11th July

We set off in time to catch the 9 am opening of the Levkas floating bridge. By late morning we were at Preveza. After refuelling they lifted us into the hard. The afternoon was spent cleaning and repairing. Imagine looks in good shape. Only England match this evening left to go.

10th July

With help we managed to slip out of the harbour before most of the other boats. By some miracle our anchor came up without fouling. For the first couple of hours we had a great sail, although it was to windward. We then motored up to Levkas town and anchored on the town quay. Later we wandered round town and Simon and I watched the France Belgium game.

9th July

We thought we'd look at the next island, Kalamos. Boats were streaming out and there was plenty of space on the quay when directed there by George. We had a wander round town before lunch. By early afternoon other yachts were arriving. We had read that the harbour gets full. By the evening there must have been over 80 boats stacked imaginatively all over the harbour. The sea bed could only have been a tangle of anchor chains. Amazingly our sister ship, Alexandria came in. I introduced myself to her owner, Chris. Friends of his had sailed her down from Plymouth.

8th July

Another day, another island. This time Kastos. We had a good sail to the harbour and only town, Port Kastos. The wind was blowing hard off the shore so anchoring and taking a line ashore required some planning. After we were safely moored we were entertained by the other boats that arrived. Some made a pigs ear of it, two boats picked up other people's anchors. After a swim we had a drink by the old windmill and wandered round the village. By the time we returned the wind had dropped and all was peaceful where before carnage reigned.

7th July

Our priority was to be on a pontoon well in time to be ashore at 5pm local time to see England vs Sweden. Sivota on Levkas was our destination. Normally harbours are quiet on Saturdays but this was a flotilla bade so there wasn't much room spare. We did manage to get on a pontoon. After lunch there was a bit of argy bargy as a boat dragged its anchor and ended up stranded off our bow. Once that was sorted it was time to go and watch the match. Great result.

6th July

Another day another island. Today was Fiskadho on Cephalonia. This has a reputation for being really busy. We arrived early. The town quay was small and full but we were happy to anchor opposite and take a line to the shore. We had time to have a walk, a swim and a meal on board before Simon and I rowed to the village to watch Belgium beat Brazil.

5th July

Today we headed further south. We were aiming for Cephalonia but we had a good breeze taking us to Ithaca so we went there. That's Sailing. We ended up in Kioni, a delightful little hamlet. There was space on the quay so we barfed our way in. All afternoon more boats kept arriving and, somehow, often with imaginative mooring techniques, everyone found a place in the bay. Lucinda and I had a walk before supper which was taken at a taverna on the quayside.

5th July

Today we headed further south. We were aiming for Cephalonia but we had a good breeze taking us to Ithaca so we went there. That's Sailing. We ended up in Kioni, a delightful little hamlet. There was space on the quay so we barfed our way in. All afternoon more boats kept arriving and, somehow, often with imaginative mooring techniques, everyone found a place in the bay.

4th July

With Simon on board as well as an England win in the World Cup we headed south to Levkas. We had to wait for the floating bridge to open before entering the Levkas channel. Passing Levkas Marina I saw another BB385 called Footloose. There aren't many around so I stopped to say hello. Once through the channel we had a following breeze and we sailed down to Vathi in Meganisi where we found space on the town quay.

Sent from my iPhone

3rd July

The views from the castle above the town were stunning. It was then time to up anchor and motor back to Preveza. Cleopatra Marina told us to wait for our berth so we went across to the town quay on the other side of the channel. Here we were able to get the shopping done. Cleopatra was ready for us in the early afternoon. Once ashore we met up once again with H&C who were waiting to fly back to Germany. Simon Lyon flew in from Athens to be with us for the next 10 days. After supper we settled down to watch the England game. A win on penalties!

2nd July

We motored south on a glassy sea. By the time we reached Preveza there was a light breeze to waft us along as we turned east into the Gulf of Amvrakia and made for Vonitsa for the night. Being on a quay meant I could watch some footie including an exciting Japan Belgium match. I felt sorry for the Japanese.

1st July

Sophie's birthday. Our first cloudless day for some time. After breakfast we motored 2.5 miles back north to investigate a small river. We eased into the entrance but a short way in we met an irate man in a tourist boat telling us to go back. We did rather fill the channel so we turned round and retreated to last night's wonderful anchorage.

30th June

Today we entered new territory. We anchored in Two Rock Bay. For once we had a lovely downwind sail in about 20 knts. The anchorage is delightful and sheltered from the white horses outside. There is a small beach but no bars or taverns. We are sharing the bay with a few other boats and some people under umbrellas on the beach.

30th June

I rowed to the lovely sandy beach and from there walked to a small burger van on the cliff above. I was just in time to watch the last 15 minutes of France Argentina on a TV that had been set up outside.