Bahia Huatulco to Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico

The weather conditions for our leg from Bahia Huatulco to Zihuatenejo held true to their seasonal predictions. Leaving Huatulco at 9:00 a.m. on April 20^th we began this passage under light to moderate winds out of the northwest. Much to my disappointment we did not have a moon to illuminate our nights. However, clear skies afforded us enough light from the wonderful star-filled heavens. For this trip we experienced anywhere from a half knot to a two knot head current. We had a combination of light breezes to fifteen knot winds. At times the sea conditions were calm and other times very lumpy and/or choppy. Our motor sailing speeds bounced between three and five knots (4 knots is equal to 5 mph). At one point the wind shifted enough to get us excited about getting some extra pull from our head sail. We unfurled the jib and increased our speed by a half to one knot, but that was short-lived as the winds shifted to our nose within an hour.

We dropped anchor in Bahia Zihuatenejo at 12:45 p.m. on April 23^rd feeling really good about our progress. It was another beautifully warm day with moderate humidity. Anxious to go ashore, the boys got our dinghy in the water and mounted the outboard motor. The plan was to have lunch and then wander around town. The large ocean swells outside the bay translated into big surf on the shore so our beach landing would be more exciting than usual. The key in the case of surf is to monitor it to judge how many waves usually come in a set and at what intervals there are lulls between sets. Barry is really good at judging this and in four years we've never been thrown from our dinghy. We did get swamped by a wave once, but have never gone swimming. We hadn't been anywhere requiring a beach landing since leaving Mexico three and a half years ago. So, we were out of practice. However, we did make one dinghy landing without mishap in Costa Rica with Don. This gave us more confidence, but we also knew this one would require flawless timing because of the size of the surf. Barry never balks at a challenge, so after sitting for a minute outside the surf line watching, he went for it. The object is to ride the top of the last swell in the set, staying behind the curl so it doesn't break on you. This also takes advantage of the lull before the next set which gives you time to jump out of the dinghy in shallow water and haul it out of the surf line. Well, things were going as you would want them to when suddenly, at full throttle, the outboard motor died. Yikes! I quickly saw that the fuel hose had detached from the motor. Barry fumbled to reattach it while screaming at us to paddle. So, Don and I began paddling with all our might to beat the next wave. We'd lost precious time and, before we knew it, the stern of the dinghy lifted and hurdled Don and I into the shallow water. When I popped up wet from head to toe I saw Barry in the center of the dinghy moaning with a horrid look on his face. Don and I quickly scrambled alongside the dinghy and tried unsuccessfully to pull it out of the ebbing and flowing water. It was full of water making it too heavy to maneuver. Within moments other cruisers ashore came to our assistance and started bailing water from the dinghy. I was deeply concerned about Barry as I did not know what happened to him yet. It took a couple of minutes before he was able to drag himself from the dinghy onto a log beyond the surf line. Seeing that the dinghy was being tended to, I rushed to Barry. The first halting words out of his mouth were, "Am I bleeding?" Not knowing what to expect, I walked around the log to inspect his back and saw droplets of blood penetrating his tee shirt. He was in obvious pain so I gingerly lifted his shirt which revealed that a large section of skin to the right of his spine was badly scraped and there was a six inch shallow cut below it. Eventually he was able to explain with breathless words that the outboard motor had slammed him in the back and knocked the wind out of him. Once Barry mustered up the strength to walk we ventured through town looking like an invalid accompanied by two drowned rats; not a pretty sight. We had lunch under a palapa on the beach with several other cruisers, a few being witnesses to our entertaining beach landing. With Barry being in such pain, and Don and I wanting to rinse the saltwater off our bodies, we cut our visit ashore short. Once back on board we decided to leave the next morning for our next planned stop, Barra de Navidad. So, we said our goodbyes to our new cruiser friends in the anchorage and called it an early night.

It took two days and two nights to reach Barra where we were greeted by the famous French baker upon entering the marina. Barry and I became addicted to his almond croissants years ago and had told Don about his delicacies. Unfortunately, he had sold out of our favorite item but that didn't stop us from buying other treats and putting in an order for the following morning. We treated ourselves and spent two nights in the marina of the five-star resort we fondly remembered from our visit years ago. Check out this remarkable resort on www.islanavidad.com After a decadent and restful visit to one of our favorite areas in Mexico we headed for our final destination; Paradise Village Marina in Nuevo Vallarta.

