Aboard Dignity (Lagoon 420) Blog

A simple day. In the morning John and I took the hookah out for nearly two hours. Waters were nice and clear and we saw lots of fish. No lobsters. The air tube which holds the dive flag fell off but we were able to find it by towing John through the water behind the dinghy and covering our tracks. In the afternoon John had a ride up the mast to take pics. That’s about it for the day.

Today we’ll head round to the north side of Isla Cavada ready for tomorrow when we’ll set off in the morning for Boca Chica.

There had been a little rain the previous night, the first we’d seen in a long while. The preceded a warm an muggy day.

Our first excursion was ashore to the nearby beach to follow the trail starting at the stops by the tiki hut. The trail was a mixture of manicured sections (it looked like) interspersed with sections where it was not so easy to see where the path led. The path went up and down several times which with the careful steps we had to take when the footing wasn’t so secure built up quite a sweat. At one point we reached a fork in the path where it looked as though one option took us broadly back towards the boat and the other further along the island. We took the ‘further’ turn and eventually found ourselves in a delightful little lagoon/bay on the other side of the island.

We loitered here for a while with all of us spending time in the water to shed heat. On the way back we took the other path and found that it did indeed lead to a beach that we could see from the boat. To get to the dinghy though we had to clamber over some rocks that separated the beaches.

That was the morning. In the afternoon we dug out the hookah and set it up. We again headed off to the small island NW of us this time exploring it from below. I did see one lobster in the same place and probably the same one as the previous day. It was way to small to capture though.

Helen’s underwater sickness kicked in and she was good to last until we got back to the boat. John and I stayed in the water for another half hour to scrape barnacles off the bottom. More and more it can be seen that Grenada Marine did a very bad job of the paint work as some areas are already down to the primer while others look as it should. I’m now wondering if they even used all the paint we left them. We now know why other cruisers watch the yards while they do the work.

Just before going to sleep the weather turned. The wind picked up and it began to rain hard. Hopefully this will mean some of the moisture has been taken out of the air.

Hoping to be able to make us of some wind in the day we set off at 6am, before sunrise. The wind was under 5 knots and behind us so there was little point raising the sails. The upside of there being no wind was that the seas were pretty flat with waves measuring a few inches rather than feet. Coupled with exceptionally clear water we were treated to the sight of a couple of lone dolphins who, for a while, swam ahead of the boat seeming to swim in air.

We did put out two trolling lines, both with the same favourite lure (green/yellow squiddie with red stripe) but with one modified to have some shiny foil attached. We landed yet another mahi mahi, this one 11.5 pounds, on the modified lure. We found space in the freezer for two more filets. This mahi mahi managed to tangle itself up with the other line which took a lot of undoing.

The wind remained under 5 knots up until about 30 mins before we arrived in Islas Secas. By that time it was not worth the bother of raising the sails so we motored all the way in to an utterly delightful spot just north of Isla Pargo.

The waters looked clear and the temperature was showing an almost too warm 95F. We were all soon in though swimming round the small island to our NW. While not crystal clear the waters here are by far the best we’ve seen so far here in the Pacific. The number and variety of fish is amazing. We’re seeing fish we’ve never seen before. Again, the basic types we’re seeing are similar to the Caribbean but the species are clearly different. One of our favorite fish are the trunk fish. Here we are seeing bright yellow varieties for example that we’ve never seen before. Great to witness the marvelous and inspiring results of evolution.

We lost touch with each other while swimming. John and Helen swam to a beach nearby, and explored there. I couldn’t find them and got a bit worried about the possibility they could be in trouble even though I knew it was likely they’d gone off somewhere. I eventually found their fins/flippers on some rocks by the beach so I knew they were ok. They’d found a path mentioned by one of the guides but didn’t go all the way along it saving that for another day. On the beach was a tiki hut of some sort. Later, it looked like a couple were receiving a private vacation night on the beach set up by an assistant. Perhaps this was set up as an out of the way personal night on a beach far away from everything else. Well – they had to put up with us in the area.

