Makai

5/8/12 to Present

We arrived in Key West the afternoon of Tuesday, May 8th. Motoring through the anchorage we spotted a couple of familiar catamarans: A French-flagged orange cat last seen in Aruba, ‘Sun Bow’, from California, whom we met in Roatan last year, and ‘Two of a Kind’, the boat we side-tied to in Vero Beach just last November. It’s such a small world!

Sunset at Key West

Although we spent only three days in Key West, we thoroughly enjoyed perusing some shops, stopping at various pubs to listen to local musicians and just walking around town. With a forecast for unsettled weather heading our way, we decided to make haste & before things got too interesting. You can check ‘Destinations 2012′ to see where we are between posts!

In and Around Lake Worth, FL

Here’s one way to combine your passions

According to their website “The GOOD NEWS Fishing Ministry provides an encouraging environment for the poor and underprivileged youth in our community, allowing them to experience God’s wondrous creation through fishing, & outdoor activities.”

One reason not to clean your boat bottom (a Scrawled Filefish munching on an algae lunch)

I’m thinking….’How can I tow this vacation island behind our boat?’

Our walk around Peanut Island Park turned into a run, then a ‘Take Cover’ for some big thunderstorms!

Thankfully the weather stabilized the following day & we were able to continue north to Vero Beach.

4/27/12 to 5/4/12

Together with Bob & Sandy (SV Sapphire) we departed French Cay Harbour arriving at Glovers Reef, Belize the following morning. The entrance channel between Long Caye & Northeast Caye was not too challenging for our cat, but Sapphire draws almost 6 ½ ft. and found the bottom a couple of times before successfully negotiating their way into the anchorage.

Shortly after our arrival, we watched this water spout form north of the anchorage.

Glover’s Atoll Resort is situated on the privately owned island of Northeast Caye. The resort welcomes cruisers to anchor offshore and offers the following services (rates as of 4/28/12):

Dive boat
$49 USD (includes rental gear)
$39 USD (your own gear)
$ 8 USD air fill

Kayaks
$30 per day per person
$20 for 3 hours per person

Internet is $2.50 per 30 minutes

With advance notice, they may be able to assist with transport of non-hotel guests to & from Belize City.

Glover’s Atoll Resort (http://www.glovers.com.bz)
Contact: Bryan at bryatlarge@gmail.com

The ‘designated’ anchorage for this region of Glovers Reef is located just west of Long Caye, home of ‘Slickrock’, an adventure eco-resort. This private island resort caters specifically to their guests & is not set up to accommodate the occasional visiting cruiser. Next door is a dive resort, ‘Off the Wall’, who can provide dive tank refills & boat dives depending upon guest occupancy and scheduling.

Slickrock Eco-Resort on Long Caye, Glovers Reef (http://www.slickrock.com)

With nasty weather hammering the Straits of Florida and the waters north of Cuba, we decided to sail north to Lighthouse Reef to enjoy four additional days of diving. A special thanks to the ‘Belize Aggressor III’ & Peter Hughes ‘Sun Dancer II’, both beautiful live-aboard dive boats, who were willing to refill our dive tanks. Their only request is that you wait until 2:30 PM to bring your tanks over (after their guests have departed on their afternoon dive.) That’s not much to ask considering you’re 40 miles offshore.

Diving along the west side of Long Caye

Bob & Sandy (SV Sapphire)

Huge Barrel Sponges

Spotted Eagle Ray

Yellowhead Jawfish

Slender Filefish just inside a Branching Vase Sponge

Black Durgon

By the end of the week, the wind & seas along Cuba’s north coast had moderated & it was time to go. In company Sapphire, we set out on the 540-mile journey hoping for fair winds & positive current.

Life Underway

Fred enjoying the sunrise

Offering shelter to a weary traveler

A sudden case of Carpal Swallow Syndrome (not staged – it just landed there)

Farewell to Sapphire who altered course to Isla Mujeres to fix an oil leak.

Catching our first Mahi!

(We released the fish after taking these pics. He was just too big for the two of us.)

3/31/12 to 4/26/12

Since our arrival in the Bay Islands we have continually monitored the availability of moorings at West End, Roatan. The combination of great diving & laid-back ambiance of the small town makes this a popular destination for visitors & cruisers alike. The field of 20 moorings lies within and is maintained by the Roatan Marine Park, who collects a nominal (in our opinion) usage fee. Unfortunately the local Municipal has voted to ban all anchoring & mooring of boats at West End citing various reasons, most of which are unsubstantiated. Of course, this ‘local ruling’ cannot be enforced (per the Port Captain) and monitoring by the Marine Park has ceased due to the cut in funding. It has been interesting, and at times frustrating, to witness the politics in some of the places we have visited. This new policy may have some merit, but overall it appears counterintuitive for the well being of the local economy.

