It's Not All Paradise

Real-world problems are never far away.  This week started with an unauthorized transaction against our account.  We actually saw it before it was applied against the account and called right away.  It was for over $1,300 at Staples.  We got that stopped and the card replaced.  This morning, we were listening to the radio net, and it was announced that Aeroperlas ceased all operations in Panama as of February 29.  Well, that got our attention because we had tickets to fly from Bocas del Toro to Panama City with them in April.  We were going into town anyway on the free water taxi from the marina, so we decided to stop at the airport to sort it out.  We were told we would be refunded by Aeroperlas, so we booked seats on Air Panama.  Now hoping our refund comes through. Enough of that, back to enjoying our little bit of the world.

A Rhythm In Bocas del Toro



Red Frog

There are three marinas in the Bocas del Toro area. Two are near Bocas Town, and the third is on Bastimentos Island. We have been to Bocas Town Marina, which is very close to town, but it still requires a boat to reach it. It is very nice and a good choice. We had seriously considered leaving Ariel at this marina, but in the end decided on Red Frog Marina on Bastimentos Island. The deciding factor for us was the opportunity to get off the boat and walk around Red Frog. Red Frog Marina is part of Red Frog Beach and Nature Preserve. The marina is on the mainland side of Bastimentos Island. It is just a short walk across the island to the Caribbean seaside with wonderful beaches and pounding surf. Our favorite attraction is the walking trails through the rainforest. Right after listening to the radio net each morning, we are off for our walk. After a few weeks here, we have only begun to explore all the trails.

Sloth Watching Us Watch Him (or Her)

Nap Time

Our plan is to leave Ariel here while we travel back to the United States again this summer. We started leaving Ariel during the summer two seasons ago, while we were in the Belize, Guatemala, Honduras area. There just wasn't any reason to spend hurricane season hunkered down at a marina. Well, in full disclosure, we are no longer threatened by hurricanes. Hurricanes just do not travel to this corner of the Caribbean. Having spent the previous two summers in upstate New York, we have gotten ourselves somewhat reattached to land life. At the end of the first summer, we bought some property just outside of Corning, New York. It is about six acres, mostly wooded, with a small house on it, originally built as a hunting lodge in the 1930s and since expanded. The house isn't much, and eventually we plan to raze it, but last summer we moved into it, and it works great as a summer home. We were very busy last summer developing the property, and we have another similar summer planned. So, despite the possibility of staying on Ariel this summer, we now have other obligations, so we are locked into a pattern of splitting our time between our two lives.



Shopping Day

Laid Back Bocas Town

There is a very good reason it is called Red Frog. Once you set off on a trail through the rainforest, you will likely see red frogs. These are actually very tiny, and their correct name is Red Poison-Dart Frog. The other interesting creature we have seen is the sloth. In both cases, it has been hard to get good pictures. The first sloth we saw was really close, just above, hanging on a tree branch, but we didn't have the camera. Since then, they have been too far away for really good pictures. The sounds in the rainforest are just fascinating, especially all of the birds. Anchored off Isla Colon, recently we listened to what were obviously large groups of howler monkeys. We are used to howler monkeys from our time in Guatemala, but these were especially loud.

Our Own Private Spot (Big Bight)

We seem to have developed a rhythm here. We spend some time in the marina, which gives us access to the beach, great walking trails, and a couple of restaurants, and air conditioning onboard. We try to keep the boat at about 79 - 81. Anything less is now too cool for us, but it keeps the humidity down, which is really nice. We then take Ariel to the anchorage off  Bocas Town. In Bocas Town, we do our shopping and have our laundry done. We could have the laundry done at the marina, but it is cheaper in town. We, of course, try a restaurant or two while in town. We then take Ariel to a quiet anchorage for a couple of nights of solitude. It is very easy to find our own private cove. We then return to Red Frog, mostly because by now we are internet starved, and begin the cycle again.

Isolated In Bocas del Toro

The Pan American Highway in western Panama has been closed for several days now by protesting indigenous Ngäbe Bugle Indians over disputes with the government about mining and hydroelectric projects in their region.  Trees and other debris are used to block the road, and clashes with police have been violent at times.

While we are well away from the protest, we are nevertheless cut off from the rest of the world by the blockages.  We have developed shortages very quickly.  Gasoline was the first to sell out, and then diesel became scarce.  Fresh fruits and vegetables have not been delivered, and tourists, other than those flying in, cannot arrive.  The ferry from Almirante has ceased operations. 

