Recap

Ok, Ok, I am really sorry that I let this go so long. I really have no excuse other than my normal ones of laziness and some technical issues. But we are well and happy and doing fine. Since I do not have internet access where I am, this is being posted via SSB radio, and that means I can't check to see where I was the last time I wrote. I am pretty sure I reported that we had completed our land trip to Bolivia and Peru, and returned to Ecuador. This all happened in early November.

Anyway, both Bolivia and Peru were amazing beyond belief. Peru gets a lot more visitors (because of Machu Picchu) than Bolivia, so their tourist structure is better. But the Bolivians are wonderful, gracious hosts. When we were in La Paz, we ate lunch at this little place that catered to locals, but the food was cheap and plentiful, so we started going there. Every time we came, the staff all came to welcome us, and other customers would come to our table, introduce themselves, and shake our hands while asking where we were from. And even though our government is not a big fan of the Bolivian president, Evo Morales, (and vice verse) the people are happy to meet Americans and ask questions about us. It was a wonderful experience. Peru was the same way, although to a lesser extent since they are used to tourists. Being in Lima was like being in a cold, cloudy, LA. La Paz is very different, definitely a developing nations type place. (By the way, I have learned that nobody uses the phrase "third world" any more. The proper phrase is "developing nation". And if they are coming out of a big civil war, like poor El Salvador, the proper phrase is "post conflict developing nation.") The smaller towns in Peru were more like Bolivia, with out the sophistication of Lima or the Machu Picchu staging areas.

So anyway, we got back to Ecuador and everything was fine, except we were missing a really nice (and fairly expensive) ratcheting winch handle. We use it to help winch the sails in, and while we do have other handles, this one was the one I preferred. We had left it in the cockpit, so I suppose we should have known better. But that was all, and the work we had contracted to have done was done very well. There were no real problems with the boat that we did not know about before we left, which was good. One of the problems with a boat is that when they sit around for awhile, they tend to have things just stop working for a myriad of reasons. We knew that the alternator was not working properly, and we did not have the fridge working, because we had to replace the evaporator. So Mike got all that done, and did a fine job. We had an engine pro come in and look at the alternator situation (because it kept not working right after a fix) and he figured out what the problem was and fixed it, so we are now in real good shape. And Mike got the evaporator changed and the fridge fixed; so we are happy about that.

We had also made plans for some friends we met while traveling in Bolivia to come and meet us in Ecuador and sail with us back to Panama. But because of that, we were going to have visa trouble - so without going into all the boring details of how visas work in Bolivia, the easiest way to solve the problem was to leave the country for a couple of weeks. We ended up hopping on the bus and going to Colombia for two weeks. This time we headed north out of Ecuador and went through Quito, which is a really interesting mix of old and new. It was one of the first cities in Latin America to be declared a World Heritage Site. Then we ended up spending two weeks in southern Colombia, in a really rural area full of coffee fincas, forests, jungles, rivers, and lots of waterfalls. We fell in love with it and I really thought Mike might buy a coffee finca. It was tempting. We learned how to make maracunya (passion fruit) juice. I have now eaten cuy (guinea pig), goat, llama, alpaca, at least as far as I know. All were really good, with the alpaca being my least favorite although I think what I ate was just not prepared very well (it was really tough and a bit gamey). So now we can hardly wait to get back to Colombia and see more of it. I want to go to Cartagena.

When we got back to Ecuador, our friends showed up, and we all took off for Panama. Our friends (an Australian and a Newfoundlander)
were real troopers and handled the trip well. One of them had sailing experience, for the Newfie, well, it was his first time in a sailboat. This is not a really fun trip or a nice sail. The water tends to be rough and somewhat disorganized, so the boat rolls around a lot. The current is against you coming this direction, as was the wind. Because these guys had to be in Panama by dates certain to get back to their jobs and whatnot, we ended up having to motor a lot rather than try and tack down sailing into the winds. The engine is loud, so it is hard to sleep. But they claimed to enjoy themselves, and asked to return again some time. I reassured the Newfie that this was NOT an example of a fine sail. If the conditions were always like that, no one would ever do it. Another wonderful thing was that our Newfie friend bought us a present - a bottle of Scotch (Macallan or Macallen) that cost SIX HUNDRED DOLLARS. It was not nearly as horrible as other Scotches I have tasted, but Mike appreciated it more than I did. Still, it was impressive. I felt sort of sorry for the bottle - I bet it planned to live out its days in a fine oak cabinet with leaded crystal panes. Now it lives above our stove, living next to a bottle of cheap local rum and a can of Crisco.

After we returned to Panama, we re-provisioned, took care of some chores, and set off for the Perlas Islands, where we spent a number of months in 2013, and a bit of 2014. That is where we are now, and have been out here for over a month. We don't have internet out here. We also have a crew member, a woman from Oklahoma we met in Panama City. She will be with us until we get back to Panama City (in a couple of weeks) and then we have boat stuff to do.

Now the kind of crappy stuff. While we were in Colombia, our boat was broken into and burglarized. They took four computers (two of which were old and did not work well, one that was totally broken, and one really cheap one that did work. Luckily, they left one (A good one) and we had our newest one with us. They also stole a bottle of hot sauce (which made Mike furious). The hatch over the vee berth is broken now. The area was supposed to be patrolled, but there have been a number of break-ins there, and it really seems like the people running the place do not give a shit. It is all really sad. And then - but a bit of background is necessary. This anchorage is in an estuary, and you need a local pilot on board to guide you through the entry, as it is very shallow other than a narrow channel. You also have to go over a surf break. AND it is very important that you go through on the high tide, not before and not after. So our pilot was late, and while he was directing us we ran aground about four times. The pilot looked totally clueless, and really had no idea which way we needed to go to unground ourselves. Mike finally got us going again, and while we sailed on to Panama, we did not notice any problems with navigation or how the boat performed. But when we got to the islands, Mike and I dove under the boat and noticed (to our horror) that about a third of the skeg (a part of the boat that hangs down in front of the rudder to protect it) was torn away. We seem to be sailing okay without it, but it is very important to have. And the fact that it broke right off might indicate some serious problems with overall hull security. It could be like the beginnings of a cracked foundation on a house. So we are hauling the boat out and will have to get a surveyor out to assess the damage. We are going to call our insurer once we get back and find out how they want us to handle it, as the damages might be high. I am hoping they have a local agent (and in Panama that is a real possibility) that can help shepherd us through this. SO keep good thoughts for us that all works out well. We had to have the boat hauled anyway for its yearly bottom painting, so we will have to see. We should know in about a month - that is how long it will take us to decide to leave the islands and head for Panama City (about 45 miles from where we are anchored) and get our haul out scheduled. It is a total bummer, but we will just have to wait and see what happens with it.

That brings us up to date here. I apologise to anyone who was worried about us, but remember that no news is usually good news here.
We have a lot of safety stuff including emergency GPS beacons that can be set off if we are in trouble, and any ship that is close will come and rescue us. We always have people know where we are going and when we can expect to get there, and other cruisers watch out for each other and keep in touch while traveling via the SSB radio. So again, all is well, sailing is great, and the beaches and
warm water cannot be beat! (P.S. As an added safety feature, we are studying celestial navigation.)

----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com