Upon our return from Utila, we picked up one of the newly defunct moorings at West End & spent 10 days diving, snorkeling, enjoying the company of friends and frequenting the local restaurants & shops. Not once during that time we’re we approached or questioned by any authority regarding our stay.

Goodbye lil’ dink

Happy hour afloat

Diving with friends

Walt & Honoree (SV Will of the Wisp)

Bob & Sandy (SV Sapphire) with Eileen (SV Appleseeds)

Various sea creatures

A week prior to our planned departure from Honduras a late season cold front forced us to leave West End & seek shelter within the protected harbor at French Cay. We spent the remainder of the week diving, provisioning for our northbound trek & watching the weather.

In & Under (diving along Roatan’s south coast)

Our two-month stay in the Bay Islands concluded on a definite high when we finally rendezvoused with long-time friends Liz & Craig.

At Last, Our Reunion with Liz & Craig (Salida)

Summer is quickly approaching & Maine is still 2200+ NM to the north. We reluctantly said goodbye to our friends and set sail for Belize where we could dive while waiting for a weather window to make the 4-day trek to Florida.

03/19/12 to 03/31/12

We were on a mission to rendezvous with Greg & Meg (MV The Wet Bar) who had graciously offered to transport our new dinghy aboard their boat from Fronteras, Guatemala to the Bay Islands. Muchos Gracias!

Greg, Meg and Kathy aboard ‘The Wet Bar’

Two ‘Cars’, No Garage

Utila is the smallest of the three Bay Islands. The majority of the island’s population lives in or around East Harbour (Utila Town), which has one main road lined with gingerbread houses, dive shops, restaurants, bars, markets & small gift shops. The locals are friendly & welcome new visitors and cruisers. The island is considered the party capital of the NW Caribbean attracting throngs of young, international travelers who take advantage of the inexpensive diving & laid-back community.

Among the cruising community, the island’s reputation is somewhat marred by a history of petty crime & burglaries. Practicing the old adage ‘Lock It or Lose It’, we personally had no problems during our visit.

In a small shop we watched a Guatemalan woman weaving using a backstrap loom

The beautifully eclectic ‘Jade Seahorse’ (my pics do not do it justice, visit their website: http://www.jadeseahorse.com)

Spending a couple of days at Utila’s Southwest Cays

Looking across at Pigeon Cay

A lone house sits on Jack Oneil Cay

Diving Utila’s north shore

Cruisers/divers (L to R: Greg, Rose, me, Fred, John,Anne, Bill & Tom)

Underwater at Black Point & offshore at Black Hills

Slender Filefish

Midnight Blue Parrot

Two Blackcap Basslets

Spotted Moray Eel

Longspine Squirrelfish

School of Atlantic Spadefish

Scrawled Filefish

Scrawled Cowfish

Yellowfin Grouper

Fellow cruisers Dave, Pam & Bill entertain the crowd at the Tranquilo Bar.

How Fred spent his birthday

Diving in the morning

Touring the island via motorcycle in the afternoon

Enjoying dinner with friends (L to R: Meg, Greg, Terry, Sandy, Gisela, Frank, the BD Boy, Pam, Bill, John & Ann)

The birthday boy…. 21 years & 408 months old (thanks Pat for the cupcakes!)

03/15/12 to 03/19/12

Together with Anne & Steve, S/V Fine Line, we departed French Cay Harbour & enjoyed a wonderful, albeit short sail south to Cayos Cochinos.

Cayos Cochinos is a small archipelago off the northern coast of Honduras. The archipelago consists of two hilly, lush islands (Cochino Grande and Cochino Pequeño) and 11 small coral cays. The islands lie about 18 nautical miles northeast of the mainland town of La Ceiba and can only be accessed by boat. Anchoring is not permitted anywhere in the park. There are eight moorings located at Cayos Grande, which is managed by the Marine Park & the patrolled by the military. Park fees are $20 U.S. for the boat & captain, plus $20 U.S. for each additional crew. The pass is valid for one month, regardless of the number of visits.

The islands are a Marine Protected Area and are managed by the Honduran Coral Reef Foundation. The reefs here are unique in that they are the least disturbed ecosystem in the Bay Islands.

