1-7 March 2006
N 08-32, W08-315
Underway to PanamaAfter about four months in Costa Rica we are underway to Panama. We raised the anchor at 0900 and motored out the estuary and channel. Yes, we are underway with our transmission working. When the transmission cooler failed, we became a disabled vehicle for a few weeks as getting a replacement part was difficult and cumbersome or from a cruiser's perspective, a normal and predictable expectation when a woe befalls a cruiser.
Yesterday, the transmission part arrived and the Captain immediately installed it. He ripped out the "Rube Goldberg" copper tubing and bucket contraption that he had created to hold us while we made a quick fifteen-mile passage from Golfito to Puerto Jimenez and then back to Golfito. The contraption worked. From one who is mechanically challenged, it is very impressive to watch John when he figures out how to solve a problem and keep us cruising on a shoestring. He did his magic and we were able to meet up with our friends, Randy and Marilyn, in Puerto Jimenez. It was a short yet sweet visit. And we very much appreciate their bringing us our mail since we had not received mail in six months.
Puerto Jimenez is a cowboy town with a dose of tourism established on the edges of town. The main street architecture is run down, but reminds us of a town in the old West, wood box structures, connected by an overhung hip roofs, most one or two stories, an occasional veranda, with a façade detailed by paned windows and hurricane shutters. This town with its one paved road was worth a visit. The town had all that we ever need: two grocery stores, Internet café, bakery, great Mexican restaurant, pharmacy, and two La Ropa Americanas (second-hand clothing shops). Given the influx of tourist, there were only a few souvenir shops. Best sightings were of the well-designed and stocked biblioteca (library), a large well-manicured soccer field and school. No surprise that the Costa Ricans are known for their elementary school high literacy rate. The one runway airport is the central hub for many flights that connect tourist to remote jungle lodges and surfing beaches.
Strolling through and around town, one of the highlights was sighting of various birds that flew amongst the overgrown trees of the jungle: colorful tanagers, blue magpies and the extroverted red macaws. We've now been able to sight the red macaws by their squak: "caw, caw, caws".
While in Puerto Jimenez, the cruise boat named m/v Beauport pulled into the anchorage. We had been asked by our friends on s/v Our Tern to keep our eyes peeled for m/v Beauport, as the vessel is a family cruising boat with an eleven year old on board. To our delight, we were able to connect with the m/v Beauport and spent time with the family (Carlos, Vicky and Valerie), their crew Michael (Captain), Robbie (Engineer 1), Cliff (Engineer 2), Monique (Tutor, Stewart and Travel Guide), Rebbeca (Chef), Suzanna (Masseur), Lois (Dive Master and Cinematographer), and their guests (about 6 more people). By now you must have guessed that this is a BIG boat. M/v Beuport is a renovated and remodeled 160' Coast Guard vessel, whose traditional wood interior, furnishing and accessories fit the classic image of a vintage 1950's mega yacht, except for the wide screen monitor.
The engine room was a fun tour as every system (and we mean everything) was duplicative of s/v Encanto except it was four times bigger and heavier. The engine (and there were two of them) was bigger than our engine room and taller than our boat's interior (7' by 15'). On deck, Carlos points out to Sami that the steel spare anchor alone weighted about forty times Sami's weight or 3,000 lbs/1.5 tons. This was a decommissioned Coast Guard vessel; it can go anywhere and travel through the roughest of conditions. The engine and systems room justify the need for the 24/7 attentions of two engineers.
The size enables the owner to entertain many guests, including ones that arrive by helicopter. The galley had both a walk in freezer and refrigerator and in days of old, could feed the Coast Guard crew of thirty-five.
Within ten minutes of being welcomed aboard, the three girls were immediate friends, chatting, giggling and sharing stories. They were off to tour the boat and then to play board games. That evening we were invited for dinner, a sit down meal at their one of their two grand dining tables, buffet style, to a delicious meal of balsamic vinaigrette vegetable salad, yellow fin tuna with mango chutney, steamed vegetables, and for dessert apple fritters glazed by a hard sugar sauce and cream. The meal was elegant and delicious. The only interruption was the unavoidable and untimely boarding of m/v Beauport by a dozen Costa Rican officialdoms.
Immigrations, Port Captain and Coast Guard were as intrigued, as we, by the m/v Beauport and thus, boarded the boat, reviewed all documentations, toured the boat and then (on invitation) sat down to enjoy dessert with Carlos and Vicki. Carlos is Mexican/American so he is fluent in Spanish and therefore essential for charming and entertaining these unexpected "guests". Both Carlos and Vicki were gracious and attempted to not get annoyed by the visit even though they would have been justified to be annoyed. To think one is boarded at the dinner hour! How rude.
Anyway, all was in order and the officialdoms left. We continued our conversations on deck at the bow under the stars. Soon, it was late and we bid them "Buenos noches". We were headed back to Golfito to see if our "tranny oil cooler" had arrived and m/v Beauport, too was headed to Golfito. Since Valerie had never sailed on a sailboat, we offered to have Valerie join us on the passage. It would give the girls more time together.
