Dec. 30 2011

Greetings,

Well, we’re back in the boat yard again. We’ve pulled Second Star out of the water to put the new bulbous bow on and, as usual, it’s going to take a little longer than we’d hoped (hope springs eternal). We pulled her Tues morning and were hoping to be going back in the water this evening but, while progress is going very well, it won’t be done by 1700hrs which means we won’t be able to go back in the water until Mon. So we will be bringing in the New Year with a splash (LOL. I crack myself up). The good news is, the new bulbous bow looks great. I think it will do the job even better than the first one.

Happy New Year! Continue to live your dreams…

Susie aeon

Christmas tree aboard Second Star

Dec. 22 2011

Season’s Greetings,

There’s not much to report about what has been happening lately. Things in Isla Mujeres have been pretty routine. We’re getting ready to make a trip to Cuba after the first of the year. We’ll be going in tandem with another boat the owner of which is married to a Cubana and has spent lots of time there. It will be good to have someone who knows the system to help guide us. We’re really looking forward to the fishing and diving in the unspoiled areas over there.

In the meantime, Capt. Johne is still picking up lots of little jobs around the marina and we’re both getting though project aboard Second Star.

I’ve started taking a yoga class a couple of times a week. It’s good to have the organization of a class to remind me to stretch, focus and breath. The social aspect is nice as well.

We had our winter solstice party last night. It was a fun dock party with lots of interesting people from all over the place. The rain broke things up a little early but a good time was had by all.

I hope all our friends and family are having a wonderful holiday season and that the coming year will bring lots of love and laughter, peace and harmony, and lots of s’s to us all.

Susie aeon

Nov. 21 2011
Greetings,
First, I wanted to let you know I’m changing my approach for the updates. This will be the last one you’ll get in your email. From now on, I’m going to be posting them on;
secondstaradventures.blogspot.com
I will send out an email announcement when I post a new update but it will be up to you if you want to go check it out.
We’ve also added a share page for our SPOT tracking;
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0iqrJYngZjSFpgCsLim3MlgpIQIYeVGXP
So you’ll be able to follow our progress when we are underway if you’d like.
Now for the update; we finally made it back to Isla Mujeres Mexico. The weather in the gulf held us in FL much longer than we had planned, but eventually we found a window that we could slip down to Key West and, from there, get in between the fronts to cut across the gulf and Yucatan channel. The crossing went well. Our friend Daryl made the trip with us so we had a 2-hours-on-4-hours-off watch schedule which makes it a lot easier. It felt good to get “home” although we’re thinking we’re getting too comfortable in Isla and should move on before we get “stuck” here.
My mother came down to visit last week and we had a good time showing her around the island and sharing our world here with her (snorkeling, music, beautiful sunsets…). She left yesterday to spend time with my sister in CA so now life here returns to “normal” (for us anyway).
Johne’s working on a couple of boats other than Second Star and, of course, always has things he’s working on here. I have some projects aboard that have been waiting for some spare time and a-round-toit, which I think I’ve got now. I’ll let you know in the next update how I did.
Until then, be well and live your dreams.
Susie aeon

Oct. 12 2011

Greetings,

Well, we made it up to FL after two false starts. When we first tried to leave to head up here, we were still having some grief from the exhaust system. Also, in an attempt to fix a very small oil dip from the breather tubes on the main engines, a back pressure was created that caused a substantial oil leak in both turbos (D’oh). So, after those issues were fixed, we finally got across the gulf. It was an easy crossing. Relatively flat and calm the whole way. We got in and tied off at the dock at 1930 on Thursday 29^th and hit the ground running. We’ve been visiting with friends, working and gathering up the things we’ll be taking back with us. We were planning on taking off today to head back down to Mexico but the weather window is too small. The calm seas are only giving us a day and a half and we need three days to get there. So we’re on hold waiting for a better window (no more big seas). It’s looking like we might be able to go next week but we’ll just have to wait and see. Hopefully, with this delay, we’ll get to see a few more friends.

