Clearing into Colombia

A favourite topic of all cruisers considering Colombia is the clearance process and fees. We wanted to clear in to Santa Marta, do a bit of sight seeing and then continue on to Cartagena. We soon found out this is only do-able if you clear into the country twice = twice the fees, twice the bureaucracy…not going to happen. Instead we paid Dino (recommended from Noonsite) at the marina US$100 for him to clear us in to Santa Marta. He is an agent and you have to use one in this country, no getting around it. Go into the marina office and ask them to call him or even email him in advance (we weren't that organised). The $100 includes everything; clearance papers, cruising permit, exit zarpe and intermediate permit to visit other places in Colombia after Santa Marta en route to Panama. You cannot however, enter Cartagena in your vessel (if you have already cleared into Santa Marta) without declaring yourselves (again) and paying another $100…although we have heard of boats going in for one night, flying the Q flag and clearing off early the next day. 

Another way of keeping costs down is to ensure you only stay in the country for no more than 15 days, if you wish to stay longer, you have to pay a further $105 to import your boat. Less than 15 days stay rewards you with a temporary importation of your boat for free. Dino takes all the necessary paperwork from you, does his thing and hands it back to you up to 5 days later, although we got ours back the next day…must be a quiet time for Dino at the moment. Not only do you get it back, but he presents it in a plastic folder complete with 2 ziplock bags - total bonus! 

We still want to go to Cartagena so rather than sail there, we are going to take a public bus (5 hour trip) then stay in a hostel. From talking to other cruisers here, this seems to be the norm except most people splash out on a hotel rather than slum it in a hostel…hint hint Dylan.

There is of course the option to by pass Santa Marta altogether and just go to Cartagena to clear in. Again second hand information but opinions on Club Nautico and the surrounding anchorage seem to be quite scathing with talk of a run down marina, a 'cess pool' anchorage and it being unsafe to leave your boat at anchor if it blows over 15 knots as very poor holding.

In summary, yes it is quite pricey for a 15 day stay but the process is slick and from what we have seen from the country so far, totally worth it!

Sailing from Curacao to Santa Marta

There are many blogs out there that discuss the passage between Curacao and Colombia as it includes one of the top 5 worst passages in the world according to Jimmy Cornell. When doing my research before departing, I couldn't find any blogs or articles that were up to date so here is our recent experience day hopping the Caribbean Colombian coast in November 2012, sailing as a flotilla of 3 (Orion, Dolphin of Leith and Waka Irie).

Day One

We left Curacao early morning and headed to Los Monjes (Venezuela), an overnight passage of 120 miles. A pleasant downwind sail the only thing we needed to watch out for was the freighter traffic off the south coast of Curacao and Aruba. There is a shallow bank (60ft) as you pass Aruba where we got many strikes on our lure. We managed to reel in 3 tuna but threw them back as they were too small. Good job I took sea sickness tablets as this passage was incredibly rolly!

Day Two

With Aruba behind us and Los Monjes way in the distance I was asleep with Dylan on watch when he yelled for me to join him in the cockpit. We had got a large strike on the lure and he was having trouble pulling it in so I slowed the boat down whilst Popeye used his muscles. He spent 15 minutes fighting it and within a hundred feet from the boat, all of a sudden either the fish got a massive second wind or it got hit by something bigger and the line ran like hell, stripping it with the ratchet on full. Eventually the line broke (at the swivel…a shoddy knot) and we lost fish, lure and trace. Expletives peppering the air, I confiscated the rod and Dylan had a good sulk about another one that got away.

Approaching Los Monjes (12˚ 21' 70"N 70˚ 54' 15"W) a little after sunrise we started the engine…only to have no cooling water emerge from the stern. OPTIONS…we ran through them and decided the best would be to sail in and anchor under sail, hopefully repair the issue and then move to the designated mooring area which was a tighter space. This is not a new issue to us, it has happened before so the option wasn't so daunting. After a few exciting moments beating under jib alone to get into and area even vaguely anchorable (less than 40 ft) we found a spot away from lee shore and dropped the pick. All the while the Venezuelan coastguards posted on this island were looking on in confusion as a yacht completely ignored their offered help to tie alongside the dock and tried to make sense of our 'engine broken' charades. 

Approaching Los Monjes

As Dylan sat sweating away changing an impeller with his head in the engine, the Coastguard paddled their large skiff out to us with long strips of driftwood as paddles. Two friendly guys boarded us to check our paperwork whilst another 4 guys sat waiting in the boat alongside. They didn't speak a word of English so we got by with my dodgy Spanish. Giving them all a piece of my leftover birthday cake and a glass of water, they went away smiling, waves all round.

