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Day 16 The Corinth Canal and into the Ionian Sea
We arrived at our overnight anchorage spot just before sundown; there were some gin & tonics and beers in the cockpit as we prepared for dinner. A local fisherman was casting his line near us and then headed off to the nearby island where a lot of sea birds were circling. Dan and I sat in the cockpit finishing off a bottle or two of wine after the others had gone off to bed. A couple larger fishing boats appeared and began laying out their net as they must do every night.



The sound of the anchor being hauled woke me in the morning and soon we were motoring towards the east side of the Corinth Canal, a large narrow channel that had been cut out of the rock and provided a short cut between the Aegean and Ionian Seas.



Awaiting our turn

We tied up to the dock as instructed by the canal master, and then Dan and Em went in to complete the paperwork and pay the transit fee.
We strolled around the area for a while and a cruise boat that takes tourist through the canal docked behind us. There were a couple other yachts waiting, since the canal can only handle one-way traffic due to its narrow width; as soon as a tug and a freighter completed their passage we were given the instruction to precede.



Into the canal



Luckily we were first in line which allowed for unobstructed photos of the high walls and couple bridges we would pass under. The transit took less than an hour and was nowhere near as impressive as last years Panama Canal transit, but it was pretty cool anyways.
Tonights dinner was going to be one sure to go down in the books and talked about for years to come on Skyelark, a whole leg of lamb that I had picked up in the market in Athens. I prepared the roast by inserting slivers of fresh garlic under the layer of fat and alongside the bones, using a knife to make small slits for the purpose. It was then rubbed with thyme, rosemary, oregano, salt and pepper and placed on a bed of fresh carrots, onions and garlic.



We were using Dans moms recipe which he requested by e-mail in the morning and required slow roasting the lamb for several hours. The aroma emanating form the oven had every ones mouth watering in anticipation. It didn’t disappoint either, by the time we finished eating all that remained was a pile of bones and a small bit of meat.
This would be an overnight passage to Kefalonia, our last stop in Greece and took us through some busy waters. There were container ships and fishing boats alike to dodge and we even passed under a bridge at midnight, I still can’t get used to it; but our Skippers took turns staying up all night checking the AIS and giving course change instructions.
We arrived safely in the harbor at Kefalonia around 9:00 am; it’s a beautiful little place much like some of our previous stops, pastel colored houses on the hills and shops and cafes all around the harbor.
I tell you I am really loving life right now!

Fantastic trip. Did I say that already?????????
cheers
irina

What a great trip! Looking forward to your next installment.

Sue