Jovietal

Cape Mendocino

2009-08-18T17:20:00.001-07:00

Cape Mendocino is the western most point in California. It is also one of the most dangerous points of coastline in the state.

bashing along the coast

2009-08-18T17:04:00.000-07:00

The roller coaster ride was getting rather annoying after about 16 hours of getting hammered. I survived on Gator aid and crackers and Michel could not keep anything down.
The rough seas stirred up sediment in the fuel tank enough to clog the intake line of the fuel filter system. We managed to jury rig a dingy pump to push the fuel back into the tanks in order to prevent stalling. ( we stalled once and that was not nice) We pumped pretty much on the hour as we did our log updates
I think we all had a 5 minute thresh hold "down below" before the queasy sea sick gremlins kicked in.
The winds were about 20-35 knots on the nose with seas at 18-20 feet swell. Add in breaking waves and it was pretty a heck of a wet ride. We soon learn why there are cockpit drains.
The seas and winds bust apart our window zippers which had to be"speedy stitched" back closed. The bow was burried often which lifted our liferaft from the deck.

Point Reyes

2009-08-18T16:55:00.001-07:00

As we rounded the point we got hammered and had quite a ride.
Jovietal pounded through the night and no one really got very much sleep.
Michel became quite sea sick at day break and was pretty much incapacitated.

rough seas

2009-08-18T16:50:00.001-07:00

Around midnight the wind and seas began to build especially as we neared Point Reyes

Passing under the Golden Gates

2009-08-18T16:35:00.000-07:00

Pete and Sue have joined us to sail to Canada and celebrate with a kiss under the bridge.
The Seas were brisk with a 10-15 knots of wind on the nose of course.
Shortly after we exited the Harbour a coast Guard helicopter buzzed us from above and we were asked if our EPIRB had been triggered. (The emergency beacon transmitter)
The boat in question was a 42 foot blue boat American Registered.
It was nice to see they double checked.
Passing the infamous Potato Patch which is reputed to throw some nasty seas was pretty easy much like a choppy day on the straight of Georgia. The "patch" is the Northernmost area of San Francisco Bar alluvial silt deposits, which bar entry to the Golden Gate and require dredging. Occasionally a potato boat would capsize on the sand bar, spilling its load.

Leaving San Fransisco

2009-08-18T15:30:00.001-07:00

We loved the new friends we made at Alameda Marina Village Yacht Harbour.
What a surprise to see some of our friends wave goodbye.
Marina Village is affordable luxury at around 20 dollars per night.

sampling

2009-08-11T09:09:00.000-07:00

The boys enjoy Sampling a variety of California wines with "Penny" and the Crew from
Festina Lente.

San Fransisco

2009-08-11T08:58:00.001-07:00

The trip to San Fransisco proved to be quite easy with a clear calm day quite out of the norm.
San Fransisco is a windy city with a lot of sailboats.
The crew rest for a few days then fly back to Canada.

Catilina Island

2009-08-05T18:15:00.000-07:00

I am told that the crew loved this island and wished they could visit longer.

On to San Diego

2009-08-05T18:04:00.000-07:00

Rounding into San Diego proved to be interesting as Jovietal found herself in company with aircraft carriers, nucular subs and war ships. Jovietal was told to keep clear within a mile of the nucular sub.
oops..we were just tying to take a picture.

Cabo to Turtle Bay

2009-08-05T17:59:00.000-07:00

As soon as they left Cabo the weather got cooler and the weather increased somewhat to give the crew an introduction as to what was to come.
At Turtle bay a fuel "jockey" is easy to find to provide fuel to get Jovietal to San Diego

more from Cabo

2009-08-05T17:57:00.000-07:00

Cabo San Luca

2009-08-05T17:54:00.000-07:00

Expensive, tourtisy and noisy is all Michel had to report about Cabo
he was happy to leave.

On the way to Cabo

2009-08-05T17:49:00.000-07:00

Apparently the fishing was great and Don made some amazing dishes with the 60 lbs of tuna that they managed to haul in.

Don Settles in

2009-08-05T17:45:00.000-07:00

Don somehow wound up with the roll as the Galley Master. I am told his meals were fantastic.

Puerto Vallarta

2009-08-05T17:35:00.000-07:00

At Puerto Vallarta we change crew- Giles has to return to Quebec and Don Ewing from Victoria BC is anxious to come aboard. The SWINE or H1N2 flu virus has hit Mexico and travel advisory warnings are amped up enough to cancel many charter flights
to Mexico

Celebration

2009-08-05T17:28:00.000-07:00

The Crew from Jovietal celebrate with the crew from Imagine
a toast to a completed circumnavigation.

On to Zihautanejo

2009-08-05T17:14:00.000-07:00

From what Michel tells me the sail to Z town
was
beautiful
However
Z-town is rather
"touristy"

on the way to Haultulco

2009-08-05T16:59:00.000-07:00

After 3 days of motor/sailing Jovietal lands in Haultulco.
Michel notes that the area is much more "cruiser friendly" meaning that there is access supplies.
Huatulco is th resort area Bahías de Huatulco or the bays of Huatulco. The four main parts of Huatulco are Tangolunda, the area where the more upscale resorts are located, Santa Cruz, a small town with more hotels, the marina and Santa Cruz beach, La Crucecita, another small town just inland from the beach area having a more genuine Mexican ambiance. The area is known for its beautiful isolated bays separated by rocky hills set against the backdrop of the Sierra Madre del Sur. Huatulco is 450 or 3 days from Barillas marina - a welcome rest.

working backwards T-peckers?

2009-08-05T16:45:00.000-07:00

The best way to catch up to this blog is to sum up the trip in a few pictures. I was not there for this leg of the journey and getting "stories" from Michel is next to impossible. He seems to have a hard time remembering where he stopped and he did not take many pictures. He was pushing hard to get Jovietal back home.
I was on Thetis with the girls emailing weather information via the SSB.
We were all anxious about getting the right weather window as there are plenty of horrific stories of the T-Pecker winds aka the Tehuantepec.
On the Pacific Coast of Mexico, at the southern end of Mexico, there is a large body of water called the Gulf of Tehuantepec (teh-WAHN-teh-pec). North of the Gulf of Tehuantepec there is a skinny strip of land, an isthmus, which separates the Gulf of Tehuantepec from the Gulf of Mexico on the other coast. This piece of geography has a weather system all its own.

Winds start in the Gulf of Mexico, hit Mexico at the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, scream across land and are funneled through two mountain ranges. The winds are amplified up to 3 times and then are shot out the back side, and hit the Pacific in the Gulf of Tehuantepec with gale force and up to hurricane force winds.
It's almost embarrassing to post that crossing the Gulf was rather boring.

Mexico

2009-07-30T14:20:00.000-07:00

After 30 hours the crew arrive in Mexico in the town of Huatulco Mexico

Usulutan El Salvador

2009-07-30T14:14:00.001-07:00

A great place to provision the local markets provide a labyrinth of assorted wares
Fred has several women shouting in halting English "I love you"

Note to self -

2009-07-30T13:49:00.000-07:00

Gilles is rescuing the 3000$ SSB radio we had so carefully stored away at The Dardano's
Michel had wrapped it in a thick towel to protect it.
Unfortunately the towel was used as a beach towel and full of salt with absorbed water from the humid air- the corrosion was excessive we were days away from loosing our radio.
We took out all electronics to avoid the disaster we had last year when everything electronic was destroyed by a lighting strike.
Canada is looking like a better idea every day.

Note To Self: when storing electronics use platic wrap and not beach towels in the tropics.

New Crew

2009-07-30T13:40:00.001-07:00

Gilles Bouffard is a friend of Michel's from Quebec. Together they have shared several canoeing adventures albeit a few decades ago.
Gilles aka Mr. "fixit." or inspector gadget was a gift.
We were lucky to have him join us as his knowledge in electronics and his uncanny zest to fix things got us going...

Our new crew

2009-07-30T13:33:00.001-07:00

Frederick LaChance is Michel's nephew from Quebec.
He has been working as Carpenter with us on Thetis since we returned home from our last sailing adventure. We are happy to have him aboard as he is a computer whiz and can lift about double of what we can.
He will sail with Michel to San Fransisco.

getting ready to go May 09

2009-07-30T13:27:00.000-07:00

It took a lot of "fixing" to get ready mold, corrosion and a delaminated dighy put us to work despite the humidity

Getting ready to go

2009-07-30T13:20:00.000-07:00

We have finally made up our minds that Jovietal belongs back in Canada where she can be properly taken care of and enjoyed.
Lying here for 10 months on a tropical jungle mooring has been hard on her.

Back to El Salvador Mar 09

2009-06-19T13:25:00.000-07:00

Leaving the boat in El Salvador for a year was really not the smartest thing we have ever done however, we are convinced that it makes more sense to bring her home rather than leave her in foreign waters for a couple of years until the G.D.K.'s are out of the house!
We arrived during the Easter holy week which is crazier than Christmas. Everything was closed and our pre arranged rent a car drove off without us. Apparently, Avis rented all their cars and closed up shop for the holidays.
Only in El Salvador.
This capped the "oh shit" moment we had waiting in the Houston Airport while looking at gift shop electronics. Michel realized he forgot our navigational chart dungle in his desk at home. We can't go anywhere without it.
We Fed exed ( is that a word??) it to to Quebec in hope that Giles our other crew member who was leaving in a few days to join us in El Salvador could bring it with him. As luck would not have us the "package" arrived the day after he left.
This little package would hold us up and keep us hostage to the bureaucracy's of El Salvador.
Waiting....waiting ....waiting...cleaning, fixing..fixing...paying...paying..
Some may think we were relaxing in the sun drinking icy beverages - that is a sailing fantasy.
The reality for us:

Our lovely Jovietal is covered with two inches of bird crap!
Our dingy has 29 holes in it, sails jamming, upside down& backward equipment and $$$$$
leaky shafts.........the list goes on
Without the help of and Fred and Giles the boat would probably still be at anchor.
Giles was a real gift as he has an amazing ability to fix corroded electronics and trouble shoot most of the troubles.
We did manage to take a small break to visit with our wonderful friends the Dardano's which is always an exciting time.
Stay tuned for the posts sailing from El Salvador to Huatulco Mexio!