Impellor changed, the engine purred into life and started spitting out the water we needed. Now for the tricky part of picking up a sunken polyprop line in an enclosed space. Luckily for us, a big Venezuelan fishing boat that was tied up to the line had since moved whilst we were tinkering with the engine. Motoring towards the patch a line should be I started plunging the boat hook into the water hoping to snag something, and as luck would have it, I did. Attaching an 8 ton boat to a small piece of polyprop really didn't feel like the best idea in the world but previous research had told us it was fine and we were going to dive on it anyway to check. But before we got to that part, we noticed we were dragging two weather buoys out to sea with us…much shouting and gesticulating from the Venezuelan fisherman told us that is why they had moved and they motioned for us to come alongside the wharf where they were secured. Uh ooooh. 

We had a few trying attempts to get her alongside the wharf, helped by a lovely, attentive and toothless Venezuelan fisherman. With a swell similar to that found in St Helena, we moored alongside with every fender we owned out. This was the 3rd time we had ever manoeuvred Orion alongside a wall so we were very proud of ourselves! 

Orion moored alongside the wharf

As we sat admiring our job we were a little concerned with the groans and creaks of the lines and cleats as Orion was picked up and shoved against the wall with every swell coming in. Deciding to stay put for now until the other boats arrived and happy with the amount of protection we had wedged between the boat and the wall, we went for a look around the island.

Lighthouse at the top of the island

View from the top of the lighthouse

Los Monjes is literally a rock coming out of the sea. It used to be two small rocks but now a man made bank links the two islands together. Home to 12 Venezuelan coastguards stationed there for 3 week stints and flocks of egrets, there isn't much to see here. We walked up to the lighthouse for a better view of the islands and to see if we could spot the other boats coming in. We watched Waka Irie roll their way into the bay and Dylan ran back down to help them attach to the 2" polyprop. Eventually we too joined the mooring line as we were certain Orion would have ended up under the lip of the wharf, damaging the toe rail. There is no charge for being here.

With all 3 boats safe, secure and snug in the man made bay, Dylan went out hunting for our dinner and came back with 2 giant barracuda whilst I went for a leisurely snorkel. Once you get past the extremely inquisitive giant barracuda that swim round you in teams and every so often dart straight for you with their mouth open, teeth exposed (eeek), the snorkelling here is very good. The best spot is to swim to the large cave where there are huge schools of fish amongst the cuda.

The large cave, good for snorkelling

Day Three

We had heard from the coastguards that there was wifi ashore, wanting to download a zygrib for the most up to date weather forecast, we went to investigate. Miming us using the laptop to a friendly coastguard, he gestured for us to follow him as we trailed towards their facilities. They really are hospitable guys here, waving as we passed and patting the head of little Petra with a nest of bright blonde hair. The coastguard ushered us into their canteen and we were greeted with air conditioning. Aaaaah. So yes there is internet, if you ask nicely. The signal is just strong enough to download a grib file but not emails or web browser. As we were sat there enjoying the cool air, the guards started playing loud music and dancing around. Brought a right smile to my face when a bunch of macho men started swaying in time to Shaggy's 'You're My Angel'! Most surreal. The main guy, Ely, who had insisted on taking a photo of us earlier that day came over to us and gave me a piece of paper complete with his twitter, email, Facebook profile, whatsapp and blackberry ID. His calling card, I guess he gives this to all the cruisers he encounters on this remote outpost. 

Another round of speargun hunting saw us well fed for a second night running.

Day Four

Next stop Cabo De Vela for our first taste of Colombia, an 80 mile sail. We left Los Monjes at midday, waved off by the friendly toothless Venezuelan fisherman who were busy untangling eagle rays and sharks from their nets. Had a great sail during the day but as soon as the sun went below the horizon, the wind dropped right off and we were doing 3 knots max. 

Day Five

A slow passage but as we neared the coast of Colombia, a huge pod of dolphins came to greet us. We spent a good couple of hours on the bow taking photos and watching their acrobatic skills surfing the bow waves, I don't think I will ever tire of seeing these mammals in their natural habitat.

