Ep74 | The most expensive and iconic sail in the world?

[@lavagnolli]

My God. $300 euros to cross the canal? Outrageous.

[@tabbycowley5825]

we missed you on Meganissi, it is one of our favourite Islands. Safe travels. x

[@JayPerrypersonal]

Enjoy Meganisi, our favourite place, we wintered there last year. Love Port Atherinos and Little Vathi

[@calmauric8218]

Fair isle is such a pretty yacht. Beautiful wood work and elegant lines

[@stephenchapman8344]

You two love your hills ! 😂

[@larssolem2507]

Thanks for taking me on your lovely sailing through the lovely Greek arcipelagoes.

[@toddpruitt6643]

Amazing video...thanks for sharing.

[@robertw.1499]

You guys really need to write a sailors guide to cruising the Med and Adriatic etc. All that experience, so many tips and tricks with insider info, would be a best seller 👍

[@jonathanairey9123]

Heikell has done that. Thoroughly. No doubt Steve has read them all. His guides are virtually the bible for yachties in the Med.

[@svfairisle]

@@jonathanairey9123 Yes we have some friends in Nidri that hang out with Rod, he still spend a lot of time there.

[@jonathanairey9123]

@@svfairisle Thanks Steve. Interesting. I will keep a look out. We are there 2 or 3 times a year - at the Chandlers usually. Its quite a good one, and very accessible.

[@sailingsaporedimare2878]

You are the best!❤

[@keirynmoffitt4027]

The Ionian and Abelike, simply beautiful!

[@tomwhelan9872]

So glad to see you've broken the no fish curse. You won't know what to do with all the fish you catch now. Love your vids. Get to live vicariously through you. Thanks for sharing.

[@PatFleck]

That must have been the unluckiest fish in the sea! :)

[@Heretic10001]

That was a really fun video. Really nice editing, especially the canal and the bike trip around the island. Really enjoyed it. Thanks!

[@judykinsman3258]

Great video!

[@grandsoleil56]

If you use an agent you don't need to stop, but there's something nice about stopping anyway

[@avidviewer1]

Lovely sailing (sorry about the shredding) and beautiful scenery, but everything paled into insignificance with the catching of the fish. At. Long. Last. 😂

[@allmomomosthomebus3895]

Steve, big congratulations on the fish! Persistence pays off. When you're in Annapolis talk to One Life Sailing about their fishing techniques, assuming the fishing in the Med is similar. Gary and Brooke catch more awesome fish than any other sailing channel I watch... And I watch a lot of them!

[@JJ-sq9sy]

Thank you for another excellent video. Judy's summary of motor-biking in Greece brought back happy memories of touring Corfu and Kefalonia on a Scooter before we were wed, making use of Wifey's longer legs acting as "undercarriage" when coming to a halt, usually to ask very friendly locals for directions.

[@marceloromanplanzo7144]

Hermosos lugares, saludos desde Montevideo Uruguay 🇺🇾

[@svfairisle]

Bueno, gracias. Nosotros también esperamos venir algún día al hermoso Uruguay.

[@marceloromanplanzo7144]

Bienvenidos !! Averigüen bien por puertos y amarres puerto punta del Este o piriapolis .yo no conozco mucho del tema pero es diferente a otros países ,la burocracia y el la documentación de la estadía es diferente, el de #sal es un navegante brasilero estuvo este año y el les puede contar deberían preguntarle por si algún día vienen .en Montevideo tienen 1 amigo seguramente más de 1 pero yo estoy a las órdenes saludos 🤗

[@davidclarke7728]

Brings back fond memories for us , our first of three Greek charters in 1997 picked up in Poros to sail the saronic and argolic gulf , loved it

[@garyfroeschner2523]

good stuff

[@jonathanairey9123]

Ha. Missed you again!!. Last October we were Kalamata/Koroni to Monemvasia, but about 2 weeks behind you. Thanks for the tips at the time. And Right now you are in or just off Gaios, and we will be on our yacht there next week, then heading up to Corfu, and back to Nidri via Vonitsa (2nd time), and ofcourse one of the Meganisi bays. From Abelaki, we always walk over to Stavros' in 'little' Vathy. Love the channel. Love the off yacht tours. Love (and learn from) the sailing and tech stuff.

[@eerotarik2567]

Haha we see the fish! Well done.

[@bill8784]

My wife sends her congrats on your first fish. She was extremely impressed. Fascinating seeing you go through the canal too. Never been through it but crossed it on the Patras Athens train 40 odd years ago. Greece is so beautiful. Good luck on your next leg.

