Day 11 & 12: Fri-Sat 15th-16th April - 09*02'S, 119*46'W (M/N Sat) Routine

It must be because we are getting mid way between stations, but reception to Sailmail masts is becoming very difficult. We have been transmitting through Panama up to now; however, HPPM2 has been uncontactable for 2 days.  Mahini on the Tuomotos is the next station west, a long way and too many people trying to use it (one user only at a time).  Last night I just managed to get through via Honolulu!  Hence I give you a 2 day update in one.  

Day 11 and 12 have been fairly routine, if any day is routine. Spectacular sunrises are becoming the norm - we are still waiting for a really good sunset.  Sun during the morning, then cloud, bringing more wind and big seas.  The moon is ever increasing in size and dominated the night sky from 8pm until 4-5am.  The big chop sends us one way then the other, causing the main and the headsail to flap and bang (technical terms!).  Still maintaining a direct course to Hiva Oa (266*) with headsail on the port pole - goosewinged, or wing-on-wing as I have seen it described.  We had a slow nights over Friday and Saturday, so the daily totals were down to 157 and 160.  Some other shipping activity - one AIS contact, commercial vessel Southern Harmony passed within 30 miles at night, too far to see any lights. Pork steaks, and another beef stew, made for wholesome eating at supper time.

We are approaching the 2000 completed, 1000 to go mark soon, likely tomorrow lunchtime and sundowners.  Will keep you posted - subject to clear airwaves!!

Day 10: Thu 14th April - 08*52'S, 114*33'W (Midnight) Mid Way - Yeehaa!

Big seas are dominating our world at the moment.  We are being rolled around by a big swell coming from the south, we know not why.  The winds have been steady at 15-20 knots from the E/SE, and our daily mileage is still excellent (175nm today). Consequently, it's difficult to get a good sleep in the stern cabin as it suffers most from the turbulence of the swell. The 3/3/2/2 hour watch is still working for us, with catch-up time during the day when it suits.

The big news today is crossing the half way point.  We captured the 1525 mile on camera at 1.35pm today, that's 9 days and 1.5 hours since leaving Galapagos. An average of 7.01 knots!!  If ....... if we can maintain that average, we are due to arrive lunchtime on the 23rd, St George's Day!  Those who have arrived in the Marquesas recently talk of light winds as they approached, so if the average slows we still have a good chance of being there by Tuesday 26th April, that's the 3 week point.  That will be absolutely fantastic.

I haven't described how our provisioning has been panning out.  The huge (I mean humungous) bunch of bananas have ripened far quicker than we could eat them. They suffered on the first night hanging in the gantry and bouncing around. That took care of a 1/4 of them. We have steadily eaten through another 1/4.  We have discarded those going rotten (another 1/4), and we are desperately trying to do justice to the remaining 25! Red and green cabbage seem to be surviving the elements, as are the potatoes. Meat in the freezer has been just delicious, great cuts from fairly primitive butchers counters in the Santa Cruz market. We are 1/3 through our drinking water supply, and tonic and ginger supplies are holding up fine!

Washing day today, and sun plenteous enough to hang clothes out to dry. Cake baking, yes lime drizzle cake though without the icing (no icing sugar for love nor money in Galapagos).  Tea at 3 just couldn't get any better.  For supper, beef stew and mashed potatoes cooked, for the first time, in the new pressure cooker.  The meat was melt-in-your-mouth. 

If the seas could moderate just a tiny bit, we could live here.

Day 9: Wed 13th April - 08*59'S, 111*37'W (Midnight) Washing Machine Day

An unusual morning today. To put it into context, allow me to try to describe our sailing conditions, for we have now adopted a sailing rig which has endured unaltered for about 24 hours:

The wind is steady at around 18-25 knots.  It's a SE blow, sometimes directly from the east, and we are sailing almost directly west, so the wind is coming from behind us, slightly over our left shoulders.  With our main sail on the starboard side, right out, and the headsail on the opposite side (port side, left), we have a 'catch the wind' effect in the sails.  It's not the fastest point of sail but pretty good.  There are 2 disadvantages: first, you have to have a good helmsman, because if you go off course a bit, everything starts to fall apart.  Luckily we have James (the autopilot) who is doing a sterling job (and we are training Aunty Marg, who's not quite their yet, or more precisely, she is but we're not yet!). The second is that the motion of the boat is like corkscrewing through the water, a little roll and a little pitch, mostly in harmony so it's reasonable but occasionally a big wave will knock us off tune, and Laros will pitch, or roll, or pitch and roll off the back of the wave.  So we have pitch, and rock and roll, with plenty of drive.  Elvis would be pleased.

Now, enter the washing machine.  Shall we say 65 kgs in weight?  Put into a locker back in 2014 which housed the water heater (25 litre size, so not big) and the back end of the HF radio equipment, something the size of a car CD payer on steroids.  It was a tight squeeze to say the least. And, although Johnny did not fit it, he did all the planning work, so luckily knows where everything is and how it goes.

Let's put all this together.  The problem (the dodging circuit, from yesterday) is, almost certainly (??), a damp connection at the point of supply to the washing machine and water heater (on the same switch) so that when you switch on, the RCD blows (the thing that registers there's something wrong in the circuit).  And, as you know or perhaps have guessed, the connection is underneath the washing machine.  So it has to come out of the locker, all 65 kgs of it - in this rock and roll effect. Luckily not at night!  So there is J, stripped down to almost nothing with the sun blaring in through the hatch, not even with the consolation of gloves as the locker fit is too tight, ready for the fight.  And ........ it couldn't have been easier ..... until the point he realised the washing machine needed to go on the floor, not just resting on the toilet seat.  It was too late to wish he had put shoes on, as with one lurch at the wrong time, it could be blood on the carpet and broken toes. And would it fit on the floor anyway? It did, and J did it. The wiring I suppose was the easy bit.  Not sure exactly what was wrong - a number of candidates, but easily fixed once the hard grind was over.  Oh, did anybody remind J he had to put the whole thing back in again?