We are luckily in good shape personally.  We had just topped off the diesel and gasoline and filled our propane tank shortly before this began.  This was pure luck, as we had no insight that this was about to happen.  Norm’s dental appointment with Dr. Wong was cancelled as he normally arrives from Almirante on the ferry.

So far, there has been no real adverse impact on us, and we are enjoying our time on Bastimentoes.

Based on the news, we expect this to be resolved soon.

Arriving Panama

Well, before we started out on this several-year adventure, we became very interested in the San Blas Islands off the Caribbean coast of Panama as a cruising destination.  During the past couple of years, while in the Western Caribbean, we have talked with many cruisers who have made the circuit through the Eastern Caribbean across the north coast of Venezuela and Colombia, and then up through the Western Caribbean.  Almost to a person, they cite the San Blas Islands in Panama as their favorite location.  Interestingly enough, the Eastern Caribbean, where we initially thought we would begin our cruising, barely gets mentioned.  These stories were the motivation to get us here to Panama.  As we studied Panama, we realized there are many more cruising opportunities than just the San Blas, so we decided to explore them all on the Caribbean side.  (We have no plans to go through the Panama Canal.)  We have arrived at the archipelago of Bocas del Toro, which is in the western part of Panama.  This area is made up of two big bays, eight major islands, 51 cays, and an unlimited number of places to drop the hook.  We intend to spend the remainder of this cruising season in the Bocas del Toro area and then leave Ariel in a marina here while we are away for the summer.

Tropical Sunset Over Bahia Almirante



Anchored Off Bocas Town

The challenge for the trip from San Andres  to Bocas del Toro was to keep the boat speed down to five knots or less.  We wanted to depart during daylight hours and to also arrive during daylight hours.  Our plan was to clear out and leave immediately, but while in with our agent clearing out of Colombia, a heavy rain squall blew in, so even before we were cleared out, we were delayed a day.  It was not a problem to stay even though we were cleared out.  We left San Andres at 4:00 pm the following day and were well clear of the island before sunset.  The winds were light and on the beam, which played right into our plan to go slow.  Conditions remained the same through the night and all through the following day.  The second night, the winds became too light for sailing as was expected.  We motored through the night and arrived at Bocas del Toro at 8:00 am right on plan.  On our way in, we heard on the VHF radio that it was a public holiday.  This was great news because all of the offices would be closed, so we couldn't check in.  We headed for a quiet bay just inside the channel and dropped the anchor, thankful for a chance to get some rest and things cleaned up before clearing in.  The next morning, the Port Captain directed us to anchor just off his office and indicated we would need to be boarded.  About 45 minutes later, a boarding party of four arrived.  It is a good thing we have a scanner and printer aboard, because they wanted multiple copies of everything.  Norm is not sure what they did because he was making copies the whole time.  Soon they were finished, leaving us with a stack of completed forms and instructions to make additional stops in town before we would be completely cleared in.  Our first stop was at the Autoridad Maritima de Panama (AMP)  (Maritime Authority) to obtain our cruising permit.  The cruising permit is good for one year.  Now this next part is where it got weird.  We were told to go to Banco Nacional de Panama to purchase Nacional Stamps, which would be $10 each, and we would need two.  We were then to deliver these to Immigration, and then we would get our passports stamped.  After waiting in the teller line for 1/2 hour, we were told they do not sell Nacional Stamps.  By now, it was lunch hour, so after lunch, we sheepishly pushed open the heavy wooden door to the Immigration Office and explained our failed attempt to obtain the Nacional Stamps.  The Immigration Officer replied, "If they do not have the stamps, that cannot be helped", at which point she processed our passports, good for 180 days, and sent us on our way.

Arriving San Andres

Approaching San Andres from the North Northeast, we had to pass almost the entire length of the island, running just outside the reef to reach the only opening. Once inside the reef, we then turned back and again ran almost the entire length of the island to reach our anchorage. The reef is on the east side of the island, giving us the benefit of the trades while offering a well-protected anchorage behind it.