Me speaking Dolphin

Desert meeting the sea

At 9am we were anchored behind the point in 14ft sand (12˚ 12' 25"N 72˚ 10' 58"W). We had to watch out for plastic bottles that marked a plethora of fish traps and were barely visible above the water. The Lonely Planet Guide describes this area better than I can - 'the remote Wayuu fishing village of Cabo De Vela juts out from the Guajira Peninsula like the hump of a long lost camel, wandering in the desert for days without catching sight of a fellow mammal'. The first time I had ever seen a desert meet the sea, the land was extremely barren so the village huts were the only prominent thing on the landscape. An old fishing boat paddled out to our boat and gestured that they would like fizzy drink (gasiosa), food or fishing equipment. These guys reminded us of the Kuna indians we are hoping to meet in the San Blas Islands. With very similar features to them, they look nothing like their Colombian or Venezuelan brothers. Reluctant to just give things away but realising they have very little in this part of the world we opted to give them a chocolate bar each and a reel of fishing line that was too short for us to put on our rod. They seemed pleased with this and paddled away to inspect their gifts.

After an afternoon of snorkelling around a nearby mushroom shaped rock in murky water (gosh aren't we spoilt now?!), we had enough spear gunned fish for a good grub ashore. Piling 8 adults, 2 children, food and braai equipment into our dinghy, we (very slowly) puttered ashore to make a beach bonfire. Our fire attracted the attention of 4 local teenagers from the village who cycled out to check what was going on. They sat with us for a while but they couldn't understand English or our pigeon Spanish and we couldn't understand the dialect they were communicating in. It was a silent conversation full of hand gestures and smiles. 

Jen (Waka Irie) is a New Zealand lass that you would definitely want with you if marooned on a desert island. She knows just about everything there is worth knowing about eating off the land and tonight was no exception, introducing us to barnacles and sea urchin! Shame I didn't have my camera with me as those at home will gawk at what we ate. Apparently barnacles are part of the crayfish family and they tasted that way. Jen had found some particularly big barnacles that to me just looked like a lump of rock but once cooked in the fire, the tops became soft and you could dig out the flesh on the inside. A little gritty but if you had a big pile of them you would know no difference between crayfish and barnacle! Now I wonder if you can eat goose barnacles, something useful to come from those annoying hangers on under our boat…

The second new experience of the day was sea urchin aka kina. Now these urchins you see everywhere and I never once even thought they could be edible judging by the thousands of spikes. You eat them raw, crack them open with a rock and eat the strips of yellow goo on the inside. Certainly an acquired taste, they are sweet yet bear a resemblance to that bitter polish you paint on one's nails when wanting to stop an annoying biting habit. I won't be eating it again, put it that way!

Kina - mauri for Sea Urchin roe

Day Six

Wanting to have a mooch around the Wayuu village but with little fuel left in the dinghy, we all sailed our boats to the other side of the bay and anchored in 8ft - again, watching out for those plastic bottles. 

Securing the dinghy to a stick in the sand, we were met by two inquisitive young boys who appeared to have never seen one before. Little 2 year old Petra wasn't so impressed with 2 strangers touching it and proceeded to toddle towards them, shaking her finger and saying 'not your dinghy, not your dinghy'! O it was funny but these boys, intimidated by a little blonde creature a good 4 years younger than them, soon shuffled off!

The Wayuu village is very rustic, solar street lights line the main street, electricity is by generator only. Whilst we were there, phone lines were being installed so unfortunately, life's distractions seem to be creeping into this remote community too. The locals live in traditional huts that are made out of cactus and there are 1 walled huts that line the beach complete with hammocks to while away the day. Cabo De Vela according to Lonely Planet is now a number one destination in Colombia for eco tourism. The government has backed a project for the locals to build a number of traditional huts on the outside of the village where tourists can stay. We must have been there during off season though as they all appeared to be empty.

Huts on the beach

Their version of a speed bump!

The inhabitants of this village were very friendly, approaching us to say hi or sell us something but in a non imposing manner. The local Wayuu ladies were peddling their wares of hand made bracelets and headbands, at US$5 a pop though we politely declined! We found two guys selling fruit and veg out of a wheelbarrow. Excellent value and we filled our bag with cheap garlic, onions, oranges and the white unrefridgerated cheese we had found in Curacao. 

We only had US$ on us and wanted to change some to Colombian Pesos. With no shops here and definitely no banks we started asking locals whether they would swap. US$100 seemed to be the lowest amount which we certainly weren't carrying around with us until we found a young English speaking local who ran a bar and agreed to swap $50. Clubbing together our dollars we finally got some local currency to buy a beer! Sitting on a wooden bench watching the world go by, passing the time of day with the 2 english speakers and sipping a cold beer - what more could you want!

On the way back to the dinghy we went to check out the beach. Certainly not the nicest beach we have seen by a long stretch but fantastic for shell collecting, I wish we had more time to do a proper comb but unfortunately the clouds were coming in and thunder was threatening. As we approached the dinghy to our dismay the right side was totally deflated. Uh ooooh, our stomachs sank as we were thinking the worst. As it turned out, the local kids that Petra had earlier warned off must have returned in her absence, and had a play about unscrewing the hole where the pump goes and pushing on the safety valve. Using iron lungs (aka Dylan) we soon had a working dinghy again and as we pushed off towards our anchored boats, we were waved off by the locals, congregating on the beach and watching us disappear.

