Beautiful Kekova Roads... Jul 2008

21 - 26 July 2008

CLICK ON ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE
***Enjoying the long balmy med evenings - Having our first bar-b-que onboard we think since NZ, *** ***Looking down to Kale Koy from the ancient Selchuk Fort*** ***Looking the other way towards Ucagiz, Balvenie is closest on the left*** ***The Sarcophagi at Ucagiz, there are hundreds***

We didn’t really know what to expect along this coast. So many people we had spoken to have said Turkey has some of the best cruising in the world. Calm nights and mornings, afternoon sea breezes, scenic bays, excellent affordable restaurants, cute villages, amazing ruins and shore excursions, snug harbours, the list of positives goes on and on. So we had reasonably high expectations but have been disappointed before so came with an open mind and hoped for the best. So far all our expectations have been exceeded . This part of Turkey is amazing and we have only come about 20 miles from Finike!!!

We left Finike just before the sea breeze kicked in and had a lovely sail to the far eastern anchorage of Kekova Roads. Kekova Roads is the name of a long thin island about 4 miles long which lies west to east about 1 mile off the Turkish Mainland. There are several other little islands within the sheltered waters and loads of great little bays, a few little beaches, a sunken city, a dominant fortress, sarcophagi tumbling down to the waters edge and a couple of cute villages. All in all it’s easy to while away a few days and just enjoy it all.

We stopped the first night at the most eastern end in behind Ashil Adasi with several other yachts and had a wonderful still evening so decided to dust the cobwebs off the bar-b-que. Next morning we took Dougie the Dinghy ashore to some ruins and had a wander around, there are just ruins everywhere along this coast, I guess we will get “ruined out” but at the moment we are enjoying them all.
Anchorage info: Ashil Adasi/Gokkaya Liman 36.12.65N 29.53.66E Sheltered and flat water but excellent conditions

Back on Balvenie and a short motor along the channel. We passed the magnificent castle which sits high above Kale Koy dominating the hillside and would once have kept a very watchful eye over all the comings and goings below.
Mooring info: There are a couple of docks in Kale Koy (can be hard to see as many gulets may be at anchor off) with about 8 metre depths that you can tie alongside and use water and power, one had free wifi, as long as you eat at the corresponding restaurant, meals were between 10 – 15 Lira pp. We didn’t find these until we had a dinghy excursion there and anchored around the corner in an inner bay called Ucagiz Liman. This is a totally enclosed bay and although the water was murky we still had our daily Med dip.

We dinghyed around to Kale Koy late in the afternoon and got intercepted by a local woman, Angel who basically gave us a walking tour and escorted us to the top of the castle. It was impossible to not have someone go with you, there was one with every tourist, all with their basket of wares then at the top they show their goodies to sell. Unfortunately Angel only had shawls/wraps, something that I have bought a few of along the way and just don’t need any more of, especially not at 25Lira each, so the outstanding view from the top was somewhat overshadowed by my guilt at not parting with any money when she had walked all the ay up with us. Kale Koy is a great little place though, with cute waterfront restaurants, ruins underwater, sarcophagi lying in the shallows and a lovely outlook, we stayed for a couple of drinks as the sun dipped over the hills , then got back home though the rocks before dark.

The village closest to us at anchor, Ucagiz, looked flat and uninspiring and very busy with the tour boats going out to Kale Koy but we decided to go ashore in the morning to have a look and get some bread. Turkish bread is great, its everywhere, big white Vienna type loaves, lovely and soft, keeps well and only around .60Lira a loaf, yummy. Well Ucagiz was really quite nice, in between the bus and boat loads of tourists it settled down to a little local village and we enjoyed walking round the winding streets behind the waterfront.
Anchorage info: The one in the photo on the left was our first anchorage in here. 36.11.67N 29.51.23E, very sheltered, totally enclosed inner bay. Reasonable dinghy ride to KaleKoy if you decide not to go on the dock there.

We moved on in the afternoon, another 2 miles to Polemos Buku where we had had a restaurant recommended, it was a windy afternoon with the wind whipping through the anchorage and it didn’t die down till after dark so we had dinner onboard. We had a few nervous moments late in the afternoon with charter yachts coming into the anchorage under full sail in over 25knots and then going upwind of us to drop sails, very entertaining but totally unnecessary.
Anchorage info: 36.09.92N 29.48.23E Wind bullets over the hill, flat enough water

Next morning strong winds were forecast for another 2 days so we sailed with the headsail downwind for the huge 2 miles journey back to Ucagiz and settled in. We amused ourselves by watching all the comings and goings of the charter boats, gullets, bread delivery boat, ferries, and went ashore a couple of times for drinks in a couple of places with free slow internet (better than nothing), one was a treehouse place, set up the hill and flies a mini red hot air balloon. Health and Safety would never let this place operate in many countries, its all different levels built upwards through some trees and very rickety looking but very cool.We did a quick mercy dash one afternoon when a teenager off a neighbouing charter boat had gone ashore to get some assistance as they could not get their anchor up. Her dinghy was t-boned by a small incoming ferry and she ended up in the water with the dinghy motor still going, round and round her in circles. Her parents were obviously quite distraught watching all this from their boat with no means of getting to her, so we zoomed over to them as quick as Dougie with his little 2.5hp outboard will go and went to the rescue. Luckily she was not hurt but it is a reminder to us all how things can turn turtle. Talking of turtles, we saw some in the bay. There are a couple of docks here also that you can tie up to, 1 advertises 4 metre depth but we believe it is only 1.5 metre – we didn’t test it!!! I should also mention that if you have dinner at Hassans restaurant the next morning they deliver a loaf of bread to the boat, not bad aye! There are close on 100 sarcophagi lying around here, through the village and on the shoreline, it’s a great place to explore and we enjoyed our time here.
Anchorage info: anchored further into the bay this time at 36.11.64N 29.50.66E flat water in strong winds

No Scurvy and No more Nappies ... July 2008

CLICK ON ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE ***Mornings shopping at the market*** ***The hole in the wall and the old cylinder*** ***Plumbing by brail - Admiral eyes direct Skippers hands*** ***New blue cylinder***

12 - 20 July 2008

At last the hot water cylinder arrived, only a week late. I didn’t mind at all because at last I am in Finike for the Saturday market so while Mark starts disconnecting and removing the old leaky cylinder I get to check out all the wonderful fresh produce at the market. There is still a thriving market culture in Turkey and the market is in different towns in the region on different days of the week, it was huge, not only with fresh produce but clothing, shoes, hardware, carpets, fabrics, crockery – basically the shopping mall comes to town once a week and everyones needs are catered to. We planned to leave the following day so I filled the fridges with fruit and vegetables, as you can see from the photo we will not be getting scurvy anytime soon. All the goodies displayed, plus a few extras that did not quite fit in the photo cost 18Lira, about $20NZD/$15USD and were all very fresh and tasted just great, especially the peaches. Sadly the end of the cherry season was upon us, they had been sensational and at 4Lira per kilo an absolute bargain.