As if a bit-part in today's activity, Deb made pau pau chutney and a great cottage pie with peas for supper.  It was the most brilliant sunrise of any yet, possibly even the first sunrise we've seen since our departure from the Galapagos, because of cloud.  And the sun and the stars were all very welcome in their turn.  A great Day 9.

Day 8: Tue 12th April - 09*15'S, 108*49'W (Midnight) Time Zone Change

We have, at last, found on board time zones of the Pacific.  Instead of 2.5 hours difference between Galapagos and the Marquesas, it is 4!!  So we had better get on with a bit of time changing.  Plus, sundowners at 6pm now isn't sundowners anymore.  Bit of a giveaway really, I guess.  So we went for a double hour in the afternoon, 3pm became 2pm.  And, as if by magic, we were sipping our G&T and W&G as the sun was going down.  Now we have to decide when to do the next 3 changes.  The last one can be as we arrive, of course, so at least another 2.  Maybe at 1750 miles and 2250 miles complete.  Or maybe we just let the sun dictate!

Today was fairly routine.  The wind has been blowing hard early this morning, but moderated enough to fill out the full head sail. We are still heading slightly south of west until we reach around the 9*S latitude (which we have done by midnight), and then we will head west and probably a little north of west.  A big of a zig-zag pattern tomorrow perhaps, depending on how the headsail flies on the pole, out to port.  Johnny cooked his rather superb spag bol (haven't had this for ...... oh ........ 5 days!).  Enough left over to make something for tomorrow's supper, maybe cottage pie and peas. There seems to be a short-circuit of the water heater switch which came to light today when everything being run by the generator closed down.  This is going to be painful, as I know the electrical connection is under the washing machine, in the tightest fitting locker you have ever seen.  And, the w/m is not light!  A joy for tomorrow.  But essential as dirty clothes are beginning to pile up.  One just cannot hand wash.

Lunchtime today marked our first full week.  We are incredibly pleased that we have had good wind, for the most part, all the way through Week 1.  The forecast looks reasonably settled for about the same in the next 3-4 days.  Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Day 7: Mon 11th April - 08*44'S, 105*57'W (Midnight) Day of Thirds (One Third/Two Thirds)

Today we crossed the 1000 miles completed line, at midday (give or take a few minutes).  We were pleased as the last 24 hours had been ups and downs in the rain squalls.  We have been communicating with others crossing the Pacific on the Pan Pacific net at 7am.  Lots of sailing boats are sitting in the rain clouds with little wind, so we have been luckier having traveled sufficiently south to miss the worst of it.  It is reassuring to hear the voices of others also crossing this huge expanse of ocean! One third down.

And two thirds to go.  We have set the GPS to a waypoint at Hiva Oa, our port of entry in the Marquesas Islands.  It registered 1999 miles to go just at 6pm as the sundowners were coming up into the cockpit.  Timing is everything, they say, and today's could not have been better.  Our weather has improved markedly, with sunshine and white billowy clouds,  The characteristic SE Trades puff balls have yet to return.  The grib file forecast looks good for moderate SE winds for the next 4-5 days at least. At some point tomorrow we shall head more west as we within 60 miles of the same latitude as Hiva Oa. And, more importantly, the paper chart on the chart table only reaches down to 11*s so we have to head west to stay on our paper world (aaahhh......that's why the early navigators thought they would fall of the edge of the world!!).

We are slowly eating into our provisions, though some, like the fresh bananas, are going to go out before we have the chance to do them justice. We are still enjoying baguettes from Santa Cruz supermarket which have kept well in the fridge. This evening we enjoyed a simple fried chicken dish with potato and salad - Deb needed her salad. Tomorrow, onto beef, I think, with a pau pau chutney freshly made, provided the weather will allow a stable enough platform to cook chutney!

I leave you with today's mileage - another cracking 174 nm.

Day 6: Sun 10th April - 07*49'S, 103*13'W (Midnight) Our First Wind Hole

A night of strong wind found us down to 2 reefs in both the main and the head sail, and still romping along at 7 knots.  We now had more west in the course, bobbing between 255-265*, still with Aunty Marg steering.  We decided to put James back in control as Aunty Marg hadn't fully settled into her rightly place yet - more tweeking required.  Not his fault, but soon the dark rain clouds we have been trying to avoid for the last few days rolled down on us from the north.  Torrential rain, and a complete reversal of winds: now from the N to NW and variable in strength, sometimes down to 5 knots.  By late afternoon, it was distinctly miserable to look outside our enclosed environment. By sun-downers, and Deb's first sniff of the strong stuff in her ginger this evening - things looking up, the wind had died. So, in search of better wind, we engaged the main engine (hasn't a name), and headed slightly further south, using precious diesel to get away from the rain clouds.  At midnight ...........

Culinary delights are beginning to emanate from the galley. Some benefits of little wind!  From a stable cooker came a magnificent creamy Parmesan chicken ...... dish, with butterfly pasta.  Fantastic.  Nothing left for tomorrow's lunch. And then into night routine, waiting for the wind!

