FLEET UPDATE 2019-03-30
1) The (counter) Panama Posse.
Several vessels are now heading up the coast from Panama and
parts in between towards Mexico.
Many are working on their Hurricane strategies and are looking for
a safe place.
There are of course several options to consider.
We'll touch on these in one of the upcoming weekly LINE calls but
just as a baseline here is some info.
Please take all of this with a grain of salt.
Pacific Hurricane Strategies run the gamut with some general
markers for you to ponder.
SOUTH ZONE
Panama on the Pacific side stay at Vista Mar Marina
(no hurricanes, yes lighting strikes)
Costa Rica stay at a marina Golfito Marina Village,
Banana Bay Marina, Marina Pez Vela,
Marina Papagayo
- several offer the options with a bond which helps with
customs issues
(no hurricanes, yes lighting strikes)
Nicaragua - stay at Marina Puesta del Sol
(no hurricanes, yes lighting strikes)
El Salvador - stay on Bill & Jean's Moorings
(no hurricanes, yes lighting strikes)
There are ample electrical storms, thunder and lightning and each
season vessel suffer from lightning strikes in these places.
CENTRAL ZONE
Tehuntapec,MX is the area where the hurricanes usually originate
from
Mexico - Marina Chiapas and soon Marina Chahue - dredging
starts in May so stay tuned.
NORTH ZONE
All Mexican marinas above this line on the Pacific side are in
the bona-fide Hurricane Zone
(expect for Ensenda) and vessels also occasionally suffer from
lightning strikes.
Here are some visualizations of the historic tracks in the Pacific
the lighting strikes map
2) Bahia del Sol, El Salvador
Crew member Dan, Curtis and Fynn, from Germany, made the track
from Huatulco to Chiapas, Mexico in February.The anchorage at
Huatulco harbor, chosen due to closure of the nearby marina Chahue
proofed a good shelter, even in sometimes windy conditions. Local
population is very helpful and the view from the anchorage offers
everything from little fishing dinghies to short visits of
seizable cruise ships. The local lemonade (after a hot day) is to
die for.After watching many website based weather reports and
local advise we picked a window to cross the sometime treacherous
Tehuantepec bay; we were so cautious that we sometimes cursed at
the calm winds. Do not let your guard down here, Closer to our
destination the wind picked up behind us and hugh swells from the
NW caused for an interesting ride.Chiapas marina is a delightful
operation; fairly new and idyllically tucked away in a corner of
Puerto Marino harbor. Memo and Ralph, marina management, as well
as yard lead Ronnie, are most helpful with paper processing and
taking care of the odd repair jobs.After Chiapas the trip
continued, in March, to Bahia de Sol, outside El Salvador. As we
were going to miss our appointed time with the harbor pilot we had
to drop anchor. With the wind picking up in the afternoon, the sit
became close to uncomfortable, not to mention looking at a near
full length of anchor line pointing straight out from the bow. Not
to many options there though. Pilot Bill was hard to find in his
little dinghy amongst the seizable waves but proofed to be a good
guide across the bar into the inlet.Be aware of a good current
flowing inside the small bay including at the small marina.Next
planned stop: Golfito, Costa Rica. To be continued . . . .
Dan
WINDS OF THE WORLD
3) Bahia del Sol, El Salvador
Tips on entering Bahia del sol:
Ensure you contact Bill and Jean in advance for advice. They know
the surf and tide conditions intimately, and you want to ensure
they will be on hand to assist the pilot when you cross the bar.
elsalvadorrally@aol.com, phone +503 7490 6894, hail “Bill and
Jean” on vhf ch 16 when within range.
If they are not available (having gone to town, etc.) the pilot is
still available most days (hail hotel Bahia del sol on vhf 16) but
does not have a vhf, and will guide you in with hand signals. This
is significantly sub-optimal.
You must enter at high tide, and morning crossings are always
better.
Rob & Debra
AVANT
4) Las Perlas, Panama
We've been back on the boat for a month and left 10 days ago from
Vista Del Mar to visit Las Perlas. We have only visited Bona,
Contadora, and now Isla San Jose so far. They are all wonderful.
Our only real complaint is the water is freezing. It's been
hovering right at 68 degrees F. brrrr! Nice for SUP and yaking
but even the fish apparently don't like it because we have seen
very few (of the coral type) and caught none of the eating
varieties.There has been north winds (12-25+) pretty much every
day but with picking the right anchorages it has been very nice
except the no swimming part.We have said good bye (or see ya
later) to a number of vessels heading west, some stopping at
Galapagos and some sailing on by. Fair winds to you all.We have no
schedule and plan to visit as many anchorages as we can.
NOTE TO TE POSSE ...Office manager Yordanka of Hacienda Del Mar
on Isla San Jose asked us to invite all cruisers to come visit.
The drinks and food are same price as any 4-5 star all inclusive
resort. $4 Beer, $10 Calamari, and you have to pay $10 to go in
and use resort amenities but...the pool is wonderful, the grounds
and views are awesome, and the staff are all very friendly. The
$10 resort fee is a one time thing as we spent 4 days there and
only paid the $10 once.What you also get is a free mooring ball
(first come first serve) or anchorage, free potable water (water
faucet on the beach) easy dingy landing. Internet at the pool or
at the anchorage with a wifi grabbing device) is available. NO
cell service. Cheers!
