Greek Waters Pilot by Rod Heikell question - Old revision vs new

[ilya t]

Hello!

I am planning to cruise the Greek islands in early September. My first trip to Greece.

I've purchased and started to study a copy of Rod Heikell's "Greek Waters Pilot", which seems to be the ultimate resource for the area...
The only issue is - the copy I found is quite old - a 1987 revision...

I'm assuming that a lot has changed since then. Has this book been updated a lot since 1987? What is the latest revision and is it different enough to justify buying the latest copy? They are not cheap, so I don't want to do it unless there is a good reason to...

Thanks!
-ilya

[robert sailor]

Well obviously there will have been changes but if your using it as a basic guide for anchorages you will probably find not too much has changed. Our world has been taken over with digital everything so you will come up short on that end. By the same token you can buy a Greek dongle that plugs into your laptop and you can get a whole lot of additional info from the internet in almost all the islands. Mine is 2007 and we have not found anything that has changed that has had any effect on our cruising. Enjoy your Greek holiday, we have spent the last year or so doing the same thing, very pretty area and wonderful people.

[ilya t]

Thank you so much, Robert!

I understand that the harbor shapes and depths probably did not change very much in the last 26 years, however, I'm sure the some facilities have, and - perhaps - some places got a lot more developed and popular since then...

Can you elaborate on the internet thing?
Are there good web site that you use?

Thanks!

[Deepdraft]

Just returned from Greece - 10 days on a friends 31' Moody. Departed Corfu Gouvia Marina for Lakka and Gaios on Paxos Island, returning to Stefanos, (Northern Corfu), then back to Gouvia. The latest Heikell book was available at a small chandlery at the Gouvia Marina, we used an older copy with success.

Have fun!

[robert sailor]

Well as you know everything is available on the net. Most of the Islands have some sort of website or noonsite has an article on them. Local weather is available on several different sites including grib files. Some folks like Windfinder but I have found Poseidon weather one of the better ones, at least for the Cyclades. Hope this helps.

[athene]

Originally Posted by ilya t

Thank you so much, Robert!

I understand that the harbor shapes and depths probably did not change very much in the last 26 years, however, I'm sure the some facilities have, and - perhaps - some places got a lot more developed and popular since then...

Can you elaborate on the internet thing?
Are there good web site that you use?

Thanks!

Frankly, I think you'd feel more reassured if you invested in the latest pilot book. You wouldn't plan a foreign car holiday with an out-of-date map, would you?

There is, however, a lot of free information on the World Cruising and Sailing Wiki (World Cruising and Sailing Wiki - a Cruising Guide on the World Cruising and Sailing Wiki) if you're really determined to save money. The Ionian area was updated just last year, so it's more up-to-date than Heikell at the moment.

GORDON KNIGHT

[LifePart2]

I second Gordon's idea about the cruiserswiki.

For the last 2 years I have been cruising through Greece and Turkey without a pilot book at all - I just used the info in the cruiserswiki.org. If you do use that and find it helpful please also remember to update it or, at the very least, add your visit date so that other people know the info is up to date.

Quite frankly, I don't like the Heikel books anyway - much too focused on marinas and harbours rather than anchorages which we prefer.

[jckb]

Originally Posted by ilya t

the copy I found is quite old - a 1987 revision...

I'm assuming that a lot has changed since then.

The main changes are harbour additions. Such as the addition of new quaysides or new jetties, a few new marinas or marina frameworks, some extra pontoons, and some added facilities such as electricity points or laid lines.

Since 1987 this has converted quite a few harbours into safe havens - and made many others more convenient, and safer places to leave the boat for a day while you explore ashore.

Changes up to last year are noted in the harbour paragraphs at North Ionian | JimB Sail and similar pages for other areas of Greece.

JimB

[LifePart2]

Actually, I meant to say that I also use JimB's site for our trip planning. That and cruiserswiki.org has worked fine for us. Don't need a pilot book.

[ilya t]

Thank you guys!
VERY helpful.

-ilya

[Anders]

Our boat is based in Preveza and we sail primarily in the inland Ionian.
Checked the cruiserswiki.org but in that area it does not compare with Heikells guide to the Ionian.
The wiki has few ports and anchorages, little information about them, no sketches of ports or anchorages, none of the hand drawn "maps" that shows you where the main areas of interest are and the few shallows, they are very useful for navigation...
Can't find any reference to the shallows between Meganisi and Scorpios, that is one of the few navigation hazards in the area, it's also in what is probably the most sailed areas in Greece.
The whole Greece guide is big, heavy and probably expensive. If the area is covered in one of Heikell's guide for that area I would get the area guide that is smaller, lighter, cheaper and has a bit more information.