Trinidad to Guaymas
This leg of our ten year adventure took us over 114 days from Chaguaramas Bay, Trinidad to Marina Seca in Guaymas, Mexico. There we put TEKA III on the hard (out of the water), securing her for the summer desert weather to await our return after Christmas/New Year timeframe. Then one more leg will get us back to the Pacific Northwest.
She had spent from May to December 2006 at Coral Cove Marina in Trinidad—on the hard. After painting the bottom, “splashing her again,” checking all systems, replenishing supplies, and welcoming aboard Hugo Carver, our first crew member for this trip, we untied from the dock and headed to Venezuela and points beyond. We left behind several new cruising friends (I call them “adoptees”); the ground crew headed by Calvin, the lift operator; and most notably, Jesse James, our special contact for land adventures while in Trinidad. We also celebrated TEKA’s 25th birthday with a pot luck party at the marina. The office staff couldn’t imagine having a birthday party for a boat, but they were really just land people, who worked around boats.
Hugo Carver is half of the Knight and Carver establishment that built TEKA III in 1981. He had been on sea trials, heard all our tales each year at a lunch date in San Diego, read the webpage regularly, yet had not been at sea on his ship. He grabbed the chance and we enjoyed having him on board for almost 1000 nautical miles until he departed in Cartagena in time to celebrate Christmas at home with family in San Diego. The results of his sea going adventure: being reunited with one of his creations; feeling truly salty again, which included swimming as much as possible; helping the Captain with boat jobs; ceremoniously taking care of the many flying fish that committed suicide during night passages; taking lots of interesting photos to share; and giving us the “hippy, dippy” weather report each day. He would sometimes appear in the pilot house with a serious look and twinkle in his eye to ask if we felt the bump when we went over the last Omega Line.
On December 1, we challenged the myth of “never starting a trip on a Friday;” yet we only went to the closest island (7.6 miles) after refueling, to drop the hook near the abandoned homes on shore of Chacachacare Island’s former leper colony. And did it rain to christen our voyage!
The next morning our trip began in earnest as we charged ahead 143 nautical miles to the island of Margarita, Venezuela. Anchoring, we learned everything was closed for the election; we could not even check into the country. So we spent the night without ever leaving the boat, and left early the next morning on our westward trek. Two other anchorages, Los Roques and Aves de Barlavento, and we left Venezuela after 232 more nautical miles without ever leaving the boat.
Next country—Bonaire, one of the ABC islands originally belonging to the Netherlands. They had buoys right off town center for cruising boats and a very large dock for cruise ships or such ships as the 330’ Paul Allen Vessel, OCTOPUS. Hugo knew this one as Knight and Carver had done work on it and were in the process of arranging more. He elected not to bother them though as he was on vacation.
Between Bonaire and Curacao, a C130 did a low level pass over us after contacting us by VHF radio about illegally fishing (with our flopper stopper poles deployed we do resemble a fishing vessel), and only then left us alone. When we left Curacao a couple of days later we were followed and checked thoroughly by a hovering helicopter for the same behavior although they never said a word on the radio. We didn’t either.
We decided to miss Aruba and go on straight (45 hours) to Cartagena, leaving at noon on December 13 and arriving morning of December 15. On our first night out we had a hitchhiker—a booby bird landed on the flopper stopper pole and stayed until morning. Punta Gallina (Chicken Point) marked the place where winds would begin to effect us coming down from the mountains in Columbia. We did not experience them at 20 miles offshore. However a sailing boat we knew went closer to shore and did feel winds up to 40 knots.
Approaching the outflow of Rio Magdalena the water changed appearance as expected. Drainage from the mountains goes way out to sea and we were still out 20 miles. After storms, debris of all kinds is said to come from the river. Nothing came our way during the daytime, but after dark and we had passed the town lights of Barraquilla off to the port side, we hit something. I was on watch while husband, Denis, and Hugo went to sleep. Whatever hit us made quite a thump, but did not stop us; cause us to lose speed; or lead to any vibration in the stern of the rudder or propeller; yet it was so dark outside I could not see anything. Later Hugo checked the waterline while swimming around the boat and said he perhaps saw where a turtle had been hit. We will never really know, but thankful nothing kept us from making it into Boca Chica Harbor in Cartagena. No boats could enter Boca Grande inlet as the Spanish had built a fortress-like wall below the water line to keep that entrance impassable. Boca Chica entrance spanned between two forts, with a large chain underwater that could be drawn up across the entire entrance if necessary. They meant business. If pirates wanted to catch the Spanish fleet it had to be done on the high seas, not at home.