Rick & Brenda
DAD'S DREAM
5) SAVE THESE DATES & SPONSORS
Wednesday, May 1st - Panama
Posse Labor Day Party @ Golfito Marina Village, Costa Rica
Saturday, May 25th - Season
Finale - Panama Posse 18-19 Yacht Fest @ Vista Mar Marina -
Panama
For the list of all Sponsors please
go to
https://www.panamaposse.com/sponsors
6) Playa del Coco, Costa Rica
After two and a half glorious months in northern
Nicaragua with an amazing crew of local friends and surfing a
bunch with our buddies on SV Shearwater, we finally threw off the
lines and made the overnight trip from Puesta Del Sol Nicaragua to
Bahia Santa Elena sailing mostly the whole way in comfortable
conditions. We, thankfully, were spared from the normal harrowing
Papagayo experience by waiting very patiently for the perfect
weather window, credit goes to Eric and Pati for making the call
to go. We dropped anchor in the morning to calm breezes and
gorgeous natural surroundings. By 4pm the beginnings of the next
Papagayo were already stirring. Gusts from different directions
were dramatically spinning the boat on it's anchor all night. We
had all sorts of plans for hiking and exploring the picturesque
bay for a few days, and we tossed them all out the porthole in
favor of the promises of greater shelter from the wind in Bahia
Culebra. The day passage to Playa del Coco, where we had to stop
in order to check in, ended up being some of the most pleasant and
memorable sailing of the entire Pacific Coast thus far. We poled
out the genoa and were hauling the mail, as our racer cruiser
tends to do in fresh breezes. SV Shearwater was looking regal with
all her canvas up as we sailed around the corner and past the Bat
Islands. We caught sight of a large bull shark and a magestic
giant manta ray. Rowan snagged a massive Dorado and we carved it
up right away for Fish Taco Dinner. Emmy was keen to dissect
something so I pulled out the eyeball and Rowan recalled memories
of childhood trips to the Exploratorium to give a hands-on fish
anatomy lesson. Fun fact: the lens of a fish eye looks like a
perfectly round marble of clear gelatin. Playa del Coco welcomed
us warmly with an easy and free check in process, a protected
anchorage with good holding, a great pier to lock the dinghy when
going to town and free WiFi that we could pick up with the
booster, good enough to stream a couple movies. The check in
cha-cha was pretty simple thanks to tips from our amigos on SV
Salt. First, Captain to the Port Captain in the blue building in
the middle of the main road by the beach. Second, the whole crew
walked up the road to a small white immigration office next to the
panaderia and the bus stop on the right hand side of the road.
Third, Captain took a taxi to Liberia Airport Aduana/Customs. And
finally, back to the Port Captain to check all the documents were
in order. No costs involved except the price of the taxi to the
airport. We dawdled in Cocos for three weeks enjoying the
abundance of restaurants, especially the pizza, gelato and craft
beer. We caught a local rodeo, had family come to visit, watched
the Superbowl on a bigscreen with a bunch of lively gringos, went
snorkeling at the islands just outside the bay, and even got the
chance to volunteer at a local school. Thanks to the kindness of
Pati and Eric on Shearwater keeping an eye on our boat, we snuck
away up to Bahia Salinas to try our hand at kiteboarding. Such a
gorgeous part of the country with wide open grassy fields and
aquamarine colored water. It was mostly dragging and swallowing
copious amounts of seawater, but with enough success to want to go
back for more. We also took my parents, who flew down from the
states, to Hacienda Guachipelin for a day filled with outdoor
adventure including zip-lining through slot canyon ravines, horse
back riding to a waterfall, natural mineral hot springs, and the
most delightful river tubing. We also did the hike to Rio Celeste,
where the science of nature starts to blur the lines with a world
filled with magic and wonder. The hike was good for the body and
the reward was a river and waterfall with stunning milky
tourquoise water, caused by the meeting of two clear rivers with
different chemical properties that reacted to create the
unforgettable water color. Our last few days in Playa Coco we took
advantage of the boat chandlery and the convenient food shopping
at the great grocery stores, panaderia, and fish market. Playa del
Coco was very good to us. With the safe and free anchorage, ease
of provisioning, quick access to Liberia Airport and surrounding
beauty of the bay, beaches and islands, it would be easy and
enjoyable to stay longer. But it was time to mosey.
The morning calm at Bahia Santa Elena, Costa Rica
SV Shearwater flying full canvas
Dissecting a fish eyeball
Best gelato! Yum!
Volunteer day at the school in Playa Hermosa
Rio Celeste
Next stop.... Tamarindo!
Paradisea is part of the triathlon course here in
Herradura, CR.
Victoria & Rowan & Crew
TALIESIN ROSE
7) Vista Mar Marina, Panama
Cruisers handout - thanks to Jeariene GOOD JOB OF THE
WEEK !!!
I put together an
introductory handout that should be helpful to Panama Posse folks
coming to the Vista Mar Marina in May.
I've provided it
to the marina office and was told they will create a brochure for
the marina.
This is a
springboard, but is more than the marina has had in the past, and
is basic information that I wanted when we arrived at Vista Mar.
Safe sailing!
