CURRENT LOCATION: Anchored in Ensenada Honda
18 18.318' N, 065 18.008' W

Lately, when I sit down to write a blog, I often think, "Haven't I written about that already?" I suppose that it would happen eventually, given that we have been here in Culebra for some time now. Perhaps we've done it all. O.K., maybe not all, but we've found those things we like to do and we stick with them.

This week has involved a fairly typical mix of activities (in bold) for the crew of Prudence. See how many you recognize from previous posts:

Sunday - Sheryl was up before the sun and off to do 'turtle watch'. I approached the start of my day at a more leisurely pace, and we met up at Mamacita's for breakfast. In addition to regulars Les, Dave & Sue; we were joined by two new cruising couples: Lynn & Paul (from Kiana) and John & Carol (from Possible Dream).



It is surprising for me to continue to see new boats arrive in the harbor this late into hurricane season. It makes me feel that maybe we made a sound choice by opting to stay here. Then, I get a sudden sense of alarm when I learn that they are planning a quick run down to someplace like Grenada, Curacao, or Bonaire. I hope we are doing the right thing by watching hurricanes from our current location.

Speaking of hurricanes, on Sunday we were still feeling a potential threat from Bertha, so we moved from a mooring ball to our own anchor. The day was rounded out by tackling the messy job of changing the engine oil.

Monday - Again, Sheryl was up and off in the dinghy before the sun rose above the horizon. On this morning, there were turtles hatching. Unfortunately, there was also an army of frigatebirds feeding. The DRNA representative decided to hold the little turtles for an afternoon release, when the threatening frigatebirds would be taking a midday siesta.

I heard opportunity knocking. It was highly unlikely for me to rise early for what Sheryl has experienced to be roughly a 1 in 7 chance of seeing baby turtles. However, an afternoon walk to Zoni Beach would give me a nearly guaranteed opportunity to see the little critters in action. We took the long walk around the bay and over the hills to arrive at the beautiful beach looking across the water at Cayo Norte and Culebrita. Our reward was a swim in the refreshing water.

Just about the time we had had enough of our saltwater dip, the turtles arrived. Sheryl immediately swam out with a tiny turtle, over some fairly shallow coral. Not willing to risk my skin against the coral, I watched from the shoreline as the little fellows pulled themselves through the sand and into the water. They got tumbled by the waves a few times before they realized that these big flippers they have for arms are even better at moving them through the water than they are at dragging them through the sand. The tiny black dots seen from shore through the clear water rapidly disappeared out to sea.





Sheryl got some great photos, but suffered a cut on the bottom of her foot. Fortunately, we got a ride back to town in one of those... what do you call it?...oh, yeah...cars.

Tuesday - After 'turtle watch', Sheryl takes care of laundry for us. It is a chore which she has continued to take responsibility for since our land-based days. Since today is laundry day, I decided to make my own contribution to Team Prudence by cleaning the bottom of the dinghy on sea glass beach. Sea glass beach is adjacent to the ferry dock, and the laundry is behind the gas station at the ferry dock. So, while Sheryl watched clothing spin (and tried not to get carried away by mosquitoes) I scraped and scrubbed a month's worth of accumulated growth off the bottom of the Portabote.

While on sea glass beach, we met a rather strange character. He seemed lucid enough when you initially spoke to him, but his actions were a bit strange. He was waving around a blue tarp as he walked the edge of the beach. Although we didn't ask, he offered an explanation for his activities. He was setting up a wave to counter the energy of the hurricanes. He believed that if he waved this tarp along the beaches of Culebra, the effect would keep us from being hit by a hurricane. Our initial assessment was that the guy was crazy, but upon later reflection it seems that he was just taking a very literal view of the Butterfly Effect. I suppose it could do no harm, so wave away Crazy Guy from Sea Glass Beach.

Wednesday - Due to her cut foot and a book that was just dying to be read, Sheryl decided to take a day of rest (DOR) after the early morning 'turtle watch'. Meanwhile, I noted that there was barely a cloud in the sky and decided that it had been far too long since I had walked to Flamenco Beach. I am not as much of a lie-on-the-beach-and-soak-up-sun person as I once was, but today was the perfect opportunity to do just that. Even with a healthy dose of sunscreen I had picked up a bit of color by the time I hiked back to the boat in the early hours of the evening.