We anchored among at least fifty other boats in the inner harbor near a marina which allowed us dinghy access for a small fee. Cartagena is a winter destination for boats in the Caribbean, so both marinas were full and another anchorage sported several other vessels, maybe long term, maybe just short-term, enroute to San Blas Islands in Panama.
The guidebooks explained Cartagena had an old and new section. In the old section the Hotel Santa Clara was a “must see” and the day we arrived, Sunday, a brunch beckoned us. What we did not know was the time had changed and we arrived an hour early and couldn’t figure out why they insisted we have coffee on the veranda and wait. Our clocks said the right time. We waited and were not disappointed in the spread. Then we had to walk and try to rid ourselves of some rich calories. On board I had a cloth Christmas tree with no lights. Hugo took it upon himself to search out some “luz con batterias” (lights with batteries) for the tree and after three days had to give up. They had many miniature lights in the market and in shops, but none like we needed. Hugo did find gifts for the family that satisfied him. He had been in Cartagena 40 years ago on the Merchant Marine ship and had it ever changed!
After Hugo left for home, we did some sightseeing in both old and new sections. A walking tour with Duran Duran took us through forts, castles, museums, churches, and the obligatory stop at an emerald store. We learned a lot over our half day with him, and on another evening joined him with other cruisers on an open sided bus to tour the barrios and see their Christmas decorations and the many lights up for the occasion. As an extra treat we were serenaded by a small group of children on their way to do some caroling. We sang for them as well. The whole experience gave us a festive lift for being away from home and family. On Christmas Day 150 people gathered at the marina and shared an organized pot luck dinner. I applaud the organizers and elves that made it come to pass.
The day after Christmas we pulled up anchor and pointed the bow towards Panama and the San Blas Islands. We had been there in 1999 after the Panama Canal and before heading to Honduras and Belize, but it is a lovely spot and good place to rest after a 26 hour passage.
Portobello made an intermittent stop before arriving again at Colon, the Caribbean/Atlantic side to the Panama Canal on January 1, 2007. By January 10 we had completed all the paperwork, hired the line handlers, re-supplied the ship, and picked up daughter, Dawn, at the Panama City airport for the trip. Now she can put on her resume she has been a successful line handler.
The trip through began about 4:30 on the 10th when the Advisor arrived on board and we started towards the Gatun Locks, a series of 3 interlocking locks to get us up 85’ to the lake level. We followed a banana freighter, CHIQUITA ROSTOK, casting a humorous eye on the large lit arrow pointing the way to our side, like “this way, stupid!” After getting our lines to the men ashore, securing them to the ship’s bollards, a bell rang and 52 million gallons of fresh water poured in from the sides and bottom creating lots of turbulence as we rose. We had to tend the lines constantly to keep the boat squarely in the center. Denis stayed at the wheel as the boat moved on its own power between locks, kept in place by lines inside each one. We spent the night, a very dark one, tied to a buoy in Gatun Lake. Awakened by howler monkeys in the jungle nearby, we prepared to cross the 15 mile long lake, then do the last three locks to lower us back down 85’ to the Pacific Ocean about lunch time the next day. In the last set of locks we were first, followed by a small cruise ship. Dawn rang the ship’s bell as we approached the Bridge of the Americas and the new body of water. This made six times TEKA III had been through the locks—two round trips with its original owner, Rod Swanson, and one with us. Everything cost more this time compared to our first time in 1999—for instance, $750 for transit initially; now $850. The Canal, begun by the French in 1881 and completed by the Americans in 1914, is to expand even more with a third section for super tankers. About 14,000 ships pass through each year, paying according to vessel type, size, and cargo; average toll $54,000. Dawn stayed aboard for a few more days so we could explore the Perlas Islands, where they filmed the “Survivor” series. We looked and looked but were never able to say for sure which island could be the one. Lots of shells, sand, birds, and surge.
