09:30 EEST from Gouvia, Corfu. Mid-morning, after the rest day at Gouvia.
Arrive
About 16:38 EEST at Othonoi. In the early afternoon, with about 3 hours 35 minutes of daylight in hand (sunset 20:14 EEST).
Tides
Range about 0.1 m: no practical effect
Wind
The north-westerly is on the bow round the north of Corfu
Boat
35 to 38 ft sailing yacht, 1.9 m draught, 6 kn under sail, 5.5 kn under engine
Crew
Skipper and 3 crew, 2 watches of 2
Track and waypoints 1 to 5, with ports of refuge as squares.
Go or no-go
Decide at 08:30 EEST. Go only if all of these hold:
No wind above force 5.
Berth or anchorage at Othonoi confirmed with the port police.
Transit Log or crew list in order for leaving Greece: see the next leg.
If the weather is wrong, stay at Gouvia. The weather day before the crossing is held at Othonoi.
Route and waypoints
Waypoints are planning positions in open water, checked against a 1:10m coastline to be at least 1 nm off land except at the harbour ends. Distances and courses are calculated from them. Plot every one on the current chart before use. Courses are true.
#
Waypoint
Latitude
Longitude
Course
Leg nm
Total nm
ETA
Notes
0
Gouvia Marina
39°38.9′N
019°51.2′E
09:30 EEST
Depart.
1
Gouvia approach
39°39.0′N
019°52.5′E
084°T
1.0
1.0
09:45 EEST
Out of the bay.
2
North Corfu channel
39°45.0′N
019°57.0′E
030°T
6.9
7.9
10:54 EEST
Greek side of the channel.
3
Off Peristeres
39°50.2′N
019°57.0′E
000°T
5.2
13.1
11:46 EEST
Off the north-east tip of Corfu.
4
North of Corfu
39°51.6′N
019°45.0′E
279°T
9.3
22.5
13:20 EEST
2.5 nm off the north coast.
5
Othonoi approach
39°50.5′N
019°25.0′E
266°T
15.4
37.9
16:25 EEST
East of Ammos. Check on the chart
6
Othonoi, Ammos
39°50.2′N
019°24.2′E
244°T
0.7
38.6
16:38 EEST
Harbour or anchorage. Position approximate. Check on the chart
Tides and time
Gouvia, Corfu · Wed 1 Sep · EEST (UTC+3)
LW
05:39
0.1 m
HW
11:24
0.3 m
LW
17:34
0.1 m
From the Kerkyra station.
Othonoi · Wed 1 Sep · EEST (UTC+3)
LW
05:39
0.1 m
HW
11:24
0.3 m
LW
17:34
0.1 m
From the Kerkyra station.
Wednesday 1 September 2027. Tides. The range here is 0.1 to 0.3 m: tides make no practical difference. Wind and air pressure move the sea level more than the tide does.
Both ends use the Kerkyra station.
Tide times are predictions made for this plan from the TICON-4 harmonic constants (DGFI-TUM) with the Neaps tide predictor, because the official 2027 tables were not yet published when it was written. Tested against the official APDL table for Leixões on 23 July 2026, the predicted times were within 8 minutes and the heights 0.1 to 0.2 m lower. Heights are above lowest astronomical tide. Check every time against the official 2027 table before sailing.
Daylight. Sunrise at Gouvia 07:09 EEST. Sunset at Othonoi 20:14 EEST.
Weather
North of Corfu the north-westerly is felt fully.
Othonoi is small and exposed; Ammos faces south.
Forecasts to check
Hellenic National Meteorological Service (emy.gr): marine forecast for the North Ionian.
NAVTEX Kerkyra: station K on 518 kHz in English, at 01:40, 05:40, 09:40, 13:40, 17:40 and 21:40 UTC, with weather at 05:40, 09:40, 17:40 and 21:40.
Kerkyra Radio covers the Ionian Sea east to 22°30'E; urgent warnings go out first on DSC 70, then on VHF 16.
Hazards
The border. The Greece to Albania line runs through the North Corfu channel; keep to the Greek side.
Othonoi harbours. Ammos has a port office; a small port at Avlakia takes fishing boats and yachts. Depths could not be checked. Check the pilot book
Ferries from Corfu to the Diapontia islands.
Ports of refuge
Port
From the route
Use it when
Notes
Gouvia
Start
Within the first hour
Marina.
Kassiopi
Waypoint 3
Weather turns
Small harbour. Check the pilot book
Erikoussa
6 nm east of Othonoi
Othonoi full
Small port.
Pilotage
Leaving Gouvia
Leave the marina and head north up the Greek side of the channel.
Into Othonoi
Approach Ammos from the east.
Call the port police for a place, or anchor off in settled weather. Check the pilot book
Lights on the way
Peristeres (Corfu)
Fl R 5s, 23 m
Othonoi, Kastri
Fl 10s; height reported as 103 m or 13 m
Communications
Othonoi port office
Check on the chart
Gouvia Marina
VHF 69 · +30 2661 099500
Hellenic Coast Guard
VHF 16 · 108
Emergency
112
Coast Guard working channel
VHF 12
Contingencies
Ammos untenable. Go to Erikoussa.
Person overboard. Shout, point, throw the danger buoy, press MOB, DSC distress alert, Mayday on 16.
Before leaving
Forecasts read and logged before the go or no-go time
Italian notices to mariners (Avvisi ai naviganti) checked for the route
Waypoints entered and checked against the chart
Ship's log started in UTC
Crew briefing: route, watches, safety gear, MOB, fog
Othonoi place confirmed
Fuel for 5 hours under engine, plus a reserve
Water, food and hot drinks for 6 hours
Lifejackets with crotch straps, jackstays rigged, harnesses
Liferaft, grab bag, flares in date, handheld VHF
Radar, AIS and navigation lights tested
Passports, boat papers and insurance aboard
Sources
Othonoi, Erikoussa and Mathraki: English Wikipedia.
NAVTEX and Kerkyra Radio: Hellenic Navy Hydrographic Service, hnhs.gr.
Lefkas Marina: d-marin.com.
Tides: predictions from TICON-4 harmonic constants (Hart-Davis, Dettmering and Seitz, DGFI-TUM, 2025, doi 10.17882/109129) with Neaps (openwaters.io). Check against the Instituto Hidrográfico 2027 tables.
Sunrise and sunset: calculated (NOAA method).
Lights: The Lighthouse Directory (Rowlett), ibiblio.org/lighthouse, Portugal pages revised August 2024. Cross-check with the IH List of Lights, volume I.