The islands are truly beautiful, but the small anchorage offers limited protection from westerly or strong southerly winds & seas. We spent three days diving & exploring the islands, but departed for Utila ahead of a tropical wave crossing the region.

Fine Line at Cayos Grande

A local fisherman paddles his way towards one of the smaller cays (the mountainous mainland of Honduras is the background.)

Fine Line & Makai at Cayos Grande

Dinner with Steve & Anne with their guests Pat & Ron at the Plantation Beach Resort (the only dive facility in Cayos)

Diving with Anne & Steve off the north coast of Cayos Grande

The amazing diversity of color & marine life

A smooth trunkfish (very cute!)

02/29/12 to 03/15/12 (Updated 4/5/12)

We’ve been at French Cay Harbour for a week and have had only one opportunity to dive since our arrival ☹ First priority was boat chores – washing the boat, changing oil in the generator, grocery shopping & re-stocking supplies, etc. Once that was completed, we had one day of good weather before a strong cold front was expected to impact the entire Northwest Caribbean. No time to waste – lets dive.

Diving Coco View Wall with friends Anne & Steve (SV Fine Line)

A Longsnout Seahorse clinging to a sponge at 50 ft.

Green Moray

Anne, Steve & Fred at Coco View Wall

A large Hogfish (great eating, but this is a Marine Park)

A second dive later in the day at French Cay Cut

A large (3′ across) Caribbean Coral Crab under a ledge

A Juvenile Spotted Drum

For the past four days it has been windy, squally & just plain ugly. A few boats have dragged anchor, but nothing too serious, just some sleepless nights.

So what else have we been doing to keep ourselves busy? While I spent a couple of hours updating the website, Fred decided to enter a Spaghetti Sauce competition held by Brooksy Point Marina, Roatan, Honduras. And guess who took first place? I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time. Okay sweetie, I’ll gladly turn over the galley slave apron to you!

Fred, the winner!

No, he’s not a sore loser – Wayne (SV Big Fun) was the 2nd place winner

Delivering some slightly used chain for George (Clearwater Paradise). Thanks Anne & Steve (SV FineLine) for the donation!

We spent the remainder of our days in French Harbour diving along the outside reef / walls & enjoying the camaraderie of our fellow cruisers. Now that the squally/ windy weather has dissipated, we’ll depart French Cay tomorrow & sail south to Cayos Cachinos, the Honduras National Underwater Park.

Our new 185 W solar panel (now, where to install it)

Flat Stanley goes diving
Flat Stanley is a one-dimensional figure designed by a class of third-graders whose teacher is the daughter of one of our friends, Bob & Sue aboard ‘Catalyst’. Sue takes Flat Stanley on various outings then documents the encounter & emails it to the classroom as part of their geography, social studies & biology studies. Fred made Stanley a mask & regulator to make his underwater experience more ‘enjoyable’, as well as add the sport of scuba diving to the educational venue.

Yes, more underwater pics!

Fred swimming past a large barrel sponge…. just before his regulator failed!

Fred’s regulator has been subsequently serviced & is now back in working order! It was quite the scare, but that’s what a buddy with a secondary regulator is for. We both lived to dive another day!

Guanaja
02/18/12 to 02/29/12

We had a great 4-day passage from eastern Jamaica to Guanaja, arriving early, too early (4:30 AM) Saturday morning, which meant dropping all the sails & motoring slowly on one engine until 8 AM when we could safely approach the reef strewn southern coast.

Approaching the settlement of Bonacca

Finding the unfortunate ‘casualties’ of the previous night’s passage. What a mess!

We spent four days at El Bight (along Guanaja’s southern coast) shopping for produce, doing laundry, enjoying pizza at Hans’ & organizing a dinghy cruise & snorkel trip to Michael Rock on the island’s north coast.

A post-snorkel stop at Bo’s Green Flash Bar & Grill for a cold one (L to R: Sandy & Terry (SV Gambit II) and Sharon & Reg (SV Pea Soup.)

Guanaja’s north coast east of Michael Rock

On day 5, we followed Domino around to the northeast coast, anchoring in Mangrove Bight to dive with George from Clearwater Paradise.

Diving the Pavilions with George, JP & Fred

Just follow the yellow fins!

The primary mode of transportation on Guanaja is via boat, which in no way hinders folks from the weekly shopping, banking or party going.

