06/13/2007
For the past three months we have been faced with the dilema that most cruisers must face at one time or another, where to go from here? From the start our ´loose´plan was to sail down the coast of Central America, north through the Caribbean Sea and then across the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. If we really pushed ourselves we might have been able to accomplish this voyage this year, but being near the start of the hurricane season in the Caribbean we are now ´stuck´down here. Our other options that we had considered were to sail down to the South Pacific (would have been easier to do this from Mexico), or sail down to Ecuador (which has become really popular lately with sailors on their way to the S. Pacific) or to the Galapagos Islands. Those options would have been ´long´voyages that at this time we didn´t really feel like doing.
Not until we were going across the Gulf of Tehuantepec in Mexico that we decided what we would do - leave Impossible in Panama during the rainy season (hurricanes don´t come down this far south) and fly over to Europe.
So for the next 4 months we will be in Europe, after returning we will then explore around the Atlantic side of Panama then head north to Cuba and around the Caribbean until about this time next year. That´s a long time from now and who knows if we will change our minds again, but that is the plan for now.
At the moment we are still waiting for our new toilets to arrive (supposedly tomorrow) and for our fuel tanks to be cleaned out (supposedly tomorrow), then we can get Impossible measured up for the canal crossing, and arrange for the extra line handlers, lines etc. So we´re here in Panama City/Balboa for at least another week. Oh and I got the swelling thing back, it is a kidney infection, and I´m waiting to get tests back to determine which would be the best medicine to take. Seeing doctors here is quite easy, of course it isn´t free like back home, but neither is it outrageously expensive. Johnathon and Christina both finished their school work for the year and I sent the last of it in last Monday. I´m not sure who is more relieved to get it done, them or me!
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Comments [2]
06/03/2007
I can´t believe we´ve been here for a week already. The days just go by so fast when we are not sailing and visiting new anchorages. I´ve been feeling normal again after the swelling I experienced in Costa Rica and in northern Panama. I started to get a little swelling in my ankles which was due to lack of exercise and heat. While in Golfito though it became worse, my legs and stomach were really swelling up and I would wake up in the morning with swelling in my face. But I wasn´t feeling sick, just low energy. While in northern Panama I started to get terrible stomach cramps so I took an antibiotic medicine that we bought in Mexico for when Stan and Johnathon had a stomach bug. The medicine worked immediately. No more swelling, I called it a swelling bug. But I did see a cardiologist here the other day (just a routine check for my defibrillator) and he thought I might have had a kidney infection.
Here´s a brief recap of our first week here in Panama city (in no particular order):
Visited all the major chandlry stores.
Ordered two new toilets for Impossible
Have eaten out at least once every day since arriving.
Visited a large mall, largest one I have been in a long time with a lot of American style stores. The abundance of materialism was a shock to our senses.
Went to Pirates of the Caribbean 3.
Had dinner with our British friends on ´Cloud Nine´whom we last saw in El Salvador.
Went out for dim sum breakfast with a bunch of other cruisers.
Met a Yugoslavian couple living here and involved in real estate. Had dinner with them.
Went to a grocery store called Riba Smith, it has the best selection of north american brand foods I´ve seen since the US.
Take taxis everywhere, it´s cheap, only 2-4 dollars a trip. Learn a lot from the taxi drivers.
Trying to complete school work for the year.
Visited cardiologist, interesting to see how Panamian medical clinic operates.
Stan flew back to Victoria yesterday for a week.
So it´s just the kids and I for a week. It will be school work and visiting more touristy/cultural sites this week. Many of the cruisers we´ve met make it down here and without planning to they end up staying here for a very long time, some have even bought property here (there is a big real estate boom here). Panama city has some nice sections to it and with the strong presence here of foreigners and the remnants of all the American housing, military buildings and green space it is appealling.
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05/27/2007
Just a quick update, we arrived today at in Panama City. Quite a culture shock from the past few weeks spent cruising. This place is like a major cosmopolitan city, lots of growth, lots of new cars, lots of restaurants etc, etc.