This final leg of our journey from Costa Rica was our shortest, at thirty-six hours, but was by far the worst. We experienced horrible sea conditions for about twelve hours. There was a current coming from one direction, large swells from another direction and wind waves from yet another. Talk about confused seas! Intermittently, we would get two six to eight foot swells real close together. Blew Moons bow would climb and then descend these two swells in quick "roller coaster" type succession crashing into the second swell causing the bell hanging behind the cockpit to ring. At first we would comment, "That was a bell-ringer!" Not much time passed before we began counting the rings for amusement. The next morning when I relieved Don and asked him how many rings we were up to he replied, "I stopped counting after fifty." It was a rough and extremely uncomfortable passage. The toughest part was just trying to keep Blew Moon on course. It was almost impossible to maintain a steady heading; you'd be plowing through the chop and then a swell would mount up almost stopping us and tossing the bow forty-five degrees or more off our intended course. This went on for twelve LONG hours and for five of those it was like being trapped in a swirling vortex of agitated water. Not fun. Fortunately, no one got seasick and Blew Moon held her own against the forces of nature while at times the best we could do was hold on. But, we made it safe and sound. Don was able to fly back to San Diego on April 30^th; right on schedule. By that time, we just wanted to get Blew Moon buttoned up for hurricane season and go home! So, we worked our butts off and accomplished in one week what it usually takes us two weeks to do. On Thursday, May 7^th we landed at LAX; just in time to spend time with both of our moms (and dads) around Mother's Day. What a blessing for us, and them! By the following Monday we were at home in Idyllwild.

What an adventure! We knew it wasn't going to be like other seasons where we meandered from one anchorage or port to another at a leisurely pace. And initially, it was disappointing that the month we intended to use exploring the beautiful Pacific islands off Panamas coast got used up doing boat repairs; but we got over that! Yes, this season ended up being a boat delivery with a few quick stops (some didn't even include going ashore). We had some real character building experiences during our four month/2,200 mile journey while traveling at an average of five miles per hour! We wouldn't change any of it except for the cracked ribs Barry ended up with as a result of our harrowing dinghy landing-poor baby. There's nothing like hardship in life to find out what you're really made of; I think we came through it with flying colors. I only hope that the lessons learned will not soon be forgotten!

With the last of our long-term cruising on Blew Moon behind us we look forward to spending more time with family and friends. Come up and visit us if you have time. Or maybe you'd like to join us on Blew Moon somewhere in Mexico once we return for some tropical refreshment.

My next blog update will contain photo highlights of our travels the were not previously posted. I feel bad that I have not posted photos in a long while so I will be working on that. Give me some time, though, because it will be a long process to review our photos and select a worthy sampling.

So, again, until next time . . .

Costa Rica to Mexico

I’m happy to report that we’ve had good fortune so far since leaving Gulfito in southern Costa Rica. We were looking forward to having Don share this 1,600 mile passage with us, but were uncertain as to how well we would adjust to having another person living with us in such close quarters. Well, it has been great! Having lived aboard sailboats in the past and having helped deliver boats previously, he fit in almost seamlessly. The companionship he has provided to us has made this trip more enjoyable than most plus sharing the night watches allows everyone to get adequate sleep. His easy going demeanor and positive attitude has really given us a lift! Not only that but he has helped in so many practical ways. There is a noticeable improvement in Barry’s anxiety level. He did admit that having Don on board has made him feel a huge sense of relief after all of our recent trials and travails. I couldn’t agree more and I know it’s especially a relief to Barry because now if something goes wrong he doesn’t have to shoulder the burden himself.

