Mt. Rainier Climb- 3 Day Ascent - Monday, August 2, 2021

 We were up at 5:50am this morning. Adam slept in Jeff's VW Vanagon and Andy slept in my VW Vanagon, circled like covered wagons out by the garage. Well, it is hard to imagine a circle created by two VW Vanagon-more like an L. We already had our packs in my van. I grabbed bagels and cheese from the fridge in the house and we were on our way by 6:20am. We stopped for gas in Toledo, then headed for the coffee stand in Morton. With coffees in Andy and Adam's hands, we drove to Elbe and then into the park entrance. Only one booth was open, with three cars lined up. Each car in front had an annual pass, so the line moved super quick. I flashed my annual pass, and we were headed up to Paradise. 

At the parking lot we found a stall and made a quick trip to the bathroom, then the wilderness office to ask about the route. They told us that both private and guided parties had made the summit in the past few days, so the route must be good. We returned to the van, donned our walking shoes and packs and headed up the trail. We took a clothing break along the side of Alta Vista, then continued to the base of Pan Point where we took a water break. From there it was non stop to Pebble Creek. 

I chose to put on my climbing boots, my 18 year old Koflach immediately after crossing the creek.  Andy and Adam decided to climb up to Wild Woman Rock to change into theirs. They went ahead while I sat to don my red boots. Boots on, I climbed up the snow, meeting Adam below Wild Woman Rock where he was changing shoes. Andy changed as well and we all hid our shoes in the rocks.

We continued upward. The amount of snow that had melted in the three weeks since I was last here was amazing. About 500 vertical feet above where we dropped our shoes we crossed a band of rock and stopped to take a breather.  I looked down at the Koflachs and noticed the plastic was splitting along the sides, a long line just below the rings that hold the shoe laces. My guess is the plastic was old and weak and when I tugged on the laces to tighten the boots around my feet the plastic gave way and tore the length of the boots. Yikes!  The inner boots were now exposed to the elements and it was likely that the top half of the boots would completely separate from the lower half, leaving me without footwear. We discussed the problem for a few minutes.  I did not want to cancel the climb because of my stupid boots, but how could I climb Rainier with boots I could not trust. We came to the conclusion that I could wrap sleeping bag straps (Adam had 4 that he used to hold his boots to the outside of his pack, now not in use) around my boots to hold the lower half to the upper half. Then, if I always wore my crampons, their straps would also hold the lower half of my boots to the upper half.  As a backup, Andy suggested I retrieve my other Salomon hiking shoes we had hidden at Wild Woman Rock. He volunteered to slide down on his plastic sheet he had brought for that purpose and get them. He took my ski poles to facilitate the uphill return trip. It took him almost exactly an hour. Adam and I watched his progress, had a bite to eat, filled and purified a quart of water and applied the sleeping bag straps and crampons to my boots. Andy took a 15 minute break upon his return, then we continued up the Muir Snow Field, Anvil Rock our destination. It was about 1:30pm when we got back underway.

As we approached Anvil Rock I heard rushing and pouring water, but could not see the source of the sound. In the next 20-30 feet I came upon a crevasse about a foot wide. At the bottom of it, out of sight, was the sound of rushing water-lots of it. Also noticeable was copious quantities of water pouring down the sides of the crevasse. We dropped our packs and filled all our water bottles, relishing the thought of all the water we would not have to melt once in camp.

We continued up toward Anvil Rock. I was surprised to see that the rock of the ridge was sticking out of the snowfield 20 vertical feet. In the past, I had been here and there was no rock exposed. Other times, the ridge might be 6 feet high, but never 20'. I hiked to the upper end and looked over. There was no place to camp on the other side. We decided to camp on the Muir Snowfield, right up against the rock ridge. We set up the tent and I laid down in the tent for a brief rest. Adam went to explore the ridge. Andy began melting water for dinner. Adam put a blue bag to use. We ate our respective dinners, then went up to the old lookout site and found rusty nails and other debris from the burned lookout. Adam climbed down on the Cowlitz Glacier side of the ridge and found old tin cans, a piece of the lookout and an ancient ketchup bottle.

