Work, Work, Work!!!!

Once we were settled in San Carlos we began work on the toe rail around the edge of the boat (about 110ft of wood). This involved stripping every bit of metal off the wood that wasn't bolted down. Then we managed to buy some paint stripper and spent the next 2 weeks stripping the wood back completely. We were slowed down as a few days it was too windy or rainy to work and we did not want the bits blowing everywhere as we could have been thrown out of the marina! In between time, we spent our time cleaning all the metal this included all 250 screws out of the rub rail (they were polished with a dremmel, cleaned by hand and then washed off with de-natured alcohol). Easier to replace we know BUT they just aren't available!

We met an American couple at the dock, Nona and Steve, who unusually for Americans, like gin and tonic. We did manage to squeeze in some socialising! Steve and Nona also very kindly took us shopping and to do washing. Mike discovered Steve likes whisky so his single malts were attacked! Steve and Nona left early in our stay at the marina but we have since met up with them again in La Paz.

Once all the preparation was completed we painted on 3 layers of epoxy. As the epoxy goes off very quickly we had to paint as if we were in a speed painting competition! We had 2 days break while it hardened and then it had 4 layers of cetol (paint/varnish).

During this time, we also met and became very good friends with a Canadian couple, Micheila and Bill who had recently got married on the beach outside a bar called 'The Soggy Peso'. Bill and Micheila were also working on their boat which had been in storage in Mexico over the last 4 years. Their boat was opposite ours so there was a lot of banter. We met up on a number of occasions for food and drinks (drinks and food is probably more accurate!). They have a 4x4 ATV which they let us use while in San Carlos. We didn't have time to take full advantage of it but it was better than waiting for buses and we did get out a few times on it. Bill and Micheila also have a lovely house overlooking the sea which we went to a number of times. We discovered the Soggy Peso thanks to Bill and Micheila and watched a few good sunsets while sipping margaritas!

Once the painting was complete it then took us days to re-install all of the deckware. This was hindered by the weather again as it was incredibly cold,, i.e. under 10C. When we were painting there were heavy dews which meant we had to start work later and then when we were re-installing everything we had to stop work early because it was too cold. We were working in thermals and our hands got so cold we couldn't hold the screw driver!

All of this meant it took us longer than expected and we were not ready to leave the marina until 9 December. The delay was good for Bill and Micheila also as they were going to sail to San Pedro with us for a few days. San Pedro is a beautiful cove well protected from most winds and usually very quiet! Both boats had a great sail to San Pedro which is 10 miles north of San Carlos. The anchorage was busy as 11 shrimper boats were anchored but there was still plenty of room. We had dinner and breakfast together before saying our good-byes. Bill and Micheila left and sailed back to San Carlos and we were looking forward to a rest before sailing to La Paz.

The weather had other ideas, the wind blew from the south which is the only direction the bay had no protection and the swell was rolling into the bay. After 2 sleepless nights we headed back to the marina for a good nights sleep. As we got to the dock Bill and Micheila were waiting for us with a warm welcome. They had seen us sail across the bay from their house. We had one last visit to the Soggy Peso before saying our goodbyes again which was very sad as we had all got on so well together. They are a lovely couple and we had some great times, they made the time in the marina, which could have been horrible, fun!

The following morning we set off for La Paz dressed in thermals, boots, hats, gloves, and layers and layers of clothes! A norther was forecast which arrived about 3 hours after we left so we had 20-25 knots and did 200 miles in 32 hours. We arrived in Ensenada Grande at 2pm the following day and tucked in to a wind free spot behind the headland. We had a day at anchor and Mike dived under the boat to change the anodes. We had not done this in San Carlos as the sea was only 15C whereas it was 20C in Ensenada Grande. The weather was also suddenly warmer and thermals were abandoned!

We had to motor to La Paz which is where we are now anchored. We have been spending a lot of time with our friends Wendy and Bobby and at their house. Mike and Bobby have made a box to store the dive compressor so hopefully that will be installed on the boat in the next few days.

Christmas day we had dinner with Wendy and Bobby at their house. Mel and Sandy, friends we met in La Paz in June and sailed up the sea with, also joined us and a few other people also called in during the day. New Years eve, the 6 of us are having a meal together which should be fun and then we are going to join the free party being held on the Malecon – the street that runs along the seafront.

We will be home in 4 weeks time and we have a long list of boat jobs before we cross the Pacific so it will be a busy time before we leave!

It is difficult to believe that this time last year we were in the Bahamas. We wanted a quieter year this year but instead we have sailed more miles - 5940. This includes sailing from the Bahamas to Panama, crossing to the Galapagos, coming to Mexico and sailing 1500 miles in the Sea of Cortez! A good warm up for next year when we should sail about 7000 miles.

Happy New Year to everyone!

Back From the US

We arrived in San Felipe on 11 September and spent a few days stripping the boat ready to leave her and making sure she was secure should any bad weather hit. We then caught the bus to Tijuana near the US/Mexican border. This was a trip of 6 hours and we were stopped at 2 army checkpoints where everyone had to get off the bus and have our bags searched. We thought getting through the US border was going to be easy given we have a 10 year visa, but no, it took us 3 hours and lots of queuing. The Mexicans just walk through! So we arrived in San Diego very jaded after a long day travelling. The Dolphin Motel there was in a great location and the staff and owners were all amazingly friendly and helpful.

