Nisos Khios & adj.islands

Nisos Psará

Psarâ is a small barren island lying 10 miles west of the north of Khios. Together with Spétsai and Hydra, Psarâ was one of the first islands to revolt against the Turks. Its ships harried Turkish shipping along the coast, scoring some notable successes. On a number of occasions the Turks mounted expeditions to squash the small island community, but were unable to land because of bad weather until June 1824. In that year Hosref Pasha landed a large force and massacred the population. A few survivors established Néa Psarâ (Erétria) on Evia. The island has never recovered.

PSARÁ

BA 1058
Imray-Tetra G 28

Approach

Conspicuous The small village on the low ridge of Âk Trifilli is easily seen from the distance. Two large churches in the village are conspicuous from the Ε and S. Wind turbines to the NE are conspicous from Ν and S. The mole will not be seen until close to. A green conical buoy is reported to be in place approximately 150m due Ε of the Ν entrance point.
By night Use the light on Ák Áy Yeoryios Fl. 1 Os25M and the light at the entrance Fl.R.1·5s3M. The green buoy is lit Fl.G but should not be relied upon. The inner mole is lit: F.R.3M. The harbour lights are not always to be relied on.
Dangers When approaching from the W care should be taken of the reefs fringing Nisis Andipsara and Katonisi. These islands and rocks are not lit at night making a night approach from the W difficult.

Mooring

Go stern or bows-to where convenient. The bottom is mud and weed with some rocks - good holding.
Shelter Good all-round shelter although strong NE winds may make it uncomfortable.
Authorities Port police.

Facilities

Water Limited supplies on the island.
Provisions Limited provisions available but the villagers are dependent on the ferry from Khios for many things.
Eating out Several tavernas.
Other PO. Local ferry to Khios.

General

There is little left of what was a prosperous town: a few crumbling houses and warehouses, windmills on the ridges and the large natural harbour. In recent years some of the houses have been restored and a little life is creeping back into the village.

Inland amongst the scorched rock of the island (there is little good earth for cultivation) is a Mycenaean necropolis, though it has not been systematically excavated to date. Homer mentioned the island, (he called it Psyrie), but said nothing about it, and apart from the brief age when it possessed a fine merchant fleet and lost it all against the Turks, to most people including Greeks the name Psará means little or nothing to this day.

Nisos Samos

While Lésvos is the jewel of the eastern Sporades, Samos is the rough-cut diamond. The high mountain ridge running the length of the island is an extension of Mt Mykale in Turkey - from the southeast corner of the island it is a single sea mile across to Cape Mykale, making Samos the closest of the Greek islands to Turkey. In the west the range rises sheer from the sea to Mt Kertetevs (1,437m, nearly 5,000ft) and runs east to the Ambelos range (1,041m, 3,730ft). Deep gullies score the mountainsides and peaks and bluffs assume shapes which even the restrained language of the Admiralty Pilot describes as 'fantastic'. Thick pine forest covers most of the lower slopes and villages perch precariously on small plateaus. There is a grandeur and grace to Samos unequalled elsewhere.

In ancient times Samos was lavishly praised: it was known as Parthenoarroussa for its beauty: Dryoussa for its oaks, Anthémis for its flowers, and Hydrele for its abundant springs. The name Samos is probably derived from a Phoenician word meaning 'high'. As part of the Ionic Confederacy it prospered, but it was under the ambitious Polykrates that the island rose to the height of its prosperity in the 6th century BC.

Polykrates was equal parts tyrant and aesthete - a sort of latter-day Odysseus. He rose swiftly to power, conquering nearby islands and assembling a large fleet and army. To Samos he invited poets and artists and under his patronage three of the greatest engineering feats in the ancient Greek world were achieved: the harbour at Pithagorion, the underground conduit and tunnel behind Pithagorion, and the temple to Hera near Ireon. The temple is now just ruins, but the remains of the harbour and the tunnel are still there. Polykrates was finally lured to the mainland coast and crucified by the Persians.

Samos then passed from Sparta to Athens and thence to the Romans. Anthony sacked it before the Battle of Actium. Aided by Cleopatra, he gave a mammoth feast on the island to which all the civilized world was invited and which went on for months. This was his way of starting a war and the only question men had was what the victory feast would be like. As we know there was no victory feast, only defeat and hopeless suicide.

After the Roman occupation the island fell into obscurity and was the lair of pirates, apart from a brief period of Byzantine rule. The inhabitants fled to Khios and Lésvos leaving the island open for the Turks to occupy in 1566. It became part of Greece in 1912.