We returned back to our tent, crawled in and put on "Hamilton" on my phone. We put it in the net at the top of the tent and each lay on our back watching the performance. I had seen it many times before, Andy had been to the live play in Seattle and Adam had not seen it at all. Adam was very impressed. We watched only the first hour and 40 minutes, then shut it off so we could get some sleep. It was about 110:30pm

I had a very uncomfortable night. My Exped pad is not good on snow and I could feel the cold coming up from the bottom chilling me. By Rainier standards, it was a warm night, so I had gone to bed in shorts, a shirt and no hat. I was sleeping in my lightweight quilt. I got very little sleep. Sometime during the night Andy offered to switch sleeping pads with me. His was a little better, but I still felt the cold from below. About 2 or 3 I put on a fleece, a hat and a neck dicky. That helped a little, but I doubt I got more than 3 hours sleep. Was it my down quilt that allowed the cold from below to make me cold or are the inflatable sleeping pads just that poor at insulating?

Day 26-Saturday, June 19, 2021 - Corfu Trail is Done. On to Wedding Activities. Mediterranean Boat Cruise

Sara had planned a day cruise for everyone attending the wedding. The meeting point for the cruise was at the wedding venue at Katerina Estates. The plan was to load into two 12 passenger vans, drive to Lefkimmi port, board a boat and cruise, swim and eat all day. That’s a pretty good gig.

We left our apartment at 7:20am, intent on walking to the central square of Corfu Town to catch a taxi to the Katerina Estate, with arrival time about 8:15am. When we rounded the corner of our apartment building a taxi was waiting for potential customers, in this case, us. 

The woman driver was happy to have customers and quickly we were on our way. After about 15 minutes we came to the turn up to the Achellion Palace, very near the wedding venue. The driver did not make the turn. Instead she went straight while saying, “I want to show you something, it will only take a minute.” She drove us to her home town just a few minutes away and proudly drove its’ narrow streets, point out the town square, the philharmonic and other sites she was proud of. A few minutes later we returned to the main road, back to the turn off and up to the ridge that the Achellion Palace and the Katerina Estate share. We had her drop us at the Palace. 

We walked down the other side of the ridge until we found the gate and drive up to Katerina Estate and began walking up.

The driveway makes 6 tight, steep switchbacks up the hill to the estate. Had we known more, we would have had the taxi drive us up. We finally summited and found the estate to our right. Goodness!! What an amazing place. The position is amazing, as are the grounds and the villa. Even though it is perched right on the narrow ridge, there is ample level ground for spacious lawns and patios, a swimming pool and a tennis court.

We knocked on the door. Andrew answered. We introduced ourselves. Andrew led us in through the main hall and out the back to a patio with tables chairs and a view looking out over the northwestern part of the island. He offered us water. One by one the couples of the wedding party appeared on the patio and we got a chance to meet nearly everyone. Andrew’s parents were at the airport picking up two couples flying in from Athens. This was Ron and Terri, Dan and Monic. With Bill and Sharon, Andrew’s parents, they had chartered a sail boat and had spent the previous week sailing in the Aegean Sea. As they made their way back to the villa, we loaded into two vans and headed down the steep driveway. Andrew was coordinating a meeting point at his and Sara’s villa, just below theirs.

All the parents, except Alan and Heidi drove in the one van with Andrew. All the “kids” drove in the other van.  It gave Sally and I a chance to get to know Ben and Sharon and their friends.

At the dock we piled out of the vans and into our “party boat” for the day. Quickly underway, we had a DJ on the upper deck playing tunes constantly, a couple deck hands and the captain. We headed over to the Greek mainland, our first stop at a large cave big enough to drive the party boat into.  

