Offshore warmup
The Las Perlas islands, where we’ve been cruising the past week, may be known for many things but Wi-Fi availability is not one of them. We actually just made it to, what appears to be, the only island in the chain with internet that we can use, Contadora. That’s OK though, we weren’t expecting anything more than that, and to tell the truth, it’s been kind of nice to be off the grid for a few days. It’s also a great warmup for the passage to the Galapogos when we definitely won’t be able to post, save for the Twitter feed that you see to your right. In spite of that, I decided to keep a bit of a running journal of our travels, and below you can see what we’ve been up to since leaving mainland Panama.
- February 6, 2016
Since the time that Rebecca and I first arrived in Panama City, after transiting the canal, we have been all mixed up when it comes to our directions. While most people assume that the Panama Canal runs east to west, for the most part, it actually runs north to south. Add to that the fact that the place we anchored was very squirrelly, with tidal currents and winds that had the boats facing different directions every few hours, we found ourselves seeing the sun rise where we thought that it should set, and vice versa. Yesterday, as we set sail at daybreak to make our way to the Las Perlas islands, things didn’t get much better in that respect. Most people would again assume that after leaving Panama we’d be traveling west but in fact, our course was south east! Oh well, we’ll be going west at some point, I’m pretty sure of that.
Our trip yesterday couldn’t have been much better. Shortly after departing the shelter of the anchorage, the wind filled in and we were able to kill the engines and sail. We also got a fair amount of practice with sail changes as the wind built from less than 10 to a consistent 25, with gusts a bit higher. With full main and screecher, a large headsail designed for lighter winds, we were at times making 9 knots on a broad reach towards our destination. We eventually doused the screecher in lieu of the stronger genoa, and ultimately ended up sailing wing on wing to our chosen anchor spot on Isla Bayoneta.
After losing one lure to an especially hungry fish, we were able to land a small tuna (Bonita) that fed us all for dinner. Thanks to Rebecca for the great fish filleting job, and to Gail for the tasty meal. If we could do that every day, life would be grand!
The anchorage Jason had chosen was indicative of most that we will find here: scenic, quiet and deserted. There were no tourists buzzing by on jet skis, no beach bars on shore blasting loud music, and no WiFi. Our intention is to spend the day here to relax and explore before continuing on. While many of the boats in the World ARC fleet will be heading straight to the rendezvous spot on Contadora Island, our plan is to instead spend a week circumnavigating the island chain, anchoring in several different spots, before meeting up with the others. There is much to see!
- February 7, 2016
One of our favorite things to do after anchoring in front of an island is to explore its coastline. Today’s adventure involved walking completely around our deserted island, although, in spite of its relatively small size, it was not a super easy task.
Not bothering to lower the dinghy into the water, Jason and Gail paddled to shore on the one inflatable paddle board that they carry on board Two Fish. When they returned and told us how much fun they had had on their island circumnavigation, Rebecca and I decided to follow their lead. What would make our job difficult is something that we haven’t had to contend with in some time: the tide.
Probably more by luck than design, our friends found themselves on the island with a falling tide. By the time we got there, the tide was rising, and that made life more than a bit difficult. While Jason and Gail were barely required to get their feet wet during their walk along the coast, Rebecca and I found ourselves, at times, wading in chest deep water, moving forward against a strong tidal current!
Were we in any danger? No, of course not. When I find myself in situations like this though, it always brings back memories of a TV show I watched in my youth, The BeachCombers. Filmed in British Columbia, Canada, an area known for its large tidal swing, there were numerous episodes that focused on some unfortunate character getting his foot trapped under a log, in danger of drowning with the rising water. Fortunately, that never actually happened in the show (to my best recollection), or to us. It did, however, make the walk a bit more challenging than we had initially anticipated.
- February 8, 2016
There’s not too many things on a sailboat that can trump a fast sail downwind, in calm seas, with the sun rising off your beam. I’m happy to say that that is exactly what we began the day with today. Raising anchor at 6:15 AM, Jason followed his track out of the anchorage’s entrance channel before directing us to raise sail. Even though we had the main sail ready to go, it was decided to set the the screecher alone for the downwind leg. The Antares cat performed beautifully and we were at times making 8.5 knots SOG (speed over ground) with about 25 knots of true wind. Sadly, conditions like that don’t last forever, and after a couple of hours, we had to turn around the island to head up wind.
Our initial destination was the site of a sunken submarine, something that Jason had been looking forward to exploring. Unfortunately, as we arrived there, the strong wind and current caused us to make the prudent decision to give the site a pass. With that not on our slate, we continued on up the coast of Isla Del Ray until we reached what was reported to be the calmest anchorage in the Las Perlas. While we obviously haven’t spent time in many places yet, the little cove by Isla Cañas was a pretty nice spot to stop. The mega yacht anchored there, our neighbor for the evening, obviously felt that way too.
- February 9, 2016
In a few days time we’ll be setting sail from the Las Perlas islands towards the Galapagos, a destination that is approximately 900 nm away. One thing that we’ve come to learn about the Galapagos is that they are extremely protective of their islands, both land and water. Among other considerations, all boats upon arriving in the islands are inspected to ensure that they are not inadvertently transporting any non-local species into their waters. We have read of boats being turned away from the Galapagos for having just a few barnacles on their hulls, sent off into deep water, 50 miles offshore, where they were required to wait until official divers came to clean their hull and grant them access. We definitely do not want to have that happen so to prevent it, Jason spent several hours in the water yesterday wearing SCUBA gear, working to clean every barnacle that he could locate from the bottom of Two Fish. He had three major obstacles that made his job difficult: the visibility in the water was extremely poor, the anchorage we were located in was less than calm, and there was a ripping current, at times approaching 3 knots. While the rest of us were working to make the above-the-water sections of Two Fish sparkle, I’m pretty sure that Jason had a much more tiring day than the rest of us did.
- February 10, 2016
Whether you cruise on an older boat like Frost, or a brand new one straight from the factory, fixing things that break is a part of the lifestyle. Because of this, having the ability to trouble shoot things that cease to function, and sometimes being able to improvise, are necessary skills when traveling off the beaten path where repair men and spare parts are not easily accessible.
Today, for the second time since we’ve been on board, Two Fish stopped receiving depth data (and speed and temperature) on its display units. Gail spent some time checking the gauge’s documentation, and together with Jason, they tracked down what we now think was the culprit, a loose connection. While they could likely do without the speed and temperature data, which all comes from the same sender, losing the ability to accurately check depth would be a serious PITA. Fortunately for them, Two Fish had a backup sender already installed, but it’s still great that they were able to get the main unit back on board before we set sail to the Galapagos.
