Tropical Sailing Adventures

A couple days ago we took a day off from boat preparation and drove to the Caribbean side of Panama. The Isthmus of Panama, also historically known as the Isthmus of Darien, is the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean and the Pacific, linking North and South America.

In just over an hour we reached Colon Duty Free zone. The Colon Free Zone is the main commercial distribution center for the hemisphere making it an ideal hub in this age of globalization of the world's economy. Nearly all world routes pass the Colon Free Zone located as it is at the Atlantic gateway to the Panama Canal with access to both the Atlantic and the Pacific. Wholesalers and retailers travel to this Free Zone because here they are able to buy all consumer products either by the container load or in smaller quantities, because Free Zone importers specialize in bringing in container loads of goods, and breaking them down for resale.

Just a short drive down the Caribbean coast lays the historic town of Portobello, Panama. It boasts famous visitors like Christopher Columbus, Sir Francis Drake and Henry Morgan. Legend has it that Christopher Columbus originally named the port "Puerto Bello", meaning "Beautiful Port", in 1502. It is also said that after Sir Francis Drake died of dysentery in 1596 at sea, he was buried in a lead coffin near Portobello Bay. From the 16th to the 18th centuries, it was an important silver-exporting port. The Spanish built defensive fortifications of with the remains can be seen today. Henry Morgan attacked the city in 1668. He led a fleet of privateers and 450 men against Portobello, which, in spite of its good fortifications, he captured.

Today there is little more than a wonderfully protected anchorage and a small village. The forts flank the entire bay and if you look close enough you will see hidden gems of history throughout the overgrown jungle. There were over 70 sailing vessels anchored in the bay that day - a far larger number than when we were there 10 years ago. We were only 1 of about 6 boats back then - and we thought that was crowded! A wonderful visit - It is a place where you can peek into an important era of seafaring.

No motor theft update? The short version of this long saga is that the police say they know where it is but they need to write letters and ask permission to enter the island on which it is apparently located. We are not feeling hopeful of its return at this point.

We found an excellent sail repair (boat loft) in Bocas and have had our sails air shipped to Bocas Del Toro. We feel fairly confident that his repairs will greatly improve our situation. We make take a road trip to pick up the sails OR just have them sent by air on the return... depends how work load goes.

Shipping another motor and bottom paint from the states should be fairly straight forward although we are still up in the air on committing.

Watermaker part has been ordered and will be ready in a week.

We have done our dry provisions for Ecuador and will pick up a few veggies before we leave. It will only be a couple week trip down to Ecuador. (planning a stop at Tropical Star Lodge) The actual sea time is only 4 or 5 days. We hear that Ecuador is a mecca for fruit and veggie markets and a great seafood market is located 5 minutes from our marina. We are told that the seafood is as good and accessible as in Mexico which will be a long awaited welcome!