place you simply must visit whilst in Cesme.

I may release some blogs about Didim and Kusadasi in the coming days, and keep an eye out on the Fethiye Times, where my ” Whistle Stop Tour” articles are regularly released. Go check it out, I talk about traveling to beautiful hotspots and locations in Turkey such as the Gocek Bay, Bozburun Peninsula and Datca’s Peninsula!

Please go and give the Fethiye Times a follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
If you enjoyed this blog, why not leave it a like and please, please, please share it with your friends!

Myrina-The Gem Of The Aegean…

So, we’ve left Porto Lagos and we are making our way southwards down to Fethiye. It’s been a fun year travelling and we’ve had the chance to explore the hidden treasures of Cyprus, Greece, Bulgaria and Romania, but we are now looking forward to getting back to Fethiye and having a home….
The only way to get southwards, however, is to island hop….
Island hopping in Greece isn’t as much fun as you’d expect, especially in the winter, and especially this far north as its cold, stormy and to top it all of, the weather forecasts are usually unreliable.

So, a week into the trip and we we’ve so far been Harbour bound twice, on two islands. Samothraki, where everything seemed to be closed – a normal problem on the Greek islands in the winter- and Limnos.

It was our first time to the island of Limnos, and we were in the harbour on the islands capital, Myrina.
Approaching from the sea, you’ll immediately notice that there’s an impressive castle that sits on a rocky headland that splits the surprisingly large town in two. On the two sides of the headland, there are sandy beaches which spread out before the town and the pretty waterside promenade.

After parking side-to on the harbour wall, the picturesque town is overshadowed by the marvellous Byzantine castle, which throughout history has been modified and modernised by the Genoese, Ottomans and Germans.

Walking up to the castle, it’s easy to identify that it has been under recent renovation, making it one of the best preserved in Greece. The stroll up to castle from the harbour takes you through the burgonvillia covered cobbled streets, extraordinarily pretty, which lead you too a winding path, which consequently leads to the grand entrance of Myrina castle.

After a short while, you arrive in an open green area that is surrounded by the walls of the castle.

Within the castle are several ruins, such as the derelict foundations of the former Ottoman barracks and Mosque. Looking upwards, you’ll notice the Citadel. Walking up the the steep steps, from the top there are astounding views of the sea and surrounding town. Also at the top, there’s many ruins that are begging to be explored.

At the far side of the castle, there’s a former Ottoman gunpowder store.
Now, imagine you’re defending the castle when suddenly, your enemy starts an artillery bombardment. As the bombardment continues, you begin to worry and head towards the bunker, which just so happens to sit beside the gunpowder store…that’s right, the bunker is right next to the gunpowder store… Only in Greece…..

You can easily spend several hours walking around the castle grounds, and if you are into nature you can admire the wide variety of wild flowers and plants, as well as the wild goats and deers which roam freely.

Another noteworthy thing to do whilst in Myrina are the several cultural/historical walks which are easily signposted and tell you the history of the town and its people.

There are four trails you can do, “The Historic Centre Trail”(trail A), “The Prehistoric City Trail”(trail B), “The City Through The Ages Trail” (trail C) and the “Tsas and Prosfygika Trail”(trail D).

When we were in Myrina, we incorporated trail A and B into one long half day walk, and despite being rather tired afterwards, we saw many sights of interest, such as the former Greek and Turkish quarters, the ruins of Prehistoric Myrina, the Memorial to Cypriot Fighters-(which is dedicated to the Cypriots who rose up against the British who controlled Cyprus between 1952-1955)-and the Memorial to the Executed of WW2, which is built in the pit where the Greek resistance fighters were shot in during the German occupation…

Following the walk can be quite difficult at times, as the signposts can be rather difficult to identify, whether it be because they’ve faded or there in hard to identify places-e.g.halfway up a telegraph pole(!). So a place I’d recommend to start is at the Archeological museum – which probably isn’t open on a Monday – , whose staff were very helpful and friendly.

They actually gave us a map with the walks on, and they also gave us a leaflet about the museum, which houses artefacts that come from surrounding archeological sites, which date as far back as 4,700 BC.

In conclusion, Myrina town is a wonderful place to explore, and in one day you can learn about its several thousand year history. With its fine cobbled streets that have a wide variety of shops and cafes, it’s beautiful harbour, and brilliant castle, it’s a lovely place to visit. It was shame however, that we couldn’t head elsewhere on the island, as its renown for its organic wine and for also having some of the oldest archeological sites in Europe.

What’s nice to see is that despite being quite a large island, Limnos has retained its traditional fishing harbour feel, and hasn’t fallen into the trap of being your generic tourist central.

In other news, please go and read this: https://thechill.at/2018/11/04/casey-russell/

It’s about me, and it’s written by my good friend Claudia Hilmbauer, so, please share it with your friends-(also, go and check out her blog!)-. The article, however, is in German, so if you don’t speak it you can have a laugh at Google translates attempt at translating it!

If you enjoyed this blog, why not leave it a like and share it with your friends!