We changed the card in our Navionics today, from Central America to Aus/NZ/Pacific.  Seemed like the thing to do. Almost seems as if we are there, already.  One pitfall: we lost our trip from Galapagos having to switch of the chart plotters.  Never mind, we have the record of where we were, just a matter of resetting the trip at the 1000 nm point, and adding 1000 to the display.  We ought to reach it sometime around midday tomorrow - one of THE milestones.  And breaking 2000 nm to go can't be far behind that.

Day 5: Sat 9th April - 06*52'S, 100*55'W (Midnight) Seems like it's drying up!

In all events, today has seemed to be a much better day.  We have had quite some sunshine, marked by the solar panels pumping lots of amps (or should it be watts?) into the batteries.  Fridge and freezer are now down to proper temperature, something that alluded us on the Atlantic crossing trip.  Shower day today, by choice rather than restriction of water.  Our tanks are pretty full, so it's a matter of wanting a shower, or will the brush go through the hair anymore?  Adventure in the galley must wait until at least tomorrow, as the ride is still too bumpy for Deb, and Johnny has to rev up to culinary delights. Nevertheless, we enjoyed mashed potatoe (again, perfect) and salad nicoise, egg perfectly boiled.  Sailing has been dominated by the SEasterlies on a beam reach, achieving over 7.5 knots/hour (178 nm today).  By tomorrow morning we should have reached 7*30'S, which marks the southern edge of the rain storm belt.  Then we can turn a bit more west.  The Marquesas should then be something like 265* heading.

So, Aunty Marg.  She was Johnny's elderly aunt who died in 2015. She was bright as a button to the end, let you know which way she was going, always in a quiet, thoughtful, calm and very precise way. We felt she would be an ideal guide across oceans.  So, Aunty Marg is with now.  She performed superbly for the whole day.  Easy to engage her, once remote cord and pulley deployed, and her pins pulled out (not quite sure where that analogy lies), and steady as she goes all day and all night.  A little hesitant either side of the intended course unless the boat is truly balanced, but without power consumption, and without murmur of dissent, and won't click off unbeknownst.  A true rock.  Oh, sorry ....... Aunty Marg is the Hydrovane wind vane steering gear.

Night watches needed tweeking, as witnessed by J's nodding head as Deb came on watch at 3am.  Let's try that 3,3,2,2 hour routine we talked about, shall we?!  A passing commercial ship, thank goodness on AIS (Auto ID Sys), and brilliant lightning way off in the north were the only events of the night.  Goodnight Day 5.  Good morning Day 6.

Day 4: Fri 8th April - 05*58'S, 098*07'W Rain and Swell

As day broke, it promised to be a glorious bright typical warm SE Trades day. The sunrise was spectacular, with an orange glow followed by a horizon of orange-backed characteristic puff ball clouds. The warmth after a cool night, trackie bottoms no less, was a delight. We've started a bit of a routine at 9pm, with J doing 3 hours watch, then D 3 hours, then J pushing through from 3am to 7 or 8am, depending on how Deb has slept. Maybe it's just getting over the tum and the first few days.  Needless to say Johnny then sleeps for Britain after breakfast. Meals have been plain, though this evening can only be described as comfort food: mashed potatoe (Galapagos best,and very tasty - we have many!), boiled egg, yolk almost runny, and left over rice and curry for J from last night. All eaten from the ubiquitous dog bowls.  How good is that?  Smiles all round in this cockpit, washed down by a coke and a Bia Saigon (yes, beer from Vietnam - special price in Panama!).  

The rain and swell.  Well, it's rained the proverbial here.  At one stage you could'nt see the sea surface for pelting rain. Despite our all round protection, water has got in and the cushions have been variously, dry, damp, soaking, or drying, but mostly not dry.  It has been a day for ducks, but none in sight.  One small black surface dancing bird, and a gull of dubious description. No ships, no lights, just an expanse of wet sea.  Wind there has been. In between the squalls, it has blown around 20 knots SE.  We started the day heading SW, so a great beam reach at 7-8 knots again.  As the wind kicked in amid the squalls, we have tended further west to reduce the increased  apparent wind.  The forecast shows stronger winds south of us too. But more rain shadows chasing us from the north tomorrow. At least we put the miles on the scorecard; we recorded 175 miles this 24 hours.  As I write we are 611 miles out of Galapagos in 7 hours under 4 days.  We've made a good start at least.

For those of you who have sailed with us over night, we have found the energy thief. At last we can hit the big screen Powersave at will.  Yes, you Raymarine gurus, it was the radar on standby, all these last 3 years. With our wind gen producing 4 amps in these winds, we have battery power through the night.

A windy and wet weekend in prospect we think.  Then drier and sunnier weather next week starting on Monday.  By then, we hope to be putting more west into our track, with the headsail on the pole.  Thank you for all your emails and news. Keep them coming. We shall await all your pictures in 3 weeks! We have set upon around 2200 UTC as our best Panama hit on the HF link, 4pm our time.  That reminds me, we should think Clock Change sometime soon!  And I must tell you about Aunty Marg!

Day 3: Thu 7th April - 04*48'S, 96*00'W The SE Trades Constancy

As I sit at the chart table and type this blog, at 3am at the beginning of a 2 hr watch, I muse at the ridiculousness of my situation. At both one and the same time, I am in the most familiar, and the least common, environment ever.  I am sitting in my home in the middle of thousands of square miles of salt water, sitting in front of a computer screen with my life-jacket on. And I pop up the stairs to check for lights on the horizon to be met with a blaze of stars, the milky way, and a constant warm 20 knot SE breeze propelling this beautiful yacht of ours along at a wonderful 7-8 knots.  She broke her all time (Sernberg ownership) record today (that's midnight to midnight just passed) by achieving 179 nautical miles in 24 hours, a cracking 7 and 3/4 kt/hour average.  That represents 18 days to the Marquesas, not that we are going to do that 'cos there's lots of holes in the wind, and those little challenges along the way, to come yet.  But coming up on watch to have the constancy of that passage over the last 12 hours is, as they say, awesome.  Wondrous.

