Lisa Anderson
05/12/2012, THE PACIFIC OCEAN

5/9/2012

The Wild Wild West

You know the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland, the one where you're strapped into a jeep and go for a bumpy, rolly, out of control ride, where your body lurches one way and your stomach lurches another? Well that's about the best description I can give you of our ride right now, minus the screaming and laughing and giggling. What was I thinking?! I guess the titles of this crossing like; the puddle jump, crossing the pond, or the ever famous "coconut milk run" enticed me into thinking we would be sailing along in these beautiful trade winds with this long period sea swell gently lifting us over the azure blue water with dolphins and whales frolicking about. Ha...hardly! Now there are moments of great pleasure don't get me wrong, and Larry keeps reminding us that you have to have the lows in order to experience the highs...ya de yada de yada.

5/11/12

Holy sh__ (insert beep here)! I think I'm dying. I would have died for sure on the Mayflower. My kinfolk would've had to go on without me. This is a slow form of torture. It's like having morning sickness, the flu, and a really bad hangover all at the same time! I'm gonna personally write Cheney a letter and tell him to forget the water boarding! Take a terrorist, put him on a little boat in big seas 24/7, getting none to very little sleep, minimal food (because it's just plain 'ol too hard to get it) and I guarantee you he will tell you whatever you want to know within a week. My body feels like jello. Sometimes my legs feel like they can hardly hold me up any longer.
How is Ben you ask? Oh he's great! He wakes up every morning (well sometimes it's almost noon) and we ask him, "How did you sleep?" And do you know he ALWAYS answers, "Amazing!" Gah! He loves it out here. He can watch movies and play wii for hours and be just fine, and then ask me, "Mom, when's dinner?" I Snap back, "Dinner?!" Needless to say, we aren't exactly eating as I had planned. I did manage to make potato salad and an apple pie late yesterday afternoon, much to my peril. My butcher knife was bouncing off the counter and landing at my bare feet, the peeled hard boiled eggs were landing and splitting on the floor, the pot of boiling water with the potatoes were sliding across the stovetop, Larry almost fell overboard throwing the apple peels in the ocean, and the apple pie juices were spilling in the oven creating a burning black haze throughout the salon. But it was so good when I was done! Luckily I did prepare quite a few meals before we left, but just heating them up in the micro is no easy feat. Maybe we could turn this into the newest detox fad diet. Most days we cannot even stomach a cup of coffee and for those of you who know me - the thought of a glass of wine makes me gag. Wait... did I just really say that?!

Ben has caught 3 dorado - 2 were too small so we released them and the other was a female so we released her too so she could sustainably go on and make more babies. Flying fish are everywhere! We actually have to walk around the boat and throw all their little dead bodies back into the ocean so our boat doesn't start to smell. They are entertaining to watch though, as hundreds fly out of the water for quite a distance as our boat slices through.

Our first night or two out, Larry spotted a fishing vessel with long lines out with the all familiar faint flashing lights on the flags that mark where the line is. As we approached however, the ship went totally black. Hmmm...why would he do that? Fortunately we've had the pleasure of the biggest full moon of the year and it has been incredible. Moon rises and moon sets are by far my favorite! The moon really does help you see the outline of things in the dark so we were in no danger of hitting this vessel. The next day Larry and Ben spot off in the distance a bright orange canister, like a 55 gallon steel drum, floating by. At first thinking it may have been a life raft they drove closer. Then in the afternoon we suddenly hear the rhythmic thump of helicopter blades. Huh?! The helicopter flyes right at us, circles us, and then hovers and reads the name of our vessel. Larry signals to the pilot with our VHF radio to call us, he signals back that he does not have VHF. Hmmm...My immediate thought was that they were looking for someone in distress and that was some floating debris that went by earlier. I started to cry. The thought of someone like us in trouble made me lose it. Then logic started to take over; that wasn't a rescue helicopter, no helicopter could fly 900 some odd miles from land, and last but not least if they were rescue they would certainly have a marine radio. We slowly start to realize, that the canister emits some sort of sound wave that attracts fish, the helicopter then flyes out from the mother ship to spot the canister to see if the fish are there, then goes back to the ship and reports its' location. Ta dum! That's some high tech fishing there, and probably where your chicken of the sea comes from. We have actually seen some tuna riding the wave of our bow lately, and the occasional dolphin, which are always at risk of getting caught in the tuna nets, as they love to eat the tuna too. (Can you tell I've had a lot of time on my hands to think 'cause I CAN'T DO ANYTHING ELSE?!)

