Kayaking trip to Kythira

Kythera was always a destination I wanted to experience by sea kayak. I had been there before as a tourist but it's been 25 years since then.

But I still remember the River, I remember sitting on the big rocks around the waterfall and the lake, drowned in greenery, with the company from Babel. Other times, but still not yet greyed out in my memory.

So I saw and saw them again on the geographical maps with the big beaches in the east and the steep western coasts, I studied the weather and read the wave heights, 7 - 8 meters maximum in the strong westerlies, a little better in the southerlies and waited for the right opportunity and the right company, since the kilometers from Athens to Neapolis are many, as are the miles around the island, which is almost as big as Naxos.

So, in the last summer, on the 25th of February, we set off to explore the coast of the island. There is a boat that connects Piraeus with Kythera, but with very infrequent sailings. There is also the “Myrtidiotissa”, the ferry that connects Neapolis with Kythera every day, but it is currently under repair and won't operate again before the end of March, so we decided that it would be better to go to Neapolis by road and from there to reach Kythera by rowing.
And so it was. Three hundred and thirty-three kilometers with kayaks and equipment loaded in the car didn't leave us much room for the first day of the excursion, so we preferred to spend the night in Elafonissos and leave Kythera for the next day.

The passage from Neapolis to Elafonisos was short and easy, the sunset and the camping in “Lefki” was enchanting. “Lefki” is the famous beach of Elafonisos with its sand dunes and rare Mediterranean cedars that attracts a lot of people in the summer and is protected by the “natura 2000" program. Camping on the beach is prohibited, but now in late February no one would be interested in suing two rowers who had to spend the night there.

The next morning, freshly rested and after a frugal breakfast, we maneuvered masterfully between the various trucks that non-stop crossed the narrow passage and it wasn't long before we saw the northern lighthouse of the island.

We headed southeast and after a short stop at the “flat sand”, the first beach in the northeast of the island, we continued towards Agia Pelagia, the old port and finally to Diakofti, the new port of the island where we spent the night.

The trademark of the port has now become the cargo ship that sank there 15 years ago and whose carcass still stands with its stern 20 metres above the waves. The story goes that the Russian ship was found on the shoals off the harbour with the crew drunk on vodka and caviar. Why no one ever bothered to remove it I don't know, but I do know that the local businessmen now see it as an island attraction and will be sad to lose it, as I was told.

The next morning we did not miss the opportunity to paddle over and around the half-submerged truck, as well as around another confiscated “contraband” (smuggler), which was carrying contraband cigarettes and was also rotting in Dakofti.

Time was pressing us as always and so instead of rowing slowly along the long beaches, after Avlemonas we took a quick turn to the southern cape of the island and turned it to the west, out of Kapsali and continued to Melidoni, where we camped just before sunset.

Clouds covered the horizon and so climbing the rugged slopes in search of the perfect photo did not yield the expected results as the colours of the sunset were lost behind a greyish haze.

Third day at sea and the weather forecast was warning us of a storm that was quickly coming our way. So in an attempt to catch the strong southerly winds that were approaching us, we started the day early heading for the northern cape, paddling swiftly down the barren crags and rocky shores of the west side of the island.

Stefanos was consuming the water faster than I could have imagined and our planned stop for refueling at Limnionas took place but without success, since the beach tavern was, despite the information, closed. I have learned to consume some water when needed so I met my companion's needs and after a short rest we continued on, a little disappointed, of course, that we missed the opportunity to try Nicolas’ famous omelette.

Line, then, for the northern cape and a last stop at the last western beach of Routsouna, with the cirques and stamnagathia growing out of the rocks around us. It was still early afternoon, the wind had picked up to 4-5 Beaufort and the blackness in the south seemed to approach us menacingly. So we decided to make the passage to Elafonisos and finding a gap in the boat traffic we spilled out into the open with the waves pushing us towards our destination.

Just before we reached the shore at Elafonissos, the first drops had already started to fall and as soon as we got to the beach the skies opened up. We hastily pitched our tents under the low cedars that offered us some rudimentary protection with their sparse foliage.

With our clothes soaked, we stripped off in the night, wiped ourselves and stuffed ourselves into our waterproof tents with the rain and the wind raging and us wishing that our shoes would hold on the wet sand. In the morning it was still raining, but there was no time to waste and so without coffee and breakfast we put on our rowing clothes, packed up as we packed up tents and equipment, loaded our boats and left for Neapolis in strong wind and waves. Fortunately, the distance from Elafonisos to Neapolis is short and after feeling comfortable and warm again we started surfing the waves laughing out loud.

By the time we got to the port the heavy rain had stopped and we were awaited by the warm hospitality of Kostas from the Neapolis Yacht Club and the seaside restaurant Moe Moe, whom we thank very much and look forward to seeing again on our next trip to Kythera.

I would like to take this opportunity to point out how much the sea area of the Strait of Elafonisos and the wonderful beach of “Lefki” has been polluted by the non-stop traffic of huge containers and oil tankers. The tars on the beach have now piled up in rocks and the marine life in the strait has died. All this to gain about 20 miles for the more than 150 boats that cross the strait daily. With the recent shipwreck in Mykonos, I hope those of you reading this article will raise awareness and keep in mind that our country is suffering from this whole situation, which is legally described as “innocuous passage” without earning half a euro.

George Carpathios