Until there is more news to report…

All the best,

Susie aeon

October 11, 2009

11 Oct 2009 Captain’s Log

Discouraging day yesterday. Spent the early hours getting ready to put the port prop shaft back into the coupling. Checked and prepped the bilge pumps and made sure they had no issues. Had several dry runs with Scubaeon and Donaldo (another Guatemateca). Had all the pieces prepped and ready, tools laid out. Aeon and I set up our scuba gear and entered the water about 1000 hrs. First I installed our towel and Crisco coffer dam and had Scubaeon hold it in place. Then I exited the water and went to the engine room to direct Donaldo in the removal of the patch covering the inboard end of the shaft log. Small amount of leaking but nothing the main bilge pump couldn’t stay ahead of. Back into the water and the shaft wouldn’t budge. I could not turn it nor push it in a mm. Out of the water to check on the water intrusion and brief Donaldo on the problem. Grabbed a 5 # sledge hammer and reengaged with the prop shaft. (The getting in and out was a pain, because I needed 30# of lead -15 on the tank and 15 on me to be solidly on the bottom).

I struck the end of the shaft for 10 minutes and succeeded in moving the shaft forward maybe 2 mm and I could now rotate it 5 to 7 degrees. But the end result was failure as I could not move the shaft far enough forward to free it from the rudder.

Assesment: When the CG drug us over the reef the shaft was pulled back and inboard of the rudder blade. So instead of the shaft being centered on the rudder blade it is wedged on the inboard side of the blade aft to the hub of the propeller (both nuts are inboard of the rudder blade). I called a break for lunch and to discuss the issue with the crew.

During lunch a squall line moved in with winds to 50 Kts. This brought a “real” rain and waves which increased the turbidity of the water and a loss of visibility. That coupled with the motion of Second Star meant that I had to abort the afternoon attempt. We spent an hour discussing the problem and decided to try running a double looped hawser from the stem to just forward of the shaft strut. Put a bridle on the propeller at the hub and use the main engine chain hoist to see if we can draw the shaft forward. I am hoping that I can control the stretch of the hawser with multiple loops and generate the necessary pressure to move the shaft. I am loathe to try and connect the chain hoist directly to the aft prop shaft support struts for fear of stressing the hull to strut joint. Any suggestions would be welcome!

Failure in the pulling attempt will lead to the disassembly of the prop shaft connector and try to draw the forward section into the flange and at least allow for the installation of the shaft seal. Hopefully that will relieve some of the side thrust off the aft section which should allow it to slide forward clear of the propeller and back into line.

The rest of the afternoon was spent securing the starboard engine bay from the fuel system repair. Cleaning and putting away tools, cleaning the bilges, separating the diesel from the bilge water and pouring all the liquids in jugs for disposal. At this time I believe the fuel system to functional, although our fuel transfer pump is down due to a failure of the pump. It does not affect the use or transfer of fuel under way only at dock. Will start and run the mains in the morning to verify.

The little Honda 2500 watt 110V generator is pretty amazing. It is old, beat up, rusted, the muffler has rusted to a mere shell of the original and rattles, there is no air cleaner element, missing pieces, bailing wire and duct tape; yet it puts out a little more than 2500 watts hour after hour sitting on the foredeck. 3 to 4 hrs in the morning and 3 to 4 in the evening has kept the batteries charged and the refrigeration functioning. 5 gallons of gas = 16 hrs of runtime. I think I am going to buy one of these little wonders (3.5 to 4 kW, 110/220v), pickle it and store it for emergencies. Plug in couple of large pool/sump pumps and it would do double duty as a crash pump.

Hoping that tomorrow brings success with the running gear.