Back to reality, though.  Yesterday, started with rain, lots of it, bucketing down at one stage, so much that we could have filled our water tanks if we'd had the apparatus. Should we, one muses?  It would have been unpleasant had we not been dry within our lovely cockpit tent.  Johnny was tempted to shower again on the back deck, but one can have too much of a good thing! It was a timely reminder that big rain storms are around these parts; they are thankfully represented on the grib files if your request it.  The latest shows a huge swath of rain on the 4-5S latitudes spreading west going our way.  Head south, my boy, head south.  Hence our 7-8 knots SW.  By midday on our 4th day we should be south enough to miss the bad stuff, and be able to think of a more westerly track.  Somewhere around 6S/96W perhaps.

Deb is suffering an upset tum at the moment, but being valiant on her watch duty and checking the plumbing regularly. Cooking has been relegated to a basic essential, cereal and fruit (eating into the multitude of those ripening bananas), an easy spam and tomato roll for lunch, and heating some of the pre-cooked meals for supper.  As our routine and constitutions stabilize, we will both no doubt become more adventurous in the galley, for it is there that the morale-boosting stuff is created.  AND, our new addition on board, from of all places San Cristobel Galapagos, is Pat the pressure cooker.  New to us though much recommended throughout the sailing fraternity. Oh, the joys of experimentation to come!  Sadly, we had to say goodbye to the electric frying pan in Galapagos without a chance of replacement (we could have bought one too, but it's that 110 versus 240 volts conundrum).  We shall have cake again soon!  Not to rival the cake baking on Haven though, who we hear from regularly. 

My rambling time is nearly up.  The radio transmission routine still needs tweeking so these posts are likely to be randomly timed.  I seem to be able to guarantee good transmission speeds to Panama at 4pm, but all else seems hit and miss. Until the next time ........

Day 2 - 00*05'S, 92*05'W Couldn't Be More Different

If we had started out in blue skies, and great winds, today became the reality of changeable weather.  The 3 metre swell dominated the night, causing Laros to bounce about from pillar to post, and everything inside her.  Winds were unpredictable and variable strength.  By 7.30pm, we were down to 5 knots of wind, and so on went the engine. Chug, chug, for the rest of the night, as we predicted. We tried a 3, 3, 2, 2, hour watch duration starting at 9pm. By dawn, the wind was increasing, sufficient to try some sails again.  It was not until 9.30am that we were able to switch of the engine and do some passable sailing.  Intermittent heavy rain, thick rolling clouds, and a coolness we haven't experienced for some time conspired to make our first full day unpleasant. Thank goodness for the enclosed boom tent.  For the most part, it kept us dry. Precooked beef curry and rice, with one of the many bananas on board, concluded daylight Day 2, accompanied of course with a sundowner of choice. And so, into the night routine.  We had set an arbitary waypoint co-located with the top right corner of a grib-file box looking as if it should produce more wind. As if by magic, 12 miles out, the SE trades began to blow.  At first 12-15 knots, and then up to 22 kts. Up went the full genoa, our trusty headsail, and along Laros romped at 7-8 kts.  Stars came out, the air dried a little, although one small rain squall managed to catch Deb, and morale began to rise.  After 30 hours and 208 miles, we have hit the Trades.  Our course is taking us 225* SW deeper into the Trade belt, until we hit something like 6*S when we shall turn more westerly and fly the headsail on the pole.  We keep our fingers crossed for these winds to stay with us.

Day 1 - Fair thee well the Galapagos Islands

We can hardly believe we are finally on our way.  Seems like Laros has been in Santa Cruz at anchor for weeks. We obtained our visa on 17th March, for a single port 20 day stay expiring on the 7th, and winds are forecast for some breeze out of the Galapagos south, so here we are - on our way.  We met many sailing friends in the town last night for supper and wished them well for their trip west in due course.  This morning we picked up gas bottles topped up for the crossing, having purchased a massive bottle yesterday as the baking gas tank - we can now relax about gas usage. Who says you can't buy gas in the Galapagos, in fact probably anything if you know where to go.

We have motored 2 hours while we cleared the headland and reef to the south of Pueuto Ayora and untaggled the cruising chute.  Then up it went, engine off, and 6.5-7 knots speed over the ground. There seems to be a good current going our way, maybe 1.5-2 knots, so we can notch up a good start. As the afternoon sun begins to set, tea is brewing in the pot, passion fruit drizzle cake is cut with extra passion-fruit curd spread on top, and the fishing line is idly tended. Pre-cooked spag bog is thawing, and sun-downers mixers are in the freezer chilling. We even have ice.  How can the world be so kind to us?  We anticipate the wind dropping soon, so I predict the steady beat of the engine all night. Fingers crossed the wind comes up again tomorrow morning. Our great friends on Haven Kerry and Bruce reported having to reach 3 degs 30 mins South before really good wind kicked in.  That should be us in about 24 hours. We are waiting for the grib files download to come in via Sailmail (these are weather pictures in wind icon form), so I'll let you know how we have faired.

Galapagos - as good as they say ....

Our first stop Santa Cruz, not the administrative capital, but certainly the centre of everything that makes up this archipelago on the Equator. Numerous islands to visit and so much wildlife at your doorstep, it is sometimes bewildering. The government  (hard to work out whether Equador or Galapagos) has regulated almost everything. The national park remains at the centre of every notion, from preservation, through ecology, to tourism, all underpinned by bureaucracy. To the unseasoned eye, there might seem an element of free enterprise going on. It doesn't take long to work out that everything ticks to the governmental clock, not always terribly quickly.