We had a few days in San Diego and spent the time collecting all the boat parts we had already ordered and buying things we can't get in Mexico. San Diego is a lovely town and unlike many US towns it is easy to get around without a car. They have a good bus and trolley service and public transport is organised, cheap and clean with helpful staff. The marinas in SD are huge and occupy most of the harbour. It's easy to see there is lots of money in California.

Our fiend, Jordan, arrived from the UK and we collected her at the airport before collecting our hire car. Unfortunately, Budget said they no longer worked with Expedia (who we had booked through) and wouldn't let us take a car unless we paid again (and the cost was double what we had already paid!). We then spent a frantic few hours on the phone to Expedia (the motel let us use their land phone to receive calls in from Expedia). This resulted in us getting a car from Avis and paying twice the money so, we are now fighting to get the additional cost back from Expedia!

After all the stress, we left San Diego and had a day long drive to Williams which is close to the Grand Canyon. We spent a few days at the Canyon walking along the rim and watching a spectacular sunset. The altitude makes it difficult to walk very far for us sea level folk and we also found the weather cold at night. It's just too big to describe and it's on Mike's list of things to revisit, preferably by raft down the Colorado. That is probably the only way to really appreciate it!!

Next we drove through Monument Valley, the home of so many westerns. We took the car off road and drove all through the monuments. A little bumpy on the dirt roads but that is why we had a 4x4 – sorry, a SUV (as the Americans say!). The drive along Highway 95 to Bryce Canyon was absolutely stunning and probably the most scenic drive you can do anywhere in the world. Each corner and hill crest was another amazing view. The drive was a little hairy in places as at one point the road ascends a vertical cliff and makes a lot of hairpin turns and is just dirt, single track. Fortunately, Karen was driving so the rest of us just enjoyed the view whilst she worried about going over the edge!!!

Bryce Canyon is another amazing place with lots of pinnacles of multi coloured rock created by the freeze and thaw of the winters. It also creates lots of slot canyons which are just about wide enough for one and have vertical walls reaching to the sky. We managed a walk down into the bottom of the Canyon which was lots of fun and took a bus tour around the park. Then it was another spectacular drive before arriving at Zion National Park. We just went from one amazing view to another and have hundreds of photos.

Next it was a complete change as we headed to Las Vegas. We were all disappointed with Las Vegas, it has changed a lot since Jordan and Karen were last there and is now full of nightclubs and sex shows. A lot of theme hotels which were fun to visit have now gone and the hotels just concentrate on gambling and nightclubs. The best hotel was the Balagio which had an amazing water fountain show to music and we had a lovely meal in the Paris hotel! Nearly as good as the Champs Elysee.

We escaped LV for more stunning scenery as we drove through Death Valley, Lone Pine (where hundreds of cowboy movies were filmed) and Mammoth Lakes into Yosemite Valley. This is yet another amazing national park. The pass into the park is closed from November to May due to snow and we were lucky as the week after we left they had a lot of snow! Mike decided to do a pretty difficult hike which climbs 3000ft up the side of a mountain (which took an hour less than the guide book says!) while Karen and Jordan had a relaxing morning before we all met at the top for a spectacular view over the park.

After this we were back to the coast with a few days in San Francisco where we walked up one of the steepest streets (unintentionally!), saw the Golden Gate bridge and did a bus tour of the city. Our drive back to San Diego was down the famous Highway 1 with stops in Carmel (for a really great lunch) and Santa Barbara and a tour around Hearst castle, the home of William Randolph Hearst aka Citizen Kane for those who remember the Orson Wells film.

We drove 3000 miles in all and went from sea level to over 10,000ft and back. The scenery was spectacular and it will take us months to sort through the hundreds of photos we have taken!

We left San Diego with 4 extremely heavy bags worried about how we were going to get them through the border without being stopped (Mexico charges 40% duty!). Other than the issue of carrying them, we had no problem and walked straight through. As it was all so easy, we then had to wait around for hours for our bus back to San Felipe.

The boat survived OK except that it was covered in bird poo. It looked as if she had been left for months and the birds had been having a party every night! Not an inch of deck was clean and after 2 days of scrubbing the deck is still covered in white patches! We escaped San Felipe as soon as possible and have been recovering in Bahia Willard before beginning our sail over to the mainland where we intend to work on the boat for a while in preparation for the Pacific crossing next year.

Arrival In San Carlos

We have spent 3 weeks sailing between San Felipe and San Carlos, which is half way down the sea on the mainland side. We have had a relaxing time in some nice quiet anchorages and now its down to work for the next month!

In The North Of The Sea!

We have finally reached San Felipe and are getting the boat ready to leave her for 3 weeks while we go to the US on our holidays! We have spent the previous week in a bay called Bahia Willard where we have been trying to do a few boat chores but the weather has been so hot. The water was 32C so even that didn't cool us very much. We would have liked to have got more done but we were melting just sitting still!

