Trip through the canal

June 27 2013

Greetings,

This morning we took Kay to the dock to head home so we’re back to just the two of us until Wednesday when our next company arrives. We’ll have enough time to get Second Star all tidied up and do some maintenance projects before Phil gets here and we head out to do a little exploring of the Archipielago de las Perlas. 

So, I suppose you want to hear about the canal transit now. Okay, so I left off when we were going to the marina to get ready. Our agent had told us the lines and tires would be delivered to Second Star on the 21st at 1100 hrs and that we were to be in the F anchorage (refered to as the “flats”) by 1300 hrs to pick up our adviser. The next we heard from him, he said we didn’t have to be to the flats until 1400 hrs. At about 1100 we found out that our lines and tires had been delivered to another boat, on the other side of the marina, the day before. And, that we had to be in the fates by 1230. While Johne dealt with the Authorities for our paperwork, our friends Harry and Matilthe, who were going with us on the transit, got a marina cart and moved the 12 tires and 4 very large lines over to Second Star and we hurried to get going. We were told to call the canal authorities on the radio to confirm we would be in the flats at the appointed time, so, as soon as we were underway headed over there, we called and were told that our adviser would be there at 1300 hrs. We got to the flats, tied to a mooring, and, while I made sandwiches, the guys got the tires hung on the sides of the boat. We ate and waited for the adviser to come. There were two other boats, both small sail boats, that were also there getting ready to go through. At about 1340 we saw the pilot boat coming to bring the advisers out. They went to the sail boats first then came to us. Two guys came aboard and we were told we had an adviser and an adviser-in-training. We set off toward the locks and they told us how we’d be rafting with the sail boats. The advisers were nice but we found when we got to the locks that they were either giving too much advice (how to steer the boat) or not enough information (how the lines needed to be prepped before they were tied to the messenger to be pulled up to the wall). Once we had gotten through the first lock, and we understood what needed to happen, the next two locks went very smoothly and the advisers said we did a great job. I responded that if you tell us what we need to do, we had a good crew and we could do it.
The little boats being tied to us made a little extra challenge. It changed the  steering dynamics, especially when they were trying to “help” steer so I was fighting their rudders. But Second Star is strong enough to do the job.
After we got though the locks it was a short trip to the mooring  in lake Gatun where we would spend the night. We got tied up, sent the advisers on there way and had an awesome lobster dinner to celebrate the solstice and to thank our crew for there hard work in getting that far. We talked over dinner about the next day and our plan for the rest of the trip. 
The day would start early. The adviser(s) would be coming at about 0600. It is 28 miles from the mooring to the next lock, and since we cruise so much faster than the sail boats, we thought it would make sense to let them get a head start and have a bit more leisurely morning. 
We saw the pilot boat coming at 0615 but after they drop off the advisers on the sail boats, they came and told us our adviser would be there soon. No problem. As I said, we wanted to leave later anyway. At about 0630 we saw another pilot boat coming. Again, we got two advisers. The not-in-training adviser said we should get underway. We explained our thinking as far as catching up with the sail boats. He said we were supposed to be at the locks by 1000 and we should go. Johne ask if we were going though with the sail boats because they wouldn’t be there by 1000. The adviser said he wasn’t sure if we’d have to wait for them or not, and we should go ahead. So, we fired up the engines and headed out. After a little more than an hour, we passed the sail boats and Johne reiterated that if we would be waiting for them, we’d need a place to tie up so we weren’t idling in circles for an hour. So when we got to the lock, sure enough, we were going to have to wait for a tourist cruise boat and our little parasites (as we were affectionately calling them). We tied to the wall and shut down our engines to wait. After about an hour the tourist boat got there and the advisers said the little boats would be there soon. So we went to fire up the mains, but our port main starter motor gremlin, which hadn’t reared its ugly head in nine months, pick that moment to return. Sometimes when the starter is hot it simply won’t start. So now we’re going to have to do this on only the starboard engine. More challenging and stressful, but not impossible. We pull into the lock and along side the big tourist boat and they tied us to their port side. The little boats (when they get there) are rafted to each other and on their own. That went very smoothly and we pulled out of that lock with no problems. After that, there’s a small lake to cross before the last two locks. That part was easy. Along the way Johne kept trying the port engine to see if it would catch. No joy. In the last two locks they decided to put us on the wall. So I pull along the wall, into the first lock. The guy on the wall takes the bow line and Johne lassos the stern bollard. We ride down as the water flows out. No problems. Only one more lock to go. I get the boat moving down the wall into the last lock. We’re almost in place. But there’s nobody on the wall to receive the lines. By this point we are very impressed (not in a good way) by the communication among the Panama canal crews. Our bow starts to drift toward the wall. Harry’s fending off. The stern is drifting out. With only the starboard engine, engaging in either forward or reverse will only exacerbate the problem. The wall guys finally get there and take the lines. We get turned and secured to the wall with only a minor scrap on the rub rail (which is what it’s there for). Whew! The water goes out. We pull out of the lock and right after the boat comes to pick up the advisers, the port engine fires up like nothing was ever wrong (we’ve replaced that starter now). 
Returning the tires and lines and getting to the anchorage went without a hitch. We tried the first anchorage on the south side of the causeway, but it was a bit rough, with the angle of the wave set and the traffic from the canal, so we moved to the main anchorage around the north east side. 

