Crews Letter #2006 03
Not
Every Marina is What
We Want It to Be
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Transient sounds so negative.
Good
Morning Ladies and Gentlemen:
As
mentioned in the previous Crews Letter, we sat out a three
day storm at Olympic
Marina about 60 km (40 miles) southeast of Athens. At Loutra, we met a
family from Princeton, NJ
who now live in Athens. They keep their boat at Olympic
and it is only because of that connection we were able to get in. The captain, Michael, told us he would speak
to the office when he got there. Olympic
is filled with boats on annual contracts. They have no space and usually do not take
transients. When we hailed the marina
asking for a berth for three nights they asked our last port of call. Only after the reply, “Loutra
on Kythnos.” did they say, “The pilot boat will meet
you and show you a place.” Our guess is, the boat that normally docks in that place is still on the
hard for the winter.
We found similar problems getting a berth at Zea in Piraeus
just west of Athens. There is no fuel dock. There are several companies
that will bring fuel to your boat by tanker if you want enough. When Fred identified that he needed between
125 and 150 L, he was told, “Maybe tomorrow or the
next day, if we get a real order.”
Perception only holds 250 L and we seldom let her get below half full.
The other marina that we have used in the Athens
area is Kalimaki.
It is primarily for charter boats, three thousand of them. The toilettes and showers are filthy. Walking near them is to risk disease. A disco here takes off each night before midnight and breaks the sound barrier until
0530. Fred fears for structural damage
to Perception’s mast if we are ever again overnight in Kalimaki.
In these three
marinas, they cater to their clientele and transients are not it.
The advantages at Olympic are its proximity to the airport
and it is on the Aegean side of Athens. That’s the side we will be
cruising this season. They have a
fuel dock and it is reported to sell diesel in
quantities as little as 100 L. For
those of you in the states, diesel here is only $4.60 a gallon, about the same
as last year.
We will be at Olympic when Sara and
Lisa arrive for their cruise in mid May.
Steady, as she goes,
Phyl & Fred
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