On our way here we stopped at a lovely bay called Don Juan which is very protected and for most of the time we were the only boat there. The day we arrived a pod of Dolphins was in the bay and stayed for the whole evening. Then we saw a number of Coyote, including a family of 5. This was also the first time we have really heard them calling. At both Don Juan and our previous stop in Las Animas we were fascinated by the Boobies fishing. When tuna came in to feed, hundreds would appear and dive bomb the water, 20-30 at a time. It sounded like gun fire. Its amazing how they can dive from such a great height in such shallow water and not kill themselves.

We have had a number of good sails with a decent wind, though most trips we have to motor part of the way until the wind appears mid morning. The flat seas are good for seeing fish feeding and Dolphins playing. On our trip to Bahia Willard we saw a number of Whales. One pod of Pilot Whales came very close to the boat and stayed with us for quite a while. It was the closest we have ever been to Whales and was amazing to see. We have also seen Humpback whales feeding by lunging through the surface water to catch small fish. Huge clouds of spray show just what a powerful animal they are.

In Don Juan we also had our first Chubasco which are sudden squalls which can happen over night. The wind increased from nothing to 40 knots and blew for over 2 hours. We were fine except we had to get our sun shade down which was not easy and unfortunately, it now needs to be repaired more than it did previously!

We are considering going to the mainland side of the sea on our way south and stopping to paint the side decks as the sun has taken its toll on the wood. On the whole, we have been disappointed with the Sea of Cortez and are not worried about revisiting any of the anchorages. They are all starting to look the same and there is very little to do as hiking in these temperatures is just not possible. The desert seems to look best at sunrise and sunset so we have got hundreds of photos of reddish rocks at sunset!

We are really looking forward to our trip to the US and hope that a break from Mexico will renew our enthusiasm!

Going North!

We left La Paz and have been working our way north up the Sea of Cortez. There are many little islands and bays to stop at and most trips are only 3 - 4 hours so it's easy sailing and even though winds are usually light, we don't mind spending a few hours at a very leisurely pace.

Once away from La Paz there are few towns and most of those are small fishing villages. The mountains and hills of the desert mainland often come right down to the sea. As the offshore islands are similar, we often find ourselves sailing between hills! The desert landscape has very little green but the rocks are many colours although reds and browns predominate. There are always cacti and very occasionally there will be a flowering bush but as it rains so little there are no big splashes of colour. The sunsets do make up for this as they sometimes cover the whole west horizon in pinks, oranges and reds. Quite spectacular!!

Our destinations are always pretty and as it's so hot here, we are grateful to get in the water for a swim or snorkel (except for the jelly fish!). The one disappointing thing about Baja is how relatively few fish there are and how few species. Even when we dive we don't see that much. Maybe we got spoilt in the Caribbean but it just doesn't seem to have the variety. As most books seem to agree that the Sea is a great place to see fish, etc. we can only conclude that there has been some serious over fishing to reduce both numbers and species. That said, fishing here has been good with Tuna and Dorado not too difficult to catch but then, these are migratory species that come here to spawn and feed.

We have seen a few whales and lots of dolphins on our travels and had some distant views of 3 or 4 sperm whales. It's pretty difficult to count them as they are never all on the surface at the same time. Still, after three years we can finally say “ thar' she blows”!!

Of the boats we meet, most are American with a few Canadians plus one or two Brits and Europeans. It's not the worldwide fleet that we have been used to from Panama onward but at least we all speak the same language or something close to it!! We guess most boats do go straight across the Pacific although we have met one British boat heading from here to the Galapagos.

Our progress now is constrained by the need to reach San Felipe by the 12^th September so that we can leave the boat in a marina whilst we visit the USA again. Our journey to get there will be a little hurried as it's a few hundred miles and we are trying to avoid overnighting. This means most stops will be short ones and that we will have little time to look around. We hope to use this as a means of picking some 'must visit' spots for our return trip. We aim to be back in La Paz around Christmas so we will have three months for travelling South. This should give us time to stop and see most spots on the way back.

As it's the hurricane season here at the moment, there are few boats and many stops we have had to ourselves. It's always especially idyllic to have your very own desert island if only for a few days. The prettiest spot so far has been the aptly named Honeymoon Cove on Isla Danzante where we anchored on bright blue water in an almost completely enclosed spot in the south of the cove. Just wonderful!

In Mexico

We left the Galapagos with tearful farewells on parting with friends Chris and Dave and started our trip to Mexico. The first week the wind was behind us and we could sail a direct route using the spinnaker but it was slow progress as the winds were light. After the first few nights we settled into a routine and got more used to the sleep deprivation. The seas were calm so it was good for reading lots of books! As we made our way north the winds became more north westerly which meant we had to tack.. There were 2 days of good wind when we crossed the gulf of Tehuantepec (this is an area known for strong winds) but other than that progress was slow and it took us 21 days in all to reach Cabo San Lucas in Mexico. The only excitement we had en route was a flock of Boobies (like gannets) who used our boat as a meeting place and one night a dozen decided to roost on our pushpit. This seemed fun until we had to clear up all their mess the following morning! The trip was 1860 miles direct line but we had to sail 2300 to get there!