George shuttling us around to El Bight for Annette’s (the co-owner of the Manati) 50th birthday party

The Manati Bar & Restaurant

Live music (the band flew in from Germany), a 150 lb pig on the grill & friends from all over the island – it was quite the celebration!

George & Ginger ‘cutting the rug’

The feast!

The ‘Cruisers’ Table (L to R: JP, Kathy, Vern, Terry, Sandy, Michelle, Fred & Sharon.)

The next morning, we were up early & out diving. The thrill of diving in Gaunaja is the extensive labyrinth of channels, caves, and tunnels hidden amidst the island’s offshore reef.

Diving Tito’s (Kathy’s favorite) with George, JP, Marie & Fred
This is definitely not for the inexperienced or claustrophic!

If Fred fits, we all fit

Yes George, it’s too cool!

During our dive at Oswald’s Blue Hole, George spotted this Spotted Cleaner Shrimp on an anemone (the shrimp measures about 3/4” to 1” in length.)

Over the past five years, we met several cruisers who lived somewhere in California and a few who lived in Orange County. But, you know it’s a small world when you meet a ‘neighbor’ in a relatively remote area. That was the case with JP & Marie Dufour, who for 27 years lived just a mile from our house in Huntington Beach, CA. Amazing!

Enjoying Happy Hour with JP & Marie at Clearwater Paradise

It was great to visit with George & Ginger again & catch up with the events of the past year. They now have all guest rooms completed, as well as the upstairs game room. The new dive shop is still under construction, but coming along nicely.

Clearwater Paradise

Ginger’s garden is as bountiful as it is beautiful

The staff from Clearwater Paradise aboard Makai (L to R: Ennis, Witi, Mariah & Shaniah)

NOTE FOR OUR CRUISING FRIENDS:
WE HAVE REVISED THE ENTRANCE WAYPOINTS TO MANGROVE BIGHT. THIS INFORMATION HAS ALSO BEEN POSTED TO CLEARWATER PARADISE’S WEBSITE ()

Our boats at anchor in Mangrove Bight (Makai, Pea Soup, Enchantment & Domino)

We don’t like saying good-bye, so for now we’ll just wish JP & Marie (MV Domino) fair winds & following seas!

We reluctantly departed Guanaja for French Harbour, Roatan on Leap Day. We plan to return to the island in about a month to greet our friends, Craig & Liz on SV Salida.

02/07/12 to 02/14/12

We arrived in Port Antonio, Jamaica around noon after an overall good, uneventful trip from Mayaguana (day 1 – brisk wind & moderate seas, day 2 – no wind, seas flat.)

Sunrise approaching Jamaica (S/V Water Musick)

Jamaica, viewed from the sea, is spectacular – lush, green, mountainous peaks touching the clouds with tropical foliage trailing down to the waters edge.

Approaching Port Antonio, Jamaica (Blue Mountains in the background)

Port Antonio, or ‘Porti’, has two harbors, the larger East Harbour & West Harbour, separated by Titchfield Peninsula and Navy Island. The harbor offers excellent protection, fuel, two marinas and a new haul-out yard (100T travel lift, beams to 24 ft.)

Errol Flynn Marina, Port Antonio

The town itself is untouched by the massive tourism found at Montego Bay, Ocho Rios & Negril, and is considered to be the safest parish in the country. During our weeklong stay, we felt safe walking through the town, visiting shops and the market place. We found the locals to be warm, welcoming and helpful. This is not to say we weren’t approached by a couple of ‘opportunistic’ individuals, but they were exceptions. Walking through the local market place you are almost overwhelmed by the plentiful bounty of locally grown produce and spices.

Norma was one of several vendors who gladly shared with us her knowledge of locally grown spices & spice blends.

One of the many ‘treasures’ from Jamaica – Blue Mountain Coffee!

A group of us enjoyed an afternoon exploring the ruins on Navy Island. The island lies just north of the marina & has an interesting history in that it was occupied by British soliders in the 1700′s and was the site where Captain Bligh discharged a cargo of breadfruit in 1793. In 1947, the island was purchased by Hollywood actor, Errol Flynn, who built himself a private retreat. The property was later turned into a hotel, which subsequently failed.

Exploring the offshore reef & beaches

Prior to departing, we joined the families from S/V Morning Glory (Amy, Stephen & Rivers) and S/V Water Musick (Bill, Becky, Joey, Raymond & Melody) on a guided tour of the island’s east end.

Our guide, Antoine outside a local market

The Blue Lagoon (made famous by the movie of the same name)

A view across the eastern shore

Climbing & swimming at Reach Falls (unfortunately I didn’t have my waterproof camera)

Lunch at one of Boston Bay’s famous Jerk Pit (delicious!)

