Day 9 - Cornith (Κορινθου) to Hydra (Υδρα), via the Cornith Canal

Monday, October 4
Travel time: 11.5 hrs, Distance: 51.2 nm

Team Sivota was up early at 6:30 to get through the Cornith Canal early before our long trip down to Hydra. We departed the harbor at 7:20 a.m. after calling the canal traffic control on the VHF radio. The winds today were very light.

We enjoyed the sunrise as we circled outside the canal entrance waiting for our turn to go through. Another Tradewinds boat, Alki, was there with us. Although a commercial ship was allowed through the canal at 7:40, we had to wait until 9:15. Because the winds were so light, we were able to just float out in the Gulf.

Arimia, who also spent the night in Corinth, called the canal controller for an 11 a.m. passage.

We planned our trip carefully to make our canal passage today, Monday. The canal authorities charge extra for Sunday passages and the canal is closed on Tuesdays from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. for maintenance.

Corinth at sunrise

Canal entrance and ship heading into canal

Alki and us hanging out and waiting

Finally headed into canal, with Alki behind us coming through the sinking bridge

At either end of the canal are old bridges down at the water level. Rather than drawbridges or some other form of opening bridge, these are "sinking bridges." They descend underwater for vessel passage. Rather unique. There are other vehicle bridges and a rail bridge high overhead at various points down the 6 km canal.

We had a beautiful passage - nice and sunny. The boat that you see behind us in canal pictures is Alki, skippered by Tony Hitchings.

The canal is about 80 feet wide. In some spots, the walls are over 275 feet high.

We took turns at the helm so we can all say we motored our yacht through the Corinth Canal!

Of course, to mark this once-in-a-lifetime passage, we toasted the canal with champagne!

Finally through the canal, looking out the east end of the canal, and looking back west.

After passing through the canal, we docked at the east side quay to process our paperwork and pay the passage fee of 95.17 euros. It was noon. At the east end of the canal behind the small canal master's building where we paid the fee, there is a large, white colonial style building with a large manicured lawn. It seemed out of place with everything else we'd seen.

While we were doing our paperwork, the sky clouded up and the temperatures dropped a little. Once underway again, we headed southeast enroute to Hydra some 45 nautical miles away. We motor-sailing at 7 kts in the light air since it was already after 11:00. At one point we got bored and tried the spinnaker again, but the winds were goofy and really too strong. We doused the spinnaker as we neared Poros.

As we entered the strait between Poros Island and the Peloponnese mainland, there was an enormous megayacht anchored named Lady Lola. We'd seen a few of these rich people's toys. However, this one had its own fleet! A second boat named Lady Lola Shadow was anchored some distance away from the Lady Lola. This second boat was apparently the tender and transport for all of the toys and extra crew for the main yacht. As you can see in the picture, there is a crane for launching sizable motor boats and a helicopter on its landing pad. Some people really have it tough.

Poros harbor was full. Boats were rafted up 4-5 deep. The harbor was in the lee of the island, and the town looked inviting, but we chose to stay the course to Hydra. It turned out that some of our boat buddies had stayed in Poros the night before, and would head back to Poros after a wild night in Hydra. But we get ahead of ourselves...

After going through the narrow channel between Poros and mainland Peloponnese, we sailed to Hydra with 20-25 knot winds. The winds were a hint of an adventure to come. Sue did the majority of the sailing down to Hydra and handled the boat like a pro in the strong wind and waves.

We arrived at 6 p.m. and Hydra's harbor was JAMMED! There were at least twenty boats from a regatta, six Tradewinds boats, a handful of cruisers, and a zillion small fishing boats. The wind was from the north, blowing directly across the jetty and through the mouth of the harbor onto the north-facing quay. Look closely at the picture to the right and you'll see the jetty with the harbor entrance to the left. (This is looking directly downwind to the south.)

The Tradewinds boats were all Med-moored against the quay, hanging on their anchors in the wind and waves. Opposite the quay, the jetty "protected" the harbor somewhat, and with the north wind, was "the place to be." Moored on the jetty, four rows deep, was a fleet of boats participating in a charter boat regatta. The regatta was for "big boats" mostly in the 37 to 45 foot range. A couple of power cruisers in the mix, and the south side of the jetty was jammed with boats.

The boats moored on the jetty were all "hanging" on the stern lines of the first row of boats on the jetty. Subsequent rows were tied on the bow cleats of the prior row. The crew of a boat in the outer rows would simply climb on all the boats between the crew and the jetty. It's just expected that if boats are moored in front of you that you will have "visitors" aboard from time to time. Of course, all of these boats are really Med-moored, and the anchor situation was guaranteed to be a mess.

Since the quay was full upon our arrival, we looked around and spotted an opening in the fourth row off the jetty. At this point, with no choice, we decided to grab that spot without hesitation. This was our first time mooring this way, but what the heck. So Mike lined us up and backed us into the spot. At the appropriate time we dropped anchor, and with the boats on either side fending off, we got into our spot.

Mike was hesitant to back close to the boat behind since that boat's anchor chain was getting close to our rudder. Meanwhile, Kelli had hooked the boat off the port quarter with the boat hook. Kelli came very close to going swimming hanging onto the boat hook, but Mike finally got her close enough to save the hook and get a line on. Once all lines were on, Didimos was shutdown, moored in the fourth row off the jetty. From this spot, Didimos had a front row seat to watch the waves pounding the boats across the way on the quay. It sure looked more comfortable on our side.

It was just getting dark by now, and it didn't look too easy to climb on boats to get to the jetty. However, a water taxi was flitting about the harbor, and eventually, the intrepid crew of the Didimos got fixed up to go ashore and flagged down the taxi. Boarding the taxi in the waves was more interesting than we'd intended, and Kevin nearly went swimming. However, we got aboard, and as we were disembarking from the taxi on the quay, the taxi's captain informed us that this was the last taxi of the day. So, stranded ashore, we decided on the most prudent course of action -- go find some Mythos and reflect on the situation.

After a Mythos or two, no problem seems insurmountable, so we decided that the top priority was dinner. We found a great spot off an alley and had fun once more recounting our day of early rising, waiting for canal access, cruising the Corinth Canal, fooling with the spinnaker, cruising through Poros, squeezing through a slot in the rocks, running across the pounding strait outside Hydra, and our rafted up Med-mooring. What a terrific day!

After dinner, and some wandering around town, we got a bit more serious about returning to our boat. We encountered Butch on the quay at his yacht, and he offered to let us borrow his dinghy. What a guy! Kevin and Butch launched the dinghy, and Kevin piloted the dink, making two runs to get us all back to Didimos. So, after a day of one adventure after another, Team Sivota turned in for an early rise to return the dinghy for Butch's early planned departure. The next morning was to be an adventure in the art of Med-mooring.