Larry has been running the morning and evening net on the single side band radio, for all of us boats that are heading to the same place. He does a great job and I am really proud of him for doing this. It is a great comfort to us all, to check in, give our latest coordinates, make sure all is well on board, and just to hear another friendly voice. This is an enduro and a lot of it is just mind over matter, as with most things in life.

Two days ago we were almost able to check one of Larry's "bucket list" items off, that being making a 200 mile day on the Lisa Kay. We had 197 nautical miles! So close! Currently we're traveling at 8.5 knots, in 20 knot winds, and the seas are 2-3 meters with the occasional 10 foot swell, and then all the wind chop that goes with the higher winds. Ughh! (Oops, I just heard a huge crash downstairs as Larry is trying to do the dishes!) Do you feel my pain?! I know all of you are smugly shaking your heads back at home saying, "I told her she was nuts." I wonder if this is like having a baby, when a few months later and you are holding your cooing bundle of joy (hence making landfall in one of the most gorgeous places on earth) and think - , hmmm...could I do that again?

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Lisa Anderson
05/05/2012, THE PACIFIC OCEAN

Our last twelve days, here on Isabella, have been glorious. Santa Cruz Island was a bit of a disappointment and to any of you cruisers coming here in the future don't feel too bad if you skip it entirely. The town of Puerto Ayora (where you anchor on Santa Cruz) is cute and definitely more touristy than the other islands. We thought the provisioning would be the better here though, but I didn't think it really warranted the stop. The torture of the rolly anchorage almost made it unbearable, not to mention that someday someone is going to get seriously hurt trying to get on or off their boat from the water taxi. The good news however, was that we were able to meet up with our new Australian friends on Cat Weasel. With their two boys, both around Ben's age, it makes the experience for Ben that much richer and more fun.

Because there seems to be some misinformation about coming to the Galapagos Islands or total lack of, here it is a brief summary for you fellow cruisers:

Option 1: You can choose to make just one stop at one of the three main islands; San Cristobal, Santa Cruz, or Isabella, for a twenty day stay maximum - being your least expensive option to visit the Galapagos. It really is best that you make arrangements ahead of time with an agent on that island, rather than just show up. According to our agent on Isabella, JC Soto, 2/3 of the boats that showed up this year were unannounced. As of this week, the Parks Service and government officials are involved, which in turn may involve the police and they may start having people return to a port of entry ie: San Cristobal or Santa Cruz with their passports to officially clear into the country.

Out of all the boats we have talked with here, if they had chosen the option of only one island, Isabella would be the place to stop at hands down. It is beautiful, with crystal clear turquoise waters and powdery white sand beaches. The small town is safe, cute, and oh so peaceful. They have all the animals here, from sea lions, penguins, giant tortoises, marine iguanas, sea turtles, sharks, giant manta rays, flamingos, and blue footed boobies. (I'm sure there are many more creatures but these seem to be the main attractions.) Provisioning is minimal, but you can get by. I was delighted on Wednesday, the day before we departed, by a sudden delivery of all kinds of veggies in the markets. We definitely won't starve now during our 3000 mile crossing! THERE IS NO ATM OR FUEL ON THE ISLAND. Isabella is also home to Sierra Negra, the volcano with the second largest caldera in the world.

Option 2: You can get an autographo, which allows you to visit all three islands, with a maximum stay in the Galapagos of three months. As I had stated earlier, for the three of us, the cost was $1198. Now, it will vary by the length of your vessel and the number of persons on board of course. We are very happy that we have chosen this option as we have felt unhurried and are glad that we have been able to check out the main three islands.

Option 3: This one is purely for emergency status, and that would be if you were by passing the Galapagos completely but suddenly fall upon some kind illness or a mechanical failure on your vessel. I believe they will give you a 72 hour reprieve as you scramble to fix your vessel. However, you are not allowed to book any tours or explore the island.

