DAY ONE – SAILING AGAIN! (BELIZE)

Our first day getting away from work and the marina provided everything you would expect. The last few weeks of getting the boat ready for departure at the same time we were finishing work as the Operation Managers of Ranguana Caye had left us exhausted both physically and mentally. So our plans to leave one day, got put off to the next. And then to the next. Finally, we were ready to leave the marina but weather reports had high winds for offshore so we would not be going all the way to Lighthouse Atoll until those died down. We decided a sail to South Water Caye was just what we needed. Get away from the marina and drop the anchor for a few days in a nice anchorage just inside the Barrier Reef.  We could have a rest while we waited for the weather to calm down.

SAILING TO SOUTHWATER CAYE

SAILING UP THE CHANNEL ON STARBOARD TACK

We departed Thunderbird Marina at 6:10 a.m.  We were still inside the lagoon in protected waters when we raised the mainsail. As expected, after being stowed for 4 months, it got stuck a few times. We motored out of the lagoon, past the end of Placencia Peninsula and Placencia Caye before pulling out the head sail.   The wind was from the direction of East to South East. As we headed north, we had expected to have to tack around Sittee Point but with these winds we were able to point East of North. Straight up the channel with no tacking – it was beautiful. The winds were strong but with the protection of the cayes the seas were flat. Whitey and I fell in love with our boat, Gypsy Blue, again as she sailed along at 6.5 to 7 knots all of the way up the channel. Feeling the wind and sun and a slight heal to the boat.  We couldn’t have asked for a better day. We had planned for a 6-hour sail but it looked like we would arrive at South Water Caye within 4 hours.

(more…)

TURTLES OF RANGUANA CAYE (BELIZE)

turtle in hand

NEWLY HATCHED HAWKSBILL TURTLE

Last year was an amazing year at Ranguana Caye. Max and I were fortunate to be the managers of this Belizean jewel. Situated in the southern region of Belize, Ranguana lays 20 miles offshore east of Placencia. My commute was an hour boat ride out and an hour back. Luckily, Ranguana has 3 Cabanas for overnight guests so I get to stay out here 3-4 nights a week. Even more exciting when Max joins me!

IMG_0360

SHHHH! MAMA IS LAYING HER EGGS

Starting in June, 2016, we had our first turtle egg laying of the year at Ranguana. One of my staff woke me up late at night to let me know a large Hawksbill turtle had come ashore and is digging a test nest. She crawls over the island testing the sand to see where she wants to lay her eggs. Finally, an hour later she digs deep then lays over the hole and starts laying. It takes a lot of patience to wait for her to find her spot and then nestle in. I sat next to her and watched with my iPad. Awesome! I dug out more of the hole from the side and took pics and videos of the eggs laying. You would think it would bother her but once she is laying she is in her zone.  The first turtle laid 138 eggs.  So cool to watch.  It was a lot of work on her part and she looked exhausted when all was done.  She then covers the hole over and moves slowly back to the sea.

(more…)

A HIDDEN CORNER OF THE WORLD (RIO DULCE, GUATEMALA)

DSC07839.JPG

Beautiful Rio Dulce

IMG_1197.jpg

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.

(more…)

RELOCATING GYPSY BLUE (FLORIDA TO BELIZE)

Our departure from West Palm Beach on our boat Gypsy Blue was a culmination of lots of hard work and logistics squished in to just a few days. It didn’t take us long from living on land in Belize that we realized that we wanted our boat here with us. Why live near the water if you can’t go out on it? At least that is our theory. And we had put so much sweat and effort on her the past couple years, why just have it sit waiting for us to use it 2-3 months a year. Our plan of going to visit her once a year in the Pacific just no longer made sense. Our South Pacific cruising dream would have to wait.

GB loaded on the truck

On the truck and ready to roll

Early December we flew to Los Angeles for a quick 2 days to prepare her to load on a long-bed truck. This involves taking down the sails, dodger and bimini, radar and AIS stands and archway and storing them inside the boat along with the outboard engine, life raft, cooler and all cushions.   The dinghy would be covered and stored under the boat on the trailer along with the large archway. But everything else is inside. It was stuffed. Then we took off the boom. The yard would pull the mast. They would wrap the boom and the mast along with the rigging with lots of plastic and tape. These would be stored on the trailer under the boat as well.

(more…)

ROAD TRIP! (SAN FRANCISCO TO FLORIDA, USA)

We need transportation in our new home in Belize. We discussed buying a used SUV in the states and shipping it down by freighter, but we didn’t need the expense of that kind of purchase right now. We decided that our trusty 1997 Buick Century was the best car for us there. It was 100% paid for, had low mileage on it, new tires, new radiator, recently repaired air conditioning, the window that didn’t go up and down properly now worked. Import duty to Belize on an older model car was inexpensive. And even the cost to ship from Fort Lauderdale was reasonable. It all made sense to take our Buick to Belize. (more…)