We’ve definitely found a place we can rest up for a few days. As far as we know this is not a park where fees can be levied on us like the last spot. The island to our north, Cavada, is private and we’re not supposed to go ashore there. But there’s plenty of other places for us to explore and chill out.

In a few days we’ll head north to Boca Chica where we’re pretty sure we can pick up an internet connection and catch up things. From there we can access the town of David for more fresh provisions. We also have the option of heading inland to Boquete where we can hike up to the top of a 10,000 foot volcano from which we’re supposed to be able to see both the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean.

As daylight increased yesterday we saw that our position in the channel between the islands was about the choppiest (unlike the previous evening) so we made a quick decision to shift the boat a little further to the north. This was a little better but still not comfortable. However, it bought us time to explore the beach on Isla Jicarita.

Before we were able to lower the dinghy a park vessel came by and started asking questions, in Spanish. Knowing that stiff fees could be charged for anchoring in the park I went through charades to explain we needed sleep and would be on our way to Isla Secas the following day. They gave us consent for this and went off. We don’t really know what we agreed to but it seemed ok.

John and I visited the nearby beach leaving Helen who preferred to stay aboard the bumpy boat and read. The beach was fairly interesting. We followed a dry river bed into the island a short way before returning. Pictures were taken.

Once we’d returned to Dignity we up anchored and headed around to the north of Jicaron where we found a more comfortable anchorage.

Having had lunch along the way (some great home made french bread rolls) we all went ashore to explore the much larger to be found at this new location. We found three small streamlets (two of which we dammed). In the jungle we could hear howler monkeys from time to time. The place was deserted and had to be one of the most picturesque we’ve been to if not the most. Pity we didn’t take our cameras ashore. We found a nice long stick which we used to bring down four coconuts which we took back to the boat. We were able to open one from which we were able to drink the water and eat the meat.

Not wanting to attract any nasty fines we set off this morning around 6am for Islas Secas. The wind has failed to exceed 5 knots so we’re motoring without sails. The currents haven’t been too bad yet although we’ve had about half a knot against us. With a bit of luck we’ll get some wind later today to assist otherwise we’ll just motor all the way there. We are hoping to find somewhere that’s good enough to stay for a few days and relax – hopefully Islas Secas will be it.

We set off at dawn yesterday for our sail to Isla Jicaron. We found the wind to be blowing around 12 knots from the north east so to arrive before sunset we broke out the code zero and were soon making good progress. We strung 4 trolling lines off the back of the boat not suspecting the activity we would see. Before reeling them in to curtail any further action we caught 9 fish, 4 bonitos (I think), 1 spanish mackerel (I think) plus four mahi mahi, two of which escaped the hook before being landed. At one point we had three fish on the lures at once. The two mahi mahi we caught were on the smaller side, one being 6 pounds and the second around 7.5 pounds. John did a good job of fileting them both. We also saw plenty of dolphins along the way.

Throughout the trip we were subject to changing currents. At times we had to point up to 25 degrees off our course to keep moving in the right direction. Sometime, when distracted by a fish for just a short while, we’d find the current had shifted and we were now half a mile off course. Eventually the wind died down, shifted round to the west (ahead of us) and the current settled into a 2 knot disadvantage which we had to motor through. We adjusted our final destination to the cut between Isla Jicaron and Isla Jicarita to the south as the diving here is supposed to be good and we can visit the originally intended anchorage on our way out of here.

We arrived just over an hour before sunset at a beautiful and secluded location, not another soul in sight. There was a half a knot current coming through the cut but the reef on the far side protected us from the swell and chop. We quickly settled in and tucked into one of the mahi mahi filets which we grilled for dinner.