Jerk chicken & Red Stripe. Life is good!

Touring the ‘Great Huts’ an Afro-Caribbean “roots” alternative to the traditional hotel or Villa –

A group photo (including Antoine’s father Basel) at a scenic overlook of Port Antonio

On Valentine’s Day we reluctantly said farewell to our friends & departed Port Antonio. Next stop – Guanaja, Honduras some 600 NM to the southwest.

01/13/12 to 02/05/12

After a week or so in Georgetown, we sailed east to Conception Island to spend time with friends & enjoy the beautiful clear water.

The view of the Georgetown anchorage from the St. Francis Yacht Club

Idyllic Conception Island

Tagging Turtles in the creek at Conception

Grant & Donna and Tom & Cathie navigating the tidal currents at the entrance to the creek

With promising weather forecasted for the following weekend, we sailed over to Thompson Bay, Long Island to refuel & pick up some fresh produce. Thompson Bay is very welcoming to the cruising community, with efforts spearheaded by Mike and Jackie, the proprietors of Long Island Breeze Resort. The resort has a free dinghy dock, WiFi, laundry, swimming pool, showers, great food & a relaxing ambiance. With a grocery store across the street & gas station next door, it’s no wonder why so many cruisers spend the majority of their cruising season here.

Spending time with friends Cathie & Tom (SV Interlude)

Sights around Long Island

Dean’s Blue Hole

Dean’s Blue Hole is the world’s deepest at more than 600 feet deep. The full depth of the cave was reached by Jim King in 1992. In April 2010, William Trubridge broke a free-diving world record in the blue hole reaching a depth of 92 metres (302 ft) without the use of fins (Constant Weight Without Fins). On December 14, 2010, he swam to a depth of 101 metres on a single breath using only his hands and feet for propulsion, while many divers use weights to quicken their descent or inflatable bags to bring them to the surface quickly.

Fords Beach along Long Island’s southwest coast

A little off-road driving through the ruins of the Diamond Crystal Salt Company at Hard Bargain, Long Island. The plant was said to have closed when it’s main plant in the U.S. filed for bankruptcy. After the Salt Plant closed, a Shrimp farming company called World Wide Protein (Bahamas) LTD, but closed a few years later.

A Shrimp boat left to rust at Hard Bargain

Enjoying a Kalik at Maxx’s

We departed Long Island on 1/28 and sailed back over to Conception Island for a night prior to departing early the following morning for Mayaguana. We arrived in Abrahams Bay, Mayaguana on 1/30 after a boisterous sail to weather.

Mayaguana has not changed much over the last four years, except that the local bar now has wireless WiFi! Akin to our last visit, it’s been blowing like stink for the last 5 days making the anchorage rolly, but tolerable. The forecast calls for moderating conditions starting tomorrow, so that’s our cue to depart.

Potluck on the beach

Anyone for lobster?

Dinner for Eight!

Next stop…. Port Antonio, Jamaica!

1/6/12 to 1/13/12

We had a great sail across to South Bimini, arriving in time to clear in through Customs & Immigration & do some laundry prior to sunset. Yes, we lead an exciting life!

Bimini Sands Marina

The following morning, we departed South Bimini for an overnight passage to Highbourne Cay in the northern Exumas. Taking advantage of the light winds & calming conditions, we stopped to snorkel the wreck of the Sapona (2 ½ miles SE of the island).

The Sapona

Mirror calm conditions crossing the Great Bahama Bank

Warderick Wells (southern mooring field at Hog Cay)

Snorkeling at the Sea Aquarium & Coral Gardens off O’Brien Cay

Mr. Attitude

Reminder – Watch the tides!
The Overyonder Cut into Pipe Creek (an outgoing 4-knot current) It doesn’t look like much, but we had 3 ft. standing waves transiting the cut.

The beautiful anchorage off Big Galliot Cay

Continuing southbound down the Exuma Cays, we used the hours underway to review our planned route, as well as the plethora of information accumulated from various cruisers over the past year. We now decided to expand our cruising plan to include stops at Grand Cayman, as well as the Swan Islands prior to our arrival in Guanaja, Honduras. Disclaimer: These plans are subject to change.

We arrived in Georgetown, Exuma on Friday the 13th where we’ll rest for a few days and visit with friends, Tom & Cathie on S/V Interlude. Concrete short-term plans are a nice change!