Day Seven

We left at 8am to commence a 125 mile sail from cape to cape to the Five Bays. Renowned to be one of the top 5 worst passages in the world, we were in for an exciting ride!

For the first 2 hours we moved 2 miles…absolutely no wind, spinnaker out for the first time and Dylan refusing to turn on the engine (leaky water pump) so we did many 360s. After 2 hours we gave in and wacked on the engine to motor towards some breeze.

A slow passage until late afternoon when the wind finally appeared and we started doing a cruising speed of 6 knots. A straight rhumb line from cape to cape meant we weren't planning on doing any sail changes but the wind had other plans. West, East, North, you name it, we experienced it. Flukey winds meant although we had the wind vane on, we had to constantly keep our eyes peeled for changes in direction or speed, reefing and at one point, we took the main down entirely for a more comfortable sail with less of a heel. 

As the sun went down we were treated to a fantastic light display over the mountains of Colombia as lightening lit up the sky spoiling our night vision, widening our pupils and plunging the surrounding seas into total darkness. I took first watch and watched in amazement as the winds picked up, the seas picked up and the light display moved right over our head. Normally on land, this weather at night and out at sea was common and having done our research, we were expecting it. I reefed the jib but with the wind now gusting 36 knots and Orion surfing 9 knots down impressive swells, I woke Dylan up so we could decide our plan of attack to get the boat more stable. Deciding to bring the mainsail down completely, Dylan clipped on and wobbled his way to the mast whilst I brought the boat around into the wind. Beam on to the swells poor Orion was rocking violently but pros as we are (ha!) we had it down in no time and Dylan was straight back into the safety of the cockpit. Now with just a handkerchief up we were still doing 6 knots but it was much more comfortable. Dylan went back to sleep and I sat in the cockpit clinging onto the roller coaster ride, watching the lightening strikes right by us and getting absolutely drenched in the torrential rain. Needless to say, visibility was almost 0 so I was popping below every 10 mins to check the radar for vessels en route. 

By the way, the weather forecast was 15 - 20 knots for that evening. Goes to show how much leeway you need to give when transiting this bit of the ocean!

After a further 2 hours, the worst of the storm was over and by daybreak, the sun rose and we were greeted with the majestic mountain range of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. One of the highest peaks actually has snow on it year round but there were low clouds over the range so we didn't get a glimpse.

On Dylan's 5-8am watch, he caught a small tuna and a dorado. Losing another lure to mother nature, we tried live bait recycling the dead flying fish on deck and it worked a treat. We shall be trying this free option again in future!

As we neared the Five Bays, we chose to anchor in Ensenada Guiraca, the third of the Five Bays that offered the most protection from the swells. The wind howls in from the land (called Willywaws) so we dived on the anchor to ensure we were firmly bedded, just as well as that night we saw 40 knot gusts sweep through the bay. A gorgeous anchorage, people liken the scenery to the Norwegian fiords, the countless headlands wiggling their way in and out of the water, all covered in lush vegetation. As we motored into our chosen spot, tons of white and yellow butterflies came to greet us, checking out my bright pink hat. With no one else around, we had this part of paradise all to ourselves. I must admit, being so remote and with small fishing shacks ashore, we did sleep with our washboards in that night for peace of mind. Can never be too careful and anything to ensure that we got a decent night's sleep after the previous tough sail! In hindsight it was probably fine, no one came near us.

Day Eight

Late morning start to Santa Marta. As we exited the relative shelter of the bay, the winds started gusting and our 12 mile leisurely passage turned extremely windy! We saw winds of 46 knots as Dylan steered dead down wind, surfing the swells. As we neared the anchorage area, we saw total nutters competing in a regatta! Later when speaking to said looneys, they mentioned they saw average winds of 35 knots and many boats blew their headsails, took on water from the big waves and took various knocks to the body with stuff flying all over the place down below. Why did they even go out in this weather? Well cruisers were offered a 50% marina fee discount if they took part, so ever the bargain hunters, they presented themselves that morning regardless of the weather!

