MELTEMIS AND GREMLINS

My goal, I thought, was modest: two weeks from Cyprus to Mykonos and then two more weeks for the return via Santorini and Rhodes. Not too much to ask of a boat, skipper and crew that had crossed the Atlantic. I had even envisioned the article I would write: Five Best Isles of the Aegean. Unfortunately, Mother Nature and Father Time both thought otherwise and combined forces to not only sorely test the skipper and crew, but also prompt the question: when does an aging skipper with an aging boat forego the sea?

The first challenge was getting from my home port of Latsi in northwest Cyprus to Finike on Turkey’s Lycian coast: a trip that usually takes about 24 hours, with either favorable winds (from the west or southwest) or a reliable engine. My crew for the passage, Mike Niemi, had also sailed with me many times. Like me, Mike owned a Pacific Seacraft 34 and shared my confidence in this bluewater cruiser

Unfortunately, ’s engine, at 30 years and nearly 3,000 engine hours, was far from reliable. A recent anchoring mishap, for example, (see November 2018) had led to overheating, and the flow from its exhaust was anemic. The long August holiday in Cyprus also meant mechanics and parts were scarce, and local repairs would require a lengthy delay. Meanwhile, in Turkey, Finike’s Setur Marina promised one of the best boatyards in the Med. So, with favorable winds predicted, I decided we should sail and rely as