Light winds and a good sized following sea ensured a rolly passage to the Dominican Republic. On the first evening we had a minor galley disaster when a milk jug got knocked off a shelf in the fridge door spilling milk over everything in the fridge and even underneath it! Otherwise it was a pretty relaxed time. On the first night we saw the glow of what we thought were the Spanish Virgin Islands on the horizon. As we got closer to the east end of Puerto Rico we realised they were cruise ships, probably using more power than the average Caribbean island!
On reaching the western end of Puerto Rico the waves increased and we started our transit into the Mona Passage. It has quite reputation for being a particularly rough stretch of water. It is home to the 2nd deepest trench in the world (over 7,000 metres) which then hits "shoals" of 100 metres or less creating turbulent water. Typically we didn't have the predicted winds and instead of 10 knots we had gusts of up to 35 knots as we started approaching Cap Cana and the offshore reefs in the dark. Irony was racing along at over 7 knots and we were forced to do a sail change to slow our speed down so that we would not arrive before daylight and the marina opening.
Having made contact with the marina they sent out a pilot boat to guide us in through the narrow passage in the reefs. The powerful rib was airborne as it headed into 3+ metre waves to greet us and Irony surfed her way into the marina entrance. First we had to moor on the fuel dock where we had 7 officials (a record for us) board the boat to fill out forms and inspect the boat. Once that was completed we were headed to our berth.
The architect of this resort, still being constructed, is obviously trying to create some sort of Venice look-alike. Short concrete finger pontoons are bordered by 2 rows of wooden piles. The width is narrow and makes manoeuvring in anything but a motor boat or a sailboat with a bow thruster impossible. Once you have started into the berth through the piles there is no room for any sideways slip and no return. Unfortunately we were attempting this with 20 knot crosswinds and initially only one person on the dock to help. Had Nic not just done a 48 hour passage and been more awake, he would have said it was impossible without more assistance. Tired, we attempted it and, although we made it in, we scraped against the piles (unavoidable) and have damaged our paintwork. We learnt today that a motor boat coming in was advised not to enter the marina because the conditions were too dangerous. Even coming in today, in total calm, he was very nervous. Not a marina to be recommended for any long keeled boats that cannot reverse in a straight line!
So here we are, lots of cleaning and tidying for our friends who arrive this afternoon. We are looking forward to exploring the Dominican Republic for the next couple of weeks.