Thursday - Initially, Sheryl was volunteering at the library on an 'as needed' basis. Now, Thursday is her regular day. If you are visiting Culebra, you can stop by the library trailer between 10AM and 2PM on Thursdays and say 'Hi' to Sheryl. Having gotten plenty of sun the day before, today was to be my DOR. I stayed below and did some work on the computer (exploring options for making money with our blog site, which I'll share later).

Sheryl returned with something special for me from town. Since we have no refrigeration, fresh meat is always a treat (at least for me, not so much for Sheryl since she is a vegetarian). The grocery here is kind enough to open a package of boneless chicken and sell us a single breast. On the occasion when we are in town in the late afternoon, I get chicken for dinner. After a simple rub with a little olive oil and a sprinkle of kosher salt the chicken is cooked on the stern rail grill. It always comes out flavorful and juicy.

Friday - Due to a special 'Kid's Camp' at the library, Sheryl spent a few hours in the Library before going to visit the veggie guy. While she was in the neighborhood, she dropped off a book for friends Mark & Terrie at Palmetto Guesthouse. By the time she made it back to the boat, I was ready to go. The plan for the afternoon was a visit with the fishes.

My most favorite of activities in this cruising lifestyle has got to be kayaking and snorkeling. It is much to my delight when we combine these two. With our snorkel gear strapped to the front of the kayaks, we paddled through the canal and around Punta Melones. We tied to a mooring ball and snorkeled our favorite section of reef.

The best part of entering the underwater world is viewing a new species. And this trip was no disappointment in that regard. An odd movement along the bottom caught my eye, but initially there was no identifiable feature or shape. Then, suddenly, I saw a tentacle. I popped my head up to alert Sheryl that I had spotted an octopus. A second later, with my face back below the waterline, I could not find it.

Hovering motionless with my eyes scanning the bottom, I finally saw a mottled brownish mass with spikes on its surface. I pointed it out to Sheryl just as it flattened out, eight tentacles splayed out in spiral curlicues, and its surface turned white and smooth. It was beautiful. Sheryl dove to take a photo, only to realize that her battery was dead. So, while I kept an eye on our friend, the camouflage expert, Sheryl swam back to the kayaks to get her spare camera battery.

Mr. Octopus moved slowly across the bottom in a graceful, fluid motion until settling into a cozy alcove in a clump of coral. By the time Sheryl returned the elegant dance was over, but we were still able to see the creature curled up its hiding place. With a new species added to the photo files, we were ready to call it a day. Especially since all the rapid fin work had caused a blister to chafe on Sheryl's toe. It has not been a good week for my lovely wife's lower extremities. It's a good thing she is a band-aid aficionado.

Can you find the octopus in these two photos?



Saturday - Wanting to keep her tender feet clean and dry, Sheryl opted for another DOR, if you consider the painstaking process of trying to upload photos through our poor internet connection a Day of Rest. After a morning on the internet, I gave Sheryl our tiny pipeline to the world wide web, and spent some time repairing my hat.

Anyone who has known me for some time knows that my prized possession is a denim hat. The poor thing has seen me through better than a decade of beach trips and bicycle rides. Over the past year, Sheryl has applied two iron-on patches to the hat's interior. This has been quite effective at keeping the sun from burning small spots on my balding head through the threadbare fabric. Unfortunately, though, a new weakness has recently appeared along the brim. My efforts with needle and thread will hopefully bandage these wounds and keep the hat alive for at least a few more months.



After this important surgery, I decided to give the repaired headpiece a test outing and went for a late afternoon walk over to the west side of the island. I continue to look for a hike which takes in a good hill or two and makes a circle, but I keep ending up exploring dead end roads.

Sunday - It is early on Sunday morning, and Sheryl is already gone on 'turtle watch.' In about an hour, I will meet her at Sunday breakfast and we will start yet another week in Paradise.

I guess that is fairly typical of what a week here is like. Sometimes major bumps in the road immediately displace those daily activities (like when the outboard overheated last week, requiring us to systematically take it apart, replace parts, and put it back together until we got in running order again). But usually it is just a matter of living simply between each weather check. Hope your summer is going just as well, dear Reader.