Sunday morning we did indeed get to see the sloths. Louis called us on the radio and around 9:30am we dinghied over to Sympatica and then over to a grotty beach nearby where we hauled the dinghy ashore and locked it up. It was a short walk along the shore path before we came to some steps up the hill to Beanie and Rogers beautiful property. They are CLODs (Cruisers Living On Dirt) who have retired here in Panama. They have a large plot of land on which they’ve had built a stunning home. The sloths, all orphans, were quite amazing. They naturally hang onto trees so picking them up is done by holding onto their front claws and holding them involves a cuddly embrace. They move so ponderously and slowly and seem very content just to hang on to us. One was sitting in the kitchen, one was up the Christmas tree and the largest one we saw (called Lightening) was on the bed in their bedroom feeding. In the bedroom Roger had built a ‘tree’ in which Lightening lived. All very bizarre.
We had to say our goodbyes in order to get down the coast before light fell. Having had a plan A and plan B to choose from we opted for plan C and head to Isla Naranjo Abajo a small island 10nm from Shelter Bay and Colon. Leaving the shelter of Linton the seas were quite rough. At one point we were slammed by a particular large wave which sent a few things flying including some of our wine cartons, one of which burst draining red wine into the bilge. Once out of rough waters the sailing became smoother but demanded our attention as we were in the main shipping lane going down to Colon. The wind was better and seas smoother out in the shipping lane so we ended up playing slalom with the tankers. Our early days of learning to sail in New York Harbour made us feel reasonably safe but the AIS system which gave us good info on projected closest approach was invaluable.
We are the only boat here in Isla Naranjo Abajo which makes it quite nice. At night we can see the orange glow of Colon off in the distance and the lights of ships in the lanes. But around us it is all vegetation and no sign of man. It’s nice to be on our own like this from time to time.
Our plan for today is to leave here early and go to Shelter Bay Marina and get the ball rolling with our clearing in and transit booking. We have some more shopping to do involving runs today and tomorrow. If all goes well we’ll only need one day in the marina possibly staying out on the ‘flats’ outside Colon the following evening. Then will begin the slog back up the coast against the prevailing winds. Looking at the weather data the most recent forecast we have show the winds dying and clocking around from the south for our trip back east which would be good if it plays out.
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