We’ve now been here a week. A gale came through and we didn’t drag so we‘re gaining some confidence that our anchor is well stuck, but we have to be careful here because the wind does come up pretty fast and, even if we don‘t drag, others have been. 

This week we’ve been getting our supplies restocked. Once we head for Ecuador it will be more difficult to get a lot of things...

Getting ready for the Canal

June 13 2013
0900 hrs
Greetings,

The sun came out this morning. It’s been dreary and rainy for the last several days which hasn’t made dealing with this shipment issue any easier. And it’s still going on. After having spent two and a half days trying to deal with the port only to be told at every turn, “You can’t do this. Where is your Delvi (the company that did the shipping) agent? You don’t have the right paper work. They need to be here to handle this.”  And many phone calls back and forth with Port officials talking to people at Delvi and getting nowhere, yesterday, Johne emailed the person at Delvi in Miami who was our initial contact person on April 23 when all this started. He sent Maria a timeline referring to all our email and phone requests for information over the pas six weeks, told her we had run up against a wall and asked for her help in resolving this and getting our stuff aboard the boat. At this point, She has sent the woman who told us we were responsible for dealing with the port from Panama City to take care of this and we are hoping the cargo will be delivered this morning…

June 14 2013
2300 hrs
Well, the cargo did get aboard yesterday but not until 1600 hrs. After all the headaches and hassles of dealing with this shipment at least, in the end, Delvi made it right. I’m very glad to be done with that saga and moving on.  

Today we were back to the water maker saga. We had sent the problem part to the machine shop to get replacements made in stainless steel. They were supposed to be done on Monday but weren‘t back to Colon until Wednesday night. And with the Delvi crap yesterday we couldn’t get in to check them until this morning. Par for the course, when Johne check the new parts with the micrometer there were several problems. So back to the shop in Panama City they went. Johne spent the whole day with our new Panamanian friends, two sisters, one of whom had arranged for the work, getting the parts fixed. First thing in the morning we’ll put the water maker back together and see if (fingers crossed) this is the cure…  

June 15 2013
1100 hrs

No joy with the new parts. They are just slightly too big so they have to go back to the shop to get small enough to fit inside the tubes. That probably can’t happen until Monday or Tuesday. We’ll be going into the city on Tuesday anyway to pick up our friend Kay who will be making the transit with us. We’ll see how is best to coordinate it.

June 20 2013
1030 hrs

Well, everything is going great right now. Tuesday, we took the water maker parts, and the tube they had to fit with, back to the shop, and they took just enough off of them to make them fit. We got some shopping done and picked Kay up at the airport and got back to Colon before dark. We got Kay situated aboard and had a lovely visit over dinner, and then we were off to bed. 
Wednesday morning we put the water maker back together, crossed our fingers and held our breath. IT’S WORKING! YEA! So far we’ve run it 3 times for more than 2 hours each and it seems to be doing great. No leaks so far.
Wednesday afternoon we left the anchorage by the port and came back to the Chagres river. Last night and this morning we’ve been enjoying the peace and calm and all the jungle noises and sights here.
In just a little while we’re going to go to the marina where we will do the last prep work for the transit though the canal. Tomorrow we’ll be picking up the lines and tire/fenders and our friends who will be our line handlers. And then, at about noon we’ll be headed back to F anchorage to wait for the adviser to come aboard. At that point it’s just waiting for our turn. The first part of the transit will be made Friday afternoon. We’ll go through the first set of locks and to a mooring in the lake. Saturday morning we’ll finish the crossing. I’ll be leaving a SPOT trail, not every 2 hours like usual but as often as seems best to make a good track all the way through. If you want to follow the trip, click on “where is Second Star to the right of the Blog page.
Next entry will be from the Pacific side…

Bocas to Colon and then some

June 4 2013

Greetings,

We’re on anchor at Escudo de Veraguas, a lovely little island about 50 miles east of Bocas. The trip here yesterday was very pleasant. We had a 3 foot rolling sea. Not choppy at all. Second Star ran well and, with her bottom freshly scrubbed, slid through the water beautifully. When we got here and had the anchor set, we swam to shore or a walk on the beach. There are a few small thatched roof shelters but we didn’t see any people. This morning two local guys in a boat come by trying to sell fish. But they left and it’s just us again.