Getting ready to sail Jovietal back To Canada

2009-04-03T16:24:00.000-07:00

A little bit of Deja vous here...things are piling up ready to go down to the boat. Again we hoping to stay within the 50 pounds per bag limit.
I made the mistake of booking Flights to El Salvador in the middle of Easter.
It is a huge celebration and everything is closed.
We are bringing Jovietal home! Michel, our nephew Fred and Michels long time friend and adventure partner Gilles from Quebec are sailing her to Puerto Vallarta where another friend Don is joining for the bash up the coast.
I will try to keep you posted here on our progress.
We hope to have Jovietal back in Thetis this summer mid June.

Changing Boats

2008-12-16T16:08:00.001-08:00

How simply wonderful to downsize.
It's nice to be back at home although we miss our boat very much

how to read the blog

2008-07-11T17:43:00.000-07:00

The posts are rather random and at times I had a hard time getting the posts out on the net. The newest post is first and when you reach the bottom of the page a green prompt "older posts" will lead you to older posts.
Click on it to get the next set of posts.
Have fun

Reflections

2008-05-19T14:36:00.001-07:00

This was probably the most amazing experience we could share together as a family.
Cruising was really just what our family needed to reconnect and learn from each other.
When Michel and I arrived back home, the girls had surprised by having the house clean and decorated with welcome home messages.
They presented us with a large card thanking us for this amazing adventure.
Josee wrote:
This trip meant everything to me...I am so thankful for those time the wind was in my face and sun in my eyes. I had a big grin on my face, and all my worries were gone.
I knew my family was the best family to be taking me a journey so big; so loving, and full of joy. I know we may have of struggled, and might of not been the best sailors of the sea, but we are the strongest, and made a life time story. We may of thought everything would be normal, but we are not normal. We are the Poirier family and I am proud to be in this family.

Chantal:
I guess I changed my mind when I thought I did not want to come. I must of been crazy! The whole entire trip was unbelievable! My most vivid memory was waking up in the morning walking into the cockpit and seeing a spectacular beach right in front of my eyes. it made me realize how lucky I was to wake up in a place that hardly anyone in the world can see.
It really changed my life. the whole entire trip was amazing and made me see life is worth living at its fullest, and we sure did live life at it's fullest down there.

Genevieve: You were right, in every possible way, 1 million percent. Our trip was life changing- each of us grew and changed into mature, intelligent, globally aware, well travelled human beings. Who else can say that at 17?
We truly know the value of a dollar. You have shared with us your dream and given us new and exciting dreams for ourselves. You have given us so much in the past year. Things that money can't buy. You've given us the gift of travel...which we will keep with us forever and pass on to our own children.
You have given us the gift of perseverance, which you have mastered- taking care of 3 teenagers Girls!) as well as taking car of a 51 foot boat. I'm sure other cruisers would marvel at your courage.
You have given us the gift of love, even when we didn't deserve it. And most of all you have given us the most amazing, wonderful and unforgettable experiences.
Our hearts will always be with the ocean, and our family will always be able to reminisce about our crazy adventures we had together. I love our family and I love and admire your both.

Was our trip everything dreamed it would be? I would have to say no, it was more enriching than what I could of imagined.

Welcome home

2008-05-19T14:19:00.000-07:00

Back to reality. This is what 8 months of mail looks like. Most of it is junk mail!
Such a waste of resources.
What's with this Capitol One banking mailouts!.
I received over 12 credit card invitations and 7 congratulation you have won a Caribbean cruise notifications.
Really quite amusing after travelling and seeing people so happy in Central America with virtually noting.
Do we really need all this stuff?

Barillas El Salvador

2008-05-07T09:34:00.000-07:00

We are now in Barillas at Bahia de Jiquilisco El Salvador. This is an estuary with a lot of really healthy mangroves. There was a 4-5 foot crocodile hanging around our boat. These boys appear to be living in the mangroves while they mind fish traps in front. The estuary is quite large with meandering arms of water winding around for miles. It is quite easy to get lost exploring these waterways.
There are so many mosquitos and "no see ums" here it is unbearable. At Barillas they burn coconuts to smoke out the bugs for folks like us at the anchorage. I guess these guys are immune to the effects or just a lot tougher than gringos.

New Crew

2008-05-07T09:25:00.000-07:00

This little fellow hoped aboard while we were at sea, in fact, we were about 20 miles from shore. He explored the boat and hopped on our legs, unafraid and very curious. He kept going inside the companion way, then flew out the hatch. Everytime he found his way inside he would peep away until he discovered a hatch to escape only to explore his way back inside. He continued this game for just over an hour. Silly bugger.

New Crew

2008-05-07T09:18:00.000-07:00

We meet Sam and Jules Scuba Diving in Nicaragua. We asked them if they would like to help us sail to El Salvador and they jumped on the opportuinty without a lot of time to think about it. I think they had fun. We actually had the best winds sailing with them. They are backpacking around Central America and call South Africa home. Sam is a doctor and has a contract to work in Australia after this trip. We had a great time together and wish them well in thier adventures together.
They are getting married this December in India-

San Juan del Sur Nicaragua

2008-05-07T09:10:00.000-07:00

Perhaps one of our favourite spots on the trip was San Juan del Sur. We really spent a lot of time there. Glen, Larry, and Mark from the Scuba Shack were great friends and very helpfull in arranging our sail delivery.
The Scuba Shack became our hangout. This little town offers great tourisim activites for very little cost.

Cool People

2008-05-07T08:45:00.000-07:00

The best part of cruising was meeting a wide variety of people who all lead incrediably interesting lives. We have learned so much from all these new friendships. The following is a sample of our El Salvadorian friends.
with out a doubt, the Salvadorians are the most hospitable, friendly and lively Central Americans.

The Dardano family

2008-05-07T08:41:00.000-07:00

"Me Casa su Casa" my house is your house is the moto of this wonderful, vibrant family. We are certainly happy that Chantal "hooked" up with Charlie. We spent a lot of time with this family and shared a lot of laughs and fun together.
We feel really blessed to have met them.

Giovani Fabietti

2008-05-07T08:34:00.000-07:00

Giovani's assistance was pivitol in getting our crates into El Salvador. He is the only Salvadorian with a sailboat.
He spent countless hours negotiating and exploring options for us. He is currently working hard on starting up new anchorage opportunites in El Salvador
We are forever gratefull for his help and friendship.

Gervin and Debora

2008-05-07T08:30:00.000-07:00

This couple who live rather humbly in Tamerindo were happy to have us anchor in front of thier house. Debora cooked meals for Michel and Gervin worked very hard along side Michel getting Jovietal ready to go.
He organized these locals to dive for oysters for us for a farewell dinner.

Gervin and Edmond

2008-05-07T08:24:00.000-07:00

These two amigo's were great friends. Gervin is from Tamerindo in El Salvador
he was great help in getting things done on our boat. Edmond " A Canadian lawyer living in El Salvador was great help as a friend and translator.

Jan Costa del Sol

2008-05-05T09:09:00.000-07:00

Jan is a great friend to cruisers and the local people who live on a small island in the Estuary, near Herradur. She offers trips to town to help cruisers provision and hosts a chicken barbecue every Wednesday. Her students like to practice their English on the cruisers. The students hope to secure good paying jobs because they can speak English.
She currently teaches these children and a few adults from the Navy English classes on her property.
This is a picture of her school and students. The other picture her giving locals a ride back home from a day of shopping. When she offered one of the students of her school a ride the whole family joined. It was pretty hilarious getting all the stuff in the truck.
We all jammed in and laughed all the way home to the estuary which was about a 45
minute drive. Jan arrived in Costa del Sol over 12 years ago in Quantum Leap a 72 foot Oceanis sloop. She fell in love with the place and decided to call El Salvador Home.

Reflections

2008-05-02T08:42:00.000-07:00

Update

2008-04-26T15:59:00.001-07:00

I am finally up to date on the blog.
I had to rush through, it takes a long time to load and I know there are a lot of mistakes.
We are still in San Juan del Sur and are leaving for El Salvador in a few days
We are waiting for weather and tide conditions to improve for the transit.
The heat is really hard. I welcome rain and cold...even freezing rain. The one thing about being cold is you can always put on some clothes. Being hot on the other hand does not provide so many options.
Thanks for reading our blog and I appologize for the sporatic posts, it's just that internet is so random.

ladies of the lake

2008-04-26T15:52:00.000-07:00

this is the source of the Papagyo winds and also the lake provides fresh water for laundry day.

Granada Cemetary

2008-04-26T15:49:00.000-07:00

Masaya Volcano

2008-04-26T15:47:00.000-07:00

The site of virgin sacrifices.

San Juan del sur and then some more...

