Back to Órmos Sikias

We could have lazed in the the beautiful surroundings of Órmos Dhimitriaki for a couple of days but there was a good wind forecast in the afternoon. Therefore we decided to leave Órmos Dhimitriaki at 1130 on 2 June and start to make our way south down the coastline.

Sithonía Forest   

Having sailed up the Ákti peninsula side of the gulf we chose to sail down it on the western side, along the Sithonía peninsula. The peninsula is very attractive covered by dense woodland, the Sithonía Forest, and it made a perfect scenic backdrop for our sail. There are several bays along the coastline and each seemed to have nice beach with an associated taverna (and a caravan site).

We had to tack our way south but it was very pleasant sailing. Our plan was to sail out of the Singitikós Gulf and into the western gulf of the Khalkidhiki peninsula, the Toronaíos Gulf. But, like all good sailing plans it could be updated if necessary. For a while it looked like the wind was backing which would have speeded up our passage and helped us around the corner but this turned out to be a temporary Mount Athos-induced affair. The reality was that the wind was increasing and following the line of the coastline; it was potentially going to be a long beat all the way around to the other side of the peninsula.

Another yacht in our spot!   

As the wind got to the stage when we really should have been energetic and put in some reefs, we sailed abeam Órmos Sikias. It was late afternoon and we decided to go for the easy option of anchoring overnight in Órmos Sikias and then work our way around to Pórto Koufó in the morning. We headed for exactly the same spot that we had anchored in during our last visit to Órmos Sikias but, shock horror, we found that there was another yacht anchored there. From our GPS we could see that they were exactly where we had been and wondered if their anchor was in the same hole on the seabed that ours had left a week ago.

Fortunately there was lots space off the wide sandy beach…

… and we anchored with the same cockpit view of Mount Athos. Órmos Sikias again proved to be a good anchorage for us and, despite the increase in wind, we had good shelter tucked into the southeastern corner; perfect for a nightstop.

Órmos Sikias, Greece