[@lizflorom6021]

Fabulous photography omg stunning!!!

[@MG1949]

I went through the Corinth Canal in 1957 on an Italian ship, it’s still very clear in my memory, it felt as if you could reach out and tough the walls, amazing!

[@rolanddunk5054]

Hello to you both,I have just watched your latest video,it was as usual very informative and entertaining. Steve sounded quite winded, but he made it,I wouldn’t have,so thank you very much for sharing your trip.As a retired seaman living near the once (not so much now)very busy River Humber,the wife and i often go to see what shipping there is,and occasionally there is a yacht making painfully slow progress down the river…but on occasions they get the wind and tide in their favour,and as Meatloaf would have said…they are off like a bat out of hell,lovely to see.Cheers Roly🇬🇧.

[@maritimetees2315]

Loved it. Thank you

[@123boat]

Lovely video Steve and Judy 😁 My god you even ran over a fish 🐟😳

[@marknash8818]

Corinth Canal been on my bucket list for a while… so envious! Glad you already have replacement sails organised 👍🏻

[@markrushton4631]

congratulations on your FIRST fish, amazing with all the miles you have done, only one😄😃It's a start.

[@oscarschmitt216]

Kia ora, thank you sooo much for this wonderful video. PERFECT !!! I wish you, that your Dream will never end. cheers Siegmar

[@peterhaymaker7562]

Yet again a brilliant video; loved it. Several bits brought back happy memories. Thank you to you both. P.

[@GoneSailingCA]

Nice sail, wow it’s hot there!

[@lkmb1717]

Love you guys, enjoy and thanks for sharing!!!

[@terriagnew7416]

It was lovely meeting you both in Spartahori. Lovely pictures of Ocean Waves too. Have a safe winter. Terri and Alan

[@svfairisle]

Yes likewise, all the best to you both.

[@johnenglert3105]

What fun - you both are so fortunate!

[@returner323617]

Thanks Guys, another interesting episode. Loved the passage through the Corinth Canal; yes, that's on my bucket list also, although with the likes of sailing into the Grand Harbour at Valletta. Was excited to see you in Meganissi; we'll be there in exactly 2 weeks for our late summer charter, and looking to explore more of Ithaca and Cephalonia...hope you enjoy your passage through to Corfu and beyond.

[@svfairisle]

Yes we’re not leaving the Med. before we sail into Valletta. Enjoy your sail in the Ionian you’ve chosen the best time to go, but I’m sure you know that!

[@returner323617]

@@svfairisle Yes, hoping for the perfect combination of warm (but not hot) days and water temperature at its best. BTW, what's the current state of anchorages in the Ionian...not too busy now that the summer rush has passed..?

[@svfairisle]

@@returner323617 Yes that’s the best bit. The Ionian is just too busy in July & August now to feel relaxed in terms of finding good anchorages I think. It drops off sharply after the first week in Sept though, we saw the numbers fall this week and think by the end of Sept it will be perfect, not too many boats but tavernas still open. Hope the weather stays good for you, it’s still a little too warm in the middle of the day for me right now.

[@returner323617]

Thanks for the insight..!

[@mememe5231]

Awesome scenery! Thank you for sharing

[@iorixII]

Excellent video! Thank you!!

[@melvynparkerson9984]

I have sailed through the Corinth Canal and back again on a trip from a cruise ship, incredible engineering and experience., would have been great to do it on a smaller cruise ship nearly touching the sides.

[@richardayres2949]

Great video guys. A lovely variety of stories.

[@louisgreen6396]

Once again fantastic

[@SailingAquamarine]

Always wanted to sail the Corinth Canal, guess I won't manage it in my boat given the 90 day European restriction :(

[@briangalbraith4565]

Fantastic film (as usual) tell me is that a mavic air2 if so do you have the link for the "grab handle". You two have a great life of it we are all sooo jealous 😀

[@svfairisle]

Yes it is... www.amazon.co.uk/Hensych-Release-Handheld-Stabilizer-Landing/dp/B089PXV4KQ/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=30BC546RWV9IX&keywords=handle+mavic+air+2&qid=1663701994&sprefix=handle+mavic+air+2%2Caps%2C162&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1

[@briangalbraith4565]

Great will get that ordered it's difficult at times to hand catch especially if sea is a bit rough. Thanks for quick reply. Hope you have a great time in your winter berth looking forward to next episode. Cheers Brian

[@leeturnbull2759]

We transited from Rhodes to Lefkas 29th August to Sept 6th transited the Corinth Canal on Saturday 4th Sept. Heading back to Lefkas for the transit to Porto Montenegro on 23rd Sept…….hope to see you there ! S/Y Trueblue

[@judyaslett6209]

We are in PM right now. Wonderful

[@jayschafer5385]

Have you considered a passage to Monemvasia? A world Heritage walled-city that is just a wonderful visit.