Meanwhile Mark has made good progress on the cylinder, the old is out, the support shelving strengthened and the new put in place. It is 40degrees inside Balvenie, he is trying to attach the hosing by brail and 3 out of 4 are in place. But as with anything when he has foolishly uttered those words “this looks pretty straightforward” before starting there is a hiccup. The 4th connection is different, none of our joiners will work, the nearby chandlery has closed and its Sunday tomorrow. Time for a swim and several cold beers!!!! After much more searching through our spares and with the kind help of fellow cruiser Chris off Billabong the cylinder installation was completed on Sunday. The nappies are removed as at last there are no longer drips to catch and finally we made plans to start cruising West along the Turkish coast.

So just what do we do all day???... July 2008

CLICK ON ANY PHOTOS TO ENLARGE THEM ***Mark with hose at the top of the mast*** ***Was that a seagull with bad diarrhoea or just the first splats of dirty brown hitting the deck as he cleans above*** ***Dinner out in Finike with Bill and Tony, the big round thing in the middle is turkish bread, its full of hot air and its fun bursting it. It also tastes excellent with the accompanying dips***

12 - 20 July 2008
Another day and no new hot water cylinder. Its day 19 since ordering, eta was 10-14 days, oh well, this is Turkey, and its a great place, beautiful weather, lovely people and the food is just so good, what's the hurry to move.

We anchored outside Finike Marina when we returned from our little tour east. We had 5 nights out there, its pretty comfortable and we could bring the dinghy into the marina to come ashore, but yesterday strong winds were forecast so we decided to splash out and come in and tie up for a few nights until the Water cylinder arrives. We are all snug, power plugged in, wifi booming in, step ashore and endless water on tap. Shame not to take advantage of all that water really, although we have cleaned and cleaned the boat since leaving the Red Sea the dirt just keeps coming out so Mark decided to attack it from the top, so up the mast in the bosuns chair he went, with me on the electric winch sending him on his way - right to the top - along with hose, can you see him, that little spec in the photo. And what about the mess he made, look at the first few drops that came down, yuk, soon the whole deck, basically everything on the boat including me was just covered in brown sludge. After a couple of hours we had Mark back down to sea level we then hoisted the mainsail to clean it. It had done an excellent job of catching much of the brown sludge to add to the layers of Red Sea dust it already had accumulated, so as it went up, more muddy water came down, oh what a mess. Anyway we hosed down all the sail, pulling it up and dropping it more times than we should have, something went wrong with our planning and strategy and we sort of did it all back to front, but eventually it was done, dried and lower just before the wind kicked it. By then it was definitely time for lunch and to admire the work we had done, but only if we looked upwards because deck level wasn't pretty. So all afternoon was spent by me finishing the deck, stainless steel, all the dodger, even got the clear zip-in windows out attached them and polished them up. Meanwhile Mark was in the dinghy and washed then cleaned and polished the hull, it is gleaming. Somewhere inbetween I took down all the mosquito screens which I'm sure had been black at one stage but all looked chocolate brown, amazing they are all black again and the air can even get through them again now that all the dust has gone. Plus I even managed a load of laundry by hand, and replaced some bungies that didn't bungy anymore, and did I mention that I broke my toe this morning!!!!!, nasty cracking noise and we have been watching it change colour all day long, oh well life goes on!!!! Then about 6pm we walked over to the swimming area here and cooled off, followed by a nice long shower, then we met friends Bill off Mariah and Chris and KT off Billabong for a few well earned drinks ashore and finished off the evening with excellent "pides" (turkish thin and crispy pizzas) for dinner, at 5Lira (NZD5.50 or Euro2.50) for the 2 of us why eat in. So phew, no wonder we are sitting here at 11.30pm feeling total wrecks. Maybe we will take tomorrow off for good behavior!!! Still the end result it outstanding, after 2 full days of cleaning and polishing Balvenie is absolutely gleaming, and we need a holiday.

Skippers Malaysia-Med Cruising Notes

SKIPPER HAS HIS SAY (AT LAST)

Advice (for what its worth) and things I would do different if we did the Indian Ocean again.

1) Make sure your engine is in the best shape of its life !!
2) Make sure you are seriously spared up big time !!. Assume there is nothing between Thailand and Turkey. Get as much as you can in Langkawi. I waited until Phuket to get my Volvo and Yanmar spares/filters etc and paid up to 4 times more than I would in NZ or Oz. All the ports you visit support commercial and fishing fleets so there is always a local guy to help as long as you have the bits on board.
3) Have a very very close look at the booze situation. If you miss Sri Lanka and India you can’t buy any booze until Eygpt . Most boats ran out this year. Just think 3 cans a day (ha ha) for 5 months equals 450 cans equals 19 cases!!. etc etc. Tonic was not easily available (even in Phuket they had run out!!)
4) Have plenty photocopies of ships papers, passports and crew lists. Our boat stamp was well received. Need plenty passport photos too.
5) We have steps up to our first spreaders. These were invaluable on several occasions, we would not have been able to access some anchorages without them. So if you haven’t got them maybe consider fixing ratlines to get that extra height for visibility coming into the reef anchorages.
6) Handy to have a few jerry jugs. You don’t want to tie up to the wharfs - ugly ugly.
7) Don’t get too hung up on food supplies. There are first world supermarkets in Sri Lanka, Oman, Aden, Hurghada and Ismailia. Top up big time in Egypt its much cheaper than Cyprus, Israel or Turkey.
8) Unless you check- in at Malle, Maldives and pay a ton of money for a cruising permit (No time for cruising anyway you’re on a mission !!!) use Uligamu in northern Maldives as a pit stop only for a few days. Checking-in and out, getting fuel and water is a breeze, but you are not allowed to visit any other islands. Rest and move on. The best stuff is ahead of you.
9) Make sure you have a fishing line out closing on Salalah, plenty plenty Mahi Mahi!!!. Couldn’t haul them in fast enough. Good fishing right through till Egypt
10) Stay close to Yemen coast 15 miles or so, don’t miss Al Mukalla or Sana’a. Don’t leave until you’ve smoked a hubble bubble pipe in a Bedouin tent!!
12) No need to get involved in some military style formation synchronized motor sailing exercise. Just hang out with a couple of other boats and keep in sight during the day and maybe close up at night. Honestly we were as apprehensive as anybody about pirate alley but we ended up stopping along the Yemen coast and felt reasonably comfortable moving along the coast line with a few very friendly Yemeni patrols zooming by from time to time lobbing fish on to the boat!!
13) It is true. If it’s blowing 20knots in Aden its blowing 40knots in the Bab al Mandeb Strait. Gets very lumpy but its down hill and things flatten out after a few hours going north.
14) We more or less day sailed to Eygpt and worked our way north up the west coast in side many reefs and islands often sailing close hauled in lightish winds and flat water. Easy peasy!! This takes more time but be patent don’t push it. Just keep nibbling away. Reefs are very obvious.
15) North of Massawa – BEWARE!! An unexpected solid southerly is followed by a few hours of no wind is followed by a howler from the north. 3 times we were enjoying wing on wing sailing thinking the Red Sea is a breeze then the wind died and we motored for a few hours only to be stopped in our tracks by big northerly. Take the southerly but don’t be greedy and head for safe haven during the lull.
16) Don’t miss Massawa and Suakin
17) We only got adverse conditions a couple of times, both further north at night when you are forced to do a couple of overnighters so have a plan B.
18) I don’t mean to be a negative Nigel but the Red Sea isn’t done until its done. The toughest part for us was the last 180 miles from Hurghada up the Gulf of Suez. We were a tad late in the season by then (early June).
19) Fill up with diesel in Egypt USD0.18c a litre. Turkey is well over USD2.00 a litre, Greece currently 1.15Euro a litre.
20) Lastly have some "pirate packs" onboard. We put together water (or fizzy drinks), cigarettes, biscuits/cookies and basically anything else surplus we wanted to get rid of (old liferaft supplies!!) and threw them to the boats that came for a look. They were so grateful, and if you give them something they will then leave you alone (especially in Sri Lankan waters). Baseball caps were a winner too.

