NOTE (for non-sailors): Every sail has small colored ribbons that tell the sailor if the sail is trimmed correctly: Telltales.

The more than 100 Telltales below are a collection of the adventures onboard SYLPHE. Each story was initially intended to keep our friends and family up-to-date with what was happening to us and SYLPHE. They now cover 9 years of sailing and chartering through the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Including the beginning with the glorious days before the restoration and trying to get a sinking boat from France to Istanbul. The whole process of the restoration. And finally the recent 8 years of sailing through the Mediterranean Waters, taking part in the Regattas for classic yachts, leisurely sailing in Greece, Croatia, Montenegro, Turkey, Malta, Italy, Corsica, France, Sardinia, Sicily, wintering in Tunisia or Turkey, encountering storms, glorious anchorages and the stories of the people we meet along the way, etc, etc.

In 2005 we celebrated the 65th Birthday of SYLPHE by taking her around the complete Black Sea. The absolute best adventure left to sailors in this part of the world. Most of it is still a paradise and you will most likely be the only boat around in the Black Sea, see proof, of Sinop town quay, and this is in high-season!!

Sylphe has been up and down the Med several times, sometimes bringing her back to the same places and many new places. What made it all special is the company with which one does it, changing every time. Being clients (some of them are now friends), more friends, family or just on my own...........

2008 Sailing and Working

• Telltale 109 A busy Spring
  
• Telltale 108 Boat Maintenance and more dinghy's part 2
  
• Telltale 107 Snow, cold days and work in Holland and in Turkey
  

2007 A hot summer

• Telltale 106 Boat Manintenance and bigger projects
  
• Telltale 105 About being on the Sea....by Steph
  
• Telltale 104 And arriving at the winterdestination.....without engine
  
• Telltale 103 Weather change.....storm, ran aground and sunshine
  
• Telltale 102 Weather change........and still not done for this year
  
• Telltale 101 More kids, families and fun sailing in October (part 2)
  
• Telltale 100 More kids, families and fun sailing in October
• Telltale 99 Turkey and damn captains, and what children can teach us all
  
• Telltale 98 Carpe Diem...in Rwanda and in Patmos
  
• Telltale 97 Mykonos...a small world in itself
  
• Telltale 96 Meltemi....and more Meltemi
  
• Telltale 95 Symi and the ongoing problem with authorities
  
• Telltale 94 What a holiday and paradise.....LIFE is
  
• Telltale 93 Spring works and MUCH more exciting plans
  
• Telltale 92 Visit to Europe and civilisation?
  
• Telltale 91 A flying mast
  
• Telltale 90 Metamorphosis and Paradox
  
• Telltale 89 A New Year, with a freshly repaired start
  

2006 From Turkey to France...... and back
TURKEY - GREECE - SICILY - SARDINIA - CORSICA - COTE D'AZUR - RACES ..AND BACK TO TURKEY

• Telltale 88 Christmas Assembly
  
• Telltale 87 Repairs. and more loose parts...
  
• Telltale 86 Repair works have not yet started...........
  
• Telltale 85 What was supposed to be a peacefull, quiet and recovering winterstop....ACCIDENT!
  
• Telltale 84 STORM... Greece, from Aegina to Symi........home....
  
• Telltale 83 Greece, from Cephalonia to Aegina, including Corinth Channel
  
• Telltale 82 PART 2 Back home .......to Symi, via France, Italy, Greece and Turkey
  
• Telltale 81 PART 1 Back home .......to Symi, via France, Italy, Greece and Turkey
  
• Telltale 80 Race week in St. Tropez, Voiles de St. Tropez
  
• Telltale 79 Race week in Cannes, Regattes Royales
• Telltale 78 Race week in Imperia, Vele d'Epoca
  
• Telltale 77 Too much Italy
  
• Telltale 76 Corsica and Sardinia, the likes of Costa Esmerald and Cala di Volpe
  
• Telltale 75 Dreamy Aeolian Islands.
• Telltale 74 Dashed Hopes and Crushed Dreams, all part of Italy.
• Telltale 73 More Italy and more trouble........
• Telltale 72 A new season, and more wooden boats, bikes and trouble