With the exception of option 3, as I said earlier, the use of an agent really is mandatory. We used Bolivar Pesantes in San Cristobal where we cleared into the country, who took excellent care of us. He had representatives on each of the other islands making our stops there seamless. The officials are well versed with vessels that try to take advantage of the system. Let's hope they don't put the officials in a position to eliminate access by private vessel to the islands. Let's just say, the Ecuadorian government takes their role as stewards to the Galapagos very seriously.

Now all of what I have stated is open to change each year, I'm sure. It makes us sad that once again, because of a few cruisers that stop here and try to outsmart the rules or are basically just too cheap to pay to visit this beautiful place, will only hurt it for all of us in the long run.

For you landlubbers, I would imagine taking one of the many luxury cruise/tour boats would be the way to go, albeit this is not a cheap option by any means I'm sure. I would recommend however, that you follow up the cruise by spending several days to a week on Isabella, whether it be in one of the very inexpensive hostels or a nicer hotel such as the Iguana Hotel. You will really then get a sense of the people, and be able to enjoy the animals personally and at your own pace. It's also an opportunity for you to contribute a little to the local economy as the people who eat and sleep on the tour boats contribute very little to the locals.

No one, in their lifetime, should miss this place.

So, back to Isabella...aaahhh...it has been heaven. Like I said earlier, the water is gorgeous and as I write this there are three adorable sea lions sleeping peacefully on our swim step. Now their poop isn't so adorable and they are quite messy creatures, but it's nothing that doesn't easily wash off so we don't mind. The island of Isabella is the largest in the chain. It's about 100 miles long and is shaped like a sea horse. There are several volcanoes, with the last eruption taking place in 2005 on Sierra Negra. Well, of course we had to do a tour of this volcano! Just a mere 20 kilometer walk (the last half being in the pouring rain and two foot thick mud), but the volcano was cool and we had fun and knew how much we would appreciate this later when we are stuck on the boat for 20-30 days sailing to the Marquesas. Not a bad idea to wear long pants stuffed into your socks and a long shirt on this hike as there are ticks and wasps, and people were bitten. Once again the snorkel trips here are fantastic including swimming through lava tubes and looking in caves for the sleeping sharks. Larry, Ben, and two others on one of our tours even jumped in the ocean to have a short swim with a giant manta ray (see video and pictures previously posted on our blog)!

We weighed anchor yesterday afternoon with a painfully heavy heart. We have really, really loved our time here. As we sailed out of the anchorage another boater let us know we still had a sea lion asleep on our back swim step. We woke him up and he was able to stay in the Galapagos.

Day 1
Now we have completed our first 24 hours of our long journey to the Marquesas. We've traveled 159 miles so far, 2840 more to go! Our conditions so far have been quite pleasant. The Lisa Kay has sailed beautifully in 8-11 knot winds at 6.5 - 7.5 knots of speed, motor sailing through the night when the winds got lighter. We haven't quite settled into our routine and are quite tired, but we're relaxed and know that in another day or two we will have adapted. We are grateful everyday for this opportunity and for the seaworthiness and creature comforts our vessel has to offer.

Special thanks to our daughter Jessica who has agreed to post all of our writings as we make this crossing. We will continue to send SPOT messages as we cross knowing that it doesn't work in the middle third of the ocean. So don't worry if you don't hear from us!

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Lisa Anderson
04/24/2012, Porta Villamil, Isla Isabella, Galapagos