After enjoying about five days visiting a couple of anchorages in Costa Rica we embarked on the first leg of our 1,600 mile journey toward Puerta Vallarta, Mexico. We made excellent time covering these 1,000 miles along the coast of Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Guatamala. We had to travel through not one, but two, sections of coastline that have fierce seasonal winds that blow periodically. The first area is from a point in northern Costa Rica to another point about one-hundred miles along the Nicaraguan coast. We left Costa Rica after getting a favorable weather forecast for this region called the Papagayo. It was to be only a brief window before the winds picked up to twenty-five knots or more. We were able to get through the Papagayo region in mostly calm seas with little wind; with the exception of about two hours of twenty knot winds and choppy seas. Not bad at all! From midway along the coast of Nicaragua and the entire coasts of Elsalvador & Guatamala if we had any wind it was either too light to sail or on our nose. Barry calls this the Blew Moon phenomenon; the direction of the wind is the equivalent to the direction we are traveling! So, as usual, we motor-sailed our way along with generally calm conditions with light wind that came and went. We saw lots of dolphins, sea turtles and the occasional sailfish breaking through the surface of the water as it leapt into the air. Don bought a new camera and has been our official photo journalist. As we got closer to the next treacherous area we got daily weather forecasts and hoped that we would not have to tuck in somewhere to wait out bad weather. This area, called the Tuantepec, is a stretch of coastline about two-hundred miles long in southern Mexico. We both prayed that we would be able to continue non-stop all the way to our first port in southern Mexico which lies just beyond the Tuantepec region. Well, God answered that prayer and we got to keep plowing ahead and made it all the way without mishap. This is no small deal, because it takes two days to cover this two-hundred mile stretch of ocean. Talk about a major blessing! We made it from southern Costa Rica to southern Mexico in 7 ½ days without needing to stop for fuel or bad weather! We are psyched! Granted, we didn’t sail one iota, but we are so glad to be in Mexico in such short time that we don’t care. It’s now April 19th and we are currently in Marina Chahue in Bahia Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico!

About the only adverse occurrence on our trip so far was the malfunction of the plumbing in the head. Before ever leaving Costa Rica we noticed that the toilet kept filling up with water. Barry quickly determined that the through hull that empties the toilet failed. We couldn’t get the necessary parts to repair it before leaving because all the shops were closed for holy week. So, Barry had no choice but to plug the through hull to prevent water from continuously streaming back into the toilet. This put the toilet out of commission and led to the introduction of the red bucket. Yes, for a little over one week we have been relieving ourselves in a bucket! This is additional evidence that the cruising life is far from glamorous. The good news is that yesterday the boys were successful in obtaining the parts to repair the head and also got the repair accomplished. So, much to our delight, the red bucket was retired and returned to it’s intended function. Since arriving, Blew Moon has had a bath, her water and fuel tanks topped off and her head repaired. Tomorrow morning we embark for Zihuatenejo which will be a three night passage. Then, it will be a two-night passage to Barra de Navidad and then one last overnight trip to Puerto Vallarta. We’ll spend a day or two in the next two stops which should still get us to Paradise Village Marina in Nuevo Vallarta by May 1st. As of today, we are on schedule and hope to fly home the second week in May.

Well, since January we have traveled through the Pacific waters of eight, yes eight, countries; Ecuador, Columbia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatamala and Mexico. Once we reach Puerto Vallarta we will have traveled a little over 2,000 miles in four months. We’ve had our share of problems but we have agreed that God used our adverse circumstances to bring about positive change in both of us. You could say that it’s been an intensive marriage encounter which resulted in some rather profound growth in both of us. In this instance, our little cloud definitely had a silver lining. I cannot say it enough; God cares and He is good!
Till next time . . .

Post Repairs Plans

Well, the rough start to this cruising season continued in the same vane it began. The theme this year seems to be stress, frustration and uncertainty. We’ve done enough moaning and complaining to disgust even ourselves. Often, we find ourselves saying, “We just can’t get a break!”. Now, I must apologize up-front to those of you who have real problems and stress in your lives because, ours is kind of self-inflicted; afterall, we did choose to sail a 14-year old, 35-foot sailboat several thousand miles from home. The fact that things break, wear out and need maintenance is certainly no surprise. What strikes us about this season is that SO MANY things have gone wrong. To say that our passage from Ecuador to Panama has us a bit punchy would be a gross understatement. Our time in Panama City was spent dealing with all known problems with Blew Moon. Barry had the fuel system cleaned and rebuilt within the first couple of weeks, and completed several other smaller projects, as well. At that juncture it seemed like we might actually be able to return to the Perlas Islands for some R & R. Unfortunately, time dragged on as we worked daily and waited for the arrival of the crucial radiator hose that was on order. We couldn’t leave with the jury-rigged hose that got us from Isla Contadora to Panama City. Each time we called the store to inquire about the status we got a different story from a different person. This became a source of great aggravation to us. As we clicked items off our “to do” list we felt a mounting anxiety that this silly hose would hold us hostage in Panama City. As it turned out, a whole 31 aggravating days were spent getting what needed to be done accomplished before we were able to head for the Perlas.

