Part 13: Capri - Nettuno, 110 miles, 72 travel hours (from which 15 are behind the parachute anchor.)
It is the first time we have the wind in our back, which results in speeds above 3 knots an hour (=7 km/hour.) And we spot a small shark swimming along our boat. We also experience some rain, which is nice for the first 5 minutes, but we get tired of it quickly. It lasts 5 hours; at times it was pretty bad. We hve a wet sleeping bag and soaked equipment, which made us desire the hot weather again.
We use our parachute anchor again. When we use it we just wait for better weather. It just stabilizes the boat and that's it!
This is great until a huge freight ship is coming directly at you. You can only wait and hope they see you and you try to reach the ship by mariphone.
This happens again and we see a freight ship pass us at no more than 200 meters away from us.
A few ships later we discover our active radar reflector broke, so now we are invisible on other ships' radar screens. Our last few kilometers are not very pleasant.
Another problem is that our batteries hardly or not at all recharge.
Without sun, our solar panels are not very helpful either. In this case we use more electricity than is being charged which is alright during the day, but a disaster at night, since we are required to have lights on board. At first it looks like we will have to do without lights, but we are OK after all.
Now we arrive at the harbor of Nettuno. Rome was out of our reach with all our electrical difficulties. Nettuno is a sensible alternative. Due to our parachute anchor, our direction shifts directly into the wind. So we do not go very fast. It is heavy biking with hard waves, making only 1 mile per hour, but we are going directly towards Nettuno.

Part 12: Stromboli - Capri, 124 miles, 85 travel hours (from which 9 rowing hours and 20 hours are hanging behind the parachute anchor.)
Our longest trip so far! Current, waves and wind  are against us!
We experience wind from almost all directions: right ahead and from the side, but unfortunately for us, never in the back!
Waves were in all sizes and kinds: big, small, short, long, powerful and weak ones.
It is also the first time we could row for a full night. The advantage to this is that the person not rowing can go take a nap.
During our rowing,  many ships pass us and we have another scare with a huge ferry.
We watch an impressive sunset. Also, for the fist time we use our parachute anchor. For people who don't know what a parachute anchor is: it is a parachute which opens under water and it lessens the effects the wind and waves have on us. It works successfully! Because we are so happy with it we use it again a day later because of the challenging weather circumstances.

Part 11: Panarea - Stromboli, 11 miles, 5 travel hours
A short peaceful day to get started again with 95F in the shadow! Hardly any wind which made it very warm under our stroller umbrella's. During our journey we see dolphins playfully leaping out of the water several times... At arrival at Stromboli we cannot find a place to put our boat right away. We dock at the only suitable place available. However, we are hardly there when a very enthusiastic lady started talking to us. She admired what we were doing and liked our boat, but we were not allowed to dock here. We argued that there is no sign that we couldn't dock here, but she keeps insisting. Luckily the energetic Frenchwoman offers us an alternative. We are allowed to dock in front of her home. She tells us she will pick us up with kayaks. A great offer of course, and a solution to our problem!
We throw out our anchor about 20 yards away from a volcanic sand beach. If we would not have  the kayaks we could  swim to the shore, but since it is swarmed with jellyfish it would not be a great idea. (Those jellyfish are pretty painful, ask Mark and Alex. And they could even be deadly.) After we climb the Stromboli with the Villa Pardoes flag we are offered a night at the guest house of Sophia in real beds! Wonderful! Although Mark chooses a nightly bike trip and falls asleep on the boat under the starry night  :)   .)

Part 10: Othoni - Maria Di Luca (Italy), crossing the Ionic Sea, 26 miles, 13 travel hours
After a local fisherman pulled us out of the terrible harber we continued our journey towards Italy! Again, lots of boat traffic surrounds us. In the morning we get a big scare. Right after switching (Alex just went inside) Mark sees a ship coming directly at us! Matthijs thinks they must have missed seeing it coming, but Mark things this ship is new and fast. After Alex is called back up deck the boat is very close and there is no contact by mariphone. Fast decisions are made.
Mark grabs a flare and throws it to Alex. We hold our breath while suddenly the ship turns away from us as we watch the huge front of the Erdo II. We get a sleepy reply from the pilot "Yes now I see you" when we asked him if he didn't see us on the radar. The half sleeping captain on a ship on auto pilot!