The wind shifted a lot during the night so we were up lots on anchor watch. The anchor held fine but it wasn’t the best nights sleep. When Capt Johne got up this morning I went back to sleep to try to catch up a bit. We’re planning on spending the day here. Hopefully enjoy some snorkeling or diving later, and do an overnight trip to Colon…

June 5 2013

We’ve made it to the anchorage at Colon where you get measured to go through the canal. We had a very nice passage last night which, for me, included an awesome shooting star, and dolphin in the bow wake illuminated by the bio luminescent (WOW!). We got into the Rio Chagres at 0715 and anchored for the morning surrounded by the lush jungle, and the sounds of many birds and howler monkeys. It was a lovely morning followed by lunch, a nap and then the short trip here. 

When we left the river the scenery changed from jungle to a sea of tanker and container ships. Johne counted 37 big ships anchored on the outside of the “break water” and he doesn’t think he got them all. Plus, there were more anchored on the inside. All awaiting their turn to go through the Canal.

Yesterday, before we left Escudo, we did get a snorkel in. We saw a school of  Palometa which I had never seen before. They are silvery and pearly  in the sun light. It was a lot of fun and I look forward to stopping there again the next time we’re passing that way…

June 8 2013

The last three days have been very productive. Thursday we got admeasured and they give us our transit date, June 21st; Friday Capt Johne met our agent, completed our paper work and paid the transit fees; today we met the ladies who are taking care of the machine work for the water maker and they helped us with where to find other things we need in town. 

We’ve had some things shipped down here from the states and the communication with the freight expediter has been frustrating at best. We’ve been try for weeks to get info on exactly where and how we are supposed to get our stuff. The last we were told was it will be coming to the Cristobal Port, a huge commercial container port. Now, we can’t just pull Second Star into the port and say “where’s our stuff” so this morning Sharon and I dropped Johne off on a dock at the port and went into town to do some errands. About an hour later I got a phone call from the head of port security saying he had my Captain, that he wasn’t supposed to be there and that they couldn’t let him leave through the gate. In the end, we just had to come back and pick him up where we’d dropped him off so they didn’t have to admit that he’d gotten where he shouldn’t have been without them catching it (too much paper work involved with that). He could have been in big trouble, especially when he found that he’d forgotten to put the copy of his passport back in his wallet and he had no ID except a PriceSmart card. But all’s well that  ends well. He didn’t get arrested and it gave Port Security something out of the ordinary to entertain them. And, now we know the next step to picking up our shipment which will arrive here on Monday….

Getting ready to move

June 1 2013

Greetings,

I got back to Bocas about a week ago. The trip to FL was productive. I worked, spent time with friends and family (Mom, my sister, nieces and nephew drove down for the last weekend I was there), and, as always on these trips, picked up a bunch more stuff for the boat.

Now we are getting ready to leave Bocas to head for Colon and the beginning of our Canal transit adventure. Today we took Second Star to Almirante to fuel up. We spent most of yesterday scrubbing the bottom and polishing the props. We’re going to take three days, going in tandem with our friend Sharon aboard Ko Komo Kat, to get to Colon. We stop on the way to fish and dive and we’ll anchor over night. So it should be an easy and fun passage. We’ll be sending out SPOT tracking while underway so if you want to follow the trip click on the “Where is Second Star” link to the right of the blog page. We’re planning on leaving Monday morning at about 0730 or 0800 CDT, and we’ll be getting into Colon sometime Wednesday afternoon.

There’s more getting ready to do so, with a promise to post more soon, I’ll get back to work…

April in a nutshell

Apr 29 2013

Greetings,

April has been a good month. Capt Johne has been getting a lot of work and keeping very busy. We had our friends Victor and Natasha, who we hadn’t seen for a very long time, aboard for a week. And we’ve just celebrated Johnes 66th birthday.

Right now I’m on a plane from San Jose Costa Rica, to FL for a few weeks of work. 
"Costa Rica? Weren’t you in Panama?" You ask.
Well, Johne need a new Panama visa, and it was cheaper for me to fly from San Jose, so we made a weekend of it. The trip up on the bus started out fun. When we got to the border it wasn’t clear that there were two steps to the check out. So after we pay our exit tax, we walked over the old rail road trellis bridge to the Costa Rica side. When we went to check in there we found out we missed a step, so back across the bridge for one more stamp. Then across again once we had gotten it. After getting done with  check in on the Costa Rica side we got settled back on the bus and were looking forward to the scenery on the ride. But about half an hour after we got rolling again, an oncoming SUV lost control, swerved into our lane, and hit the bus head on. No one on the bus was injured except the driver who bruised his knee. But the SUV was crushed and three of the six people in it were killed. It was a sobering experience and definitely put a damper on the rest of the day. 
When we finally got into San Jose, we got together with Linethe, a Costa Rican friend we hadn’t seen in years. We enjoyed a lovely dinner and catching up before heading back to the hotel for some much needed sleep.
The next day, (yesterday) we went out walking to explore San Jose. The central part of town has a couple of old theatres, museums and a big cathedral on the central park. We decided to go to the national museum and were pleasantly surprised when we got to find that they were having a Europe day event that included a small symphony concert. Just by chance, we arrived right before they started. They played music from all over Europe. It was a wonderful treat. 
After the concert, we walked around the museum and then went looking for lunch. As we were looking for a good place to eat, we went by the national theatre. I love theatres and Johne ask if I wanted to walk in and see it. I thought we should find food first but we went ahead and checked it out. It had a beautiful lobby with marble statues and an elaborately painted ceiling. And just off the lobby was a charming café that had crapes and sandwiches. It was just what we were looking for and we enjoyed our lunch there very much.
Later that evening we found an Argentinean restaurant and had a wonderful dinner. Over all, it was a great day.

