Welcome to the Med

Carmel2 said:
Astypalia SW gusts of 45 yesterday today, and tomorrow, looks like we might get out on Sunday to Leros, you about Vyv?
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We're in Lesvos, tucked up in a little fishing harbour in Kolpos Kollonis. It's a tiny little place, only seems to house inshore fishing boats, no ferries or other larger shipping that we have seen. Despite that there are at least four port police here, maybe more allowing for shift work.
 
SamanthaTabs said:
Appreciate that Almirigrad is cheap but surely the fuel would cost less to get to an anchorage than multiple marina fees?
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We are actually enjoying it here and like the place. Have met some friendly people, been invited to a Birthday party tonight and we are going walking in them there hills on Sunday. Kick boxing exercising on a Tuesday and palates and dance classes every night.The winter rate runs until the end of May so there is still a summer of anchoring to look forward to.
If it wasn't for marina prices I would far prefer to be moored in a marina than on the hook but that is just a personal preference.
 
dougg said:
Here in Ios harbour the wind has maxed out at 23 knts this morning. The predicted high winds didn't materialise. Temp is a lowly 24 Deg this morning. quite Swelly out to sea. Water temp 20 Deg
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Well Doug, back on Crete it's............extremely calm, though we had a stiff southerly the other day. Blue skies, warm sunshine, 26deg C and no wind. The only depressing news is that there's a French boat in your berth opposition us. Noisy people the French....
 
Misunderstood the beginning of the thread, thought you meant that stuck in marinas due to weather conditions.

Activities sound like holiday camp fun :). Definitely personal preference, for us anchor but when it's too rough for my trusty kayak it's not so much fun, wind go away!!
 
Nostrodamus said:
We are actually enjoying it here and like the place. Have met some friendly people, been invited to a Birthday party tonight and we are going walking in them there hills on Sunday. Kick boxing exercising on a Tuesday and palates and dance classes every night.The winter rate runs until the end of May so there is still a summer of anchoring to look forward to.
If it wasn't for marina prices I would far prefer to be moored in a marina than on the hook but that is just a personal preference.
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The place grew on us, there is a good a good community spirit which many do not want or simply miss in the rush to go past.. The walks are a good example of the team spirit, with those who have cars allowing others to share so you can get into some wonderful areas. But for seme I can appreciate it is not for them, as you say you have all summer to anchor.
 
We have friends in Italy who said there was gusts of over 80 kph......
Is the Med usually like this in May and does it calm down a bit over summer.
Yesterday was windless and hot.
Today is a lot cooler and there is a fog out there.
 
Windy, cold and cloudy. Gusting 47 kph, reducing to almost nothing late afternoon.
Friends have just sailed from the Algarve, said it was the same there.
Summer months usually fantastic, obviously there is the odd day or two here and there.
 
Nostrodamus said:
Is the Med usually like this in May and does it calm down a bit over summer.
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May is typically a transitional month, and whilst mostly fair can bring almost anything, although this year seems a tad more transitional than most. As others have said, the jet stream's been doing weird things...maybe its GPS is bust. The other day a stage of the Giro d'Italia bicycle race was cancelled due to snow.

There's always the chance of compact lows popping up, notably in Gulfs of Genoa and Lions, and off Tunisia, and obviously land effect/katabatic winds can be an issue in particular areas, but generally conditions become stabler from here on in. (That's not by any means a guarantee.)
 
In the South of France it's not been any better. Heating has been on most evenings and the Mistral has been blowing 50-60kph in blocks of three days on 2 days off for the last two weeks. In the sun it's warm but you need to be well out of the wind. As I type, dressed in long track pants and sweatshirt. Bahh humbug! In two weeks we'll probably be sweltering but as there's rain forecast (and wind) for tomorrow I'm just going to wait it out.

Keep warm everyone.....

Chas
 
It;s the forecasts that get me. Someone else gave the weather here as 15 knot winds today. I looked on passage weather and would probably agree with him.
In reality it has been gusting 25 to 29 knots all day and even now it has not really died down. Just seems like the computer modelling programs are getting it all wrong.
 
It always sounds worse in a marina (leaving Andratx the other day, wind howling, as soon as we got out it was a lovely sail). PW is based on gribs which do not take into account localised effects particularly high rise blocks etc.

We have a couple of occasions gone out to see what it's really like, if not suitable for us we have just headed back in.

I sent your SWMBO a link for Ports IB, we've been to a few over the past few years - not bad at all :)
 
Agree with the comment re the models. Windguru is forecasting F7 from South and gusts to F9 here tomorrow. Turkish site shows F4 from the North . Go figure as they say stateside
 
affinite said:
Agree with the comment re the models. Windguru is forecasting F7 from South and gusts to F9 here tomorrow. Turkish site shows F4 from the North . Go figure as they say stateside
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It's a very strange weather situation at present. Southerly gale warnings for the southern Aegean on Navtex. Poseidon shows the same. For northern Aegean we are expecting NE force 6 overnight at Limnos but it doesn't seem to extend very far south. Currently overcast with a very thundery feel.
 
Nostrodamus said:
Just seems like the computer modelling programs are getting it all wrong.
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Not wishing to start a discussion on AGW, but it seems the models are based on the discredited 'hockey-stick' graphs. Obviously, as temperature has a huge influence on weather, any error in the modelling softwares data will be reflected in it's forecasting (in)ability.

Pete
 
]Well Doug, back on Crete it's............extremely calm, though we had a stiff southerly the other day. Blue skies, warm sunshine, 26deg C and no wind. The only depressing news is that there's a French boat in your berth opposition us. Noisy people the French.

Count yourself lucky, we have arrogant French on one side and arrogant Italians on the other. The Ities squeezed there fifty something maramu into a berth suitable for a 38-40 ft yacht so its squeaking fenders all night, lord knows what it will be like when the blue star comes in tomorrow . White sands arrived this afternoon, tumbleweed left.
 
vyv_cox said:
It's a very strange weather situation at present. Southerly gale warnings for the southern Aegean on Navtex. Poseidon shows the same. For northern Aegean we are expecting NE force 6 overnight at Limnos but it doesn't seem to extend very far south. Currently overcast with a very thundery feel.
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We are about to leave prevesa for leros by 16 june. Going south about the peloponese looks like we will have to be very carefull with the forecasts. Her in doors will be waiting in Kos on the 16 june sk we have to get there!
 
The Grib files for the next week (Zygrib) show the winds to be light southerly in the eastern Aegean, The Cape factor (high altitude wind sheer) is also very high, leading to a high probability of T storms in the area around Lesbos.

For us on passage down the Peloponnese it looks like we will be down wind all the way with good breezes,,,,perhaps too much!
 
Forecasting in the Med is not easy - it is, after all, a big lake and who expects consistent winds on a lake. It is naive, I submit, to decouple local topography from winds and any computer simulation descends into chaos on a very short forward limen.
Coupled with the current misplacement S of the jetstream (producing increased atmospheric turbulence) I'd hesitate to take as gospel any forecast greater than 12 hours ahead.
At least with the unadulterated GRIB files you're starting with something that hasn't been messed by someone (who might or mightn't know what they're doing). As the person on the spot (hopefully with an accurate tracking barometer) and able to make local observations you should accept that you're in the best position to get it right.

A week ahead!! - the GRIB files are changing significantly every 30-40 hrs. Do not kid yourself about your chances of getting it right.
 
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