After she went to the airport in Panama City, we maneuvered between many large ships at anchor awaiting transit, fuel or water, and started up the Panama coast towards Costa Rica. Bahia Honda proved a great treat. There we met a local man, whom we dubbed, “The Mayor,” as he came daily with fruits and veggies as we stayed around to paint our flopper stopper poles, a multi-day process. He took us on jungle walk and guided us in our dinghy for a river cruise to see more natives living inland. We were sorry to leave but left our Tohatsu engine for Domingo Gonzales to remember us by as his small motor had died and he had to paddle everywhere.
Checked into Costa Rica at Golfito, staying one night at the Banana Bay Marina, which we found to be the most expensive place we ever stayed at with TEKA III, over $2 a foot plus tax and utilities. Fortunately we could anchor out and pay a daily dinghy fee to use their facilities($15). When son, David, and grandson, Soren, arrived, they went swordfishing with Captain Bob one day. Soren caught a 40 lb mahi-mahi, but no one landed a swordfish. The two of them stayed until Puntarenas where they took a bus back to San Jose and a flight back to San Diego.
Also joining us at Golfito was John Wright, from Fairbanks, Alaska. He had just retired from Alaska Fish and Game, but his passion was birds and did we ever profit from his knowledge. His binoculars were never far from his eyes, and we were always alert for his “oohs” and “aahs” as he scanned the mangroves, land and water. He did not miss much that moved.
Jungle walks in Bahia Drake and Manuel Antonio plus mangroves right across from the boat in Puntarenas netted us lots of activity. In four days at Puntarenas Yacht Club we counted 36 kinds of marsh birds, and one croc. At sea over the seven weeks he spent with us we saw 40 other birds, including pelicans, frigates, blue-footed and brown boobies and terns that rode on the flopper stopper lines for great lengths of time. In addition we counted orcas, a pilot whale, many dolphins, including 16 pantropical spotted ones at once, and a pod of spinners who entertained us one evening for quite some time.
There never seemed to be an end to sea turtles swimming or sunning on the surface, most having a tern on their shell along for a ride. We wanted John to witness a green flash at sunset and the only time it happened, he got sidetracked as a large whale broached at the same time, just out of the line of sight for the sunset.
Only fish caught included a 4-5 lb big eyed tuna and a 30 lb wahoo. Good eating for a while.
Checked out of Costa Rica at Bahia Cocos, then waited at Bahia Santa Elena four days for the Papagayo winds to slow down for our passage to Puerto Quetzal in Guatemala. After checking in with the authorities who came to the boat for our convenience, we took a van ($80) to Antigua for a two day visit of the ancient capital. Took a morning walk with Elizabeth Bell, an American who had lived there since a teenager and gave us a lot of information about the country from the government down, and made sure we knew about the National Symphony Orchestra coming to play “1812 Overture” in front of the famous old church in the square that night, complete with fireworks off the church roof. A very rousing rendition indeed!
Included in our stay was a bus ride the next day to Chichicastenango in the mountains to shop at their big Sunday Market, study the native peoples, and see the sights. Once back in Antigua we were fortunate to arrive just in time for the Lent Processional, where people carried religious statues mounted on poled platforms from a starting place to the main church and the Priest spoke at length in Spanish of course about the meaning of the season and the parade.
Back to the boat we checked out of Guatemala and 49 hours later completed our crossing of the infamous Tehauntepec. In 1998 we had a horrible crossing with winds over 60 miles an hour on our port side, sand blasting us with beach sand all up the port side to the mast top. Conditions that has been o.k. when we left Huatulco on the north side of Tehuantepec deteriorated as we got there and it was no fun, but we made it to Puerto Madero, a little bit worse for wear, but happy to be there. This time everything was “hunky dory” for our crossing. Spent the night anchored off a Club Med and cleared in at Huatulco, a much more developed place than before, the next morning.