This morning Johne got on the bus to head back to Panama and I was off to the airport. I’ll be headed back to Panama the third week in May and then we’ll start getting ready to make the transit through the canal. We expect to be going though about the third week in June…

Movie part 2

      Mar 27 ‘13 0730hrs

Greetings,

Well, we didn’t end up being a filming platform this weekend. The movie people are very disorganized and, after we told them we couldn’t prep Second Star for the trip until we had a commitment in writing, and we needed at least two day to prep, they finally emailed us an agreement on Wednesday. We read it over, made a few small changes, and sent it back. A few hours later they called to say they had to cancel for Saturday. (We heard later that the guy they had called in to be the surf double for the scene couldn’t surf). 
The next day we got a call asking if we would do a trip on Sunday for a few of the top people to have a fun day off. We told them we could but again we said we’d need an agreement in writing by the next day to be ready for Sunday. By Friday afternoon they said that they wanted to do it and so we reworded the original agreement and sent it over. It was 8:00 in the evening before we got the call that they wanted us to come to the office to sign the agreement. By 9:30 Friday night we were done with the preliminary stuff and we were ready to start prepping the boat for up to 14 people to be aboard on Sunday. 
We had asked our friends, Shay and Jessie, who are professional yacht crew people, to come help crew for the trip. They came Saturday morning and cleaned the boat while Capt Johne and I went into town to get provisions (what a shopping trip). We spent Saturday evening prepping food for up-to-14. 
They had said they would call with a final head count and time of arrival (they had left it vague somewhere between 1000 and noon). Late Saturday evening the call came, 7-10 people arriving at 12:00. Good for us. Over prepped is better than under prepped.
Sunday morning Shay and Jessie got here early to help finish getting everything ready for the guests. At noon we all in uniform waiting to greet our guests. We got a call a few minutes later to say they were on their way. 4 guests would be arriving in about 10 minutes. (ONLY 4. WOW! This should be easy.)
It was easy. The people who came were the producer, his wife and two of the actors (the younger of the two male stars and a young French woman).  They were all very down-to-earth, polite and friendly. We took them on a beautiful cruise through the archipelago, fed them lots, anchored so they could enjoy a snorkel and showed them a very good time finishing with a lovely sunset. It was a gorgeous day and I think they had a wonderful time. (Yea! Success!) 

It was a long couple of days but it turned out very well and I’m glad we got this opportunity and experience… 

In the movies

Mar 17 ‘13 1000hrs

Greetings,

We have a new interesting adventure we’re getting ready for aboard Second Star. There is a movie being filmed here in Bocas. It will be called “Paradise Lost” and it’s about Columbian drug lord Pablo Escobar. About 10 days ago some people from the movie came to the boat. At first I thought that they were going to ask if Second Star could be in the background of a shot. But as it turned out they need to shoot a surf scene at water level, and they want to film from our wet deck. 
The first people that came by were just on a scouting mission. They asked if we’d be interested and said they’d bring the higher-ups by to check it out and talk about details.
When they came back we said we’d need to see the sites where they wanted to film so we could let them know if Second Star could do what they wanted. Again they said they’d get back to us. Then we didn’t hear anything for a few days, so we emailed to let them know that, if we were going to participate, we’d need enough notice to see the filming sites and get the boat ready.
The next we heard from them was that they wanted us to do it, but the filming of this scene had been postponed for a week. A few days later they scheduled with us to go check out the site which is just a little outside the cut into the protected waters of the archipelago. It’s been pretty windy and rough out there lately, and that day was no exception. The waves were running a solid 6ft with a few bigger ones thrown in. Where they want to film is plenty deep for Second Star and we told them, if conditions were no worse than that we could do it.
The next day they brought the cinematographer to see the boat and he was very happy with what he has to work with. So, this coming Saturday, we’re supposed to be taking 14 people (directors, camera crew, actor, makeup person, etc.) out to shot this scene. 
At the moment (knock wood), the weather looks like it will be a bit calmer that day than it was last week. But the forcast this far out is always suspect. I’ll let you know how it went…

What excites cruisers

Mar 5 ‘13 1315hrs

Greetings,

Today I have a couple of fun the-things-we-cruisers-get-excited-about stories to share.