Fantastic Reef

Hotel Area

We anchored just off Club Nautico, a private yacht club right in the hotel and shopping districts. For just $25 per week, we gained access to all the facilities, including a pool, tennis courts, showers, a restaurant, and WiFi. During the day, the area around us is busy with tour boats of all kinds and jet skis and such, but as soon as the sun sets, it becomes very calm and quiet. We are sharing this spot with just one other boat, a French boat carrying a family of four.  We took a narrated tour of the island lasting about 3 1/2 hours with stops along the way. The narration was even more beneficial to us after the first stop when we let the narrator know we understood very little Spanish. From then on, it was bilingual, and he went out of his way for us. It was a wonderful tour and even included a reggae lesson.

Raggae Lessons

Tanya, Our Casa Museo Tour Guide and Dance Instructor

Getting Around Providencia

Isla de Providencia is a small island with an 18 km two-lane paved roadway running the perimeter. Most of the island's 4500 inhabitants get around on motorbikes.

Besides walking, which we enjoy, we have tried some other options, all of which worked out and were memorable. A bunch of us planned a day hike to the Peak and then to have lunch in Southwest. We caught a taxi right at the park next to the dinghy dock to take us to the hiking trail. Taxi's are typically pickup trucks with a U-shaped bench around the inside perimeter of the truck bed. Ours was driven by Trinidad. Linda got to ride in the front, so she had a good conversation with Trinidad.



Trinidad 

Taxi

The island also has a bus service. The so-called bus just keeps making a circuitous route all day. The bus is actually a converted delivery truck. It has had windows cut into the sides and crude wooden benches bolted to the floor. Apparently, the most important piece of equipment on the bus is a big amplifier to blast music well beyond the bus's interior. Luckily for us, on our trip, it was Christmas music. We recognized the tunes, but not the lyrics. One such song was something about 'A Ghetto Christmas'. We all piled on the bus while the driver was on break. He came out, started the bus, and after moving about ten feet, the engine acted up. After about twenty minutes with the driver and the local neighborhood men staring at the engine, the problem resolved itself, and we were on our way.

Bus Service

Another way to get around is a mototaxi. This is only good for one person, since it involves riding as a passenger on a motorbike. Norm needed to get our propane tank filled and decided the mototaxi would be the best option. There is no way to distinguish a mototaxi from any of the other hundreds of motorbikes around, so he just yelled out his need for one, and he was soon on his way, a propane tank held to his side. They had no sooner started when it began to rain. It has rained here frequently since arriving, but the showers are usually brief and can be heavy. The driver made for someone's garage, and they waited out the rain there before continuing on. As it were, there was no propane available that day, so all Norm accomplished was riding to a part of the island he had not been to.

Also available are motorbike and golf cart rentals, neither of which we did, because the other options are such an adventure.

Very International

Before traveling to a new area, we try to learn as much as we can from a cruiser's perspective. This has become easier now with blogs and other internet articles. One source we found very interesting and helpful for this area was written by Sharon on 'Rose of Sharon', describing their journey from Guanaja to Bocos del Toro. One comment that Sharon made that really puzzled me was that, in arriving at Providencia, she described the anchorage as crowded with cruisers from every country. Up until now, we have seen a preponderance of American and Canadian cruisers, and occasionally a boat or two with another flag. Every country may be a slight exaggeration, but clearly, we are no longer in close proximity to the United States and Canada, so we no longer dominate the anchorage in numbers. One evening since arriving here, for example, we were invited aboard a Swiss boat named Anna along with other cruisers in the anchorage. Besides our Swiss hosts, there were couples off two Dutch boats, a family of three off a German boat, a Canadian couple from Vancouver Island, and a French Canadian couple from north of Montreal. We were the only Americans.

We are going against the general flow. Most boats, especially European, arrive in the Eastern Caribbean and then come across the coast of Venezuela, usually stopping at the ABC islands of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao, to arrive in the Western Caribbean. Others arrive here from the North American west coast by coming through the Panama Canal.

Leading up to Christmas, they constructed a stage near where we land our dinghy.  We were not sure exactly what and when the event would be, but knew it would be around Christmas.  On Christmas Eve, they had live entertainment and much partying.  At midnight, they set off fireworks, and we had perfect seats on Ariel.

To clear into Colombia, one must use an agent.  Here in Providencia, the agent is Mr. Bush.  We all got to know him, as this is not a fast process to clear in, so there is a lot of sitting and waiting, and talking.  One of the boats in the anchorage decided to organize a traditional Christmas dinner, and Mr. Bush was instrumental in getting the resources needed, namely someone to cook the turkey and ham and a place to have it.