October 10, 2009

10 Oct 2009 Captains Update

The 9th saw the fuel filter/prime system issues finally resolved. That was the good news; the bad news is that the generator head died again. The same symptoms as the previous two failures (voltage drop by 50%+, wildly fluctuating voltage swings and different readings on both legs) which leads me to believe that it has again consumed its capacitor and diodes. At this point it is not worth trying to have it repaired, especially here where things are hyper expensive. I.e. a single 1” by ½” brass reducer $40, drinking water is $0.40 a gallon, diesel $3.75, 5 loads of laundry $114: not Belize dollars, USD! The plus side is that we are not being charged for the dock spaced or the use of the resort facilities.

I have borrowed a small 2500 watt Honda generator from Osmin Rodriquez and we are barely keeping ahead of the basic refrigeration load and some battery charging.

Today we are going to attempt to the prop shaft reinstall underwater without sinking Second Star. This should prove an interesting task. I have decided to make a coffer dam out of a towel by spreading one side with large amounts of vegetable shortening, rolling it up like a jelly roll and wrapping it around the prop shaft on the outside of the hull and then holding it tightly against the prop shaft log. I am going to have Scubaeon hold it in place while I push the propeller and shaft forward into the prop shaft flange on the rear of the transmission. Once it is in place and aligned we will tighten the drip less shaft seal in place and voila!! Now, if it only proves that easy I will be very relieved and happy.

Once that is done we can assess the damage, if any to the propellers, prop shafts and struts. If all is satisfactory, tomorrow we will do limited sea trials to assure the integrity of the power train and the running gear.

We do appreciate everyone thinking very positive thoughts for our success and while you are at it a four day weather window of soft breezes and calm seas would be very nice.

As an aside, the Coconut Telegraph has it that Second Star ran aground on the reef off Ambergris Caye, the BZE CG had to pull us off, aeon and I were arrested. After a night in jail we were released facing fines and possibly more jail time. This may become as famous as the Bongo Girls of Eselan.

October 9, 2009

Buenos Dias,

My apologies for being incommunicado for the last couple of days, but life got a little hectic. Our cell phone is HYPER expensive here so calling is at a minimum and I haven’t had anytime for internet access until right now. As you have garnered from aeon’s brief updates we didn’t make the USA as planned.

All was well and Second Star was making good progress in less than perfect condition. The predicted wind was E to SE at 10 to 15 knots with seas 2 to 4 feet from the SE. The reality was 25 to 30 knots from the N NNE and a solid 4 to 6 beam sea from the east. We were able to hold 7 to 7.5 knots without too much discomfort.

At 0830 aeon woke me to say that she was having difficulty priming the fuel system from the aft main tank. By the time I got to the engine room I barely had enough time to shutdown the Port main engine before the system ran dry and the Starboard engine died. Without way, we were soon laying abeam to the seas and rolling quite heavily, especially when the larger sets came through. Over the next 15 minutes I succeeded in changing both filters out and get sea sick. Both aeon and I were feeling the effects of the motion. Even with new filters the system would not prime. I spent the next hours working for a few minutes on the system, getting nauseated and having to lay down for 15 minutes or so and repeat. I have always considered myself a get it done man no matter what just do it. I had to land my airplane once violently nauseated from a food poisoning, but I discovered Monday that one cannot will against nausea extremis. Even the super meds Phil Waterman had prescribed did not allow me to wrestle the filter assembly off the bulkhead and down to be disassembled for inspection.

During this period I had aeon monitor our drift. We were making Westing at 1.2 knots to the coast of Mexico at Xcalac. I deployed our sea anchor which reduced the set to 1.1 knots. We were at that time 7.3 nautical miles east of the shore. Finally at 1300 hrs I issued a Pan-Pan-Pan to Xcalac Port Authority. It was a hit or miss communication because their equipment is marginal at beat. Most of the their transmissions were so garbled as to be unreadable. Finally I was able to ascertain that they could (would) not respond to the request for assistance, but that they had contacted the Belize Coast Guard who had agreed to come assess the situation.