FYI -> this handout is now online in the Panama
Posse public documents section at
https://panamaposse.com/welcome-to-vista-mar-marina
Jeariene & Walt
KNOT RIGHT
8) REMINDER
Always lock your dinghy - especially if you go on shore.
Tie it to a sturdy pole or tree and remove any valuables.
Thieves are opportunists may swim out to cut your dinghy's
painter and
then use rocks on the beach to break off locks.
Please use a (PAD) lock with a difficult point of attack and a
heavy chain
or re-in-forced stainless steel wire - see a sample lock
below.
9) Zihuatanejo, MX
BlueOasis bringing up the rear, anchored in relatively calm
small swell tonight on isla xtapa(grande) Zihuatanejo MX. Last
night we anchored in Caleta de Campos up the coast 70nm or so.
Not for the faint of heart, seemed like 6 foot swell, our ground
tackle (bow and stern) performed perfectly, but boy did we jump
around all night. Now we know why SeaGlub did the overnight to
Zihuat. We’re here and happy to explore the Zihuat area. Plan to
be in Acapulco around Tuesday/ Wed to pick up a part we ordered.
PICTURE OF THE WEEK
Barry & KathyBLUE OASIS10) SAFETY/SECURITY TELEPHONE NUMBERS (Diane last
season actually called every number)
U.S. COAST GUARD RESCUE COORDINATION CENTER
Rescue Coordination Center: (510) 437-3701. This is the
number for group receiving EPIRB emergency beacon distress
signals. They will coordinate with local country Coast Guards
if boater is outside of the U.S. and they have translators, as
the numbers at the local country Coast Guards in Central
America will speak Spanish. They said it would be ok to call
them in emergency.
CENTRAL AMERICA COUNTRY COAST GUARD CONTACT NUMBERS
These numbers were given to me by the U.S. Coast Guard
Rescue Coordination Center. The individuals from these local
Coast Guards will speak Spanish when you call them. If you
cannot communicate with them, the Rescue Coordination Center
can call them, but that will take more time.
El Salvadore Coast Guard: (505) 22500210, Extension 5103
Nicaragua Coast Guard: (504)22342507
Costa Rica Coast Guard: (506) 22314924
Panama Coast Guard: (507) 60451197
CALIFORNIA COAST GUARD OFFICES WHO COULD BE called if
you cannot reach rescue coordination center, however the local
coast guards will likely just go through the Rescue Center:
Coast Guard Sector LA/Long Beach: 310 521-3815
Channel Islands office: 805 985-9822
VHF EMERGENCY CHANNEL FOR MAYDAY: 16
U.S. COAST GUARD EMERGENCY SSB CHANNELS
MHZ UTC time
4.125 2300-11
6.125 24 hr.
8.290 24 hr.
12.290 1100-2300
HAM SSB NETS
World wide emergency Ham net: 14.313 24 hr.
Pacific Seafares Net 14300 @
0300 UTC
Central America Ham net: 7.083 UTC time 1300
CENTRAL AMERICA EMBASSY CONTACT INFORMATION. Go to www.usembassy.gov/ for
further information. For Central America embassies, emergency
number is +1-202-501-4444, and press “0”, from 8 a.m. – 5
p.m. EST. When dialing embassy numbers below probably start
with “ +” depending on phone service.
COSTA RICA
+506 2519 2000
Calle 98 Via 104, Pavas, San Jose, Costa Rico
EL SALVADOR
+503 2501 2999
Final Blvd. Santa Elena, Antiguo Cuseatlan, La
Libertad, San Salvador
GUATEMALA
+502 2326 4000
Avenida Reforma 7-01, Zona 10, Guatemala Cuidad, Guatemala
HONDURAS
+504 2238 5114 (after hours X4100)
+504 2236 9320 (per embassy website, but not
communications received: 011-504 2236 9320)
Avenida La Paz, Tegucigalpa MDC, Honduras
MEXICO
+52 55 5080-2000
Paseo de la Reforma 305, Colonia Cuauhtenoc, 06500
Mexico, DF
NICARGUA
+505 2252-7100
Kilometer 5.5 Carreter Sur, Managua, Nicagagua
PANAMA
+507 317 5000
Bldg 783, Demetrio Basilio Lakas Ave, Clayton, Panama
REPORT U.S. CITIZEN MISSING ABROAD: 1-888-407-4747
GLOBAL MARINE DISTRESS SAFETY SYSTEM: 1-888-407-4747,
press “0” for overseas citizen emergency services.
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION MARITIME ADMINISTATION, OFFICE OF
MARITIME SECURITY.
They provide information on piracy and safety and security,
and you can sign up for alerts by going online.
Emergency: 1-202-501-4444 (8-8 EST, M-F)
Stan & Diane
CROSSROADS ( last season's Panama Posse )
11) Panama Canal, Panama
Sprezzatura thru Canal and headed to San Blas Islands. Arrive
Bug Isle later today.
Transit was fun and easy. We were solo center lock. Great
Advisor Guillermo.
Line handling: Not for inexperienced crew and it requires more
than average strength.
