14th March - Pete didn't want to leave at stupid o'clock, even though the trip to San Blas could take a good 10 hours, with the current against us and the swell and wind from the northeast, putting us on a port tack, which is always slower for us. We lifted the anchor at 0715 hours and decided to take the short route out, passing the marina, rather than going around Linton Island. We motored slowly, as there are reefs on both sides. I was looking over the starboard side, while Pete watched the port side and the depth gauge. Another yacht was leaving the marina, so Pete watched to see where he went, so we could follow. Unfortunately, at that moment, the depth dropped from over 9 metres under the keel to 0.8m, then 0.2m and zero and we were aground, luckily just on a mud bank. The yacht ahead had seen us and turned around to come to our aid but Pete managed to reverse us off the bank. The guys on the other yacht shouted for us to come through, close to the poles at the end of the marina pontoon and follow them out but we decided to turn around and go the long way around the island. Once we had cleared the island, we turned head to wind and raised the mainsail but we had the wind more or less on the nose until we rounded the next island, so the foresail wasn't deployed until 0842 hours. We were making slow progress until the wind rose to 12 knots and we managed a reasonable sail for just under half an hour. Then the wind dropped and came round more to the east, leaving us no choice but to motor and that was how it was for the rest of the day. A couple of dolphins passed by but didn't stay and that was as eventful as our trip was. The swell was very low, which was a blessing and eventually the current against us eased and we were able to make 6 knots SOG for the last couple of hours. We decided to head for Chichime Cays, the closest island and find somewhere safe to anchor before sunset. It is known for being a place where the backpackers hang out and a bit of a party island, so we aimed for the anchorage on the outside of the island, rather than going into the lagoon, between unknown reefs. The water was deep and the shallow patch wasn't where it was shown on Navionics, so we were being very careful. Eventually, we dropped the anchor in 5.7m and reversed back to 10m under the keel, with 30+ metres of chain out. The reef wasn't far off to the port side of where we had dropped, so it could be a tense night. The catamaran beside us played some good music, not too loud, until the guys went ashore to party. We watched the sun set and half an hour later, the moon rose and was a deep crimson colour. I assumed it was the reflection of the sun. Later that night, there was a partial eclipse but we didn't see it, so perhaps the two phenomena were connected. It was a still and peaceful night and any music from the bars stopped at 10.30pm.
We decided that Chichime wasn't the place for us, so we prepared to leave and head south to Lemon Cays West, not very far away. Reports on Navionics said that the charts were accurate for entering via the northwest channel but we still went very slowly between the reefs and I stood on the bow to keep watch as the water shallowed. An hour after departing, we anchored in 4.5 metres, between the islands and to the east of the main reef. There was one other yacht in the anchorage.
The island to the north had a broken down pier and some abandoned buildings but the one to the south had no habitation. The island to the east had a small resort, with small wooden, tin-roofed, huts, on stilts over the water and a bar / restaurant on the south end. Away beyond the reef, on the island to the west, there was a colourful beach bar, which looked very inviting. I saw an eagle ray jump, which was lovely. We lowered the dinghy, filled the outboard with fuel and lowered that too and took a ride around the end of the reef and across to the beach bar. Crossing the channel was rather choppy and I got a bit wet from the spray. We pulled the dinghy up on the beach, on the sheltered south side, in crystal clear water, which appeared turquoise due to the sandy bottom. The restaurant was packed with people, locals and tourists, perhaps because it was Saturday. However, we were given a great welcome by Blanco, who assigned Stacey, his sister, as our waitress, because she could speak pretty good English. We ordered beer and sangria and then decided to have fish and chips. The prices were cheap and the food was basic but tasty. The hoards of people disappeared on four small boats and headed for Chichime and a short time later, the same boats returned from Chichime with different people aboard. We launched the dinghy and motored back to the boat, more comfortably with the swell behind us. We had a swim and I spotted a giant moth, 5 inches across, clinging to the starboard side of the boat. Pete tried to take a photo of it with his phone but disturbed it but it landed on the back of our sunscreen, where it remained until dusk. After a late supper, we had a beautiful night on board, with a gentle breeze, no rocking and no bugs.
Next morning, I managed to get a wave out of the lady on the other yacht. It was German flagged, which usually denotes friendly and competent sailors but they had seemed to want to ignore us. Perhaps they were used to having the anchorage to themselves. A couple of hours later, the man took the woman ashore and returned alone. Pete scrubbed the waterline of the boat and I spent much of the morning doing Dualingo and reading Spanish for Dummies. We swam and it was very peaceful and relaxing. After lunch, with the batteries on float, we made water. Then we took the dinghy ashore, to the bar at the south of the island. It was very basic and rather tatty, other than the arts and crafts for sale which were hanging on the wall. There were 7 or 8 assorted dogs running around, or sleeping in the shade. We were served by a Guna woman, wearing traditional dress. Her mother was sitting nearby, making bracelets. We ordered beers and sat down opposite the lady from the German yacht, who turned out to be an Aussie. She told us that she was visiting the German man, an old friend, to sail with him for a year but that he had turned weird and would no longer go ashore, preferring to explore with his drone. She had run out of food but he wouldn't let her off the boat, until this morning, when she had attempted to flag down a local boat. She was now waiting for a water taxi back to Panama City. As soon as she left, the German man left his boat to visit people on another yacht that had come in and he stayed there until late in the evening, so you don't know what to believe. We returned to the boat and had a visit from a local dugout canoe, carrying a man, a woman and three children. They wanted milk, which we didn't have, so we gave the children lollipops and the parents some water. They had an old diesel can for water, which didn't look very clean. Later, I had hit on the idea of filling our empty pop bottles with water, when we made it, as it allowed us to give water away cleanly while disposing of our plastic bottles. The anchorage was filling up. There were now a total of 7 boats, including Gael, Cecile and son, Jean, who we had met in Santa Marta, who it was good to catch up with. At nightfall, we noticed that there were coloured lights on a jetty at the north end of the island. Was that another bar / restaurant? We had another good night, with a little more breeze.
We had planned to move on, on Monday but checking Navily, it showed that the anchorage we had selected was unsuitable for the strong NE wind and swell that was forecast, so we decided to stay put in this lovely place. We relaxed and swan and after lunch, Pete took the dinghy to check out the jetty on the north of the island. He returned for me an hour later, saying that Stacey, from the other island was there. This was actually another little resort, with better looking cabinas and a restaurant / bar. A couple staying at the other resort had come for dinner, as they said the food in the other place was terrible. The lobster they ate looked very good. I had a glass of chilled red wine and we chatted with Stacey, about her mother's business, running the resort, the beach bar, 3 boats and 3 cars. Stacey attended university in Panama City and planned to be an airline pilot. Stacey said that my blue eyes are like stars and I look young (I think she meant compared to Pete). A red, green and yellow painted boat arrived at the jetty and Stacey explained that it was the Guna Congress lady coming to do an inspection of the resort. Another lady disembarked and commented that my glass of wine made her want one too. She joined us, with her wine and told us that she was doing a thesis on Guna tourism. She was very interesting to talk to and told us some of the Guna Yala history. The people are descended form the same people as the Kuna in Colombia but they left many years ago and are much more developed. They have their own ways, which don't always agree with what the government in Panama wants. However, they are largely left to self-govern. The resort passed the inspection and the group moved on to the other resort. We returned to the boat for tea (roast pork and roast potatoes). It was a dark and stormy night and we were in bed at 8.30pm. It was very windy overnight, with rain at times and it even felt cool.