2008-04-26T15:45:00.000-07:00

San Juan Del Sur
We were happy to see Sea Whisper still anchored here.
Checking in was a breeze and we celebrated by watching the sun set at the Girls favorite hangout…Iguana’s . we met up with their Smither’s friends and we all had a laugh…are you still here? It turns out we both arrived in San Juan at the same time after months of travel adventures. They like it here and I see why.
We met up with the boys from the Dive shop and they were really glad to see us.
We love this town again after such a bad time with the sail….and it is a whole lot easier to be here with without the girls to worry about.
We took a tour to Granada, Rivas and Masaya Volcanoes
Rivas is a really funky town like Chinindega with lots of bike rickshaws and people selling home made snacks. The road out of San Juan Del Sur is terrible, infact, much worse than the last time I was here. There are virtually no trafic signs and half the road is closed while the other half has boulders strewn all over the place, never mind the pot holes. I was having deja vous of an imminent car accident . …I don’t really want to go over on my side again.
We made it to Granada and toured the majestic cemetery. It is filled with mausoleums that are dedicated to family. A nice custom to have all your family members burried in the same place. The statues were amazingly, beautiful and really quite a testament to the family buried there.
They even had a separate mausoleum for dead presidents.
Granada is colorful with the colonial structures each with brightly colored doorways opening to a beautiful inner courtyard, I love this style of home.
I was going crazy taking pictures, it was just so damn beautiful.
There are literally hundreds of poor selling what ever they can to the visitors of this town. I really felt kind of sad watching a family while I ate lunch sell chicklets and single cigarettes for a pennies.
The whole days take may muster up a dollar or two. Which does not go far here..
Fuel is so expensive and the price of food is increasing as well. Most can not afford anything beyond rice and beans.
Nicaragua is definitely not as affluent as its neighbors however, the people seem friendly and have a sense of pride. They recycle here and there is little garbage on the streets. I saw bales of plastic on the side of the road waiting for pick up.
I wish El Salvador could do the same.
In contrast to El Salvador the Nicaraguans seem to be hard at work everyone works. The only hammock people I seem to notice are the elderly and small children.
Women can be seen gathering wood from the side of the road , washing, carrying things on their head, or sweeping. They keep their yards very clean and many homes have brightly painted walls with gardens at the entrance.
The men can usually be seen working on the side of the road, either in construction, burning fields, farming, or ranch handling. It is apparent that the young boys are left with the "cow boy" duties.
There are more families traveling here riding in horse drawn carts than in the rest of Central America.

The Masaya volcano was definitely a highlight. This is the most active volcano in Central and South America. We climbed to the top to gaze into the sulfur rock spewing active volcano. It was hot humid and smelly. The cross on the top of the climb was erected by a Spanish Catholic Priest apparently as an exorcism ritual. The priest was convinced that the volcano was the gate way to hell.
The locals believed it to be a mystical place of the gods. They perfomed sacrifices there by throwing young virgins into the steaming hole in the earth.
The caves near by were used to discuss who would be considered worthy for the ritual. It was a tremendous honor to the family to have a child chosen to sacrifice.
The volcano was believed to be the home of a witch who the locals would consult for information about crops planting and other worldly concerns.
The caves were used to hide fighters during the war and also later for satanic rituals. Today, they are a park and visited by 3 varieties of bats, boa constrictors and birds.
Parakeets like to nest there apparently, they have adapted to the sulfuic atmosphere and their predators have not

Granada

2008-04-26T15:20:00.000-07:00

what a colourful city!

On to Nicaragua

2008-04-26T15:11:00.000-07:00

We sail and motor sail…the afternoon is great as we sail closer to Papagyo territory the winds pick up and we have the best sail so far.
As we approach Bahia Brasillito where we met our Cuban American friends, I decide to sit on the bow to enjoy the late afternoon sun. I start to panic as I see us approaching a large mass of brown water ahead. I yell to Michel about a rock ahead and he quickly alters course. We look at all our charts and there are no rocks charted. The mass was too large to be a whale but the strange thing was waves were not breaking on the mass….hmmm
Not too much further I see another mass of brown with fins poking up. I yell at Michel to turn the boat around and investigate. We crossed over a group of about 100 or so rays just floating around. This was the explanation for the other large mass I observed earlier on. We drifted overtop of them which was amazing as they glided underneath the boat. We were just off of Tamerino Beach and there were thousands of rays floating around and dozens jumping all around the boat. We wondered if one was going to land in the boat. An amazing site to say the least, perhaps it was mating season.
We anchored in Brasillito a lovely bay bursting with tourism. The white sandy beach attracts many activities. You can rent, jet skis, horses, hobi cats, and ATV.s. There was a wedding on the beach just at sunset- around the same time as 20 ATV’s roared through followed by horses. I would have freaked out if it were my wedding. Everyone wants a piece of paradise.
I had a job of returning Alphrado’s sunglasses. This involved swimming ashore from the boat as the dingy was stowed and there is a bit of a surf there.
We sailed to the next anchorage enjoying all the rays jumping along side accompanied by dolphins. The next anchorage Bahia De Culebr was a nice surprise right on the edge of the Papagayo Gulf where the winds are notorious.
The bay is dotted by expensive resorts on the hill tops. It seems that majority of luxury resorts are in these parts of Costa Rica. It is noticeably dryer and the brown landscape reminds me of Okanogan hillsides.
We had a quiet anchorage, well protected and no swell. We met a family cruising from Seattle with a beautiful, intelligent 8 year old girl. She seemed to enjoy cruising despite the absence of friends her own age.

Bahia Murcielagos the bay of Bats.
Once again we get whacked at the exact same place when we traveled with Pete and Sue. For some reason Michel opted to go inside the Islands rather than go the extra couple miles out. Apparently, he wanted to look at the islands. This knife edge peninsula has amazing rock formations that jet out of the ocean. The high mountains seem to accelerate the winds to boisterous gusts that scare the crap out of you. Michel kept saying I hate this shit…I was happy to see a group of dolphins follow us through. I talked to them and thanked them for taking my attention away from the anxiety that was beginning to take hold of me during the nasty gusts of wind.
We checked the Grib file weather reports for days and I was predicted to have 8-10 k winds. The winds were on the nose and more like 10-15 k but entirely manageable. We adjusted the sails to pinch as high as we could to windward which involved a course that was about 30 degrees off of where we wanted to go. This was a sacrifice for comfort as we could opt for tacking back as we got closer to San Juan del Sur. As luck would have it the winds and seas subsided enough to motor right into the wind for the last 10 miles. We only got a few bashes and waves in the face hardly worth mentioning. We felt like it was a perfect Papagyo crossing- as this is probably as good as it gets. We sailed for the most part of the day getting up to 9 knots and fighting with the engine into the wind at 3-4 knots

Jovietal leaves Costa Rica

2008-04-26T15:06:00.000-07:00

Leaving Gulfito
Michel sold our outboard for 200 bucks ( the cost of the new prop) to the machine shop guys. I wish he traded it for the whopping bill they gave us
60 bucks a night to tie up at the dog shit dock. I know the dilapidated fish boat beside us did not pay such a fee. Then I remember the broker who arranged for us to tie up here was good friends with the owner of the shop. Hmmm.
We motored for about 20 hours in flat calm seas. The auto helm works just great….I can’t believe how much nicer it is to have time to do stuff no kids and no helm duties. I start on a cleaning binge. Our boat is covered in black mold from, humid, dank Gulfito.
It was a full moon and a perfect night for a passage. I had an uneventful night listening to music with the only disturbance being dolphins and rays jumping along side me. Oh, and there was a cloud squall that dumped a little water on me. The radar picked it up and I fooled around with the charts and radar confused that the large target resembled land, even with the rain clutter control.
I could see no land and the charts said we were 20 miles from shore. I had to trust that these targets were rain- which has been non existent in these areas for the past few months. We are getting closer to wet season which starts in May.
We have wind in the morning and put up the sails…the main jammed again, apparently it is at one point of sail the mast is raked backwards for down wind and the main is baggy no matter how the topping lift is adjusted. We free it and sail at 9 knots….weeee….

Leaving costa Rica..yahoo!

2008-04-26T15:04:00.000-07:00

Back at Gulfito
Its not as hot now thank god. Michel has managed to get a lot of stuff done while we were away. We have our ham radio hooked up and can emailnow The rudder is repaired along with beefing up the archway. Lori and Lionel sold us their outboard and it is so great having a motor that starts---with the added bonus of an electric start. We are ready to sail again. But the girls are flying home tomorrow.

We arrange a cab to take us to San Josee which is 6-7 hours away and costs 220 for the cab. We drive through the mountains and follow huge volcanic ridges winding our way to a summit over 3000 feet. We stop for lunch at a Tico cafeteria and watch the hummingbirds feed from the feeders they placed around the windows. The hummingbirds are larger than the rufus hummingbirds we have at home. It is a cool 15 degrees and the girls started to complain…just wait till you hit 7-10 at home girls! Get used to it.
We overnight and leave to the airport at 4 am. We were surprised to see Dee Dee from New Moon (the Catamaran we met in Panama) They had hit a submerged log in Los Suenos, Costa Rica and were stuck waiting to repair an engine. Never a dull moment in a cruisers life. It is important to note that logs are virtually non existent in Central American waters. I think I may of seen 3 in my entire journey so far. One of those trees thought to be a coconut palm tree ended up being a whale shark.
When we observe chunks of wood floating on the water toped with birds they usually end up being either harmless chunks of Styrofoam or sea turtles.

Sea Whisper crew- Lionel and Lauri

2008-04-26T14:59:00.000-07:00

Gulfito again

We bus back and taxi back to the boarder, a little worried about crossing back into Costa Rica given our last experience. The only trouble we have is getting hassled by a boarder crossing official who is apparently directing traffic by blowing a whistle and waving a baton around. No one is paying much attention to him. So here is this guy standing in the middle of traffic at a boarder that seems to have no entry and exit gates that are typical in the US Canada boarders, there are cars, busses and taxis all driving around him as he blows constantly into his whistle and waves his baton in random directions.
When he sees us, he hones right in on Chantal, runs towards us and babbles away at her as he leads us to the Costa Rican customs building. Chantal is visibly annoyed, she tells me she is sick of these guys always hitting on her.
Upon closer observation I begin to question if this guy is actually a border official. His uniform is dirty, his hat is all faded and the baton is a builders level. Locals walk by him and say Que Passo Rambo….apparently he is a local fixture around here a little crazy and they let him play in the traffic.
While we check in Chantal is hit on again by 20 something buff guy who arranges a taxi ride to Gulfito for us at a reasonable price the upside getting hit on does have some advantages, I suppose.

