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

Our weekend was just the right mix of social interactions and time on our own. Friday afternoon found us kayaking the 'Fulladoza loop,' with the intent to snorkel the bay near Punta del Soladado. If you recall, the last time Sheryl and I were together in that locale, we swam with a manta ray. This time, there were to be no giant sea creatures to distract us from all of the small scale beauty. Like this...

...Moray Eel:


...Trumpetfish:


...Indigo Hamlet:


Saturday morning found Sheryl up before the sun and off at turtle watch. The repeated experience of helping these tiny leatherback turtles into the water and watching them swim away continues to be a very rewarding experience for her...





And, after the launch of the little ones, Nancy, one of the turtle watch troop, celebrated her 81st birthday with a breakfast party.



Saturday night would find both Sheryl and me over on the other side of the island, as we were invited to play cards with some land-based friends. We enjoyed a nice dinner before getting down to a serious game of cards. Some of our friends from back in North Carolina will remember that Sheryl and I are big fans of the game Hand & Foot (a derivative of Canasta). Well, these people play the game with slightly different rules and a keen eye toward quick and efficient play. We rocketed through four hands in less time than it generally takes us to play two hands of our version of the game. Also, teams were comprised of guys (Billy, Chuck, and I) vs. girls (Nadeen, Abbie, Pam & Sheryl). Suffice to say that the male egos took a serious bashing on this night.



Sunday morning brought breakfast at Mamacita's, where I arrived well rested after sleeping until a reasonable hour and Sheryl arrived soggy and sandy from her early morning at the beach. A new cruising couple joined our table: Rick and Debbie from s/v Miss Heidi.



We spent the remainder of our Sunday relaxing on the boat. It is a holiday weekend in Puerto Rico, so traffic on the water is slightly greater than normal. This generally does not pose a problem for us, other than the fact that many boats seem to approach Prudence rather closely. We assume that it is driven merely by curiosity and they just want to get a closer look. No problem by us.

However, one watercraft this weekend took it a bit too far. We don't often see jet skis or wave runners here in Ensenada Honda, and when we do they are generally moving at a reassuring slow pace around the boats. Saturday night, just after I had finished my shower in preparation to go play cards, a jet ski came by our boat at a very fast clip. They had the curiosity factor combined with an overdose of sheer stupidity. Next thing we knew, their wake splashed through our portlights! And I, of course, was looking out an open portlight at the time.

Fortunately, that is definitely the exception among our experiences here. Overall, this is a wonderful place to be anchored (as evidenced by the fact that we rarely have any desire to depart). And, before long the summer holidays will be over and Culebra will return to its peaceful and quiet norm.