Kargi Koyu to Astypalia.

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Day 3. Kargi Koyu to Astypalia.

Whilst not fluent in German I think I recognised some of the words screeched by “Bruno” and “Hilda” next door to us as the Meltemi picked up at about 0100 this morning and they swung into the path of recently-arrived gullet (a Turkish pleasure boat). Not knowing them we felt for them as the Turks were utterly non-compliant or interested as they had little option but to up-anchor and find somewhere else with echoes of “schiesse” as they disappeared into the darkness. Lisa was clearly pretty concerned as she rolled over and did slightly less than the Turkish protagonists.

After that the wind blew still and we wrapped up a little yet still sleeping on deck until 0630 before we heard Dad putting on the coffee and it was reveille. We headed off for Astypalia about 60-odd miles away. For Niki (our little boat) it represented a channel crossing but for Fabiola (and ourselves) this needs to be the norm to eat up the miles between here and Sardinia. We started slowly under engine in the lee of the mainland. Emerging at around 1200 with the wind building to between 8-22 knots with a short, steep chop we were initially underpowered for a long fetch to the island. The AIS showed itself to be a really useful tool to be able to tell how close crossing vessels are going to pass.

Today was an excellent opportunity to test out both George and Mildred, named after the 70’s BBC sitcom – some of you may remember. George is the electric autopilot and Mildred is the mechanical windvane self-steering. Mildred will be invaluable for long passages as George uses far too much electricity for protracted usage and Mildred needs only the wind to work and operates its own rudder like an active trim tab to put Fabiola back on course relative to the wind angle. Mildred does a good job but will need better understanding and fine-tweaking to operate more accurately as currently a helmsman with half-decent concentration can drive the boat faster, particularly through waves – which became considerable as the day went on. Fabiola tramps along at about 7-8 knots at 30⁰ to the wind.

Samuel has taken up the challenge of getting the best below-decks tan! He seldom emerges from the cabin although a replacement for the lost Nintendo is being used to lure him on deck. He is seemingly able to sleep for interminable periods which means at the end of a long day we are all knackered and he is ready for action!

We made bread for the first time today. Following a really simple recipe from Mel and Pete and their Pacific cookbook. It required no kneading and whilst a little sloppy it was delicious.

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