High wind steering failure!

We had booked a berth in Kos harbour for our pick-up of son Chris and partner Ebba. From our previous experience it was clear that supply was lagging behind demand in terms of berthing accommodation in both the harbour and the marina. Clearly in need of some supply side Trussonomics.

Wet weather gear!

We arrived at Kos harbour although the short trip from Kalymnos was in high winds with reefs fore and aft and full harness and wet weather gear.

On entering the harbour the marinero started yelling instructions. We were just getting lined up when all of a sudden the steering jammed!!!!!!

The air was blue as the marinero and I yelled at each other. I could steer to port but turning the wheel to starboard took all my might.

Amazingly we managed to get in. At this point the marinero told us we could only stay for two nights and if we did not agree we had to leave immediately. I think I would have agreed to almost anything at that point.

I was envisaging that our nylon rudder bushing had finally absorbed enough water to seize on the shaft. I was just beginning to wonder how our visitors would take to a week in a boat yard getting this fixed when I spotted that the wheel locking mechanism (that we never use) had applied itself.  

What had happened was that my safety harness was looped near the locking wheel and with each movement of the boat/me had rotated it to lock it up!

Duuuh!

The new crew members were arriving by ferry after a long journey from the UK, which was part of their holiday. We tried to get up early to welcome them aboard, but that didn’t happen so they snuck aboard in the early hours and the first we knew about their arrival was the presence of two rucksacks in the saloon.

The forecast was for for 4 days of high winds. Not in the frankly scary range but in the significantly sporting range 20-25 knots plus gusts into the 30s. So we tried to extend our booking in the harbour, although it seemed a bit unfortunate after they had travelled such a long way to sit in a harbour.

5

Some wind comimg

However this was not to be. Kos was expecting the arrival of a regatta fleet and we were to be expelled.

 We looked at all the options available, but the only viable alternative would have been to moor up on the somewhat exposed pontoon outside the police headquarters [ of past adventure fame !]We took a walk round there to have a look and although it would probably be safe it was very exposed to the strong Northerly winds.

I watched the forecast evolve over the next 24 hours and it seemed that a short interlude in the Meltemi's strength might allow us to head S towards Symi, but it was a bit marginal.

The following morning, fully breakfasted and appraised of the plan, the crew mustered on deck, were issued with harnesses and life jackets, and off we jolly well went.

What it is all about, you put your left hand in, your left hand out.......

Actually in the end it was a great sail. We set off due S in 20 knots true with a rolling quartering sea for company.

 As we rounded the point at Knidos some 15 miles into the journey the seas heaped up a bit, but it was all manageable. Once round the corner and on the E heading stretch the wind abated to a large extent and we had a nice broad reach for most of the rest of the journey. The new crew members joined in the spirit and no screaming was heard...just sea shanties.

As we approached Symi I was in full self congratulatory mode for having taken the right decisions.

 I was heading for the narrow channel between Symi and its small off lying island at the N end. This is pretty shallow at a least depth of 4m and having been through it before I had resolved not to do it if there was a sea running.

Suddenly out of nowhere, [well actually over the low lying land to the E of Datca with all the wind turbines], a full heavy cavalry charge of angry white horses appeared. 

I spotted it just in time for the crew to get reefs put in before it hit and we were suddenly in 25-35 knots of wind. However on flat water and reefs in place it was exhilarating. 

We changed course and sailed round the N end of Symi to avoid the narrow channel which was a good call because as we passed it on he S side the wind was whistling through at scary rate.

Symi

We moored up at Symi using their strange buoy/mooring system which was easier than I had anticipated, and a good day had been had by all.

Ice cream and Symi nonsense. YMCA

We spent couple of days enjoying Symi, then signed out of Greece and back into Turkey in Bozburun. The immigration police guy told us how many days of visa we had left in Turkey which was very helpful.

We had a pleasant evening in Bozburun, eating at one of the local pide restaurants. This was about a quarter of the price you pay in restaurants catering for tourists, and if you are prepared to use Google translate for the menu, is a really good option. 

We were beginning to reap the benefits of having Chris and Ebba with us, as inveterate backpacker/cycling travellers and bargain eaters.

Bargain eaters

Having moved from the EU (Greece) to the non EU (Turkey), we were now without communications. Our UK (non EU) SIMs work fine in Greece (EU) but not at all in Turkey (non EU). We are still waiting for that Brexit bonus Unicorn to appear.

So we had to travel to the nearest largish town, Datca, to get a Turkish SIM for one of my burner phones.

We had a really nice sail to Datca. We needed fuel as well. We had been waiting to return to Turkey for fuel as it is a lot less expensive than in the EU, so we were pretty low.

The new crew were definitely beginning to get their sea legs and find their purpose. Unfortunately that purpose was more about reading scifi fantasy novels than tacking and gybing! If you picked a parsec in time at the end of a chapter then a fairly fluent tack could be induced, but if you picked an instance of high literary moment - forget it.

Dawn through mosque spire Bozburun

Datca has always been one of my favourite harbours. The marinero was friendly and helpful and there is always plenty of space. However things have changed. A new team seems to be running the place. The main area where yachts moor has been mostly taken over by Gulets. However after waiting for another boat to get into one of the few remaining slots, I was just about to go in when another yacht barged in ahead of us. We were clearly the next in line and I was really not expecting this when the skipper piped up that this was his private berth! Privatisation of a public quay! Surely not?

There was one other berth available but at an area of the harbour where I was unsure of the depth, and the marineros refused to appear, so we decided to anchor. Only to be yelled at by the skipper of a large gulet that where we were anchoring was where he wanted to anchor!