Thanks to our friend Zan for the video!
April 17, 2012


To Darwin Or Not To Darwin
We are waiting for a fuel delivery (a legal one that is), $6.41 and change/gallon, and we need 200 gallons - ouch! The cost for a local person is a $1.02, hence the; do we get it legally or not legally? In keeping with our "ever trying to maintain good boat karma", we chose the legal approach. Hopefully if it gets here this morning, then we'll be able to head over to a new island called Santa Cruz.
Our last few days here on San Cristobal have been relaxing and wonderful. We have made many new cruising friends, from all over the world. Everyone has a story to tell and loves to share. Two local boys, around Ben's age, have been coming out to our boat everyday and even though our Spanish isn't that great and their English is non-existent we had a great time with them. We even rented a three person kayak so the three boys could kayak with us old folks (in our two kayaks) around the point to a sweet little cove and swim with sea lions. I cannot even begin to tell you how playful the sea lions are. They come right up to you and look at you, mimicking the bubbles you blow or the somersaults you do. You just feel like you could stay in the water and play with them forever. And by the way, they're from the same species that we have in Northern California. Of course our first night on the island of San Cristobal we had a sea lion resting on our swim step that had been munched by a shark, (only on the Lisa Kay could this happen) a rather large shark I might say by the size of the teeth marks it left! We tried (feebly) to get help, but slowly came to the realization that this was nature at its purest and we needed to accept the fact that with this many sea lions around, obviously there would be a predator or two. We were thrilled when several days later the little lion showed up again for a rest and seemed to be healing nicely. Our last day on San Cristobal we did an island tour spontaneously, with a taxi we picked up on the corner where the water taxi lets you off. Our driver, named Moses, was lovely and we really had a great time. We hiked up to a lake in a now extinct volcanic crater, we visited a tortoise breeding and rehab center, hiked out to a beach with blue footed boobies, and ate fresh guyava (guava fruit) off the trees on the side of the road. Local tradition says that if you eat the guyava from the trees you will be bound to return to the Galapagos within two years. Ben said, "Oh I'm DEFINITELY coming back!"
So, getting back to the title of this blog, To Darwin or to not Darwin, hmmm...on these islands he is quite a celebrity; with statues, streets, and tortoise breeding centers named after him. He basically put these sacred grounds on the map, so to speak. But what I have been trying to understand is why were his idea's a personal attack on God? I get that he was the first person to introduce the idea of evolution, but my struggle is why can't you have a heart of faith and yet still believe in evolution? The bible says God gave man free will, who's to say he didn't give nature the will to change, adapt, and survive? I feel like I've been an experiment in evolution and adaptation these past 2.5 years living on a boat! I can't even begin to explain the changes in character, and strength, and expectations of my surroundings that slowly occur accumulatively over time. Wouldn't this be the case with anyone or anything? Whatever you choose to believe, there is no easy answer here but what I can say is that the feeling you get in these islands is a sense of harmony. It's pure, it's innocent, it's wild, and it's beautiful...and no one in their lifetime should miss it.
See pictures in the photo gallery titled "Galapagos"

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Lisa Anderson
04/10/2012, San Cristobal, Galapagos

Ben & Larry swim across the Equator!
April 10, 2012

Land Ho!
Or should I say, "Land Hot!" It is SWELTERING here! Couldn't have anything to do with the fact that we're right by the equator, could it? We just spent five hours exploring the little town of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, clearing into the country, and enjoying lunch, after anchoring around 8 AM this morning on the first island in the Galapagos, Ecuador and I don't think I have sweat this much in a year! What a sight to behold though, the stunning rugged shape of the island of San Cristobal after seven days at sea, slowly coming into focus as the sun rose. Next thing we know, our good friends Carl and Cristina on Bamboleiro are hailing us on the VHF! So good to hear their voices! Our agent Bolivar Pesantes has made the whole process of stopping here a piece of cake and we now could stay three months if we wanted for a total of $1200. Worth every penny in our eyes, yet we are only planning to spend around three weeks exploring the three main islands here.

So, let me back up here and catch you up a bit. The last few days getting out of Panama City was VERY stressful. We had our canvas man on the boat working until 8 PM several days in a row trying to get the bimini cover to fit properly and installed. Our woodworker, who really did turn out to be very ill, was still finishing Ben's bathroom an hour before we weighed anchor. However, in spite of all of this, and as painful as it was to say goodbye to some of our cruising friends, it felt really good to pull out.

All in all, we had a very benign 945 mile crossing (our longest yet!). More wind would have been nice, as we only sailed about twenty hours of the seven days it took to get here. Boy was it nice to turn the engine off when we finally arrived and hear....sea lions? Yes, there are sea lions EVERYWHERE! They are sooooo cute...but oh so smelly! And they are not shy at all - truly trying to act out the saying, "Mi casa es tu casa"! One of the vessels here, a catamaran named Whiskers who pulled in around the same time as us, fell asleep their first evening with the cabin door open. When they awoke the next morning they had a huge sea lion peacefully snoring on their cockpit table. Turns out it had had a whole tour of the inside of the boat at some point during the night. No tuna cans or beers were opened as we did have to ask that question!

