Red Sails

 After a week in the busy capital of Corfu we were heading to the north of the island for a more sedate second week. Kassiopi is an hours' drive along the coast from Corfu Town passing through some of the more built-up tourist areas. Kassiopi itself is a simple collection of restaurants and bars set around a beautiful, unspoilt fishing harbour, overlooked by the ruins of an ancient castle.

Ionian Sea, Corfu Island

The fishing village still retains an original charm and the welcoming restaurants are great value. The popular beaches are a short walk along the headland road, but venture a little further out of town if you fancy some seclusion. The headland will only take you half an hour to walk, perfect for that post lunch stroll. At the harbour there are several options to explore the island by sea either by joining excursions or hiring your own boat. We opted or the latter and collected a small boat and set out discover the north-east coastline of Corfu under our own (4-stroke) steam.

Peristeres Lighthouse, Corfu

Leaving the harbour we headed straight for the nearby Peristeres Lighthouse. We got as close as we dared. It was an exciting and unique experience to approach a lighthouse from the sea on our own boat. There are other, smaller navigational lighthouses to see on this coastline but this was by far the most dramatic. We pottered south along the coast as far as Nissaki (which is are far as we were allowed in our boat) then doubled back on ourselves to drop anchor and have a swim at the aptly named Blue Caves.

Peristeres Lighthouse, Corfu

As you cruise the route recommended by the boat operators there are several landings to dock and grab some lunch but the restaurants along the coastline do get busy so it's worth booking ahead. The boat trip was superb. The freedom to drop anchor almost wherever you liked and then grabbing a cool beer or simply jumping in the sea was a stellar experience that will live long in the memory.

Kassiopi Harbour, Corfu

Another first on this holiday was the fun experience of paddle boarding. An English couple we met kindly offered to give us a lesson on their boards, so we had a great morning on one of the near deserted beaches getting to grips with this sedate pastime. It was really good fun and I’m sure we’ll do it again.

We also hired a car for the second week of our time on Corfu and whilst it enabled us to get to some of the more remote areas of the island, the Greek roads and infrastructure aren’t in the best shape and they can be quite precarious away from the main arterial routes. So weigh up what you want to see and make the call about whether to hire or rely on public transport or taxis.

Beach on the headland at Kassiopi, Corfu

We drove into the mountains in the north of the island to Mount Pantokrator, home to the 'ghost town' of Palea Peritheia. It's not actually a ghost town any longer. Once the perfect spot to hide from marauding pirates it was abandoned as town folk moved to the coast. In recent years people have returned and started to rebuild. Now you'll find a boutique guest house, a few tavernas and a working apiary nestled amongst the calm and seclusion of empty houses begging to be reclaimed. It is a tranquil spot blessed with butterflies and well worth the drive up the mountain.

Palea Peritheia, Corfu

From the mountains we descended to the coast to visit another picturesque village, Afionas. This small settlement of white washed buildings overlooks the Ionian ocean. It's popular not only for it’s beauty but as the gateway to nearby Porto Timoni beach which sits between the village and a spectacular headland. We were looking for a lighthouse that appeared on some maps (not all) but it's location remained an absolute mystery to us.

The descent to the beach is an arduous walk on a steep hillside, especially in  the hot temperatures so come prepared with some suitable footwear and attire. Although most folk we passed were wearing flip-flops and carrying a lido. 

Beach at Kassiopi, Corfu

In Kassiopi we found the perfect place to relax and wind down with options explore further afield if we wanted. We quickly dropped into a routine of a several short trips to the beach each day for a cooling dip in the ocean as a release from the intense hot summer heat. Imerolia is a narrow pebble beach just out of town but is well worth the short detour for the seclusion and crystal clear waters.

This was our first visit to Corfu and we fell in love with Corfu Town, the food and the slowing down from the frantic pace of modern life in Kassioppi. We'll be back very soon.