Suez canal - Part one

I know that I can't describe today. Absolutely amazing experience. I thought it would be good, and I think I've been lucky enough to have seen a few things, but the trip through the northern half of the canal was something else. A truly stunning experience and one that will remain with me for a while.

Colossal container ships glide by local fishermen living hand to mouth on what they catch in the canal. The military history is marked in places and the ongoing tension visible in the countless army bridging units along the western bank (the eastern Sinai bank in a de-militerised zone). The scale of the ships combined with the colours and natural light make the place really stunning.

We're holed up for the night in the art deco styled Ismailia yacht club, nestled among ship yards and scrap dealers. Apparently the army are doing a bridging exercise, so we can't go further till tomorrow. If there are no military ships going northbound we'll leave at 0500 tomorrow. If there are military ships we'll leave at 0800 when they've past (fast maneuverable boats are not allowed into the canal when military ships are transiting for security reasons).

Afternoon in Port Said

We took the ferry to Port Said for the afternoon. The boat is actually parked in Port Fouad, on the eastern bank of the canal. The town of Port Said is on the western bank. Port Fouad is industrial and residential, and exceptionally basic. There are 5 car ferries about 100m down the jetty from our boat. They are free and run back and fore non-stop. With enough jobs done it was time for a bit of R&R in the bright lights of Port Said. The Lonely Planet guide didn't seem to have much in the way of suggestions but it had to be better than Port Fouad.... Although we had a great afternoon out, I can see the problem that the guide book author had. We hope to be out of here tomorrow morning, inshallah...

Nasty feet

No joy getting out today. I think the agent is doing his best but it's impossible to tell. Nothing more we can do - I've brought as much pressure to bear as I feel is reasonable. A good rest was well needed and we've done a bit more tidying up on the boat. I was dead on my feet yesterday and really struggling to help with the refuel, rewiring the shore power lead for the egyptian sockets, clearing the cooking gas blockage and fixing the blocked sea water drain at the back of the boat. When I finally crashed out I couldn't sleep because my feet were itching furiously. It was only at about midnight that I figured out it was from the diesel fuel spill that I had been walking in after the refuel. I had been too tired to shower last night - I won't make the same mistake again!

Sandra & Craig

Boat Trip Blog Craig & Sandra Catching Up

Apologies for not contributing earlier but the Lawsons tasking has been relentless!

Day One 
Arrived under the cover of darkness on early Tuesday morning in a James Bondesque night infiltration out to the mooring buoy on the tender and our first glimpse of the Good Lady  Athina was one of total WOW!

After a well deserved beer with Johnny and a few hours sleep and the formalities of crew check listings and Visa checks we were on our way oh and after a blast around the harbour scaring the locals in the ridiculously overpowered tender! ( didn't feel the need to tell Johnny,as he was willing me to cane it, that it was my first time I'd been let loose in a rib. But I drove it like I'd stolen it so he was happy) 

As we departed Julie and Johnny were looking like a couple of old pros at this seamanship caper as Sandra and I improvised and muddled in.

Wasn't long before Johnny and I were knocking off some of the small jobs during my ships orientation that had been left by the former owner and Gordy had given me my Diesel engine conversion  course so that I was feeling satisfied we had justified our selection to this honoured crew and contributed a little.

 Progress was good and before you could say "Hands to Action Stations" we were approaching Marmaris.

Johnny called a photo shoot and Gordy and I were despatched in the rib. As johnny rallied some  lazy 'S' maneuvers out of Athina Gordy and I paralleled and the ran fwd and aft to get the money shot. I had spotted an oncoming motor yacht but as i yelled to Gordy "Wake--Standby" alas all too late if found myself Airborne with the venerable T.P. Himself for what felt like forever and then was subsequently soaked on my less than elegant landing.needless to say all aboard Athina were in raptures of giggles. Beautiful! 

Anyway Marmaris was a great for our first night down route and after a beaut meal a much needed Kip was required. 

Transit from Marmaris to Fenike was great as Johnny , Gordy and myself got to grip with all the features of the last owners and I dare say previous had embodied but we successfully overcame all hurdles.

