As we entered the Gulf we hoisted the Montenegran courtesy flag and the Q flag and made our way to Zelenika where we cleared customs. Once that piece of business was taken care of we continued on our way deeper into the Gulf.The deeper we went the higher and higher the peaks grew, soaring to over 1,000m. The Gulf is ringed with quaint storybook towns with similar architecture to Croatia’s; terra cotta roofs and beige stone facades without the sparkling finishes but with a grittier, exotic feel. Crossing from Hercegnovski Bay into the two deeper bays we had to pass thru the Verigie Strait which is a tight bottleneck of a passage and the key to the Bay of Kotor’s success;
invaders had to pass thru here to reach the port towns inside and the narrowness of the strait made them easy pickings. At the opposite end of the strait is the town of Perast which from its strategic location guarded the strait.In its heyday Perast was a wealthy Venetian town which fell on hard times after Napoleon conquered the region. We tied up alongside the town harbor and enjoyed a leisurely stroll along the harbor enjoying the Venetian architecture and taking a peek inside St. Nicholas Church, dedicated to the patron saint of fishermen.
Wanting to support the local economy, we took a water taxi instead of our dingy to the two small islands off Perast, St. George and Our Lady of the Rocks. St. George is a small, rocky island with a monastery and closed to the public. Legend has it that two fishermen found an icon of Mary on the island and when they repeatedly tried to take it to the mainland the icon was washed overboard to her original site. 
Apparently the fishermen finally got the message and left the icon in her original place. Since that time returning seamen would visit the site and drop rocks in the same place as an offering. Eventually more than 100 old ships were filled with stones and intentionally sunk in the same spot creating a much larger island. We docked at Our Lady of the Rocks home to a 17th century Catholic Church and filled with symbols of thanks and prayers. 
The walls are lined with Baroque paintings and a huge collection of wedding bouquets, given by brides who marry there, cover the alter.We continued on our way toward the town of Kotor located at the deepest point of Kotorski Bay. As we neared the town we passed an old friend anchored out in the bay,
Royal Clipper, who we cruised on in 2005. There has been a town at this site since the time of Christ. The Old Town is a crazy, mixed up walled village which obviously didn’t see the need of a city planner. While Dubrovnik’s streets are laid out in an easy to navigate grid, Kotor’s streets run every which way with no rhyme or reason. The protective walls cross the waterfront and then zigzag up the sheer cliff face behind the town. To make it to the top you have to climb over 1,500 steps 
gaining over 700 feet in elevation. Exercising extreme intelligence, we elected to go as far as the Church of Our Lady of Health, a third of the way up and enjoy the views down below of the old town.We spent three days in Kotor anchoring out in the bay or med moored to the town wall. We had a great time visiting the market,
wandering the streets, visiting the Catholic Cathedral of St. Tryphon and the Orthodox St. Nicholas’ Church, 
checking out the large mega yachts and enjoying people watching from our cockpit or one of many town cafes.We celebrated the 4th with a traditional meal of chili dogs, beer and watermelon – love that Carni Food
and enjoyed Kotor’s own version of fireworks. At night the town walls are lit, ringing the city with a beautiful glow.
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