FLEET UPDATE 2018-02-02
1) Fred Again
Hola. Fred Again III is In Huatulco at Marina Chahue- waiting for
our Tpec window. We had no problem getting a slip (we heard others
did). We were told that our late in the day Sunday arrival was
likely beneficial. We expect to leave for Chiapas on Sunday with
Volante.
Also- received my replacement credit card which was mailed to
Huatulco resident Lee Burnette from the boat Que Sera. (Thank you
Lee and to Dee Dee for arranging). All is well that ends well,
and I will be much more careful about where I use my credit card
going forward.
2) WELCOME to the Panama Posse GAVIA
We truly appreciate all the time and energy youโve expended
in gathering all this very useful (and fun) information for our
travel to Panama, arranging special discounts for the Posse, and
creating opportunities
of comradery among our fellow cruisers.
We look forward to meeting you!
A hazy cell phone photo of the Supermoon from Marina Chiapas,
moments before the eclipse commenced.
Our
warm regards,
Bruce and Lila
3) WELCOME to the Panama Posse SV Colmena
Thanks for adding me. I am already on my way, so I guess I
am a 2017 boat. I am in Zihuatanejo, continuing south in a
couple weeks.
-Kevin
4) CrossRoads – Costa Rica
CrossRoads is OK! see where I am located.
https://fms.ws/sF3X3/9.77727N/84.89587W
5) MYLA
We have our Zarpe in hand and we’re leaving
Mexico. We came down with the Ha Ha in 2015 and have been
here since, except for some visits to the states for a few
months. This is a big moment for us, but we’re excited. It
helps having fellow cruisers around to share the
adventures.
We are currently in Chiapas where we just returned from
a 4 day inland tour of some Mayan ruins and a colonial
town in the rainforests and mountains of Chiapas, Mexico.
We went with fellow Panama Possee boats Sarafina, Aneila,
Interlude, and Apurna. We are also all leaving tomorrow
for Bahia del Sol, El Salvadore.
The land cruising was a great experience, and I suspect
other members of our happy cruising and touring band will
have already written something. While the drive there was
arduous, the payoff with three different Mayan sites,
water falls, and a colonial town made up for the
transportation issues. I’ll never whine about standing
watch again! You can use the bathroom whenever, you can
get up and move…you get the idea! Ten hours in a van can
be trying.
If I was to do the trip again, I might narrow it down a
bit with a trip to San Cristobal, the colonial town, for
at least one, if not two nights so you can really relax
and explore. There’s an indigenous village nearby that we
didn’t visit because we had some travel issues that cut
down our available time, but that would have been cool to
see. I’d then travel to the water falls, Agua Azul.
They’re on the way to Pelenke, the site of some of the
most amazing Mayan ruins and a museum. There are several
other sites that are amazing, but the travel time, let
alone the roads, make it a little daunting. We had an
amazing driver, Jose, and our wonderful tour guide, Luis
Sanchez at 962-216-6611.
I’d also ask to have a list of the expenses upfront.
There were costs for entries into park areas, then another
entry for a bus ride to another area of a park, then
another for a park pass….etc., etc., etc. It would be a
lot easier if the guide company just included it in the
price. We went to a lot of sites and probably paid
somewhere to the tune of 500-700 pesos for all the entry
fees. I’d also recommend packing drinks and food for the
trip. Oxos aren’t known for their healthy selection or
their speed in service. Just one cruiser’s opinion. and
very glad we went.
We’re looking forward to our travels into Central
America, which start tomorrow! Good bye, Mexico. It has
been a great time and I have a feeling we’ll be back
someday! Hope we get to meet more of you as we continue
south.
S/V Myla
6) Serafina.
Posted
15 March, 2016
WARNING: REEF JUST OUTSIDE SHELTER BAY MARINA
From Christian
and Vibe, SY Danish Blue
We want to
warn other sailors of the reef just outside Shelter Bay
Marina, Colon, Panama. It is not marked and it is very
dangerous for sailors arriving at night.
In Shelter
Bay Marina we have been told that our sailboat Danish
Blue is just one out of 12-13 sailboats, which have hit
the reef within the last 3-4 years. Danish Blue has now
been hauled out for almost 4 months to be repaired after
lying on the reef for 12-13 hours. A few days ago,
another sailor hit the reef. The reef is not marked
physically in any way. It can be seen in daylight, but
when arriving at night, it is impossible to see the
reef.