Just before 1600 hrs the BZE CG showed up in a 25 foot panga with twin Yamaha 150hp. For the next 45 minutes there was multiple communication with Mexico, Belize and us. I declared an emergency due to the nature of our situation and requested a tow to Xcalac. Mexico would accept us, but if the Belizean towed us in they believed they would be arrested. Belize CG Command denied our request for a tow because we were in International waters. The crew on station with us were in a quandary. The vessel commander CPL Edward Laurence knew that if he left us we would end up on the reef off Mexico after dark in surging seas. I offered to buy the fuel for the tow back to San Pedro, Ambergris Cay Belize. To his credit Eddy disobeyed his Commander and decided to take us under tow. Which was very good for us, because my next option was to launch of Hook (a difficult proposition in an iffy situation) and attempt the tow to Xcalac. It was the direction of the wind and sea but it would not have been without significant risk.

At 1630 hrs, the BZE CG took us under tow for San Pedro. Other than rock and roll it was an uneventful 3 hours. In the dark they searched along the reef off Ambergris for the cut to get inside. They had contacted a local pilot to come out and guide them in. For some reason I do not understand they choose the middle cut with is narrow and difficult at best. The passage requires an approach with a dog leg from Port to Starboard to round a long arm of the reef. Right as they made the turn to pull us around the arm their steering failed leaving us adrift. I have to tell you with all honesty that my heart stopped with every scrape and crunch as Second Star drifted onto the reef. During the eternity (3 to 5 minutes) that it took for the CG to get the steering issues under control we drug and scraped along one reef across the channel and onto another reef. Once they had us pulled off I went below to assess damage.

Opening the main bilge we had water coming in! I dropped inside and couldn’t see any holes and could asses the water coming in from the aft. I switched the bilge pumps to manual on and went aft to the engine room. Upon entering the starboard side seemed okay, closing the door and looking to port revealed the issue. The port prop shaft had been pulled aft from the coupling and the shaft seal had been dislodged. This makes for a very large hole and lots of water squirting in. I grabbed a towel and wrapped the shaft and opening and slowed down the flow to a manageable level.

Aeon came in to say that CG had dropped the tow and wanted us to deploy our anchor (with in scope distance of the reef!). I ordered her to not deploy the anchor and to inform the CG that we were taking on water. When aeon went on deck to communicate that information the pilot boat picked up our tow and started to move us away from the reef. The CG boarded a man (William) who aeon brought to engine room to assist me. Between he and I and lots of rigging tape (thanks ShureTape) and several plastic bags were able to staunch the flow to a few drops per minute. A recheck of the bilges, rudders posts, shaft strut support pads assured me we were not going to sink. Now to get the anchor down.

Returning to the foredeck the CG boat was idling beside us saying drop the anchor here and they would be back at 0815 in the morning and if we had any problems they monitored VHF 16- 24/7. And they left. I tried to call them back to help us “set” the anchor but no response. So much for 24-7 radio contact. I had concerns that the anchor would not properly set without some pull, but had no way to execute the maneuver. Those thoughts proved prophetic.

Aeon and I went to bed with anchor/bilge watches set every 30 minutes or so. Water intrusion was under control and we didn’t seem to be dragging much. Not much sleep that night. I dreaded the damage that dawn would reveal.

At almost first light Ernesto was back with his snorkel gear and offered a quick assessment. With great trepidation in my heart I accepted. When he came back to say that they props appeared to be fine, the starboard rudder was okay and the port rudder had a very small nick. The port propeller was jammed against the rudder. Lots of nicks, scrapes and gouged but to his eye it all appeared to be superficial.

The Coast Guard returned mid morning and took me into San Pedro to deal with Customs and Immigrations. Of course, we arrived right at lunch time so had to wait an hour for the offices to reopen. It was four hours before I was returned to Second Star in the Police launch with 5 officials to “inspect” the boat and issue our 30 day courtesy clearance.

