Remember yesterday when I politely requested “slightly less Aegean, please”? Apparently Zeus, god of the sky and weather, and Poseidon, god of the sea, had compared notes overnight and decided our new crew hadn’t quite been initiated enough. Today’s passage was barely half the distance of yesterday’s, but somehow considerably more enthusiastic. Seas were 6-7 feet high and had KORA rolling through another lively morning on the water, while our newly initiated crew discovered the winning combination of Dramamine, strategic seating positions and long naps.
To one of our daughters who had been hearing about our adventures and casually commented, “It looks a little choppy…..” Please see attached video! 😳 This was filmed during one of the calmer moments. When things became properly exciting, strangely enough, I wasn’t reaching for a camera. Yeah, it was a little rough!
Knowing Loutra’s smaller marina operates essentially on a first-come, first-served basis, we’d slipped our lines at 7:00 a.m. Our strategy worked. By about 11:15 we were safely tucked into a coveted side-tie berth. Then the boats started arriving. And arriving. And arriving. Everyone had clearly experienced the same Aegean we had. And given the circumstances, they weren’t turning anyone down. By evening the little harbour was overflowing, and KORA had acquired a neighbor – a monohull rafted directly alongside us. Their crew now had to climb across KORA every time they wanted to reach shore. Not exactly ideal, but we’d been out there too. When the Aegean sends everyone running for cover, sailors help each other out by making room.
Safely ashore, the girls decided we’d earned a spa afternoon. Regular readers may remember my previous visit to Loutra with my brother’s family, when my niece, Chelsea, learned that my definition of “spa” involved sitting in a naturally heated rock pool beside the sea rather than fluffy robes and cucumber water.
Well… Welcome to Spa Day, Round Two.
Kythnos is famous for the thermal waters that give Loutra its name – loutra literally means “baths.” Hot mineral-rich water emerges near the beach and flows directly into a little stone pool at the edge of the Aegean. Last time, the water near the spring outlet was so scolding hot it was actually painful to touch. Today? With waves repeatedly crashing over the rocks and flooding the pool with cool seawater, Kelley, Lori and I found ourselves lying practically on top of the thermal outlet trying to locate the warm bit.
Luxury spa treatment this was not. Therapeutic? Who knows. But we emerged feeling pretty good – and considerably more windblown than when we entered. Haha!
Loutra itself is tiny, which is part of its charm. A handful of tavernas line the waterfront, fishing boats bob in the harbour, and the surrounding hills make it feel wonderfully removed from the busier Cycladic islands. There isn’t a long sightseeing list here. And honestly, after two days of rough seas, that suited us perfectly. We had a lazy afternoon wandering the waterfront, eating gelato, and doing a little provisioning.
And then – finally – the ceremonial introduction of this crew to ouzo. How we’d made it this far without an OPA! remains unclear.
Dinner was enjoyed beside the water, followed by an evening stroll through town and, naturally, gelato. Actually… more gelato. Somewhere along the way we’ve apparently adopted the philosophy that supporting local businesses is an important part of travel – and we’re taking that responsibility very seriously… particularly with regard to gelato!
Back aboard KORA, surrounded by a harbour full of boats that had all sought refuge from the same unruly sea, we settled in for the night. Surely we’d been initiated enough by now. Zeus and Poseidon, a little mercy tomorrow please!