Back to Panama

2008-04-26T14:57:00.000-07:00

We flew back to Panama and stayed at the Casa Luna hosted. This was a really cool hostel in the old part of Panama San Feilpe. This area was burned down by the English Pirate Henry Morgan in the 1800’s.
I loved the colonial architecture here along with the jumble of clotheslines strung on just about every balcony. This area has a Caribbean Cuban flair and I loved the noise and color so present. The cobblestone narrow streets were lined with colorful wooden doors topped by decorative filigree iron work.
The hostel was great with large wooden doors, hardwood floors and rooms with small balconies that over looked the Panama canal and Church square. There activities for backpackers, poker, ping pong and even a small private movie theater. The girls loved meeting all the backpackers from all over the world. I think they may have the travel bug too someday. I was thrust backward into a pleasant memory of myself backpacking over 20 years ago…oh man I feel old.
A lot of the travelers were headed to South America, Chili and Peru which seem to be the hot spots for backpackers these days.

We bus back and taxi back to the boarder, a little worried about crossing back into Costa Rica given our last experience. The only trouble we have is getting hassled by a boarder crossing official who is apparently directing traffic by blowing a whistle and waving a baton around. No one is paying much attention to him. So here is this guy standing in the middle of traffic at a boarder that seems to have no entry and exit gates that are typical in the US Canada boarders, there are cars, busses and taxis all driving around him as he blows constantly into his whistle and waves his baton in random directions.
When he sees us, he hones right in on Chantal, runs towards us and babbles away at her as he leads us to the Costa Rican customs building. Chantal is visibly annoyed, she tells me she is sick of these guys always hitting on her.
Upon closer observation I begin to question if this guy is actually a border official. His uniform is dirty, his hat is all faded and the baton is a builders level. Locals walk by him and say Que Passo Rambo….apparently he is a local fixture around here a little crazy and they let him play in the traffic.
While we check in Chantal is hit on again by 20 something buff guy who arranges a taxi ride to Gulfito for us at a reasonable price the upside getting hit on does have some advantages, I suppose.

Back to Panama

2008-04-26T14:55:00.000-07:00

Chantal meets her soul mate

Off to the San Blas Islands

2008-04-26T14:49:00.000-07:00

San Blas
The next day we flew to the San Blas and stayed in a hostel type lodge that was really the highlight of our adventure.
The hotel/hostel was originally built by the Smithsonian institute as a research station. The rooms are built on top of a reef on cement and wood stilts. They are all joined by walkways. There is a sliver of beach providing a dock and hammocks. The rooms were rustic to say the least but hey, I have no complaints. Where else can you stay in a house built out of coconut and bamboo shoots which allows the Caribbean breeze through to cool your skin and to be lulled to sleep by the sound of waves underneath your bed.
Josee claims she has had the best sleep ever.
We were treated to some wonderful basic meals comprised of what ever was fresh; grouper, octopus, and chicken along with rice and fruit. During the day we were taken by a panga usually a wet ride to a variety of Islands to explore and relax. Think white sand, coconut trees, coral reefs and a grass hut. That’s it folks. This describes the 365 islands that are the San Blas. We were intrigued by one small island that was comprised of white sand and a single coconut tree it kind of looked like a child’s drawing. Every day here was a post card.
You won’t believe this, sitting all day under a palm tree, eating, snorkeling and swimming is surprisingly tiring. We all felt pretty sapped afterwards and crashed in to bed before 8 pm.
We visited the village of Poivierner and were treated to dancing and singing. A very big part of the kuna culture. They don’t like to get their pictures taken and will ask you for a dollar everytime you take one.
They are so beautiful with the women legs and arms adorned in colorful beads and brightly patterned head scarfs. And mola blouses. Its a national geographic photo. These women where there traditional clothing everywhere. We saw some women shopping in the large shopping malls in Panama city which really looked rather strange…a culture clash to say the least.
The Kuna are proud of their culture and the women are highly regarded in this matriarchal society. Kuna were chased out of Columbia to the mountains of Panama only to be chased out again to the islands because of the canal constuction.
They were pressured to assimilate but declined and developed a simple life style of fishing and coconut trading. The San Blas coconuts are reputed to be the best in Central America. The islands are not owned by Kuna individuals but the coconut trees are.
Currently they are trying to balance the impact. I am told there are no outside ownership- of lodging permitted, the result…rustic affordable paradise lodges like our place and no Hilton’s - works for me!
Molas are the trademark of the Kuna women. These are intricate fabric appliqué work depicting sacred images and ceremony. They sell them on every island they can be seen flapping in the wind strung between two palm trees.
I could not resist buying a bunch, they are just so beautiful.....I am so happy and blessed to have experienced this trip.

our hotel

2008-04-26T14:46:00.000-07:00

Here is our wonderful hotel purched on a reef.

Does life get any better than this?

2008-04-26T14:44:00.000-07:00

35 bucks

2008-04-26T14:42:00.000-07:00

you can stay here all by your lonesome for 35 bucks all inclusive..rice, beans, fish and water.

Girls gone wild

2008-04-26T14:38:00.000-07:00

The shopping in Panama is awesome! These kuna girls enjoyed selling us beads and art at the artisan market in Panama City.

Country Inn Hotel el dorato

2008-04-26T14:36:00.000-07:00

This was the view from our room in Panama. The sailboats are waiting for transit.
I almost stayed up all night watching the ships pass through.

On to Panama

2008-04-26T14:28:00.000-07:00

I decide to get the hell out of Gulfito and take a trip with the girls to Panama City. to meet Mike and Neila who have our new Credit Card that courierd by a visiting friend and to shop for an auto helm part.
We taxi to the boarder and cross into Panama without too much fuss. It is really a strange boarder with no defined crossing. There are just a lot of buildings and traffic. You actually have to search where to check in. We find out later that down the road a few kilometers there is a passport checkpoint.
As luck would have it a Mini bus had room for us to David - Panama’s second largest city. We travel to there and transfer onto the luxury bus to Panama City.
The bus was freezing cold beyond what I could stand. I had to beg for hugs from the girls to keep warm.
Panama is a lot richer than the rest of Central America. There are a lot of ranches with large North American desert style homes.
Panama City is beautiful with sky scrapers and a landmark bridge spanning the cannal. The" Bridge across the Americas" It is breath taking - back in a city
We taxi to our hotel and find our reservation was not accepted and they only have a suite available for 30 bucks more. It turned out we were at the wrong hotel because I had asked for a canal room and we were in the city. The taxi took us on a tour of the city and to our other hotel. ( we thought he was being nice, but found out later it was fare gouging)
When we arrive at the hotel they give us the same story about not having our reservation and add another 30 bucks onto the room fare. 160 bucks. The trick is if you book on internet, there is no guarantee that your room is available at that cost because the internet booking clerks work independently. It’s just a scam. We grab a room on the canal and can see the boats anchored in front of Balboa Yacht club. We have a balcony over the pool and watch the ships pass through the canal. It really is amazing to see the cruise ships pass through followed behind the hundreds of container ships. It is non stop action.
We get our credit cards from AT Last.
I managed to find a place where I could get the part I need for our autohelm in a mater of days with no tax.- I tell the clerk I was so happy I wanted to kiss him. Finally something is going right for a change.
He shyly said it could be arranged then asks me to wait a minute. He returns with a surprise. Apparently, the part I needed was ordered and not picked up by a customer so he handed me the exact part I needed.
The next few days are spent shopping, shopping, shopping. This city is
amazing, malls and stores everywhere offering shoes at 1.99 and knock off brand name shirts for 2.99. Jeans 9.99
Girls gone wild.
After a couple days we opt for cheaper accommodation to allow for more shopping but we really come up short. We stay one night in a dive for 80 bucks and 1 night in a grand suite that has seen better days for 1 night.
I stumble across the deal of the Century. I had my heart set from the start of this trip to go to the San Blas Islands. I stopped into a travel agent to see what it would cost just out of curiosity really.
I almost fell off my chair when she told me that 4 nights, flight, accommodation, meals and tours would cost a mere 180.00 per person
Surely she had made a mistake. I was so excited I could hardly contain myself.

Back in Costa Rica ...sort of.

2008-04-26T14:17:00.000-07:00

We arrived back in Gulfito in the late afternoon and were surprised to see so many boats there. We met up with "Homers Oddesy" from Duncan and Sea Whisper from Ladysmith.
The saga of the Customs and Jovietal in Costa Rica
Michel checked in the following morning with the Port Captain and regular Zarpe run around town visiting, port captain, immigration and customs. It was at Customs where we encountered a major obstacle. We had not checked in Panama to get a Panamanian Zarpe because there was no place on route to do so. We had handed in our Zarpe when we left Costa Rica and not asked for a temporary exit zarpe. Our old zarpe was good for 90 days and we had only been in the country for 20 days so we thought they could just reopen the old Zarpe file…. Apparently not so!
Customs told us we can not enter or should I say Jovietal can’t enter Costa for 3 months because we asked for an exit Zarpe. Who knew to ask a temporary exit and why did they not offer one when we checked out? I talked to other cruisers and they have never hear of such a thing.
We were left with an option of putting the boat in bond until Yachtpath or Dockwise (deepsea frieghters) arrive to put our boat on board if they had room.
Dockwise was schedualed to arrive within a month. We were allowed to tie up at the marina until they arrived. Banana Bay Marina was full and Fish Hook had space available. We were told we would have to pay 100.00 per night plus a bond fee .
Now, we have been in the loop about how reliable the dockwise schedual is as they lease space on the ships and the dates are often much later than scheduled. ( today they are 5 weeks behind)
The cost to ship 30,000. Plus bond and dock fees and we may as well buy another boat.
I remember that there is an international law that states that a port must accommodate a foreign flagged vessel in port for repair if unseaworthy. Well we have repairs to make so we make it very clear that this is our intention and that Gulfito was the nearest port to do so.
We have to hire Brokers to help us out because we did not want the boat to go in Bond. Which means that the marina has stewardship of the boat and it can’t move until customs has released it. Basically, stuck until Dockwise or Yachtpath take the boat. ( yacht path is full and Dockwise doen’t arrive until December)
The Customs broker offers us another option; he has friends that work at a machine shop which has a dock that we can tie up to and repair the rudder.