Nearing Santa Marta anchorage

Back to Santa Marta anchorage…if you could call it that. We are loath to spending money on marinas, it seriously eats into our daily budget. So when I was researching this area I was searching and searching for a mention of anchoring spots, and found only one mention in all the blogs I came across which just says, anchor near the local fishing boats. Nearing the breakwater to the Marina Santa Marta, there is a shallow spot of 10ft just outside the buoyed entrance to the marina, behind the local fishing boats and clearing the rather large freighter lanes behind you. It is a sandy bottom, good holding but boy does it blow! And when those huge cargo ships come in to berth or the power boats come zooming out of the marina, it sends poor Orion rocking and rolling all over the place. A small price to pay though for getting near the city for free. 

Cargo port at night right by where we are anchored

The marina fees as of November 2012 are US$0.60 per foot and this marina is an IGY, new and very clean. We are considering going in for a few days as 50 knot plus winds are forecasted for this area. Having walked around Santa Marta on our first day, we can easily see why people choose to spend their time here. We had lunch which included a starter, main and 2 soft drinks each…for $11 from a small hole in the wall family run cafe. The South American culture and architecture found in the back streets are breath taking and we look forward to exploring this place further, but first we must brush up on our Spanish! 

I've intentionally excluded the Colombian clearance process from this post and shall elaborate further in my next blog.

Cruisers in Curacao

Curacao was a place where we were left underwhelmed. It seems to be a cruising spot where retirees go to grow barnacles. If in a hurry to head West, you wouldn't be missing out if you passed the island by and continued on to Colombia.

We spent a week on the island and that was more than enough time to stock up on European provisions and replenish our water tanks (no good enough squalls for a while now). Sailing from Bonaire to Curacao, we stopped off at Klein Curacao, a mere 15 mile sail away from Spanish Waters.

Klein Curacao is a small white sandy beach island home to the day tourists. It has little on it apart from a derelict lighthouse and a couple of wrecks but it made a welcome stop for us to drop anchor and swim ashore. Once the hoards of day tourists from the main island disappear at 5pm, you can truly appreciate the small island. and gorgeous leeward beaches. We spent a few nights on the beach with cocktails watching the sun go down and Dylan had a great time salvaging teak from an old wreck with Iain. I'd aim to spend a couple of days here and by that time you would have been able to fit in a snorkel and a bit of exploration. Not for one minute could we pretend we were on a deserted island though, as the Dutch coastguard were constantly circling in their helicopters.

Wreck on Klein Curacao

The lighthouse

Orion at anchor

Willemstad

Doesn't look like immigration surely?

On the main island of Curacao, we chose to anchor in Spanish Waters, its a fantastically protected crowded bay with plenty of hidey holes to choose from if you fancy a change of scenery. We were anchored in area A nearest to the Fisherman's Wharf where a decent dinghy dock is just a 2 min walk to a local bus stop and a free shuttle bus to a supermarket. The internet here is run by a boat called Isis and for $10 /week you can get a scratchy internet connection. Good enough to download emails during off peak times but thats about it although apparently they are switching to a new provider soon for a better service.

I must mention the clearing in process as a good few calories are lost whilst you traipse about Willemstad to the various offices of bureaucracy. Possibly the most drawn out, spaced out procedure we have completed so far! As usual, customs is the first port of call and everyone must be present whilst you fill in 3 forms, all with the same information. Once stamped you then need to commence a 20 min walk across the floating bridge to the ferry terminal. Here you will need to show your passport to a guy in a hut who proceeds to write you a notice, allowing you to venture nearer the dock in search of the immigration office.



Perhaps another 10 mins walk along the inlet, you will arrive at a white building with an inconspicuous 'immigration' sign. The best directions would be, once through the ferry terminal hut, turn left when you hit the river and keep going until you get directly underneath the big blue bridge.


Aaaah immigration has fantastic air conditioning after your trek across town and even a water fountain to guzzle from.  Here you fill in 3 more pieces of paper, all with the same information on but just in a different format. The final part of the process is to visit Harbour Authority which can be found upstairs from immigration. They shut for an hour and a half lunch break from 12 to 1:30 and woe behold anyone that arrives with 5 mins to go, they will not stay open for you. Just one form to fill in here and at the bottom they ask you for a drawing of your boat… I kid you not. Here are Orion's and Dolphin of Leith's attempts at drawing our respective boats:

As you can see, Iain put a great deal of effort into his and even thought it necessary to include his signature. 

My opinion sounds quite scathing so far but there was one part of Curacao that I loved - the Venezuelan floating fruit and veg market. These guys pile their boats to the brim with all sorts of fresh goodies and then sail over to Curacao and raft up in Willemstad. Walking the street you can visit stall after stall piled high with apples, oranges, avocados, melons, bananas, onions, potatoes…I could go on. Not only is there fantastic variety, it is also cheap. We haven't come across cheap good quality produce like this since Grenada. In keeping with our quest to try anything once, we purchased queso blanco. OK that is just Spanish for white cheese…but this cheese has never been refrigerated and just lies in the heat sweating away in cling film. Turns out it is great stuff! Lasts forever, has a sharp mature tang to it and is best used when cooking it first to melt else it has the consistency of rubber. I'd probably liken it to halloumi. Shall definitely be looking out for more of that stuff when in Colombia. PS: its made from goats milk but doesn't taste like goat.