After this we wind is picking up from the side, which is not very comfortable in our boat. With the harbor in sight we worry the wind will blow us right past the harbor. To be clear: the wind force is opposite proportional with the controllability of our little boat. Due to extra physical effort of Alex and Mark we eventually made it safely into the harbor. Alex and Mark biked as hard as they could for an hour and we went 3.5 miles per hour!!
As we arrive a Dutch couple is waving to us from a beautiful little boat. The boat is a perfectly restored Dutch river tug. Before we even started this journey we knew we needed to be pulled to get through the Street of Messina. We decided to make arrangements during the journey. Also, the weather circumstances might not be very favorable the next couple days, so we expect to be stuck here for a few days.
Mark decides to go and see what the Dutch couple has to say and we all meet Klaas and Mariet on the Alberdina. Right away we get spoiled with real coffee and a shower. We tell Mariet and Klaas our story and they immediately offer to pull us through the Street of Messina. We spend a full week on their boat. A wonderful warm and cozy week in which Mariet and Klaas offered us great hospitality.
(This was a more than welcome rest period. Our muscles could rest, our vitamins could be replenished and we spotted some dolphins!)

Part 9: Corfu - Othoni, 48 miles, 21 travel hours
This part is emphasized by heavy boat traffic. Lots of ships come and go to Corfu. We have to pay extra attention between all those cruise and freight ships. It is hard to find the lights on the ships in the dark to see which way they are going. The next morning is easier and it is time to read and play checkers during biking. Just before arrival the wind picks up, waves are getting bigger and bigger. The entrance of the harbor is hard to find and turns out to be very small. This is not a tourist harbor and soon we get stuck on some rocks. The rocks are right under the water surface! Helplessly we stay stuck for a while, until the waves pull us off again. Carefully we make our way into the harbor. (It felt a bit like blindfolded jogging in a mine field  :-)   .)
We have a bit of damage on the rudder, which we can easily fix ourselves with some filler and our sanding skills!

Part 8: Paxoi - Corfu, 16 miles, 8 travel hours
Because we are completely drained we decide to find an emergency resting place. Mark discovers a tiny fisherman harbor on the map, which is almost impossible to find due to the thick fog. With a view of barely 30 yards we search until we found it. We briefly get stuck in the sand with the boat because of shallow waters. We get loose without problems. Here we take the time to put on a heavier cog wheel and to sleep!

Part 7 Levkasv-Paxoi, 43 mile, 20 travel hours
We were planning to sleep for several hours here, so we could leave rested in the evening. At arrival we were met by a large group of people. It was the first time ever a boat like ours docked at their  island. Of course, sleeping did not happen with so many interested people around us. We enjoyed the enormous hospitality and huge enthusiasm of the boss of a small local restaurant called Dionisos, who spontaneously invited us for a meal and drinks on his terrace right in front of our boat!

After resting a bit we were waved off by quit a few people as we left on our journey. We left around 8pm, but after only a few yards of travel something is suddenly wrong. The traction breaks. We are unable to go forward or backward. After 4 hours of fixing (greasy mess) we solved the problem, and we depart again. This time around midnight. A uneventful night time trip like usual. Our speed is lower because of the adapted traction. We will fix this in due time. We keep going until Matthijs and Alex are physically drained, which is exactly 20 hours later.