We are really enjoying spending time with cruisers from so many different places. On Christmas Day, there were ten boats in the anchorage.  Of these, nine attended our Christmas potluck.  The one other boat was asked by a local family to spend Christmas with them. The turkey and ham were prepared by a local lady with help from friends. Originally, we were to have dinner at her house, but she felt the house was too hot with the baking, so it was moved to a pavilion at the Port Captain's facility. This turned out to be the perfect place. Anyway, we placed the dishes on the tables, which were set out in a long row, so we could sit together. The turkey and ham were still back at the house, and they left to retrieve them.  Mr. Bush asked the French Canadian woman to say grace. She said she would feel uncomfortable saying it in English, so we all agreed French was fine. The turkey and ham had not arrived, and suddenly dishes were being passed and plates filled.  No one listened to my protest, and not to be left out, I filled my plate.  We all started eating, and after the plates were pretty much cleared, the meat arrived. Later, I found out that in Holland, it is normal to have the meal in courses and for the vegetables and such to precede the meat, and since we had three Dutch couples at the tables, all was very normal to them. We just had to adopt a different way of eating our meal.   It was a wonderful and memorable Christmas

Our Lovely Cook is Bringing The Turkey

Port Captain Stopping To Visit

Agent Mr. Bush at the End of the Table

Anchored in Providencia

Christmas Decorations 

Isla de Providencia

Colombian Flag

Ashore in Providencia, we were hearing three languages. They would speak to us in English or Spanish, often starting in Spanish and quickly switching to English once they knew it was our preference. However, the language heard on the street and in shops and restaurants is Kriol, the native language.

We were very interested in the island's history and how it came to be Colombian, given its proximity to the Nicaraguan coast. Looking into this, we found the history, like the island itself, to be fascinating.



A Morgan Cannon

Morgans Head

Providence Island was settled by Puritans in 1630. They found the tropical island more promising than the cold and harsh New England shores. The development of Providence was nothing like that of the New England colony. They used slave labor to work the plantations and resorted to privateering. The privateering led to their capture by the Spanish in 1641. In 1670, English buccaneers led by Sir Henry Morgan took control of the island and held it until 1689.

In 1803, Spain assigned the area that includes Isla de Providencia and San Andres to be administered by Cartahenga (Colombia). In 1822, these colonies became independent but voluntarily aligned with the Republic of Colombia.





Fort Warwick

With the islands not far off the coast of Nicaragua, one would expect a difference of opinion regarding ownership, and indeed, there is. In 1928, Colombia and Nicaragua signed a treaty giving Colombia control of the islands. In the 1980's, the Sandinista government assumed power in Nicaragua and repudiated the treaty.

In 2009, the International Court of Justice ruled that the islands were Colombian territory. Still pending before the International Court of Justice is a maritime border dispute, since Nicaragua claims the waters around these islands as its territory. Colombia maintains a military presence on these islands. We have seen troops rotating, being transported by the Navy. We know from fellow cruisers that they even keep troops stationed on the Albuquerque Cays, an uninhabited atoll southwest of here.

The chart for Isla de Providencia is based on the British survey completed in 1835. It shows the safe route through the coral reef is to line up the front edge of Morgan's Head with Fairway Hill in the distance. Studying these old charts is interesting. What the chart does not show is that a ship's channel has been cut with modern lighted buoys. It was a little disconcerting to follow the marked channel while the chart indicated we were passing directly over coral heads, which could severely damage our boat in short order.



We are anchored in a protected bay just off Santa Isabel Village, the largest settlement. Supplies for the island arrive from San Andres at a pier in this village. The pier, close by to us, is a beehive of activity when a supply boat arrives. We have found everything we need in town. Our biggest issue was finding an internet connection with enough speed to accomplish even simple tasks such as sending an email. After spending several days and hours at an internet cafe, paying for time, not data, Norm finally got a lead on a faster source. He tracked down the guy who manages the government's computers and networks. He gave him access to their system, which is free, and he can work in one of the government buildings.

As you might expect, the diet here centers around fish, and it is so good. It makes it easy when planning to dine out, just plan for seafood.

We have found the people friendly wherever we have been, but particularly so in Providencia. They know we are on one of the boats, that goes without saying, and it is obvious they want to help. We have found it very easy to become engaged in conversation.