The journey from Thailand to Turkey was the most amazing season of our adventure so far. There is no doubt it’s a long haul and you are always aware of the clock ticking. The urge to get the whole journey behind you is strong when you leave Asia but try to fight it and spend time in these places. We left Nai Harn Bay on Phuket 21 December 2007 and ended up stopping in the Surins 1 week, Andamans 3 weeks , Sri Lanka 12 days, Maldives 1 week, Oman 10 days, 3 weeks in Yemen, 12 days in Eritrea, 13 days in Sudan , 5 weeks in Eygpt and a week in Cyprus and arrived in Turkey 25 June 2008. Wouldn’t have missed any of it!!

Cruising east of Finike ... July 2008

***Tony, Jessica and Mark on the bridge to Paradise Cafe, Adrasan Beach*** ***All the Gulets at Tekirova Beach*** ***Ruins at the ancient city of Phaselis with Mt Solymnus in the background***

03 -12 July 2008

We are killing time waiting for a new hot water cylinder to arrive into Finike. This has been an ongoing problem since Malaysia when it first started leaking. Unfortunately they built the boat around the cylinder and we couldn’t get it out until we got to Thailand and had a big hole sawed in our aft cabin wall. Then we couldn’t get a new cylinder before we left so had the old one repaired. Well that lasted till the Maldives when it started springing new leaks and has been ever since. It wouldn’t be so bad if it just leaked into the bilge but it sits above the generator so leaks down onto it, so we have had all manner of contraptions rigged to catch the water, along with nappies to soak it up. Needless to say the 1100NZD's we are being charged for a new cylinder will be money well spent!!

So while we await its arrival we have taken the time to cruise east and have spent the last 10 days in some lovely spots between here and Tekirova. We were in company with Tony on Tactical Directions for most of it who had Swedish friend Jessica onboard. We spent the 1st two nights at Cavus Liman or Adrasan Beach. This was a big fairly sheltered bay that had a row of beach restaurants and pensions that looked to serve mainly the local market. We had a long walk ashore right to the end of the beach and followed the road and a small stream and discovered about 6 little cafes with wooden platforms built over the stream which housed the tables, chairs, loungers and umbrellas. All a very laid back environment in a delightful setting.

From there we moved onto Cineviz Liman (Liman means bay in Turkish), this was a stunning spot with dramatic steep hills coming straight down to the waters edge, beautiful clear water, almost totally protected from the wind, and a couple of small pebbly beaches ashore to swim to. We had 3 lazy days in there with a mixture of large overnight tour Gulets, day tripper Gulets, small local craft and a few yachts coming and going. The Gulets are large wooden boats, usually schooners but very few using sails, which are used for the tourist market all along the southern and western Turkish coast. There are 100’s of them and we haven’t got to the touristy parts yet!!! We met up again with Annie and Liam off Gone with the Wind for a couple of days which was great, they had just arrived in from Cyprus along with another Australian boat Mercury II and British boat White Rose.

From there we headed a little further north to Tekirova while Tony continued to Kemer to drop Jessica off for her return flight to Sweden.. When we arrived into the bay at Tekirova I counted a least 22 Gulets, it seemed we had found the tourists, we anchored in the southern end of the bay staying as far away from the crowds as possible. By 4pm all but a few small local craft remained, peace had been restored. Tekirova is the site of ancient Phaselis founded in 690BC by Greek colonists and became a busy trading port for the area. We spent three hours ashore in the morning while all was still quiet wandering around the ruins of this harbour town, under the aqueduct arches, through the houses, into the bathhouses, up onto the terraces of the amphitheatre for an uninterrupted view across to Mt Solymnus, then a walk through the pine forest to the necropolis where there are broken sarcophagi lying covered with pinecones. It was a great stopover and gave us this weeks ration of culture!!! By the time we left the bay there were 30 Gulets in there, most tourists just lounging about onboard or swimming, very few seemed interested in the history ashore. We had a great sail back to Cineviz Liman and tucked back in there for another 3 nights, meeting up again with Tony on Tactical Directions, and meeting at last Sarah and GB off American yacht Djarrka who we have heard on the radio all season, great to finally meet and spend a couple of happy hours catching up with them. Yesterday we came the 30 miles back to Finike, we managed to sail all but the 1st 40 minutes, having wind from all directions and up to 23 knots, somewhat challenging but keeps skipper on the ball. Now we will sit and wait for our parts.

Made it to Turkey - Finike ... Jun 2008

25 Jun - 03 Jul 2008

***Cute little beach between Finike and Kas*** Us at Kas Fishing Harbour*** Evening out at the Opera under the Stars - Norma by Bellini performed at the stunning 1800 year old Aspendos Ampitheatre***

Our first week in Turkey has been action packed, we need to leave the marina and find a quiet little bay to get some rest!!!! We arrived at 9am on 25 June and were assisted into our med mooring berth at Finike Marina by extremely helpful and professional staff and we were tied up before we knew it, always a relief. Finike is a small town about half way between Fethiye and Antalya. It is very Turkish with few tourists except for the yachties, but has some excellent little local cafes, a couple of reasonable supermarkets, a huge Saturday produce market, a good marina with all facilities and a nice leisurely, local feel to it all. We were going to stay a couple of days to check in and have a look around, we are now up to day 8!!!!

