Hoist by the main halyard

Essential maintenance required some work at the top of the mast. Rather Nigel than me.

A tight timetable had the work finished at 15:10 and the haulout at 15:30.

That's pretty definitely it.

Drying out

Drying out - Not what we have to do when we get home and end holiday cocktail hour, but what we had to do to KJ today. Endless absorbent cloths to mop up the well rinsed boat, and guard rails festooned with clothes, mats, and assorted damp belongings.

Fortunately today was blue sky and 30° sunshine. Keel bolts painted, dinghy cleaned and deflated, the list goes on. It did leave time for an afternoon on the pristine beach and probably our last swim.

Apocalypse?

The weather can be quite spectacular here, but hard to capture in a photo. However the apocalyptic clouds maybe convey some of the drama.

After a morning of end of season cleaning and polishing we made it to the beach briefly before the dark descended. We sheltered in the beach bar for a couple of hours drinking chai, (the only thing we had enough money for), and then splashed back to bail out poor KJ. An unintended early wash of the bilges.

Make my day

Anchored in a corner of Sarsala Bay we decided this was the perfect final anchorage. The holding is good (so the anchor won't drag), the water is clear, the view is ideal, and the shelter is as good as you get. We listened to the wind howling outside the bay last night, while peacefully (so far as wind was concerned) playing backgammon.

This morning I remarked that it would make my day if a kingfisher appeared, having watched one here years ago. Almost immediately one perched on the stern line and cocked a head at me. 'Satisfied now, punk?' I think he said.

Gocek now to begin the end of the trip. Strangely those thunderstorms have followed us, so we are sheltering as cocktail hour unfolds.

The calm after the calm

The thunderstorms stayed north of us last night, so firework displays of lightning and threatening dark clouds were all we suffered.

Today started calm and bright, and stayed that way for us. More thunder over the mountains continued to rumble, but we were able to enjoy the accompanying wind for a brisk and delightful sail.

Anchoring with a stern line when there are only two of us is usually a bad idea. We decided to have a go in Sarsala bay. Key learning point - don't even try it with a strong cross-wind. However we found a sheltered corner with easier wind and all went well.

Tiny triumphs

It's amazing how little things give disproportionate satisfaction. Today saw the installation of a replacement 12v socket, and the repair of a leaky swim-platform shower head. Quite pathetic how pleased someone was with himself.

A delightful sail across the gulf took us to Sarsala. However the thunderheads are building and the sky is looking increasingly ominous, while rumbles grow louder.

Change of scene

From the peace and relative quiet of Deep Bay old habits drove us to bustling Fethiye. A visit to the fish market was pointless from the point of view of purchasing, but impressive to watch. The fruit and vegetable market was more productive, and we found late season figs that are excellent.

Meeting my old friend Billy is always amusing. From Coleraine, he skippers yachts in Fethiye and is a nonstop story teller. It turned out to be a late night. We plan to escape to the peace and quiet again.