Magic Dragon Blog
| Vessel Name: | Magic Dragon |
| Vessel Make/Model: | Tayana V42 |
| Hailing Port: | Deltaville, Va |
| Crew: | Herb & Frank |
12 May 2010
Fajardo, Puerto Rico to Beaufort, NC 1170 Nautical Miles
We had planned on leaving Tuesday around noon for the US, but the last minute errands on Monday took longer than anticipated (as usual), and the trip up the mast Frank put off until Tuesday morning revealed a couple of things that needed fixing. By the time we got everything finished we were both pretty [...]
08 May 2010
Costco Day
We went into Carolina, a suburb of San Juan to go to Costco to stock up on stuff for the trip home. We were warned about the traffic, but figured on a Saturday afternoon, how bad could it be?
07 May 2010
Bacardi Rum Factory
We slept in, checked out of the hotel, ate an early lunch in Condado, and then drove over to the Bacardi Rum Factory for the tour and free drinks. The scale of the factory is huge, producing 100,000 gallons of run a day. The our isn't really a tour, it's more of a film/multimedia thing. How they make [...]
06 May 2010
Camuy Caves and Areciba Observatory
We got up, ate breakfast, and hit the road westward, bound for the Camuy Caverns Park. It's about 40 miles from San Juan. The caverns and caves were formed long ago by the Camuy River, part of which flows underground through the limestone rock. The caverns were spectacular, with huge stalactites, stalagmites, [...]
05 May 2010
Old San Juan
We went into San Juan about 930am, timing our arrival to avoid rush hour. The traffic wasn't that bad, and we found the parking lot in Old San Juan easily.
Happy Birthday To Frank
We slept a little late as a result of happy hour and in honor of Frank's birthday. When we finally got moving, we went over to visit with everybody on Safari Tu. They wished Frank a happy birthday; Jen had made birthday brownies, and Anna had made Frank his very own "Elvis Presly" bead bracelet. We wanted to hike back up to the lighthouse to try to get a cell signal to call the marina in Fajardo to reserve a slip for next week, and Herb wanted to take some better pictures, so we did that. It was even hotter than yesterday, but we made it. Still no cell signal, but we did take some new pictures. After the hike, we had a swim to cool off.
After lunch we went further out in the dinghy to snorkel on the rest of the reef. It was very nice; the water was very clear. We saw the biggest parrot fish either of us had ever seen; it was at least 3 feet long probably bigger. It was so big, it had a remora attached to it. Lots of other small fish and a good number of hard corals also.
After getting back and rinsing off, we realized that parents and freinds had tried to call to wish Frank a happy birthday earlier, but we had no cell service to return the calls. It hadn't occurred to either of us to call while we on top of the hill earlier. So, we went out in the dinghy to clear the point of land on Culebrita so we could get in range of the cell tower on Culebra. We went out about 3/4 of a mile and called both parents. The signal still wasn't very good, so it was pretty frustrating, but good to talk to everybody, even just for a minute. While out there in the tiny dinghy a 50+ foot Hatteras fishing boat came roaring towards us. We had to stand up and wave for him to see us and then still get out of his way and turn the dinghy around so to meet the 3 foot wake he was throwing bow first! Power boaters!!!!!
We went back to the boat and made spaghetti for supper. Scott and Jen came over after dinner for a drink and a visit sans children; they had left them with a movie on Safari Tu. They brought beers over, but Scott agreed to have a Ti Punch after his beer was empty. It was a very nice night, and a very good birthday for Frank.
