SKIATHOS - MILINA After spending 10 days in Porto Koufo we had to move on. 60 nm to the south, Skiathos was our next stop. The name "Skiathos" is composed out of two words. "Skia" (shade) & "Athos" meaning: the shade of Mount Athos. At first we were planning to land on one of the …
June 2020
PREPARATION - THASOS - MOUNT ATHOS - PORTO KOUFO The last preparation of the boat before the journey was consisting in finding storage on board. When every little bag of gear and supplies landed in the cockpit, we started to think that we will not fit everything in. Amazingly, this was all cleared and …
May 2020
MANUAL WINDLASS - AIS ANTENNA - TEAK GRATING In the middle of winter, the Covid-19 outbreak began. The first lockdown in Greece was in March 2020 and lasted for more than 2 months. We were confined at home and sailing was totally forbidden until June. During the month of May, we cautiously started to …
November – December 2019
LAUNCHING - WINTER SAILING - REEFING LINES November arrived and we had to put the boat back in the water before winter. After a light sanding, the hull received a single coat of anti-fouling and the boat was ready for launching. We were anxious to test our new Radice shaft seal. The good thing about …
October 2019
STERN GLAND - EXHAUST ELBOW RISERÂ After all the problems with the traditional packing stern gland in June, we finally decided to replace the system. This piece of gear had to be removed without taking out the shaft. But on Contessa's, the shaft can be extracted only if the rudder is down. That meant a …
June 2019
MOVING ON BOARD - SUN AWNING - EXHAUST SYSTEM - STERN GLAND In Greece the month of June is quite hot and sunny. A protection from the sun was now essential. We ordered a large sun awning which also had to be waterproof. The material is quite tough but light enough to be foldable and …
May 2019
ANTIFOULING - LAGOON TABLE - LAUNCHING - LIFE RAFT - SPRAY HOOD & MAIN SAIL COVER - WASHBOARDS Beginning of May we applied the antifouling. We used International Micron 350 in green colour. One coat was applied everywhere on the hull and a second on the exposed areas: rudder, skeg and 40 cm under …
April 2019
SKEG REPAIR - SHAFT, PROPELLER & TILLER INSTALLATION - POLISHING GELCOAT - MAIN SAIL TRIAL We had a very bad surprise when we pulled out the machine screws holding on the heel plate. While inspecting thoroughly those voids, we realised that the previous owner had fill up the old machine holes with quite a …
March 2019
ENGINE ROOM -NANNI KUBOTA WATER PUMP REPLACEMENT - Â CUTLESS BEARING - SHAFT, PROPELLER & RUDDER TRIAL - NEW TILLER At the beginning of the refit we decided that we needed access to the stern. Therefore, we cut widely through the lazaret door. That was of a great help since it allowed us to undertake …
February 2019
ENGINE ROOM REFIT - WATER TANK - PLUMBING - MAINSHEET TRAVELLER - PACIFIC WINDPILOT The engine room refurbishment was obviously a major task this month. We were waiting for ages to be able to use epoxy resin. Since December, the temperatures were below anything acceptable. First thing in the plan: bonding the two thick plywood …