We move to the dog shit covered dock and endure endless stares by the workers at the shop. We actually have to pass through the interior of the shop and step over piles of metal work to get to shore. We are told we are not allowed to anchor in front of the shop we actually have to be tied up at the dock. It is gross and has little to offer at low tide we were on the bottom which really added to the stress.
I hate Gulfito, it is humid, hot and really wet. There is black mold everywhere and all my clothes and bedding are damp. I just got rid of the rash I developed last time I was here and now it appears its coming back. I am beginning to have melt down and I just want to go home. The girls want to go home .
Thankfully my mom has offered to take the girls till I get back and out of this mess.
I decide to get the hell out of Gulfito and take a trip with the girls to Panama City where we will meet Mike and Neila who have our new Credit Card that was courierd by a visiting friend. I also needed to shop for an auto helm part.

Coiba Panama

2008-04-26T14:14:00.001-07:00

The snorkeling here was the best to date! Lots of fish and reef sharks.

Coiba Park

2008-04-26T14:10:00.000-07:00

Isla Rancheria - Coiba

Am I ever glad we took a side trip here. We almost gave it a miss because of the expensive park fees involved at Coiba. We anchored away from the ranger station to avoid the 160 dollar park fees.
The islets have an amazing amount of wildlife and the waters are clear. Turtles visited us at anchor with curious glances. The islands have be designated as a Smithsonian Institute" research area and it’s not hard to tell why.
Coiba is the main island with the best anchorage’s and the charter boats anchor there.
It was once a penal community where prisoners roamed the island.
It was the island it self that was guarded.
The Prisoners were moved in the late 80’s and it is reported that 5 escaped the transfer. There was a murder of a cruiser in 1989 apparently by one of the escaped convicts. Cruisers were told to avoid Coiba up until recently where it is now deemed to be "safe".
We explored the reefs just off of Ranchierita and were amazed to find hundreds of colorful fish, coral and a couple of reef sharks.
We dingyed over to the park ranger side and explored the white sand beaches where I came across a turtle nesting area. The ground caved in around me as I mistakenly walked over the sand tunnels. I was thankful nesting season was over.
We left the Island for Bahia Honda to meet up with Denis and Linda on Rapture.
On our way our main sail jammed in the mast. Apparently, folded inside we could not free it properly to sail. There seems to be no rest for us on this trip.
The rudder is getting worse and now the main. I’ve had enough and I can’t see myself cruising for much longer. I am glad to be heading home.
I hope Dockwise works for us.

Bahia Honda Isla Gomez
We are going backwards now we motored all day and returned to a familiar anchorage and first favorite stop The crickets were louder than I remembered and a couple landed on our gib sail. I was worried that they would find there way inside the roller furler and make it a home and we would be tormented by their noise for until they freeze to death back in BC.
We left somewhere around 5 am to make a straight shot to Gulfito. It is dark and there are 2 thunderstorms ahead on each side of us.
We hope that they dissipate before sunrise- The last thing we need on this trip is to get struck by lightening -AGAIN!
We are blessed as they pass over and get higher as the sun rises. A sigh of relief and peace as we make a wide open transit to the gulf. The ocean is deep here and last time we crossed we saw whales.
We put out the rods and caught a lot of jack fish. We were catching them at a pretty steady rate up until a park ranger hailed us down from Coiba. They informed us that fishing is not allowed in the area because it was a park. Damn, no wonder the fishing was so good. Josee hooked something big which snapped the line. Actually, this happened twice today. Apparently our angling inexperience is the problem.

Coiba treasures

2008-04-26T14:07:00.000-07:00

Cebaco

2008-04-26T13:53:00.000-07:00

Cebaco
We awoke in a nice little bay beside New Moon the Catamaran we saw the night before. We fueled up at the fuel barge only to meet some young skippers and crew that invited the girls to surf and dive. We new they were craving company of peers so we decided to let them loose for the day.
We enjoyed meeting the skippers of these luxury fishing vessels and I was fascinated to learn about the life style of these guys. Basically, they serve as crew on million dollar sport fishing yachts for wealthy owners that fly down for a couple days to slay marlin.
The boats are jockeyed between fishing hotspots by either ( American) captains or Yacht Path Dock wise freight. The Captains of these boats are on a salary of about 70-100K a year dependent on the size of the boat. They usually have one deck hand and have the responsibility of maintaining and provisioning the vessel as well as dealing with the bureaucracy of the local government officials.
Unlike luxury yachts, these captains are burdened with the task of making sure that the owner’s catch fish. The two yachts we "met" were well over 2 million dollars each and the operating budget for one of them was 1 million a year.
One of the boats had the owner aboard who boasted that he went through 5 captains in one year. Later, when I talked his captain, he said he was counting the days until the end of his contract. He had 4 months to go before he had a contract to go to Alaska for Skipper a fishing vessel there. ( we met up with him a few weeks later and he was fired too, which I found strange because the owner was really praising how good this captain was)
We barbecued up some tuna that one of the boats caught the day before- It was fabulous.
Cebaco has a barge with a bar and barbecue for people to enjoy. Cebaco Bay Barge serves as a platform for provisions, beverages mainly and pre-ordered boat stuff from Panama. This service is mainly for sport fishing boats that fish the rich waters off shore that are noted as the best sport fishing grounds in the area.
The alternative is a long 80 mile passage up a river for fuel.
I was impressed by the Galley provisions on Reel Escape the larger of the two fish boats, the supplies in the Galley would rival any gourmet food outlet.
We really enjoyed meeting the crew; Adam and Omar. . They really planted a seed for the girls to consider crew positions in a few years time.

Punta Mala- bad point

2008-04-26T13:36:00.000-07:00

Punta Mala
It was a long passage and pretty typical of days past, a visit by dolphins broke up the monotony of the day. The landscape changed again to resemble the dry hills of Nicaragua. Everything was fine until we passed a place called Punta Morro de Puercos where on the charts indicate strong rip tides. Converging currents and strong on the nose winds made the last few hours hell. We had
pre-planned a few anchorage’s to duck out in case of this type of scenario but unfortunately the winds were blowing from the wrong place making the anchorage untenable.
As we rounded Punta Naranjo the winds shifted and the bottom came up abruptly to 20 feet as we entered shoal area. The winds blasted us from the North East----not good for where we wanted to go.
We decided to head as close to shore as we could only to get winds that accelerated from the hills into us, making me absolutely wet and tense to say the least. I was on the helm as Michel tried to navigate some safe anchorage options to get out of this nasty area for the night.
It was getting dark and the Panama Ships were visible in the distance. We have no radar and we were a bit nervous about sailing at dark especially in these conditions.
We rounded Punta Moro de Purercos where 2 currents collide offering a confused sea. The winds picked up and I really had no option than to tuck in full harness with the wind and water blasting in my face with a vengence. I kept my nose glued to the compass lubber line ducking the waves as they crashed over the bow and on to my head….I want to cry and go home.
I longed for an auto helm this was just too much work on the helm. The kids ducked in below and immersed themselves in Harry Potter. Genevieve was really upset that she could not help as her stitched up hand rendered her pretty much useless. Chantal was a real trooper, she stepped up to each task demanded of her and kept our spirits high with her observations and willingness to help. Her awareness as to the seriousness of our situation was remarkable. One thing I have learned about Chantal is she gets things done when she has to, a take charge kind of person, which is great in these kind of situations. Josee hides and does not say a whole lot, she basically stays out of the way until we need here. She is the best on the helm.
We tucked into a large bay(Isla de Canas or Rays) which really did not offer any reprieve from the wind however, the seas were not as confused. We traversed our way in the lee of the land following the outline of the bay which was about 15 miles - 10 miles was done completely in the dark. Our anchorage was supposed to be at the end point of the Bay. Lucky the wind and water were warm, as I was completely soaked and it was getting cooler.
We traveled for a couple hours in the dark amid strong gusts and breaking seas, navigating our way to small anchorage that offered a tiny bit of shelter from swell and wind. We were confused to see a series of lights in the middle of the bay simulating land where it was not supposed to be. The lights were bright and stationary about 20 or so different configurations. Michel insisted that they were boats because land is not supposed to be there according to our Nobel Tec charts. (electronic) I am not convinced to rely on these charts and opted to investigate the paper charts.
This confirmed Michel’s assertion that the lights were a series of boat. I imagine it was a fish packing operation or something as there is a shelf area and currents that that offer prime fishing grounds. This really added to the confusion and stress of the night.
We entered the anchorage completely in the dark as I prayed for the moon to rise to help us out, but as luck would have it, moonrise was well over an hour away. There were a few shore lights that offered some good points of reference. We dropped the hook and set anchor anxious to tuck in for the night. Then we heard some huge breaking surf about 200 feet ahead. Holy s***t, we quickly pulled up anchor and got the hell out of there to the West side of the Bay. As we approached we saw a catamaran (New Moon) anchored close to a small island at the point. We were grateful that they were there giving us a point of reference for anchoring. ( the name ironic- as I was praying for the moon to rise to help us out in the dark) We dropped hook just beside them and anchored quite close to the rocky island which offered a little protection from the swell however, it was really dangerous to be anchored so close to rocks with the wind was pushing us towards them. The prevailing winds pushed us out to sea so we trusted that they would continue to blow in that direction when the wind shifts. We set all the anchor GPS alarms. Chantal poured us a large glass of rum on the rocks and put on some soothing music for us.
Michel and I looked at each other and realized that we are not cut out for this.
We really worked well as a team and I was proud of his skills to get us safely in the anchorage.
Chantal, made us some food ,and organized a clean up of the boat.
I headed for the shower and was amazed at how my hair would not lather because of all the caked on salt. We tumbled into bed and slept deeply for a few hours and woke later to check the anchor position and wind.
Michel sleeps better than I do in these situations; I worry too much. All the trust is put on our anchor. I tell myself that the anchor held well in San Juan del Sur and the winds here are similar however, I am just not sure about the holding ground.
We hold on for the night and need another day to rest before we head out to the Gulf of Panama.
We decide to move anchor as it appears we have moved farther out of the bay.
The swell is huge and the surfers have arrived in droves to catch the incoming tidal surf. Great for them, tough for us.
We move anchor and set it 2 more times to position ourselves far enough away from the island and surf to allow some comfort.
It worked! We had a great sleep and the winds died about midnight. We thought about leaving then for Isla Perlas, but opted to get a good sleep instead as the next passage was over 20 hours in a notorious area for bad wind and seas. We awoke at 5 and left in light winds and seas with a 5 foot chop.
As we rounded Punta Mala the seas increased and the wind kicked up right in the nose again. I felt the rudder making noise so we lubricated it. Upon closer examination it appears that the bearing might be worn as there was a lot of play in the shaft. Michel was not sure exactly how much play there should be. The last thing I wanted was to worry about rudder problems in hellish winds and seas in the middle of Shipping lanes from Panama- I can’t think of anything more hazardous.
We talked about the boat our time factor and agreed that the boat needs to be back in Canada. We need to get her back into cruising condition where parts are available. The tropical islands are all starting to look the same and the sun becoming a nuisance. I am pretty sure that I am not a good candidate for long term cruising. We thought about the canal transit and the visit to the San Blas which would have to be done in a couple of weeks if all went well. We would have to make our way up to Cartegena Columbia to park our boat for a season.
We are running out of time and money- Gulfito and yacht delivery is sounding like a better option.
We both have concluded that cruising in the Pacific Northwest is really first class.
If you don’t mind rain. I mean the anchorage’s are well marked, lit, and there are tons of them. Here they are far from the comforts and security of the PNW
The best thing about cruising in Central America is the people that you meet.
We turned the boat around to head back to Gulfito, where we will put Jovital on Dock Wise and do some land trips. Sailing down wind eased the pressure on the rudder and we were a lot more comfortable however feeling a little let down about ending our trip.
I really had regrets not going to the Mayan ruins in Guatemala and Honduras. I want to take the kids to the Caribbean side of Honduras where we can dive. Perhaps we will take the bus to Panama, pick up some mail there and maybe help someone transit the Canal.

