Sailing CalistaEkincik Bay
3 August 2024 – 4 August 2024
Leaving the anchorage of Marmaris in the afternoon we were certain to get a sea breeze and we were able to furl out the main and genona sails and sail out of the bay and turn towards the coast heading towards Gocek while still sailing gently along.
We anchored for the evening in Ekincik Bay as a recommendation by our friends on Dakini. It was very pretty with all the trees but we had an invassion of wasps early evening. It was abit of a challenge to make our way to the swim platform and into the water. Climbing back on board after a refreshing swim was also challenging dodging the persistant wasps. Once inside the cabin we shut the hatch and didn’t venture out again until the sun was going down.
The sunrise was magical the following morning and the seas were flat. We lowered the dingy down after breakfast and went for a cruise around the bay.
Returning to Calista we decided to keep moving to another anchorage as we didn’t enjoy the presence of the wasps. We lifted anchor and motored down to the far end of the bay to the beach to check it out. It seemed to be a nice place to anchor out from the beach and there were a couple of restaurants. As we were motoring along the engine room fan was making a terrible noise. Upon investigation it appeared that the blades of the fan were worn and were rubbing against the inside of the casing.
Almina Beach
4 August 2024 – 5 August 2024
We managed to have a slow sail and arrived in the anchorage at Almina Beach around 2.00pm. There were several other boats already in the anchorage and we managed to squeeze into a spot just as one was leaving. We lowered the dingy and went for a cruise into the beach and it was crowded. The water there was univiting as well with massive amounts of weed but the locals didn’t appear to mind. There was a flying fox above, from one end of the hill to the otherside of the bay and the went directly above the beach where the swimmers were. It looked like fun for the young ones.
By the evening there was just two of us left in the anchorage.
When we had arrived the afternoon before there had been alot of surface weed floating on the water and the water didn’t look inviting and the visibility was rather poor. In the morning however the weed had been swept out and the water was lovely with the sea temperature at 29.6 degrees.
The next morning before we departed, Paul pulled the engine room fan apart and cleaned off the melted plastic that was causing the noise. He then clamped it back into the duct pipes and it seemed to be working ok with no more squealing noise. We had been motoring for a short distance when we noticed a burning smell and when Paul lifted the engine room lid he discovered that the fan wires had fused and had melted together. It turned out that he had overtightened the clamps which caused the motor to burn out. Paul disconnected and removed the fan until we could get a new one. The outside temperature was around 33 degrees. Further out in the bay we were able to sail, though it was very slow but it was peaceful.
Buyukaga Koyu
5 August 2024 – 7 August 2024
We cruised into the bay to discover all the boats were stern tied to the rocks and there was no room to anchor and swing free. Our friends on Rahopara had recommended this bay so we persisted in trying to find a spot where we could squeeze in. We must have looked newbies, as a young Turkish chap came out to us in his tender and offered for us to come in next to him and he would help with our lines. After we were all secured to the rocks he came and said our Amel 50 was his dream boat.
The anchorage was lovely, the only downfall was that there was very limited Wifi signal for checking for weather updates.
We couldn’t believe how clear the water was and swimming in the 29.8 degrees was bliss. We even had goats wandering around the shore with their bells tinkering. It was a lovely sound.
The next morning we took the kayak to shore and set off to walk up to the top of the ridge where we could hopefully get some better Wifi reception.
We encountered the same goats on our way up the track. Wearing jandels was not ideal and was somewhat treacherous navigating the rocky path.
The views from the top of the ridge were amazing looking down onto the anchorage and the next bay beyond. We managed to get reception, and once we had checked the weather and received our emails etc, we made our way back down. With jandels it was even worse going downhill. We will remember to wear proper walking shoes next time we venture on any walks.
We have enjoyed our time in the anchorage and intend to leave the following morning to make our way down to Goceck.