So, what was it like to be at sea for so many days you ask? Not bad...not bad at all. I still feel myself getting a bit apprehensive as the sun sets in the evening and the darkness envelops you like someone pulling a blanket over your head. Kurt Russel's famous line from the movie Captain Ron, "If it's gonna happen...it's gonna happen out there!" plays over and over in my head. But, after a glass of wine and hopefully a little snooze before my 11 PM - 2 AM shift at the wheel, the next time I step up into the cockpit the moon is shining, the weather has decided what it would like to do for the evening (generally - but is always open to change!), and I really do enjoy the alone time I have on watch. The nicest thing about this passage is that we didn't really have to worry about hitting anything. All of our other travel has been coastal cruising, meaning lots of fishing vessels, long lines, the random rock that grows up out of the ocean, the occasional piece of land that sticks out, other pleasure craft like us, and of course the gi-normous freighter/container ships. Traveling at 15-20 knots, they can go from just over the horizon to hitting us in about fifteen minutes, if we and they are not paying attention. Now we did have lots of squalls to contend with, and lightning, when even if it is off in the distance it makes me uncomfortable. But like I said before, we had a pretty easy ride here.
Catastrophe did strike the second day out however, when the TV satellite - that has faithfully carried us here all the way from San Diego finally met its demise. I was trying to sleep and all of a sudden I heard Ben scream, "It's movie time!" and I knew exactly what he was talking about. We had finally sailed out of range of the satellite TV signal. I thought we would get a huge portion of his homeschooling done underway but...sadly no. It would be the equivalent of studying in the car as you were being driven on a really bumpy mountain road. Doesn't make you feel too good after a bit if ya know what I mean!

On an exciting note, of course Ben had his fishing lines out everyday not catching a thing. By the third or fourth day he was really discouraged. Suddenly he gets a hit on one of his poles and we have never seen line taken out so fast! He couldn't slow it down and we both just stared at the pole knowing that when the line all pulled out the pole would probably get yanked into the ocean. It all happened so fast - we were in total shock! Well the pole didn't pull out and the end of the line just snapped off like a little twig, then we saw it...a big, beautiful marlin...and boy was he mad! He obviously did not like the feel of a lewer in his mouth and dragging many feet of line behind him. He did spectacular jumps out of the water for a good five minutes, trying to shake it out to no avail. I felt really bad. Ben of course assured me that the hook was already rusted and would fall out soon. Oh, did I mention Ben likes to talk a lot? I mean A LOT! If you ever feel like your teen is not communicating with you, take him on a boat alone with you for a week. The three of us had the most meaningful conversations and some really good laughs. I wouldn't trade these times for the world.

Crossing the equator is a big deal in the cruising world. We officially are no longer pollywogs and are now shellbacks - meaning we have crossed from the northern hemisphere into the southern hemisphere. We celebrated with an official ceremony (no we didn't shave Ben's head in the traditional way!) instead we covered him in shaving cream, held and charged him in King Neptunes court, offered up a healthy shot of rum for the sea king and yes folks...Ben and Larry swam across the equator in a mere 7450 feet deep water. No way said I! Someone had to make sure they got back on the boat!

Our second day on San Cristobal we went on a boat (of all things!) for a snorkel tour to swim with sea lions, marine iguanas (I believe this is the only place in the world they have them), sharks, rays, and turtles. It was fantastic and we saw all of the above. We could have played with this one sea lion for hours. Boy are they fast in the water! Kickeroo, this spectacular pinnacle like island that juts straight up and has two different narrow canyons that you can swim through. It was extreme snorkeling to say the least, but awesome. It was the closest thing we've done to a wall dive, and the wall just went on forever down into the deep, deep blue. This is where you could see the shadow of a ray or a shark (Ben saw a hammerhead!) go under you. What an experience, and that is when I decided that so far this is the most spectacular place I have been to in the world as of yet. The people here are warm and friendly. No one is shouting at you trying to sell you something and the town has such a safe, easy going feel. The restaurants are nothing to rave about but oh well - you can't have it all.