Our first experience was classic. We arrived on the NE coast of Santa Cruz island purposely just after sunrise. We motored down the coast, getting a feel of the desolate landscape of volcanic Galapagos.  Passed Gordon Rocks, passed Caamano Islet, a long sandy beach here and there, then round to the south, and into Puerto Ayora, seemingly the mecca of tourist boats. Caught up in the bureaucracy of boat visas, we paid our king's ransom for a one port entry. Laros has stayed at anchor, sturdily, in one spot for our 20 day stay, with tourist and dive motor boats coming and going, some in the middle of the night, and some in most unseamanlike ways. The process of inspection, though, has to be THE bureaucratic highlight. Within 2 hours of arrival, 6 officials had boarded Laros, with a 7th diver inspecting the hull -lucky we had been warned to reclean the waterline as soon as we arrived! Why we were treated to a doctor's visit, we remain to understand, except he did remove all out of date medicines, much to Deb's annoyance. While Johnny signed his life away, the diver gave the thumbs up,  all clean. No fumigation required for Laros, stories abound from other boats having to leave the boat for 4 hours after. We passed all requirements.  Entry complete. The government hand satiated, for the time being. Go see the Islands!

So we did. Poor Philip had to depart almost as soon as he arrived, to catch his flight from the north island of Baltra. Tony had more days available. So, we 3 remaining decided upon a few days in Santa Cruz followed by 3 days/2 nights on Isabella the largest island to the west, reached by fast small motor boat ferry. There we swam with turtles, sealions and rays close to the harbour, walked to and around the volcano Cerro Nero and Cinco, and lazily strolled the length of playa Salinas. Pelicans and iguanas abound, so close to be within touch. A beautiful, quiet, unspoilt island in slowly succumbing to modern tourism. We stayed in a lovely B&B, Sula Sula, where we enjoyed the experience of local hospitality - and air con! Some benefits of having to leave your floating home for a short while.

We returned to Laros and bade Tony farewell. Our visitors gone, we returned to boat routine - and maintenance -  and you can guess can't you ...... the generator.  How can a salt water pump, only 20 hours old turn up its toes? They say Galapagos is not a good place for boat repairs. We know different. Our agent, a young man by the name of Marvin , came up trumps, so generator, diesel, water, electric frying pan, as well as all the paperwork, reappeared repaired and ready for the next leg. Together with a new pressure cooker purchased on San Cristobal, we have never been so well served.

Our last excursion was a 4 day/3 night stay on San Cristobal to the east (was it the air-con again which extended the visit?).  We shared a tour of the laguna, turtle breeding sanctuary and Playa Cinco with a year-long travelling Italian/Venezuelan couple. We snorkelled and dived on Kicker Rock to the west, and visited the Interpretation Centre and Playa Carola.  On our third night we joined many familiar sailing faces at a tucked-away bar/restaurant for a music and catchup night. We are so lucky to be sailing in loose company with so many talented and different nationals. Backgrounds and experiences are so varied and colourful. One common thread is direction of sail. How many are not heading for NZ?  Ah, yes, well Bill and Cathy on Terrwyn did leave on 1st April going way south heading to Hawaii 4000 miles to the north. That's the prevailing conditions for you.

So, as prepared as we can be, we finalised our provisioning and documentation,  and made plans for the Marquesas.  The call of the ocean, sailing across the South Pacific, and the attraction of a new culture in French Polynesia and the geology of the Marquesas islands and the Tuomotos, is enticing. We have done the Galapagos.

Panama to Galapagos - the reality of the dream

Three days in the La Playita anchorage gave us the chance to complete our provisioning, do some additional siteseeing, for Tony a must, and to stock up on odds and ends, like lures and hooks for the big fish of the Pacific. Roger the Taxi did us proud, ferrying to and fro. Pricesmart proved to be a good cash and carry with Riba Smith filling in around the edges. Pacific Puddle Jump conference on Monday proved fascinating, adding colour and anticipation to our preconceptions of the Pacific, particularly Marquesas and Tahiti.  Diesel and water replenished and tanks full, we declared ourselves ready to set off for the Las Perlas islands. For Philip, this would be his first real sail. Oh dear, little wind and much motoring on our first day out, Wednesday 9th March.  Hook over the side and a little prayer. Somebody was definitely listening for, as we came into the red algae waters of Las Perlas,  3 fish jumped onto our hooks. We managed to land two out of three. Not bad. Both tuna and enough to feed 4 hungry mouths. You can't  beat fresh fish!

We were passing through Las Perlas islands, so chose an inhabited island, with the  best chance of picking up wifi for our last evening. Most important, though,  cleaning the hull before derating tomorrow. So, under we went, with scourers in hand.  The Copper Coat antifoul was quite easy to rub clean, though the waterline and the keel,  2 metres down, proved a bit more difficult . Nevertheless,  all sorted by 11am next morning, and ready for our departure to Galapagos 7 days away.

