November 13, 2009--Change,nothing is constant but change

We decided to use another site for our blog. Check it out at http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog/jusnow/1/tpod.html. Although it's, as always, a work in progress, you can see an ongoing map of our trip in addition to the usual.

A Quiet Hurricane Season Comes to an End

The hurricane season is almost over so we'll be leaving Brunswick in a week or so. We'll miss the beautiful live oaks (above) many dripping Spanish moss from their branches. The sea oats

(above) are another beautiful site here.

We plan to head south to Marathon for Thanksgiving. Our daughter Brooke will join us there for the holiday much to o

ur delight. Then our friend Steve Olson will join us to cross from Key West to Cancun and points south. We're delighted about that as well.

Brunswick has been a pleasant pause in our travels. It has been great to be stateside enjoying the ease of shopping in well-stocked grocery stores--of course, I mean stocked with the foods I'm looking for. We also have our car here with us, so we're not walking mile upon mile laden with heavy bags of foodstuffs and other goods in often hot, sunny weather.

The first month here in Brunswick was beastly though and with no car then, we trekked several miles to doctors' appointments and grocery stores--and of course West Marine. On July 28th we left for a month-long visit to Bordeaux, France, beating another beastly hot month here in Brunswick. A little more on France in the next post.

While here, we visited my mother in Maryland, pictured here with my brother Carter and me

and with his wife Cindy, below.

I also visited one of my childhood friends, Joan Higbee, and her mother pictured below.

We were fortunate to have visits from another of my childhood friends, Debbie Cofield Forrest and her husband, Bob--an Army buddy of Mike's. Debbie and Bob now live in Luray, Virginia, in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley.

And our dear friend and neighbor Rosemary Kernahan whom we knew in Denver, drove from Atlanta to spend a long weekend with us.

July 2009 -- Brunswick, Georgia

We have been in Brunswick, Georgia, since July 2. It's a cute town with a small historic downtown area close to the marina. Unfortunately, without a car, it is hard to get around. We do tremendous amounts of walking which, though good for us, can be brutal in the hot, Georgia sun.

After one week here, we took off to visit my mother in Maryland--700 miles north. Quite a long trip for a brief visit, but worth it. We spent July 12 at the Delta parade at my brother's house with 78 of his closest friends and a great guitarist and singer, Dennis(?)

Arriving back in Georgia, we decided we should go on to our condo in Punta Gorda, Florida. There we spent a week getting things in order for visitors from France. Pat and Marc Papon of Bodeaux, France, and their sons, will be spending almost a month at our place while we spend a month at theirs in Bordeaux. We're pretty excited about it and thank Intervac.org for providing the basic information that allows people like us to make a match.

We leave for France tomorrow. Our boat will stay here in Brunswick at the Brunswick Landing Marina--safe and sound for the hurricane season. Au revoir.

St. Augustine, Florida--June 18--2?

Got into St. Augustine late afternoon on Thursday, June 18, outrunning a nasty-looking storm west of us. We are hoping to haul the boat on Monday at the only place between here and Brunswick, Georgia, where we'll be for the hurricane season, that can haul our 22-foot-wide boat. Meanwhile we are enjoying St. Augustine.

In the late 1800s, St. Augustine became a vacation spot for the very wealthy. Henry Morrison Flagler set out to develop the east coast of Florida with the goal of exceeding expectations of the wealthiest American tourists. Flagler College now occupies some of the elegant buildings and has undertaken the restoration of them.

St. Augustine is a tourist mecca identifying itself as the oldest city in Florida settled by the Spanish in 1565.

The pirate ship below gives daily tours around the harbor entertaining its guests with lots of pirate drama.

Another attraction is the sailing ship, Freedom, which caters to the tourist crowd looking for a sailing experience.

We lucked out on our way there when Mike caught a King Mackerel which we later had in the form of ceviche as well as grilled for dinner.

New Smyrna Beach, Florida -- June 17, 2009

Just a brief update--we are moving up the coast of Florida. Spent several days in Fort Lauderdale, then a week in Lake Worth; then on to Stuart. Yesterday we left Stuart, sailing overnight to New Smyrna Beach, just south of Daytona Beach. We were poised for a possible shuttle launch as we passed Cape Canaveral. However, at 3:30 a.m., the Coast Guard announced that the shuttle launching had been scrubbed. We were so disappointed as we had an excellent vantage point in the Atlantic Ocean just east of the Space Center.

