Rat in Mi Kitchen, one of the greats by UB40, proved to have a whole new meaning when sailing in Greece this year. A rodent infestation was far from my mind as we slipped between idyllic anchorages, enjoyed breath-taking sunsets, stunning vistas and feeling generally pretty chilled. However, our peaceful harmony was soon to be turned upside down with the arrival of a new and unwanted crew member.

With my wife Debbie and good friends Peter and Carol, we were on a cruise from the TRNC (Northern Cyprus) to Montenegro, our winter destination. After a great sail across the Cyclades, we took a short cut through the Corinth Canal into the Gulf of Corinth en route to Corfu.

Shortly before exiting the Gulf we decided to stop off at the delightful town of Messolonghi – Peter had visited before – on the north side of the Gulf, which is accessed by a channel approximately three nautical miles inland. At the end of the channel a bay opens up with an anchorage, a marina to the port and a town quay to the starboard.

We always anchor but for the first time on this trip we decided to take a spot on the town quay and gingerly motored Spirit, our Bavaria C57, alongside. Once our ropes had been secured and the obligatory ‘arrival gin and tonics’ consumed, we headed off to town looking for some traditional Greek food and to enjoy our new surroundings.

Little did I know that while we were out consuming the local delicacies, a stowaway was surreptitiously finding their way aboard. We left for Lefkas the following day, oblivious to the presence of a stowaway, to drop off Pete and Carol who were flying back home to Cyprus.

Despite Messolonghi’s charms, one inhabitant was eager to leave… Photo: Hercules Milas / Alamy Stock Photo

It was the following morning when our suspicions were first aroused after discovering a half-chewed apple in the fruit bowl. We scratched our heads to think what could have done this and settled on some small birds getting onboard and enjoying a fruit feast.

Wishful thinking. The following day we found more chewed fruit, but this time accompanied by several rodent droppings on the galley counter. My heart sank. I had read of the terrible damage rodents can do to a vessel’s wiring and was fearing the worst. We were now anchored in Nidri Bay on Lefkas and we needed to take action.

What’s your poison?

After much research on the internet a battle plan was agreed and off we went to the local garden centre to buy as much rat-catching paraphernalia as possible. Ideally, we wanted humane traps but my Buddhist leanings were going to have to take a back seat on this challenge as the only pest-control options available were all different types of poisons.

I bought their entire stock.

It can be tough to stop a rat using your mooring line as a rope ladder. Photo: Rudmer Swerver / Alamy Stock photo

Back onboard we liberally applied the poison around the boat not only inside the cabin but in every bilge and cavity we could access. The following day we found more fruit had been eaten and this time there were droppings all over the boat.

We needed to take further action urgently. A friend was flying in the following day to join us for a couple of weeks so we asked if she could buy some spring traps and put them in her hold baggage. A strange request but she didn’t query it.

We set the traps and went to bed. The following morning we awoke to find our unwanted guest stone-cold dead, right there in the fruit bowl he had been so busily enjoying for the past week. With a grim poetic justice, the spring trap had done its grisly work.

The rat was a big beast, measuring a good nine inches from nose to tail. We took him outside and after a few fitting words of commemoration and repentance (I really don’t like killing anything) we laid him to rest in peace with a sea burial off the stern of the boat.

Cable for one: rats aren’t fussy when it comes to lunch.

Gnawing suspicion

Our minds, however, were not at ease just yet. Our concern was that he may have had some of his mates onboard. For the next few days, we monitored the boat for any signs that we still had a problem. It looked like the job was done and we were in a happy place. Not so fast.

We planned to leave Nidri the following day to meet friends in a bay on the Greek mainland and when I went to turn on my electronics all was not well. While we had power we had no data readings – nothing, nil, zero, nowt. No compass, autopilot, wind instruments; you name it, everything was showing error messages. Obviously, our furry friend had done some damage before his early demise.

The instruments powered up, but no data was getting to them – a critical issue for safe sailing

Damage limitation

I spent the next few hours tearing the boat apart looking for damaged wiring. Incredibly I found a chewed cable from the gyrocompass under one of the bunks in the aft cabin. Luckily, the marina ashore had an electrician who worked on the Bavaria fleet for a local charter company and was familiar with the B&G Naviops electronics we had onboard. The following day he arrived at our boat and set to repairing the damage. An hour later we fired up the systems and, with a huge sigh of relief, everything worked.

We were ready to continue our journey. However, we subsequently found that the fuel gauges were not giving any readings and one of the fans in the galley was not working. I decided to live with this until our next haul out.

All in all, I consider myself fortunate that there was not more damage – I dread to think what he could have done had we not got rid of him. I now take rodent infestation very seriously. A lesson in boat management I thought I would never need. You have been warned.

A prevention disc can be bypassed by a nimble invader

Lessons learned

Prevention – Firstly, if Roland wants to visit, I am not sure there is much you can do to prevent it. I have even heard that mooring-line prevention discs won’t stop them. My approach now is a simple process which I follow rigorously whether at anchor or tied ashore.

Hatches and platforms – When leaving your boat ensure every hatch is closed, the companionway is shut and your transom platform is raised if you have one.

Passerelle – If you have a passerelle, devise a pulley system that raises it off the dock both when onboard or ashore.

Rubbish – Ensure internal bins are emptied every night and dispose of your trash either ashore or in a sealed bag in the cockpit if at anchor.

Food – Never leave food out. Always store in sealed lockers and use Tupperware for dried food stuffs such as pasta and rice.

Hygiene – Don’t leave the dishes until the following morning, always wash up and clean surfaces thoroughly before you hit the sack.

Nighttime – At night we always have mosquito nets pulled across open hatches and the companionway closed.

Morning checks – Boats are, by design, watertight and therefore rodent-proof. If Roland does get onboard, he will only have access to the deck, which I always check before opening up, especially when in a marina or tied to a town quay.

Act quickly – If you do find evidence of an unwelcome guest, act quickly. Always be sure to keep a range of traps and pest-control products onboard.

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