Spend the early evening getting the fuel filter system removed from the engine room bulkhead and ready to move to the aft deck. I was looking forward to a good night sleep. Just after 2300 hrs I felt Second Star lurch and bump. I went to deck and we had drug anchor and we sitting on the sand, rolling slightly with the small wavelets about 200 yds off the Costa Maya Resort beach. The rest of the night was spent calling the BZE CG for assistance with no response (remember the 24/7 call if you need anything?) and checking to make sure we weren’t drifting deeper onto the beach.

Again, at near first light Ernesto was back with Estephan in Estephan launch to assist. They attempted a pull but Estephan launch was not up to the task. By that time the Costa Maya manager sent out their big twin 200hp launch but while the boat was up to the task the operator didn’t understand the physics of the situation and while they did move us about 5 feet I could not communicate with them effectively as to technique. At this time Estephan went south along the beach to where a barge and push boat (tug) were sitting. He acquired their assist and within 30 minutes we were free. During this time the manager of the Costa Maya Resort offered us his service dock which I gladly and gratefully accepted. A few more minutes and we were secure at the dock.

The next hour or so was spent setting side anchors fore and aft to take pressure of the dock. A very nice gringa women named Diana came to the dock to make sure we were okay and told us that the tug belong to her husband who had said to assist us in anyway possible at no charge. Next to actually introduce himself on the dock was our gracious host Don Rodrigo, the manager of Costa Maya, who welcomed us warmly and offered the use of the amenities and services of the resort. (I haven’t had time yet to take a swim in the pool, but I am going to this evening after work.)Rodrigo also made several phone calls and arranged for his mechanic to come and look at the fuel system the following morning. The afternoon was spent with Estephan in his launch getting 10 gallons of diesel to have to prime and rinse the system, go to boat yard which I had conflicting reports about whether they could haul us, and check on the other possibilities to get Second Star out of the water for the underwater repairs. There is no joy at this point on getting Second Star out of the water to repair the propshaft. As of now it is going to be an underwater job. I hope I can accomplish this without sinking Second Star in the attempt.

Back to Second Star to meet with the mechanic at 1500 hrs (he actually showed at 1630hrs-time in Belize has a different set of values). Osmin showed up with a couple of helpers. He and I had a lengthy discussion about how to proceed and setup for the following morning to begin the job of transferring fuel from the offending fuel tank (aft main) to the forward main tank.

Yesterday was spent on the fuel system. The aft main tank was found to be polluted and agitation of the seaway had stirred up the sludge which then clogged our fuel system. I know had a culprit and a solution. We carefully pumped the clean diesel off the top of the aft main tank and transferred using a clear hose to forward main. I estimate we were able to recover 290 of the 315 gallons. Once the tank was emptied of the clear fuel I added 64 oz of StarTron tank cleaner and will let it agitate all the way back to Ft. Myers and pump out dregs and rinse with clean diesel. The generator ran almost 4 hours last evening to charge the batteries then failed. I believe the generator head has toasted the capacitor and the diodes again. I had hoped to make it last back to the states for replacement but that is not to be.

Today, Osmin will be here in about 90 minutes and we will disassemble the fuel filter system and find the problem with the fuel valving. I suspect it to be fouled with sludge from the tank. I have been thinking about how to prefilter the fuel before the main filters to extract the larger potentially obstructive debris in a manner that is easy to clean while underway.

After lunch I am going to address the issue of the propshaft and underwater damage. I am hopeful that I can accomplish this in one afternoon.

So now you are up to date on this little Second Star adventure. I have to get going and remove the fuel filter assembly from the engine room bulkhead and get it up on the aftdeck so it can be diagnosed and repaired. I am hoping that this is the end of the fuel issues aboard Second Star (hahaha, somewhat hysterical laughter). This incident has made me aware of several changes that I can make to assure that this type of fuel problem has a redundant backup which requires no pumps.

I will update you in the next day or so with progress. Right now I am hoping to have repairs done for sea trials by Sunday and leave for Ft. Myers on Monday, weather pending. I am going to wait for some calm seas before I subject aeon to that crossing. We do have 28 more days on our visas so at this moment time is not a factor.