Next it was the Blue Beach. We pulled into a sparkling turquoise bay, set anchor and swam for the next hour and a half. The water was comfortably warm and crystal clear with a large grain sandy beach. 

Lunch of Greek Salad and Grilled Soulvaki and we set sail for a seaside Greek village that has since become a tourist boat (such as ours) destination. We had about 45 minutes to walk the town and look in all the trinket shops before we headed for another beach and more swimming. During this time we got to know everyone that much better. It was a splendid day.

We returned to the island of Corfu about 5:00pm, road back to the villa the parents had rented and were sharing. Sally and I were prepared to hire a taxi to get us back home, but the van driver said they could drop us in Corfu Town. Perfect.

The van dropped us on the west end of Old Corfu. We walked back through town to our apartment, satisfied with a thoroughly enjoyable day and pleased with Sara’s choice of a partner and the entourage that accompanies him. All kind, quality people.

Day 25-Friday, June 18, 2021 - Hiking the Corfu Trail - Day 14 - The Final Three Miles - 3.0 miles - What a Great Way to End a Magnificent Hike!

Is this our last early morning? I hope so. I hope not.  Yes, it is tough getting up before it is light out, rubbing the sleep out of your eyes, trying to get your body and brain to come back to full time employment. But, the cool air, the quiet of the world, the early morning light, the sunrise, the sense of getting the world off to a great start. Those can’t be gotten any other way. I love the early mornings, and luckily, when on adventures such as this, so does Sally.

Our alarm was set for 5:00am, but as usual, I was awake half an hour before. We got up and packed, our morning routine. Each of us double checked the room for left items, under the bed, in the bathroom, in the cabinets, out on the deck. At Paramonas a week earlier we had left our guide book in the room. We chastised ourselves for days, trying to figure out how we could have left it. I had a vague memory of haphazardly putting it in my pack, watching it slide out onto the floor and thinking, I’ll get that in a minute when I come out of the bathroom.” I must have forgotten. Five days later, Sally found it in the side pocket of her travel bag. We hadn’t left it at all, but its supposed loss made us extra vigilant about checking the room to be certain we had not left anything.  

The taxi pulled up about 5:50am and we headed out the door. It was a younger kid driving, about 23-25 years old. The ride was only about 5 miles, but in walking terms, that is better than two hours. It took us about 10 minutes in the car.

We were a little squeezed for time this morning. Having the taxi drop us off at the end of the trail, we were at the farthest distance from the bus stops. Hiking it backwards, we were hiking towards the bus stop. I had measured about 4.4 miles back to the first bus stop from the end. We started walking about 6:15am, giving us about three and a half hours to hike the trail and the road back to the bus route. Plenty of time, but we wanted to savor these last steps and enjoy the sunrise on this northern most point of land on Corfu.

We found the trail and followed it along the coast line. Here the coast is solid limestone, weathered by the waves into a million solid rock daggers pointing upwards. 

Not a beach for sunbathing, but the trail is just above the wave high water mark and for the most part easy walking, except for long stretches where the bedrock sticks up through the dirt requiring careful foot placements to avoid twisting an ankle.

We started before the sun rise, and were presented with its arrival as we moved westward, giving us wonderful lighting with the early morning sun on our backs. We tried to draw out this portion of the hike as long as possible, stopping for photos and a snack and just to admire our position on the planet. Life is indeed good.

Too soon, we were back on roads and making our way to Acharavi. We tried hitchhiking again, but with only 1.5 miles to walk and feeling fresh after a night’s sleep, we weren’t too worried about success. One guy in a pickup slowed down and in very broken English asked how far we were going. When I said Acharavi, he said he was turning off before that and drove away.

We achieved the first bus stop, but it was only 8:45am and was outside of town. We decided to walk further until we were in town and could sit at a sidewalk cafe to wait for our bus. Another 20 minutes and we were there. We ordered a big sugar donut, a Coke and a water. Sally had some things she needed at the store, and there was a good sized one across the street. She spent the next 40 minutes making trips to stores finding what she wanted.

