Christmas in New Zealand

Hello Everyone

 

Back Country Nth Is. New Zealand

Well it is that time of year again when we send out our Best Wishers to you all for a Very Happy Christmas, and a Safe And Prosperous New Year.  Where ever you are, do enjoy this season and take care.  Thank you all who have kept in touch with us over the year and passed on your news to us.  It is always fun and interesting to hear what others are up to.

 

Moving Stock Nth Is. New Zealand

The Commander and I are down in New Zealand for the festive season having left SHAMAL out on the hard in a marina in Guatemala. The main reason for this trip was so I could sign up for our New Zealand pension.  One has to be in the country to do so.  Thanks to all the hard work done by our Shore Manager – son Murray, the process went smoothly.  So, that will help with our budget for this next season. We will be spending Christmas Day with Alec’s side of the family, and then New Year with my brother John and his wife Noelene in the city of Napier – about a five hour drive from us.

Belize to Guatemala - And our near tragic accident.



Reef from Shamal, San Pedro
 

Back Again, Yes And I Am Very Late With This Report

Monday 26th June

 

Hello Everyone

 

We are now sitting off San Pedro on Ambergris Cay.  This is the most northern Cay and the most visited destination in Belize.  It is 24 miles long and cut off from the Mexican Yucatan mainland by an age old canal first dug by the Mayan people, and, more recently, dredged by Mexico to give access for small boats into and out of Bahia Chetumal.  It forms part of the border between Mexico and Belize.  Belize, formally known as British Honduras, with its Anglo-Caribbean culture sets it apart from its Spanish speaking Central American neighbours. English is the official language, but English, Creole and Spanish are widely spoken. As our Spanish is limited, it was nice to be able to converse with the locals again.

 

San Pedro

The Yucatan Peninsula, including Belize, has a fascinating  history, starting with the Maya people who it is believed first lived in this area around 2600 B.C. in what is now present-day southern Mexico, Belize, Guatemala and western Honduras. They rose to prominence around 250 A.D. Then around 900A.D. their empire started to decline for reasons which are still a great mystery today.  They abandoned their city leaving the jungle to consume and hide what was an elaborate and well organised way of life.  At some point we will do some inland travel to visit one of these ancient sites.

 

Mexico - The Yucatan Peninsula - Eastern Side



Hello Again

 

Arriving into Mexico
 





SHAMAL at anchor Isla Mujeres
 

Our second visit to George Town – Grand Cayman Island – is over.  We have re-provisioned, made new friends with other yachties, all of whom seem to be heading for the Rio Dulce, Guatemala for the hurricane season, had swims and given the hulls yet another clean as a red/brown slim is growing.  We have now had our copper coat hull paint on for nine years with the odd touch up, so we really  can’t complain, and lastly, downloaded another weather report. The 1^st of June is officially the beginning of hurricane season in this part of the world, so we will now be monitoring the internet for them.

 

Return To Cuba

Hello Again

Alec bailing out tender after rain

 

Well our last few days in Grand Cayman saw the start of the rainy season.  Oh help summer must be on its way.  We experienced an overcast day followed by a day of constant heavy rain with thunderstorms. Yes that lightening was flashing about everywhere.  Then it was back to overcast days again.  We did a big stock up of stores that will hopefully see us through our time in Cuba, and  beyond.  There were those last Skype chats with the kids as we will once again be out of contact with them for a while.  We will keep in contact with our shore manager – son Murray – with the “iridium go” satellite system, plus get our weather through it. Actually my NZ Vodafone phone works in Cuba, so that will be my back-up.

 



Refuelled and ready to leave

Our three stowaways

Friday 21^st April and we ride our bikes down to Customs in George Town from Mitchells Creek where we are anchored, and complete the ‘clear our’ procedures. One is given 24 hours to leave.  They have not returned our Hawaiian Sling to us as one has to be seen sailing out when it is handed over.  It is forbidden to use any form of spear gun here hence we had to hand it over when we arrived.  We then ride around to a café for coffee.  While there it starts to pour with really heavy rain, and we are stuck there for about two and a half hours.  The following morning the sun is out, and we motor down to the Barcadere Marina where we pick up our duty free diesel and wait for the customs officer to arrive with our sling.  He turns up right on the dot of 10.00 a.m. just like he said he would.  Then we are on our way.  It still takes us an hour to motor out across North Sound and through the reef before we can set sails for Cayo Largo.  Then the wind dies – we have no more than 5-7kts.  Help this is going to be a slow trip, and yes it is.  We motor sail nearly the whole way 140nm!!!!!  We have three swallows join us in the evening and they stay with us for the rest of the trip. 