First let me say, there are certain things you get use to having but can’t always find when you’re cruising. So, before you leave “civilization” , you stock up. But, even if you stock up a lot, eventually you still run out. For me, one of those things is un-stinky laundry detergent. In Latin America all the laundry detergent is heavily perfumed. And, before we left Mexico, I was running out of my “free and clear”. I found some detergent in Isla Mujeres that only stunk a little. It wasn’t my preference, but I could live with it. But now I’ve run out of that and everything they have here reeks. So, last week, when a  friend and fellow cruiser was going to the city and asked if there was anything I needed her to bring me, I said if she saw any detergent with no perfume that would be great. 
I hadn’t thought about it again until I got back to the boat after welcoming her back and visiting about her trip. While we were chatting she had said “I have a little something for you. I don’t know where it is. When I unpack I’ll give it to you.” That’s nice, I thought at the time. But sitting back on Second Star I remembered asking for the detergent. I got so excited. Could she have found it? Then I had to laugh at myself (really, you’re that excited about laundry detergent?) and admonish myself (it might not be the detergent. Don’t get too excited.) But sure enough, I have a bottle of Purex free and clear and (you can laugh if you want) it’s really exciting.

The other funny thing was; There is a pair of sisters in David that have a delivery service here. We’ve used them to get argon for Johnes welding. Today we were meeting the truck to exchange argon bottles. Just before the ferry was pulling into the dock the cruisers started to gather. When the truck pulled off the ferry they clustered around the back of it, waiting to get their deliveries. Watching them, looking so eager, made me think (sing along with me here) “Oh ho the Wells Fargo wagon is a comin’ down the street. Oh please let it be for me.” 

Maybe I can combine these exciting things and get the truck to bring me more laundry detergent. Ah, dare to dream.

Susie aeon

As the boat breaks

Mar 1 ‘13 1900hrs

Greetings,

It’s been over two months since I’ve written any updates. This is partly because we’ve been very busy, and partly because I get lazy about it. But enough excuses…we have a lot to catch up on.

Since Christmas, we’ve had lots of company,  I made a trip to FL, Johne’s gotten quite a bit of work and is getting more all the time, the water maker has gone down twice, one inverter stopped working, one alternator stopped working, the welder stopped working, the TV stopped working(that may have been before X-mas), the desk top computer stopped working…If it’s not one thing, it’s another.

On Dec 29th our friends Saverio and Rosanna came to spend New Years with us. We had a wonderful time showing them around the Archipelago. They left on the 2nd  and I left for FL on the 6th.

I was up there for almost three weeks working, gathering supplies to bring back (150lbs worth) and visiting with friends. It was a successful, if somewhat stressful, trip.

The day after I got back my sister and brother arrived for a visit. Danile could only stay eight days, but Darrin had three weeks to play. While Danile was here we managed one dive and a couple of snorkels, a chocolate plantation tour, a couple of nature walks that included one sloth sighting and some good visiting. After she left, Darrin and I got several more snorkels and an other dive in, and a road trip which included getting the inverter fixed and zip-lining.

Darrin left on the 17th and we had a few days with just the two of us before Daryl and Marcy arrived with lots of heavy luggage bringing new alternators (that true friendship). They could only stay four days but we packed in lots of fun (as well as replacing an alternator and taking the desk top tower to a computer guy who said he didn‘t have the parts to fix it, but when Johne hooked it back up it started working again. YEA!!!).

Daryl and Marcy left early Wed. morning and since then Johne’s been trouble shooting the welder problem. He’s gotten it to weld again although it’s still not right. But at least he can continue with the job he’s in the middle of. Maybe when we get to Panama City it can see a specialist and be all better. In the mean time we’re back to just us (next company in mid April) and waiting to see what’s going to stop working next.

I’ll try not to take so long before the next installment of “As the boat breaks”. Until then…

Live your dreams,
Susie aeon

Christmas post a little late

                                Dec 25 1100hrs

    Merry Christmas!

    We’ve just had a lovely breakfast with Don, Rita, Lorenzo and Joyce. Captain Johne made Stollen and cranberry-orange pinwheels and great coffee. We had the Christmas music on in the back ground, and the company of good friends. Very festive.
    Last night Don and Rita come over and we had Tex-Mex for Christmas eve. They made fajitas and we did guacamole and flan. We have so much fun every time we get together.
    The solstice party was a lot of fun too. It was a small gathering (only 11 total) but an interesting bunch and, again, lots of fun. The socializing, cooking and baking, as well as regular chores, definitely keep us busy at this time of year.
    This afternoon we’re going to a potluck dinner. I’ve made the cranberries and a pumpkin and a mincemeat pie to take. So, until it’s time to go, I can relax and enjoy myself.

                                Dec 27 1100hrs
    The potluck was great (except for the no-see-ems). There was, of course, loads of good food, but the best part was Cheryl’s reading of How the Grinch Stole Christmas (with audience participation).
    Yesterday Johne repainted the new wood decks and started a couple of jobs on other boats. I made a lasagna to take to the dinner we’re having with BEN 63.
    Today we’ll be moving down to anchor off Ben 63. They will be coming here, after doing their shopping in town, so 9-year-old Maible can drive Second Star over there.