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Lisa Anderson
04/01/2012, Panama City, Panama

Sailing Vessel Eyes of the World at anchor near Mogo Mogo, Las Perlas Islands
March 25, 2012

Only 3,900 Miles To Go!!!
Thank you everyone for your kind words, thoughts, prayers, suggestions, and encouragement. It means more than we could ever say.

You know, as I reflect, and yes...in my menopausal, sleepless nights think...February 6, 1991, the day that changed my life forever. I don't speak of this often, although I know there are a few of you out there that I have shared. I was young, dumb, usually miserable, married too young to a nice guy but... not in love. ALWAYS feeling like, what am I doing?

A young man, drunk in the middle of the day, on a dirt bike, going really fast on the railroad tracks...no helmet. Me, a veterinary assistant, recently finishing a semester program of first aid and CPR, working right by those railroad tracks. The rest is history. Death... I had never seen a person die right in front of me. I had assisted in and performed many euthanasia's on animals but, had never thought about a young person dying suddenly...and/or the first responders that assisted them. All my training that I had learned and worked so hard on didn't make a difference. He died. In my eyes it was just another failure in my life, I had let him down, I didn't save him. His parents came and saw me the next day...wanting to know what his last few moments were like. Try swallowing that one. I'm so sorry for his parents.

I cry...and cry...and cry, for two weeks. And then, in a simple moment of sharing homemade chile for the fire department crew that assisted that day to thank them for what they do...and here I am. I have never looked back one instant after meeting Larry. I knew he was the one...for me. And here we are now, about to embark on an adventure of a lifetime, living and seeing more in one lifetime than most. No matter what happens, I am a very lucky girl.

From the heart. XXOO Lisa

3/30/12

 Shipment in from the States (full of important things like a new solenoid for the generator, and electronic chart for the South Pacific)

 Attach 24 - 5 gallon jerry jugs of diesel on deck
 Build & place motor mount on rail to hold 15 HP dinghy engine
 Rigging inspection
 Purchase & Install new Spinnaker halyard (because yes (!) we should be able to finally sail downwind!)
 Bottom of boat cleaned
 New canvas bimini installed (sort of, it is still a work in progress as I am writing this!)
 Provisioning (45 - 60 days worth of food and drink...yes including wine!)
 Approval from insurance company to cross the Pacific
 Attain an agent for Galapagos visit
 2011 taxes
 Figure out our new satellite phone so we are sure we can use the darn thing!
Etc...etc...etc. We are so tired and still have a thousand things to do and a thousand goodbyes to say. We are so excited but yet sometimes ask if this is all worth it? It is not easy. The last thing we wanted was workers on the boat up to the last minute but...such is the case. I've lost faith in our wood worker who has been re-doing Ben's bathroom. He is supposedly coming tomorrow, our last day in Panama City. This is so exhausting. Okay, I'll stop whining now.

So, here's the plan:
Leaving Panama City Monday morning, stopping at Contadora Island for a good night's sleep. Tuesday morning starting a 900 mile trip to the Galapagos Islands, probably will take us a week to get there. This all depends on wind (or lack thereof) and how much we choose to motor. We will spend 10-14 days in the Galapagos, very excited to swim with sea lions, turtles, penguins, and sharks! Then we will take off for the biggy, 24+ days across the Pacific Ocean (the puddle jump as they call it) to the Marquesas Islands, "Oui, oui," where French will be our new language to struggle with. From there we will continue through French Polynesia. Excited, nervous, and hopeful are just some of the emotions we talked about feeling tonight over dinner. We are all three mentally ready for this, the physical challenge is yet to be seen. We have kept a wonderful card that is hanging in our boat, given to us by a friend when we first moved on the Lisa Kay that says, "Relax...God is in control," the rest is just up to us right?

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Larry Anderson
03/24/2012, Pamana City, Panama

Beautiful
March 24, 2010

Carnival Pictures
Thought we better post our Carnival pictures before we head out across the Pacific. Enjoy the gallery labeled "Carnival Panama"

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