TripSailor.com® Sailing Blogs

The fleet are staying in Gaios again tonight but Thira is going out for a day sail in the channel. David, from Ericousa, decides to join us as his crew want to spend the day shopping and he wants to do a bit more sailing than his wife seems to.

About three miles or so west of Giaos there is a nice little suprise for the unwary. Ifalos Panayia is a large lump of rock right in the middle of the Corfu Channel and about 4 feet down at its highest point.

Switch the TripSailor larger map to satellite and zoom in on this waypoint…

Visible from the air but TOTALLY UNMARKED at sea. Right in the middle of a channel and not even a buoy on it. This is Greece, anyone who lives here knows where it is so why mark it. In 2007 two large trip boats capable of carrying about 100+ each slammed straight into it, but perhaps that will teach them to employ local crews. It is marked by red lightouse sectors at night and I have a nice little proximity alarm set on my GPS that beeps at me if I get too close.

Anyway we sortied out of Gaios and had a nice pleasant day tootling around.

As the afternoon progressed the northern sky became a bit worrying and the wind had picked up to about Bf4. I had just put two reefs in the genoa when a squall came hammering down the channel. Bf6 at least. Spill wind from the main, spin the boat head to wind and reef the main. A bumpy few minutes  and we are back underway. Sea state has picked up a lot, harnesses everyone please.

"Thira, Thira, what is your position please?" Lead crew must have felt that one too. "Elpida, Elpida, 2.1 miles from Gaios South entrance, coming in under engine eta about 45 minutes.  Oops they cant hear us, but we can hear them… OK Ericousa can hear us both and will relay.