On Our Way To Panama

Last season, we did not make the 37-mile trip to Guanaja because we had planned to be there at the end of the year, waiting on the weather to continue on east and south to Panama. Well, so much for that idea. We saw very good conditions developing for our trip, so our stay in Guanaja was just 17 hours. We arrived at El Bight, anchored, and then hurried to the town of Bonacca to clear out of Honduras and to jerry-jug fuel to top off before our 343-mile trip to Providencia, Colombia.

We were very disappointed that we could not spend more time on Guanaja. We definitely will try on our return trip. Our very limited experience was fascinating. Bonacca is actually a very small island in a bay protected by the larger island of Guanaja. It is literally packed shore to shore with structures, homes, and businesses, with only narrow sidewalks running between them. The people were friendly and quick to lend assistance, as getting lost in the maze of buildings is easy for the inexperienced.

By dinner, we had checked out, topped off the fuel and checked the weather, and decided it was a go for a 6:00 am departure. We departed our anchorage at 6:15 am. At 8:00 am, we called into the Northwest Caribbean Net on SSB to report our position, weather, and conditions aboard. This way, the Net Controllers can keep tabs on us, and also our friends on the net are updated on our progress. Each day, we reported in at 8:00 am.

We had just about the best conditions that could be hoped for. The wind was always favorable throughout the trip, usually on our side from a close reach to a broad reach, but usually a beam reach. We had a few hours with the wind behind us, but slightly off the port quarter, which made for comfortable sailing. The seas were not as kind. We traveled east until Vivorillos Bank and then turned more southeast. Until the turn, we were sideways to the waves, which made for a very uncomfortable sideways rolling motion. After 26 hours, we reached our waypoint and made the turn.  Immediately, the boat motion was very comfortable, and it remained that way for the remainder of the trip.

We arrived at Providencia at 1:30 pm after 55 ½ hours. We were actually several hours ahead of our plan due to all the help we got from the wind. So here we are in Colombia. We plan to stay here through the holidays. We are only slightly more than halfway to Panama, and early in the new year, we will finish our trip. More on Providencia in our next post.

Ariel Secure in Providencia

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On The Move Again

We were waiting at Monkey Bay Marina for our dinghy to arrive, with more time on our hands than we knew what to do with. We both managed to read several books each and so made positive contributions to the book exchange at the marina. We bought our new outboard motor at our leisure at the local Yamaha distributor. We had dealt with them before when we had our previous outboard serviced. We bought a 15hp two-stroke. This is actually the outboard we wanted originally, but they are no longer sold in the United States. Our outboard, which was stolen, was a 15-hp four-stroke and much heavier than our new one. Our dinghy arrived the day before Thanksgiving, actually ahead of schedule. It turns out Karen at Ram Marine, where we bought it, pushes the delivery date a few days to give her customers a pleasant surprise. With the dinghy and outboard, we were now back in position to leave the Rio Dulce. We checked the weather, and the beginning of the following week looked good for going east against the trades. We were then suddenly very busy with last-minute provisioning so we could leave the marina on Saturday.

We went to Backpackers Hotel and Restaurant with many friends for our Thanksgiving Day dinner. Backpackers is owned by Casa Guatemala, an orphanage on the Rio Dulce that we care very much about. Backpackers provides jobs and training to some young adults. There were about 60 for dinner, which was served buffet-style. The traditional turkey dinner was fabulous, which is amazing since this type of food is totally foreign to Guatemalans. We even finished the meal off with pumpkin and apple pies. Linda got a chance to talk with Angie, the founder and director of Casa Guatemala. She got an update on Beverly, a fifth grader we met at the orphanage.

Heather Checking That Buffet Line Is Ready To Open

We left Monkey Bay Marina on Saturday morning as planned. Phil and Nikki on Ajaya, a Prout 39 catamaran from Portsmouth, United Kingdom, left Monkey Bay Marina shortly after we did, and we have been traveling together since.

Our first stop was to anchor at Texan Bay, a very convenient stop on the way down the river. In all, five boats were planning to leave the river on Tuesday morning at high tide. Monday morning, we all piled into the Texan Bay Marina launch for the trip to Livingston to clear out of Guatemala. Texan Bay Marina is now under new ownership and management. Gary has been living on the river for 6 or 7 years and decided to invest in the marina. We were gone for several hours on a small adventure, making stops on our way down and back up the river. All in all, this was our best visit ever at Texan Bay.