Tomorrow morning we leave for St. Augustine.

USA

Well, we made landfall--USA--on Thursday, June 4, at about 4 p.m. Lake Sylvia, Fort Lauderdale, was the locale. Thrilled to have decided to keep on going once we reached Gun Cay in the Bahamas. We had sailed all night from Frazer's Hog Cay in the Berrys--a beautiful night sail. Made the decision around 6 a.m. and went for it. Bad weather was predicted for Friday so we were glad to tuck in on Thursday afternoon. And in fact there were some bad thunderstorms on Friday that we were glad to have missed. The only bad thing was that we had to motorsail the entire way. Made good time, but we hate to miss a sailing opportunity. Saw several freighters like this as we made our crossing.

Left this morning for Lake Worth. Anchored here about an hour ago. Having lots of trouble with power so we're all set to take our Xantrex in to the dealer tomorrow. OH, well, ....Could have happened in the Bahamas or elsewhere. At least, we're in the vicinity of a dealer.

The palm trees surrounding the homes in Lake Worth were beautiful.

Turks & Caicos, May 13-19, 2009

Having recovered from a touch of the crud in Luperon, by Tuesday Mike was ready to go as the weather window was slim to move on. The winds were a bit more than we expected, 20 to 25 knots, and the seas as well--6-8 feet with a 6 second interval. Very lumpy and right on the beam, which made for a very rolly passage! Got into Provo, Turks and Caicos, at noon on May 13, about 24 hours after leaving Luperon.

Traveling across the Caicos banks, an approximate 10-mile stretch, proved a little hairy as we were hoping for good light to watch for the occasional coral heads in the very shallow water. However, it was a partly sunny day with fast moving clouds which caused us to work very hard in searching our way.

We were very happy to reach Sapodilla Bay where there were about 8 other boats, all of which had sailed from the Bahamas together. They were a very friendly bunch with whom we joined at one of the upscale bars Wednesday afternoon after clearing in with the friendly Provo officials.

Thursday evening, the marina manager and owner from a nearby marina, South Side, held a barbecue for the cruisers in the marina as well as those of us in Sapodilla Bay. They came for us and brought us back as well. While there, we met some several cruisers from the Colorado area: Mark & Karen from s/v Susurra

had lived on Lafayette Street in Washington Park;

Jack & Marianne (a former finance professor at UCD) were from Evergreen; and Casey & Luralea were from Ouray. Small world.

Then Friday we joined ten other boaters in Sapodilla Bay renting a van to run errands, tour the island and eat lunch. It was a very fun day ending with a happy hour at a Turtle Cove bar and live music.

Another first while there was a "girls' day out." With the weather threatening storms and high winds, all of us stayed at anchor much longer then anticipated, so we decided to go to the pool at Neptunes, the only nearby, but very nice, restaurant. It has a lovely pool area and they welcomed us with open arms. It was a fun and different day.

When we returned, the guys had gotten together on s/v Lala to help Henryk cook then eat his famous latkes--which of course the girls enjoyed as well when we returned. Henryk and Mariola along with their two children, Rick and Lala, on s/v Lala are from Poland and British Columbia. Lala, age 10, is loving their sailing adventure and gets along famously with all of the adults.

Rick has buddied up with one of the single-handers and since they are traveling as a group some of the time, assists Marc sailing Opal.

The weather, though getting better, is still very windy with higher, confused seas because of a tropical wave. So we continue to wait for some improvement which is due around Tuesday to continue our journey.

Luperon, Dominican Republic, May 4-11, 2009

Arrived in Luperon at 9 a.m. on Monday, May 4, after a two-day and two-night sail from Boqueron, Puerto Rico.  Our new friends, Bruce and Lin, on the sailing catamaran, Alize, stayed in touch with us every hour on the hour during the nights and often during the daytime although we were a few miles apart.  Since the seas were a bit confused and choppy through the dreaded Mona Passage (between Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic), it was good to hear another boat should any problems develop.  Of course, none did.

We were a little unsure of what to expect in Luperon.  We had heard it was a very dirty area where one dare not get in the water.  However, although the water in the anchorage is not especially clean, the town is delightful.  There is a large ex-pat community here.  We meet many people who sailed this far and stayed.  

The town is full of ramshackle homes, chickens, geese and goats running loose and mopeds zipping recklessly with two or three people or boxed wares.  Mike says it reminds him of Saigon.  We have found the people very warm, friendly and helpful.  