We have had a day out exploring by car with Tony off Tactical Directions and Bill, crew member off Mariah. We headed west along the winding coast road first to the Church of St Nicholas (Santa Claus and the patron saint of Sailors), although its not in great shape it was built in the 3rd century and still has Byzantine frescoes and some mosaics floors. Next stop, about 2kms further on were the ruins of Myra with a well preserved Greco-Roman ampitheatre and Lycian Tombs high in the cliffs. Then coffee time and we headed down to the lovely harbour area at Kas. This looks like a great place, as did our next stop Kalekoy and we plan to go back on Balvenie and spend some time there exploring. Then it was time to explore more ruins at Xanthos, the ancient Lycian capital. We were befriended by a local man who we are not sure was a tour guide or not but his English was ok and he had a great knowledge of the history of the ruins and showed us all sorts of things we would not otherwise have found - terracotta water pipes, ancient swimming pools, hidden mosaics. It was a worthwhile stop and had an outstanding vista of the plains below. Next it was onto Fethiye to checkout the marina, anchorage and of course the chandlerys. It's a medium sized town with quite a tourist presence but had a nice feel to it. The drive home was interupted by a flat tyre, I enjoyed the view of the med while the boys , changed the tyre in record time, happy hour was upon us!! It was a great day out, many thanks to Tony for the car.

A couple of nights ago we joined an excursion organised by the marina to the outdoor opera at Aspendos. With a 5pm departure and 3am return it was a long evening but totally worthwhile. We had a dinner stop in Antalya with excellent food then it was onto the 1800 year old Aspendos Ampitheatre which is an outstanding venue. It is totally restored, completely enclosed around but open to the stars and is a fitting setting for an Italian Opera. A must do (even for non Opera fans) if you have the opportunity. Meanwhile this week has been the Finike Music Festival with local guest performances in the square each night, finishing off with a big nightly fireworks display at 12.30am, so you can see why we must leave and get some sleep. Nearly time for our daily dip in the med to cool down. More updates when we get out cruising this beautiful coastline.

Anchorage info: Finike Marina - med mooring, line for the bow provided, need own stern lines x 2. Gets afternoon seabreeze but very sheltered, very big breakwater. Marina fees expensive on daily rate 46Lira, no weekly rate, monthly and longer much much more affordable. One of the cheapist marinas in Turkey

Checkin info: Full checkin facilities all at marina - takes a couple of hours max. Turkish visas are 90days 43Lira for the 2 of us on EU passports, free on NZ passports. Harbourmaster fee 10Lira, Turkish Transit Log 97.50Lira

Into the Med - Cyprus ... June 2008

17 - 24 June 2008
***Balvenie squeezed into Paphos Harbour, we are the shortest mast right in the middle***Very much enjoying Diane and Clives home and pool set high in the hills overlooking the med ***Traditional Dinner out at their local taverna set down a real goat track***

After a delayed 11.30am start from Ismailia due to a warship transiting we finally reached Port Said at the top of the Suez Canal around 7.30pm. Our pilot had been far better than our previous one and the transferal of him onto the pilot boat went without incident and only one packet of cigarettes baksheesh to the pilot. We just kept on going after he had been collected. Finally we had escaped the clutches of the Red Sea, Suez Canal and the Egyptians!! We were in the Med, after 4 years and 38 days since leaving Auckland, we had made it. Of course this didn't mean that life got easy, we had a reasonably strong northwesterly blowing, sloppy lumpy seas, huge freighters in all directions, a couple of oil wells and it was nearly dark - everything comes at a price!!!

So in company with Tony and Clare off London yacht Hai Mei Gui we hoisted sails and headed for Cyprus as the sun sank in the West. We had a bumpy, noserly (wind on the nose!) trip but managed to sail about 30 hours until the wind died off in the early morning shortly before our arrival into Limassol on the southern coast of Greek Cyprus. Both Limassol Marina and the town harbour were full and turned us away but we were able to anchor in sheltered waters outside the Commercial Harbour for the night. We weighed anchor at first light and headed west hoping to find room in Paphos harbour on the Southwest corner of Cyprus. We motored along the south coast enjoying the spectacular scenery of the steep cliffs dropping straight in the Med. Because of this there are few natural bays or harbours to anchor so cruising Southern Cyprus is limited to the couple of marinas and fishing harbours. Paphos was very full but we were lucky enough to squeeze in as one of the police boats was away being serviced. After some time we even managed to get Hai Mei Gui secure as well, check in procedures went well, we had finally, officially arrived in the Med.

Paphos is a cute little place, the fishing harbour area is dominated by a fort on the seaward end. The harbour is still used by local fishing boats but now also packed with day trip boats, offering all manner of options for the crowds of tourists (mainly British) that arrive each year. Although touristy the area has been restored and extended tastefully and has a very nice laid back feel to it. It was great to be in somewhere that felt "normal" to us after so many months in Arabic and African countries. While in Paphos we were lucky enough to catch up with relatives of Mark's who retired to Paphos 5 years ago. Diane and Clive extended us excellent hospitality, took us to their local taverna for dinner, entertained us in their beautiful home set high in the hills overlooking the med, where we very much enjoyed cooling in the swimming pool and drove us to some spots we would otherwise have missed.

We shared a 3 day minimum car hire with Tony and Clare and took to the roads exploring all the nooks and crannies we could find along the coast then we headed to the hills.. It is so nice to smell the trees, hear the birds and enjoy all the varying colours of the landscape after months of being in desert environments. We visited small fishing villages then passed vineyards, olive groves, fruit tree orchards and as we headed higher drove through pine forests and bush right up to the snow level at Mt Olympus. We enjoyed a picnic lunch after a walk to the Caledonia Falls in the Troodos Region, a leisurely stroll around the beautifully preserved Kykkos Monastery and stopped at every opportunity to enjoy the views and local culture. We even fitted in a dip in the Med at Pissouri where the local hilltop village road was barely wide enough for us to fit our little Micra through.

We saw some great sights, everyone we met from check in officials to waiting staff could not have been more helpful or friendly, and I would certainly recommend this part of Cyprus, we love it and it was such a welcome breath of fresh air after Egypt. Sadly our space in the harbour was required again by the Marine Police so after provisioning and an easy checkout we headed for Turkey along with Hai Mei Gui, Tania and we rendezvoused also with Tactical Directions who were en route from Israel, hopefully this would be our last overnight passage for a very long time.

To view more Cyprus Photos click on www.picasaweb.google.com/yachtbalvenie/2008Cyprus

Excursion to Cairo ... June 2008

05 - 15 Jun 2008

**4000 year old boat in the Solar Barque Museum** **Pyramids Police on Camelback** **The Sphinx with the Great Pyramid of Khufu** **Pyramids of Khafre and Khufu at Giza**

We had a few days sitting in Ismailia, stern to at the little marina wall there. Ismailia is a nice place, pretty laid back for Egypt, good places to walk to for dinner, supermarket down the road, very very cheap diesel and petrol the only downside were the "guards" on the gate who wanted bakseesh for everything, it was almost at the point where they didn't want to let us in or out unless we gave them something, certainly getting the groceries in - bakseesh, taxi to drop us off - baksheesh, and to get diesel, very much baksheesh to bring diesel into the marina, its not like we are doing the marina out of business by not buying it there, because they don’t have any, its just the “guards” love the power of being able to refuse us access with anything we bring in, its all about the baksheesh/bribes/favours, whatever you want to call them. Also everytime we left they checked our passorts, if we went out 5 times in one day and saw the same person he would still check them, normally they would actually look at the wrong countries stamp, Eritrea seemed the favourite, even if we gave them the passport opened at the correct page, often they would hold them upside down! Sometimes this could take up to 5 minutes, I’m sure baksheesh would have made this quicker but you really have to draw the line!!!