You might expect an island ravaged and pillaged by corsairs for so long to be run down and poor in spirit. Not a bit of it. Samos leaves you with the feeling of a happy island populated by friendly people. The scenery is superb from the extensive pine forests on the mountain slopes (Samian pine is considered to be the best for caique building) to the cultivated plains. Sadly, forest fires have destroyed much of the pine forest on the S coast. Apart from the sweet white Sâmos muscat wine, the excellent Saimaina dry white is available in Vathi, Karlovasi and Pithagorion. A sweet red moschata is also produced.

KARLÓVASI

BA 1526
Imray-Tetra G32

Approach

Conspicuous From the distance the buildings of the town are easily identified. A church with a blue cupola on a precipitous rock bluff and two large churches with blue cupolas in the town are conspicuous. The harbour is to the W of the town and the harbour moles are easily identified. By night Use the light on Ak Pangozi F1.5sl 1M and the lights at the entrance Fl.G.4-5s5M/ Fl.R.4-5s4M. The main lights may not be in operation during harbour works.

Note

1. Work is in progress extending the outer breakwater. The light on the extremity is moved as work progresses but may not mark the end of underwater obstructions off the breakwater. Care needed in the immediate approaches.
   
2. The end of the mole on the S side of the harbour has been destroyed. Dredging and construction work is in progress. Care needed when entering the harbour.

Dangers With the meltemi there can be a confused sea off the coast around the harbour and at the entrance.

Mooring

Go stern or bows-to or alongside where there isroom on the S quay. The bottom is sand, mud and weed, good holding.
Shelter Good shelter, but with the meltemi some swell creeps around the end of the outer mole - uncomfortable but not dangerous. With strong S winds there are gusts off the high mountains behind.
Authorities Port police and customs.
Note Photographs of the coast to the W are prohibited.

Facilities

Water On the quay.
Fuel In the town about 2 miles away. A mini-tanker may be able to deliver.
Repairs Limited mechanical repairs. The yard in the SW corner of the harbour hauls out yachts.
Provisions Some provisions at the harbour. Good shopping for provisions in Karlovasi village.
Eating out Tavernas on the waterfront.
Other PO and OTE in Karlovasi village. Bus to Vathi.

General

The harbour is a sleepy little spot that seems to have seen more prosperous times. In recent years a little tourism has arrived to brighten up the harbour front. Inland, Karlovasi proper is a straggling market village serving the agricultural needs of the hinterland. The centre is most attractive - all stone houses and cobbled streets.

VATHI (Sámos)

Approach

The capital and principal ferry port of Sámos lies in a large bay on the NE corner of the island.

Conspicuous The buildings of the town straggling around the bay and up the slopes behind are easily identified.
By night Use the light on Ák Kotsikas Fl(2)7-2s7M and the light on the end of the mole Fl.R.3s4M. The small yacht harbour is lit F.R.3M/F.G.3M.
Dangers Ormos Vathi is completely open to the N-NW and consequently the meltemi sends a heavy confused swell into the bay. There are also strong gusts off the high land in the vicinity.

Note

1. Work is in progress on the W side of the bay expanding the new commercial port.
   
2. Works are reported in the SE corner of the bay, reclaiming land and extending the quay.

Mooring

Go stern or bows-to or alongside the quay where shown, keeping clear of the ferry quay. If alongside it may pay to lay an anchor and use a bridle to keep the yacht pulled off the quay. In the SE corner a small yacht harbour has been built and you may be able to find a berth in here.
There are mostly 3m depths inside. Berth stern or bows-to in a vacant spot or where directed. There are laid moorings tailed to small buoys.
Shelter Shelter on the town quay is just adequate with the meltemi and is certainly very uncomfortable. A considerable surge can be set up and you will need to keep pulled well off. The yacht basin is sheltered from the meltemi although a surge is set up - more uncomfortable than dangerous.
Authorities A port of entry: port police and customs. A charge is made in the yacht basin.

Facilities

Services Water and electricity on the quay and in the yacht basin.
Fuel On the waterfront to the E. A mini-tanker can deliver to the quay.
Provisions Good shopping for all provisions nearby.
Eating out Good tavernas nearby.
Other PO. OTE. Banks. ATMs. Greek gas and Camping Gaz. Hire cars and motorbikes. Buses to the principal villages. Ferry to Piraeus, Kavála, Khios and Kusadasi in Turkey.

General

The bustling port town of Vathi is huddled around the waterfront, where everything seems to jump to the tune of the ships and ferries that call here. It is worth visiting the old island capital of Sâmos in the hills over-looking the bay, if only to test your navigation skills in the labyrinthine passages winding through the town.