                                Dec 29 2100hrs
    We ended up anchoring around back in dolphin bay on Thursday. Maible did a great job driving the boat. We towed their launch so the whole family could ride along. There were lots of dolphins in the bay when we came into it at about 1600hrs. After we got the anchor set, Ian, Moe, Finn and Maible ran home to regroup, put up groceries and get ready for dinner. They came back a couple of hours later and we have a great dinner and a wonderful evening.
    After a visit with Capt Ray in the morning, we came back to the anchorage off Bocas. We spent the afternoon getting the boat ready for company.
    Today our good friend Saverio and his girl friend Rosanna arrived for a 5 day visit. We met Saverio early in our cruising on the Rio Dolce. We hadn’t seen him for about 3 years but have kept in close touch. It’s been fun to spend the day catching up. We also went for a swim over to the mangroves by the anchorage and we saw a very small octopus. That’s note worthy because they’re very hard to spot since there so good at camouflaging them selves.
    Tomorrow we’re planning on going back down to Rana Azul for lunch and different scenery. I think Don and Rita will be coming too. Should be lots of fun.

Trip through Panama

                                Dec 19 0730hrs

    We put Second Star in a marina so we could be plugged in to shore power while we were away. The trip with Don and Rita was sooo much fun. We took the water taxi across first thing Fri morning. The rental car was delivered (late of course) and we set out. The drive across the mountains was beautiful but a bit rainy. I think it was challenging driving for Don, but the rest of us got to sit back and enjoy the scenery. We had a quick lunch on the road and got into Volcan in the early afternoon. Don and Rita had planned the trip to share places they had gone 15 years ago. We stopped to look at a trout farm they had visited back then and then for some awesome strawberries and cream. The cabin we were headed for, to spend the first night, is just a little north of Cerro Punto. It’s at about 7500 ft. You have to do some serious four wheel driving to get to it and it doesn’t have electricity except one car battery that runs a power strip with a wi-fi router plugged into it. It has a wood stove for heat (and it was cold up there), a gas stove for cooking and propane lamps for light. We were surrounded by stunning rain forest with a big stream running just the other side of the “road” in front of the cabin. The water falling over the boulders was a wonderful sound. It rained over night, which was very loud on the roof, and between that, the altitude and a cocktail and wine with dinner (no, we really didn’t drink that much), Don, Rita and I had fierce headaches that made it difficult to sleep. But, in the morning, the sun came out, we had really good coffee, courtesy of Capt Johne, and some Advil, and we got to hike though the fresh, wet, shining forest. Rita had brought her fly rod and she was very excited when she actually caught a little trout.

                                1400hrs
    I took a break from writing to clean, put up the holiday decorations, and make, eat and clean up after lunch. Now back to the trip.
    We left the cabin, drove back down the mountain, and headed for Boquete. On the way we stopped in Volcan, at an archeological site. The lady who gave the tour was very interesting and very knowledgeable (although, Johne did some research later and some of what she told us was myth not fact). It was an amazing site both for the archeological history and the botany. The variety of plants was awesome and  we got quite an education on them.
    After that we had lunch and then hit the road again. When we got into Boquete we started looking for hotel having not made reservations in advance there. We drove though town and then back up into the mountains on the other side. We happened across the most interesting rock formation. It was a place where the lava had flowed and cool quickly in layers and then an earthquake had shifted the wall, so it looked like 6x6 lumber made of rock and not laid quite right. It was really cool looking.
    We went back into town, found a room, had dinner and made plans for the morning. ZIPLINING!!!
    Okay, let me just start by saying, if you’re not afraid of heights, and you have the opportunity, DO IT! We had sooo much fun. There was a miss communication about which office we were supposed to be at so we ended up waiting for an hour for them to show up in the morning. But that only put a small and temporary damper on the experience. We were the only ones signed up that morning so we got their undivided attention once they showed up. The ride up to the first platform in the truck was cool by it self. Don road up with us even though he didn’t want to do the zipline. He had a very nice walk back down while we did the ride. Rita and I giggled almost none stop until we got back to the lodge and probably for a while after that. It’s exhilarating and the view (though it went by fast) was amazing. This site was over a gorge with a stream and water falls. The lines go in and out of the jungle canopy. We did 12 lines and it took about half an hour. What a great experience.
    After that we had another strawberry fix then headed back down to David to do some shopping. That part of the trip was a little stressful but, after going to 4 big stores, 2 of them twice, it was time to get a room, have dinner, and get a little sleep before heading back to Bocas at 0-dark-30 the next morning.
    The drive back was even better than the drive over (no rain) and we made good time. But when we got back to Almirante the rental car place said they didn’t have anyone to come pick up the car, so Don and Rita drop us, with most of the stuff, off at the water taxi and drove the car back to Changuinola.
    We got the groceries and luggage back to the boats and spent the rest of the day putting stuff away and taking care of the needy cat.
    Yesterday and today we’ve been working on the new A/C project and getting the boat ready for the solstice party on Friday. We’ll be going back out on the anchor tomorrow…