Before departing we did actually take two days for some fun. Our first little respite was an afternoon spent at the Mira Flores Locks at the Pacific Ocean entrance to the Panama Canal. I must say, I was extremely impressed with what I saw and what I learned about the construction of this amazing engineering feat. There are two viewing areas from a building next to the chambers that boats enter for their transit. You can view ships going through the locks from the rooftop and from another ground-level area with stadium-style seating. We had hoped to watch our friends on Cat N About going through, but missed them by a couple hours. However, we did see several enormous container ships, the largest cruise ship I’ve ever seen, some medium sized vessels and four sail boats going through in both directions. The cost of transiting the canal for an average container ship or other large vessel is over three-hundred thousand dollars! And, the locks are open 24-hours and there are ships continuously lined up to transit. We could see all the waiting ships and those coming and going through the canal just outside of the anchorage where we had Blew Moon. At night, the Bay of Panama looked like a floating city all lit up.
A visit to the locks allows you to watch the action while listening to live narration in both Spanish and English. They announce each vessel as it enters the locks and tell you what country it originates from and other interesting information. Throughout each vessels transit they are describing the action. It was fascinating to hear some of the details such as the monstrous volume of water being piped into and out of the chambers. There is an impressive museum that documents the history of the building of the canal up to the present day’s work in progress of constructing another wider and deeper canal parallel to the existing one. You can actually watch vessels go through the canal via live webcam on their website (www.panamacanal.com). I now understand why cruises going through the canal are so popular.

Another real very enjoyable day was spent visiting an Embera village located on the Chagres River which feeds the Panama Canal. This village is one of three on the river and is the furthest into the jungle. The Embera people are one of seven remaining native tribes in Panama. Originally, they lived completely off of the land but then the government declared the area protected land and they were forbidden to grow any of their own food because that disturbed the natural state of the jungle. At that point they needed to make weekly trips to the nearest town to purchase produce. This requires boating down river quite a ways and then driving for about two hours. They still hunt for fish with spears, and live off of the fruits and vegetables that grow wild. They look down on other native people who have established settlements along the river because they fish using nets; of course, this means fewer fish for them to hunt. Tourists visiting their villages are their only source of income which they now need in order to buy food. Like most native tribes they are all craftsmen. You can buy wood carvings, woven baskets, jewelry and such. The Embera are known for their intricately woven baskets made from natural fibers from the jungle that are also dyed naturally. We were given a demonstration of this process along with an explanation of what plants were used for each color. It was very interesting. They maintain their original way of life as best they can and offer visitors a glimpse of their culture and everyday life. Before tourism, the females were bare-breasted; now they wear halter-type tops made of shells and coins above a brightly colored skirt. The males wear very short beaded skirts that tie around the waist. I never thought a man could look so good in a skirt! We saw the women perform traditional dances to the accompaniment of the men’s percussion and wind instruments. Each of their three villages on the river consist of about ten families. They build bamboo homes on stilts because during the wet season from June through November the area gets over 300 inches of rain! I cannot fathom what the river looks like that time of year. We visited during the middle of dry season, so there were areas of the river that our canoe had to be “poled” through. We traveled upriver by canoe for about an hour to get to the village. On the way we stopped for a short hike to a gorgeous swimming hole with a waterfall. Four of the five of us, plus our guide, took a refreshing dip.