At 9:35am, she saw a Green Bus go by and got to worrying that it might have been early and we had missed it. We moved from cafe to bus stop and waited. At 10:05am our bus went past on the other side of the street, disappeared for abut 10 minutes, then reappeared coming our way. For 7.20 euro, we had a seat, our packs in the hold below and we were on our way to Corfu Town.

The bus dropped us in downtown Corfu, a place we had visited before on the day before we started our hike while waiting for the bus to Kavos. We navigated to our new home for 5 nights, an AirB&B overlooking the port where the cruise ships and ferries dock. 

We found the building, it matching the photos the owner had emailed us, but couldn’t get in the door. I called to let her know we were outside the door. She answered, then yelled down from the third floor balcony of the apartment, directly over us.

I had texted her the day before we were planning to catch the 10:00am bus and should be there about noon. I texted her this morning saying we had caught the bus and should be there about noon. I was guessing at the length of the bus ride and the time it would take us to walk to the building from the bus stop. Checking the phone log on my iPhone as I write this, I see I called her at 11:57am.  Pretty good guesswork and timing.

Litsa was wonderful. A 72 year old widow living outside Corfu, I am guessing this is the apartment her and her late husband shared. She has done a wonderful job of decorating and providing every little detail to her guest, soap, laundry soap, sugar, salt pepper, spices, beer and sodas, a tin of cookies, drying racks, and so much more. She was kind, helpful . . . simply-lovely.

Once Litsa left, we had a couple missions-wash all our clothes and then head to town to find Sally some shoes for the wedding and maybe a new dress. The washing machine is one of those annoying front loaders that takes over an hour to wash a load so we were stuck in the apartment for a couple hours. Once we got our clothes on the drying rack we headed to town. I went to put on my sandals and couldn’t find them. Now that I thought about it, I did not remember taking them out of my pack. Really? How could I have left them at our last place? We both double and triple checked everywhere before we left. Jeepers!! Oh well, we were headed to town to do some shopping, add new Teva’s for Chuck to the list of items. I put my hiking shoes back on, with wet socks that had not had time to dry after the washing and we were out the door.

On our way to the center of town, we passed a shoe shop specializing in active footwear. I found a nice pair of Teva Sandals for 50 euro. That was quick. We spent another couple hours shopping (actually, Sally was shopping, I was hanging outside the stores texting with Sara about where to meet for the bus ride to Lefkimmi in the morning for the prewedding boat cruise and checking bus schedules for routes to Achellion Palace, adjacent to the Ekaterina Villa where the bridal party was staying and where the wedding would take place).

I thought I had a bus route and time all picked out, but I wanted to stop by the bus ticket office and confirm. It was now 4:30pm. I assumed they would close at 5:00pm on a Friday and not open again until Monday. I interrupted Sally’s shopping to have us walk there. It was a good thing I did. The Saturday bus schedule is pared way down from the weekday schedule in normal times, and pared even more due to COVID. The websites and printed materials are not up to date with the changes. I had planned for us to ride bus route 10 at 7:30am to the Achellion Palace, arriving about 8:00am for the ride to the docks by shuttle bus at 8:45am with Sara, Andrew and the bridal party, parents and parent’s friends. At the bus station we found the first bus didn’t run until 10:00am. So much for riding a bus. A line of taxis was sitting across the street. I asked one of the drivers sitting in his car about a ride in the morning and the cost. He quoted 20 euro and said call the station about 10 minutes before you want a ride. Done.

I’ve left you hanging regarding Sally’s quest for wedding gear. She found a pair of shoes to match her dress, deciding not to get a new dress in the process. Still entertaining the thought, we tried a couple more stores and a couple more dresses, to no avail.

We walked back home, stopping at a fruit and vegetable stand for food, and the grocery just around the corner for a few more items to stock our shelves.

Fried sausage, potatoes, onions and scrambled eggs for dinner, writing and posting to Facebook and the day was done.