I turned 26 in Curacao and Dylan threw a celebration on our boat. Dolphin and Waka Irie joined us and we munched our way through braai food complete with our Caribbean fav of rice and peas, Vicki even baked me the mother of all chocolate cakes. I have never tasted anything so good, yes even better than M&S AND it was still fresh 5 days later! No birthday of mine would be complete without a game of Articulate so out came the cards and I introduced the gang to the best description game ever. Dylan had to take it a step too far though and introduced us all to the game Poker Face too, wow I felt rough the next day.

As the middle of November neared, our twitchy feet started up again so we picked up the hook and continued heading West, next stop - Los Monjes.

Ode to my parents

But mainly my mother…

Sally and I have met some great people sailing. Interesting people who we will probably always remember and have something in common with.

Iain and Vicki off of Dolphin (the 28ft 108 year old gaff rigged Scottish built fishing boat) are cruising with 2 small children (age 2 and 3). 
These are the cutest kids and a great reminder of how Nicholas (my brother) and I grew up on the water.

With a broody fiancee and me up for a challenge, we offered to baby sit for Iain and Vicki. Vicki took us up on the offer in order for them to spend a night ashore to celebrate Iain's 40th birthday. 

Sally and I were both looking forward to it as they are a great pair of fun, happy kids who are easy going. 
Admittedly, this was probably not the best day for the job as we were recovering from the effects of too many "happy birthday Sally" drinks the night before. 
Never the less, little Petra and Finn were dropped off at 1pm and we were to deposit them back with their parents 23 hours later in the town of Willemstad (Curacao). 

We had a full day planned, Sally had only recently managed to remove her head from the toilet bowl and I was eating Ibuprofen like skittles. 
So for the first hour or four we sat them in front of the laptop so they could watch Finding Nemo. 

This seemed very familiar, as Nick and I used to love going to Nana's (my grandmother's) to spend an entire day watching movies that she had taped for us. 

This also got us thinking about how many parents plonk their kids in front of the TV or Playstation / XBox etc as a "distraction device" just to give them some peace and quiet. We no longer judge these people!

As soon as moving pictures on the screen stops, these little attention machines go into over drive. And this is BEFORE we had given them any sugar. There was all sorts of games to play. Petra is at that age where she is a walking talking echo of her big brother. Everything he does or touches or says is mimicked. Adorable. 
They are also very sweet with each other. They give each other cuddles and are pretty good with sharing etc. 

But they are kids. And love to play and wrestle and jump on things. Sally and I tagged each other in to watch over them. Making sure they did not fall overboard was our main concern. The odd fall down the companion way stairs resulted in floods of tears until concentration was broken by something of more interesting than the growing bump on the back of the head.

Long story short, we looked after little Finn and Petra for 23 hours. In which time we were on our boat, went fishing, went to the park, raced around in the dinghy, went to town with a massive pushchair and a surly bus driver. Changed 2 nappies (Petra is almost potty trained), and wiped bums post potty experiences (this occurred on the foredeck and was probably an unusual sight for the rest of the anchorage). Sleeping time was punctuated by bursts of restless children who would wake in unfamiliar surrounds and need a cuddle. Petra eventually spent the night in our bunk between us with me trying to stop her from falling out without waking her. We were exhausted! But would we do it all again…hell yeah! We look forward to the next time Dolphin need us to babysit. 

Me, having never done the whole baby sitting thing before, was not only better informed about what it is to be a parent, but that much more appreciative of my own parents.

My brother and I were a nightmare compared to these little angels. We were constantly squabbling (brotherly rivalry commenced from year one), breaking things or just plain testing our mothers patience. Often my father would work away, so mother would be a single mother, managing 2 little brats. God knows how she did it. 
She must have the patience of a saint. She has just had her 60th birthday (she is not precious about her age) and in all these years, i have never understood the work that goes into looking after children. When we were on the boat cruising, she was always doing things like reading to us, playing, etc. Our distraction device back then was a pile of lego. Where she found the energy one can only imagine when there was also baking, washing and all those other things that she did.

Here is to you parents. Especially you mom. I love you. 

Bonaire

Bonaire

Having vague memories of swimming in Bonaire aged 5 and diving to the bottom in 20+ feet of crystal clear water. Eager to test this memory we arrive in Bonaire to attach out selves to a mooring in 30+ feet of water. It was still crystal clear...