From Bahia Honda we spent a terrible night at an anchorage called Naranja cove (orange). The next morning we left in big seas and 11 - 15 knot winds, which weren´t bad but the confused swells weren´t comfortable. I was ready to turn back and find another anchorage but it didn´t look like the weather was going to change much for the next few days so we decided to press on. This was an overnight passage, we thought we could make it to Balboa (Panama City) but wind and current weren´t in our favor so we decided to keep going across the Gulf of Panama to the Islas Perlas. This was quite a passage as we were rounding Punta Mala during night hours, Punta Mula has heavy freighter traffic so we had to really be careful and keep a constant look out. This is one of the most congested freighter traffic areas in the Pacific. To add to the intensity we were also travelling with unreliable fuel, seems like the fuel we took on in Hualtulco wasn´t that clean and now our port side tank is quite dirty. This caused our engine to stop only 2 hours into the trip. Luckily Stan was able to replace the filters and switch tanks. Then around 7:30 that night he noticed our batteries weren´t charging, again he quickily found out that a fuse was burnt out. What could happen next we thought. But the rest of the passage was trouble free and we ended up at a wonderful, peaceful island called Isla Pedro Gonzalez. There we found a great anchorage on the east side, beautiful sandy beach with palm trees and flowering hibiscus´. This was by far our nicest anchorage yet. We spent 2 days there then travelled the 40 miles north to come here. Being in Panama we have to really think twice about our bearings we have no longer been travelling south but north (just look at a map and you´ll know what I mean).
I think I caught some sort of bug in Costa Rica, feeling good now but had a few bad days earlier on last week. Will explain it more next time.
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05/22/2007, Bahia Honda, Panama
We left Golfitio early in the morning and headed out through red tide for a small anchorge 50 miles away. We got in at dusk and left the next morning with little wind. We were heading for Isla Parida 30 miles away.There was lots of red tide and we had to turn off our watermake. It started raining later on in the day and the wind also picked up. We first went to an anchorge where there was some swell so we decided to go to the other anchorge on the other side of the island. The second anchorge was very nice, small and nearly no swell. The only problem was the huge amounts of bugs, mosquitos were everywhere along with flying queen ants and many others. On our second day there we went in the dinghy to a small island around the corner that had a beuatiful white sand beach with nice water and a bit of snorkling. There were quite a few palm trees so there were quite a few nice ripe big coconuts, we took some back to the boat. There my dad used an ax to cut them open and we drank lots of cocout water. The coconuts had twice the usual amount of water for they had ripend. We also have lots of the inside still left plus 4 more in the back of the dinghy. The next morning we left for Bahia Honda. It took us all day going through even more red tide to finally reach our destination. Bahia Honda is big, very big, with lots of anchorges. The first thing after we anchored an old man in a small wooden canoe came up beside us and was very friendly. He said tomorow morning he would come and bring us some of his fresh food. Then about 4 minutes later an other boat came up with two children , 9 and 7. We gave them some things and they left, about 2 minutes later yet an other boat came up to us. There was one little girl onboard, she must have been only 3, she was wearing a little life jacket. The mom was the older mans daughter, he was called Domingo. Also the second people that came were also related to Domingo. Early the next mornng Domingo came with fruit,the first thing I smelled was limes, fresh off the vine, they smelled so good. He did not want money but other things like school supplies and food. The next day one of the people who first came called Edwin came again offering to take me and Christina fishing and to a beach in the bay. Two hours later we where going. He had a bigger boat but still made of wood and still very narrow, it was tippy. When we started fishing we used just bare line trolling at speed and a small fly hook, this worked realy well. We came up alongside another persons little paddle canoe, he was a fisherman. Edwin talked for a moment then the fisherman took out a gun. A bolt action rifle, only it was an air gun. Edwin shot it at the water. That was cool. I caught two Baracudas and 5 small flat fish. They eat these fish even though there has been red tide for two months, at night you can really smell it. We then went to his house which was around the corner from our anhorge. He has chickens and turkeys, pigs and dogs. But he also had two baby paroots that I held. They were very cute. We then left heading back for our boat. We plan to leave tomorow if all goes well.
AUTHOR: Stan
It is almost 1800 hrs just about supper time and we are gently swinging at anchor about half way down the coast of Panama. We are anchored in a large well protected bay called Bahia Honda, with a semi mountanous terrain surrounding the entire bay almost to the waterline. There is a island in the middle of the bay with a fishing village at its shore no roads leading to other parts of Panama just trails Mules and Fishing boats bringing whatever supplies are needed. No sooner had we dropped anchor than we were approched by several dugout canoes with friendly faces seeking trade for fruits and vegetables. We provided batterys, some basic provisions, some school supplies for a village further up a river that was even more remote and less supplied than here, all in all a pretty sobering look at how really lucky we all are up at home. The next day a couple of young boys aged 11 and 12 came by shy as can be, they had three small fish in their canoe obviously trying to see if we would trade for something, they being to shy to even mention. We gave them some toys and asked them their names, gave them some sesame snap bars as they were leaving and their smiles as they turned back to wave almost made this trip for me, so much happiness for so little that was given, once again I couldn't imagine how fortunate our family was by having all we have and for the country we are graced to live in. We are planning to get underway tomorrow hoping to be at the canal in a few days from now. Linda has not been well for a few days and finally today she seems to have turned the corner, just a stomach bug we think, it does make you quite edgy as there are no clinics or places to go should you need them, definatly an adventure for all.
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