Pserimos to Kos again, then onwards to the beautiful bay of Emporious, Kalymnos....eventually!5/4/2017 Pretty quiet night's sleep, still rolling a little. Woke to the sound of fishing boats diesel engines chugging across the bay. Kevin on waking noticed that our solar was not charging the batteries as it normally does, by daylight, the batteries generally receive their first few sunrays from our panels. Today they are not, the energy is coming from the panels, it is just not being sent to the needy batteries. This indicates that the controller is not functioning correctly, or that the batteries are already full, which they are clearly not at 11.8 volts instead of 13.5v! This could be a huge issue as the next few planned anchorages are small remote Islands, with no chance of power or shops/ mechanics or other assistance. We have breakfast while deliberating our options, coming to a unanimous decision to head back to the larger Island of Kos. Feeling deflated at the prospect of going essentially backwards instead of forwards, we hauled up the anchor and set off. There was no wind, on this occasion we actually were happy as the batteries still required some charging therefore the engine needed to be started. The two hour journey although disappointing, was reassuring, knowing that at least we hadn't travelled too far before our issue came to light, it would have been a long trek back from our next planned stops! The journey was uneventful, managed to open our sails for a short period but mainly travelled on the engine. The controller miraculously switched on again a short distance into our passage, however, our decision to head back was a good one. Once back in Kos harbour, the controller stopped again and refused to come back to life regardless of our coaxing. When secure to the harbour wall, we walked into town collecting a gyros on the way. Our internet search found a solar shop somewhere on the Island, we thought we should check out an electrical shop first. None of the local shops dealt with solar, however we luckily met up with a couple in a yacht near us. They suggested a great little shop near the marina, just as well we like walking and were wearing descent shoes! Eventually we came to the shop opposite the marina. The owner knew exactly what we wanted, just didn't have one in stock, he did offer to order one from Athens......Which would be brilliant but will take time and lots of hanging around for us. On that note he told us to return after Siesta time, 6pm when he should have sorted something out. We left there feeling a little bit hopeful, to return a few hours later. Walked back into town had a beer, worried about the hundreds of euros that our purchase could cost. At 18.00hrs we strolled trying to look confident into this packed electricians haven. The helpful man would be back in a few minutes, "could we wait please", as if we had anything else to do. Minutes later this controller arrived wrapped in plastic, looking a bit expensive but all the same, our excitement grew. He explained that his friend had this new one which had a little sun damage to the outer cover, and it looked very unused, €100, we snapped his offer from his hands, it may turn out to be a cheap make/ model, but if it works...... Having handed over our precious pennies, we raced out back towards Kejstral, the sun was slowly dropping therefore we would need to rush. We wouldn't know whether it works unless the sun was detected by the meter. Racing back past leisurely walkers and cyclists avoiding the ambling walkers and children on their tricycles, we hurried to catch those last diminishing rays. With seconds to spare, Kevin managed to unscrew the cabling and attach the controller temporarily and yes lights appeared, where they had been missing only moments before. Success, and a very speedy one, we had had visions of staying in Kos for a few nights waiting for a shiny new package, but the electrical shop helped us enormously, an added bonus was, when we looked up the make and model, it was a recent make, costing $300 ! Very happy. This called for tea on board then a celebratory beer in town. Chilly breeze replaced the warm April sun, coats wrapped around us as we walked briskly to the bar which served us well on a previous visit. What a day, but a successful one too. To bed in the hope of waking to a working solar system. Tomorrow onwards, only this time we should not return to Kos. Well our solar is working, so far! Therefore, a quick breakfast, wash up and get going. By 09.00 we were heading out of the harbour to that big open sea. With yet again very little sign of wind, our motor was carrying us onwards. A few ferries to play dodgems with, trying to guess which direction they are heading is always tricky. From a distance we can judge whether there will be an issue, if we think we are heading towards one another, there is usually a standoff until one of us makes that decision to alter course. One this occasion the ferry heading straight for us, had limited movement due to the sea depth, we took a different heading, he also was carrying gas, a very good reason for avoiding him! Few other boats graced us with their presence, unless of course you count the numerous fishing vessels on the horizon or tucked into tiny coves. The wind gradually moved from our now onto our port side but with only 8 knots of breeze, we couldn't quite turn off the engine. We