As we motored SW  towards Malpelo Rock, more south than direct, but good for wind and current, we all quietly called up the wind. And up it came as darkness fell. For the remainder of the first half of the passage, we were blested with good wind. 159 miles in the first 24 hours was excellent, despite motoring. As we celebrated half way at 445 miles out, on Day 4, the wind died. We were so grateful for the 2 knot current going our way. Motoring almost the next 24 hours continuously would have been horrendous otherwise. Our cruising chute did us proud as the wind built. Coloured sails are so inspiring when fully inflated. And at 6-7 knots, we had no complaints. Galapagos was fast approaching.  Slow down everyone, or we will arrive at night and miss the scenery. And besides, crossing the Equator is an event to be celebrated, so at 00°000'000 N (where does Navionics get that N from?), 89°13'537W  we poured ourselves a rum as we crossed Neptune's girth belt. Water truly does go straight down the plughole. We swam in azul blue water as Laros glorified in her first Southern Hemisphere waters. Deb was at last in home waters - still a bit to go, Deb! But incredible to believe we have travelled 52° south and 89° west from UK home waters. That's something like 8500 nautical miles by simple latitude then longitude calculation.  Awe-inspiring to observe that we are about to add 300 miles to that in the next leg!

On, on, so on Day 8 (continuously Day 7 of sailing) we arrived for lunch in Puerto Ayero,  Santa Cruz, on Thursday 17th March, St. Patrick's  Day. So few sailing boats in the harbour. I guess,  just timing, and maybe weather forecasts putting sailors off leaving Panama.  If I could have captured Philip and Tony's incredulity at not encountering storms or high winds on our 7 day passage, I would have bottled it. So, our thoughts turned to how best to see these incredible islands.

THE Canal Transit

As day broke on 3rd March, Laros' complement of 5 was complete. At last the transit day has begun. On board Deb, Johnny, Philip, Tony, and John doing a transit for fun (and our 4th line handler plus skipper, mandatory minimum crew for the Canal).  our passage had been organised by our agent Roy Bravo. So, we motored across the north entrance at the breakwater to the anchorage near Colon to meet our Advisor. He leads us through all the stages of the transit. Off we went to the northern locks (Colon Esclusas) to wait for our big commercial boat to enter first.

As dusk began to fall and arc lights all around began to take hold, we began what can only be described as a life event. We all had our own preconceptions of the Canal and the transit. Mine centred around motoring through a mirky canal water with a hundred feet of hewn rock walls either side. Not really close, even when passing through the Guillard cut next day (and the day after, read on!). But the locks are impressive, built in 1914, with 'mules', small railway engines on either side with wire hawsers to the big cargo boats to keep them in position. And, given the tiny clearances either side, how they do their job without falling into the locks defies reason. They say a number have over the years, and who would be surprised. The new lock system will use tugs, though we could not find one Canal Authority employee who favoured the change from mules to tugs.

3 locks to 'go up'. Rafted on the side of another sailing boat, Ellas with Claudia,  Kim and girls, and they rafted to Stampede, we danced in the huge currents of the lock filling in front of us, and pirouetted almost into Stampede on one lock exit. Never shall Debs arm have a better chance of being straightened than then! Onward through 2 more locks, same procedure as last time Miss Sophie (for our German friends), and then out into Gatun Lake and onto a large yellow rubberised mooring buoy. First day completed, with virtually no scathe marks. Supper already on as our Advisor must eat before being whisked away.  Beef and beers all round to celebrate Day One.

Day 2 should have started at 7am with the arrival of today's Advisor.  7 o'clock passed, 8 o'clock passed and by 9am we were wondering. 9.15am and Frank arrived, having been delayed behind a multiple car crash between Panama and Colon. Was this the omen for today we missed. Well, onward south east to Pueblo Miguel lock he said, and so we did. The transit through the lakes comprises many 'reaches', straight dredged runs of between 500-3000 metres in length. All well buoyed and quite wide. At least you don't feel as if that 1000 foot container ship is heading straight for you, at 13 knots! Close, yes. And awe inspiring. It's 28 miles from inner lock to inner lock. We completed 21 well inside our delayed alloted time. So much so, our Advisor agreed we should moor on one of those yellow things for a couple of hours to avoid 2 hours of circling at Pueblo Miguel. As we were leaving, Frank received a call forward time that made the 7 miles virtually impossible to compete in time. We arrived at our first of 3 southern locks to find Stampede and Ellas in the lock, and our entry passage blocked by tugs manoeuvring our container ship into the lock. We had missed our slot, and no other available that evening. The air became blue as we considered our options. It was all right for Frank, he would be taken off for the night. So back to the mooring buoy for a second night in the Canal.

Canal Day 3 - not many sailing boats spend more than 2 transiting. Not a first, then, for Laros, and not something to brag about. However, a second chance to take in Guillard Cut, and so began the 'spot the croc' adventure. So many crocodiles you just don't know where to look. Long ones, short ones, babies and big ones. There another - no, it's a log in the water!

We did not miss our lock time this time, and it was Frank who advised us through again. To be greeted by crowds of well wishers on the visitors viewing platform, and to be photographed in real-time by our Australian Internet on-lookers at the Miraflores locks, made up for the day's delay. Oh, for the modern technology of Facebook and friends. We were famous at last. As we revelled in the glory and sunshine of Pacific Panama, we made up our minds to make for La Playita anchorage at the end of the esplanade instead of an expensive mooring buoy at Balboa YC. Clouds were beginning to roll in as we dropped John off  for his RV in Panama. LA Playing made a welcome stop after our Canal Transit.  Exciting stuff.

Shelter Bay Marina Colon

Our plan to arrive in Shelter Bay Marina on the 30th to give Deb time to depart from Panama airport on the 2nd February worked a treat. Space might have been a problem because the World ARC fleet was in. They circumnavigate at hectic speed under the guidance of World Cruising Club organisers. As it turned out, many had already started their Canal Transit so we took up residence on E pontoon berth 38. Australia,  NZ , Canadian and US  flagged boats were much in evidence.  Johnny's eye infection made the Colon medical centre the #1 priority the next day. Eye drops and antibiotics were prescribed to get the eye under control. Deb packed, printed tickets and booked an expensive taxi 35 miles to the airport .... at 5.30am next morning. And off she went to become Grandma for the first time.