Joined with another boat, Bonnie and Jeff on the sailing vessel Quickstep, in a trip to Santiago, the second largest and oldest city on the island.  It was an hour away.  We had a wonderful taxi driver, Julio, who took us to the grocery store--a Walmart-type place, where we were able to get among other things prescription drugs over the counter for not too much.  Julio took us to a very nice cafeteria for lunch and for $3, we had a full meal--roast pork, rice and peas, salad and fruit.  Delicious.  Did some other shopping including filling our propane tank for $2--far less than the $20 it cost in Curacao.  Julio also filled the propane tank that runs his car! 

Meanwhile, we're enjoying the relaxed, friendly ambience here as we wait for weather to go on to the Turks and Caicos.  Looks like we'll leave Tuesday morning.

La Parguera and Boqueron, Puerto Rico, April 26-May 1, 2009

We left Salinas on Monday, April 20 stopping for the evening at Caja de Muertos, a small island about 4 hours west.  The following morning we left for one of the larger cities on the south coast, Ponce.  The anchorage is not great, so we filled up with fuel and water, anchored for the night and left for La Parguera in the morning.  

La Parguera was cute little town with lots of colorfully painted houses dotting the water.  There are several lovely mangrove islands all along the coast.  In fact, it was challenging finding the route in.  We stayed for several days as we could sometimes get the internet from our boat--always a great find.  Saturday night we ventured down to Club Nautico, the yacht club.  While there, we met some local families who come to La Parguera every weekend.  They were having a dinner and included us.  Most of the men there were doctors, dentists or business men.  The women spoke excellent English and were very gracious.  We thoroughly enjoyed our evening.

Monday, April 27, we motorsailed to Boqueron, Puerto Rico-- about 4 hours from La Parguera.  The wind has just not been cooperating for sails without motors!  Boqueron is a seaside resort with a beautiful beach, lots of cute little restaurants and a great cruisers' bar.  

Met a new friend on Attitude, Larry Higgins, who had rented a car and offered to take us shopping in Mayaguez.  We've had a great time with Larry and enjoyed his hospitality.

So, we're off to the Dominican Republic tomorrow, weather permitting.  Have some pictures I'll hope to add to this soon.

Salinas, April 13-21, 2009

Just an update--We are still here in Salinas enjoying the town with its great empanadillos, deep-fried turnovers stuffed with crab, shrimp, lobster or beef. We've had the good fortune to meet several old friends here such as Wandering Albatross, whom we met in Buenos Aires last summer, Slow Mocean whom we met in Charleston in June of 2007 and Tevai whom we knew from the Caribbean last spring. This seems to be a crossroads for those going south and those going north. 

We rented a car and drove to Ponce about 1/2 hour away. We were there 38 years ago and wow, has it changed. The downtown area has spruced up and is very attractive as a tourist site.

We also drove to San Juan in search of--you guessed it--boat parts. The drive across Puerto Rico was lovely. There are some mountains quite green with several large stands of bamboo. We stopped and had roasted pork at an outdoor restaurant. We were intrigued by the propietor's lopping off some meat with a machete and using a paper plate to catch the grease spills. The pork was delicious.

Our mended sail is now back on the mast so tomorrow we hope to move on.

Puerto Rico April 1-12

Once again weather prevented our leaving Los Roques until April 1. Even then it wasn't perfect, but we thought we could go ahead and head for Puerto Rico. Although it was a rough ride to start with compounded by several boat problems, it did calm down considerably as predicted. We managed to keep going after having to take down our battenless mainsail after only six hours of our 72-hour trip. Our starboard engine clogged up; the newer wind generator collapsed in the middle of the first night in rough seas; then the port engine cable broke. Fortunately, Mike was able to repair the starboard engine and rescue the wind generator. However, we had hoped for a more pleasant sail instead of a motorsail.

We are now in Salinas a lovely, laid back little town where we've had the good fortune to meet up with several sailing friends including Wandering Albatross, Tevai, Child's Play and Ti Punch. We've also discovered carne empanadillas—spicey beef turnovers-at La Barkita, a tiny outdoor cafe near the anchorage.

We also found a wonderful sailmaker who is mending our sails. Hopefully, we will be ready to move on towards the end of next week.