Back from Guatemala 09-03-2009

***UPDATE October 6, 2009 ***

Second Star is having some mechanical issues and Johne and Susie are anchored off the coast of Belize while they sort through them. Spot Checks are suspended until they get under way again. Other than the mechanical issues, both Johne and Susie are doing well and they are safe.


Hey all,

This is Jen, Johne's daughter. After having recently returned from a two week trip to visit Johne and Susie, I thought I would share with you our perspective on the place Second Star is currently calling home.

Our trip was wonderful and exhausting. There were so many things to see and do and we enjoyed each and every one. Our trip began with an interesting shopping adventure in Guatemala City. Of all the places I have ever been in the US, there is not a city that compares with the chaos of GC. The traffic alone is crazy. Not to mention that following traffic laws is optional. I am sure that there must be affluent places within the city, but you certainly do not see them. It is very impoverished and was a great eye opener for the kids. The slums are heartbreaking. Once we completed our grocery shopping, we began the journey back to the Rio. Again, driving in Guatemala is not something for the feint of heart. The roads are not great, their idea of speed control is the randomly placed (without warning) speed bump, and driving defensively is a major understatement. However, we made it back to the boat in one piece and very quickly all fell into bed.

For the next several days we crammed in as much of the country as we could. We began with a fun tour of the Castille de San Fillipe. A very cool, old fort that is very close to Second Star. There is nothing about the place that is imposing and Susie and I couldn't understand how it could have been good for much in the way of defense. It is very well preserved though and has a colorful past and it is something I am very glad we took the time to visit. Carson kept saying how it was just like something out of Pirates of the Caribbean.

Next on our list of to do's was a trip out to the Sapodilla Cayes. Soon after arriving on the Rio, we had a good weather window to get the boat out of the river and make a run for the Caribbean. It was the first time that we had been out on Second Star. It seems that each time we have visited Florida, the tide didn't want to cooperate, so we were never able to take her out. I have to say I am so impressed with how solid she is. I am also very proud of all of the work my dad and Susie have put into making her not only beautiful, but safe. Everything ran wonderfully well. The trip up the river was breathtaking. The cliffs that run along the sides of the river are very impressive. I kept feeling like I was on the Jungle Cruise at Disneyland. It was a great way to spend 3 hours.

That first night we decided to anchor off a town called Livingston. After we made anchor, we took the dinghy to town for dinner and a look around. Livingston has a large Garafuna population, and was pretty colorful. More of the Afro-Carib vibe and not much Mayan influence. I would have liked to have spent a little more time there exploring in the daylight. Maybe on another trip.

The next morning we broke anchor and headed for the Rio Sarstoon. A large river that runs between Guatemala and Belize. Again, this was another beautiful trip. The little fishing villages that dotted the shore were cool and all the children were darling. When they would see the boat coming they would run out to the shore, and then along it, smiling and waving. Once we made our way inland, we very quickly became disconnected from the outside world. There were no villages and with the exception of an occasional fisherman paddling by in his Cayuga (which is probably spelled wrong, and is the Mayan version of a kayak), you would have thought we were the only people on the planet. You couldn't hear or see any signs of humanity. It was almost eery after coming from the US where there is always some sort of background noise. That night there was torrential, rain forest, downpour that made the monsoons in AZ and the thunderstorms in FL look like light rain. Mother nature is pretty impressive! Once the sun went down, the jungle came to life. You could hear all sort of animals and birds calling out. I felt like I was on safari.

