I awoke reasonably early in the tent after a pretty good sleep. It was a beautiful still and clear morning and before I did anything else I checked to make sure the boat was OK….
The yacht was still anchored securely.
I had picked-up a few eggs, bacon and milk the evening before in readiness for brekky and the fresh bread was due in around 8am. I brewed up a tasty stovetop espresso and prepared everything else to cook once the bread had arrived and relaxed.
After the first coffee I went and bought a couple of bread rolls and butter and came back and fried up some bacon and egg for the rolls. Another coffee and it was a very satisfying breakfast.
Mmmmmm bacon and egg rolls with coffee.
The only thing I was missing was some BBQ sauce.
After the wonderful breakfast and with no need to rush off anywhere…..
I had a little relax in the hammock.
Thanks Susan and Johnny.
I couldn't recline all day in the hammock so I readied myself and rode to Methoni Castle. The Pylos Castle is arguably more well known than Methoni's, which may only be because it is a little easier to access, or because Pylos is a much larger township. The report I had from my Polish UK motorcyclist neighbours was that after seeing both, Methoni was by far better.
I arrived at Methoni Castle after an enjoyable ride south from Gialova and it seemed deserted. I parked close to the entry and wandered in. The first noticeable aspect of Methoni Caste is that it is free entry and may not be controlled at any time, and secondly that safety barriers and risk prevention are a minor consideration.
Methoni Castle is the at the southernmost tip of the western Peloponnese and has an amazing vantage point.
The Castle was protected by a moat cut to connect the sea with the bay.
Once inside you are free to walk around, and on top, and inside the castle ruins. In some places you can negotiate tunnels and in others climb high on the walls above the rocky sea below.
Emerging from one of the tunnels.
The view out of the tunnel over the moat.
Can you see the safety fence?
The entry bridge over the moat.
There is not much left of this tower.
Wildlife.
The view to Bourtzi.
On top of the outer castle wall.
On top of internal walls.
Some arches have fallen.
The internal streets of Methoni.
Within the ruins the streets were obvious. They were distinct and much lower than the surrounding ground.
Outside of Methoni Castle is the very small fortified islet of Bourtzi. When the Turks came and occupied Methoni many of the soldiers and residents were slaughtered here. Bourtzi is accessed by a stone walkway and small bridge from a gate in the Methoni Castle wall.
Bourtzi through the gate.
View back to Methoni Castle wall from Bourtzi.
I thought the view back to Methoni Castle from Bourtzi was quite pleasant and I set up the tripod to take a quick timer photo of myself…….
Luckily I caught the camera before it fell about 8m to the stones below…
The wind was blowing enough to topple the camera over and I raced to catch it in case it fell over the edge of the wall to the stone walkway below. My apologies for the blurry photo.
I set up again with stable footing.
Methoni Castle is an interesting ruin both for what it is and how freely you can roam around. It was a different experience to be able to climb up and over parts, down and into tunnels and generally wherever you wanted.
That's my bike outside Methoni Castle.
After the Methoni Castle I headed back to Pylos picked up a couple of things in the supermarket and then had a very simple lunch - gyros! Pylos was very quiet so I finished lunch and continued back to Erodios Camp for the afternoon.
Pylos Square
Pylos Harbour.
Back at Erodios Camp and since I had purchased some washing detergent in Pylos I decided I would see how many of my clothes would fit into the washing machine at the campground. I could just about get everything into the machine in one load so it was a great chance to wash clothes that hadn't had a proper was for quite some time. I am not sure how 'proper' the wash was since it only took about 45mins - better than nothing I suppose.
I strung out the washing and relaxed.
I read a little while the washing dried.
I checked the yacht - all fine.
I walked into Gialova for dinner in the new Olympian sandals. It was only about 1600m but the sandals have shone they need some more gently wearing-in and softening up. It was a blistering walk.
I found a restaurant that seemed reasonably popular and settled in for some tasty anchovies and caesar salad.
A pleasant dinner in Gialova.
It had been a good day with home duties and sightseeing satisfactorily undertaken. Tomorrow I would be packing up camp and moving on.