Other that a lost pair of Tevas, the day was a success. We spent a few minutes congratulating ourselves on the way in which all our lodgings, transportations and timings had worked out during the past 3 and a half weeks. With all the hotel changes, taxi rides, flights and bus trips during the apocalypse, we were happy that they had all worked as we had planned. We are now in the final phase of our trip, the wedding. That starts tomorrow with a boat trip with the wedding party. Onward!!

Day 24-Thursday, June 17, 2021 - Hiking the Corfu Trail - Day 13 - Spartina to Acharavi - 14.7 miles - Why Are We Staying There?

There is a big difference between sitting in your nice warm home in a nice comfy chair judging distances on a map and considering those same distances after hiking 14 miles. That little line drawn on the map when fully rested and drinking tea contains different meanings than that little line viewed through weary eyes supported by tired legs. So . . . remind me again why we decided to stay at the hotel 2.5 miles off the Corfu Trail?

Enacting the plan conceived a few days ago, our taxi arrived at 6:15am this morning to drive us back up the 1500 vertical feet from Barbati to Spartila where we would once again set foot on the Corfu Trail, headed north. I have ridden in more taxis on this trip than in the entire rest of my life!

Our driver was talkative and a very good driver, getting us to our destination quickly while discussing his opinion that COVID is a political ploy by the British to economically bury the Greeks, an opinion expressed by many of the Greeks we meet (all in the service industry, all hurting very badly financially). As is typical, he stopped his car right in the middle of the road with no concern for other drivers, helped us unload our packs, gave us some advice, then calmly got back in and drove away. Of course, at 6:25am, there was no one else on the road, but make no mistake, he would not have changed his delivery method if there had been.

The trail wound up steeply through a neighborhood, squeezing between houses, angling up and to the right. 

The mountain loomed above us, and we could see on the map the contour lines were tightly grouped together. It was steep. Luckily, whoever built this trail did not run it perpendicular to these contour lines, they made short switchbacks up the slope, making the ascent more palatable. All the way up we had magnificent views out over the water to Corfu Town and the middle section of the island. Of course, it was right at sunrise, so the lighting was magnificent. 

We had about 1000’ to climb. 

The trail was in ernest about getting their and before an hour was up, we had climbed the first 800’. On top was a small Orthodox Church in a state of near ruin. It was painful to see the inside. 

There was no longer a roof, but there were frescos painted on the walls and behind the alter. Just a piano in an old building?

We still had a couple hundred feet to climb, but instead of tackling a steep rocky trail, we gained the elevation over a mile, climbing a little walking across a flat area, climbing a little more then more flats. 

The brush was thick in places and it was hard to stay on the trail. We got off trail a number of times and had to consult the GPS to get back on track. Someone free ranges cows up here. We could hear the cow bells and heard dogs at a distance through the brush, but the biggest sign (and I mean biggest) were the cow pies everywhere and the flys they attracted. We were looking for a place to sit down and have a mid morning snack but the flys kept us going for at least 20 more minutes until we cleared their domain. At times the trail was on dirt and easy walking. Other times it was across angular and pitted chunks of limestone, some loose boulders and rocks, some  solid bedrock sticking up through the grasses. These sections made for slow going as Sally cautiously and wisely picked her way through them.

The trail became a road and we road walked for a couple miles, imperceptibly sloped downhill. At this point my map showed the CT continuing down the road another half mile, then plunging over the side of the road as a trail. 

But, clearly marked on a 4” diameter steel pipe sticking out of the ground was our yellow CT emblem pointing us off the road here. The way down off the road looked steep. Hoping for a easier trail, we opted to continue down the road. Not a good decision. 

We found the trail down there thickly overgrown and obviously not in use for a number of years. We attempted to follow it, but Sally’s legs were getting cut up quickly with the abrasive vegetation. We retreated back to the road and walked the half mile back to the other turnoff.

