Sailing Calista12 August 2022 – 13 August 2022
We anchored overnight in the anchorage on Gyali Island in the Dodecanese located halfway between the south coast of Kos and Nisyiros. There is a large opencast pumice mine on the southern side of the island.
About 200,000 years ago a volcanic eruption occurred on the neighbouring island of Nysiros (we will visit this island later). During the eruption large amounts of hot pumice were thrown into the sea. The sea water suddenly caused the pumice to cool down, changing its structure and giving it it’s unique pozzolanic properties. Later the sea bed rose and the island of Gyali was thus created, with one of the largest pumice deposits found.
We dingied to shore with the intention of walking over to the otherside of the island but changed our minds because it is was so windy and exposed.
According to the 2001 census it was reported a population of 10 people were living on the small island. It looked pretty barren and deserted when we were there, but I guess the inhabitants were working on the mine.
Couldn’t resist taking a photo of the tug boat “Ryan” for our grandson Ryan
Further along the beach Paul dropped me ashore while I went foraging for some pumice pieces to take back to Calista.
It was a lovely morning and Paul was content to sit with his feet in the water, waiting patiently for me.
The pumice is opencast mined with bulldozers, without the use of explosives. The bulldozers push the pumice stone from the mountain onto an automatic conveyor belt system, which transports the pumice stone to a separation plant.
In the separation plant the pumice is screened into different grain sizes, which are stored separately in large stockpiles waiting for shipping.
The remains of an old jetty.
The pumice is loaded by a conveyor belt with a loading rate of approx. 1,000.00 MTS per hour directly into the ships anchored in the bay.
Currently the annual production rate averages at 1 million tons and will be available beyond the year 2100.
There were signs along the beach warning off trespassers so we made our way back to Calista.