The next day we headed back out of the river to make our run for the Cayes. It was a long day on the water. Although the seas were pretty calm, Carson is just not one for that rocking motion. He spend a lot of the day quite sick. Even he would tell you though that once we made it out to the Cayes, it was well worth it. Once we hit that beautiful turquoise water I felt like I was getting closer to right where I am meant to be. I feel so at home in the aqua waters of the Caribbean. There were a couple of small reefs that were little "islands" and a palm tree or two would be growing. It was fun to see. The kids each called for one to be their own private island...at least until the next big storm comes through and puts them back under water. Once we reached the Cayes, there was a vacant mooring ball which made anchoring a breeze. We were able to get set up for the night quickly and then we all had a quick snorkel around the island. There was not much to see besides giant starfish, but it was so fun to be in the water. Have I said how much I love the ocean?!! This was the first time our kids had officially been snorkeling and they did a great job. It was a lot of fun and something that I hope we get to enjoy lots of time doing as a family.

After we returned to the boat, our "neighbors" on the boat next to us came over to let us know that the ranger from the island had spotted a couple of Man O' War jellies. That is certainly nothing any of us wanted to mess with. So, our snorkeling off the Caye was finished for the day. We spend the the rest of the evening just hanging out. The next morning we took the boat out to try some deep sea fishing. Justin must have had bad juju because we made a thousand passes and didn't catch anything! We did get a wonderful snorkel in though, just off one of the kid's private islands. There were quite a few fish and some coral. As much as I love each time I get to snorkel, it always leaves me feeling a little sad. Our oceans are such a mess, humanity has really left it's mark. The reefs have so much bleaching and the amount of trash (plastic) floating in the ocean infuriates me. We are stewards of this planet, and on the large scale, we are failing miserably. Anyway, off my soapbox...it was a wonderful way to spend a day! On a side note, that snorkel was also cut short because Justin came up to get his bearings, and about 15 feet away was another Man O' War.

That night we anchored in the same spot and enjoyed a nice meal. We were all pretty tired, so it was early to bed. We woke the next morning and pulled anchor pretty early so that we could make it back to the Rio before dark. There was more fishing on the way back, this time, with a little more luck. Carson caught a Barracuda and Taylor caught a Wahoo. Justin did snag a huge Grouper, but all the boys had left me with the fishing gear when it was hooked. I had no idea what to do so I set the reel....right then Justin came around the corner and hollered at me...so I did the next logical thing...I released it. We then had a lovely birds nest to untangle. :) We did see several more Man O' War on our way back. That was a little perplexing. They are not common in the waters in the area...something must be changing.

Our trip back was uneventful and we made it back a little after dark. We ate a great dinner at a beautiful open air restaurant just up river from where dad and Susie live. For how impoverished the entire area is, it amazes me there are these wonderful, upscale, restaurants.

The next day was spent catching up on laundry and cleaning the boat after returning from the ocean.

Next on our list was a road trip to see more of the country. We set off for Tikal to check out the Mayan ruins. The drive was beautiful. The Guatemalan countryside is stunning. The roads were decent, and with exception to the speed bumps, which are more like a steep curbs, the day was uneventful. The ruins did not disappoint. It is mind boggling to think that a civilization that lived thousands of years ago could have been so advanced. The engineering is fantastic and very complex. We had a lot of fun walking around and exploring. I couldn't keep up with Justin, Susie and the kids, so dad and I walked at a more leisurely pace and I took lots of photos. The wildlife was wonderful and the flora and fauna, beautiful! To top it off, the ruins themselves were fun to photograph. We took a detour off the path to try to locate some howler monkeys we could hear. Trekking through the jungle, I couldn't help but think what tough people the Mayans were...the jungle is very unforgiving and making your way through it on trade routes would have been a very difficult job. We did end up making it through to the trees where the monkeys were. We caught a couple of glimpses, but all were too short to allow me to photograph any of them. Johne does a great howler monkey call though...so you should ask him to demonstrate sometime!

After a full afternoon of hiking and taking pics, we headed to the town of Flores to spend the night. Flores is built on a little island. It is heavily influenced by European style. We had a hard time finding someplace to stay and ended up in a hostel that all of the 20 year old European backpackers must have found too. It was quite a noisy night. All of us were a little tired when we got up the next day. We spent the morning wandering through town which was fun, and the the shopping was great!