Blog Off #2

12th September 2018
We set off from Porto Koufo at five o’clock that morning. The trip today was a long, 12 hours to the south eastern side of Thassos.

At night, sailing is quite difficult since with no lights, you can’t see where you are going. The reason for not having lights on is because it ruins your night vision. Thankfully, we have a chart plotter, so as Geoff steered, I watched the plotter and guided him out of the bay and around the cape of Sithonia.

After rounding the end of Sithonia, the sky was lit up with the first signs of the sun, and in the distance some 20 miles, Mount Athos could be seen.

The 2,033 meter tall Mount Athos is situated at the end of the third finger of Halkidiki also called Athos. The finger is a very religious site, and for this reason, only men are allowed to visit peninsula, which has around 20 monasteries on it.
This bizarre rule has been in force for hundred of years, meaning women, female animals and children are not allowed. The place is so devoutly religious, it is known as the ‘Holy Mountain’.

The Holy Mountain acts as a self-administered Greek state that comes under ,politically, the Greek Foriegn Ministry and religiously to the jurisdiction of the ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople.

After sunrise, I slept, and woke again this time, right beside the 2,000 metre mountain.

The rest of the trip was rather bouncy, and when we eventually reached Thassos, Geoff and I were both shattered. It was a rather tiresome birthday, similar to my 12th, when we went out in 45 knots of wind on a trip.

13th September 2018
What we saw of Thassos, was that it seemed scorched by fire. The small town of Alika was very quaint. Anyway, we set of from the bay at ten o’clock, out onto a bumpy and confused sea.

Funnily, these few days have shown us that the boat does need a service. For example, the wind o meter broke, the rev counter had a blip, the throttle feels wrong and the bottom of the boat needs cleaning again!

There isn’t really much to write about for today’s trip, so instead I will tell you about our next trip. As soon as we get to Porto Lagos, we will pack up our summer clothes and unpack our winter clothes, and then set of North in to Bulgaria and Romania. The roadtrip should take around 6 weeks, and in that time we will visit many interesting places such as Sofia, Cluj-Napoca, Vidin, Transylvania and also many undiscovered parts of these countries.

We are planning on leaving on the 15th of September, so I’ll have a blog up about our first day back out roadtripping!

Upon arriving at Porto Lagos, the small village seemed quit, besides the two cargo ships loading on bird feed. After parking, we caught up with what mum got up too, and spoke about the soon coming roadtrip. I very excited know, so a blog should be up in the next few days, so watch this space…

Blog Off #1

10th September 2018

As I mentioned in my previous blog, we are in the Greek city of Thessaloniki.
We’ve been here for the past three weeks but now we have to continue our adventure and leave.
Our next stop-(the place where we set off from for our Bulgaria/Romania roadtrip)- is Porto Lagos, some 100 miles east of our current position.

The plan is mum will take the dogs and drive there in our car, whilst Geoff and I sail the yacht and meet up with her there. We plan on stopping at three places, meaning the trip should take a total of four days.

Our first trip, from Thessaloniki to a Harbour on the first finger of Halkidiki, called Nea Skioni, is some 12 hours. So this morning we kicked mum off at six o’clock, and made our way-(passing a massive great American warship)-towards the exit of Thessaloniki bay and back out into the open ocean, under a glaring, rising sun.

 

The next 12 hours were spent sleeping and motoring down the coast-Not at the same time!!
However pretty Halkidiki is, it lacks wind. This does make a nice difference to the rest of Greece though, where the only thing there is wind!

We met mum that afternoon in Skioni and wandered around the town. Compared to the last time we came here, on route to Thessaloniki, the small town was fully alive with tourists. This time however, the hub was just about awake!
Nea Skioni sits on the western coast of the first finger Kassandra, and like its counterparts on the second finger, (Nea Mamaras and Sarti) it acts as the main hub for tourists, the main group of people’s whom come to this area and town are from Eastern Europe(Romania, Bulgaria,Macedonia, Albania, Moldova) and Russia.

11th September 2018
This morning, we got ready to leave Nea Skioni.
It was a shorter trip today. Nea Skioni to Porto Koufo, on the second finger of eastern neighboring Sithonia.
We refer to Koufo as Jellyfish bay, since blooms of jellyfish called Cotylorhiza Tuberculata get driven into the bay because of the current, despite the fact the C.Tuberculata is one of the only jellyfish that can move itself, meaning it technically “Swims”, they still get washed in too! Blurgh!

This Jellyfish is known as the Fried Egg Jellyfish, and it has little effect on human health, since it’s sting is so weak.
In fact, the only bad effect the Cotylorhiza Tuberculata has on humans is that because of the sheer amount of them that live in blooms, it frightens people from swimming, effecting that places economy.

Porto Koufo sits on the bottom of Sithonia, and acts as the first stop and gateway for yachts traveling from the islands south of Halkidiki such as Skopelos, Skiathos and Kira Panagia, the latter being uninhabited.

We are leaving the Halkidiki area tomorrow, aiming for our first Greek island that we have visited in a while –  Thassos – but it’s going to be another long, arduous day since we leave at five o’clock in the morning, because the trip is a 12 hour sail.