Ismailia is just a couple of hours by road from Cairo so we had planned to do our Cairo excursion from here, and after a few days cleaning Balvenie inside and out to try and rid ourselves of more layers of red sea dust, dirt and salt we were ready for our Cairo minibreak. We used a driver with car recommended by other cruisers instead of the hassle of local buses, we felt Egypt had given us enough challenges, we were over challenges!! Mohammed, our driver, spent the 2 hour journey speaking with Mark about Islam while I sat quietly in the back seat, happily watching Cairo and its outskirts unfold around me. We had a slight hiccup on arrival at our hotel, we had understood our car to be EGP200 for the return trip, guess what – yep, that was only oneway! Egypt wins again!!!!

We had chosen a small hotel http://www.hotellongchamps.com/ ph 022 7352311 on Zamalek Island, this is the “Embassy” district of Cairo, it’s a very leafy lane environment, small cafes, book shops, quiet and felt safe. The island is located in the middle of the Nile, close to the Egyptian Museum and downtown Cairo. The very clean and nicely furnished room with ensuite and aircon was 360EGP (approx USD70), including an excellent breakfast, free wifi, and several taxes which seemed to be a large part of the bill!!! We settled in then wandered out for a look round, had an excellent lunch in a very local café then tried to catch a cab out to the Pyramids.

Once upon a time we were steadfast backpackers, and we certainly still have that mentality, as do most cruisers we know, we are not on holiday – this is just our chosen lifestyle – so we are as frugal as our bank balance necessitates. In Egypt we broke these rules and lived entirely by “What’s the easiest option?”, Egypt was wearing us down, slowly but surely day by day, we needed to make things easy for ourselves so we could leave the country still with a sense of humour and a glimmer of hope that maybe, one day, we might want to return! So we decided the Lonely Planet suggestions on how to get to the Pyramids by local transport sounded way too hard from where we were and flagged down a cab, but he wouldn’t take us, Mark tried another one, same thing. Maybe it was a language thing but surely they know what the Pyramids are, so on our 3rd attempt we show the cover of the Lonely Planet with the Pyramids on it, we are in business. We also show EGP30 (EGP25 was the suggested price by the hotel) and it would appear we are in business and on our way. It’s actually quite a way into the suburbs to Giza Plateau where the Pyramids are so we had a good look around Cairo’s outskirts before finally arriving around 3.30pm. The last half mile is somewhat interesting, the touts for the camel/horse trips through the plateau actually block the road to get business, it’s a little intimidating but our taxidriver did a good job of getting us through without running anyone over. But then ofcourse it comes time to pay, and now the EGP30 agreed upon is not nearly enough, and EGP50 is required. After much to-ing and fro-ing we pay EGP40 and Egypt wins yet again.

None of this can take away from the magnificence of that first up close vista of the 3 Pyramids and the Sphinx at Giza, they are truly awesome. We bought our entrance tickets (50EGP each) and set off to explore. This was a great time of the day to visit, the light was good, it wasn’t quite as hot and the crowds start to thin as the tour buses leave. We headed first for the Barque Museum (40EGP each) as it closes at 4.30pm. We had the place to ourselves and spent ages studying the 4000 year old Solar Barque (boat – see photo), we viewed the spot it was discovered and saw photos of the reconstruction. It was an interesting “extra” and although expensive we enjoyed it (plus its air-conditioned!!!) Then back out into the heat of the dropping sun and we spent the next couple of hours wandering around Giza plateau admiring these wonders of the world. We didn’t go inside them as that is only available at certain times of the day but we certainly inspected all nooks and crannies on the outside and again because of being late in the day shared these historical marvels with just a handful of others. We were last to leave as the guards locked up behind us, and had planned to stay for the evening sound and light show but it was cancelled due to a concert by a Lebanese singer being held instead.

So after a leisurely drink, we farewelled the Pyramids and braved the awaiting taxidrivers. After some negotiation we agreed on 40EGP for the return trip to our hotel, but then to our amazement we discovered that it wasn’t the taxi driver we had been speaking to it was the middle man tout who then wanted his negotiating fee. We had had enough, Egypt did not win again, the negotiator was not paid, the taxi ride was uneventful and the driver received nothing extra, we were getting even!! After having had an early start, large lunch and busy afternoon we had a quiet night in the hotel with a couple of drinks and crashed.

Next morning we walked through Zamelak, along and over the Nile and after spending way too much time trying to cross all the roads through the chaotic traffic we finally arrived at the Egyptian Museum. The 50EGP entrance fee is well worth it and you could just spend hours and hours foraging around in here, they have so many exhibits, not nearly enough room and a lot of it is just sort of “plonked” all over the place. The Tutankhamen Exhibition is outstanding, most of the contents of his tomb from the Valley of Kings are on display here and they are truly magnificent, we managed to view them inbetween tour parties which was achievable and spent plenty of time reading all the excellent information boards and starring in wonder at these priceless pieces of ancient history.

There are several truly worthwhile pieces in the museum but for the most part it is cluttered, they do not have the space to display these pieces in the grandeur they deserve. We also visited the Royal Mummies Hall an extra 100EGP, we felt this was overpriced but did want to see the mummies. The overwhelming impression was of how small the people were back then, we expected these great leaders of early civilisation to be large and strong, still a few thousand years preserved and wrapped up probably doesn’t do anyones physique any good! Just a word for anyone visiting, there are actually 2 Mummies halls at opposite sides of the museum, the one ticket gets you into both but they don’t tell you there is more. We spent several hours in the museum, with a coffee break to gather more strength and did very much enjoy all the pieces on display. Then it was back to the hotel, we were smarter this time and found the under/overpasses to cross the busy roads, a much better idea!!!

Mohammed arrived a little after our agreed time, apologising for his delay which was due to him spending all day copying off “An understanding of Muslim” for Mark with a couple of special sections for me on “The women’s place in Islam”, just on 360 A4 pages in all, what can I say, all we wanted was transport to Cairo and back!!!! Our trip home to Balvenie was uneventful, Mohammed’s driving by Egyptian standards was very good and we had enjoyed Cairo, it was now time to move on from Egypt to the Med.