The canoe ride was wonderful and the two Embara men who guided us obviously know that river like the palm of their hand. All of us were extremely impressed with the deftness with which our driver safely maneuvered avoiding rocks the whole way. We’re told they do it at night as well! Before the dawn of tourism these long hollowed out log boats were simply paddled. Now, they each don an unsightly outboard motor. The absence of the motor would definitely have made the trip more peaceful and serene, but I understand their desire to get people to the village quicker.

The canal and Embara village visits were definitely the highlights of our time in Panama City.
Once we left Panama City we only had about two weeks to travel through the numerous islands of Panama’s Pacific waters. Sadly, the month we were in the city doing repairs ate into the time we intended to spend exploring the islands of Panama. We did travel from island to island, but only got off the boat twice in two weeks. Barry spent two days in the water cleaning the bottom. We would sit in a lovely anchorage and admire our surroundings and then weigh anchor the next morning. I guess you could say that we just passed through. The scenery was gorgeous, but it wasn’t the kind of visit we had envisioned. We resigned ourselves to the fact that this season has essential turned into a boat delivery. But, God is good and He obviously had other plans for us. Sharing this adversity with Barry has stimulated a lot of personal growth for me. I’d definitely say that it was all worth it!

As of this writing we are in Gulfito, Costa Rica where we picked up our dear friend, Don Johnson (no, not the actor!) who is going to help us get Blew Moon to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Our aim is to arrive by the first of May. This allows us a week or so to get the boat closed up before we need to be home by mid-May. Don just retired from his job with the city of Chula Vista and we asked him to fly to Costa Rica and help us get to Mexico. Fortunately for us, he jumped at the opportunity. Don and his wife, Sue, are great friends and are also the ones who taught all the Coast Guard Auxiliary boating classes we took before leaving San Diego. So, we’ve got the best crew anyone could possibly hope for! We are excited to have him share this 1,600 mile journey with us and are so grateful that the timing was so perfect. His presence has definitely lifted our spirits. We are set to begin traveling up the coast of Costa Rica tomorrow and are praying for good weather. This is the first time we’ve had a schedule to keep and it is a bit unnerving at times. But, God has kept us safe this far and we are trusting in His continued protection.
I’m not sure when or where we’ll be able to post an update between now and our arrival in Mexico. But, as always, stay tuned . . .

Ecuador to Panama-Chapter 2

Day seven of our voyage brings additional challenges. At about 1:00 a.m. the seas are now large with lots of chop and we’ve got 20 knot winds on our starboard beam (right side midship) with gusts in excess of that. Conditions are too rough for our autopilot to handle so we take turns hand steering. We both stay in the cockpit to make sure whoever is at the helm doesn’t fall asleep. It takes some strength and stamina to keep a boat on course, and handling safely, in strong winds and rough seas. There have been many hours of hand steering in the passed several days and we both have aching necks, arms, shoulders and backs. We’re bruised and battered from being tossed about at different points during our journey so far. By then, I was fighting to stay awake and man the helm for more than 30 to 60 minutes at a time. I’m beyond exhaustion and so is Barry. We both felt like we were being pushed to our limit. We were relying heavily on each other and God. Many prayers were being lifted up for practical help, as well as for our protection. When one of us was at the helm, the other was close by trying to rest while keeping an eye on the other. Rest requires relaxation and one isn’t able to relax on a boat that is being tossed and rocked about. We went back and forth like this for about five or six hours. Then mercifully the wind and seas settled down considerably making our ride tolerable. By evening of day seven we had calm seas and a gentle breeze out of the north. We thanked God for all the little breaks we got. Just when it seemed like we couldn’t tolerate any more adversity, God came through as He always does. During this respite I was able to get three hours of sleep and then Barry got his turn. At about 10:00 p.m. I’m about to go below and rouse Barry from his four-hour rest. Before I make it out of the cockpit, the engine dies. It only takes me a moment to realize that I had been so focused on letting Barry rest for as long as possible that I never checked the fuel level in the jug. I had let the fuel in the jug we were running the engine with run out of fuel, thus loosing the suction in the hose. The sound of the engine dying woke Barry immediately (Yes, he actually slept for about two hours!) I was mortified by my neglect and felt like I had just kicked my best friend while he was already down. I don’t know how else to describe how remorseful I was. My mistake gave Barry yet another problem to resolve. To his credit, he handled it extremely well; probably because he didn’t have the energy to muster up any fury. When you are numb, pain doesn’t register as it normally does. After pondering the easiest solution he came up with one and had us motoring again within an hour.