Back to the East, March 16-31

Before leaving Spanish Waters in Curacao, we often saw sights like this—sailing schools for anyone.

The beach bars nearby, though not cheap, had excellent local food like fried mero—grouper, one of our favorites, with morro—beans and rice.

On March 3, we managed to successfully travel to Bonaire where we spent a few days waiting for weather. The trip was not a pleasant one as the seas were lumpy and the wind out of the east made it unsailable.

On March 16, we successfully left Bonair. Arriving in Sotavento, we were thrilled to find beauty and solitude except for the nearby fishermen. They came over at our call and traded a wonderful lobster for a small bottle of rum

and a pack of cigarettes. Such a deal!

Onto Barlovento, the next island in the Aves...The water was beautiful with tall scraggly mangroves harboring lots and lots of birds.

Red-footed boobies, frigates and pelicans swarmed amongst the trees, daring us to get any closer to their sanctuary. They squawked loudly as we snorkeled in to check out the reef close by, and we got the message!

A couple of other boats came in the following day, but still it was a very quiet anchorage. By Saturday the weather seemed reasonably accommodating for our 35 mile push onward to Los Roques. Of course, it turned out to be another lumpy, bumpy motorsail, but we were anxious to move on. Our first night in Elbert Cay was miserable with opposing wave actions rocking the boat every whichway unmercifully. The next day we moved onto Carenero, a lovely spot where we again had the good fortune to find the local lobsterman. He traded us a loster for coffee

which we took back the following day to his wife and daughter.

On to Francisqui , another island in the Roques, to wait for weather and get protection from the 13' swell due over the weekend.

On the Move, March 3-13

Finally, a weather window....and off we go to Bonaire.  It was a rough trip, though, with the wind right on our nose, as they say.  We rocked back and forth for about 8 hours, 5-7 foot waves crashing over the bough pretty regularly.  However, we were glad to finally get out of Spanish Waters, Curacao--not that we didn't like it, we'd just been there much longer than anticipated.

We've enjoyed our week and a half here, reconnecting with friends and enjoying our favorite barbeque at Bobbejan's, the aroma from which wafts across the water to our boat every Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Hopefully tomorrow we'll leave for Las Aves; then Los Roques and on to Puerto Rico.  However, it all depends on the weather.  

We're happy to have one more chance to savor the barbequed ribs at Bobbejan's tonight.

A note to our blog followers

Finally, we have added more pictures to our Buenos Aires posts.  Check them out.

Spanish Waters, Curacao, February 2009

         Spanish Waters anchorage

Enjoying sundowners.                                              

                                                                          

      Sunset scene from our "front porch."

Yes, we're still here in Curacao. Who'd a thought???? Why are we still here? Weather and work. Or maybe I should say work and weather. We are having our mainsail and one of our trampolines mended. In addition, Mike has installed one new turbo on our starboard engine and cleaned the other. Major jobs! Many thanks to our recent visitors, the Dariens, for lugging the two turbos from Colorado. We also had our genoa rigged so that it will rollerfurl, which should make a wonderful improvement when sailing in light winds.

And it's Mardi Gras time.

Party boat with rockin' music.

  

           Mardi Gras decorations spring up at the dock.

As time has slipped by, our plans have changed. We had hoped to go west to Cartagena, Colombia, then on to the San Blas Islands. However, there just isn't enough time to enjoy that area and get out of the hurricane zone by July 1, as required by our insurance. Oh, well. Next year!

Meanwhile we are planning to head to Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Of course, depending on the weather, we're not sure if we'll be able to go directly there or have to backtrack a bit then go up the island chain. Time will tell.

In the meantime, we're enjoying the cool weather here in Curacao. Because there is so much available in Curacao, we are taking advantage and frequently ride the bus into town ion search of goods. It is almost always a full day by the time we take our dinghy from the boat to the dinghy dock, wait for the bus—often late, walk many blocks to our destination, then ride the bus back to the bus station to board the bus for home. Of course, we often stop at a favorite local lunch spot called Plasa Bieu. It is a series of restaurants under one roof like the food courts in the U.S. That's where we had some delicious chicken satay, which Mike has been trying to replicate at home. We have also had a roti, a combination lunch of green beans, chicken, stewed meat, plantains, and salad placed on something like a tortilla. We sit at picnic benches covered with checkered vinyl cloths. The food is relatively inexpensive and delicious. Our favorite place in Plasa Bieu is called Gracias de Dios. After lunch we wait for the bus which sometimes comes and sometimes doesn't.--at least on time. The other day, for example, after rushing to get to the bus stop, the bus was over an hour late. Apparently the bus driver had had an accident, but of course, there's no replacement bus. By the time we get back from town, the day is usually over for any worthwhile work on the boat. In the evenings twice a week there's a happy hour at the local sailing club, Asiento. On other nights, we often have happy hour on others' boats or our own. Everyone takes their own drinks and a snack or dish to share. Lots of fun! Plus we make lots of new friends.