Going to the Hospital

2008-04-25T15:31:00.000-07:00

Gulf of Montijo
This is a shallow shoaly river with sandbars and islands scattered about.
We plotted a track using Noble Tec and did not deviate much from the track.
We were able to transit sandbar shallows at 10 feet of water. We did pretty well considering the charts were about 20 feet off. ( our anchorage showed us on land) We arrived just before dark and went ashore to inquire about finding a medical facility.
We arranged for a hospital transit in the morning. Santiago is a small city is only a 30 km away.
We had a horrible dinner of salty seafood at the pier and watched the fish boats come in.
We taxied into town and Genevieve received some stitches and instructions and prescriptions to ward off infection. The care was pretty good and cheap (35 bucks) We got a whole lot of provisions as the prices of food were the lowest we have come across so far, in Central America. The towns are clean, quiet and the roads are terrific. The housing was the nicest we’ve seen so far as well.
Absent are the shanty town, the corrugated rusted steel structures so common in El Salvador and Nicaragua. The town folk seem subdued, no one looks at you in the eyes. It’s as if they are dismissing you or something. No smiles, just solemn faces…
It was kind of strange.
We got everything done early and found time to help Michel climb the mast to install the anchor lights. It was a bit breezy and overcast which made it a lot cooler. As he topped the 65 foot mast he discovered for furling problem and lubed the furling.
We had a nice dinner and went to bed early because we had to leave at 5:30am to catch the tides to get out safely.
We searched around for an alarm clock which is something we have not had a chance to use…as cell phones were alarm clocks at home and El Salvador.
It turned out we did not need one as we were struck by a Panga at 5:15 am.
We were a little choked that the guy did not even stop.
The only damage was minor pink and red scrapes along our hull.
We left shortly after and had a nice sail out of the river, making a record 8.5 knots

Bahia Honda

2008-04-25T15:26:00.000-07:00

This place is really special. The locals paddle out to offer fresh produce to trade for batteries, clothes, and candy.\
These kids found out about the girls and visited us dressed up in their finest. (check out the helmsman) We took some pictures and printed them off for them. They were over the moon seeing themselves in print.

Bahia Honda

2008-04-25T15:16:00.000-07:00

Bahia Honda
What a magical place, so lush, and calm at least until our last night.
Genevieve cut her finger pretty badly just as we were preparing to go to a pot luck supper raft up. I was in the shower, Michel and Josee were pulling up
the anchor. Chantal let out an remarkable scream louder than any howler monkey. Michel piped up with "Lynda" I need your help out here….don’t panic get the First Aid kit.
I scramble for the first aid kit and Genevieve is standing on the transom with blood gushing out of her paper towel covered finger…apparently, she did not want to mess up the boat. It’s a horrible feeling being in the middle of nowhere having to perform first aid on your kid. I had steristip sutures but the cut was so severely serrated and deep I couldn’t close the skin, the strips were useless. To complicate matters Genevieve was not all too cooperative in having me examine the wound. Thankfully Denis helped out- he is a chiropractor but had some surgical experience as well. He had a kick ass first aid kit with stuff that I never even knew existed. She got great care and a real head start at beating off infection. We made it to our pot luck just before after dark and met up with some new cruisers ( ) really nice down to earth folk who have lucked into a cruising position I never dreamed possible. For the last 10 years they have been on Salary to crew on 45 foot cat. The family uses the cat about 8 times a year for a week or so, then the cat is their home free for them to use.
They were a really great source of local information and we are grateful for their help in charting an exit for Genevieve.
We really had a nice dinner chatting with 3 other cruising couples ( we are the only ones not retired, having a schedule of some sorts, confided by the return to work program.)
I was a little envious that they had so much time and no schedule- however, having said this I am not sure that I could sell up and sail for endless years either. "Sea Whisper" had just returned from 4 year sailing adventure all the way to the Med and back.
I enjoyed their photos and really got excited about cruising Croatia, and Turkey.
The following morning we removed Genevieve’s bandage and were disheartened to find that she needed to go to the hospital as the bleeding had not stopped.
The hospital was 12 hour sail up a river however, as luck would have it the tides were cooperating. Against …….advise we shaved 10 miles off our journey by transiting the shoal areas in the entrance of the river on the lee side of and Island.
We were sailing and making great time as the current was with us. All hell broke loose as we approached the sand bar we needed to take the sails in to have better control of the boat. The gib jammed and we had a hell of a time trying to free it. It’s one of those scenarios that the "salty" old time sailors say they never trust those new fanged furling rigs. Michel was freaking out and we all tried our best to get that damn sail in. We unfurled it completely with the option of ripping it out of the loose fitting track for the luff tape. It’s a rather noisy adventure and I was beginning to wonder why we have such bad luck.
Michel solved the problem by loosening the halyard to take pressure off the top furler. It freed and we were able to furl up the sail completely.
(Later investigation showed that the bearings needed attention.

Puffer feast

2008-04-25T15:11:00.000-07:00

These hermit crabs were really chowing down on this unfortunate puffer.
The crabs also liked pineapple tops that washed ashore.

Josee beats the heat

2008-04-25T15:09:00.000-07:00

Josee found a great place to do homework during the heat of the day.

Scuba

2008-04-25T15:05:00.000-07:00

The diving is better in Panama we saw some sharks today!

Coconuts

2008-04-25T15:03:00.000-07:00

It is easy to see how plentiful the coconuts are along the shore lines.
Piles of them wash up at the beach and seem to grow without too much care.

Isla Seca

2008-04-25T14:49:00.001-07:00

Everyone departed in the morning for Isla Seca except Nepanthe who decided to look for outboards in David. We put in our order a 15 hp Yamaha 4 or 2 stroke just get us an engine. Its frustrating and dangerous to have such a temperamental outboard. Wake boarding is out of the question until a new outboard arrives. We motored again for most of the day. Panama offers a unique landscape of low lying islands and pinnacles poking out of the ocean.
The Isla Seca group was even more beautiful than the last anchorage, however the holding a bit tough. The ocean floor was riddled with coral rock and sand that dropped dramatically down a shelf. We had to set anchor 4 times to get it right.
The last time was a bit suspect as we anchored in 40 feet of water and had to put out a lot of chain to give enough scope to grab. The problem being is that less than 50 feet back the water shoaled to less than 12 feet. We could of used a stern anchor but did not have one small enough.
The moon was full and low tide was at 9 pm so we watched and waited. The wind had us in the right direction for the time being. The winds here blow offshore at night and onshore during the morning. When we woke up we had less than a couple inches below the keel and had to pull up some chain to get us in deeper water.
The anchorage was tranquil and we all had our little spots for have some quiet time. We caught a couple of jack fish and barbecued them up for a really unique supper. The flesh is dark like stake but the taste is similar to tuna with a tougher texture. I thought kind of tasted like steak.
We enjoyed the afternoon snorkeling really an amazing place, the best so far. We were happy to see all sorts of angel fish, trigger fish, parrot fish and a sea snake. Josee is like a fish, free diving to depths to play with the puffer fish. We had fun spotting a yellow puffer fish. For some unknown reason some puffer fish go through a stage where they turn lemon yellow. This anchorage is home to a resort with several yurts perched up on the hill side. I was told it is abandoned or not running as the owners were killed in a car crash. A plane did land on a small airstrip on the Island earlier in the day. We did not see any lights or activity at the resort so I am gathering this was a caretaker of the resort who landed as there are no other homes on the Island. We loved exploring the beaches which were loaded with hermit crabs. We held hermit crab races and collected a lot of pretty shells on the beach.
I was feeling sick from some sort of illness that make me feel achy and fevery with nausea and chills. Apparently, Denis from Rapture was really sick that night too. His wife was suspecting malaria or dengue fever.
I don’t know if we are in Malarial areas yet. Gulfito certainly had potential. I am suspecting we caught the flu at the pot luck we had the night before aboard At Last..
We left the anchorage as winds were coming and we were not to happy about the holding here. As we left we said good bye to Mike who was knee deep in water cleaning the hull of his cat- apparently these type of anchorage’s are a cats meow.! He went aground and was using this set back well.
We left the Seca’s for Bahia Honda our Chart program "noble tecK" somehow missed the section we are transiting so we had to photo copy a drawing out of Mikes cruising guide to Panama. We should be fine as the weather is clear and winds are mild. As we approached Honda we could see a large black squall and a lot of smoke. A faint odor of burning wood passed through the air. I was wondering if there was a forest fire nearby. The smoke passed with the squall and we only got a little wet. As we approached the bay we were amazed at how the land transformed into lush green waterways that compare to the waters at home. Josee said the area reminded her of Bamfield. The lush rainforest covered islands are loaded with howler monkeys that really made a lot of racket when the rain hit. They also kicked up a fuss at sunset and 3 am.
I love this bay, we met up with some Canadians aboard SEA Whisper a Fraser 50 from Ladysmith of all Places. ( Lionel & Laurie)
We h ad a wonderful dinner of sushi from the tuna we caught earlier in the day. and treated Linda to a wonderful dinner complete with carrot cake.
Mike is still deathly ill and it was Linda’s first time having to do everything on the boat by herself. I should try this just to practice.

