Ionian Sea Passage; the conclusion

The Ionian Sea (Greek: Ιόνιο Πέλαγος), the Sea south of the Adriatic, is bound by Calabria and Sicily to the west, and the west coast of Greece to the east.  The deepest point in the Mediterranean Sea the Calypso deep (5,267 meters) is located in the Ionian Sea at 36°34′N 21°8′E. The Ionian Sea is one of the most seismically active regions in the world as three tectonic plates meet in the area between the islands Cephalonia, Ithaca and Zante.  The island of Cephalonia lies to the east of a fault where the African plate meets the European and the Aegean plates.  The major Ionian Islands are collectively known as the Seven Islands (Greek: Επτανησα) and belong to Greece.  Starting from the north are Kerkyra (Corfu), Paxi, Lefkada, Cephalonia, Ithaca, and Zakynthos (Zante) and Kythera.  I always considered the Ionian to be a small sea but this is not the case as the distance from Sicily to city of Patras in Peloponnese is 300 nautical miles.  The distance was approximately equal to our two longest previous passages in the Balearic and Tyrrhenian Seas. 

The crossing of the Ionian was arduous because we struggled with a storm and also we fought opposite winds to our destination.  The whistling in the stays is testimony of winds over 30 knots.  Because of opposite winds we elected to forgo Ithaca and continue towards the gulf and port of Patras in the northwest corner of Peloponnese. 

We were tired and elated when we landed in that city’s marina.  Because of the strenuous sailing during the three-day passage, none of us ate or drank even water.  When we tied at the dock tired and dehydrated, I felt like fainting so I had to lie on ground.   Luckily Alexandra my brother’s wife was there and offered me potato chips (salted) and a coke that brought me back to life! 

Ionian Sea Crossing

We sailed away from the Italian peninsula at dusk and soon after we could see the lights flickering on its shores a beautiful view but quite different from that of astronauts who were looking down on Sicily, Calabria and the expanse of the Ionian Sea from the International Space Station.

When we began the crossing of the Ionian the sea was calm but weather reports were advising mariners of strong northerly winds and high waves in the Adriatic and Ionian Seas.  Although I mostly functioned as the navigator, all of us participated in other duties as needed.   In the photograph I was ready for the night duty wearing foul weather gear, my life vest and was getting ready to tether myself on the life lines, so that the other two in the crew could sleep and be called only in the event more than one person was needed for duties such as to decrease canvas.

The next morning a well-rested Kostas was at the tiller.  It is obvious that the weather had changed during the night and the waves were building up.

Later by the afternoon of the same day, my brother and our most able captain, is at the tiller.  As in the previous photograph the waves continued to build up and the predicted bad weather reached its peak the night that followed.

After four days and nights of rough weather sailing we could see the mountains of the largest of the seven islands Cephalonia and the southernmost Zante.