Yachting World — February 2018

steam both promontories were impossible to negotiate in
oared boats, but that men to pull them round the
headland with towropes were on the towpath. One can
imagine a village springing up nearby whose inhabitants
made a living by helping boats. In this way the southerly
current off both points could be outmanoeuvred.
Rhys Carpenter, a yachtsman himself, had conceded
that much of the route could be negotiated by making use
of back-eddies close inshore, but he had not allowed for
the possibility that there would be a community who
made their living by towing ships round the crucial
headlands where the current was at its fastest.
Once past Kandilli we could relax a little and enjoy what
was around us. The Asian side is covered with fruit trees,
villages, and the most delightful landscapes, wrote Lady
Mary Wortley Montagu, and it did not seem to have
changed much since then. Inland were thickly wooded
hills, with the darkness of cypress and copper-beech
intermingled with a lighter green. At that time, when
there were no bridges across the Bosphorus, the total
population of Istanbul and the area lining the Bosphorus
was half a million, whereas now it stands at 18 million!
Each village on the Asian shore had its own character;
they were independent little communities with the
mosque’s minaret and a jetty visible. Presumably also
there were a few shops. The villages lay two or three miles
apart, the gaps plugged by tali – delightful wooden houses
with carved balconies that jutted out over the water.
No doubt these were summer residences originally,
they now had the look of houses permanently inhabited.

Each house had its own jetty, with a garden between it and

the road – a road lined with trees giving shade.

At 12.45 pm we passed Anadolu Hisari (the fortress on

the Asiatic side, ). Forty-five minutes later we decided to

cross back from Khanlijeh to the western shore, since

against the land we were making no progress at all.

Safely through the squall

There was a fresh southerly breeze, which was just what

we needed. But alas as soon as we approached the

European side the wind turned westerly. As we passed the

resort of Therapia, it was increasing by the minute. But we

were determined to go on. We wanted to reach a point

where we would have a clear view up into the Black Sea.

When we reached the south-east corner of Büyükdere

Bay the wind was sweeping across the water in sudden

squalls, darkening its surface, plucking the tops off the

crests of the waves. ‘Are those the spar buoys at last, the

ones warning us to keep out?’ I shouted to Sally, pointing

to a row of black dots, topped by flags, leaning at 45

degrees to the wind. Sally nodded.

‘Let’s get as close as we can!’ We decided we must change

to storm sails. The wind grew rapidly stronger, lashing us

with spray, and even under storm sails the boat heeled till

her gunwale was within two inches of the water.

Reluctantly we decided we would have to turn back – the

wind was now too strong for us. At least we were well in

sight of the line of buoys that marked the point beyond

which we could not go without a pass. Alas! We had hoped

to spend the night in Buyükdere Bay, from where we could

actually see the waters of the Black Sea. We would have to

go into Therapia Bay instead.

The wind was directly against us, but we took down the

sails and rowed up into the lee of what seemed to be a big

block of flats on Therapia headland. Once in quieter water

we were able to start the engine. We then motored to the

head of the bay, and dropped anchor among fishing boats.

Mission achieved! We had proved that even a sailing boat

as slow and unwieldy as Crab could get up the Bosphorus

• if it had not been for the prohibition on entering
  without a permit, we could have actually entered the Black
  Sea. If we had had a strong crew of four we could even
  perhaps have done the whole length of it under sail or
  using the oars. As it was, the engine had been out of action
  for the stretch known as the Devil’s Current, although we
  had used it earlier, at the southern end of the straits.
  We ate a celebratory supper. For my part, I had hardly
  dared to expect that we would be able to work
  our way up the Bosphorus in Crab at all, let alone
  accomplish the whole journey in a single day!

The crew stow

sails and ship oars

ready to go ashore

Coaxing Crab

gently through the

Bosphorus

February 2018 73