SBM is a long way from anywhere. It used to be a US marine base and remnants still abound. Much of the training area has reverted to natural habitat for varied species of birds, reptiles, and monkeys. Great early morning walks. Though there was work to do, as the Colon stop allowed a much needed maintenance period particularly for Laros's generator which required a new sump, luckily pre-ordered in Colombia. Johnny spent the next 2 weeks cleaning ropes, anchor chain remarking, replacing broken items down below, and generally tidying up. American friends on Swiftsure welcomed an extra pair of hands antifouling their catamaran hulls too. Then to Florida for 6 days R&R and sailing shopping to break away from the isolation of Shelter Bay, with a trip through the Canal on Haven with Kerry and Bruce, becoming great Australian friends, as a practice run.

Florida was excellent and great to see Sam and Jo, old friends from Indianapolis days. The eye was still nagging though progress was checked in Panama and Florida with opthamologists. Johnny returned to Panama to greet Philip at the airport, who was joining us for 4 weeks to the Galapagos. J and P spent the last week of Feb finishing off 2 man jobs. Philip became engrossed in the wildlife. Johnny tussled with the generator, with the help of Greg  (the resident 'engine whisperer'!). Philip did a fantastic provisioning trip to Colon and re-glued the dinghy rubbing strip. Johnny talked nicely to the water maker.  All was well as Deb flew in on an incredibly long leap year day. We all stayed in Panama overnight for Johnny's second eye checkup, stolls around the old city, new city, and a variety of national bars and restaurants. And then, back to Shelter Bay in Roger's ubiquitous taxi with the 4 mandatory ropes for our transit.  My, how one can dispose of many dollars, very many dollars, in crossing from the Atlantic to the Pacific via a one hundred year old canal and lake system. Bureaucracy is still alive and well, at least for ensuring the local economy thrives.

We awaited Tony's arrival during the first 2 days of March, and hooked up with John from Oystergo who joined us for the experience of transiting the Canal.

Goodbye Cartagena

Such a marvelous time these last 4 days. Our anchorage was, somewhat, bumpy I guess due to the hundreds of water taxis using the channel at peak hour. Well, we were anchored just on the channel, and when the wind blew, so did the anchor. On our fourth day we were due to replenish with water In the Club Nautico Marina, and managed to get a night berth. When the anchor came up, I swear it had a military poncho wrapped around it! No wonder we moved! Our last night was spent spending our accumulated Colombian pesos in the centre of the old city, at El Balcon.  Yes, you guessed correctly.  Overlooking Plaza del Annucional Santa Augusta (or something similar).  People watching is fascinating. Street stalls and buskers, loads of policemen, and horses and traps. An eclectic mix.  We have DONE the old city, at least twice.  Walking tour was excellent. Taxis are cheap as chips but traffic is horrendous. Midday sun takes its toll. Castillo del San Philipe de Bagedas (help me with the spelling, here) dominates the city and provides fantastic views. And for eating out, hard to beat a lovely local bar restaurant in the old town called, unoriginally,  El Bistro.  Such a fantastic experience,  Cartagena.  You must do it.
So, tomorrow we sail for the San Blas. Sounds a bit like Captain Jack and his  merry bunch!  The San Blas archipelago has 384 islands of which 49 are inhabited. We have 10 days to do them all justice. So, we're going to be selective, I guess! Then Colon (accent on the second syllable) and Shelter Bay Marina for a  month. Deb flying to Australia,  and J. sorting the generator, and shower pump, and ..... and.....  Maybe 5 days R&R in Florida with Sam and Jo (nb. take golf clubs).  Out of WiFi contact for the next week or so, I'm  afraid. You'll have to talk among yourselves.

Hello San Blas

What a crossing. We were tight on our schedule to get to Panama and flight on the 2nd, so we cast off to winds in the 25-30 knot range, yes and gusting 43 at times. But Laros is built for this and she took it 8n her stride. An interesting 200 miles passage, lively seas and an exhilarating experience. We could not believe the change of colour, blue to brown mud, in the water at the mouth of the Baranqullia river, so sudden we did not have time to take pics.
And on to one of the unspoilt locations of the Caribbean. The architypal desert island -you can almost imagine the discs piling up. The Kuna Indians are native to the San Blas Archipelago and travel around the islands and visiting yachts in dug out canoes, most but not all with the ubiquitous Yamaha Enduro outboard.  The anchorages are well sheltered and the sand is golden. Snorkeling on the many reefs is very good, almost the best in the Caribbean, and the water around the islands and reefs is a palette of vivid blues.  Swimming is just glorious. Needless to say the old girl got her bottom scrubbed (that's Laros, and wiped, actually, since the Copper Coat is working marvellously. Long may the days of hauling out to antifoul cease).  We met so many new faces we actually felt in a social whirl. A preponderance of Canadian, Aus and NZ boats beginning to gather.  I guess we are approaching peak hour for crossing Atlantic to Pacific. We spent Australia Day (26th) with Phil and Fay on Jigsaw - now that's an interesting cat (Oram 48c).  San Blas islands are blessed with little in the way of infrastructure,  save the inevitable mobile cell towers.  Our water supply (no water maker in operation yet - awaiting generator) lasted with flugal use, though our tonic supply became perilously low.  As we had entered Panama here, we had yet to buy a new SIM card. No tels,  no Internet.  How good is that? I guess mixed blessings nowadays. Especially when you are awaiting the call to the maternity unit! We survived, and no call. Our spontaneous itinerary took us to Porto Bello about 18 miles from the Canal north entrance where we anchored,  and enjoyed a well deserved restaurant cooked meal at Captain Jacks with Phil and Fay, well what other name could it be? Next up, Shelter Bay Marina at Colon, unfortunately on the west side of the channel and out in the wilds of the old US Fort SHERMAN,  back from the days of US control. A great base from which to sort ourselves out, and Deb to fly to Sydney.