2005 Sylphe Black Sea Voyage

To celebrate Sylphe's 65th birthday we decided to take her into the Black Sea. Not your usual sailing area, but a vast sea, with 6 new countries, different winds and big swells, new cultures and other surprises. The journey took some 3 months from May 2005 till August 2005. A total of 2200 miles and plenty of action. The biggest secret tip for all the other cruisers out there that want to get away from the crowd. We met 8 other yachts in 3 months ....not bad

TURKEY - GEORGIA - UKRAINE - ROMANIA - BULGARIA - TURKEY

• Telltale 71 On the verge of 2006, from a couple of landlubbers
• Telltale 70 The Symi PIED-A-TERRA-FIRMA
• Telltale 69 From Istanbul down south for some really GREAT sailing.....2 months long
• Telltale 68 The Black Sea, Bulgaria and return to Istanbul, completing the circumnavigation
• Telltale 67 The Black Sea, Romania
• Telltale 66 The Black Sea, Ukraine part 4, Crimea Sightseeing and Odessa
• Telltale 65 The Black Sea, Ukraine part 3, Balaclava and Kiev
• Telltale 64 The Black Sea, Ukraine part 2
• Telltale 63 The Black Sea, Ukraine part 1
• Telltale 62 The Black Sea, Turkey, Georgia and to Ukraine
• Telltale 61 The Black Sea, Turkish North Coast
• Telltale 60 The Black Sea; Turkish North Coast
• Telltale 59 The Black Sea; Turkish North Coast
• Telltale 58 The first seasonal sailing, Ayvalik to ISTANBUL
• Telltale 57 A week of hard work
• Telltale 56 Spring Break and a FACELIFT, for a lady
• Telltale 55 A new interior...???

2004 A Croatian summer delight

MALTA - CROATIA - GREECE - TURKEY

• Telltale 54 Back to Turkey for the winter stop
  
• Telltale 53 A warm fall and Greece "Welcome home"
• Telltale 52 A Croatian summer
• Telltale 51 Time to celebrate 5 years on SYLPHE
• Telltale 50 A pigeons tale, 350 miles of solo sailing, non-stop

2003 Making more miles

TUNISIA - MALTA - GREECE (Ioanian islands) - ITALY - FRANCE - TUNISIA

• Telltale 49 An exciting winter stop
• Telltale 47 Back for the classic races in France
• Telltale 46 The most spectacular sail, more fun and earthquakes in Greece
• Telltale 45 Greece remains a paradise
• Telltale 44 SOLO, from Malta to Dubrovnik, non-stop
  

2001 Discovering larger parts of the Med.

TUNISIA - MALTA - GREECE - CROATIA - ITALY - FRANCE - TUNISIA

• Telltale 40 Without rudder AND engine...still 80 miles to go
• Telltale 39 On the first regattas in the South of France
• Telltale 38 Croatia, what a delight
• Telltale 36 Back in Greece
• Telltale 35 The Malta-Monastir regatta with one boat
• Telltale 34 Ready for another season
• Telltale 33 The never ending to-do list
• Telltale 32 Enjoying a break
• Telltale 31 Monastir and wintering

2000 A newly restored boat makes her appearance

TURKEY - GREECE - FRANCE - TUNISIA

• To our winterstop in Africa
• Lazy weeks in Cannes
• St. Tropez, regattas and more
• A turkish argument
• Back in the water, fully restored
• Things fall into place
• The list grows longer, instead of....
• Snow, sun and glue
• A fresh sight
• The old and new mingle

1999 Getting a sinking boat from France to Istanbul

FRANCE - GREECE - TURKEY ---->>> RESTORATION

• Some setbacks and more fun
• The end of an era, but the begin of..
• Turkish delight
• Dismantling a 60 year old yacht
• Out of the water and begin the restoration
• The mice still want more adventures
• From Cannakale (Turkey) to Istanbul
• The mice and their adventure
• A normal monday??? (Sorry the first one was in Dutch, the rest is in English)

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