Placencia Belize!
11 December 2021
Gail Gordon | always changing
Looking back to November and Placencia Belize! It's was new day with a new team. We were delighted to have Jacob, James, Christi and Jill aboard with one day to savor as we waited on Hannah to arrive. With time to sail out to Lagoon Caye we headed out. It was not one of those beautiful sunny days thats inviting. The sky was artistically painted in grays with a beauty of its own. The wind sweeping across the water at 15 - 18 knots gave us a perfect ride.
As we arrived Lagoon Caye Reef by 11:08 a.m. Jacob marveled with enthusium “ Oh my goodness , wonderful, revealing God’s creativity with all the shapes , sizes , color and patterns. A rock which is alive creating life from nothing “ As James said : “ There is purpose beyond the beauty. The creating of oxygen, the biggest provider of oxygen is the coral .” He impressively gleaned this information from the CatholicClimateMovement.Global which expresses .0025 percent is generated by the coral , half of the earths oxygen and absorbs one third of the carbon dioxide from fossil fuels. This is very interesting if it’s true, I highly suggest you do your own research!
Jill and Christi are sisters on a getaway mission trip. When in Placencia we love to go to Ricks place for dinner, it has been a great discovery with wonder wood. For Christi and Jill “ it was the perfect welcoming and start of their trip “ A surprise salad with super great pasta. When you are in central America a salad with fresh lettuce becomes highly valued if you are a salad lover."
Hannah arrived Viento Azul the next day and we were ready to set sail. Guatemala bound to serve at Casa Agua Azul. ( bluewatersurrender.org ) On a beam reach port tack the perfect wind blew a steady 12 -14 moving us along at a nice rapid speed of 8.2 . We headed into continuous grey skies accompanied by a drop in the temperature! Our hope was to have one last swim at Seal Caye reef. It was way to chilly especially for Florida Keys people. Currently in Belize on many of the reefs park rangers are charging $ 25 per person to drop your anchor Which becomes pricey if the reef is an every day event and having 7 aboard.
Tracy was still sailing with us from our last venture along with Captain Ted and myself Gail. Due to the cold, the sun setting and not wanting to pay to anchor we decided to move on to Snake Caye. It is becoming one of our favorite spots here in Southern Belize.
The wind kept blowing and increasing.The sunset and through out the night intervals of rain continued. In the morning with great vigor Jacob took the paddle board ashore Snake Caye while Hanna did a refreshing swim. With this being the last saltwater chance to swim, I could not resist despite the cold , rain and early morning hours. Christi was my motivation and we jumped in swimming towards the island reef area. It was a bit intimidating with rain and grey skies but worth it. The reef was alive with color! The rain and wind increased as we adventured to swim around. As we approached the windy side the waves were starting to brake. We altered direction back around to the sandy beach area to wait out the intensity of rain, which was falling from the sky heavily. It was getting hard to see but was fun! Reaching the boat became an exhilarating task crossing over the deep water filled with turtle grass. What a perfect breeding ground for conch but none were in sight! And so was our morning. As we pulled anchor in the rain we were Punta Gorda bound to check out of Belize and grab a few limes and tomatoes. Livingston, Guatemala is right around the corner and was to be our destination for the night.
Check out was a breeze in Punta Gorda and by late afternoon we were arrived Livingston, Guatemala just in time to check out as the night fell. We took a jaunt around town for some local grill action, thanks to Tracey’s good nose scouting it out. It was nice to be at the mouth of the Rio Dulce in calm waters again after the last couple of nights of rocking in the rainy wind of Belize.
Morning awakes us to head up the Rio Dulce through the gorgeous canyon walls of the jungle. If you have never had this experience I suggest you add it to you living list of to do’s!
I love the sounds and details of the jungle foliage reaching so high up, as you pass up the river into the golfette before entering the marina district of the Rio Dulce. We stopped at Nana Juana Marina to fill our water tanks and allow our guests to have a moment on land. Lunch time was a beautifully served meal at the restaurant. The day was moving quickly but there was still time to sail up Lake Izabal to Casa Agua Azul. The wind died off on the way and the sun came out. By sunset we were quietly anchored and ready for what ever was next to come.
When time is short we like to take advantage of every moment. The next day visiting the children was heart warming to all on board . As afternoon approached we sailed back to Nana Juana Marina where Viento Azul will rest for the holiday season. But we will not stop here!
Life is filled with adventure as we step out in faith and make use of what is available at hand. God promises to richly supply for his children. Take a look around. What is at your hand? I urge you, pick it up by faith and live the full life Christ has so freely given to you .
May your Holiday season be filled with love , family and the joy of the Lord.