Our plan was to stay here a couple of nights so we have a full days R&R in this spot before shifting round to the north of Isla Jicaron. Sadly we may have to review this plan. Overnight the wave direction seems to have shifted round to the NE while the current is still pushing us from the west. The combination made for an uncomfortable night and I don’t think anyone got a full nights sleep. Unless things calm down here we may not even be able to take the dinghy ashore but we’ll wait and see. Chances are we’ll shift north sometime today. The anchorage on the north side of Isla Jicaron should receive better protection.

Shortly after my last blog we picked up some unexpected winds out of the south west. I think it was a result of the air curling over the mountains to our north. This allowed us to press on west sailing practically all the way to Ensenada Naranjo. 2-3 miles short of our destination the winds died down to less than 4 knots so we motored the rest of the way. This is a pretty anchorage but all we’ve done is take pictures and rest. Today we’ll press onto Isla Jicaron south of Isla Coiba. We’re currently a degree closer to the doldrums/equator than we were previously which probably explains the decreased wind and the warmer air.

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It turned out that where we had anchored was not the best place we’d anchored. As we reached low tide, rocks appeared between us and the beach, well within swing range should the wind change. John and I went into the water to investigate. Rather than dropping our anchor on a sandy slope, as we’d thought, we’d dropped it on an irregular rocky shelf. Not only that, the chain was tucked under another rock. The latter was easy enough to fix but the situation, while stable, was a little worrisome. The weather forecast called for a constant northerly. This was good but we didn’t know if local currents could cause the boat to swing.

We swam for a little longer as the outcrop made for a good attraction for the local fish. There were lots of the bumpy headed Pacific parrot fish, eels and John saw a large ray. All of a sudden the fish cleared off and we began to get stung a lot. John was more sensible as he cleared out of the water immediately. I hung around a little longer only to discover the rate at which I was being stung by, presumably, the jelly fish larvae jumped up.

To keep the boat safe we dug out our stern anchor and took that out in the dinghy dropping it about 100ft from the boat. We then lowered the headsail so we could start sewing the patch of the sun cover that was coming off. We took a break in all this to visit the cave around the corner. This time, the tide was now too low and a rocky floor prevented us from entering. Oh well.

Having exhausted the possibilities of the area and given that the wind was up, I decided we may as well leave as soon as we could and see how far we could get sailing, picking our next destination based on conditions the following morning. I finished the stitching and we raised and furled the head sail. As it was still shortly after low tide we didn’t want to approach the rocks to raise the anchor so I got the job of walking it off the rocks. Underwater. Wearing my dive boots I was able to swim down, pick it up and walk it across the rocks, jumping over gaps where need be and moving the chain to avoid wraps around rocks. It took a few goes to get it somewhere deep enough.

John and I then retrieved the stern anchor, put it away, raised the dinghy and secured it for travel. We were off just before lunch which we had on the move.

A couple of hours into the trip we caught a couple of fish at the same time. One looked like a small tuna which we kept and fileted. Unfortunately the meat looked far to red to be palatable so it was tossed. The other fish, similar to the one we had eaten recently, we let go too.

Shortly before sunset we caught another fish, this time an 11 pound mahi mahi on the lure we caught a mahi on in the Caribbean (given to us by Bees Knees). This fish had a lot of fight in it and gave us a challenge as it tangled up with our other lines. We managed to get it aboard though. I could get the lure out of it’s mouth so I clipped it to a line through it’s lower jaw, gave it a quick couple of cuts to let it bleed and put it back in the water having unclipped the lure to untangle some of the other lines. This was a big mistake as when I pulled the fish back aboard the lure had gone. Damn.

The consolation was a tasty mahi mahi dinner that evening with bread made freshly using energy captured from regeneration.

The winds continued to blow in the 15-20 knot range up until my 12am to 3am shift during which they died off to around 10 knots or so. I shook out the reef we had in the main to maintain boat speed. At this point in time (7:20am) our current position, speed and conditions suggest landfall at Ensenada Narango early this afternoon. More distance land falls run the risk of placing our arrival at night. In 19 hours of sailing we’ve covered approximately 115nm.