Part 6 Poros-Levkas, 42 miles, 18 travel hours
The alarm clock woke us cruelly early, so we could be on our way around 3:00 am. The starry sky looked  beautiful as we biked out of the harbor of Poros. We made a wish at every shooting star we saw. Alex wished several times for a peaceful arrival, but unfortunately this day, that would not happen again. At noon a powerful northwest wind picked up. It was hard to keep the boat on track. The wind also made it harder to avoid rocks through the narrow passage under Lefkas. Navigation was also harder, because we are using a car map, since this part was not on our original route.

The last mile to the harbor of Lefkas went through shallow salt plains where we followed a narrow concrete duct. The biking became harder which made Mark grumble: "Come on Matthijs, keep biking!" and not much later, "Come on Alex, keep pushing!". Fierce remarks were used back and forth, until Alex noticed something wrong with the traction of the boat. He discovered the cause; the axle was boiling hot. It was too hot to touch with bare hands and this caused the axle to block.

After this discovery Mark started to use the oars instead. At 9:00 pm we reached Lefkas Marina.
Quickly we were greeted by a grumpy night guard who wanted to see money and papers right away. Again, this is not something we needed at such a moment of crisis!
The next morning we were awakened by the manager of Marina Levkas. The docking fee is waved. He saw the BTO project on Greek TV and he offered to pull the boat out of the water free of charge. We also met Rica and Peet, a Dutch couple who have their sail yacht at the Marina. They know a lot of people here and they introduced us to Mr. Peandros, who has a technical company and he promised us to come by with a mechanic the same morning.
By afternoon the boat was on its side and the axle was completely taken apart. Meanwhile two mechanics from Sailand Yacht Services worked hard to get our boat back into the water by nightfall. We were just sticking the logo of Levkas Marina on the boat as Mr Peandros came over to check on the work. After a while he left on his scooter and came back shortly with, of course, a sticker with the logo of his company.    :)
Later in the evening we took a test round through the harbor. Everything seems to be working perfectly. Which is just as well, since this night we have planned a big journey on open waters to the island of Paxoi. As the mechanics and harbor manager come by later,  it is clear we will not be charged for anything. Everyone helped us on our way without any interest of their own. As we bike out of the dark harbor that night we gratefully look over our shoulder one more time. The sea and a new adventure awaits us...

Sunday: day of rest
On this day we met David, an Englishman, who has lived at Poros for several years now. He owns a little store here. As an enthusiastic sailor, he warned us about the strong northwest wind, which could  make it nearly impassable for us to cross to Italy directly.
We did not ignore his advice and decided to travel up north to Corfu first and cross to the 'heel' of Italy from there. This means we would have an extra 150 miles added to our journey. We went to bed early, so we could start our journey again during the night.

Part 5: Trizomia - Poros, 65 miles, 34 travel hours

Even though we got the advice to wait for high tide, so we would have the tide working with us to get out of the bay of Corinthia, we decided to start early after all since we can be pretty headstrong and because the weather looked great at the time. So we started at 11:00 am enjoying the beautiful sunshine and calm sea. The first couple of hours were perfect. We changed gear regularly and read while our water maker did its job...

Our speed was great when we saw the bridge at the end of the canal. 5 miles before reaching the bridge we were supposed to contact the bridge master. We informed him of our location and speed so he could save a spot for us. Proudly we announced we were getting closer going 2.9 miles/hour.

Shortly after, the current was going against us and our speed dropped dramatically to 0.7 miles/hour (1.5 km/hour). Because of this we could enjoy watching the bridge until after sunset, when we finally passed it. On the other side, we had a great view of Patras, which was nicely lit up. We were hardly bothered by other water traffic.

We biked all night long according to our day schedule (biking for two hours with 1 hour of rest.) This schedule is the easiest to maintain.

At 8:00 am we discovered a freight ship coming directly at us. After getting no response using our mariphone we decided at the last moment to change course, which we don't like doing, since it takes longer. When the freight ship passed us we used our binoculars to see nobody at the wheel of the ship. A good reason to keep an eye out for the big boys!