It is amazing how much a wrong turn and a need to retreat deflates ones ambition. Before the retreat, we were feeling enthusiastic and upbeat, envisioning lunch in a Taverna just 30 minutes away down in Old Perithia. The half mile down and back, combined with flailing in the brush for 15 minutes set us back over an hour. We were hungry, now suddenly tired and mentally dejected. Once we were back at the correct turnoff we rested for five minutes, then started down the trail. The 50-100 feet next to the road is always the worst. It is steep, owing to the debris thrown over the hill when making the road cut into the mountainside. Once over the road debris the trail became less severe and we were able to pick up our pace a little.

Something happened in this section of trail that had not happened in the previous 80 miles-we met people on the trail. First a young German couple climbing the mountain and then a group of four men, two Germans being guided by two Greeks.

Once in Old Perithia we seated ourselves in Thomas’ Taverna. Sally downed a Coke and a beer. I downed two Cokes, then we had Greek Salad and a chicken pie thingy. Both delicious. But, as usual, we were the only ones in the Taverna.

The food helped revive our bodies and our spirits. Before the drink and solids talk was heard of a cab down to the bottom. After, we were all about walking the 5 miles down to the sea shore and then the 2.5 miles west to the room we had previously rented.

Much of the downhill on actual trail is very steep and usually gullied badly from erosion so the trail is more like a ditch.

 Very difficult to walk in. Looking at the map and our descent to the sea shore I noticed the trail descended sharply over closely spaced contour lines, signaling another troublesome stretch of trail. To our delight, that portion of the trail was beautifully constructed, switchbacking down the slope with an excellent even grade and a wide tread. Whew! Further down we got off trail a few times and had to search for it on the steep hillside under the olive trees in the tall grass, but about 4:45pm we hit the main east-wear road across the north end of the island. 

The trail continues across the road and follows the shoreline east for another three miles, but that would have to wait for tomorrow. Our room for the night lay 2.5 miles west. We set off to cover that distance. 

Hitchhiking is not unlawful, but we had heard that no one would pick us up. We decided to try to snag a ride as we walked west to Acharavi and our hotel. It was about 5:00pm. There was a little traffic, about equal in both directions. We had to switch sides of the highway for safety; at times, the shoulder would get too narrow to walk along on the right side. We had not gone more than half a mile with a small car stopped for us, right in the middle of the highway. We scurried over to it. As I climbed in I was surprised to see a early 30’s woman in the driver’s seat with what appeared to be her daughter, about 5 or 6 years old in the passenger’s seat. With our packs in our laps, we were on our way. It is interesting how the Greeks feel totally at ease to stop in the middle of the highway, for whatever reason. Having watched the traffic over the last month I see that people consider the road a fluid pathway and know that people will work around anything, regardless of where the white lines on the road are.

I watched our progress on the GPS as we approached Acharavi. She spoke no English, but indicated she was stopping in town, about 1/2 mile from where we wanted to be. She turned into a parking space on the opposite side of the road in front of a grocery store. We thanked her profusely as we got out. She pulled back into the street long enough to back into a parking place in the same spot. 

I went into the store to buy a drink and bananas while Sally sat on the steps leading up to the store.

 When I came out, Sally pointed out her car. I walked over and slipped a 5 euro note under her windshield wiper and we started off down the road, pleased at the time and distance saved by the ride.

As we walked up the main road another 1/4 miles to our turn I spotted a bakery. Channeling Bill Caldwell, I made a beeline for it. Inside I found Baclava and bought two large triangular pieces, then continued on our way.

The main road is about 3/8 of a mile from the beach. We turned down a side road and walked to the small road fronting the beach, turned left and soon were at Sunset Rose Apartments. It was startling to see about 20 people hanging around the pool, all under the age of 30. We had not seen this many people gathered at a pool, ever. Hesitantly (on my part being self conscious about our dirty appearance and carrying packs into an obvious pool party) we entered and found the manager/owner. He directly us right to our room. Later I went down and arranged for a 6:00 am taxi pickup. We planned to be dropped at the end of the trail at Agios Spiridon Beach and then hike the last 3 miles backward around the northern point of the island, then another mile and a half (the same chunk of road as last night) back to the outskirts of Acharavi where we would catch the 10:00am bus to Corfu town.

