Boat Sick in Mykonos

We’ve had a few troubles over the last few days.    

Our port engine has been sick with the dreaded diesel bug rendering it pretty much useless.  We spent a night at Ikaria sharing an all-night anchor watch to ensure we didn’t hit the rocks, waiting for daylight and the chance to make it to Mykonos and for the mechanic (aka Captain) to get up to his armpits in diesel.

The weather reports on Predict Wind were all out by a massive magnitude so we had sloppy confused seas and winds that gusted up to 36 knots.   Being lopsided with power and winds taking you against your will makes for tricky sailing and actually hitting the mark of your planned destination.   Simply, our engine could not overcome the impact of nature and yet as sailors, the wind is usually our friend.  We had reefs in the mainsail but dropped that in favour of a handkerchief piece of Genoa unfurled to aid steerage.  We changed from our chosen anchorage and limped into a wide bay that offered us the best protection and ample get out of jail room should the anchor not take.   It did!  Thankfully.!! 

It is 14 years since the admiral was last here in Mykonos.  So yesterday it was a 17 km round trip walk into the new port to officially check in to the island, and then coffee at the beautiful old port to reminisce about her previous holiday to magical Mykonos with Robin and Claire all those years ago.  

Mykonos is Greece’s version of Ibiza. Famous for its nightlife and quaint little flat stoned, white and blue painted alleys that worm and squiggle their way from the waterfront steeply up the hills to the famous windmills and bars that jut out over the sea. The picturesquely beautiful old port houses the best designer duds and delectable sea-centric cuisines.

Meanwhile, back on board, the able mechanic/captain has managed to deal with the difficult diesel bug (for now) so we have two working engines again.  We will likely end up with a diesel polishing process as a result.   He also whipped the reef line on our new Dyneema first reef that chewed through its sheath cover on its first use and topped up the tanks with fresh and hot water.   So we are hunkered down here for a while; waiting for the bad spring weather to pass which is expected to last around a week.  The clubbing may have to wait.  But you can be sure, Captain Greg is making good on his promises of bringing the Admiral an adventurous life. 

Demis Roussos was iconic as a Greek superstar of the ’70s.  He was a caftan-wearing, prog-rock musician famous for his appearances with the act ‘Aphrodite’s Child’ – but also as a Vocal soloist and producer. Much parodied, ‘My Friend the Wind’ is today’s appropriate song to our soundtrack of Waiata life.

  
“My friend the wind will come from the north 
With words of love, she whispered for me 
My friend the wind will say she loves me 
And me alone, and me alone”

You can listen here