The swim at the beautiful cove was much needed and great to consolidate Sandras water entry techniques and she was as graceful as a mermaid. Really brought home the freedom you have on the boat in just hauling in and dropping anchor and relaxing. Bacon butties devoured we were on our way again.

Fenike was a sleepy little place and the customs official suggested a restaurant that was clearly ran by his family or on a profit sharing scam but it was much needed if a little Fawlty Towers-escue.

0600 saw us up and a little bleary and off to Pathos.

Great adventure so far and a huge near vertical learning curve into all things marine. Beauty.

Port Said

The day has followed expectation. Lots of bureaucracy, 1300 litres of fuel arriving in 70 litre leaking drums to be individually siphoned into our tanks, and facilities that are best described as basic. It looks unlikely that we'll be allowed to go tomorrow, and we'll be held up for the following day too if there's any military activity. Nothing to do but sit on our hands and clean up the boat after last night's 18 hour leg. Current strategy is to get all process finished, complete the refuel then pay the agent. If we can make it clear that he's had all he's getting from this cash cow, hopefully he'll organise us a slot and we can get on our way – maybe I shouldn't be so cynical...

Overnight to Egypt

The fuel plan into Paphos didn't work. We were expecting to top up with about 750 litres but actually put in 1020, giving us a burn rate of 7.2 litres to the mile. If that calculation was correct we'd be seriously tight to make Port Said. Long silences and difficult conversations. As the night rolled on my attention was unsurprisingly focussed on the fuel gauges. By the time I came onto my 0100 shift, we were committed so there was no point worrying any more; we were either going to make it or have an embarrassing diplomatic incident drifting in the approaches to the canal amongst the towering container ships. The throttles were balanced meticulously.

The night was surprisingly quiet; a couple of ships, a thunderstorm about 100 miles off to the left, occasional mist patches, and shooting stars (Sandra won with 9 seen on her shift). The weather got windier, the swell bigger and no-one slept for more than a few minutes. Gordy carried on his navigational calculations every hour without fail. By the time I arrived on my 07:00am shift I knew the fuel was going to work. Our final Paphos conclusion that we must have been filling to different 'full' levels was correct.

Port Said has been everything I expected and more. Scores of huge ships anchored offshore awaiting their clearance to enter the canal. We raised the agent on the VHF then the port authorities. It was going to be mandatory to take on a pilot. As we entered one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world there were trawlers everywhere, criss-crossing the entrance channel. There was plenty of scope for picking up their lines in the props in our little boat so it must be horrendous for the big ships. The town is a crowded bustling mix of old and shabby maritime industry and apartments. Almost a feel of Mumbai to the entrance; old imperial intermixed with dilapidated machinery and buildings. There are huge chain ferries crossing, people rowing along, a swimming club doing laps round the shipping buoys, and a gleaming cruise liner docked opposite the ship yard. The pilot boat is far more interested in baksheesh than anything else. After they've dropped off the pilot, he too is more interested in his tip than getting us tied up. I'm really glad I chose not to hand over the helm to him.

Paphos, Cyprus

Paphos was really disappointing after Chad's warm review. We arrived into a small fishing port that was jam packed with tourist boats (pirates day trip, glass bottomed boat, crocodile speedboat. etc.). The dockside was lined with tourist restaurants and no-one was interested in allocating a slot. After a quick circuit we anchored and dropped in the tender, which wouldn't start, so we rowed ashore. The port police weren't really interested but told us to move and tie up alongside another boat in a worse position, then the right hand engine wouldn't start! After an hour of tinkering the port police were suddenly really interested. When we rowed ashore again, the shift had changed and Sgt Very Keen was on duty with a raft of papers.

Dinner menu was chicken wings and pizza, rather than fish/kebab of the past few days in Greece & Turkey. The morning brought another raft of paperwork then Craig and Gordy settled into a rest day spent wrapped round the right engine, removing, fixing and refitting the errant starter motor. As soon as they finished we set off (about 16:00), showered hanging off the back at cruise speed and set to work on the roster for who would be up when (in pairs). Although the wind was only about 10kt, the swell was quite high and directly across track making for an uncomfortable crossing. As darkness arrived everyone was being very careful not to lose their footing in the rolling swell.