We were moored no more than a few hundred metres from the commercial dock with cruise ships, tugs and cargo freighters yet still the water was some of the best we had seen in the Caribbean!

The bottom shelves from 130+ feet to 30feet. Half our yacht was in 130feet and the other in 30. The coral reef below us just incredible. Although i hate paying $10 USD per night for a mooring, i do appreciated that the reef is well protected and in good condition. With the exception of the occasional car tyre that seems to have rolled itself out to sea to become home to the occasional morey eel. 

Sally was off to the UK for a few weeks and the boys (Dave, Matt and Paul) were coming out from as far as South Africa to come and visit 'their mate with a yacht in the Caribbean'. 

Sally and I went snorkelling around the boat and ventured as far as the main dock. on our way there, we saw a 2 metre manta ray cruise past us. One of the larger creatures we had seen up close and personal so far. 

Soon Sally was off to UK and a few days later I was meeting the boys at the airport. For a week we chilled out, drank beers and caught up just like old times. Was good to see that time and distancecdo not change friendships. 

While the guys were out we went on a dive / snorkelling trip to Klein Bonaire. Paul and I diving and Dave and Matt enjoyed a snorkel around the dive boat. They seemed to see more from the surface than we did from 60 feet.

The next day we spent driving around the island seeing the sights. Including old Indian cave paintings, the slave huts and the salt dunes etc. We also went for a dive on the Salt Pier which was good viewing.

Having never done it before, we went deep sea fishing. It was more like reef fishing but dragging a number of lures over it.

We pulled in a good few fish including a nice sized Dorado which we invited to dinner.

For something different, Paul went door to door of some of the local restuarants to ask them if they would cook it for us. The Mona Lisa's head chef / owner was only too happy to do so and so we dined on our fresh caught Dorado. Always tastes better when you caught it yourself!

With the boys gone, i was back to being a single hander (albeit on a mooring not sailing). Soon our friends from Waka Irie arrived and many an evening spent sucking on cold beers and catching up after having not seen them for a month or two.

Waka Irie (Sietse and Jen) were entertaining Sietse mom and sister for 2 weeks. They also introduced me to Dolphin of Leith. A British flagged, Scottish made 28ft 108 year old gaff rigged fishing boat. What makes them even more incredible is that they are taking her to New Zealand. What makes it even BETTER, is that they have two kids on board ages 2 and 3. 

Sally returned and was loaded with goodies for the boat. She barely had space in her suitcase for undies on the return journey. Fortunately she does not need much by way of clothes in the tropics! 

With Sally and our new friends from Dolphin, we went on a tour of the island. I acted as tour guide having seen many of the sights already. 

Making the most of the diving deals on the island which give you unlimited air for a days diving, we took a few bottles (of air) and headed off on Orion to a wreck dive for the day. Great day out and a good dive on a sunk drug running boat the Hilda Hooker. 

After way too long in one place it was time to move on. Was great fun in Bonaire but new adventures called and so we set off West bound to Curacao.

Sprucing up Orion

I'm a typical girly girl when it comes to making my surroundings look homely. Dylan would quite happily live in an Ikea showroom devoid of any personal touches where as I like to make my mark on a place. I felt with Orion like she didn't look like ours yet when I left for the UK. Sure she had our stuff in the lockers and our books on the shelves but there were no personal touches, no photos, no mementos on the wall. Along with flag making, I made it my mission to bring back items to give Orion a makeover turning her from 'our boat' to 'our home'. 

Truprint. Free and easy. I uploaded a load of photos that I liked of mine to their website and they printed them all out and posted them to me for free within a week. All I needed to do was provide them with my email address (yes I get a lot of junk mail off them now) and pay the postage and packaging which was £1.50. Total bargain and I stuck a few photos around the boat of our friends and family back home.

We had a brass clock but no barometer onboard so with some of our engagement present money, I bought a barometer to match the clock on the wall. Now I can fully complete my log book entries!

When underway and cooking, we kept our herbs and spices in a sliding door cupboard above the hob. Not cool when reaching for some spices on a starboard tack and they all leap out at you or land in said dish! I looked around the chandleries for spice racks to mount on the wall but they were either ugly or too expensive. I floated the idea with Dad of him making us one and he jumped at the challenge. The finished result was way beyond my expectations, thanks Father Bear!

To make the outside of Orion more colourful and attract like minded yachties to our boat with a similar background, I purchased from eBay a South African and a Welsh flag. We now fly these below our Rhyl Yacht Club burgee all the time. Bought for only £2 each, I doubt they will last very long.