Can’t emphasize enough how good Flamenco Marina Yard is. The
Manager Alejandro Cora is hands on, extremely accommodating and
gets stuff done right now!! I signed up for the “paint package”
rate and even though I had them do some other small jobs he
charged me just the quoted amount. They also did a polish and
wax job for $20/ft that produced outstanding finish. 3 step
process of wet sand with 1000/2000/3000 grit paper, polish with
3M #1, then final wax.
Marine Warehouse is a great source for equipment. They source
from US and ship from Miami at better shipping rates than Mail
Boxes Etc. which I used in Coronado and Panama City too.
Shelter Bay Marina personnel are super friendly and helpful. I’m
going back there.
Eric
SPREZZATURA
12) La Marina
Acapulco - Mexico
Rates
22 pesos x foot x day
5 pesos x kwatt
23 pesos x day water (non-potable quality 336 ppm)
Wifi at office only
24/7 security -
very safe
small store
small Chandlery
boat broker
bathrooms open from 9 to 6
no fuel - no laundry
Great
supermarket right across the street
amazing pool and
hot tub for members only ( membership 125,000 MXP x 5 years )
Contact
LUIS RAMIREZ MAGDALENO
GERENTE MARINA ACAPULCO
TEL:+52 744 483 6143
TEL: +52 744 483 7744
Cel +52 744 131 3007
marinaacapulco@jarestate.com
Dietmar & Suzanne
SV Carinthia
13) WEEKLY 2018-2019 PANAMA POSSE FLEET
CHECK IN and MORNING NET on MONDAY'S at 16:00 UTC
via LINE
We have over 77+ vessels in LINE and the calls are
great and very efficient and the Chatroom is open 24/7
It's a new way of doing things
- please download and install LINE https://line.me/en-US/
Works on Android / ios /
Windows / MAC OS
How to use it ....
- Register using your vessel name as the USERNAME
ie SV SEAGLUB
- Search for panamaposse or SV Carinthia or
Seaglub and befriend us -
- wait and accept your PANAMAPOSSE GROUP INVITE
- join the group chat -
it's awesome !
14) Please reply to this email with ...
anything really
- your updates
- contenders for picture of the week - links to your favorite SONGS
- relevant blog posts - and of course your valuable suggestions
and we'll include it in the next FLEET UPDATE -
Keep em 'coming
Dietmar & Suzanne
CARINTHIA
15) Opt-out from Fleet Updates simply reply with
"REMOVE"
FLEET UPDATE 2019-03-20
1) You
are now part of 112 Vessels of 10 flag states - a.k.a.
A MULTINATIONAL FLOTILLA

USA, Canada, UK, Germany, France, Norway, Costa Rica, New Zealand, Panama and Denmark
Hip Hip Hooray to the 2018-2019 Panama Posse
2) Good Nautical and the Panama Posse - CALL FOR COMMENTS
You and many other vessels are moving up and down the coast so we challenge you to Add your comment -
It's really pretty easy - one you are logged into Good Nautical just follow the (Add new comment) link
for any Anchorage / Marina/ Fuel Dock / POI and please update these spots with your thoughts and valuable insights
You can even upload an image - just be sure to click the SAVE button when you are done filling out the form ...
3) Mexico City, MX
The crew of Slow Dancer flew from Ixtapa for
Mexico City on Feb 28 and met Nilaya's crew, who flew from
Chiapas. Together we enjoyed two days in the very modern
Mexico City and a day at the ruins of Teotihuacan
and some
very old but amazing cathedrals.
We then boarded a bus headed
for Anganguero.
From here we hired a private driver to drive
us up into the mountains
to the Monarch butterfly sanctuary at
El Rosario.
We rode horseback into the tall pines and
experienced the quiet reverence of this amazing place.
Monarchs were everywhere. They hung from trees by the
thousands. They flew all around us and they landed at water
sources.
What an awe inspiring day. We then traveled to the
hot springs at Los Azufres for a soak and a cool night in the
forest.
We all thoroughly enjoyed our inland adventure!
Ken & Dale
SLOW DANCER
5) Golfito Marina Village - Costa Rica
New Contact Infoas there has been a Management change.
and yes they will honor the Panama Posse discount so for reservations please contact
Gabriela Porras,
Guest Service Coordinator
Golfito Marina Village
Puntarenas, Costa Rica
T: +506 2775-3000
F: +506 2775-0204
C: +506 8770-3098
E: gabriela@golfitomv.com
6) Panama City Panama to Golfito, Costa Rica
Adventure between gales and no wind, but we have a way point to get out of the
strong N winds
that blow right into Naranja on the west side of the Pedasi
Penninsula:
After 7 years cruising in
Panama we are finally started our long sail north to Mexico. Hard to believe we
are leaving. Everybody knows how rough the trip can be especially rounding
Punta Mala, which I think is easier going north than south. Just a little info
for those you have residency in Panama, when you check out of the country you
both have to go to Immigration. We didn’t know and had Rogelio do our check
out. Which delayed our departure as Sid and Paradise were in Contadora waiting
for me to return from our provisioning tip. We had to sail back to Panama City.
