|
Home Port Our Logs The Crew Calendar Favorite Links The Boat Photo Album Route and Charts Miscellaneous Stuff |
Larry's LogSunday though was a real day of rest - except for going on a long walk on the beach in the late afternoon, we did absolutely nothing except read and relax. After our walk, we met a local on the beach though who spoke English pretty well; he had just been fishing and had gotten an octopus to eat. As he was talking though, it climbed out of the mesh bag it was in and almost got away. He ran into the water and managed to cup his hands under it and throw it onto the beach. It had also 'inked' him in the process, but we got a really good look at it. Our walk was very nice since it wasn't as hot as it was the last time we were here and we went as far down as we could, about a 60-minute walk there and back. Monday was occupied by cleaning the hull. It had gotten pretty bad in the month since we had it done in PLC and there was weed growing very thickly on the starboard side waterline - where the sun hits it. I went in around 10 while Diane monitored the watermaker running. I managed to scrape the weed off the worst side and cleaned the through-hulls but could do no more since it was almost noon when I finished that. After we had lunch, Diane and I both went in the water and we cleaned more of the bottom, her scraping the port side and me scrubbing off the stubborn remains on both sides and cleaning the prop. I also managed to wipe off the starboard topsides, what I could reach anyway. Although the hull wasn't done, at least the waterline was clean now - we could do the rest of the hull another day - except for the keel, it didn't look too bad. Tuesday we left for Sarqui at about 9:30 and motored the 4 miles over. I did have a problem though with getting my hand caught in the windlass when I brought up the anchor. I didn't break anything but it certainly hurt and if I hadn't been wearing heavy gloves it might have been worse. As it was, it broke the skin on my finger and it would have been swollen except that Diane got out an ice pack to put on it. It was a very powerful machine - I needed to be careful with it. Anyway, the wind was down and there were some clouds and since we needed to run the watermaker also, I just motored instead of using the sails. We got there at about 10:30 and the boat that was there left so we had the anchorage to ourselves - very nice. Unfortunately, we weren't alone very long. By the end of the day there was a total of 4 boats but there was still a lot of room. We went snorkeling in the afternoon in the pass between Espenqui and Sarqui so we didn't see the last boat even come in. The snorkeling was pretty good and it was very calm so we had a very easy time of it. We saw nothing new but lots of fish that were interesting - a Glasseye Snapper and some small groupers. The late afternoon and evening were very quiet and the wind was down to under 10 knots so it got a bit hot and the mosquitoes came out as well. We planned to move on to Cayo de Agua the next day anyhow. Cruising plans are made to change so we didn't go to Cayo de Agua on Wednesday; we stayed in Sarqui. Some people we knew on Skylark, Cliff and Orma, came in yesterday and so we went snorkeling again with them in the early afternoon. It was much rougher than yesterday, mostly because of a swell that had started coming in last night. The surf on the windward reef to the north of the anchorage was about 3-4 feet and breaking pretty well. The swell on the south side of the island, where we snorkeled wasn't that bad but it made landing the dinghy interesting. We got caught in some bad waves and although we weren't swamped, the dinghy engine must have gotten sand in it since when we launched it later I had a problem getting it revved up. I put it in neutral and let it sit for a few minutes and then revved it again and it was fine after that. The snorkeling itself was OK but the water clarity suffered from yesterday as well. It was really getting roiled. Further out where the beach sand couldn't reach it was fine but the closer in we got the worse it became. It was enjoyable anyway though. We got back to the boat and took showers. Diane then noticed that one of the gasoline jerry jugs was leaking. The gas had evidently expanded and leaked its way through the cap. She was going in the water again by the boat so I took off the cover and gave it to her to wash out. I then rinsed it in some fresh water and put it back on the tank. Hopefully it won't leak again. About 5:30, Cliff and Orma came over for drinks and snacks - we had invited them earlier. We had a nice time talking with them for a couple of hours. Thursday we left for Cayo de Agua at a little after 10. Cliff from Skylark had stopped by earlier and dropped off a book he read that looked pretty good and we talked a little about their trip to Merida and Angel Falls. He said they absolutely loved Angel Falls and it was one of the best trips they ever did - we may have to do it too. After getting the anchor up, we motored a little and then just flew the jib but were still making 4 to 4.5 knots in about 15 knots of wind from the east-southeast. There was a little chop but it was generally a very nice sail to Cayo de Agua, about 11 miles away. We arrived at the entrance, on the west side of the little group of 4 islands and made our way in, using a GPS waypoint I got last year. It wasn't really necessary as we could see the reefs easily but Diane felt better using it. Coming in, there was still about 15 knots from the east and a little chop but there was also a nasty swell coming in from the entrance, coming around from the northeast therefore going west after the entrance. That made going over the shallower parts a bit interesting - 10 feet of water depth with a 2 to 3 foot swell from the west, 1 foot chop from the opposite direction, and we draw a little over 7 feet. We never touched though and anchored in 20 feet of nice turquoise water about 100 yards off the beach. There were 2 boats there already and another one had followed us in - he had also been in Sarqui the day before but left after us. The sun was bright and the breeze comfortable so we were very happy to be there. We had arrived about 1:30 so while Diane made lunch, I put up the sun canvas and we just relaxed the rest of the day. I had towed the dinghy again with no ill effects but I think I'll use the rubber snubber on the painter from now on to lessen the shock load when the inflatable is pulled suddenly after sliding down a wave near the boat. Another boat that was in Sarqui yesterday, had