Dylan now liking the homely touch has already given in since my arrival back aboard and purchased a tin lizard to attach to a blank wall in our head. Only time will tell how many other trinkets I can sneak on board!

Flag Making

Go into a Budget Marine and you will likely have to fork out between $20 and $30 for a small country courtesy flag depending on the location. This left a sour taste in both of our mouths but there was not a lot we could do about it. We wanted to follow boating etiquette by showing courtesy to the countries that we have the pleasure of visiting but there were no other options unless we managed to find a cheaper one in a local souvenir shop. Might I add that most of these flags are only used for a few days / weeks before retired to the bottom of the chart locker. The day rate to use a flag is pretty stiff!

Upon returning to the UK for 3 weeks, I planned to make my own flags for all the countries I knew we would be visiting. I succeeded and saved around $400. It's not just about the money savings though, I plan to make a flag collage when we get back to land of all the countries we have visited on our adventure. How much nicer will it be to display our own hand made weather beaten flags as opposed to fraying chinese reproductions. Here's how I did it. When I say I… I mean Dad the chief supervisor/planner, Mum the stitching and ironing queen, Lucy (sister) the quality assurer, my Mum's friend Chrissie the sewing machine guru and me, the designer and painter.

1. Purchased metres and metres of thick cotton material (best to take the fabric paint) from a local haberdashery - £20 (To convert to USD $ multiply by 1.6 - the going rate at time of purchase)

2. Purchased waterproof fabric paint in different colours - £18

3. Purchased white tape for the ends of the flag where the twine goes - £3

4. Purchased thick thread and bigger needles for the sewing machine - £5

5. Purchased some thin paintbrushes - £2

6. Cut out 12" x 8" cardboard rectangle to act as a template for my flag size

7. Drew around the template with a pencil onto the thick cotton material and cut it out

Cardboard template

8. You are now left with cotton rectangles. These need to be hemmed on 3 sides and the flag tape on the left side. I double hemmed the 3 sides (top, bottom and right) by turning the flag sides in 1/4" and ironing it before turning it in again a further 1/4". 

Folding first hem over 1/4"

Ironing the first 1/4" hem

Folding over a second 1/4" hem

9. Once ironed I was left with the left side untouched and 3 sides double hemmed. I secured the hem with 3 pins on each side to hold in place until I sewed it.

Hem, pinned in place prior to sewing on machine

10. Using the sewing machine I (read Chrissie) ran over the 3 pinned sides to secure the double hem.

11. On the left side of the flag I doubled over the edge, folded the flag tape over it and ran a length of twine down it, pinning in place. This part was fiddly! I (Chrissie) then secured the flag tape in place with the sewing machine. 

12. I (mum) strengthened the ends of the flag tape and twine with multiple stitches so they had some chance of surviving strong winds 30ft up our mast. 

13. Knotted a bowline on each end of the twine and used a lighter to stop the ends from fraying.

14. Now all 4 sides had been stitched and hemmed, it was time to start painting. I used a pencil to sketch the designs and then fabric paints to colour it in. To ensure the paint didn't bleed into whatever was underneath the flag, I pinned the flag to a piece of plastic. That way the paint had nowhere to go and the colour wasn't diluted. I also used templates where possible to keep sizing similar.

Drawing in pencil and then painting

Marshall Islands flag completed

Drawing Ecuador flag emblem

Using waterproof fabric pen to being out design

Finished flag

Dad painting the first flag

A star template

Painting Panama flag on a piece of plastic to prevent paint leeching into newspaper

15. Once a flag had been coloured in I pinned it to a block of wood and holding onto the wood, used a hairdryer to more or less dry it. I left the flag overnight to ensure it was totally dry before doing the next stage.

Samoa flag

Palau flag on a block of wood about to be hair dried

16. Once completely dried, I (Mum) put a clean rag over the flag and ironed it on the highest heat for 2 mins. This stage sets the paint ensuring it is waterproof.

17. Finally, I attached a label to each flag to remind me which country it was, no looking on google in the middle of the Pacific!

A quick note here. I realise that I did this flag making process in the modern comfort of a house with unlimited electricity, copious amounts of space and helpers. However, if I were to make my next batch aboard Orion, the only steps I would have to replace are the sewing machine and iron. I would hand stitch instead and use a big pot of boiling water to place on top of a clean rag rather than an iron. 

You need an awful lot of time and patience to do this but during an ocean passage, what a fun way to keep your mind occupied!

End note: The flags are good on one side and "leeched" through on the other side. You could repeat the process on the second side, but at 30ft above ones head and flapping in the wind, no one should be able to tell…