The ride over was comfortable and we were able to sail most of the way, in fact almost all the way up the channel of Bahia Golfito. At one point, Valerie came up on deck and with the girls sat on the deck, dangling their feet from the starboard or the bow, as the crew on m/v Beauport passed us on their way to Golfito. All hands on deck had fun waving as the ships passed. This was Valerie's first time on a sailboat and she was quite surprise that we were entirely under wind power. The sound of the wind and not the engine was a refreshing change for her.
Upon arrival in the estuary of Golfito, we enjoyed a pasta lunch and then the girls went to their separate homes to finish up the day's school. We would reconnect at the end of the day when the family joined us on Encanto for dinner and to comfortably lounge in the cockpit and share tales of parenthood and cruising. It was absolutely delightful to sit so comfortably with Vicki and Carlos, laughing and sharing stories of our lives and our means that enabled us to live with our families in a life that is so unique. Our friendship was greatly appreciated, but would be a short intimacy as the m/v Beauport has planned to cruise through the Panama Canal and then in the spring Valerie will head back to school in British Columbia. The boat and crew will carry on and make a passage across the Atlantic to the Mediterranean Seas. So, sweet as this connection has been, it will be a very long time before we will see them again.
On Saturday, the girls did more school until in the late afternoon when Carlos and Valerie picked them up to enjoy inner-tube bobbing off of the m/v Beauport's whaler. Carlos drove the whaler, while one girl acted as a spotter and the other two girls were towed around. This was a first time experience for our girls and they had a blast. Later, the girls would spend the evening on m/v Beauport while we enjoyed a movie and potluck dinner on s/v Rdreamz (Pam and Royce), in the company of Jan and Jorge (s/v Clare de Lune). As a movie night to remember, we watched a very thought provoking movie called, The Eternal Spotless Mind.
Life in Golfito is pretty convenient. Supporting us in Golfito were the facilities at Tierra y Mar (Land and Sea) with owners, Katie and Tim. Katie and Tim were once cruisers who eighteen years ago fell in love with Golfito and stayed. Katie manages many "hats" and enterprises that keep her busy and engaged in the community of Golfito, both the local and the ex-patriots. On the side, to maintain their "espirit de cruising", Tim maintains a dinghy dock, trading library, laundry service, shower facility and open reefer with cold beer and juices with a tab, on an honor system. For a daily fee of $3.00 a day, we could use their place to tie up our dinghy and walk to either the bus stops or into town. Their local knowledge assisted all cruisers who were trying to navigate their way through officialdom, parts manufacturing, or shopping at the duty free zone.
Two marinas (Banana Marina and K & B Marina) flank Tierra y Mar and are mostly set up to serve the mega yachts and sports fishermen or anyone who feels the need for a marina slip. One can anchor out, for free by the fish pier, which is closer to central town, but also detached one from the general hub of the cruiser community.
The anchorage is in an estuary, so at this time of year, the need for a slip is minimal. Although it is highly recommended by Tierra y Mar, that boats anchor within viewing eye of the Marina's as there is a high number of thieves in Golfito. This season, boats had dinghies, outboards, and computer equipment stolen. We had our fishing poles stolen in broad daylight with the girls nearby at our friend's boat. Luckily, the thieves did not board the boat, but the violation only adds to "paranoia" and estrangement for the area.
Golfito is yet another one road dilapidated old cowboy town, with all the services one might need. It is a town that could use a few quarts of paint to make it "quaint". After being here for nearly three weeks, I established a good face-to-face relationship with the local grocery stores and especially the carniceria/butcher (some of the best pork loin we have had in all of Central America) and the verduras and fruteria shop (vegetable and fruit shop).
With our friends, we frequented some favorite haunts, like the Buenos Dias Mexican restaurant that made Royce and Pam their favored banana splits, or the other ice cream shop that had our favorite flavor, orange and pineapple. During ones' stay in Golfitio, cruisers often, found their way to the 'Free Zone' where everything from refrigerators to boom boxes to liquors was sold duty free. Golfito is the last port of call before departing the country.
With our paperwork in hand, $50 (for a 50'+ boat, $25 for smaller boats), and our VISAs within two days of expiration, we check out of the country. Since our new oil coolant transmission part remained at the custom's office in San Jose, we were delayed in the anchorage as "illegal" aliens for a week. We were known on the radio as the "Big E", with the hope that this would draw less attention to the Port Captain, rather than being hailed by our boat name, Encanto. Once the part arrived and was installed, we resumed our identities and headed south to Panama.
With our Panama courtesy flag sewn, we were ready to go. John and I have read the book, Path Between the Seas, by David McCullough and we look forward to our visit of the Panama Canal in April. And we are excited to spend about two weeks on the remote islands of western Panama before needing to get to Panama City. We are told the only thing to do on the islands is to swim, snorkel, read, and snooze. The occasional hermit crab race can be the excitement of the day. For us, that sounds perfect.