The Crazy Waters Bridge in Chalkis sits at the narrowest point between Evia and the mainland, where the strait is only about 38 meters wide. Because so much water is forced through this tiny opening, extremely strong currents are created — the reason sailors call it the “Crazy Waters.” The bridge is in the middle of the city and opens only once a day to avoid disrupting the constant road traffic. Boats may only pass at slack tide, the brief moment every six hours when the water is calmest. That’s why sailors often go through at strange times like 1:30 or 3:00 a.m. While waiting, boats are not allowed to tie up along the quay because the turbulence is so strong that it would be dangerous. Instead, everyone must anchor in the bay and wait for instructions from Port Control. We anchored there with about fifteen other boats and waited until slack tide at night. At midnight, Port Control suddenly called all boats in order — we were number three. Passing the bridge in the dark was surreal: strong currents below, quiet city lights above. The bridge didn’t lift; it actually slid sideways into the quay walls, disappearing completely. Once through, we moored safely just 100 meters further in the city. Experiencing this natural phenomenon at night, in such a narrow and powerful channel, was something I will not quickly forget!

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You might be wondering: why mention the airport? What’s so special about it? Well, here’s why. Skiathos, a Greec island at the Sporades islands in the North-West of the Aegan sea, is a relatively small island, yet it has an international airport. And that is exactly what makes it so spectacular. The runway is short and squeezed in between the sea and the built-up area. As a result, aircraft have to approach extremely low. From the water – especially when you’re in the harbour – you see the plane coming straight at you. It flies low over the harbour, sometimes so low that you think it might clip your mast, and then immediately hits the brakes as soon as it touches down on the runway. The first time we experienced this, it really startled us. You hear the sound, look up… and suddenly there’s an aircraft right above you. You rarely see planes flying this low. First there’s a moment of shock, then laughter, and after that you find yourself watching every single landing again 😉. For plane spotters, Skiathos has by now become world-famous. People stand along the road or on the beach to take photos and videos of the landings. We made a video too.

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Suddenly, they were here again: dolphins! Between 2 of the Sporades islands, we saw them jumping in front of the boat. This was during the week we had guests aboard, so we celebrated the presence of these magical animals together!

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