We were very relieved to arrive with nothing more than a broken block for which we fortunately had a spare. However, Cabo San Lucas was a big disappointment. It is incredibly built up and touristy. We had gone there as it was supposed to be an easy place to clear in but the office that was supposed to have been created to do this did not exist. The port captain advised us to clear in at La Paz, which is where we were heading, as it was Friday and it would have taken 2 days to clear in at Cabo and they don't work on a weekend!

So we left the next morning and sailed (motored) to a bay called Bahia Los Frailles. This was a lovely bay so we stayed a day and recovered a little from our long trip. Then we moved to Ensenada De Los Muertos and Puerto Ballandra before arriving in La Paz on 25th May. On the way in we radioed our friends Wendy and Bobby who now live there. We had met them in St Martin and saw them a number of times in the Caribbean before we said good-bye in Cartagena so we hadn't seen them since January 2010. It was lovely to see them again and they now also have a delightful dog called Peanut which they found.

We still had to clear into Mexico so our first stop was the immigration office. After queuing we were told we had to fill a form in on line, print it out and then go back. We went to Wendy and Bobby's house to do this which was good because the form was in Spanish. All 4 of us struggled with it and could not fill it in so Bobby asked his neighbour for help. We still failed so headed back to immigration to be told they had directed us to the wrong form. So we had to go away and complete the correct form. After 2 more visits to the office and the officials finally realising we were on a boat not in a car we were cleared in. Fortunately the visit to the port captain was very quick and painless!

We have been in La Paz nearly 4 weeks and are not sure where the time has gone. We had a few boat issues to sort out, the generator had to be repaired again, and we have had a cover made for our dinghy to protect it from the sun a little. Wendy and Bobby have shown us around a lot and we have been sampling the local cuisine. La Paz is a big town and thing are quite spread out so their local knowledge, and their car, have been very useful. We think La Paz should become the 53rd state of the US as there are so many Americans here!

Last week we took Wendy, Bobby and Peanut out sailing (their boat is not in the water at the moment). It was the first time on a boat for Peanut but she took to it very well. We are hopefully going out with them again next week before we leave La Paz. We then need to head up the Sea further to avoid the hurricanes and also to get some swimming in. It is very hot during the day and we need to be able to cool off!

Galapagos Bound and After

We left the Las Brisas anchorage in Panama on a bright and sunny day. Whilst the water was flat calm, this also meant we had no wind and, as this continued all day, we ended up motoring the whole way to the Las Perlas Islands. These are between 30 and 60 miles from Panama City and are Panamanian. It was fairly late when we arrived so we were pleased to drop anchor in the daylight and turn in after relaxing through the end of the day.

The initial anchorage was a bit rolly so we moved to another of the islands – Espiritu Santo. This was a beautiful spot and we decided to stay a few days. We'd had a sail for half the journey there but again, no wind for the second half so we motored again. Just before arrival, we caught a reasonably big fish or at least it looked big. When filleted we got only 4 meals from it so there wasn't a lot of meat on it. We had a great time exploring and visiting with friends Chris and Dave. There were some evenings with incredible phosphorescence and any movement of the water caused a flare of bright white light. You could flick an oar full of water and see the brightness fly through the air before exploding on impact with the surface. Extremely impressive!!

We then moved to an anchorage at the bottom of the island chain for a couple of days to wait for some wind to begin our sail to the Galapagos. Good wind did not to be around so we decided we had to leave anyway. Once underway, we experienced a variety of conditions - thunderstorms, steady winds, light winds but most often no wind. This was most unpleasant as there was usually a big swell and without wind, the boat rolls and everything loose bangs and chafes. After a while, we always had to put the engine on just for some peace and quiet!! On passage we had the company of dolphins and distant whales, lots of logs and trees and lots of seabirds. There was some amazing phosphorescence on some nights and the whole of the boat looked like it was sailing on light!! Our fishing only once yielded a small tuna although we did hook a big bill fish (probably a Marlin) which simply surged up out of the water and shook its head violently to get rid of the lure. Although disappointing to lose it, it would have been a slow process to catch it and difficult and dangerous to bring it aboard. So, we weren't too upset!

After 10 days, we arrived at San Cristobal the easternmost of the Galapagos Islands. Predictably, there was no wind and we motored our way in. We were met by our agent (mandatory here) and the usual officials almost before we dropped anchor. The formalities were concluded efficiently and quickly and 30 minutes later they were gone and we could begin to contemplate an early supper and bed!

We noticed there were lots of Sealions and had been warned they got onto boats so we put 2 fenders on the sugar scoop. This however did not stop them and the following morning there was a big Sealion asleep who left us rather a big smelly present! We scrubbed the boat but it still smells! We increased the number of fenders and this did seem to deter them for a while. Then they figured out how to move them or get over the top of them and the last few days we have found one asleep each time we have returned to the boat. We shoo them away and they reluctantly move after complaining bitterly to us! At least they haven't made it into the cockpit which is where CD found one asleep on their cushions!

