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A periodic check of the Sailing Holidays web-site (www.sailingholidays.com) reveals the fact that they are planning to do an “exploratory” flotilla to the Diapondia Island group (Othoni, Ericousa and Mathraki) northwest of Corfu, an area where there regular trips haven’t gone before. These islands are the furthest west that you can go in Greece.

A quick phone call and I am signed up for a “share-a-yacht” berth. Normally they have four people on a Beneteau 361, but we will have three on a 331.

This trip is going to be on of the first of the season for Sailing Holidays and hence will be starting from their winter base at Gouvia Marina, just noth of Corfu Town.

All of their 120 boats will be going out on the same day and taking various routes to get down to their three operating bases.

Down to Gatwick and board our “special” charter to Corfu and then wait to see which of my fellow passengers will be my two crew-mates.

On arrival at the marina I find that my yacht will be “Misios” and my crew-mates will be Alan and Lance. So its down the pontoon and see who gets there first (First on gets first choice of the cabins!)

We all meet up on board and then its off to the first night party and meet the crew from the other boats in our fleet as well as saying “Hi” to people that we have met on earlier flotillas.

“Which trip are you doing this time?” “What is the Farway Islands?” “That sounds like fun I wonder if we can switch our boat into your group?”

The following morning we meet up for our morning fleet briefing and are told that we will now have twelve yachts, plus the lead boat instead of ten, someone must have got their wish to swap fleets.

We also have a slightly odd set-up for this flotilla, Jock will be our lead skipper, but we will also have the company’s owner taking one of the yachts out with some of his friends.  So will we have a bit of an Admiral and Flag Captain situation.

“We haven’t had a chance to refuel all of the boats this year, so on your way out just call in at the fuel quay and we will top you up. Don’t worry you won’t all be leaving together so there shouldn’t be too much of a queue”

Yes, OK, so not all our group were leaving at exactly the same time but we did have 120 boats leaving that morning, so what is that about an average of 1 every 2 minutes. and how long does it take to fuel a yacht…

It is interesting how difficult it can be to hold a yacht stationary in a queue when it isn’t tied up to anything and we were only about number 30 in he queue…

(They haven’t tried that little exercise on the Break-out weekend since!)