Downtown Livingston

We were the first boat to depart on Tuesday morning. Ajaya had planned to depart earlier, but engine problems delayed them. They are, as mentioned, a catamaran, so they have two engines and can travel with just one, which is what they ultimately decided to do. We later heard one of the boats behind us, Menacee, which has a deeper draft, had become stuck on the bar at the mouth of the river.

The wind on our trip to Isla de Utila, Honduras, was not as forecasted. During the day and night, we had wind from just about every point of sail. The seas were also varied and, during the night, were quite rough. When we arrived at Utila and dropped anchor, we discovered that pressing the stop button to shut off our diesel engine had no effect. Very strange. Norm couldn't remember where the manual stop lever was on the engine, and he couldn't spot it, so he blocked the air intake, which killed the engine. Later, after we had rested, we decided to restart the engine to see if this was a continuing problem, and by now Norm had found the well-hidden stop lever. The engine would not start until he added our house battery bank to the circuit. Ah, problem solved, our starter battery completely died on the trip across, probably from the pounding we were taking. It did not have enough power to activate the stop solenoid.

We cleared into Honduras, which was the purpose of our stop in Utila. It is so easy in Utila, and everyone is so friendly there. There were absolutely no fees for us or our boat to clear into Honduras. We had lunch at Bundu Cafe and picked up some groceries at Bushes. Ajaya diverted to Utila because they heard there was a Yanmar supplier there, and maybe they could get the parts they needed for repairs. We only stayed one night as the anchorage was very rough. Ajaya got their parts, and they departed Utila a couple of hours behind us. We moved on to French Cay Harbor, Roatan, where we knew it would be calm, but principally to do provisioning before moving on. The stores here are the closest thing we know of to an American-style selection; in fact, many of the shelves are stocked with imports from the United States.

If you are thinking, "Wait a minute, these are the places they went to last season," you are right. This time, however, we are just passing through. Our next planned stop is Guanja, the next island to the east, which will be new to us.

Lago Atitlan - May 2011

High on our list of places to visit in Guatemala was Lago Atitlan. It lies at the foot of three large dormant volcanoes. It is in our minds the loveliest place in all of Guatemala.



Lago Atitlan

After returning to Monkey Bay, we very quickly got Ariel ready so we could leave it for a few months. We decided to stop in Antigua, our favorite place in Guatemala, on our way out of the country, and then take a three-day trip to Lago Atitlan. In Antigua, we usually stay at Casa Cristina, a small hotel in a quiet neighborhood, just a bit away from the city center. The owner is nice, speaks English, and we were sure she would agree to hold our luggage while we took our trip to Lago Atitlan. Bill and Pat off Mobetah had left Monkey Bay a few days ahead of us for an inland trip to the west coast with Rodney and Katrina off Angelina. We planned to meet them in Antigua and then travel together to Lago Atitlan. They arrived, and we spent a couple of days enjoying Antigua together. We used a travel agent in Antigua to book our transportation to and from Lago Atitlan and to book a hotel in Panajachel.

Our hotel, Jardines, is the nicest we have stayed at in Central America, with a wonderful view of the lake and volcanoes from our room. It was also very close to the ferry dock, so it made it easy to come and go.  Our first stop after checking in was to have lunch at La Casa del Mundo. Everyone that we talked to about their experiences at Lago Atitlan highly recommended staying at least one night at La Casa del Mundo. We decided, since our stay was to be so short, just to have lunch. La Casa del Mundo is situated on its own remote cliff. After the water taxi left us on their dock, the first order of business was the climb to the top. The place is remarkably beautiful, and the view of Lago Atitlan is spectacular. We enjoyed touring the grounds and the wonderful meals. We took a private water taxi back to Panajachel after negotiating down to the public rate.



 

                                                    

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The next day, we decided to visit San Pedro, which is on the opposite side of the lake. The water taxi ride in itself was quite an experience. Firstly, the taxi does not leave until it is absolutely filled. So it is just a matter of luck whether it is a short or long wait. Secondly, the lake will be deceivingly rough anytime after early morning. It is a long ride to San Pedro, and for us it was very rough and very wet. They provided blue tarps for the passengers in front to shield them from the spray, but regardless, we were all dripping. The constant thought is that we will still need to go back later, and it will be even worse.

San Pedro was a nice little village. We enjoyed lunch there and did some shopping. We bought some cushion covers made from a hulpil, which is a woman’s blouse. We know the patterns from the village of San Antonio, also on Lago Atitlan, so we purposely selected those patterns.