Isla Gomez

2008-04-25T14:41:00.000-07:00

We had a great time at this anchorage staying 3 nights. We explored the beaches and did some diving which was not very impressive because of poor visibility and no fish.
We had a beach party on St Patrick’s Day- it was pretty coincidental when we discovered a sign pointing to Dublin 4446 km. A tree had grown around the sign so apparently it has been here for a while. A monstrous plywood cat boat joined the anchorage. A dive charter from Panama City the men were wearing speedo and crew cuts. I suspected they were eastern block citizens and I was not far off. They were Russians who had just flown in from Moscow. What a long trip. They traveled to Panama to look for hammerhead sharks.
We really enjoyed our stay here meeting a group of cruisers all going the same way. It looks like we will be seeing a lot of these guys and maybe even transiting the Canal together

St Patrick's Day

2008-04-25T14:34:00.000-07:00

Now this is strange. On saint Patricks day I invited everyone ashore for a pot luck.
Nepenthe brought their dingy up for a buffet table. We had the party in front of a sign that pointed to Dublin. The sign had been there for quite some time as the tree had grown around the post.

Mechanically inclined

2008-04-25T14:28:00.000-07:00

half way to Isla Gomez the engine started to overheat. Chantal really saved the day she was genuinely interested in helping and her small arms were great getting into the impeller area which was hot, hot, hot...

Isla Gomez

2008-04-25T14:22:00.000-07:00

Isla Gomez- Isla Pareda

It supposed to be a short trip to Isla Gomez so we started the day with a short walk with Mike and Miela off of At Last ( lagoon 44)
It is hot and a little drier than Costa Rica the beach as full of Conch Shells and looked a little like the set on Survivor.
We had engine troubles about half way across. Lucky we had the sails up and were motor sailing with a small jeniker. We cruised about 3.5 knots while Michel and Chantal worked on the hot engine. The impeller was thought to be the problem because a new one was installed the day prior. The problem was the sea strainer intake had lost its seal and water was not getting sucked in.
Apparently this has been a problem for a while and the engine was running hot.
Michel made a gasket and we made it to the Islets just before sunset.
What a stunning place. About a dozen little islands all grouped together surround by jagged pinnacles. As we approached the group the depth of the water came up drastically from 600 to 35 feet. In the shallows the waves began to build it was interesting to watch. We were joined by bottle nose dolphins as we approached the anchorage. Our spirits lifted as we had finally found the anchorage we had dreamed about before leaving Canada…AT LAST!
We were happy to see lots of little coves to anchor in and a group of sailboats all all grouped together. We arrived at happy hour on board Alex and Carols Nepenthe and met a great group of friends.

Panama!

2008-04-25T14:05:00.000-07:00

Gulfito to Panama Punta Balsa.
We were all happy to leave Gulfito. I was certainly happy to leave the internet behind. The internet and TV were too much of a distraction for the girls and their homework.
Just outside the bay we saw some large bottleneck dolphins who joined our bow wake. They are far and few between, as most of the dolphins that join us are the smaller porpoises we have at home.
The highlight of our day was settling an argument.
I could hear Michel and Chantal arguing about weather a tree or shark was ahead. I altered course to settle the argument and damned if we did not stumble upon a 25 +foot basking shark. A bizarre looking creature. Kind of a cross between a whale and shark. We did a few circles around it then it reared flat head to have a peak at us then dove down. Very exciting indeed.
We motored for most of the day and tried unsuccessfully to catch a fish. The only thing we hooked was a barracuda which are not very good to eat. The dolphins and rays were our company for the most part of the day. We did manage to see another sailboat sailing in the opposite direction.
We only saw one fishing boat- it seems the farther down we sail the fewer fish boats we seem to encounter.
Just as we were approaching Punta Balsa we were amazed at the surf crashing at the shoal about a mile off shore. Josee was wistfully gazing through the binoculars longing to surf those large tunneling waves.
As we rounded the point we came across a large blue whale sounding then with a flick of its tail it was gone. There is a shelf here that drops from 80 feet to 1000 feet a very active place for large fish. Small schools were constantly jumping out of the water avoiding a chase. We anchored beside AT Last our friends on a cat we met at Gulfito.
The dingy motor packed it in again, Chantal was stung by a nasty jelly fish which made for a grumpy night. Chantal had made a pineapple upside down cake that pretty much turned the boat upside down and the temperature to about sauna level. Much to her luck the cake was delicious and
worth the hell to construct it.

Laundry Day

2008-04-25T14:01:00.000-07:00

Chantal and Josee miss out on the laundry services and have to do it themselves.
In this heat and wind it takes no time to dry.

Gulfito

2008-04-25T13:58:00.000-07:00

Gulfito is really lush and green, a tropical paradise for some.
The jungle is home to howler and white faced monkeys that can be seen or heard regularly

Gulfito

2008-04-25T13:57:00.000-07:00

Land and Sea

2008-04-25T13:50:00.000-07:00

One of the greatest places for cruisers is Land and Sea. Tim is the host and he provides mooring bouys, garbage collection, laundry services, internet, beverages and a place to hang out for a mere 4 bucks a day. We spent a lot of time at his little hangout making friends and getting information. The girls loved the use of the internet and TV.

Gulfito

2008-04-24T16:09:00.000-07:00

We had a lovely tour of Richards get away retreat project
This flower has water that you can drink if you are parched.

on the more beautiful side

2008-04-24T16:07:00.000-07:00

Because of the rain, Gulfito has some amazing plants that are very fragrant

Gulfito water front

2008-04-24T15:56:00.001-07:00

sitting in Gulfito

2008-04-24T15:52:00.000-07:00

this is what happens if you leave your boat in Gulfito for a season.
We had black mold growing on the top side of the hull after only sitting here for a couple of weeks.

Gulfito

2008-04-24T15:27:00.000-07:00

The town I grew to hate
This shot is one of 3 streets that offer bars..bars and more bars.

Whale shark

2008-04-22T16:28:00.000-07:00

Logs are realitivly rare around here however, we though we saw a coconut tree floating in the water. The kids said no its a shark, it has fins!
We altered course to have a better look and was amazed to see a huge whale shark. Unafraid of us we got up close by circling around it a few times. I was not sure how it was going to behave so I kept a safe distance. We found out later these sharks are harmless.

The basking shark is the second largest fish in the world, second only to another filter feeder, the whale shark. This animal can attain lengths of at least 10 meters (33 feet), but the average size is 7-9 meters. They can weigh up to 4 tons. The shape of its snout is conical and the gill slits extend around the top and bottom of its head. Associated with the gills are structures called gill rakers. These gill rakers are dark and bristle like and are used to catch plankton as water filters through the mouth and over the gills. The basking shark is usually grayish-brown in colour and often seems to have a mottled appearance. The caudal (tail) fin has a strong lateral keel and a crescent shape. The teeth in the basking shark are very small and numerous and often number one hundred per row. The teeth themselves have a single conical cusp, are curved backwards and are the same on both the upper and lower jaws.

Basking sharks are a migrating species and are believed to overwinter in deep waters. They may occur in either small schools or alone. Small schools in the Bay of Fundy have been seen swimming nose to tail in circles in what may be a form of mating behavior. Basking sharks are not aggressive and generally harmless to people. The number of basking sharks is unknown, but may be decreasing since the basking shark is hunted for its meat, fins and oil.

an easier way home?

2008-04-22T15:59:00.001-07:00

for 30 grand you can come aboard.....at this point It does not seem such a bad idea

Genvieve contributes to the wall art

2008-04-22T15:56:00.000-07:00

Gulfito

2008-04-22T15:15:00.000-07:00

There are many tiny houses built over the Gulf. Each ramshackle house has brightly painted doors and gingerbread windows.

Up and outta here....