Showers, a little clothes washing and Baclava for dinner and then a magnificent sunset over the Ionian Sea and day was done. 

Day 23-Wednesday, June 16, 2021 - Hiking the Corfu Trail - Day 12 - Sokraki to Spartina - 3.05 miles - Chasing the Durrells, A Gift of Time

Today was to be another split day, like the past two. Here is the scenario. 

Of the ten stages of this hike, we are on stage 9. To do this stage, we should hike from Sokraki to Old Perithia and spend the night there. Problem is, Old Perithia is a high end place with only one place to stay and it exceeds $300 a night. It is kind of weird because Old Perthia is the oldest settlement on Corfu, a collection of old stone buildings set in a valley 1500’ up in the mountains above the sea (it was established there so pirates marauding around the Ionian Sea could not see them where if their village was on the shoreline the pirates killed the men and raped the women). The buildings are centuries old, mostly in ruins, yet the one that someone gussied up is very expensive. 

Anyway, if we skip Old Perithia, the next place to stay is at the end of the trail, another 5 or 6 miles on, making a 15 or 16 mile day-plus the trail climbs over the highest mountain on its way to Old Perithia. So we decided to break it up this way-hike 3 miles from Sokraki to Spartina, then leave the trail (1500’ elevation) and hike down to Barbati on the coast to spend the night (no accommodations in Spartina). In the morning, take a taxi back up to Spartina, hike up over the mountain, drop into Old Perithia about lunch time and continue on to the end of the trail making the last day about 12-14 miles. 

The hike to Spartina was nearly flat on dirt and paved roads past farms and allotments brimming with grapes, fruit trees and vegetables. 

We reached Spartina in about two hours. Walking down this one lane road town that clings to the side of the mountain we had spectacular views south to Corfu Town as we started our descent. On a narrow corner, only one vehicle wide, a white van passed us and I heard banging on the inside of the windows. It was our German group of yesterday busing back to Spartina to start their day of hiking to Old Perithia. We chuckled at the coincidence as we had just hiked past the trail where they would be let off. 

I stopped at a small grocery for a couple bananas and an apple and mentioned to Sally that we could catch a ride in their van as it returned back down the mountain. A banana later, their van came creeping around the corner. I flagged down the driver  

 He stopped and said sure, he would be happy to give us a ride to the bottom. That just saved us 4 miles and 1500’ of descent, not to mention 2 or 3 hours. The road switchbacks down the hill 10 or 15 times to reach the bottom. At the intersection with the main coastal highway he was turning right, going back to Corfu Town. 

We were headed left to Barbati and our room at Ranata Apartments. We thanked him for the ride, offered to pay him (he refused) and he was gone. We were about 2 miles from Ranata. The coastal road is narrow and twisty with very narrow shoulders, where it has any. We debated hitching or walking, which was worse. We settled on walking and began our death defying stroll down this narrow road. 

Fortunately, there was little traffic due to the pandemic and we were able to switch sides of the road to be on the outside of corners and avoid the side with the guardrail that would pinch us between car and the railing. 

We arrived at our room about 10:00am. They let us in! Sally showered and we considered our gift-an unexpected whole day. We had wanted to come north later in the week between wedding activities and search for Durrell Family residences. This we could do today. We decided to seek out a scooter rental and look for Larry Durrells “White House” and the families first or second home just north of Corfu town. But first, I walked back up to the grocery store on the highway above us and asked the manager to order a taxi for us for 6:15am tomorrow morning to get us back to Spartina. He also knew of a scooter rental place half a mile further north on the main highway. We gathered a few items in my daypack and headed up the highway. 