Just after returning to Panajachel, again tired and a little wet from our boat ride, we discovered our camera was missing. Norm remembered laying it down while paying for our cushion covers. He had to beat himself to get back on the water taxi for another round-trip ride to San Pedro. They had our camera, but before returning, he felt he owed himself a burger and a couple of beers. Back at Panajachel, the gang was growing concerned by the time he finally arrived back.

While wandering the markets in Panajachel, we ran into Marguerite, a young Mayan girl whom we had met in Rio Dulce. She had come to Rio Dulce to sell their goods, but it didn't work out, and she was sent back. She was on the streets, along with her grandmother, selling their goods.

After returning to Antigua, we spent a couple more days, and then we went our separate ways. We took a shuttle directly to the airport in Guatemala City. Bill and Pat returned to Rio Dulce, as they still planned to spend another month on Mobetah before returning to the United States.

   

April 2011

Before moving on, we need to go back and fill in some missing posts from last spring. Our last entry was from Calabash Bight in Honduras. After leaving Calabash on Roatan, we returned to Utila. Our visas were about to expire, so we needed to stop by immigration to get 30-day extensions. After getting our extensions, we took a chance that our shipment of a new radar and chart plotter would arrive in the next few days, so we crossed to La Ceiba on the mainland of Honduras to be ready to pick it up at the shipyard. We checked into the Lagoon Marina and found that we were the only boat scheduled there that week.



View from the dock at Lagoon Marina, La Ceiba.

Beautiful Marina - no visitors

We stopped in at the Shipyard to find that our delivery was not yet out of the container, but should be within the next couple of days. The marina offers van service into town, with drop-offs at a couple of locations, including a fairly nice mall. We took advantage of that on several different days. The trip is one-way only, so each time we needed to flag a taxi for the return trip. The marina is well out of downtown, and not all drivers know exactly where it is, so a couple of times it was an adventure getting back. La Ceiba is a working town with really nothing at all for tourists. There were very few gringos around; those few we saw were at Expats, a well-recommended restaurant catering obviously to the expatriate population.

When our delivery arrived, it was missing a part. We took what did arrive and made the most of the flat, calm, peaceful creek the marina is on to work on installing the new radome and cabling down the mast. This required about two hours working about halfway up the mast, so it was a perfect place, with virtually no boat motion. We decided we couldn't wait for the last part to arrive and that we would figure out how to retrieve it later. We knew our friends on Angelina were planning to stop in La Ceiba and hoped the package would arrive before they departed. It did, and we were ultimately united with it back at Monkey Bay Marina in Guatemala a couple of weeks later.

We had a very unusual experience while in La Ceiba.  John, the marina manager at Monkey Bay, upon learning we would be in La Ceiba, asked us to pick up a package at a freight company.  We caught a taxi at the mall after riding into town in the marina van.  We gave him the address, and when he arrived there, it was not apparent where the business was.  We eventually found the nondescript warehouse off the road.  Norm provided the package number, and they went off searching.  There was no apparent organization to the mounds of packages.  After about half an hour, they tried to explain to us that they could not find it and instructed us on what to do.  The problem was that we had no idea what they were saying.  Now this is like an Amazing Race episode.  Our taxi driver, still waiting, took over.  We jumped in the taxi, and we're off, totally clueless as to what we were doing.  We actually found it comical that we were the only ones who had no idea what was going on.  By now, we had taken so much of our driver's time that we first needed to pick up his daughter at school.  We then went to the shipping company's business offices.  He motioned us to go inside.  They spoke English in the office, so we were able to sort it out.  They called the warehouse and provided additional information needed to locate the package.  We then went back to the warehouse, and with additional tracking information, they found the package.  Our taxi driver took us to the marina, and we paid him well.

After five days in La Ceiba, we returned to Utila. Norm had started some dental work there before going to La Ceiba and needed some follow-up. Back at Utila, we once again met up with Mobetah and, with them, spent some time exploring, including anchoring at Diamond Cay on the west end of Utila.

Mobetah - west end of Utila

We traveled with Mobetah to return to the river. To avoid an overnight voyage, we departed at 3:00 am so we could arrive at Puerto Cortez on the mainland during daylight hours. Puerto Cortez is a large ship port, but there is a very nice anchorage just off the Navy base. The next day, we continued on and anchored that night at Cabo Tres Puntas, which is in Guatemala and about two hours from the mouth of the Rio Dulce and Livingston.