left before us and also came into Cayo de Agua, after first stopping in Carenero for a little while. He was coming out the entrance of Carenero as we were almost to it. We hadn't met them, on a catamaran named LunaC, but as he came out of Carenero, he made a 360-degree turn and finally settled on a course parallel to ours. On arrival, he decided initially to anchor on the 'back' (south side) of Cayo de Agua, in a little anchorage we had seen last year during a walk around the island. I suppose it was uncomfortable though because he came around to where we were at about 5; he made it in OK so I suppose he knew where the reefs where since you couldn't read the water at that point. That, and watching some people try to row a small inflatable against the 15-knot wind was the evening's entertainment (they eventually made it back to their boat with no help). Friday we didn't do much - the wind was up again in the morning as was the swell, so we couldn't go snorkeling. We did however, run the watermaker for 3 hours since the wind generator and solar panels were doing so well. Diane decided to do some hand laundry since we had the electricity to make some extra water. After lunch the wind subsided a bit and we tried the snorkeling at the reef we liked so much last year. There was still some swell though and consequently the water clarity wasn't very good so we went to a reef closer to shore and it was a little better but still not as good as last year. Hopefully the swell will subside in the next day or so and the water clarity will improve. Our friends on Skylark came into the anchorage today in the late morning the next day. We hadn't done much before that except run the watermaker again (no engine either - nice to have enough wind and sun). After lunch, I went out in the dinghy and took some pictures of the boat since the water was so nice and took a little ride around. The swells on the reef had subsided considerably so when I got back, I suggested that we go snorkeling there again. Diane agreed and so we went; it was much better than yesterday in terms of visibility and we could snorkel around the entire reef with no problem. We went to the beach for a short while and then back to the boat. Cliff and Orma stopped by to invite us over for drinks but Diane had to use up some steak for dinner so we made plans for tomorrow. We also made some tentative plans to take go across the large lagoon to the islands just north of Cayo de Agua, Elbert Cay and Bequeve. The rest of the day we just relaxed and read. The wind was up overnight and into the morning (it woke me up at 4am and Diane at 5) so we decided not to go across the lagoon. We took the dinghy and went to the west end of Cayo de Agua though and had a nice walk around the beach there. Since it was Sunday, a local boat had brought in a load of tourists with beach chairs and umbrellas just as we got there -well, it was a nice walk anyway and I got some nice pictures. Back at the boat we had lunch and then went snorkeling to our favorite reef here and we weren't disappointed. Even though it started to get overcast, the wind was down a bit so snorkeling was good. We saw a school of Midnight Parrotfish and 2 new species for us, an Ocean Triggerfish and a Greenblotch Parrotfish. We also found some nice shells and a perfect sand dollar - we hadn't seen too many before. Back at the boat, we took quick showers and went over to Skylark for drinks and a visit. We had a very nice time and they showed us a booklet they put together on the Angel Falls trip they did last year, they described it and what kind of things we should do if we decide to go. They said it was really outstanding and I think we'll have to consider it but the season to go is between April and October, the rainy season - otherwise there is no water or just a trickle. It had been a very good day (the wind kept up nicely and we ran the watermaker twice without having to turn on the engine, what a pleasure!) Monday we had planned to go to Bequeve, across the lagoon, but it was pretty breezy in the morning again so we changed our plans. But it was another busy day doing what cruisers do - in the morning, we went with Cliff and Orma to West Cay rather than Bequeve, the island just to the west of Cayo de Agua and walked around. We had been there last year and it was still as nice as we remembered it. The beach on the south part is really fantastic and the north coast of the island had some nesting Brown Boobies, just like last year. After taking a tour of the place and seeing the lighthouse, we all went for a swim in the crystalline water. Just before we left on our dinghy trip in the morning, we saw another boat come in but this time from the east, through the coral patches. Our charts say you can't go through there (of course, the local pineros do with the day-trippers from Gran Roque) but this was a sailboat. As he came in and anchored, we saw it was a local charter boat we had seen in Francisquis - I guess local knowledge is everything. After lunch, Diane and I went snorkeling to the furthest reef on the eastern point of Cayo de Agua. We had snorkeled there last year when it was so calm and we saw a large school of Midnight Parrotfish and some Rainbow Parrotfish as well. It got a little rough when we got past the reef on the outside so we turned around but generally enjoyed it very much. We stopped at Skylark to tell them how the reef has been and they said they were going to leave tomorrow for Las Aves de Barlovento. We said we would be leaving in another day or so and hoped to see them there. Skylark left for Las Aves early Tuesday and the local boat left about 30 minutes later, leaving us alone in the anchorage. I didn't think it would last so while Diane did some things she had planned in the galley, I went to shore to take some pictures of the boat in splendid isolation. I got some nice shots and as I predicted, 2 boats came in around noon. After eating, we went snorkeling again at our favorite reef and it was very good - we saw 2 new species, a Yellowfin Grouper and a Dusky Blenny. I always enjoy snorkeling but particularly like seeing (and identifying) species that we haven't seen before. We also saw a large school of Midnight Parrotfish and 2 Rainbow Parrotfish, as well as a large Scrawled Filefish that seemed completely unafraid of me (maybe he was too afraid to swim off but we were within 4 feet of each other for about 2 minutes). Diane made a nice dinner of Baked Ziti (what she had prepared earlier) and we discussed that we should probably leave ourselves for Las Aves in a day or 2. |