Sunday, September 20, 2009

Buck Beers and Willy Waws

In the beer economy of Astarte - we have hit a good economic turn. Last night, we went to dinner on shore and the beers (retail at a restaurant) were $1 US each - and they were the real size beer (not like the little Polars in Bonaire and Curacao). Life is good

We moved to the third bay of the Five Bay area - after spending one night (Friday) in Bahia Cinto (bay numero uno). Now we are in Bahia Guayraca anchored near a beach and a few little buildings. It seems every building is a house as well as a restaurant/bar. It is another beautiful setting - surrounded by green hills. The water is clear but the skies were grey and cloudy.

Let's step back and continue from the last log entry. In Bahia Cinto we saw parrots in the palm trees, eels and robin fish under the water. The mahi got cooked up along with a giant pasta dish and we had the Tumshi crew over (Friedl and Angelika) to share the caught treasure. It was a nice dinner with chilled wine and brownies for dessert. That night though, we had a huge squall overhead with big lightning and thunder. That's always a bit scary when you have this big stick (aka mast) in the sky. There was also a good roll that built in making for a not perfect night of sleep. We decided in the morning to move to another bay.

On our way to the next destination, it was a bit windy and we put out a bit of our headsail - always trying to conserve fuel and sail when we can. But the winds were stronger as we approached the entrance of the bay - and according to Angelika - they hit 37 knots. This was enough of a gust to cause a big bang on Astarte - that very scary noise. The headsail snapped and a huge shake and big noise jolted the boat. We looked over and saw that the block that holds the control line for the furler was now in a "new" location. The shackle on it - had broken and was against one of the stanchions. It had also caused another block (pulley, Matt R.) that helps feed this control line - to move up the stanchion. We quickly (or as quickly as you can in 30 knots of wind) got the headsail in. Of course, the seas were very nig - nothing happens in calm seas. The boat, now under motor, continued to the third bay.

Fish line in - no fish (no bananas).

Along the way we enjoyed the company of at least a dozen dolphins playing with the boat. They were leaping out of the water, playing in the bow wake, turning over in the water to look at us - it was a nice treat after the scary sail moment. They are such wonderful creatures - these were "freckled" with a light grey underbody. They were good jumpers and liked slapping their tail on the water before they re-entered the water. They stayed with us all the way into the bay.

Once anchored in Bahia Guayraca, a small dug out canoe approached us. The gentleman, Reynaldo, started to chat with us - welcoming us to the bay. We invited him aboard (a good practical Spanish lesson) to visit. Of course, the last cold beer was handed out. As we talked in our broken Spanish, his broken english and lots of hand gestures, we found out this is the same Reynaldo we met in 2001. His son Jonathan had swum out to Mariah (our previous boat) and started to climb up the anchor chain. In 2001, this bay was our first stop in Columbia - so that got us a bit nervous. But when we realized it was a ten or eleven year old boy and his friend, we chatted with them. Now Jonathan is married and in the military. We learned a lot about Reynaldo and his family and the area. It was a great Spanish lesson and more fun than using the computer or workbooks! Friedl from Tumshi came over as well and we ended up arranging for dinner on shore through Reynaldo. For $10 US per person (and $1 for beers), we would have a fish dinner. We also invited another boat that is in the bay, Navigator, a trawler, to join us. So we set up for "seis personas a las seis" (Six people at six). We all went in and tied the dinghies up and walked to one of the restaurants. It was set up for six on an outside deck with lots of local folks also sitting on the deck (though we were the only ones dining). As we arrived, led by our host Reynaldo, the plates were already being put on the table. We're not in the islands anymore - when they say six - they mean six. Island time would have meant sevenish! It was a lovely feast - a pargo (whole red snapper) on each plate - prepared in a wonderful way. It was "muy rico" - very delicious. Rice, plantains and a salad were part of the meal.

It was project day - as Michael fixed the broken shackle on the block (it had corroded and stainless corrosion is sure hard to spot). He also put a new zinc on the bottom of the boat - because once we get to Cartagena - there will be no getting in the water. Barbara did some laundry. Michael also helped Tumshi out with some radio problems and went aboard Navigator to answer some questions about Cartagena. It was a grey day - so we decided not to go snorkeling, though Reynaldo did point out the best area to go.

The winds in these bays are quite interesting and intense. They are called "willy waws" and they come down with great force from the surrounding hills and mountains. They come in these gusts - so it will be quite calm then suddenly a huge gust will come and hit you. These gusts are anywhere from 20 to 30+ knots and last just a few seconds but you can see them come across the water. They seem to be most intense at about 0100 (1 am) through 0300. Last night, these winds caused the boat to do at least three 360 degree circles. They were very intense. They also make a screeching sound as they come in which adds to the weirdness.

We have decided to stay an additional day here and do some snorkeling and exploring. On shore there are turkeys, goats and Brahma bulls (albeit very skinny ones). The turkeys crack us up - you can hear them gobble from the boat and see the males strutting with the tail feathers spread. They look like the domesticated (Thanksgiving) kind - not wild turkeys.

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