Hello from Corfu :O)

For all you lovely people who cannot just fly the nest and sail away, we Welcome you back to our Blog. Please come with us as 'virtual crew members' on our travels this year and if at all possible, come and join us 'literally' on one of the Greek Islands!

We flew back to Corfu on the 1st April. Within 30 minutes of leaving the aircraft we were sitting on deck drinking a beer. We've really missed our floating home this Winter :O)  After inspecting Lerryn lady for neglect,  we can report that she is as snug and safe as we left her five months ago - not a speck of damp or mould anywhere. All we had to do was kick our shoes off for another year, get into shorts and tee shirts and open the beers.

First morning breakfast consisted of Ann and Roger's phenomenal homemade Seville marmalade on local bread with coffee:

Absolutely delicious!

 

If you suffer from vertigo don't look ;O)

We had to get our wind generator down for an overhaul. Found a great sea monkey called Patch who loves going up masts - he is quite capable of going up unassisted but we got him into the Bosun's chair...here he is at the top of our Mizzen mast.

 

 

Greg watching from the pontoon.

 

 

Lots of lubrication, a little encouragement from a hammer and a young man's determination eventually won the day.

 

 

Another view

 

 

Our front yard

 

Another FOWEY boat in Corfu Marina :O)

Another Fowey boat joins Lerryn Lady in the marina :O) I remember this cruiser from a few years back in Fowey harbor - Greg used to race against her.

She's a Moody 31 foot - haven't seen a soul on her though I believe she may belong to a Steve Clemens.

Take these chains...

 There are one hundred and more things that need attention before we can leave the boat for the Winter; jobs that will hopefully have Lerryn Lady in good shape to take off again across the Ionian next year. One of these jobs is cleaning the anchor locker and inspecting the anchor chain. Here you can see us running the chain out  on deck in five metre lengths ( Greg is up the end there) we have 60 metres of chain and 45 metres of anchor rope. It's actually very nice to walk on barefoot! We cleaned the chain and re-calibrated it in 5 and 10metre lengths so whomever is up front can easily see how much chain is released at any one time ( usually my job - letting it out - and when we're ready to up anchor it's me up there bringing it all back in again manually, I enjoy doing it).

 Clean anchor chain.

This is the anchor chain back in situ in the anchor locker which we cleaned out and re-painted with bilge paint ( nice grey huh?). For you non-sailors, this is all up in the pointy bit of our boat - the Bow. The anchor itself is kept outside, all the time, lashed to the very front of the Bow ready to be deployed.  We've anchored in many beautiful bays and harbours this year thanks to this bit of kit.

In the Sky above us today (makes a change from the sea).

 

 

 

Sounding like a mega-menace mosquito up there!

 

 

 Just liked the light on his canopy...

 A big kiss in the Blue for you all!

Last Visitors to Corfu this sailing season

Colin and Sandra arrived for the rainiest week of the year in Corfu ! Sandra, the Chicken Scratching is BRILLIANT :O) Goodbyes yesterday, mother of all thunder storms last night and today it's back to bikini weather here in Corfu - sorry guys! xx
 

Mon Repos Corfu

 Well here is the plaque on the gates into Mon Repos.  HRH managed a good marriage which is just as well for him and all his family because the Greeks kicked them out. They are all living in London and we're not sure if the Greek taxpayers are footing the Bill (*tongue-very-firmly-in-cheek*) or as they are Glucksberg's perhaps the Danish are paying their rent in Kensington...damn nice of em! For sure it won't be the Slitty eye folk he refers too. For the record I would like to say that the Greeks I meet have grace and manners.

Something weird started to happen - clouds - the first in 6 months! As we wondered through the public park we found ourselves down by the King's ( Ex- Kings) pontoon. That's someone relaxing with a book out there.

And Greg on the end of the pontoon with Albanian hills in background ( and a ferry).

Even stranger than before - Raindrops - first in 6 months!

Looking across Garitsa Bay to the Old Fortress - good anchorage - we'll stop off here next May.