Ithaca

We arrived in Ithaca early in the morning to 34 deg C. and glorious sunshine. First we did a drive around the northern chunk of the island. It's incredibly steep and mountainous, and around every bend you see sheer drops into beautiful turquoise bays, many only accessible by boat or swimming. We stopped off at Polis Beach in Stavros and walked around the old fishing harbour.

From there we went inland up to the village of Exogi which is very high up and gives fabulous views back across to Kefalonia and the Greek mainland.
In Friskes, and again in Kioni we arrived at the same time as some yacht flotillas which proved to be very entertaining to watch as they floundered around trying to moor up on the quayside. There were very few moorings left, and a squall had blown up making it more like a game of dodgems.

We found some accommodation in Lefki, and went down to the beach for the evening, and were delighted to see a dolphin swimming close by us in the bay.

Next morning we went inland again, very high up to the Katharon Monastery, and enjoyed incredible views of Vathi, the island's capital.

 

Then a picnic lunch and a swim on Filatro Beach before getting the evening ferry 'home' again.

 

A spectacular island. Small, unspoilt, very like Kefalonia but not for the faint-hearted if you don't like hairpin bends and very steep roads. Would you trust the Greek safety barriers?? I think not!!!