headed west past Pserimos then took a bearing north as we rounded the southern edge of Kalymnos. A cool breeze kept us wrapped in our jumpers, when in a sheltered spot, the sun hit us fiercely, seeing us strip from our layers of protection and warmth. A rolling swell tipped us from side to side with a swaying motion lulling us into a sleepy state. The Island of Kalymnos is quite large in comparison to Pserimos, yet smaller than Kos. Goats perch high on the steepest ledges and most vulnerable rocks. They also graze from the foliage around the church yards, ambling past those pretty white stone buildings with blue painted roofs. As we steer past cliff faces, great caves have been worn into the massive solid walls like huge holes in cheese produced by the bubbles. A swell has developed from the west pushing us back, yet the light wind has improved to around 10-14 knots. We finally managed to maintain enough wind for our lazy sails to unwrap and embrace the force of nature. It was however, short lived, at least for our genoa. With the gusts now coming from our stern, we could open the main fully to drive us forward, this leaves the genoa redundant as the wind is stolen by the main, preventing our forward sail from experiencing even a puff! Taking a more northerly direction now, we curl around the west edge of Kalymnos through a channel with the Island of Telendos on our port side, Kalymnos on our starboard. It is a breathtaking scene, misty mountains reach high into the gathering plumes of cloud. Healthy bright green foliage covering the lower inhabited areas, show a stark contrast to the sandy towering cliff tops and crevices high above our heads. This area is used in the summer months for rock climbing, spotting these brightly dressed tiny bodies making their painstaking way towards the unseen peaks, now hidden by the low clouds is awesome. My feet prefer to be firmly placed on solid ground, or at least a deck way below those staggering heights. Emporious is a large well protected bay, set into a south facing curve in the landscape, with the prevailing northerly wind, it should give us a safe holding in the next day or so as the winds begin to strengthen and show gusts of 30 knots. (3 hours motor sailing) Ahead of us is a tiny unnamed Island, which in fact is the wind stopper for the bay we intend to anchor. Emporious is a very small village housing a few quaint restaurants and bars all of which do gorgeous meals at reasonable prices, they are situated in a very picturesque setting with those stunning mountains as an amazing backdrop. For the yachties there are around 15 good solid anchor buoys, giving that added security should the winds escalate and cause concern. We are aiming to catch hold of one, for the upcoming winds on our weather forecast look pretty gusty. I take the helm, turn us slowly into the oncoming wind which will act as a brake to slow us a little, but we should (should!) Just slip gently towards this huge orange obtsacle which Kevin has every intention of grappling with. He reaches out with the boathook and manages to grab hold of the ring at the upper end, he then pulls it towards him, allowing him to slip a sturdy rope through it ready to secure Kejstral for a perfect anchorage. With little difficulty, we both manage our tasks, me steering close enough, yet not ramming our intended target, and Kevin hooking the beast successfully. What a team! As we finish our task and ensure the ropes are secure, we hear an alarm sounding from the control panel below deck, assuming it will be the batteries, we inspect our equipment, only to find the panel displaying' high voltage' oh no, not again.... Memories of last year came flooding back rather abruptly. During our collection of Kejstral, we suffered a problem with the alternator, it was malfunctioning which led to an overcharging of the batteries, not a good issue. The outcome, a refurbished alternator having sat in a marina for two days while awaiting a mechanic, certainly not what we need now. Our thoughts are of needing to backtrack once again to Kos, which would be infuriating, common sense prevails, the new controller is regulating the power to our batteries, therefore, it must be the problem. Kevin searched for the assistance we required to indicate that the power will in fact elevate past the normal 14v, however as the power is distributed between the batteries, the charge will then cut out once the least charged battery, reaches its potential. For this procedure, the voltage may rise to perhaps 15v but this should be short lived, then the voltage will settle. Great, we have an answer, only problem is, Kejstrals own control panel does not tolerate this unusual behaviour, and we haven't worked out if there is a recalibration and alarm limitor. So each afternoon this will probably drive us mad until the sunrays disappear for the evening......Hmm not helpful. The swell still managed to creep into our secure mooring, meaning that we spent a lively night bobbing around and listening to the creaks and groans of our boat (at least the alarm had stopped!) We had tea onboard then settled to read/ write for the sunset. That breeze remained rather chilly, so by 20.00 hours we were snuggled below decks with our glass of wine, or two, till bedtime came up one us.
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April 2019
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