Dec 3-12

Dec 3 2000hrs
From Dolphin bay.
We came here this morning just to pass through on our way back to anchor by town. But we were invited to dinner on Meow, a sailing cat, anchored out here, that was anchored next to us in town a couple of weeks ago. We’re not on a schedule, and in no hurry to get back, so we decided to stay out here for the day and over night tonight and head back in tomorrow.
This is another beautiful location. I’ve only seen one dolphin so far, but the water, the mangroves and the surrounding mountains are stunning. We went to BEN (Bocas Emergency Network, part of the VHF net here in Bocas) 63’s house this afternoon. We met them at  Rana Azul yesterday and they’d invited us to stop by. A very nice family from the UK that winter down here. It’s just on the other side of the mangroves and an easy dinghy ride from where we are currently anchored.
In the morning, Gino and Mel from Meow will be coming over for coffee and orange pinwheels. Then we’ll be heading back up to the anchorage off Bocas (probably).

Dec 12 1030hrs
Wow, I haven’t written anything in over a week. Gotta catch up.
It’s been a good week (for the most part). Lot of sun. Almost no rain. More good socializing. A swap meet (we sold a couple of things-less stuff, more money, woo hoo). The not-so-good part was the R/O springing another O-ring leak. We’d gotten complacent about checking on it very often because it’s been doing so well for quite a while. So we didn’t catch it right away. This was a bad one, filling the tool drawers with salt water, so we had to remove, clean and reorganize all of our large supply of tools before dealing with the water maker, which has now been moved to the engine room so when it leaks again it will go to the bilge and not ruin anything. It’s good to have that job done.
In the socializing category; We went to a BBQ at BEN 7’s house last Thursday. It was an interesting group of people, good conversation, good food and fun to get to know more of the community. We’ve spent more time with Don and Rita, and we have plans to go on a road trip with them this weekend. And today we’re going to a B-day party for Moe of BEN 63.
The only snorkeling I’ve been doing is in the mangroves right by the anchorage but there’s a little coral and some pretty fish here and I saw a small spotted eagle ray the last time I was in. Also, the mangrove roots are interesting to look at under the water and they house many very small fish.

I’ll try to stay on top of  writing about the trip this weekend and keeping more up to date…

Next Bocas update

Nov 22 2000hrs

It’s Thanksgiving evening. As is usual for the day, I’m sitting on the couch, feeling a little fuller than is most comfortable, enjoying the after glow of a nice day with good friends. I spent the morning baking, pies, bread and rolls. Don and Rita came for dinner at about 1300hrs and for the next four  hours we all talked and ate and laughed and ate and drank and ate and laughed some more. As I was finishing up the prep work an setting the table (tablecloth, 2 knifes, 2 forks, a spoon, a napkin and a wine glass at each place) I thought; this really feels like a holiday. Sometimes, with our lifestyle, holidays we use to celebrate get lost in the shuffle. Sometimes you get extra holidays you never knew about before. Just a few days ago was Bocas day. There were marching bands, and fireworks and miss Bocas was crowned. But this felt like Thanksgiving. Even though we didn’t have turkey, it felt right and we are very thankful.

Nov 24 1500hrs
Yesterday we took Second Star to Almirante, about 10 miles across the bay, to get fuel, which is $0.46 a gallon cheaper than here. Don and Rita came along for the ride and we had a very pleasant trip over and back. We put about 550 gallons aboard, which should last us about six months, if we don’t go very far. While living on anchor, our expenses are just fuel for the generator, food and play. We have a good supply of dry goods (rice, flour, sugar…) and now we’re well stocked on fuel, so we should be able to live very frugally for quite a while.
While we were on the mainland I was able to get an internet modem so we, once again, have internet onboard. It was a very productive day.
Today’s been pretty quiet. Capt. Johne’s a bit under the weather and it’s been raining most of the day. I just went for a swim to check that the anchor had set well after yesterdays  trip. They’re predicting strong winds tomorrow and we don’t want to be playing bumper boats in the anchorage.

Nov 26 0730hrs
Yesterday, in spite of the fact that we put the snake back in the mangroves, I was thinking we should be going out and collecting all the animals 2 by 2, and bring them aboard the boat. But it stopped raining last night, and this morning the sun is peeking through the clouds. The good news about all the rain is we’ve gotten lots of reading and baking time. Hopefully we’ll be able to get out today, without getting soaked.