Mobetah - on Rio Dulce

Our trip up the Rio Dulce was uneventful, with an overnight stay at Texan Bay so we could arrive at Monkey Bay Marina in the morning, well before the afternoon winds. It is tough enough backing into the slip with cross current, but the higher afternoon winds make it virtually impossible.



Ariel - traveling up the Rio Dulce

What's Missing

This is not a story we wanted to tell, but it is too often part of the cruising life.  We discovered yesterday morning that our dinghy, equipped with an outboard motor, had been stolen overnight.  For those not cruising, this is equivalent to having your car stolen.  We are backed into our slip, and we raise the dinghy up on the davits, so we feel pretty safe.  This marina, like all on the river, has had dinghies and outboards taken before, but they were in the water at our dinghy dock or otherwise easily accessible.  This was the most brazen they have been since they had to board Ariel while we were sleeping to release the lift lines.  There have been several thefts recently, and based on past patterns, they are expected to intensify as the holiday season approaches.  They are only interested in the outboard, and sometimes the discarded dinghy is recovered.  So far, no word on ours.

Norm immediately had the Navy called in.  They patrol the river to prevent such incidents and will be notified if someone spots our dinghy.  They were a sight when they arrived, as they showed up in mass, heavily armed to take down the report. 

Norm then went to the police station with John, our marina manager, to file a report.  John speaks pretty good Spanish, which is absolutely essential to file the report.  Even at that, it was a struggle.  We did secure a police report to submit to our insurance company.  Norm is scheduled to travel to Puerto Barrios to meet with the police again.  After that, they would send an inspector to investigate the crime.  He doubts that he will follow through with the visit to Puerto Barrios, as he is certain the time and money expended will not lead to a recovery.

We have ordered a replacement dinghy, which will be put in a container on a ship leaving Los Angeles on October 31 with an expected arrival here in three weeks.  We have been down this road before, waiting on a container so we have proper expectations.  Norm met with the Yamaha dealer here, and if he understood enough Spanish, they can get what we want delivered from Guatemala City one day after we order it.

We guess we will still be at Monkey Bay for Thanksgiving this year.  It wasn't what we were expecting, but we just go with the flow. 

Ready For New Season

We are back in Guatemala, ready for a new season.  We have been back on Ariel just one week, but have already accomplished much.  There is always a lot of cleaning in the tropics, and the summer in particular is very harsh on a boat.  The interior was again just as we left it, protected all season by a dehumidifier.  This was our second time returning, and it was so much less stressful as we are now familiar with Guatemala City.  We were in luck this time, as John, our marina manager, was making a trip to the city, so we caught a ride back in his van, thus avoiding the scheduled five-hour bus ride.  As it was, the van ride, which should have been four to four and one-half hours, took eight hours.  As is typical on the mountain roads in Guatemala after heavy rains, many landslides were partially blocking the road.  We were extremely thankful we were not on the bus. 

We had a wonderful summer, especially our time with our grandchildren and their parents.

Lesli and Thomas - Deerfield Village 

Grandchildren - Thomas, Michael, Evelyn

Michael, Kimberly, Evelyn - Deerfield Village

Evelyn and Michael - Deerfield Village 

Grandpa and Claire - Harris Hill

Grandpa and Claire - Market St., Corning

Grandma and Claire

Last year, just before returning to Ariel, we bought some property just outside Corning, New York.  We actually completed the closing after we returned to Guatemala, so we didn't really get a chance to really know what we had.  In the mid-1800s, it was a farm, as evidenced by the remains of a stone fence around the perimeter.  It has long since been allowed to reforest.  In 1935, a hunting cabin was constructed on the site, and it was added to over the years, so that it is now a small house in need of much improvement.  There was a tenant at the time we purchased, and it appeared she was taking good care of the place, so we let her stay.  It worked well until this past spring, when she basically ran out of money.  We returned in May and started working on the issue, and finally, in August, we had her and her possessions out.

We worked very hard all summer on repairs to the house and correcting some drainage issues with the land.  We discovered that the previous owners had discarded scrap metal along one of our lanes.  We recovered almost 10,000 pounds of metal, which more than paid for the mini backhoe we needed to rent to move it. 



1982 John Deere - A Landlubber's Life

We moved in in August.  We soon found it very comfortable as a summer home, but Ariel is our primary home.

We plan to leave the river soon, first returning to the Bay islands of Honduras, and then we'll see.