By 9:30 a.m. of day eight we are safely anchored in Bahia Pinas. It’s a fairly large beautiful bay surrounded by jungle. We radio the Tropic Star Lodge and ask for permission to anchor near their twenty or so fishing boats. They say that they were expecting us and told us where to go to check in and arrange for fuel. Before going ashore we take our dingy over to Cat N About who pulls in shortly after us. We exchange war stories about our passage and get more jerry jugs from them to fill with fuel. Part of our conversation is about discovering new leaks in our boats (I guess you could say that this is one benefit of rough seas and rain; it allows you to identify areas in need of repair). They had a couple of lockers filled with clothing that were saturated with water and were now hanging out to dry. In addition to leaks we had the added condition of salt water throughout the boat. In our delirium, we did not realize that our port holes and hatches were open during that last episode of boisterous sea conditions. That generated another clean up job for me after I deal with the diesel spills down below as well.

Once at the dock of the lodge we are directed to the office. The owner and staff are very gracious to us. We get our fuel and tell them we’ll be heading out tomorrow morning. The only other thing in the entire bay is a small village where most of the men are employed by the lodge. The area is so remote that the lodge uses huge generators to provide power. There is a small air strip that is used only for delivering guests to and from the lodge. They told us that they have set numerous world records for marlin and other large game fish; often breaking their own records.

It was a huge relief to be able to spend most of the day relaxing and decompressing. The next morning both boats headed out about 6:30 a.m. to make the fifty-five mile crossing from the mainland to Isla Del Rey in the southern part of the Perlas Islands. Rather than going directly to Panama City in the Bay of Panama (north of the Perlas Islands by about forty miles) we planned to take short day hops. This allows us to avoid another overnight passage (we’re extremely gun shy at this point) and offers us a small respite from the grueling demands of the last eight days. The Perlas Islands provide gorgeous cruising grounds and only a couple of them are inhabited; mostly with small villages. We are anxious to get there even though we would merely be passing through on our way to Panama City for boat repairs. After Blew Moon is completely sea worthy again we would return to the Perlas Islands for an extended visit. If you are familiar with the reality T.V. series called Survivor, about three years ago they filmed a series on one of the islands.

We had been motoring as we left Bahia Pinas and after being out for about three hours we got enough wind to sail. Barry went forward to raise our mainsail and a gust of wind ripped the halyard (the rope used to raise and lower the sail) out of his hand and it got wrapped a couple of times around our backstay (wire cable that supports the mast). All kinds of expletives were flying from his lips. I was at the helm and my vision above was obstructed by our dodger so I couldn’t see what happened. Sheepishly, I make a dreaded inquiry. He’s fuming with anger as he tells me what happened. He confessed most of his anger was at himself because of his bone-head maneuver. Apparently, while at anchor he unclipped the halyard from the top of the sail and clipped it to our side stay because the wind was making it clang loudly against our aluminum mast. He forgot to secure it to the sail before we headed out. When he unclipped it from the side stay to attach it to the sail a strong gust of wind ripped it from his hands which were extremely weak from all the repair work he’d been doing. At that point, we had no way to raise our main and were concerned that the halyard would get so wrapped up in the rigging that it would be a nightmare to untangle. We make the decision to turn around and return to Bahia Pinas to rectify the problem in the calm waters of the bay. One hour later, the engine dies. What could possibly happen next? Quickly, Barry determines that the end of the hose going from the fuel jug to the engine had looped upward and sucked air as the fuel level dropped below it. Barry’s getting more experience each time we have an “incident” and this time retifies the problem within fifteen minutes. We limp back to Bahia Pinas feeling like we’ve been kicked while trying to get up.

