Day 108

3/18/2014

Saturday morning I climbed one of Othonoi’s many mountains.  The small island is packed with them.  The steep valleys run with streams and a number of the few level places on the mountainsides are occupied by old stone huts.

The peak of the mountain I was climbing was covered with sharp stones.  I cut my feet.  One day, I’ll be tough - my feet will cut rock.

My boat was on the beach.  In the night the wind blew.  In the morning I found my boat full of sand and on a pile of sharp stones.

I found a hole and covered it with epoxy.  I also added epoxy to the screw that held in the bow tip handle.  The loose screw might have accounted for the water accumulating in my front compartment.

Tuesday morning I launched.  The warm morning sun created a mist and I could not see the island of Corfu.  I angled my boat so my compass read ~98 degrees and paddled.  I passed a small village island on my right and left as well as a few smaller desert islands.  Corfu gradually appeared in the mist and as I could see more and more of it I angled my boat to towards the north east corner.

Corfu’s heavily forested mountains aren’t quite as sharp as Othonoi’s, but are still a good deal more impressive than the east coast of Italy.  

The sea was flat and I enjoyed an intermittent tail wind.

Albania appeared in the mist.  Its brown snowcapped mountains dwarfed the island peaks.  A few trees sparsely decorated the desolate wilderness.

I was wearing my t shirt instead of my jacket, and I was still hot.  I rolled to cool off and felt wonderful.  I passed a small bay with a sandy beach.  A woman swam in the clear water.  The rocks down by the water were black and dark gray.  Above the surf line they were white.

I arrived in Kassiopi.  It’s a small Greek town with a little harbor surrounded by shops and cafes.  A large Albanian city sits across the strait.

I made friends with the fellow running the supermarket.

“Can I get you anything?”  He asked.  “You want a beer?”

“Maybe a shower?”  I tried.

“I’ll see what I can do,”  he told me.

[gallery type="rectangular" ids="3991,3992,3993,3994,3995"]

Nautical miles paddle:  25

Current location:  39.790066,19.922794