See our web album for more photos http://picasaweb.google.com/yachtbalvenie/2008Egypt

Gulf of Suez - A sting in the tale ... June 2008

29 May - 04 Jun 2008

**The Sinai Peninsular from the Straits of Gubal**Finally into flatter water with the Suez Canal in view**Annie and Liam from "Gone with the Wind", our welcoming committee into the Suez Yacht Club**

Day after day we sat tucked up at the Marina in Hurghada watching the wind instruments register the high 20’s. By now we had quite a collection of cruisers itching to get the last part of the Red Sea behind them. Finally everyone agreed the 29th of May was looking the best option with a 4 day weather window of lighter winds to get up the Gulf of Suez. Of course on the morning it wasn’t looking so good with over 20 knots still blowing from the north, but after Swanya, Endeavor, Margret, Skylark and Theleme left and reported the sea state as not as bad as expected, we, along with Hai Mei Gui and Gone with the Wind let the lines go and stuck our noses out too. We headed inside the reef and spent a quiet night at South Quesim Island along with Theleme, Hai Mei Gui and Gone with the Wind. All looked promising the next morning for the jump across the Straits of Gubal to the Sinai Peninsular and at 6.30am we weighed anchor in just 10 knots of breeze. All too good to be true and before we had even turned the boat we were up over 20knots in those particularly nasty short sharp seas the Red Sea is infamous for. We motored up inside the reef hoping for calmer seas but experienced one of the nastiest seas we had in the Red Sea, slamming into and falling off short steep waves and taking way too much water over the boat. We persevered and headed out across the Gulf, weaving through the shipping bound for and exiting the Suez Canal.

Once across the shipping lanes the seas finally started to flatten a little and by 4pm we were at anchor in El Tur on the Sinai Peninsular. There were several other yachts there waiting for better conditions to head north. Several of them had left Hurghada over a week before us and had been patiently awaiting better weather. When we awoke at 6.30am the following day there was only Gone with the Wind and ourselves left, we spoke to the others heading up the Gulf, they were having a hard time of it bashing north so we decided to stay the day in El Tur. The following day conditions were no better but Gone with the Wind decided to move on, we stayed, the only ones left!!

With conditions no better the following day and the forecasted easing of winds never eventuating we decided if the others could do it and get through then so could we. Over the next 2 days we had some mean little boat stopper waves, but just kept on ploughing our way through them and when we left our final anchorage 20 miles south of the Suez Canal the calm seas finally arrived and we motored north through the many anchored cargo ships to the Suez Canal. Finally we had made it to Port Suez and had the Red Sea behind us. We can’t begin to explain the feeling of absolute achievement and relief of getting to the bottom of the Canal. Sadly this is short lived when you then have to start the process of getting the boat “measured” so the fees for the Canal transit can be calculated. This is not as simple as the length or weight of the boat, this is after all, Egypt!!!

Port Suez is a good sized town but the harbour area has very little to offer. We went for an evening walk and joined many Egyptians out for an evening stroll along the Corniche, watching the ships motor by. There were no restaurants, cafes or any food vendors – everyone must eat at home. Finally we found a small local kebab place and had excellent kofta each, USD1.60 for the two of us, including a bottle of water, finally a bargain in Egypt.

The next morning after considerable negotiations with our agent and the measurer we finally agreed a price for our canal transit, port fees and agents fees of USD350 and without any delays our pilot was aboard and we departed Port Suez for Ismailia, 50miles up the Suez Canal. Many negative reports are said and written about the Suez pilots for small craft such as ours, unfortunately I cannot add anything positive. Our pilots boat handling skills were poor, manners appalling, he smoked nonstop in our cockpit when we asked him not to, he constantly complained about the speed we were achieving when we had adverse current and headwinds, demanded extra baksheesh over the USD25 offered then had the nerve to want the USD5 bill changed as he had ripped it when opening the envelope! Of the 15 boats we knew that transited the week we did everyone had similar stories to tell - Suez Port Authority it is seriously time you looked at your staff who we understand are paid quite well by Egyptian standards.

We arrived into Ismailia before dark and were helped into our med mooring spot by all our cruiser friends already there, just how you are supposed to pick up the very heavy mooring buoys that don't have any lines attached is a mystery to us all but Gone with the Wind were there with dinghy to take our lines and make life much easier, thanks
.

See our web album for more photos http://picasaweb.google.com/yachtbalvenie/2008Egypt

Egypt Anchorage Info:-

Across Foul Bay (aptly named). Thought how lucky we were leaving Elba Reef on an overnighter with a southerly this far up the Red Sea and ran with it all day and into the evening. About 10pm it suddenly died and while the sails were flapping and we were thinking of what to do, the wind came in from the north. Within about 10 minutes it had built to 25 – 30 knots and we got our first experience of the Red Sea short sharp chop which really does stop you dead. We bore away and headed for shelter in Ras Banas our first Egyptian anchorage and ended up there 8 days sitting out 30knots. You can day sail this and it is probably a good idea. Welcome to Egypt and a taste of things to come.
Ras Banas - 23 53.62N 35 46.93E dropped 8m settled 14m well hooked to coral but there are sandy patches. No respite from the wind as land low lying, sea choppy but it was 30knots and comfortable enough. All 14 boats managed to get anchors up ok at the end of the blow.
Dolphin Reef - 24 10.06N 35 40.77E 10m sand, excellent visibility there are some big bommies but easy to see. Didn’t note entry waypoint but came into western anchorage and entered from the west. CMap useless. Excellent shelter from sea, none from wind. Several boats had sat out the 30knots comfortably here. Swimming with the dolphins here was an absolute highlight and must not be missed!!! Had a huge day, motor sailed in light winds inside the reefs and just kept on going until
Samedi Reef - 24 58.91N 35 00.13E 20m coral with sand patches. None of this reef is above the water line and in flat seas you have no idea where it is (could be nasty). We could not locate the entrance in the Red Sea Pilot and ended up just picking our way in with Mark high up the rig, more nerves of steel required. There did look to be some mooring buoys in the northern part of the reef but light was so bad we didn’t risk motoring up there. Once anchored we noticed a marker and went over in the dinghy. It is on an outstanding coral bommie and had the best snorkelling we had seen since Papua New Guinea. This is the port marker for entering. It is on the western side of the reef. The starboard marker was snapped, we attached a bottle but how long will that last? The snorkelling on both these bommies was great and this was at about 6.30pm with very poor light. ENTRANCE WAYPOINT IN THE MIDDLE OF THESE 2 BOMMIES 24 58.87N 34 59.82E about 20metres no obstructions.
Port Ghalib - Marina - Port of Entry. Big yellow entry buoy outside entrance. Quite narrow entrance but very well marked and in lee of any northerly winds. You will be directed to big concrete wall on right as you come in to complete entry procedures, very clear water looks shallow but depths all ok. Once completed staff come around into marina with you (basically they are useless don’t give them important job!!) We stayed 2 nights but I don’t have note that we paid anything, maybe it was included in our USD150 checkin. Some berths side tie, some stern to. Fuel available in jugs or alongside but much cheaper in Hurghada. Very sheltered, but flies and dust, yuk.
Hurghada - Marina - Had another lovely southerly when we left on overnighter to Abu Tig Marina, just kept waiting for the following northerly buster and it came around 3am. We dropped sail as soon as we lost the southerly and motored the rest. Came in through the reefs to Hurghada as day broke, CMap spot on right through. Stopped at Hurghada Marina. 20 nights cost 1758EGP (could have stayed 1 month same price), included water and power.
South Qeisum - 27 40.16N 33 44.40E 6.2m mainly sand. Flat water but no shelter from wind. Came up through the reef in fairly flat water to here. Left in 20knots following morning, horrible most of day. Went inbetween Sandy Island and Nth Qeisem, between the 2 small reefs then up Zeit Channel. Absolutely no respite from seas, possibly would have been better out in straits from beginning. The further we got across the Straits of Gubal the better the seas were, but it wasn’t one of our better days.
El Tur - 28 14.03N 33 36.72E 5.5m sand good holding. There is a reason this is a world renowned windsurfing destination. Do not believe any wind forecasts that say it blows less over this side, we were having 30knots when it was forecast 5-8 knots.
Sha’b el Hasa/Sheritab Shoals - 28 35.50N 33 11.55E 5m find a sandy spot. Much flatter than it looks it will be. Swung to current. BEWARE of some huge mooring buoys north of here around 28 39.65N 33 10.67E, about 5 of them. In choppy seas or early morning light not easy to see.
Ras Sudr - 29 34.94N 32 42.16E 8m hard to set, possibly hard packed sand base. ALSO BEWARE chopped off oil rig reported at 29 37.75N 32 37.85E
Suez Yacht Club - 29 56.85N 32 34.40E fore and aft mooring buoys. USD20 per night (rip off but nowhere to anchor and you are SO pleased to be here!)
Ismailia Yacht Club - 30 35.10N 32 16.35E mooring buoys to attach to then stern tie to big concrete wall. Pray someone gets in before you to help cos no staff. No lines on buoys so rather tricky to pick mooring up without actually climbing off the boat and balancing on it. Good luck!!!! 10 nights was 649EGP including water and power.
Breathe a sigh of relief, the Red Sea and Indian Ocean is done and you can now leave Egypt (well you can stop at Port Fouad or Port Said, but WHY!!!!!!)