From Flores, we headed up into the mountains to Coban. Again, the drive was very nice. Coban is a decent size city and has a lot of German influence. The architecture was very Bavarian looking. We found a hotel for the night and had a wonderful dinner. Again, the fact there are so many nice restaurants, with wonderful food surprises me. We did not do a lot of site seeing in Coban. We were all tired.

The next morning we got up and went to find breakfast. Everything was closed. There was a celebration going on and there was absolutely nothing open. So, needless to say we got an early start heading to Antigua. This part of the drive was a little more interesting. There were hundreds of the speed bumps...that were so tall that every time we would go over one, the undercarriage of the van would drag. At one point, the road just ran out. We had to pay a fee to have a "ferry" take us across the river so we could get back on the highway. Once we crossed the river, we found a place for lunch and ordered pizza. It was interesting. It was a giant, flat biscuit with about 4 pounds of cheese on it. Guatemalan pizza is an experience!! On our way out of that little town, there was some road construction. At one point the flagger was a scarecrow. It was hilarious and I so wish I had gotten a picture. Have I mentioned driving in Guatemala is an adventure?!

We made decent time getting to Antigua. We made it there by mid afternoon. Antigua is a very cool, eclectic place. I would say it had the feel of someplace like Taos, NM. It was a very artsy town. The architecture has a strong European influence. The buildings are brightly colored and the roads are cobbled. There are window planters on most of the buildings. There were several old churches and a very old cathedral. I was in photography heaven. In the center of town was a square that had a park, a fountain and lots of little shops and restaurants. It was beautiful. It was the one place during the trip that I wish we would have had more time. The market had so many vendors and all of the local craft work was beautiful. The fresh produce and coffee was wonderful. I would love to fly back to Guatemala for a long weekend and spend it in Antigua. There was not nearly enough time to explore.

That brings us to the end of our trip. Our time went very quickly. Our adventure in Central America was fantastic! It was a wonderful cultural experience and a great eye opener for our kids. I am so glad that we had the opportunity to go and that dad and Susie picked such a cool place to hang out and work on Second Star.

** I will be publishing pictures from our trip soon. Check back for updates. **

March 22, 2009

22 Mar 2009 0115 hrs GMT 2015 hrs local
Lat 15º 35.65' N Long 89º 00.03' W
At anchor Rio Dulce, Guatemala
Wind 6.9 knots E by ENE
Sea State – dead calm - Beaufort 1
Air Temp 82.4ºF Barometer 29.98
Scattered clouds

This morning was occupied with getting ready to sail from Livingston to Rio Dulce. A trip into town to see the Port Captain and send out some emails at an internet café. Once that was accomplished we headed back to Second Star.

Aeon prepared the bridge while I did the pre start checklist i9n the engine room. Harry got the windlass ready to retrieve the anchor. We had main engines started at 1040 hrs and underway at 1104 hrs.

The trip upriver was stunning. First you pass the headlands and then enter a gorge with vertical walls several hundred feet in height cover in dense jungle. There are birds everywhere. The river twists and turns so there is always some new little alcove or local hose to see.

At one point we had several small swallows trying to enter the trumpets of our horns. It was very entertaining. The trip took about 5 hours to traverse the river into Lago de Izabal. Once we were in the lake we passed under the Rio Dulce bridge and on up to Abel’s boat yard. No one answered the radio so I called another marina owner I had met in Livingston and asked about a slip in his marina. Alas we draught to much but he did recommend that we go back under the bridge and anchor off Bruno’s. He said it was Sunday and Steve the owner would be cooking at the BBQ and to introduce ourselves.

The anchorage was a little tight but we manage a nice position amongst several sail boats, launched Tink and motored to the dinghy dock. As predicted Steve was at the grill, cooking chicken, pork and sausage. We chatted for a bit and received a wealth of local information.
After a walk around the market we ended back at Bruno’s for dinner.

A brief ride in Tink back to Second Start for showers, a run of the watermaker and catching up on the logs.