The rental place would not rent me a scooter. No motorcycle certification on my driver’s license. No International Drivers Permit. However, he would rent us a car. We drove away in a Suzuki, heading up to Kalami Bay, where Larry’s White House sits right on the water. 

Traffic was light, yet I was again contending with Greek drivers, this time on a narrow, twisting road clinging to the mountain side along the coast. Before cell phones and GPS Sally was an awesome navigator using road maps. But, with the advent of GPS, the duty partly rests with the driver watching the GPS screen and listening to the directions and partly with the co-pilot I. The passengers seat. We had a few mishaps along the way as we fine tuned our  roles, but it was all good and we soon turned down to Kalami Bay. 

We parked after passing thru the narrow tourist shop district and walked to the White house it is fitting that Larry’s house is an upscale restaurant and place to stay as Larry always considered himself and intellectual and a cut above the rabble.

 Of course, with England not allowing its citizens to travel to Greece, the restaurant, capable of seating about 100 had two customers. 

We snapped some photos and then drove off for Old Perithia. It was not what we expected, but interesting. We walk through most of it, knowing we would be hiking through tomorrow.

In the car again, we retraced our route and headed for the northern outskirts of Corfu City to locate the Durrell family house and hopefully the house they used in the TV series. 

We wound back down the mountain and stopped at a restaurant in Perithia at the bottom. Again, the restaurant was empty except for two ladies. We ordered souvlaki and a Greek salad. It was really slow in coming, but delicious when it finally made its way to the table. With bread, pita bread with a dipping sauce and a 1.5 liter bottle of water, 14.00.  Amazingly inexpensive.

We drove the 45 minutes south, Sally searching the web on her phone for information as to the location of the Durrell’s former houses, me trying to avoid contact with everything outside the car.

Sally found some key words that pointed us where to look, and soon we were on a side road on a pennisula just north of the city. I guess it wasn’t that hard because the house they lived in has a plaque on the wall adjoining the driveway and gate “Durrell Villa”. It is for rent as a B&B or long term. Now to find the house used as the set for the show. Where to look. Where to look. I started to drive away and Sally went back to her research. We hadn’t gone 100 yards when she read, “The house used in the TV series is two doors down from the Lemon House the Durrells stayed in.”

 The abandoned looking property we had parked in front of was the place we were looking for. Of course, the gate was locked, but if you have seen the series you know it sits right on the sea with a big rock wall abutting the salt water. We drove a little closer to the beach access, walked down the beach and BOOM-there is was. 

The rock wall, the house sitting on top, beautiful. When I watched the series I truly admired the house’s setting and the yard and grounds around it. Seeing it in the flesh did not disappoint. I had to wade out into the water to get back far enough to get a decent picture. With mission accomplished, we headed back to Ranata to return the rented car and prepare for the hike tomorrow. 

I dropped Sally off at the room, then drove the extra 3/4 mile north to drop off the car. On the walk back, at 6:00pm, I passed restaurant after restaurant-hundreds of tables, all empty. Poor Greece and in particular poor Corfu. 

Their economy is total based on a tourist industry that does not exist right now. I am truly concerned for the people of this island. I do not know how they can make it through. We heard the EU is opening to tourists next week, but with the English unable to come to Corfu, these people are in serious economic trouble. One of our cab drivers was pointing out the restaurants that were closed and would not be reopening.

Back in the room, I blogged, Sally read and researched, we watched a few nights of Stephen Colbert and with a 6:15am taxi coming in the morning, we were asleep.

Finding the Durrell’s homes and the movie set house reminded me of locating John Muir’s grave near Martinez, CA. It is fun to research, then search and be successful. What a great day! We scored a knee saving ride down a big hill, giving us a full day we wouldn’t have had without it and got to explore a little bit. We both agree, we prefer walking to driving any day, hands down. But today, the couple hours of driving served two purposes, let us find the Durrell homes and remind us how much we dislike vacationing via car. A fruitful day.