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It was 1978, I had hitchhiked across the South Pacific on other peoples boats and was living in San Francisco. I met some backpackers from Denmark who were on their way to Peru, South America. They had heard from other backpackers that the Incas have a Sun Festival called Inti Raymi that only happens every 300 years. It sounded so cool and what an opportunity if it only happened every 300 years! I was working and saving to continue my trip to England.
Well, I just changed my plans.
Being towed behind the boat
We have a duck! Yes, that is right. Deek is the easy child or guest you always wanted. His needs are simple, he doesn’t eat, has no complaints – just sits on the boat with a happy grin on his little beak. He prefers sunshine but is content on the boat if it is raining. Our duck is called ‘Dr. Deek’ which is short for ‘Dr. Decoy Duck’.
Victor and Lisa’s Island
We had become friends with Victor and Lisa, the Chief and his wife of the Western Hollandaise group in the San Blas Islands. One day, Victor showed up at our boat, ‘Tamarin of Tortola’, to collect the $5 Monthly Cruising Tax. It’s just a little fee for anchoring in their little group of islands.
Nargana in the San Blas Islands
The Hollandaise Islands are approximately 7 miles from the main land of Panama. The nearest populated islands were Nargana and Corazon de Jesus, two crowded islands that were joined together by a bridge. Victor and Lisa were from Nargana, which is also known as Rio Diablo after the nearby river. They and their extended family were in charge of the group of islands known as the Western Hollandaise.
Beautiful Rio Dulce
Follow the birds
South ofBelize is a little known corner of the Western Caribbean. With the countries of Belize, Guatemala and Hondurus the Bay of Hondurus leads to the entrance of a beautiful, hidden river called the Rio Dulce. This river has become a popular spot for cruisers for years but we have just discovered it.Just a three-hour motor sail from our new home in Placencia, Belize we had a get away weekend to this spot recently. The entrance of the river has a town called Livingston where we are required to check in to the country. We first have to get over ‘the bar’. Not a bar for a cerveza but a sand bar that is 5’2” at low tide. With the draft on Gypsy Blue at 5’9” we needed to go over at high tide. The cruising guide seems to have fairly accurate coordinates and approach details. The seas were choppy as we arrived late afternoon and we could feel a soft touch on the bottom. Luckily it is soft sand or mud. We finally get through to the anchorage in front of Livingston. Unfortunately it is 5:00 pm when we drop anchor in front of the town of Livingston. It is too late to check in so we will have to spend the night in this rolly anchorage. Uggh! We hate rolly anchorages.
We wake up early to a misty morning with at least a hundred local fishing boats returning from their night of fishing. Such a beautiful sight to see in the morning. We put the dinghy in the water to see the Port Captain and all other officials so we are legal in the country and can head up the river. We are on a rushed schedule as we only have a few days for this trip. Our purpose is to take the boat out of Belize after 90 days and also we want to check out the Rio to see about bringing Gypsy Blue there for hurricane season this summer.
1965 Age 13
It was 1962 when 3 American guys came to our local sand lot while my friends and I were playing Cricket in North Innaloo, Perth, Western Australia, the suburb where I grew up. They had all of this Baseball equipment with them. They were from the “Giants” organization and were out to promote Little League Baseball. I had been playing Cricket with the other kids in the area for years and soon we all converted to baseball. Two totally different games but Baseball gave every kid a more hands-on experience during the game. We ended up having 4 teams in our area. The teams were all named after American Indian tribes: Sioux, Apache, Kiowa and Shoshone. I remember it was so cool having a uniform and all the gear. I was 3rd base then in right field for the Sioux. I remember bringing home a template to place over a white T shirt and then “apply with iron”. Very cool to do this as a kid. I played until I was 15 but after that there was nowhere else to go and play. The end of the road for my baseball career. I outgrew playing Baseball but will forever be a big fan.
