After a month-long stop in Kalamata for work, we were eager to get back in the water and keep exploring the Peloponnese. And this time, we had company.
Three friends from Austria joined us for a couple of weeks! It was so great having them onboard, sharing adventures and catching up after a long time of not seeing each other.
Now it was time to explore the west part of the Peloponnese. We loved it a lot too, but it's so different to the East side!
East is green, unspoiled, unique, empty.
West is full of history, castles, remaining from different cultures, big bays to anchor.
We are so happy to have discovered both, enjoying every stop, taking it slow, and partially sharing it with friends.
Our first stop was Koroni, which we had already been to, before arriving at Kalamata. It was nice coming back again, and spending the night at anchor, visiting the castle and indulging ourselves with a nice dinner.
Methoni and its fortress
After stopping in Koroni for the night, we sailed to Methoni to visit the castle. The "twin" castles of Methoni and Koroni were known as "The Eyes of the Serene Republic", and they are both worth a visit.
We anchored at the bay and after a very nice swim and playing in the water, we took the dinghy out and went to town. Just too late to get into the castle, which was just closing. So we had a nice walk and a drink but we had to wait until the morning to visit it.
The next morning it was hot but the visit was worth it. It's big and the ruins of all the different buildings, including the spectacular Turkish Tower, transport you to another time and make you travel with the imagination.
Thinking about both Methoni and Koroni, we can't decide which one we liked more if we had to recommend only one. Both are nice anchorages in front of the town, amazing castles very different to each other, and welcoming towns with enough shops and restaurants.
Probably we would say Methoni nicer anchorage, Koroni nicer town, both castles worth it!
Sapientza: an uninhabited island and a lighthouse
After so much history, we wanted to get lost offgrid for a couple of days.
The uninhabited island of Sapientza it's only a couple of nautical miles away from Methoni so it sounded perfect for it.
Although the water wasn't very clear and the rests of the old fish farms can be annoying, it was perfect to chill out, swim, paddle, do yoga on the beach, teach the girls how to drive the dinghy, barbecue, watch shooting stars and make a night deck cinema session.
We also went for a sunset hike to the lighthouse. We packed some drinks and snacks, and hiked along the island just on time to see the sunset on the top. The lighthouse is beautiful and we could even explore inside it.
We both have this thing about lighthouses, we always say that we would love to live in one... well, living in this one would be amazing!
We do enjoy visiting towns, castles and tourist spots, but we definitely prefer secluded places, nature and silence, and we enjoyed our couple of days here. Can you see Ambrym in the picture from the top?
Pylos, Navarino bay and perfect views
We continued sailing northwest around the Peloponnese, stopping in Pylos harbour for a night, because we needed water and a supermarket stop. It was nice getting supplies, ice cream, gyros, visiting the castle... but the town has nothing special, so we soon moved again and anchored at the big bay of Navarino.
We liked this place much better: going for a swim, enjoying the last sunset at anchor for part of the crew, drinking wine and having a very nice barbecue.
We enjoyed and relaxed, and one of the highlights was the hike to Voidokilia beach through the old castle ruins.
We started early morning, taking the dinghy to Navarino beach, after having a closer look at the shallow strait in front of Sphaktiria island - it's so shallow that you can almost walk to the island!
From the beach, the path goes up to the old Navarino Castle, where the ruins, as well as the views, are awesome: the Navarino and Voidokilia bays, the lagoon, our anchorage, Pylos town...
A quick rest and hundreds of pictures later, we started our way down to the perfect "omega-shaped" beach - Voidokilia beach. At this side, the path is much steeper and soon we got to Nestor's Cave, with a refreshing breeze and stunning views.
Finally, we made it to the beach: those turquoise waters were calling!!! Swimming, relaxing and having a snack before heading back to the boat.
We didn't hike all the way up again, a nice flat path along the lagoon took us in about 20 minutes back to the start. What a nice hike!
Kyparissia: our last stop in the Peloponnese
To be honest we don't have much to say about Kyparissia. It is a protected harbour, and it was a nice spot to spend the last night in the Peloponnese, saying goodbye to our friends and having dinner onboard with beautiful views of the town, the castle and the mountains.
Probably we were expecting something more: turtles on the harbour, many say - we saw them only in the distance. It is a big enough town with many shops and restaurants, but far from the water, not so nice as other ones we have visited.
In any case, a good stop for us, to say goodbye to our friends, as well as to the Peloponnese.
Goodbye Peloponnese
Now is time for us to move towards the Ionian islands.
Peloponnese was, as we have said before, a huge and wonderful surprise for us. So green and unspoiled. So full of history. So slow. So different from the islands full of charter boats. Where we have made friends and felt at home even being continuously on the move.
It's also where we have really learnt to 100% appreciate this adventure of ours, this boatlife, and all that it involves. Learnt to adjust to the slow life and appreciate every moment.
Thank you, Peloponnese!
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