We took a collective bus (small van) over the mountain range to Oaxaca, where we spent three days exploring. The first night in walking around we stumbled on a unique concert in a chuch, the second, regional dancing in a church plaza, and the last one, flamenco dancing in a square, followed by a meal which included fried grasshoppers for John and Denis. We all bought tee shirts that said, “Que Lejos Estoy!” (How far I am, or Far Out!)
Our first anchorage after Huatulco gave us a surprise. Several Mexican Navy personnel came out in a panga to check on us. The new Government rule said that if we had cleared in properly at the first port, we were not to have to do it at every place, as was the case in 1999. So we were wondering just what that meant. Anyhow the man in charge, the Assistant Port Captain, took Denis back to shore so they could do the paperwork—hunt and peck on an old typewriter. Denis paid the panga both ways. How about that?
Next stop: Acapulco. Marinas did not answer the radio. No one on a boat came to assist us or look interested in answering our questions, so we just chose what we thought would be a strong enough buoy to hook onto for the night and hoped the wind did not pick up. After a quiet night we unhooked in the morning and left as silently as we came in.
Papanoa, where we had been boarded in 1999 by several armed military personnel, struggling in a leaky panga from shore to our boat, looked quite different. More buildings, boats with high powered motors, in one word-“upgraded.” We waited and watched but no one came or called on the VHF. In the morning we continued on to Zihuatenajo, where John’s wife, Kathleen joined us for a week. A surprise came when someone from the sailboat behind us popped out, looked around, and started waving. We knew each other, knew we were crossing paths, but not sure when and where we could meet.
Had two very rolly exposed anchorages before arriving at Bahia Navidad and stopping in the inner lagoon. Dinghied to the village to shop that afternoon. In the morning a lit green buoy drifted by blinking and blinking as if it was still on duty as a channel marker. While John and Denis went to bird watch, a dinghy came by and they called out, “Is this the TEKA III from Passagemaker fame?” I yelled back, “Yes.” But I was so floored I forgot to find out which boat they came from in the marina.
Two more anchorages until Puerto Vallarta. No room at the inn there. Many people are leaving their boats there now, plus a Bandera Bay Regatta that week took marina slips too. We anchored at La Cruz and bused it into town to see and spend time with cruising friends, Salah and Liljana in their condo.
With no possibility of a marina slip coming up soon, we decided to continue on to Guaymas and return to Puerto Vallarta by bus to take our flights out of the country in April. On our 76 hour trip the only problem occurred when the auto pilot stopped working. Denis struggled to fix it, but fix it he did. The problem was slippage due to over oiling the chain. I learned to hand steer for the first time while he worked.
March 24, 2007: Guaymas! Anchored in the area off the main pier. A marina looked as if it was almost complete but never opened. We were the only ones there and when dinghied to shore, a friendly fisherman let us tie to him. Had thought about hauling out at SanCarlos Marina so took the bus to check it out. No way as boats had to be dragged by tractor from the water side up to the enclosed storage area and they couldn’t service us.
Then we checked out the Marina Seca at Guaymas and bingo, found a home. Gabriel took good care of lining us up with the haul out facilities next to him (they haul fish boats) and a quick easy ride across the street to his place still on the lift. Not too many boats there when we hauled out March 30. However we understood from other people there that the yard would fill up quickly by June when the hurricane season further south would drive boaters to safety.
After preparing the ship to survive the dry desert heat for summer and fall, we packed up and began our bus trip back to Puerto Vallarta for our plane trip. An 11 hour ride got us to Mazatlan where we spent two nights and a day before continuing on to Puereto Vallarta, another 11 hour bus ride. Once there, we enjoyed Salah and Liljana’s hospitality.
Getting out of Guaymas for the States is quite cumbersome. A bus ride to Phoenix or Tucson is one way. Flying to Mexico City and then on to wherever is another. Since we already had our tickets on American Airlines out of Puerto Vallarta, we went with Plan A. Will take the bus back from San Diego/Tijuana on our return after Christmas.
Total mileage this leg 4,141 nautical miles. And the opportunity to wrap our tongues around such words as Chichicastenango, Zihautenango, Topolabampo. Tenecatita, and Tehuantepec.
The End