We end up spending two more nights in that lovely isolated bay fixing the problem, getting additional rest and going over the boat more closely to make sure everything was in order before we attempted our second departure. One more night in the bay was the actual plan, but we ended up there two nights waiting for the best weather window.
On our second attempt to get to Isla Del Rey we were successful! We met up with Cat N About in a tiny bay lined with palm trees and a white beach. A small river spilled into the little bay which was navigable by dinghy. The late afternoon sun was warm, the skies were clear and there was a gentle breeze. We had made it to the islands and it was a feast for our eyes and a huge relief for our stressed minds and bodies. We spent only one night in this little bay and headed to another island further north where we also spent one night. Then it was on to Isla Contadora, one of the few inhabited islands. We anchored off of a pretty stretch of beach with nice houses and a hotel/restaurant lining the cliff above. Our first day there was spent searching for spare fan belts. The center of town (I use this term loosely) consisted of three small tiendas (mini markets), a small block (another loose term) of tourist shops and offices, some large expensive-looking homes and not much more. Most residents maneuvered the island by golf cart or other similar vehicles. Several streets meandered throughout the island passed small, humble homes where locals and a few ex-pats lived. We successfully located the one mechanic on the island. According to our cruisers guide, he’s the only source for parts and repairs of any type. He happened to have two used fan belts suitable for our use for $10. We gladly paid (we would have given him whatever his price was) and felt a bit more comfortable about our next hop which would take us to Panama City where new belts could be purchased.

We were anxious to get to Panama City so that we could fix our fuel system and buy parts. Most things are available there and what isn’t can easily be ordered and shipped from the states. It’s a good place to do repairs. Lately, I think often about the very apprapo description of the cruising life; doing boat maintenance in exotic places. Our stay on Isla Contadora extends to five days because of 25-30 knot winds blowing out of the Bay of Panama. Of course, that’s the direction we need to travel! We are learning to be patient and make the most of our time on the island. One of the days is so windy that we never leave Blew Moon for fear of dragging anchor. A second day is almost as bad, but we feel confident to leave the boat to go ashore for a few hours. Barry slept for those two nights in the cockpit on anchor watch (more stress). The highlight of our time on Isla Contadora was meeting a couple from Canada who were vacationing in Panama. We enjoyed some time with them on the beach and also shared one meal. The snorkeling on the beach was pretty good because of three small rocky reefs that attract a variety fish. I snorkeled one day and saw a dozen types of brightly-colored tropical fish and one enormous sting ray resting on the sand bottom. That was another highlight for me; Barry chose to stay on the beach.

On the morning of day fifteen since leaving Ecuador, while Barry is doing his pre-departure engine check he discovered the small radiator for the engine is low on water. He starts to fill it and hears water dripping into the bilge. We quickly determined that our radiator hose was leaking like a sieve and we had no spare! (Get out the violins!) Another attempt to reach our illusive final destination is thwarted. At this point, we are almost numb to adversity. Of course this is a specialized hose for our Yanmar 30-horsepower engine. Admittedly, we should have had at least one spare on board. We accept responsibility for our part in some of the misfortune which has come upon us like an avalanche. However, there is no time for pity or self-flagellation; neither is productive. We forge ahead and begin another search for the island’s mechanic (there is no shop to locate him at) and we put out an “all points bulletin” to the boats within radio range in hopes of finding a radiator hose. Tom, our hero in Panama City, gets to work on ordering two for us. That way, once they arrive the parts can either be delivered by another cruiser heading for the Perlas or put on the ferry that runs between the mainland and Isla Contadora. Meanwhile, we obtained a used section of radiator hose from the mechanic but it turns out to be of questionable integrity; so the search continues. In enters our next hero, Stan on the sailing vessel Homer’s Odyssey. He and his wife pull into the anchorage at Isla Contadora along with our buddies on Cat N About the next day. Stan successfully locates a section of hose in the stores located in his bilge and drops it off at Blew Moon. It has a slightly larger inside diameter than the one we need but Barry makes it work! Thanks to Stan’s assistance and Barry’s ingenuity, the engine is operational once again (or at least until the next surprise!).

We leave Isla Contadora on day six of our imprisonment, I mean visit, and arrive eight hours later in the La Playita anchorage near the entrance to the Panama Canal. Eighteen long and horrendous days after leaving Ecuador we are finally safe and sound in Panama City. We thank God for our safe arrival and hope that things start improving for us. This cruising season definitely got off to a rough start!