2008-04-22T14:27:00.000-07:00

Bahia Drake to Gulfito.
The anchorage sucked! Huge rollers came in around 11 PM and peaked at about 3 AM. We were literally tossed out of bed. Pissed off we got up and finally said lets get the hell out of here…or something like that.
We pulled up anchor at 4 am and tried to slip out in complete darkness only to have the damn GPS navigation program quit. We had only a lighted boat in the anchorage to give us our bearings so I spend my time hovering in circles keeping my bearing trying to avoid land and other targets. After farting around and changing computers we got the GPS up an running again. Windows vista gives the navigation program troubles. It took over an hour of aggravation to get things going again to safely navigate out of the bay just in time for sunrise.
We hooked onto an odd looking kind of tuna fish that we later identified as a jack fish. We tried the cruisers trick of pouring alcohol in the gills to kill the fish so we don’t have blood all over the deck. It seems a little more humane than bashing it on the head with a winch handle. This guy was got the Smirnoff treatment off to la la land which worked quite well.
It was going to be another long day, no wind again. We motored along for the most part of the day then put of the sails as we rounded the corner to enter Gulfo Dulce. This is a large gulf surrounded by lush rain forests and parks. The lands are greener and the seas bluer here. I saw lots of sea snakes and turtles floating by. Dolphins are an hourly occurrence in these waters.
The entrance to Gulfito was well marked and the anchorage promised some tranquillity given its isolation from the Pacific swell that had become such a nuisance for the past few weeks.
We were pleasantly surprised at how developed the anchorage was for cruisers
We dropped anchor among the mooring buoys set out by Land and Sea services and Banana Bay Marina. We had not reserved and decided just to anchor until we investigated our options. Banana Bay Marina offered slips at a whopping 2 b dollars a foot. They offered showers, Internet and a hot tub. Big Deal who wants a hot tub in this weather…I can’t even stand a hot shower.
I could not stand a hot tub in this heat and I guess no one else could either because I never saw anyone use it.
Land and Sea offered use of their facilities a dock and a house with cold drinks on the honor system, Internet, showers, TV room and library. Well set up for cruisers. They charged 4 dollars a day for this and 6 dollars a day if you wanted to tie up to one of their mooring buoys. Cruisers are penny pincher's so I don’t have to tell you where everyone hung out. We were happy to meet friends from our El Salvador anchorage on Desadarada a family from California. Nancy, Mike.
They had left Bahia del Sol in November and we did not leave until January so we felt good about catching up and a little bit bad for rushing through Costa Rica.
We also met up with cruisers from Puesta Del Sol in Nicaragua.
We are the Southbounders for this season it appears. Not that many cruisers are cruising these areas anymore we are told.
On the Walls of the TV room at land and Sea we see boat names/logos from cruisers that have passed through. We recognize many names from Bahia del Sol and are happy to see their names here.
Genevieve painted a beautiful Jovietal sign surrounded by mermaids.
The port Captain clearances have to be made here and Michel spends all day doing it. It was a major hassle and he came back ready to check out of this cruising life.
We all were feeling pretty deflated ready to call it quits. The engine on the boat and dingy are giving us troubles and Michel seems to be overloaded with boat issues with no time for fun.
The girls are fighting and I am fighting or as its refereed to by others Bitching. I still have not discovered a way to have the kids do school work or chores with out "bitching".
Gulfito came into existence from United Fruit Company who had shipping based here. The company provided jobs, schools, and fueled the economy. There was a fairly large "red light district with lots of bars servicing merchant ships etc which still exist today.
1986 United Fruit pulled out of Gulfito because of labour unrest, falling revenues from increased shipping costs and banana diseases.
The Story about United fruit company is interesting. The Banana republic virtually started in Costa Rica and moved around where ever there was "political" allies and cheap labour. (protecting the interests of UFC. The more I learn about this the more I am incensed about American foreign Policy. United food corp later moved headquarters to Guatemala where the Government was a little more "cooperative" Military Dictatorship Gov'ts seemed to work best for the United Fruit Co. Its a long contentious story that fueled wars, and discontent which continues to this day. The company built schools and had facilities available to workers that never existed. Some say that despite the evils that United Fruit co engaged in such as; testing Chemicals in the rain forest and subjecting its employees to dangerous environment they benefited Costa Rican's by providing housing, jobs, schools etc that benefited the impoverished.
After the United Fruit Co packed up and left the town struggled and almost became a ghost town. The Government introduced a Duty Free Zone to generate some money into the local economy. Bus loads of Costa Rican's venture into the zone to buy electronics or booze. We toured the facility and it was pretty strange, about 100 stores all named union number 1 though 99 most offer the same things. The same brands at the same price; blenders, TV. appliances etc.
Booze was cheap but they had little to choose from, nevertheless, cruisers load up on Cheap rum and whiskey.
The red zone is still here and there are plenty of bars still operating. There are over 60 bars in this town - It is strange to see a place where every third building is a bar.
It rains almost everyday here. At least it did when we were there. Apparently it rains over 200 inches a year. This is why it is so lush.
Our dingy trips at sunset were amazing, all the birds and monkeys come out and make their noises. We had fun watching white faced monkey jump from the coconut trees to the rainforest's canopy trees. The howler monkeys make the strangest noise- kind of like a gorilla and bullmastif dog bark. I am told they are the loudest animals on earth. They howl at sun rise, sun set and when they are upset.
After sunset the rains come in torrential down pours. We shower and wash the boat under the deluge. It cools things off for a short while then steams it up for the hot humid days.
We met a New Yorker who offered to take us on a hike on his property. He and his partner bought a half finished retreat in the rain forest. It was beautiful surrounded by mango trees and rain forest. The previous owners had planted a lot of tropical floral arrangements that made the place like the garden of Eden.
We saw a 8 foot long black shiny snake. I think it is called a rat snake. I hate snakes and got a little freaked out. We ate fruit from the trees, and marveled at the cashew trees. It is a long involved process to harvest these nuts.
The highlight of the day was watching the leaf cutter ants go about their business. They blaze trails through the forest and tunnel under growth to their nest areas. Each ant has a job. We watched the cutters stack green leaves in a pile and the gatherers pick up the pieces to haul away to the nest. The lines of ants were amazing. There were lines of green leaf carrying ants and flower carrying ants. They chew up the stuff to turn into some mold type stuff that is the food for the colony.
We met a lovely French family aboard Casa del Mer who are sailing for 5 years after selling their business. We were invited aboard and amazed at how large a 44 foot cat is . Their boat is very much like a floating home.
We were anxious to leave as the hot humid weather is getting to us. Michel worked on the engine with a local mechanic and he diagnosed our dingy motor problem- Corrosion in the exhaust - time for a new one. Problem is they can’t be found - Panama is our only option.
We watched Yacht Path load up the boats to ship up North and were quite impressed at the procedure. We had serious considerations to pack our trip in at this time and asked about including Jovietal with the cargo. Fortunately, or unfortunately there seemed to be no room. Part of me wonders why the arrival of Dockwise coincided with our arrival….
30 thousand bucks and change can get Jovietal home in 3 weeks.
We opt for a longer challenging proposition.
Panama or bust.

Entering the Rainforests.

2008-04-22T13:59:00.000-07:00

Quepos to Bahia Drake.
It was a long passage…..9 hours under motor…boring flat seas with the occasional turtle with birds on its back to break up the monotony. A few dolphins joined us for about 20 minutes and we hooked a big fish that broke our line. Other than that, it was pretty boring.. Motored the whole way although we put up sails to give us a little lift. We are in the doldrums.
Chantal and I went ashore to discover wonderful wilderness resort in Bahia Drake.
We booked a canopy tour and enjoyed the beach walk. The fragrance of gardenia was intoxicating.. The dead sloth on the beach- revolting-
We were amazed at how lush and green this bay is. The bamboo stalks were huge and the variety of flowers and tropical plants breath taking. There is a luxury/rustic high end resort that really offers an amazing get away experience.
I was glad to get off the boat.

strange....

2008-04-22T13:53:00.000-07:00

I am posting backwards here we are about a month behind...you will see why if you read on.
we are back in San Juan del Sur...heading home.

Quepos- Manuel Antonio National Park

2008-04-22T13:34:00.000-07:00

Bahia Herradura to Quepos.

No wind today so we end up motoring for over 5 hours. About midway we were boarded by the coast guard. Josee was at the wheel and I was wearing a silk slip which I find comfortable in the hot weather but hardly appropriate for getting boarded by official with machine guns. I dashed down below to get changed and yelled to get the fishing gear out of the water. As we had no permits to enter the country let alone a fishing license I suspected that we were in for a heap of fines.
As it turned out they were quite friendly and easy on us …no fines just lots of smiles and paper work with documentation of our passports and boat registration. Traveling with teens maybe an asset.
When we arrive a Quepos we are disappointed as the anchorage is open again with a huge rolly swell and a whole lot of construction happening. We pass onto a bay about a mile away only to be disappointed with more swell and rocks.
The town of Quepos is pretty shanty to say the least. Old buildings, open sewers and prostitutes. The only gems in this town seem to be the Italian deli and art surf shop. It appears this town is a major fishing charter launch site.
The marina was supposed to be completed in 2007 and is about a year away I suppose as they are still working on the break water.

Quepos to Manuel Antonio
I had been looking forward to this anchorage from the start as I had been there 20 years prior on land and found it to be one of the most beautiful places on Earth. A rainforest bordering a white sandy beach in a tiny little bay.
From the sea side its a whole new perspective. Surf and rocky islets that provide a wonderful backdrop for beach photos present a host of dangers for boats at anchor. The swell was pretty bad coming in and breakers were crashing in about 100 meters from our bow. We tried to tuck in around a point to get away from the swell but as the tide dropped the waves started breaking closer and closer. The surf made it impossible to safely land the dingy ashore. It was torture being stuck on the boat with beautiful beaches and rain forests beckoning to be explored. For me, it was worse than someone placing a lovely slab of gorgonzola and a cold glass of Chablis in front of me only to have a glass wall come up every time I reach towards them. I am left to salivate, as I explore the landscape though a pair of binoculars, looking for monkeys, sloth’s and toucans.
The girls begged to surf and Chantal pulled a fast one by leapfrogging overboard for a swim. It was so funny I laughed for a long time with the image of her springing off the boat so unexpected like a frog jumping into a pond.
We pulled up anchor at sunset and headed back for Quepos for another rock and roll night at anchor…

Cooperation...a moment of Bliss

2008-04-08T06:37:00.000-07:00