Here in Curacao, so many people are from other countries. Most speak English so we get by quite well.

We think a weather window might be coming up by the first of next week, so hopefully we'll be off.

 

Above are Esther, Baby Elmot, and Camille of Dutch S/V Al-Um.   They brought us homemade butterbiscuit, a Dutch shortbread, for  assisting them one night at 2 a.m.  They had come into Spanish Waters anchorage under sail hoping to get to their dock, but their engine would not start and they could not sail in.  They radioed for help realizing that maybe no one would hear their plea.  Fortunately, we did and were able to guide them safely to their slip.  

Wow! Wahoo for sale at fisherman's dock.

Fellow boater takes his dog for a "walk."

Curacao, December 23, 2008- Present

We have been in Curacao, the next island after Bonaire, since just before Christmas. It's another beautiful Dutch island in the West Indies. We anchored in an area called Spaanse Water—Spanish Waters. It's a very international community with many Dutch making this their home. We have met sailors from Germany, Australia, Tasmania, Sweden—the list goes on. One can get most anything here from boat parts to food to other supplies which is one reason it's such a popular place. Also there are competent people who can help diagnose and repair boats, a constant issue for boaters.

We celebrated Christmas and New Years with our good friends Jason and Karen on YOLO. Trying to get started on the boat issues was futile as most people were on holiday. We did, however, have one stroke of luck when we ventured to town riding various busses and walking distances between them—the usual routine--in search of “Carlos” who we learned could test our fuel injectors. Although the business looked closed, a walk to the back of the business turned him up, one of about three people working that day. He not only tested the equipment for us, but did it for free since no one was in the office to tell him the charge. A lucky day!!

On January 9th, our friends the Dariens from Marble, Colorado, arrived. We had rented a car from Imke, a fellow who does many things for yachties, by merely telling him our name and giving him $25. No paperwork. No need to show insurance or driver's license. Just the money and a promise to fill the tank to its present capacity. Oh, well. It worked for us.

This was Larry's and Dana 's third visit on the boat so they knew the drill. When the windy weather settled down, we sailed up the coast to Groot Knip. However, anchoring was not permitted there nor were there any mooring balls. (We had had to make a trip to the harbormaster to outline our travels and get permission to go where we intended. However, the harbormaster did not know about whether there were mooring balls in Groot Knip.) So back down the coast we went until we got to Santa Cruz—a lovely beach. Our YOLO friends joined us later on their way to Aruba. We all snorkeled a bit there and visited another nearby beach with a friendly little beach bar. A few days later we moved down to Santa Marta. Another pretty beach beckoned us, but we would have had to pay to use it. It was part of the resort there. We stayed a few days and were lucky enough to find a fisherman who gave us—yes, gave—us four Wahoo steaks. They were delicious. Despite our efforts to get fish, it has been relatively uncommon to find and be able to buy fresh fish. We learned that there are lots of fish 400-600 feet deep, but of course, we don't fish that deep so we don't catch any.
A return to Spanish Waters on Friday, January 23rd, allowed us to have dinner at the highly touted Equus restaurant. It's only open on Fridays! We all loved it—skewers of melt-in-your-mouth steak or chicken with garlic bread is the entire menu, of course, with wine or some other drink. We now knew why our friends insisted that it's one of the best restaurants in Curacao.
Before the Dariens left, we rented the car again and toured the island. True to the ABC climate,

the island is arid with lots of large cactus covering it. It too is a haven for flamingoes. We decided not to visit the normal tourist places and just enjoyed driving around the island.

The bananaquits are plentiful here and the oriole is the national bird.

The Dutch influence is charming and most prevalent in Willemstad, the capital, where old buildings are being restored and painted bright colors.

The Venezuelan floating market in Punda was a draw for its fresh, delicious vegetables.

Now, we are waiting for sail and engine repairs hoping to move on within the next couple of weeks.