Cuba To The Cayman Islands

Farewell Cuba - Cayo Largo

Welcome Back

 Thursday 9^th March was our last morning in Cayo Largo Cuba.  We had to move SHAMAL from our anchorage and take her into the marina to complete checkout procedures.   I go to raise the anchor with the foot control button, but nothing happens, it has stopped working !!  Thank goodness Alec is able to do it from the helm.  Another job to add to the work sheet !!!   First we had to go ashore and hand in paperwork to the Guarda Frontera.  Then it was back to SHAMAL to wait for the visit from more officials along with an over exuberant sniffer dog.  On our hike back down the dock we run into a New Zealand couple, from the Marlborough Sounds, who are crew on an American boat.  They have just arrived back in Cuba after a visit to Grand Cayman Island.  Their intention was to continue on down to Panama, but having not visited as much of Cuba as they would have liked to, they have returned.  We still have a little of the local currency left so head to the restaurant for a coffee to be told sorry, the machine does not work.  We settle for a cold lemon drink. 

 

Bye Bahamas, Hello Cuba

Hello Again

 

This is a long posting, so get out your drinks and a snack.  We hope you enjoy following our travels here.  We certainly enjoyed this new destination.

 

Monday 30^th January 2017

 

As I start this posting we are sitting in Elizabeth Harbour, George Town, Great Exuma Island, Bahamas.  It is nearly time for departure and to say farewell to the Bahamas.  I think what will stand out about the cruising in this area, are the colours.  Beautiful cobalt blue and turquoise waters which never get too rough over the shallows as you are protected by reefs and cays.  Sparkling white sandbars that appear and disappear with the tide. Beautiful waters for swimming and fishing, and, endless cays for exploring.

 



George Town, Great Exuma

We are waiting on the delivery of a sim card for our Iridium Go Satphone which we ordered last week (Friday) from Florida.  They told us it would be sent by fast post that very day, BUT, this morning (Monday) we received an email saying they had not yet sent it due to a muddle in the address.  That is a load of rubbish as we have only one address to send it to here which was given to them in full.   We REALLY want/need  this card as this is our communication link with the outside world, especially for weather, once we leave here.  If it does not arrive we will just have to be like sailors of old times and read the sky’s I suppose !!!!

 

The Abacos and Beyond

Hello Once Again

 

Lynyard Cay



Beach Combing Lynyard Cay



Tuesday 15^th December.  Marks new crew member, Sally, arrived yesterday.  We have done the laundry and stocked up at the supermarket.  Our phone has been topped up so we can down load weather reports and keep in contact with the family, and, for Alec - the news of the world, so we are ready to leave Marsh Harbour.  It has been nice to have a break, but we are ready to move on.  We up anchor and head for the fuel dock as that is our last job.  By mid-day we are sailing out of the harbour in light winds of 10kts.  It is warm and sunny with a temperature of 28 deg.c.  By 1600 we have sailed 23nm in a southerly direction and dropped anchor mid-way down Lynyard Cay on its western shore.  There are private homes here, but one can go ashore and walk to the Atlantic coast.  The following day we explore the area in our tenders and go ashore and walk to the Atlantic coast side and do some beach combing.  Mark catches crayfish, so we are invited to his boat for dinner – yummy.  Next day we up anchor and motor the 2nm down to Little Harbour.  This is the southernmost  point where one stays inside the reef and cays before heading out through the cut and into the Atlantic to continue heading down Great Abaco Island.

Southern Abacos - Bahamas

Hello Again

 

Tender Dock, Marsh Harbour

Atlantic Side Elbow Cay

I finished our last posting with us arriving into Marsh Harbour on Great Abaco Island.  We are now in the area known as the Southern Abacos.  This is a nice easy harbour to enter, with plenty of room to anchor, and one is protected in all directions if the wind should be blowing strongly.  Also it is GREAT fishing in here.  We have not seen any one else fishing from the back of their boats, but the locals assure us that it is quite safe to eat fish from this harbour. So, we have our lines out each evening.  I have caught four mutton snapper, my biggest being 30 inches in length and weighing 10lbs. (see photo of Alec holding it)  The next was only slightly smaller, then a couple of lovely fat smaller ones.  Mark has also caught three which have been a good size.  I gave my second one to the local conch man who gave us a lovely conch salad.  Good trade.

Mutton Snapper

 

Christmas Festival

Marsh Harbour is the third largest town in the Bahamas with a population of around 6,000 residents.  The town has most of what one needs, apart from boating spares which the boys have been looking for.  Our starboard instrument panel has died on us, but at least we can still start the engine.  The trouble is, now that the boat is coming up for ten years old, (yes we have been going that long now, and how time has flown by, and, what an Adventure we are having) new models of these panels are out and we think it will be quite difficult to find a replacement.  Why do companies do this – discontinue an item that works well ?  Anyway, Alec is on-line doing some research as to where he may find one.  A job every Captain/Engineer has to do in some port somewhere.  At least it will not stop us from continuing on.