 
 

Colombia, La Fuente, My Godson

Imagine if you will parking your boat alongside a random other.  You get talking, and next door recommend Duncan who runs a B&B in the hills above Santa Marta.  Next thing Duncan appears, sits on the side of your cockpit, and talks about the great places to see in the hills. Anyway, he disappears, and Deb and I decide we'll go see tomorrow.  Up early, take the 2 hour travel experience through Minca in the Sierra Nevada foothills, and on to 'La Fuente', Duncan's B&B.  Breakfast and a talk through where to walk from Duncan, and away we go for a great day seeing the sights. Passing through La Fuente for a pre-lunch beer, we ask the barman what Duncan's surname is.  No way, we know a Duncan Bruxsby, it just can't be, no, don't be so silly.  On with the day.  And we did that, returned to the boat, and then .... bang ... checked out our Duncan Bruxsby's mum in Northampton on Facebook, and there is a picture of our Duncan at La Fuente.  We had to return the next day and break the news to a truly gob-smacked Duncan that he had sat on his godfather's (of 27 years since) boat, then breakfasted and guided him and bade him farewell without realizing (both sides) the absolutely unique coincidence of a lifetime.  How does that happen?  Suffice it to say, we spent the next morning catching up on 27 years.  And blew away Jane, his mother, by Skype!  In the Colombian rainforest.  Surreal, or what.  Top that.

Santa Marta Colombia

Would you believe we are in Colombia?  No, no, no, we're pinching ourselves.  A great sail from Aruba over 2 nights, OK a little bumpy and the headsail pole changes (that's from one side of the front end to the other, Pop!) took their toll, but we arrived into bright sunshine and a modern dynamic city full of so many surprises.  Marina and water front are modern, but scratch the surface and you find true Colombian hospitality and local life.  The Santa Martan markets are something to behold.  We discovered them by accident when travelling up into the mountains - and that is the coincidence of the Century, I mean it!  Little yellow city taxis in the town are no more than £1.50 (pesos 7000) and then collective 4x4 ride 45 minutes to Minca, a small village in the foothills of the mountains another pesos 7000 each, cramped 8 into a Toyota Land Cruiser with chickens on the roofrack!  And then a 'moto taxi', a euphemism for a Honda 90 motorcycle pillion ride up a glorified dirt track, another pesos 7000.  Keep the small change handy!  £4.50p for 2 hours of hilarious travel.  And then to 'La Fuenta' run by Duncan and Lady.  More of this later.  So, back to the markets.  A cross between the street produce markets of North Africa, the bazaars of Istanbul, and supermarkets of the Eastern Caribbean.  Such a wealth of variety, quality and price.  But so spectacular!  Difficult to know what not to buy, so we ended up with very little.  We almost even bought what we needed (chain for the dinghy and, what was that other thing?).  Some architectural features of the old town, and lovely streets to wander through. Overall, just an eye open!  After 4 days which turned into 6 (a little Colombian bureaucracy thrown in) we sailed at sunrise on Wednesday for Carthegena via an overnight anchorage at Puerto Valero.

2016 A New Year

So, I know, we haven't blogged for some time. But those NY resolutions sometimes come in handy. So here we are. A new year, and what a year it promises to be.

Having returned to Laros in Grenada at the beginning of November, we spent 3 hard weeks putting her back together ready for the westward passages. Great  friends Catherine and Dick from Liverpool came to visit for 2 weeks. We toured Grenada by land and sea, then sailed to the Grenadines for a week. Lovely islands once again, but the winds blew strong and the nights at anchor were rolly!

Then it was time to take off west. Getting back into longer passages took its time and toll. In big winds Laros performed beautifully so that we completed  the 280 miles to Bonaire in 2 days.  Bonaire is nothing short of a divers paradise and seems to have been preserved almost exclusively for diving. We moored on buoys along the Kralendik seafront, glorious waters and easy access to the main town. Cruise ships galore though, which transformed the port almost every day, from quiet local bussle to hectic tourist shopping. We were able to spend time with Venezuelan friends, and managed a wreck dive too. In credible. Bonaire, Bonaire!

Sadly we had to miss Curacao out due to time. And so to Aruba. A totally different story. More cruise ships and American style hotels. Aruba is dominated by the US influenced tourist market. We stayed in Renaissance Marina over Christmas and NY with Debs and Fred, great friends from Northampton.  Still strong winds but we managed a night at anchor on a northern beach.  Northampton Debs  managed to stay calm!  Aruba is consumed by firecrackers and fireworks all day New Years eve. A cacophony of noise and flashes, making NY 2015/16 one of the most brilliant ever. Great food and  company, and a carnival parade thoruhg the main streets on Saturday night, made this one to remember.

On 4th January forecast winds abated to a nice 20-25 knots. We checked out  on the 5th (first place I have ever been required to present Laros physically to C&I both in and out!) by midday and sailed 2 days to Santa Marta in Colombia. With slight trepidation we arrived after a mostly smooth sail to bright Thursday morning sunshine and a very warm welcome. We sailed in distant company with the OCC rally touring the western Caribbean bowl and have made some new friends sporting the flying fish. Our experiences are nothing but superb here, the first time we have set foot on South American soil.  And what a great place.  We plan to see some of the mountainous countryside in the next few days.