Reason we both had to be there as Immigration checks how long you were in
Panama and for each month you stayed over it’s a fine, I believe its $50 for
each month over. When the immigration guy saw our passport he needed to see us
in person plus both our cedulas of course, it really made sense. Oh well,
cruising plans are all written in sand at low tide. We had a great sail to
Panama City but couldn’t check out the same day so I did some more
provisioning. BTW for those looking for data all the way to Mexico or down here
I am using Movistar Ilimitado for a month, cost 39.22and you get unlimited
data, YouTube, WhatsApp etc., but best of all it lets you roam for no extra
cost the entire coast, except Honduras, to Mexico. I was able to buy monthly in
advance, but just in case it does not work out I only bought an extra months.
Arriving in Costa Rica at first it did not work, guess it had to find the right
antenna to settle in, from then on it worked like magic, actually better than
the Wi-Fi the marina provides, which is working good as well. And they do sell
Movistar.
By the way we use Rogelio
to check in and out and he was our Panama Canal agent. We have known Roger
since 2000. He has helped cruisers for over 30 years and knows wherever you can
find anything from parts to foods to you name it. He has a Price Smart card and
will take you shopping for an hourly price, will get you to or from airport to
your boat, including shopping. He will help you in any way, great guy to know.
Rogelio De Hoyos
+(507) 229 2785 +(507)6717 6745 info@panamacruiserconnection.com
It was a teary goodbye,
sure will miss him, he is a great guy
and always there when needed.
February 5th
2019 at 11 am we pulled anchor and sailed out of Panama City towards Punta Mala
with heavy hearts. We will miss Panama and all the wonderful friends we made
here.
It was a 90 mile straight
shot to Punta Mala and our only hurdle was the northerly winds that blow very
strong from December on through February/March. Don’t let anybody tell you the
Christmas Winds only blow on the Caribbean side, not so, especially in the
Punta Chame to Punta Mala area. The winds can be very high with gusts to gale
force. We had it on our mind that it could be a rough trip. We did have 20
knots and at times up to 30 gust but it was actually amazingly calm on wind
waves, not to mention we were going with them. Main was out and so was the
staysail. We were sailing 6 to 7 knots which was too fast for our planned
arrival at Punta Mala just before ebb tide. Our main is fairly big and in these
conditions it’s easier to just let the jib pull us instead the main push us any
which way. You would think bringing down a big main would slow you down at
least 1 knot, but not on this trip, we actually reefed the jib 3 times to where
we could not make it any smaller and still we were going 5 plus. Our hull speed
is 6.
As we past San Carlos the
winds picked up steadily and intensified the closer we got to Punta Mala, we
now had a steady 30 knots with gusts up to 40.
There is nowhere to anchor
and wait out the weather so we kept going as it was a comfortable sail. But we
would have loved to slow down a bit.
When dark settled in after
the sunset I turned in for the first watch and Sid was keeping an eye out.
Never really fell asleep but no idea what made me get up and go over the port
side to look out, there was a lot of breaking waves on this side more so than
on our starboard side. But then what got my attention was lit up torpedoes
shooting through the water alongside our boat and towards the bow when it hit
me, it was dolphins. The splashes created by at least a dozen dolphins were all
lit up in phosphorescence. They all played with the bow for a few minutes then
they disappeared. I turned to my side again when I saw the torpedoes on the starboard
side so both of us rushed to that side and watched probably the most amazing
thing we have ever seen. I am sure you all have seen photos of dolphins surfing
waves breaking on to the beach. I count myself lucky to have witnessed this at
Zuma Beach in Malibu years ago. Now imagine about 8 dolphins side by side surfing
a wave but all you see is the silhouette of 8 dolphins glowing in solid
phosphorescence, wow. An image that will never be erased.
By still sailing so fast even
with just a hanky out we were going to sail around Punta Mala at 3 am, which in
this wind we did not want to do in the dark so we decided to anchor off Isla
Iguana which is 8 miles away from the point. There is really not much of a good
anchorage most of the time but considering not having much choice we found a
corner on the island that might be a bit more protected until just daylight. We
anchored and it was a bit rough but doable. Not to mention you can’t see in the
dark. We tried to sleep but by now a full gale was blowing we had winds 40
knots plus and it got rougher and rougher. When we finally could see oh shoot 6
foot waves bounced us around. Time to pull anchor and head towards Punta Mala,
had no other place to go. The anchor was snagged and would trip the fuse to the
windless, several times Sid had to rush down below and set it, while I was
motoring into the waves or doing a quick U-turn as far as the chain would let
me. By the 4th or 5th U-tern the anchor came up, we
figured it was wrapped around a rock or rocks. We sailed with just the little
sail up again towards the mainland, hoping the current would be less extreme
along the coast and found that to be the case. Wind away from the island slowed
down to 20 knots and the seas were half the size in the lee of the island. Our sail
around Punta Mala was with ½ the jib out very smooth, piece of cake, wow and
all the worries. Just about 5 minutes after we rounded the bay, the wind
started up again, we saw the reefs along the shore with waves of water spray
being blown up in the air from the off shore wind. The water was nothing but
white caps. Jib was pulled in to a small sail area again and Sid turned the
motor on. We knew there was a good south current but we never thought this much
of a current. Since Iguana we only had 21 miles to sail to our next
destination, a 4 hour trip that turned into 8 hours. We did not move an inch,
current was that bad with the gale force wind. Just good it was an offshore
winds so we had no waves to battle. We fought the current and with the RPMs at
full speed. When lucky we reached a few
2 to 3 knots of speed but mostly was 0.8 to maybe 2 knots. It was frustrating,
at one point we took the sail in, figuring maybe that’s slowing us. We were at
a standstill and the wind blew us further off shore. Out came the jib again. We
finally managed to sail along with 2 to 3 knots. One bay we sailed passed I saw
something rush through the water and as it came closer to Paradise I recognized
about 15 roosterfish speeding just below the water surface. I told Sid but by
the time he came on my side they were gone, but wait, there is another group of
about 8, wow. Sid said they hunt together like this, it was a kewl sight. The
sail was still sluggish and slow but then when we came to Ensenada Benao, our
destination, it was the pits. Gusts now were 40 knots pushing us literally away
from the shore it was a nightmare. I was on the helm steering the boat the best
possible way to get a 1 knot to 2. It was getting frustrating we had just a few
hundred feet to go to the opening of the anchorage when I noticed the gear
shift lever. It was a bit forward but not far enough forward as it should be
and asked Sid: “are we in gear”. We ran
the dam engine on high RPMs all day long fighting a barely existing (0.6 knot
current). I think that can go in the book of “The dumbest things we have ever
done”!!!