[@svfairisle]

Yes we went around the capes on the way to Turkey last year and went to Monemvasia, we showed it in one of the episodes

[@keithh3463]

Looking threw you videos I thought you did an exterior teak varnishing. If you did what episode. Need to do ours and wanted suggestions. I just have hand rails and a bit of trim no teak deck. Love your videos!

[@svfairisle]

I did a tech video, I think it was call Winter jobs that went through it but I’ve done lots of snippets in episodes too. It’s a ploy to make you watch lots!1

[@keithh3463]

@@svfairisle I have watched a lot of them more than once. Thanks

[@stephenpfeil3639]

Hi , you’ve probably mentioned it before. What is the navigation app you are using on the ipad? Great shots of the canal and towards the end how fragile the walls are with the numerous “bolts” holding it together. S

[@svfairisle]

I use Navionics mostly although I do use Savvy Navvy as well, usually as a back-up / alternative chart (some places one is more accurate than others so comparing is good) I actually made a video comparing the to called Savvy Navvy v Navionics. Ditch those charts? Have a look if your interested in that.

[@Damian-jy9gs]

Just saw you leaving Preveza … as we were coming in … guess your heading North ..

[@svfairisle]

Yes, just docked n Montenegro

[@darrylmcleman6456]

Does Britan get rain??I am on or near the 49th parallel of lat. as is some of G.B.and it rains occasionally here too.CHEERS from Canadian Wetcoast!

[@razisn]

Nice video, one of the best Corinth canal crossing videos I’ve watched.. Gulf of Corinth is seldom NOT breezy due to catabatic winds because of the geography of the mainlands either way. You should have expected it, caught not having done your homework I’m afraid, lol. Btw the prevailing wind in the Ionian during the summer is the NW Maistro wind which usually picks up in the early afternoon and calms at sunset.

[@Outrageousconduct]

I'd be writing a cookbook ,and how's the internet system working ? Great video !!!

[@svfairisle]

I'm not that happy with the digital yachts system to be honest. The hardware is good and when set up it works really well, but the software has been flaky as hell. Oh and not all the hardware is good, the stupid design of having the sim card inaccessible in a box is compounded by the fact the eject button doesn't work properly!

[@Outrageousconduct]

@@svfairisle I saw that in your tech video ,you we're saying you were gonna try to modify it ,just to hard to try it ? No space ?

[@svfairisle]

I've modified the box so I dont have to unscrew the whole thing every time I want to change a card, but havent go around to redesigning the whole thing so you can get the card in and out easily. They've recently changed their software, which is slightly better than the old version, but even that was a trial, it required two complete updates of firmware & the second one didn't work properly so i had to contact them. Turned out the new firmware wasn't compatible with macs. They've fixed it now.

[@paulnicholls2921]

Great film as usual guys, I hope the Bonito was worth the wait. A couple of questions. The handle on the drone you used in the film, did you buy it or did you build it? And off topic a bit, where did you order your ePropulsion from? It would appear there is only one dealer here in Spain.

[@svfairisle]

Hi Paul, I got the handle from Amazon in the UK, it's just a 3D printer thing, if you search the model of the drone on Amazon you should find people selling them. Yes I noticed that eprop dont have many dealers around the Med. loads in Northern Europe though. We actually had ours sent direct from China as it was the new 'Evo' model that none of the dealer had in stock yet, took about 2 weeks to arrive in Venice, then got held up by customs for a month for no reason whatsoever!

[@paulnicholls2921]

Thanks for the reply Steve. I’ve seen similar drone handles made up using broom handles and plywood, but they are probably a bit heavy. Did you have to disable any sensors on the drone to enable you to fly it close enough to be caught? We currently have a Torqeedo that is rotting away before my eyes. I’m hoping to give it back and get a refund but it’s looking highly unlikely at the moment. The factory won’t talk to me or the dealership at the moment.