At 6:00 pm, about one mile before our longed for arrival, the wind picked up from the North. This resulted in waves up to one meter tall, which made our last mile very difficult. It took us two hours to get through the last mile.

Arrival Trizomia
At 11:00 am we arrived, exhausted, at the harbor of Trizomia. We initially had trouble finding the entrance of the harbor. We quickly found on this small island a bar/mini-supermarket. Here we met an English couple who live on a special sail yacht. They immediately warned us against pirates along the Albanian coast, the impossible direct crossing to Sicily,  and the presence of white sharks at Messina. This is not something we wanted to hear about after such an exhausting journey.

Day 4 (42 sea miles)

Dimitri offered us freshly caught fish for breakfast.
After buying fresh fruit and other supplies we feel ready to bike to Sicily without stopping...
Pretty quickly, the beautiful weather changed and we encountered the first dangerous looking thunder clouds and lightning. This motivated us to paddle twice as hard, hoping to stay ahead of the clouds.

After this the journey went fast. The speed was good. Since we had a smooth sea we decided to play chess. Eventually it turned out that the smooth sea surface was just the quiet before the storm. After Mark changed into his night outfit it was time to take out the oars for the night shift, which they were all looking forward to after having such a quiet sea earlier.

From 10:00 pm until midnight it went great. It was a fantastic experience in the dark, iPod on, against the waves. The waves became stronger and the waves higher. No more breaks!
During the shift change with Alex it was difficult to get the boat back on track. The stirring device was squeaking heavily.

1:15 am: Alex is running. Rowing is impossible now and the windmill jumps out of storage and gets damaged. Reacting quickly is necessary. The oars are put away and Mark and Alex manage to turn the bike the right way by biking. After an hour Alex switches with Matthijs. They check the map for the closest harbor. The closest harbor is still over 10 miles away from us. With the high waves and strong wind this seems almost impossible to do. (Speed 0.2 miles per hour, full capacity.) We keep on biking and changing shifts the whole night and next morning. Slowly it becomes light and the currents gets less strong. Our speed is going up. (1.8 miles an hour.) Totally exhausted we arrive at the harbor. Finally we can sleep.

One thing is for sure: With these strong winds and high waves we will not make it to Rome......
Hopefully the weather gods will be kind the rest of the way!

Day 3 (15 sea miles)

After posing for French speaking photographers from Belga (ANP) we continued to the golf of Corinthia. The same photographers made a few nice pictures earlier when we were going through the canal of Corinthia.

After biking for a long time with some delay we were able to enjoy our expedition breakfast at 10:00 am!

Right now we have ideal circumstances, slightly clouded (to get used to the burning sun) and a quiet sea.

After arrival at our night location we did some odd jobs around the boat. Docked next to us is the local sea pirate Dimitri, who is a fisherman now.

We were greeted by people who recognized us from TV. We are local celebrities here!

Day 2 (23 sea miles)

We left at 10:00 am. A day with many radio interviews and higher waves
later, which showed our propeller out of the water.
At 9:30 pm we arrived at the canal of Corinthia. After some arguing between the tug boat and control tower we learned we are only allowed to pass the canal before 5:30 am. So we will have to get up early tomorrow!

Day 1 (10 sea miles)

Our departure drew several local fans, who told the local media about us. This resulted in some (necessary) Greek media attention. The story was broadcast on national Greek television.
The week before departure we enjoyed the nice weather, but finally the day to start our journey arrived.
We already had experienced smaller boats do not get the right of way at
sea. On our first day we were almost run over by a ferry. Other than that everything went according to plan. Good speed. Our goal is to go about 2.7 miles per hour (about 4.5 km per hour.)
As part of our constructive training schedule we decided to take more rest the first few days. So at 6:00 pm we decided to dock at a very beautiful bay (Nsalamina) and we accepted the invitation of a sociable Greek to have some cold coffee (café frappe.) The same Greek wanted to supply us with beer and wine for the next couple of weeks, but unfortunately we could not accept his offer.

Update 2/5/9