The Sealions are everywhere, they line the jetty where we go ashore, sleep on the benches and any other comfortable spot they can find. They are very noisy and often wake us swimming under the boat or barking from other boats. We walk straight past them and they never even lift their heads!

We are only allowed to anchor in the one harbour so to see the other Islands, we went on a 4 day tour on a catamaran called Valkirie. It was a little run down and we had a lot less space than we are used to but the crew were friendly and the food was very good. The first night we sailed to Floreana and then had a tour of the island during the day. This was our first visit to see giant Tortoises and Iguanas. We snorkelled in the afternoon and the turtles were so un-afraid of humans that they didn't swim away and we got very close to them.

After that we visited Santa Cruz the most commercial and built up of the Islands. In the morning we went to the Darwin centre to see where they breed the Tortoises and saw 'Lonesome George', the last Tortoise of his species. We also met up with friends Don and Kay from 'Karinya' who had chosen to anchor at Santa Cruz.

Isablella is the largest of the islands and probably the prettiest as it is little developed. Here we had a visit to the volcanoes Bocca Chico and Sierra Negro. After a short bus ride we transferred to horses for the next 6m. It was very funny as the horses were all competing with each other and every time they were in danger of being over taken would break into a trot. They were tactically weaving to stop other horses passing and we often ended up with our legs squashed against bushes or another horse as they competed for position. The saddles were not very comfortable so we were glad to get off them. We walked another 2m across Volcano Chico and then back. It was then back on the horses for the trip back which was more painful on the muscles than the trip up. Still it was fun and better than walking.

At Isabella we also snorkelled to see black and white tip sharks and saw lots of Penguins and Blue footed Boobies. On the way back to Santa Cruz the boat took us close to a small uninhabited island with lots of Frigates displaying their mating red necks and there were also lots of masked Boobies.

Chris and Dave from CD joined us for the tour and the 4 of us had some lovely evenings on board watching sunsets and drinking rum! On Monday we had a day in Santa Cruz before getting the ferry back to San Cristobel and our boat.

Once back on the boat we had to do a few chores such as re-fuelling. Not a quick job as we first had to get permission from the Port Captain (the local price is $1 but cruisers have to pay $5 per gallon), then it was a taxi to the garage with all the jerry cans. Then we had to carry them all down the dock to the water taxi, load and unload them and finally decant them into the tank. All of this including returning the jerry cans took us half a day!

There is an interpretation centre on the island with walks around the point which we visited Friday. Then on Saturday the 4 of us went diving. Off the coast there is a rock called Kicker Rock which is a sheer face rising up out of the sea and which has a split through the middle. The first dive was through the split and the second was around the edge. There was a lot of current and wave surge but we saw Hammerhead sharks plus Galapagos, white tip and black tip sharks as well as lots of turtles and fish.

Monday we shared a taxi with CD and visited a few sites on the island. There is a volcanic lake which is the islands fresh water supply and another Tortoise reserve. The driver took us to a lovely restaurant where the owner gave us a tour of his farm. We also both brought a stalk of banana for $3.50. We now have about 50 bananas hanging from the back of the boat waiting to ripen. Once they do we will have to start creating recipes to use them all!!!

It was Mike's birthday in the middle of our time here so we had a meal out with CD. It was a nice restaurant but we all had dodgy tummys afterwards! Still we all had a good time and he enjoyed his day helped along with a home made carrot cake.

We are now getting ready to leave the Galapagos tomorrow. This will be very sad as we will be saying good-bye to Chris and Dave. They are now heading to French Polynesia and New Zealand while we go north to Mexico. In fact all the other boats we have met are now heading west. We had a farewell meal with them yesterday and had our last game of Mexican train dominoes.

We have had a lovely time here and have really enjoyed ourselves. The boat maintenance has been a bit neglected but we can catch up on that in Mexico.

The passage to the Sea of Cortez is over 2000 miles and will take us about 3 weeks depending on wind.

Crossing To The Other Side!

We are not sure how it happened but we got lifted out of the water at the marina as planned, our antifoul paint arrived as did our dinghy and the surveyor turned up even though a few hours late. It was 5 days of hard work getting up at 6am to start early and finishing at dark. The weather was kind to us as it was cloudy keeping the heat down a bit. We re-launched Tuesday which was exciting backing out of the lift with 20 knots of wind blowing and not a lot of space, still we made it to a slip in one piece and the boat looked lovely - all newly polished and painted.

We had a few days to clean the boat and then Friday 4 March (Karen's birthday) we transited the Panama Canal. We had 5 line handlers on board, one more than required as one of the boats line handling for us had a guest on board. We had met up with 2 Australian boats and one Kiwi in the San Blas and they wanted experience of line handling before transiting with their own boats. A boat called Sunshine that we knew from last year also agreed to line handle for us which meant ourselves and CD could go through the canal together.