Also, we
have several charts of the area around Shelter Bay
Marina, one chart is Eric Bauhaus’. None of the charts
state that there is a reef just outside Shelter Bay
Marina. Instead, the charts state that there is 4,5-5
meters depth on the specific place of the reef.
The position of the reef is: South to
north: 09 22.1895 N 079 56.7121 W – 09 22.2948 N 079
56.7436 W. East to west: 09 22.2767 N 079 56.6413 W –
09 22.2612 N 079 56.7996 W.
Be aware to follow the
small green buoys parallel to the breakwater on port
side when entering into Shelter Bay Marina – they are
not visible on the charts and they are difficult to see
at night. All the green buoys have to be followed on
port side when arriving from the Panama Canal. The depth
on the other side of the green buoys cannot be trusted.
On behalf of
all sailors visiting Shelter Bay Marina in the future,
we have asked Shelter Bay Marina to mark the reef with a
lighting danger-buoy or a cardinal buoy. Also, we have
asked Eric Bauhaus to update his charts with the reef
and with the green buoys.
6.5 ) NOTE FROM VITESSE – BART
I do not know the lat and long of the reef at Shelter Bay.
If you stay to the right favoring the breakwater, you will
be fine. We cut the corner too close on the left close to
shore right before the entrance to Shelter Bay. The reef
did not show on the paper chart or the Navionics chart.
7) Serafina
If you are still in Mexico and want a good
weather resource, here is the link to Mexico’s version
of NOAA.
https://meteorologia.semar.gob.mx/
I used it to augment and corroborate the
weather forecast on Windy.com for
the Tehuantepec, but it covers both the Pacific and
Caribbean coasts.
The Spanish is easy enough to translate
considering you are reading a weather reportโฆnudos is
knots, rachas is gusts, olas is waves ,pies is feet.
As you can see, they update the 48 hour
forecast twice a day, 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., and the 72 hour
forecast once a day. Look at the top of the page to make
sure that the forecast is for the time period you
expect.
AND, if they donโt want you to go, they tell
you โno favorablesโ.
Good luck on your TโPec crossing.
WeโSerafina, Myla, Interlude, Annapurna/Kyssen, and
Anila, encountered very strong headwinds at Salina Cruz,
but once we hit the beach and started east, it was the
most exhilarating sail I have experienced in a long
time! Fabulous wind and NO seas! With two reefs in and a
tiny jib, it was AWESOME!
And the weather report that was provided by
the site above was pretty spot onโฆ.
All the best, Eliza on Serafina.
8) NEW PANAMA POSSE SPONSOR
Happy to report Marina Puesta del Sol – Nicaragua has
extended a 20% discount to the Panama Posse
– the first 2 days are 1.25 USD x foot per day
(the marina brings in the officials here to check you in our
clearance fee was ~ 64 USD ) – after that it’s
80 cents – minus 20% on the dock or
50 cents per foot per day – minus 20% on their mooring –
pools palalpas – restaurant – fast internet – bar and very
nice and calm here
email info@marinaps.com
9) JULIA MAX – COSTA RICA
Costa Rica charged nothing for our checking in at Playas del
Coco, nothing for Port Captain, Immigration, or Customs at
Liberia Airport.
We understand there will be charges of $58 for the International
zarpe processing. Looking forward to seeing you all further down
the coast.
Julia Max will depart Papagayos Marina Monday Feb 5th. We will
anchor along our way towards Quepos.
While Julia Max is nestled in Papagayo Marina, George and Sue
are away in volcano land: Arenal Observatory was rainy but full
of magnificent birds. The zip-line was fun too. Stayed at La
Mansion in Nueva Arenal on Lake Arenal. Here are some bird
photos: Saw 40 other species.
Collared
Aracari at the Arenal Observatory feeder.
Rufous
Motmot on the Hanging Bridges trail. Note the destinctive
tail.
Montezuma
Oropendola enjoying the melons set out at the Arenal
Observatory feeder.
Summer
Tanager, one of 7 different species of Tanager sighted.
10) PANAMA POSSE NET –
8294 @ 15:15 – I have had propagation issues – is anyone open
to a cellphone conference call in using line.me or whatsup ?
11) VOLANTE III FRED AGAIN III Octopus
Garden
The
Panama Posse amigos on the Huatulco water falls trip
yesterday. โ
Mescal
tasting with Fred Again 3
Waterfalls
in Oaxaca
11) CARINTHIA Happy February – Panama Posse
Panga,
Volcano & Moon – Nicaragua
Keep ’em coming
Panama Posse