The worst of the trip was
over, so we thought as Punta Mala is a good challenge, well more so for
southbound boats, but. We still had another about 100 miles to deal with these
norther winds until we were out of the zone but from here on it should not be
as strong, so we thought…..
We cleaned up the mess
down below that Iguana anchorage caused and spent 2 nights resting in Benao.
The wind was just howling so we didn’t even feel like lowering the dinghy and
going ashore. We have been here on a car trip so know this beach. Beautiful
place and offers several good restaurants and resorts.
Amazing not even 2 miles
out of anchorage wind slowed from 25 to 18 as I had suspected that it is a
local condition for wind to funnel down the hill. Four miles later we had 8 to
10 knots and still in the lee of the land it was a smooth sail.
About 10 miles in to the
trip there was a canyon coming up and all we saw was white caps an indication
of lots of wind, we immediately reduced our sail as we approached the windy
area and had winds anywhere for 13 to 28 knots funneling down the hill. There
was another area blowing up to 36.7 and once cleared dropped to 13 to 28.
We noticed this wall of
clouds along the southern part and the closer we got to the west point Mariato,
the end of the Pedasi Peninsula, the wall abruptly stopped, we figured that was
there due to the high winds, hmmm, interesting.
5 miles before next
Mariato Point the wind gusted again with 30 then within 4 min wind changed from
N to SW. We were sailing with staysail up at 3.8 to 4 knots and had a slight
current.
I saw several turtles peek
their heads out next to the boat before disappearing into the depths again.
It was a great sail until
we passed Mariato Point. Just around the corner is Naranjo an anchorage we had
stopped for a few days on our way south in 2000.
Just as soon as we rounded
the point the wind turned around and in just seconds all hell broke loose. Gale
force winds hit us including 6 to 7 foot high close together wind waves. Bow
was completely under water, jerry jugs lifted out of the fore deck onto and
across the deck. Never seen so much water over deck. Then again and again. We
didn’t even have to make a decision, it was clear this was not for us and
around we turned. Anchorage Naranja was out of the question as this weather was
heading right into it. While rounding the point I noticed a cute bay with 3
beaches and that’s where we headed. We had to race the sun there before she
said goodnight for the day as there is no info on this area so obviously nobody
ever anchors there. We needed the sunlight to see hidden rocks as there seemed
to be many of them. The sun gods were with us and we found a flat area which we
assumed is just sandy bottom and dropped the anchor just before the last blink
of the sun disappearing on the horizon. This anchorage has no name but is 3
miles before the corner of Naranjo, coming from Punta Mala.
Waypoint: 07’29.445N 81’13.469W we should call it “Paradise Refuge”
(NOTE YOU JUST GOT NAMING RIGHTS !!!)
Be careful if coming in
here, lots of hidden rocks to the West side, East side has flat bottom. This
anchorage is perfect for the Papagayo winds but looks hostile with southerly
winds. We anchored in 45 feet of water, at time did not know what tide was,
calm 20 knots of wind which intensified overnight, had gust up to 40 knots, a
full blown gale again. We decided not to go anywhere until the blow is over.
When I finally went down
below I noticed the chaos, the salon hatch leaked, all fruit bowls on table had
¾ inch salt water in them. 4 pillows soaked and part of settee plus floor, a
mess.
The wind was still howling
in the morning and as the day went on the howling of the wind was jarring on
our nerves. Sid was looking for his earplug but found them all disintegrated,
all of them but the creative inventor he is he found some left over foam from a
life jacket and carved us earplugs. Oh that peace of “almost” quiet was sooooo
nice.
The rocks next to us let
us know how much the winds was blowing by the vail of a spray lifting up in the
air and out to sea.
We spent a second night
with hopes that the wind would slow down. We had no data service here and could
not check on the weather at all.
It was a nice anchorage
very scenic and we were all alone.
A couple hours later we
saw a sail boat heading east and hailed them on the radio to let them know in
case they need to hunker down there is a good place here. As it turned out they
were anchored in Naranja for protection they did not get and were so happy we
contacted them.