So I was not happy. The crew dinghied ashore for food and the SIM while I licked my wounds.

The next morning as soon as a boat left, we were in. The marinero team had changed entirely and while helpful when approached, they were somewhat less public spirited than the guy we had known for several years.

Two boats along from us was a large catamaran with a Turkish chap on board. He suddenly started talking in English to the chaps on the Polish boat next door, who did not understand. He was complaining that he thought their boat was sitting at the wrong angle and touching his fenders. Then without invitation he went on board the Polish boat and started adjusting their lines! This is not the normal etiquette and I was expecting a response from the crew, however they were quite relaxed. Even though his first adjustment actually made the problem he was complaining about worse. The Polish chaps then readjusted to correct his error.

A little while later an ancient long keeled boat set up for ocean crossing approached. It was being single handed by a young skipper and flying a Ukrainian flag. He came in and lined up an approach to come in along side the Catamaran. Long keeled boats often go very badly in reverse and it can be difficult to do the stern-to mooring that is the standard in the Med. What he was planning was to approach going forwards, drop his anchor and pivot round it into the slot.

I was looking forwards to this. I have seen it done by Gulets and ferries, but not into a single slot in a busy harbour like this.

He came in on his final approach, dropped his anchor, ran back to the cockpit and began the pivot manoeuvre, all was going well.

Just at this point the guy on the Catamaran appeared on his foredeck and started yelling at him to go away. An exchange took place during which it was asserted that this part of the quay was only for local boats. The response of “I am in the process of coming in and can’t stop now so we will discuss it when I arrive” was responded to by a series of expletives. The Ukrainian chap was getting quite heated as well but was determined to come in. Unfortunately during the exchange he had taken his eye off the ball and his pivot had gone wrong and his rudder ended up on a Gulets anchor chain. He was forced to make a strategic withdrawal.

This was probably a good thing as it looked as if he was relishing a shoreside encounter with the Cat owner. My money would have been on the Ukrainian. They seem able to kick anyone’s butt at the moment.

So with the fuel tank and beer supplies replenished, and communications restored, we set off E again. We had another really good sail in fresh winds to one of our favourite anchorages at Dirsek. We moored with lines ashore (good dinghying skills from M) and had a lively evening swimming and eating under the stars. [ most excellent cooking thanks Chris and Ebba]

The next morning the guys from the restaurant came round with a boat full of fresh bread and we had a couple of rounds of Gozleme, flat bread with with spinach and cheese. The perfect lunch on the move and the Turkish equivalent of a Forfar Bridie.

The wind had come round to the S and E. Our period of isolated splendour was to end with us joining up with Livianda at Loryma. We had another sail in fresh winds with the last bit on the nose. We arrived at Loryma fully harnessed in a S wind of 25 knots blowing. This made mooring difficult and we elected to drop the anchor in the approach to stop the bow being blown off line, as well as taking up the lazy line on the pontoon. This all worked quite well.

Lindsay and Linda had arrived a few days previously and had new crew of Brain and Marcella. They had travelled from Fethiye in the E and had a roly trip down under moderate winds and seas. Poor Marcella had suffered significantly with Mal de Mer, and was basically pole axed.

The homeopathic herbal remedies she had been using had not worked so I volunteered to give her a couple of Scopoderm patches. This in my extensive experience of sea sickness are the canine cahunas of remedies. I have never seen anyone being seriously sick while using them, even in really bad conditions.

However Marcella had a significant reluctance in trying them out. It subsequently transpired that the information sheet prohibited alcohol from being taken at the same time, and she was a Glaswegian on her holidays after all!

The next several days were spent in excellent company as we toured to Bencik, Sogut Limani and Ciftlik. Good sailing was had and excellent evenings enjoyed. Brian certainly took to sailing very well and did significant amounts of the helming on Livianda, though I am not sure if Marcella was quite as enthusiastic. However she remained in good spirits throughout. 

Livianda headed E again downwind in quote strong conditions. We will hear the story of how they got on later.

Bencik. Beatiful spot. Egrets, I've had a few.

Chris and Ebba also had to leave. We returned to our base in Marmaris Yacht Marina after a final swim in the bay.

We travelled into Marmaris on the Dolmus (bus) with them and had a teary farewell at the ferry terminus. It was great to have them with us, perhaps for a longer trip next time.

For the next several days we are decommissioning the boat. There is the usual long list of things to do, and things to fix. Cleaning, servicing the engine, washing ropes, setting up the solar panels for the winter, greasing things that might corrode, like through hull valves and tank access deck fittings.

Sail parcels

Also compiling lists of things to bring next time etc, etc. It is always a bit of a sad period, but if not given adequate attention, there will be trouble ahead.

This year we are leaving the boat afloat. Previously we have always had it out on the hard for winter but we have been persuaded that being afloat is a good option. Certainly when it was ashore thing went wrong. Dust affected things like the sea cocks, oil seals failed, and the hull flexed when sitting on the keel such that the floor boards did not fit properly. I was also persuaded that Sikaflex, the adhesive that bonds the keel to the hull is not designed to be under compression and is designed to have a water interface, not air.

The down side is that the anodes on the prop shaft and bow-thruster will disappear and the hull will be covered in sea life. However we will see how this goes.

It is quite nice being back in the marina and meeting up with some of the characters we have met here before and sharing tales of daring do afloat.

The blog has had a significant readership, which encourages us to carry on with it again next season. Comments are greatly appreciated and fortify us to carry on with it.

Bye for now

Colin and Margaret