We motored across Colon harbour to the anchorage and waited for our advisor. At 4.30pm Robin arrived and we set off for the canal. There are 3 locks up and 3 down. Near the lock entrance we and CD rafted together (tied up alongside each other) to enter the lock. There was a ship and a cruiser in front of us and just as we were about to go in the lock they decided there wasn't enough room for us too. A quick turn around and we headed to the lock next door but again the ship in front was too big as they won't put you in a lock with a ship bigger than 600 feet. We motored around for over an hour before going into the lock which meant it was dark. We have now experienced almost every type of transit and time except that as a single boat! We finally got through the canal and gave Robin his evening meal as we left the lock. We moored in Gatun lake at 8.30pm and the canal pilot boat came to pick Robin up. We had a meal and a few drinks and I got everyone to sing happy birthday to me! It was certainly a different way to spend my birthday and one I won't forget.

The advisor was due to arrive at 6.30am so we all headed to bed. We were woken by a knock on the hull and were worried we had over slept. It was Dave off CD who had been told by his advisor to be ready for 6am so he thought we ought to be up at 5.30am!!!! So we were all ready nice and early for when the advisor arrived at 6.30! Dave has still not lived this down.

We were lucky as Robin was our advisor this time too. On the way across the lake we had a cooked breakfast of sausage and scrambled egg. The sausages looked good but when I went on deck to check if breakfast was OK I was told the sausages were covered in plastic!! So to eat them, we had to sit and pick the plastic off and Robin made the best job as I guess that as a local, he was practised. After a 4 hour motor across the lake we arrived at the down locks. Again we rafted to CD and we got through the locks without any problems. We left the gates of the final lock to the sound of 'We are the Champions' by Queen!!

We celebrated our entry into the Pacific with a bottle of bubbly and a few beers. 3 of the boats headed back to Shelter bay and Wayne and Debbie from Sunshine stayed on the boat with us an extra night. It was such a relief to have arrived safely without any problems and to be able to relax after all the work of having so many people on the boat and the stress of going through the canal.

The following day, Dave and I had to return to Colon to line handle for Don and Kay who had helped us. Chris and Mike stayed to mind the boats. Again we had a smooth transit and the first part was very easy as we were the middle of 3 boats which meant we didn't have to do anything. But by the time we got back to Panama City we were exhausted and needed a few days to recover.

We are now preparing for our trip to the Galapagos and up to Mexico which means trading charts and doing lots of shopping. This has been interrupted today by the threatened Tsunami from the Japanese earthquake. We have left the anchorage and anchored in deep water well away from other boats. As I write it has passed and was nothing more that a choppy sea, luckily.

Return To The Heat!

We left George Town, Bahamas on 2 January after a quiet New year. We celebrated on the boat with a nice bottle of wine and bangers (proper Irish ones!) and mash!. We sailed to Cat Island, which is one of the outer Islands in the Bahamas, and cleared out the following day for our longest sail yet direct to the San Blas, about 970 miles. As you might expect, the two days at Cat Island were the warmest, sunniest and calmest of our whole time in the Bahamas!! We made this decision to make a long sail to get ahead of a series of 3 northers (strong cold winds from the Arctic) rather than trying to find somewhere to hide from them.

The first few days we had a great sail making really good time. Then the northers took our wind due to the pressure differential and we spent 2 days between Cuba and Haiti pretty much becalmed and doing about 50 miles per day. We had a couple of visits from dolphins, one for more than an hour. That one was especially good as there were young ones with the pod including a baby about 2 feet long.

Once we picked up the trade winds again we started to fly. We were making 180 miles per day which is extremely good. The sea was rough but as the waves were following us it wasn't too uncomfortable. We made it to the West Hollandaise in the San Blas at 9pm on 10 January having travelled 926 miles. Although we had both survived the trip well, once land was in sight we both felt extremely tired as if someone had taken all our energy and we were very grateful to drop the anchor and to have a good nights sleep.

We spent the next few days recovering from the trip and trying to re-acclimatise to the heat. Getting into the water was so refreshing and our first swim since Mexico! We found the heat a struggle to start with and Mike is still traumatised by cutting 3 inches off my hair to make it cooler! Unfortunately our dinghy which had been deteriorating completely gave way with seams coming unglued so we could not get off the boat other than by swimming ashore. Still we were happy just relaxing in the warmth. The snorkeling was not as good as last year and the reef had quite a few Lion fish (escaped from peoples aquariums in hurricanes) which is not good as they are a Pacific species and have no predators in the Atlantic. They are slowly destroying much of the fish life in all the reefs in the Caribbean as they have a voracious appetite and big mouths

After a week our friends Chris and Dave on CD arrived from Providencia. We had a lovely reunion as we hadn't seen them since April last year. After a few days the four of us had a belated Christmas dinner with roast lamb and mint sauce followed by cherry crumble and birds custard. Needless to say a lot of wine and port was also consumed! We took the opportunity to first re-christen the boat as we were never sure that the name change by the previous owners had been made official with the required champagne and libations to the sea gods!!

The four of us have been travelling around the San Blas visiting different islands. Thanks to CD and lifts their dinghy, we have been able to get ashore to shop and snorkel. We also met up with Barbara and Michael on Astarte who we both met in Providencia last year. The 6 of us had a reunion BBQ which was fun except we all got eaten alive by sandflies and were on antihistamines for the next few days!