Inland to the Nile ... May 2008

Avenue of the Spinxes in Luxor

10-28 May 2008

We spent the next a few days cleaning up and relaxing while organising our Nile Cruise and minibreak!! We were recommended the “Nile Admiral” ship and Cairo based GAT Tours and booked everything via internet and received excellent and prompt service. We were able to pay the 4 night cruise (USD76pp pn including all meals, tours, admissions, guides) at a local bank in Hurghada in either USD or EGP which suited us well and they also arranged our transfer to Luxor with the tourist convey to connect with the cruise. This was USD45pp which was much more than we paid for our other transfers we organised independently enroute but worked well for us at the time.



Statues of Menom on Luxors West Bank

 We were picked up by private minibus at 5.30am from our dock in Hurghada Marina along with Annie and Liam off Gone with the Wind to start our Egyptian holiday. By 12.30pm we were checked into our comfortable cabins onboard and enjoying the first of many excellent meals onboard whilst overlooking the famous Nile River. A busy afternoons sightseeing included the Karnak and Luxor Temples, both outstanding sites and our first taste of the immense history Egypt holds. The following morning it was an early start to beat the intense heat of the day. After watching the Hot Air Balloons rise over the West Bank we visited the Valley of the Kings, Temple of Queen Hatshepust and the Colossi of Memnon. They were all excellent, although very hot and busy. It was back onboard to let the lines go and we headed south down the Nile as we enjoyed the afternoon at leisure lazing in the shade by the pool, watching life on the Nile pass us by. Late afternoon entertainment was provided when we slowed to transit the Esna lock. The local stallholders take to their boats and throw items of clothing, shawls, rugs, really anything they can onto the ship in the hope that the tourists will like them. If you do then you start the bartering process yelling backwards and forwards until the price is agreed then you throw down the money in a plastic bag and hope it lands in their boat!!!! All very entertaining and many purchases were made.

Day 3 dawned hot and sunny yet again and there were more sights to see. A morning tour to the excellent Temple of Horus in Edfu followed by a short shopping excursion then it was back onboard for another restful afternoon as we headed further south. Our late afternoon stop was at Kom-Ombo Temple, positioned beautifully on a bend in the Nile overlooking the setting sun. Running the gauntlet through the stalls to get back onboard before sailing time was not an easy task. That evening onboard was fancy dress Egyptian style and many of the previous day’s purchases were worn in high spirits. Another early start on day 4 was not welcome after a late night but there was more to see.



Temple of Edfu

 We had arrived at Aswan and visited the great modern Nile engineering feat, the High Dam. This was followed by a short local boat trip out to Philae Island. Here they have resited a temple that would have been lost underwater when the dam was built. This has been undertaken in many places in this area with the help of UNESCO and has truly saved many historical treasures that would have been covered for all time. Next up it was time for our felucca ride around Elephantine Island, unfortunately the wind didn’t come out to play so we didn’t get much of a sail in. Then that was the end of the pre-planned activities so we relaxed and enjoyed another leisurely afternoon on the ship with our unobstructed Nile view, and even caught up on some much needed sleep.


Next morning the 4 of us taxied to the local bus station and boarded the early Upper Egypt Bus Company bus to Abu Simbel. Big mistake, but we must all learn the hard way and it was an experience. All looked ok to start with but before we had even left Aswan we were diverted to the bus company depot and all changed onto a bus that would not have passed a safety inspection in most countries for at least 10 years. It had just been hosed out, so seats (which weren’t actually attached to the frames), floor, basically everything was wet so the only dry seats we could get were at the back, above the motor. Oh well, it was only 4 hours, it would be fine. But it got hotter, and hotter, and hotter, to the point where we couldn’t put our feet on the floor. This was combining nicely with the outside air temperature which was over 40 degrees and of course this bus didn’t have air-conditioning. Surprisingly we actually arrived safely and almost on time, way more by good luck than the drivers skills. We were escorted by a local military man to our overnight accommodation just 4 minutes walk away, the Eskaleh, ph 0020 (97) 340 1288, 40Euro double room. It sits lakeside in a quiet street and is a traditional Nubian mudbrick house. Our cute room had air-con, fan, ensuite and free wifi, (or free use of their computer) the owners and staff were absolute delights and the food very good, the only downside was no swimming pool which might have been good.

