North of Kalymnos: (May -Sept 2022)
North of Kalymnos is the island of Leros, an important place for sail boats. There is 1 big marina
and in the north of the island there are 2 other big yards were many boats spend the winter out
of the water. We visited the Artemis yard as we had selected it for Terus during next winter.
We alreaddy had a, reservation but as we were on the island anyway, we wanted to make sure we
had made the right decision. On the west side of Leros is the harbor of Lakki where the big
ferries that sail from Athens to Rhodes stop nearly every day do offload lorries and passengers.
These boats are very big as they can be 176 meters long. Lakki is the main harbor of the island.
On the east side of the island there is a smaller port that connects passengers to the nearby
islands. From a practical point of view, when you need to take a ferry, make sure you go to the
right harbor! After Leros, we decided to go north to Samos, but with a stop in Lipsi. This island
is small and the village is well preserved. There are no big supermarkets, just 2 bakeries, a
butcher, a few restaurants and a ladies hairdresser. There are several tavernas as usual in
Greece, but next to the church there is a restaurant that offers more elaborate dishes. The
chef even visits you in the afternoon to deliver his menu hoping to see you later. The church is
under renovation so you can only explore the outside. The marina is quite small, but work is being
done to expand the harbor. After Lipsi, we moved to the south-east end of Samos Island. We
stopped in the harbor
of Pythagoras, named after the famous philosopher who in around the 7the century BC, found
the formula for calculating the sides of rectangular triangles. A statue in the harbor reminds
visitors of this famous formula. Not far away from the harbor is the archeological site of
Heraclion. The site was destroyed by an earthquake and only on big column still stands. It was
built in around 7the century BC and is known to be one of the biggest in Greek antiquity. The
temple of Polycratese measures 108 by 55 meters. The site is classified by UNESCO as a world
heritage site.
There is more in the interior of Samos , but a vehicle is required to explore it. On the southside,
there are several vineyards. On the south side if you travel west ward you will be surprised to
see that the road ends 400 meters above sea level. Here, surprisingly, you can find a boatyard.
Once built, the boats are loaded on a lorry and taken to the sea. Why this boatyard is located
there, who knows? Some people told us that the quality of the local wood and the air makes it
the ideal place for building boats. I only hope that they are not building the next Noah’s ark
when global warming has pushed the water level that high. The north side of the island is much
more exposed to the northerly winds and much rougher. In various places there are road signs
for little villages located higher up the hill. If you are hungry, they are a good place to go as
they have little tavernas.
After Samos we moved to west to Patmos. Very quickly, you notice what looks like a big fortress
built on the top of the island. In fact, it is not a fortress, but a monastery that was established
around 1100 AD. The walls are extremely thick and measure 15 meters in height. It is clear that
it is a fortified place that also protected the local population during invasions. Through the thick
wallsa few windows allow you to see the surroundings and the numerous beaches on the island.
The monastery can be visited, but only a very small part of it. There is also a museum that
contains a few beautiful objects such as bibles. When leaving the monastery, you reach a place
called the Apocalypse cave. The apostle St John stopped here and had his vision of the
apocalypse which his acolyte wrote down. This place is highly religious, and many ceremonies are
held every day around the cave. Inside the cave you can even see where the apostle rested and
placed his head when sleeping. A lot of silver decorates the place as is the custom in Greece.The
harbor of Patmos provides a reasonable amount of shelter, but it is important you look at the
weather forecast. Often medium sized cruise ships anchor close to the harbor but do not dock
at the island. For pleasure yachts, the harbor provides reasonable protection from most winds. I
however advise you to make sure that you put enough chain in the water and that it holds. If
southerly winds are announced, I would recommend moving to the southern part of the harbor to
get some protection from the harbor wall. We had to stay in Patmos for 10 days due to the
weather and saw many boats struggling to get anchored properly in the harbor when the wind
was blowing from the north and later from the south.
and in the north of the island there are 2 other big yards were many boats spend the winter out
of the water. We visited the Artemis yard as we had selected it for Terus during next winter.
We alreaddy had a, reservation but as we were on the island anyway, we wanted to make sure we
had made the right decision. On the west side of Leros is the harbor of Lakki where the big
ferries that sail from Athens to Rhodes stop nearly every day do offload lorries and passengers.
These boats are very big as they can be 176 meters long. Lakki is the main harbor of the island.
On the east side of the island there is a smaller port that connects passengers to the nearby
islands. From a practical point of view, when you need to take a ferry, make sure you go to the
right harbor! After Leros, we decided to go north to Samos, but with a stop in Lipsi. This island
is small and the village is well preserved. There are no big supermarkets, just 2 bakeries, a
butcher, a few restaurants and a ladies hairdresser. There are several tavernas as usual in
Greece, but next to the church there is a restaurant that offers more elaborate dishes. The
chef even visits you in the afternoon to deliver his menu hoping to see you later. The church is
under renovation so you can only explore the outside. The marina is quite small, but work is being
done to expand the harbor. After Lipsi, we moved to the south-east end of Samos Island. We
stopped in the harbor
of Pythagoras, named after the famous philosopher who in around the 7the century BC, found
the formula for calculating the sides of rectangular triangles. A statue in the harbor reminds
visitors of this famous formula. Not far away from the harbor is the archeological site of
Heraclion. The site was destroyed by an earthquake and only on big column still stands. It was
built in around 7the century BC and is known to be one of the biggest in Greek antiquity. The
temple of Polycratese measures 108 by 55 meters. The site is classified by UNESCO as a world
heritage site.
There is more in the interior of Samos , but a vehicle is required to explore it. On the southside,
there are several vineyards. On the south side if you travel west ward you will be surprised to
see that the road ends 400 meters above sea level. Here, surprisingly, you can find a boatyard.
Once built, the boats are loaded on a lorry and taken to the sea. Why this boatyard is located
there, who knows? Some people told us that the quality of the local wood and the air makes it
the ideal place for building boats. I only hope that they are not building the next Noah’s ark
when global warming has pushed the water level that high. The north side of the island is much
more exposed to the northerly winds and much rougher. In various places there are road signs
for little villages located higher up the hill. If you are hungry, they are a good place to go as
they have little tavernas.
After Samos we moved to west to Patmos. Very quickly, you notice what looks like a big fortress
built on the top of the island. In fact, it is not a fortress, but a monastery that was established
around 1100 AD. The walls are extremely thick and measure 15 meters in height. It is clear that
it is a fortified place that also protected the local population during invasions. Through the thick
wallsa few windows allow you to see the surroundings and the numerous beaches on the island.
The monastery can be visited, but only a very small part of it. There is also a museum that
contains a few beautiful objects such as bibles. When leaving the monastery, you reach a place
called the Apocalypse cave. The apostle St John stopped here and had his vision of the
apocalypse which his acolyte wrote down. This place is highly religious, and many ceremonies are
held every day around the cave. Inside the cave you can even see where the apostle rested and
placed his head when sleeping. A lot of silver decorates the place as is the custom in Greece.The
harbor of Patmos provides a reasonable amount of shelter, but it is important you look at the
weather forecast. Often medium sized cruise ships anchor close to the harbor but do not dock
at the island. For pleasure yachts, the harbor provides reasonable protection from most winds. I
however advise you to make sure that you put enough chain in the water and that it holds. If
southerly winds are announced, I would recommend moving to the southern part of the harbor to
get some protection from the harbor wall. We had to stay in Patmos for 10 days due to the
weather and saw many boats struggling to get anchored properly in the harbor when the wind
was blowing from the north and later from the south.
Our Journey: 2022