The San Blas is still as beautiful but we were disappointed by how commercial and busy it had become. Tourism is really taking over which the Kuna chiefs are not happy about. The beach at the West Hollandaise was covered with sunbeds and sunshades by a cruise ship and the Kuna chief wanted us to pay to go ashore there because the cruise ships pay! Still, there is a vegetable boat which goes around all the popular anchorages delivering fruit and veg which is very useful and other boats which deliver eggs and wine!

It has been like being on holiday and so relaxing after the States. We have had no Internet or phone connection and have spent our days relaxing, swimming and socialising. We have done some work on the boat as always but it has not been constant and we have had lots of time to enjoy ourselves.

We left the San Blas and headed to Portobello which is a small town trying to expand and become a cruiser stop off point. We had our first trip to a supermarket in months and in the evening had a wonderful pizza!

Astarte and CD travelled from the San Blas to Portobello with us and Michael on Astatre decided we should have a fishing competition. The only fish we had caught in the San Blas was a 7lb grouper (which was lovely) so we were not hopeful! We had our line in first and caught 2 small cero mackerel. A few hours later we landed a 5lb Little Tunny so we were in the lead as Astarte caught 2 small mackerel and CD only caught seaweed! As we were rounding the point to head to Portobello our line screamed out. Mike was convinced it was a big fish. As it got nearer the boat after a 30 minute fight he discovered we had caught a shark! It really fought hard but we got it to the side of the boat. Then the problem was how to get it on board without killing it. Our net wouldn't even hold his tail as he was about 5ft long. So we got a rope around his tail and lifted his head with the rod and his tail with the rope. Once on deck we both stepped well back as he thrashed around and fortunately the hook broke and he threw himself off the boat. This was very fortunate as we hadn't got a clue how we were going to get the hook out of his mouth. That was the end of our fishing as were both too exhausted to do anything more.

Ourselves and CD ate the Tunny and we made a large fish dip with the mackerel. This we shared with Astarte and CD for our last evening together. Astarte are now heading north while we and CD head through the canal. Barbara from Astarte wrote us the following ode:

Ode To Our British Friends
Though just a couple of yanks
we want to give you our thanks
for having known you
CD: Chapter Two
sating farewell brings us great angst

On the island of Providencia we all met
Then on to Roatan for happy hour; internet
you then went on your own ways
in the river: US stays
but Kuna Yala reunited this motley set

In harbours, towns or empty isles
we join up after many sea miles
adventures to share
great stories to air
each told in our own unique styles.

We've snorkeled to see fish
we've shared meals so delish!
Tossed back a few brews
or some wine if you choose
plus some chocolate cake as a final dish.

The beach barbies were NOT mild
with exploding rocks it got wild
the company always great fun
awed by the setting sun
if only the bugs didn't get us so riled!

Chrissy & Dave and Karen & Mike
You're a cast of brits we quite like
as you head into the Pacific
know we think you're terrific
and you'll always have yank friends Barbara and Mike


After saying farewell to Astarte we left Portobello and headed to Colon. After being measured to go through the canal we were lifted at the marina to renew the antifoul and to have the boat surveyed for the insurance. It was a week of hard work scrubbing and cleaning the boat. We are hoping to transit the canal in about a week (actually on 4th March) and head into the Pacific. We are also having a new dinghy delivered so that we should be mobile again!

Good-bye USA, Hello Bahamas!

We arrived in Savanah river at 4am with thick fog. This made going into the channel to Thunderbolt very interesting as we couldn't see the channel markers until we were nearly on top of them! Once it was light, it was a lovely peaceful motor to the dock past beautiful riverside homes and wide marshes. Hinckleys (the boatyard people) got to work on the boat straight away. They cleaned the water coolers on the engine and we also had a new alternator fitted so that we could have the old one cleaned for use as a spare. This was supposed to be a quick and easy job as we had been told the alternator was the same as the old one. Wrong! It took the electrician about 6 hours and needed 2 new parts which had to be ordered. Still, it was all finished in time for their thanksgiving shut down.

We decided to stay longer and have the generator checked out again as it was failing to start the air conditioning which was desperately needed for heat as temperatures were very low. Tony and Gill, friends we had met on the way north, invited us to their house for thanksgiving. We had a lovely evening with them and their friends. Gill and Tony gave us a lovely present of English goodies including McVities chocolate digestives and english Heinz beans. They have been keeping us going with little treats throughout the Christmas season.

We moved to an anchorage for the weekend so that we were closer to the shops but missed the electricity on the dock as the weather was particularly cold. Monday we were back at Hinckleys to have the generator looked at. Unfortunately as they were fixing it they broke a part and had to replace it. This involved having to get a part shipped in from another used generator otherwise it would have been 6 weeks to get a new one.