We’ve just been visited by a pod of around 40 dolphins which were grey and white speckled. This is the first time we’ve seen dolphins with those markings.

We set off fairly early from Rio Cacique in very light winds. The forecast had said 15-20 knots which would have made for fine sailing. It was possible the land was sheltering us and as we had no incentive to stay we headed off. We pottered along on battery power for about an hour with sails up doing very little. The winds picked up to around 8-10 knots so we shut down the motors and sailed very slowly around the southern end of Isla Del Rey. We then motored the final leg to Concholon Bay. As we entered the bay we took a good look and were unimpressed so, without dropping anchor, we turned and headed over to Isla San Jose lunching on freshly baked bread sandwiches on the way.

We anchored in an area close to a cave where we can, alegedly, dinghy in. As we passed the cave we took a look with the binoculars and decided our cave visit should be during low tide this morning. John and I went for a snorkel. The water isn’t crystal clear here but it’s much clearer than before. It is also, in places, a lot cooler. We saw plenty of fish around a rocky area. The underwater topography was fascinating with lots of ledges, overhangs and small canyons. No lobsters to be found though so we remain patient on that front.

The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing. Ta’ee showed up with another boat and they took off (with their kids, 7 & 9) to explore. They stopped by on the way back having been unable to enter. They had now come to the same conclusion as us in that low tide would be better.

We’re going to hang around this are for another day. The sun cover on our head sail needs some stitching which I can hopefully do. We’ll explore the cave at low tide and I’ll go snorkeling for lobsters again around the same time. Weather permitting we’ll leave here around 3am tomorrow morning and head over to the area around Isla de Coiba. Our actual destination will be dependant on the weather and the time of day at our arrival. We could be sailing anywhere between 150nm to 200nm so this should be roughly two days and one full night of sailing. However, if we encounter currents and/or really light winds it could easily be more.

Yet another attempt at snorkeling yesterday and yet again, terrible visibility. I tried a few locations – all the same. On the way back I picked up John and we went ashore just after low tied to mess around on the sand where the river comes out. While there we met John from Taee. Turns out we’ve been in each others vicinity a few times. First time was back in Isla Grande the day before the kids arrived. We were at the same anchorage at La Playita for a while in Panama City. They’ve recognised our boat each time. I think I had a brief chat with his wife, Lucy, at La Playita. Now we’ve met up. We agreed an exchange of information later in the day as we have roughly similar plans, at least out to Tahiti, although they will leave for the Galapagos well ahead of us. The next few days we may well be in the same anchorages.

High tide was at 4pm so shortly before 3pm we dinghied a short way up the river, cut the engine and allowed the tidal flow to take us upstream using the oars to keep us (or at least try to keep us) out of the way of dangling branches, roots, etc. It was quite peaceful drifting upriver, the peace occasionally being broken by the squawking of parrots and calls of other birds. The river became narrower and narrower although the speed at which we were heading upstream never diminished. We eventually came to a point 2 miles in where the river being about 15 feet wide was jammed with logs and branches. We about turned and headed back under power as the river was still filling and flowing backwards. We tried another branch of the river but this didn’t take us too far. We had the GPS with us so one day I’ll be able to post our tracks up the river.

Back on the boat we again met John from Aiee so we could exchange notes. That was about it. We have started watching “The Wire” in the evenings as we have all five series with us. Good stuff.

Today our plan is to head around to the west side to a little bay called Concholon Bay and, if the holding is good, stay there the night. If not we’ll press on to Isla San Jose off to the west.

Looking further ahead we’ve decided to push ahead and arrive in Costa Rica a little earlier than planned. Whether or not we get there earlier is another thing but if we do it gives us the opportunity to be a little further north when Ella arrives (making their travels from San Jose shorter and easier) and perhaps gives us a good opportunity to have one of Helen’s friends (now living in Costa Rica) aboard while the cabin is vacant.