[@svfairisle]

@@paulnicholls2921 The handle we have a slim enough to be clamped on behind the downward sensor and not impede it. If it’s positioned wrongly I do get a warning that the sensor is blocked, the drone still flys but without the sensors controlling flight.Not a problem for me as I always disable the sensors anyway otherwise the drone will be difficult to get near enough to be caught while sailing. I do usually position the handle properly so I can fly with sensors on and then disable them just for landing. I didn’t know the Torqeedos have a galvanic problem, I’m assuming that’s what you have? If you can get a refund I would recommend switching to ePropulsion, very happy with ours.

[@paulnicholls2921]

Thanks again Steve, I’ve yet to look into the handle as we have been immersed in the Roman festival in Cartagena, and most of the airspace here is restricted anyway. Yes we have a Torqeedo and to be fair it’s been great to use. But the corrosion is so bad I will not put it in the water now as I fear the prop shaft seal has been compromised. If I can get someone to respond to me and get the option I will definitely push for a refund and go for an ePropulsion motor. Interestingly, Torqeedo have just introduced a rather pathetic anode onto their list of accessories for the princely sim of €50, whereas as you are obviously aware the ePropulsion lump comes with 4 fitted from new. I, perhaps naively, assumed that since the Torqeedo had none fitted that they had done enough isolating that none were needed.

[@svfairisle]

@@paulnicholls2921 Is this the direct drive Torqeedo you have? From what I can tell Torqeedo rushed their newer non gearbox version out to compete with eProps direct drive outboards. The earlier Torqeedos made a horrible whining noise so they knew they would loose business when the competition came up with a properly quiet motor so they had to get theirs out quick

[@gerhardvanwaltsleben8944]

Lekker man lekker 🇿🇦

[@chuckduzzie8529]

Steve… 👏👏👏👏

[@hellkell8693]

You do go to some really neat places. I have a beautiful wooden gaffed schooner in northern France I want to sail the Med like you but I’m told by the previous owner it’s a trade wind boat (better downwind sailer) and not good for the Med. He said it would be a lot of motoring. I’m wondering if it’s worth it to go there before I bring it across the Atlantic.

[@svfairisle]

I would yes. It’s not trade wind sailing that’s true, but if your careful you can sail the majority of the time. We’ve managed this season only refuelling once and we’ve covered a lot of miles, but to be fare we’ve been lucky with the wind this year.

[@svcyclops]

The forestay looked very loose as there was lots of curvature on the reefed Genoa. Is that typical?

[@svfairisle]

It’s slightly loose, probably about 2 inches too much deflection in the middle, but I could actually get good sail shape with our old sail like that. I’m waiting until we get the new Yankee on to tweak it & get everything right.

[@chrisyarnold6205]

Never really noticed your foresail setup before, so as it is yankee up front, is your staysail a genoa, and if so is it 100% or less and self tacking or 100 + and needs furling to tack? I suppose either way yankee is cheaper sail to replace or fix. Just used to seeing cutters with smaller sail on inner forstay. Congrats on breaking the fish jinx as well, I think reflects more on Med than your skills.

[@svfairisle]

No it’s a true cutter so all fore sails under 100% The mast is further back on a cutter so the fore triangle area is large

[@chrisyarnold6205]

@@svfairisle Ok, so you're saying there's a difference between a cutter, and cutter rigged, I think. I'll have to pay more attention.

[@svfairisle]

Yes a true cutter is designed with the mast further back than an equivalent sloop. This is one of the reasons I like them for short handed sailing. Smaller main that you can hoist quickly, split foresails that are easier to grind than a large genoa. You see a lot of sloops that re-rig as a cutter, they get some of the benefits but it’s not ideal. You even get some Ketch’s that call themselves a ‘cutter rigged ketch’ well that’s just silly!

[@massimobernardi2676]

Hello boys, if you pass by the Ionian Sea and in particular from the port of Crotone give me a whistle so I will bring you some gifts! I always follow you!

[@MaShcode]

Now that you’ve finally caught that first one and the drought ended are you feeling lucky? 😆

[@svfairisle]

I've cleared the freezer ready for the influx!

[@ThatSandersboy]

Are we eating baits now? #bonito

[@williambell8282]

How are you dealing with the 90 days in 180 rule? Bill

[@razisn]

By going to Montenegro I suppose…

[@svfairisle]

It’s not too difficult in the Eastern Med with enough places to escape to, it’s not quite so easy in the West though!

[@geniexmay562]

😀👍

[@thomasthornton5737]

😀👍👍👍❤