As soon as the work was finished we left to head for St Mary's river. The temperatures in Savannah were below freezing with ice on the dock and we were desperate for warmth. The wind was supposed to be a nice north easterly but was in fact a 20 knot south easterly which meant we were bashing into it. At about 11pm the genoa started fluttering and soon we realised the halyard had detached, as we watched it descend into the sea. By the time we could get to it, the whole sail was underneath the bow of the boat. It took us over an hour to get it back on board while the bow of the boat was digging into the swell and we were both exhausted and wet! With the sail now occupying the whole saloon and dripping water everywhere, we continued on our way under motor bashing into heavy seas. About an hour later a bolt on the davits gave way which meant the dinghy was flailing around and we were in danger of breaking the whole structure. At this point we had no option but to turn around and go back to Savannah. We arrived back on the dock having sailed 110 miles over about 20 hours!

Fortunately our new genoa did not suffer any major damage other than it now has a nice blue tinge from the antifouling. The davits were fixed in an hour with a quick weld and we were ready to be on our way again. The upside of going back to Savannah was that we had been invited to a party at friends of Tony and Gill called Sylvia and Alan. They are both caterers so the food was lovely and we got to meet some very nice people.

This time we left and went direct to Lake Worth. It was the coldest sail we have ever done. We were wearing as many layers of cloths as we could get on and sitting under a blanket and still we were freezing. When we were off watch we slept in our clothes as it was too cold to get undressed! But, this time we had good winds the whole way and a really good sail. We also had a pod of Dolphins with us for well over an hour. They were jumping in the air and doing back flops as well as swimming at the bow. Moments like this make all the bad bits worthwhile.

Lake Worth was the first time we had seen blue water for months and we even ventured to get our shorts out. Tony and Gill had talked about their UK friends Francis and William, on a boat called Alexia, but we had never met them until Lake Worth. They came into the anchorage and we spent a lovely evening with them. Drank far too much and suffered for it the next day (Karen)!

After clearing out we finally left the US on 11 December and headed for the Bahamas. The sail across the gulf stream was one of the best sails we have had while in the US but boy did we pay for the fun later!

We knew their was a norther on its way but thought we would be safe in the Berry's. This is a chain of Islands west and slightly north of Nassau. We anchored for an over night stop on the basis we would move further south in the morning before the norther arrived. Unfortunately, the wind arrived early. By midnight it was so rough we could not sleep in our cabin and then we heard the anchor drag. Given we had a reef not far behind us this was not a nice sound. The anchor seemed to re-set and continued to hold us the remainder of the night. However it got so rough that the bow was probably going up and down about 10 ft and waves were coming straight over the sprayhood. The pressure on the anchor was so great it broke our 5/8in snubbing line which holds the pressure off the anchor chain. At this point we had to motor into the wind to hold the boat and that is how we spent the remainder of the night. We replaced the line with another one which also broke in 2 places. At this time the wind was blowing about 35-40 knots and the seas were very steep so going to the front of the boat needed full oilies as you were completely submerged as the bow went down. It was an incredibly long night but as soon as it was light we had to get the anchor up and get out of the bay. In 40 knots of wind this was no mean feat and the anchor windlass did a great job despite a few squeals as the chain was ripped out when the boat was hit by a gust.

Getting out of the bay was hair raising and then we sailed to the south west corner of the Islands thinking we would get shelter there. Unfortunately not, the seas were just as bad so we had no option but to continue to Nassau. The entrance to the harbour faces NW which is where the wind was from so we were worried about getting in. The sail there was fast as the boat was doing 8 knots with only a small jib and we surfed into the harbour and safety.

Once we were safely anchored we went to bed. Half an hour later the anchor dragged and that was the end of that nights sleep! Our time in Nassau was spent recovering and clearing in with customs. We also finally heard from our friends on CD after 4 weeks. We were supposed to meet them in Cuba but after being stuck in an outer atoll in Belize they had escaped south and were back in Honduras. We were relieved as it was becoming impossible for us to get to Cuba in time for Christmas and it also gave us time to see the Bahamas.

Once the weather improved we sailed to Allen Cay in the Exumas. A lovely spot in nice weather but less good in a norther. After a few nice days the next norther arrived. The anchorage was crowded and the holding not very good. The anchorages are also shallow with strong currents which means the boat goes in all directions and oversails her anchor leading to a grinding sound on the bottom of the hull! So having lost a few more nights sleep we sailed to Cambridge Cay where we met up with friends.

We had a few evenings socialising and had a pot luck dinner on the beach for Christmas day. We were the potato boat while others provided turkey, vegetables, etc. This was probably our best day weather wise and was warm enough to sit on the beach in just a sweater until late into the evening. After that we were all confined to our boats by another norther!

Once the weather improved again we sailed to George Town which is at the southern tip of the Exumas. We did catch a 7lb Mahi Mahi on the way, our first fish since July! Also, it is a lot warmer here with good anchorage and lots of protection. That said, it's still too cold to get in the water although we do see some hardy Americans swimming!

After new year we are hoping to sail to some of the outer Islands such as The Acklins and Great Inagua where we will clear out of the Bahamas. The weather is currently forecast to be good for the next 7 days. Our plan is then to do the long sail direct to the San Blas where we will meet CD.

This will probably be our last post for a few months as there is no internet in the San Blas or outer islands. So Happy New Year to all our readers.