Flat out on the Nile after another busy
 morning spent sightseeing

Time for relaxing during the heat of the day then at 4.30pm we headed to the Temples of Ramses the Great and his wife, about 20 minutes walk away. This is the best time of the day to visit as over 95% of the visitors to Abu Simbel do it as a very long day trip from Aswan and have been and gone long before lunch. We had the luxury of exploring with only a handful of others and stayed until the caretaker locked up at 7pm. Then we purchased our tickets for the Sound and Light Show and went back in and enjoyed hearing the history of Ramses and the visual effects of the lighting on the temples exterior. Alone these temples are truly magnificent, but what makes them even more special was that they were also moved when the dam was built to a new site about 70 metres higher than their original location. This was a huge undertaking and has been done superbly, with even the broken pieces lying as they would have fallen. Some parts were repaired, some cleaning was also done, and then they tunnelled it all into the hillside overlooking the Nile. I am sure even Ramses would have approved.

This was a big side trip almost back down to the Sudanese boarder, but a definite highlight of our Nile Valley minibreak. Next morning we did the wise thing and asked the hotel to organise a private car for us and we joined the 10am tourist convoy to Aswan. Our driver then organised another car to take us on the 2pm convoy to Luxor where we stayed the night at the St Joseph Hotel, on the Corniche. The room was comfortable with air con, ensuite with bathtub, lake views, balcony, rooftop swimming pool, free WIFI, and breakfast included for USD30. The staff were helpful and booked a private minivan for the 4 of us to join the following afternoon’s convoy back to Balvenie and Gone with the Wind in Hurghada. Our final mornings sightseeing included a ride on a horse and carriage with the obligatory stop at the papyrus market, and a leisurely look through the Luxor Museum which has been set out very well, with some excellent pieces recently discovered in Luxor Temple, a couple of mummies, some pieces from Tutankhamun’s Tomb and a host of other interesting artefacts, all displayed well and explained (in English). The transfer worked well and we arrived home to the marina before dark, having very much enjoyed our 8 day excursion. A new adventure awaited us, the Gulf of Suez and the Suez Canal.

See our web album for more photos http://picasaweb.google.com/yachtbalvenie/2008Egypt

Egypt - Where history began ... Apr - May 2008

Crabcastles in the sand at Ras Banas

26 Apr - 19 May 2008


We have been in Egypt now for nearly a month. Our run of dream weather with favourable winds came to a very abrupt end at midnight on the 26th April as we were crossing Foul Bay (aptly named) from Sudan to Egypt. We were hit with a nasty northerly of over 25 knots and experienced our first taste of the famous short steep chop of the Red Sea, unlike any wave action we have come across previously, basically they just stop the boat. So although our target had been Dolphin Reef we bore away about 20 miles short of it and headed in company with Gone with the Wind for Ras Banas. Its a very low lying, windswept, remote spot with a sandy beach and a small army outpost of just 2 personnel. The following 7 days saw more action at Ras Banas than probably has ever been seen. We ended up with a united nations collection of 11 yachts sheltering from the howling winds, 4 of them very skilled wind and kite surfers who were out enjoying every second and entertained us all. We even partook in windswept walks on the beach, choppy snorkeling, very wet dinghy rides and soaked up enforced downtime.

The magical Dolphins at Dolphin Reef

On the 8th day the wind eased just long enough for a mad dash up to Dolphin Reef to join up with another 6 yachts taking refuge in there. Dolphin Reef is slightly dry at all times so affords good shelter in flat water from the seas but no wind shelter at all, but the winds were easing and we had come to swim with the resident pod of dolphins and were not disappointed. We swam amongst over 100 dolphins of all sizes for over an hour, till our little legs just couldn't keep up with them any more. I can only describe this as a highlight of one of the things we are so lucky to be able to do because we have our own boat and the time and flexibility to wait for nature and the amazing sights she has shown us. Just brilliant.

Moving on the next day in calm waters we just kept on going about 64 miles and anchored the night at Samedi Reef. More underwater treats awaited us when we decided to snorkel the reef entrance. There were two huge bommies, with a good array of live coral, very clear water to 20 metres and an excellent selection of small to medium sized fish, with over a dozen varieties we hadn't seen before. This would have to go down as one of the best snorkels we have had since Papua New Guineas Louisiade Archipelago, even if somewhat colder water. Egypt was treating us after such a rough start!!!

Evening camel tour at Port Ghalib

We kept heading north while the winds were light and arrived in Port Ghalib to officially check into Egypt on May 06. Port Ghalib is under construction. They are building an entire new city and have started with the port and waterways area, to date there are a few “American” style restaurants, ATM machines, gift shops and a couple of hotels. The marina, at this point is a very long concrete wall to tie onto, with some med mooring spots also. We had no power facilities, metered water was available via an extremely long hose which didn’t quite reach us as we were at the end, rubbish disposable was charged at USD1 per bag, WIFI was available at USD10 per hour or USD20 per day (not a typo!!!!) but we did get plenty of free layers dust and sand from the building works, and the most flies we have had anywhere. However, check in facilities were reasonably fast and efficient and much cheaper than checking in at Hurghada the next option. Ghalib is really in the middle of nowhere but we relaxed for a couple of days then decided to brave it and try another overnighter to Abu Tig Marina at El Guana, about 15miles north of Hurghada.

All us on the marina wall at Port Ghalib

We had a good weather forecast and left with light winds and flat seas, put the throttle down and motorsailed in light winds. In the afternoon a light southerly set in, and although that is the perfect wind when heading north we were cautious from our previous experience across Foul Bay that southerlies are short lived and turn to strong northerlies at a moments notice, generally in the wee small hours. Unfortunately this was to be no exception and by 3am we had 25 – 30 knots from the Northwest with the short choppy seas that make headway difficult. Fortunately we, along with Gone with the Wind, had made very good time and were almost abeam of the reefs outside Hurghada. Skipper made a good call and as day broke we started heading in through the reefs and ran along the coastline in much calmer water. We passed Hurghada and continued onto Abu Tig for about half an hour but we got out of the reef shelter again and at 8am on May 09 turned back and went into Hurghada Marina and undertook with much trepidation in 30 knots our first “med mooring” experience!!!!

Hurghada Marina has a great location less than 5 minutes walk from the main tourist strip and the old town. It’s very touristy with mainly Russian tourists but compared to the rest of Egypt it is pretty laid back. The marina area is almost completed and will be smart when it’s all finished. Power and water were metered but not expensive, WIFI was free and accessible onboard, berthing charges up to 16m USD20 per day or USD300 per month and it wasn’t too dusty and will be better when all works are completed. It is a good place to leave the boat while off land travelling as it is close to Luxor and the Nile Valley. We took a day trip up to Abu Tig Marina to check whether it would be a better option. It is in an enclosed “tourist environment”, all western restaurants, hotels, very little privacy if stern to, pool club access by membership, WIFI charged and we heard from friends noisy at night with music into the wee small hours. We decided to remain in Hurghada.

For anchorage information on Egypt see the "Gulf of Suez - A sting in the tale" posting with detailed info on the above anchorages

See all our Egypt photos on our web album http://picasaweb.google.com/yachtbalvenie/2008Egypt