S1.26 - From Bridge Crossing to Hidden Bays: Our Greek Sailing Adventure Continues
September 16: Under the Rio Bridge and Into Nafpaktos Bay
The day began with Ryan finding our first dead fish on the sugar scoop. Thankfully, Ryan managed to scoot it off before I saw it.
With the current finally in our favor, we motored on one engine, despite a slight 1-3 knot headwind. Our destination was Nafpaktos Bay which has a small castle-like port recommended by Pantelis (who we met yesterday), but to get there, we had to pass underneath our first bridge.
From Wikipidia:
“The Rio-Antirrio Bridge is one of the world's longest multi-span cable-stayed bridges and longest of the fully suspended type. It crosses the Gulf of Corinth near Patras linking the town of Rioon the Pelopnnese peninsula to Antirro on mainland Greece by road.”
Ryan made the call:
“Rio Bridge Control, Rio Bridge Control. This is sailing yacht Lucky Enough, Lucky Enough. We have a 22-meter air draft and are 5 miles to the West. Request passage to the East. On route to Nafpaktos. Over.”
No problem. We were instructed to keep two bridge pylons to our right and one to our left as we safely crossed underneath.
On the other side.
Jelly Fish
We anchored just outside the Nafpaktos Port and had a huge jelly fish welcome us into the bay.
Wanting to get a glimpse of the inside of the old port, we launched Ugh for a closer look. It truly was a cool sight. There was limited space inside this horseshoe-like shape port - probably enough for just one catamaran. We unfortunately both forgot our phones so we can’t share pictures, be we will definitely want to return to check out more of the town someday.
View of the outside of the port from Lucky Enough
Tonight, however, we were too tired to explore and had plenty of food on board, so we enjoyed a quiet evening back on the boat.
Admiring the Rio-Antirrio Bridge in the sunset from our patio.
September 17: Smooth Sailing to Galaxidi
We had an easy 5.5-hour day with calm seas and little wind, although it wasn’t conducive to sailing.
Arriving in Galaxidi, we faced a tricky fuel dock maneuver as the winds and current picked up. With no assistance, docking was a challenge. I couldn’t lasso the cleat—it was too high and far for me to throw my line. Multiple attempts later, both of us frustrated, a passerby finally came to help. The fuel truck arrived and the attendant was super nice, making the experience better.
After refueling, we anchored just outside the bay in front of Galaxidi Hirolakas beach for the night.
Galaxidi Bay
Galaxidi Shoreline
The shoreline featured 3-4 little beach nooks, perfect for a private spot with your umbrella and blanket. We’ll have to explore those next time!
Despite the loud party music from a nearby restaurant, it could have been a peaceful night.