Dec 2 0745hrs
We’ve had a couple of sunny days now. But they say Dec is just as rainy as Nov, so I don’t know how long it will last. This morning has dawned bright and beautiful. Today we’re planning to take an overnight trip to one of the outlying bays. This area of archipelagos is very spread out, with parts of the community on outlying islands, so there will be lots of over night adventures as we explore the area.
19145hrs
Well, we’ve gotten to know a few more people in the community now. There is a restaurant at the very end of a bay on the south-west side of Isla San Cristobal called Rana Azul (blue frog). They’re only accessible by boat and only open Friday nights and Sunday afternoons. Definitely a destination restaurant. You can’t just stumble across it. We’d heard about it on the VHF morning cruisers net, and our friend Capt Ray was going to be there today, so we made the 8 mile, hour-and-a-half trip in Second Star to anchor down here, see some new sights and meet some new people. Now, some of the people we met were people we were somewhat familiar with from the net. It was interesting to put faces with the voices from the radio. We’ve had invitations to come and anchor by some of their homes in other parts of the archipelago. We’re really looking forward to Dolphin Bay. Apparently the dolphins breed there and there are always families of them around. Anyway, today was lots of mojitos, beer, food and fun with very interesting people…

Bocas Del Toro

                                Nov 13 0930

    Yesterday we had sun in the afternoon and took full advantage of it to go for a snorkel. As rough and stormy as it’s been, the visibility wasn’t great but if you swam down so you were close to the coral and fish it was really cool. There was a wall, which we want to go back and do with tanks, that had loads off fun things to see. It goes from about 6ft to 30 or more almost straight down. It’s my first wall and I’m looking forward to exploring it more. It’s close to the anchorage and has a mooring ball so it’s easy to get there and you don’t have to worry about hurting the coral with your anchor. It’ll be amazing when it’s calmer.
    We’re working on getting settled in here since we expect to be here for a bit. We’ll be getting a modem for internet but the store was out of them and won’t get more in until mid week (tropical time, so which week I don‘t know). We’ve walk around town enough to have a good since of the stores (grocery, hardware, etc) and the restaurants. The cruiser community here is large and very active. We’ve seen people we’d met in Isla and have made some new acquaintances, some of whom, I’m sure, will become good friends.

                                1600 hrs
    We’ve have a little sun today and got another snorkel in. The  spot we went today has old concrete pilings with quite a variety of coral and anemones  growing on them. The fish swimming around the pilings were small, but varied and colorful. This spot is inside the bay, so it’s a bit calmer than where we went yesterday. The clarity of the water was much better and it was shallow, so the colors were vivid especially when the sun came out.

                                Nov 15 1830hrs
    It rained all day yesterday, but today the sun has been out and, again, we took full advantage. After lunch, we took a long ride in Hook, around to the far end of Isla Bastimentos, one of the five main islands in the Bocas del Toro Archipelago. We ran through the cut and out to a beautiful spot of reef to snorkel. One of the really nice things they have done here is put in mooring balls in the reef areas that anyone can tie up to, so it’s very easy to find a ball in a nice spot, tie off, and go in with no anchor stress.
    This section of reef was very colorful and vibrant. There weren’t many big fish, but lots and lots of little, beautiful, tropical fish. I can’t stress the colors enough. Both the fish and the coral had various shades of reds, blues, yellows, greens, oranges, purples, tans, browns,  black, white and silver. There wasn’t a lot of current so you could float over one area and just watch what came and went. There are so many different forms of life interacting, it’s just amazing to watch.

                                Nov 16 1030hrs
    Bob and Johne have gone fishing this morning. I’ve just been doing the usual morning boat chores. Tomorrow is Bob’s last day here. He’ll fly to Panama City, then on home from there. His time here flew by and we’ll be sorry to see him go.

                                Nov 21 1240hrs
    I’m sitting on the couch in the saloon. It’s raining again. We still don’t have internet onboard. The people at the store where we’ve been trying to get the modem have switched from saying they‘ll be in “manana”, to “next week”. We’ll need to go into town in a bit (hopefully when it stops raining) to take care of some things online.
    We had Capt Ray, an x-pat cruiser who’s been here for several years, aboard this morning to pass along some of his recommendations of fun things to do and places to snorkel and dive around the area. We had met him in Isla Mujeres and he’s been very welcoming and helpful since we arrived here.
    We also had another guest aboard this morning. When Capt Johne went out on the aft deck to have his breakfast this morning, there was a baby red tailed boa on the rail of the wet deck. He came in to get the camera and told me to look out the port. What a treat! We decided that if we just left it there either a bird would get it or it would find it’s way into the boat, hide, and probably starve to death. So, I picked it up snuggled it warm, and it’s now asleep inside my shirt. We’ll take it out to the mangroves this afternoon and put it back in the wild where it belongs. It’s very small. Only about 20” long and no bigger around at the neck than my finger. It’s a very pretty little thing. It will be hard for me to release it but the boat is not a good place for a snake and it won’t stay small. The one I had, that now lives with my sister, is now 7 ½ or 8 feet long and weighs 35-40lbs (I think). But it’s been fun having this one visiting, even if I can‘t keep it...