About 1 hour after they
anchored the wind dropped to nothing, wow, we waited another 30 minutes and
still nothing. We decided to pull anchor and head around the corner to see if
we can find data (while surprised with the waves over the deck WhatsApp got
some data) to get a weather report and in case the wind came back to return and
hunker down. Near Naranjo we did find some data but just enough to get WhatsApp
going but the wind stayed calm so we went for it. We had 10 miles to go to
Ensenada Cebaco, the weather stayed clear and dolphins had fun playing with the
bow wake before we anchored in the sheltered bay just before sunset.
No wind howling no ocean
motion we slept like babies. At 7 after coffee and breakfast we started the
motor to a really weird click noise in engine compartment but engine did not
start. Off came the box while Sid checked the engine, after checking the wires
to the starter he found a loose one a few minutes later and a few cranks we
finally started the engine, Sid put the box back on and came back to the
cockpit. I mentioned to him I smelled something funny, he did not. 5 minutes
later we both went down below when he smelled it too. He opened the engine box
and found the coolant lid gone and coolant spewing in the air. We immediately
turned the engine off as it was over heated. The fresh water pump was toast and
of course that’s the only spare part we forgot to get last time we replaced it
in Bonaire. Murphy’s law at its best again.
February 11. The good
thing was we have sails and only had 98 miles to go to Golfito so anchor came
up and hoisted sails. It was a slow sail out of the anchorage until we were
away from the lee of the island doing 2.2 knots for at least 1 hour. Around
noon the wind picked up to 10 knots and we were moving with 4.7 knots. This
held for a couple hours and all of a sudden out of nowhere we had this huge
gust heeling us over for just a few seconds then nothing for 30 minutes, we
were sailing with 1.9 knots. It was calm enough I decided to start cooking
dinner, when I noticed the dish washing soap was on the wrong side of the sink
and had fallen onto the faucet and opened it. Somebody put that darn thing on
the wrong side, if we catch that somebody…..There wasn’t much water coming out
good thing but had no idea how long it had been open and how much we lost.
Still had water so far so good. But when I turned the stove on there was no
propane coming through the hose, oh no we can’t be out, we just filled the
tank. Sid investigated for a kink in the hose or something cutting the line of
gas, nothing but then he realized the regulator was well on its end. He was
able to fix it so we had cooking gas. (We have small propane tanks which were a
nuisance to fill in Panama so we bought a local propane tank while in Panama,
once this one is empty we will switch back to our own tanks).
We still had little wind
and what we had moved us at 1.9 knots 50 degrees of course, but we were moving.
At 22.30 the wind completely shut down that was just off the point of Isla
Coiba. At midnight the wind decided to come back and with 5 knots pushed us at
a speed of 1.3. I think we can swim faster than this.
By morning we had moved 10
miles since the wind started up again and in the 24 hours since we had left
Cebaco we had moved an incredible 30 miles and had still 70 miles to go to
Punta Burrita not to mention a further 18 miles plus miles to Golfito. At this
rate it will take days to get there.
Feb 12th at
08:30 we had 67.72 miles to go and sailed wing on wing with 1.3 knots in 3.2
knots of wind. The whisker pool helped to keep the jib out. I went down below
for some water but realized: OH shit we have an empty tank! What else is going
to go wrong. Can’t make water with no engine, good thing we still have 2 gallon
bottles under salon table and 2-6 gallon jugs on deck. Not being able to run
engine we turned the freezer and fridge off during the night so not to run down
the batteries. Sid hooked up the Honda generator and we ran it to top of the
batteries. Not having batteries would have been yet another disaster as we
would have lost everything in fridge and freezer. Yes we were on survival mode,
that’s our survival mode.
At 11:49 we still had
62.34 miles go, wind was at 4 to 6 knots and our speed 2.4 knots. Sid ran the
generator for 3 hours for the water maker but water maker draws more power so
maybe only made 10 gallons of water but it was water.
At 15.33 we had 50 miles
to go and we were sailing 5.7 knots yeah, great. We had to change course to
avoid an island between us and Punta Burrita and as there were lots of
underwater rocks which were deep enough underwater to sail across but knowing
they would create lots of current we decided to sail around that area to avoid
the current. We sailed 10 miles and when we wanted to tack the wind shifted and
came from an impossible direction other than the direction we came from, so had
to sail the 10 miles back. We reached the island we now had to pass due west
but the wind completely shut down at 1.45 am. We were sitting 12.11 miles off
Burrica with no wind, so little to go. Feb 13th 11.30 am we were still sitting
in no wind and knowing that Way She Goes might be in the area and we spotted a
sailboat on the horizon we hailed them on channel 16 but no responds.
This was getting really
frustrating we were so close yet so far.
At 12:38 a puff of air,
hoping it would pick up but didn’t. At 13:29 we finally had 6 knots of wind and
were moving with 2 knots towards Golfito. 15:30 3 knots in 9.2 knots of wind
and the Geni was running to keep the batteries up. We were out of water again
so we only had made a couple gallons tops.
We had to change course
for a better angle and sailed 12 miles with 5 knots and had the perfect angle
to sail into the Golfito bay when the wind shut down again. We now were just on
the other end of the entrance than early that morning. Not a breath of air. But
we had a good night sleep with no one on watch, well we were not going anywhere
not even a drift in any direction. A good downpour of rain woke us up, what the
hell, its dry season, it didn’t rain long to collect water, just long enough to
get everything soaked. Back to bed when I woke up to dolphins swimming around
Paradise. Love it!
