At the beginning of the year 2020 we delved into boat projects aboard our sailboat Aina. At that point nobody knew that the world was about to turn upside down. Greece went into total lockdown in March, but we just kept on working. Read more about our time during the spring lockdown in Messolonghi!

At the end of May, we were released and finally headed out of the Messolonghi lagoon. We meant to make a boatyard pit stop of a few weeks before starting our sailing season, but our boat had a bigger surprise in store for us. We ended up spending two months on the hard!

Fortunately, we did eventually get back in the water, and despite a fairly modest number of nautical miles logged this season, we got to visit many wonderful places. Greece is so full of things to see! There was plenty of excitement, too, provided by the medicane Ianos, plus a few thunderstorms that passed through our anchorages.

In October it was still nice and warm to continue sailing, and we ended up in the Bay of Corinth – and stayed, as another lockdown stopped us here, in Galaxidi, in November. Christmas and New Year have been very quiet around here, to say the least. There’s no use making predictions for 2021 – just like we have done all along our journey, we’ll take it one day at a time!

The crew of s/y Aina wishes everyone a very Happy New Year 2021! Stay safe, and hold fast!

Last, but not least, traditional assorted bits and pieces of season 2020 statistics:

We left our winter base, Messolonghi, on May 30th 2020. The season ended abruptly on the 7th of November.

450 nautical miles travelled

Not one single night on passage
56 nights at a boatyard
80 nights at anchor
18 nights in marina or town quay
25 ports or anchorages
2 lockdowns
6 coats of epoxy on the boat’s bottom
2 coats of antifouling
10 new thru hulls and
50 metres of new hose installed in the boat
Warmest swimming water: 30.4°C, Nidri, Lefkas
Best anchorage: Two Rock Bay
Most beautiful town: Parga
Most handsome castle: Corfu
Most interesting island: Paxos
Best sailing passage: Lefkas to Vonitsa
Most exciting moment: waiting for medicane Ianos in Preveza
Most memorable moment: spending time with our new Finnish friends in Vonitsa (the only people we met from the homeland all year!)
Best bread: home baked Finnish rye bread from Aina’s galley
Best mousaka: The Barrel (Nidri, Lefkas)
Best pasta carbonara: The Office (Vlicho, Lefkas)
Best pizza: still haven’t come across better than Al Ponte in Gdansk, Poland, but Carnayo Café’s “Diavolo” was almost as good (Mongonissi, Paxos)

• Leisurely sailing year 2022
December 31, 2022
• Ionian to Aegean – s/y Aina’s year 2021 in Greece
December 31, 2021
• Bits and Pieces of Summer 2022
October 14, 2022