February 14th
Happy Valentines’ Day were 15.35 miles away from the Golfito Bay entrance and
still not a breath of air.
About 11:45 Sid had enough
of this and we lowered the dinghy and he hooked it up snug on the transom,
turned the outboard on and started pushing, we had a ¼ tank of gas and figured
to push the boat as far as it goes and amazingly it took us into the Golfito
Bay and since we still had another full tank we decided we had enough to get us
all the way to Golfito.
Sid always has said:
“never underestimate a 15 hp outboard”, he was pushing Paradise with 3.5 to 4
knots. I handed him the full tank down, an ice cold coke and an umbrella. At
one point he climbed in the boat so we could check the waypoints and to go pee
then slipped back into the dinghy.
As we inched closer to
Golfito the Golfito Marina finally heard us on the VHF radio and he organized a
boat to come out and get us. There was a misunderstanding, he took off and left
us to ourselves to bring the boat into the slip.
Just as we came out of the
channel to Golfito a green and yellow dinghy speed towards us, I be damned if
that wasn’t Wayne on Way She Goes. Together with his help after I rounded the
dock he pushed the bow of Paradise into the slip while Sid hit the reverse.
The, what would have been
48 hour trip ,turned into a 4 day trip from hell.
My hero Sid got us back to
civilization on Valentine’s Day and we celebrated it at the wonderful La Playa
Restaurant at the Marina with Sheila and Wayne.
Happy Ending
The Golfito Marina is the
newest Marina in Golfito and therefore the best one as well ,but still under
construction. Banana Bay Marina is I think the oldest and first one, it was the
favorite of all south bound cruisers when we left. We never went there as there
was a lot of break-ins and thievery in the bay. Not much has changed in Costa
but I will get to that.
We did have lunch at the
Banana Bay Marina just to see what we are missing. We are missing not much
except old worn out docks. One of the sport fishers in a slip entertained us to
no end. He has his beautiful expensive boat sitting in this ugly slip and the
entertaining part, after he got done washing the boat he went inside and in a
few minutes appeared with a hammer in his hand and went on the dock. It was
hilarious he walked the whole side dock and hammered all the nails back into
the wood, he must have hammered 60/70 nails then I guess he realized that was a
fun thing to do he went on the main dock and hammered more in. When we left we
teased him that he had forgotten some nails.
The Golfito Marina is
owned by a wealthy Naples resident who keeps his 168.9 meter $40 000 000.00
boat Annastar in this marina. The dock is well built and it had pretty flower
plants and well, makes you feel you are in Florida somewhere. The staff is
super friendly and it definitely is well guarded day and night. Every guard on
the premises carries a gun and we see the guards walk the dock at any time at
night.
Rule number one in Costa
Rica is, hide anything of value down below and don’t leave anything on deck,
even boat hooks, bumpers etc. We feel pretty safe in this marina.
It’s very quiet though,
ever since Wayne and Sheila left there are no other cruisers here except big
sport fishers.
We ordered the fresh water
pump for our engine but found out that Costa Rica charges incredible taxes and
for everything different percentage, for shampoo for instance 28%,
Household
items like coffeemaker, blender 49%, Guitar 29%, Flat Screen TV, DVD Players 49%, water heater 68.8%, Automotive parts 42.78%
yikes our part is $500
We are about 1 ½ hours (3
to 4 hours by bus) car drive away, from David in Panama so I opened a Mail Box
Etc account and have it shipped there and will take the bus to David and
back.
We are also losing a lot
of precious cruising time waiting for the part and are debating whether to
leave the boat here for our trip to Switzerland and head up to Mexico in
September. We are allowed to be in Costa Rica for 90 days and so is the boat.
In order to keep the boat in the marina here we have to obtain a bond on the
boat and boat is not allowed to leave the marina, which it won’t as we will not
be here. It’s an easy deal and all the marinas will help you to get the bond.
The boat can stay as long as you need and when you return you and the boat get
another 90 days of visa. I am not sure yet how much the bond is but heard each
marina is different. Sail Fish I know charges $100.
The marina has no pool but
Casa Roland Hotel is open for anyone. If you don’t like huge crowds avoid going
there on a weekend as all the locals are enjoying the pool. During the week if
you see 10 people it’s a lot. The restaurant has wonderful food and they make
yummy fruit cocktails.
Shopping here is basic but
they do have wonderful veggies, healthy looking and the tomatoes are vine
ripped. Every veggie I have bought so far is bigger and more colorful than in
Panama. Not much of a fruit selection other than Pineapple, papaya, apples and
grapes.
Since then it’s been a
waiting game, on the part.
Sid & Manuela PARADISE
7) SAVE THESE DATES &
SPONSORS
Wednesday, May 1st - Panama
Posse Labor Day Party @ Golfito Marina Village, Costa Rica
Saturday, May 25th - Season
Finale - Panama Posse 18-19 Yacht Fest @ Vista Mar Marina
- Panama
For the list of all of our Sponsors
please go to
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Juan & Michelle
AY CARAMBA
Victoria & Rowan & Crew
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