Wait out Northers at Ensenada Benao

We left Bahia Honda on Monday at about 6:30 am, bound for Isla Cebaco, only about 25 miles away. When we arrived, we saw that the anchorage was not protected especially with the strong south swell. We decided to keep going and try to make the next anchorage, Ensenada Naranjo before dark.

As we crossed the bay toward it, we were going about 4.5 to 5 knots and would barely make it in before sunset. Reading further, it appeared the holding there was not good. With our secondary anchor, we didn't want to risk it. The wind was from the south, and favorable so we changed course and headed to Ensenada Benao. It meant sailing overnight, but the guys were rested from the night before and wanted to do it.

Eventually, the wind quit and we ended up motoring in the early morning hours. The previous overnight saw virtually no boat traffic. As we approach the canal, that is clearly changing. At about 4 am I woke up to the sound of Tom and Canaan actively engaged on deck. As it turned out we crossed a fishing net, even though we were at least three miles off the coast.

Canaan was on watch and he smartly but the boat in neutral to avoid fouling the prop with the net. I came up, flipped on the spreader lights and we were able to turn free of the net. It would be nice if they could mark the better somehow! The wind had shifted and was coming from the north - great a "norther", just what we DON'T want going around Punta Mala.

Ensenada Benao is supposed to be perfect for waiting out these nasty north winds. We saw up to 27 knots, but the holding here is good so we'll stay and leave at first light. 

Give and You Shall Receive

We arrived in Bahia Honda Sunday afternoon around 1pm. It was a very scenic spot. Shortly after anchoring, three dugout canoes came by. We said “hola” and they replied the same, they didn’t say anything else. We assumed they were just looking at our boat. They were the first of many boats that came by. This area is very remote, according to the guidebooks.

Another man came by, Domingo’s son – they live near the other anchorage in that area and are referred to in the cruising guides. He was looking for a flashlight because some animal had wiped out their chickens and they needed to see in the dark. We gave him two spares we had on board. He left us onions, cilantro, grapefruit and very sweet red peppers.

More came, asking for candy, sugar, paper, pens, fishing line and hooks - we obliged as often as we could. One little boy was hanging back in his canoe while we handed another family paper, pens and pencils for their two girls. He didn’t say anything, but agreed to let me photograph him. I remembered that we still had a Frisbee that was in the Baja Ha-ha swag bag. I ran back down to retrieve it. Tom and Canaan threw it back and forth a few times to show him how it worked, and then tossed out to him. It went in the water but he quickly picked it up – his smile was ear to ear.

Another gentleman came by and asked if we had any books that could help him learn English. We gave him two books and he proudly said to us “Thank You Very Much!” It was very heartwarming to share so many things we take for granted, and see the appreciation in their eyes.

Leaving Costa Rica

We left Golfito on Saturday, with our new crewman - Canaan. We felt rested and much better than when we had arrived. We hadn't planned on staying for eight days, but it turned out to be the perfect place to rest and get well. It was great to see Neville and Maggie on Blue again.

Because of our anchor situation, the timing (so far behind our planned trip through the canal) and the prohibitive cost in Panama we decided to head quickly to Panama City and get through the canal as soon as we can.

There are supposedly beautiful marine parks here. The problem is that they charge you $60 per night for the boat to anchor, then an extra $20 per person. So that's $100 per day for a cruising couple - WOW! According to the cruising guide, they are supposed to lower these outrageous fees.

In speaking with our new friend Eddie, who has been cruising for over eight years, he recommended not clearing in and out of Panama. He said it best "You're in transit. Do you think all of those commercial ships going through clear in and clear out their entire crew?" Since we plan to head north as soon as we go through the canal, it doesn't make sense to do the "paperwork cha cha". The fees to go through the canal are high enough. Once we base in Florida, we can always come back to Panama and cruise this area. 

Tierra Mar - Land and Sea Services

We met Tim and Katie, owners of Land Sea Services/Marina. They have about 11 mooring balls and an awesome Cruiser Club House. Best of all, Blue is here and we are so excited to see Maggie and Neville again. Yep, Maggie confirmed that I have Hep A too. She was glad to see that Tom was getting much better, his jaundice is almost gone.

Golfito is nothing like the rest of Costa Rica - it's SAFE here! We don't have to worry about getting ripped off. They still said to lock up your dink, but t\hey really don't have a theft problem here. There are also lots of cruisers here - finally! It's great to meet new people and exchange information. One couple we met knew Jack and Joanie and wanted and update on them and to hear about our Christmas together. It's fun knowing the same people.

Tim & Katie's place was such a great refuge. I spent days upstairs on their balcony using WIFI to get caught up on this blog. Maggie was my inspiration - she's blogged faithfully all along. I'd been keeping a journal but really fell down on blogging. I found out about sailblogs and decided it wasn't too late to do it. Yes, it would take some work, but I really wanted to share our experiences - especially since I'd promised that we would.

It was great to get well, and to get most caught up. Unfortunately, there are no anchors in Golfito either. it looks like we'll have to shoot for Panama City. They say you can find anything there.

Racing down the Costa Rica Coast

We left Marina Papagayo and decided to head south as fast as we could. With our anchor situation we needed to find safe, protected anchorages. The cruising guide indicated we needed to be south of Quepos to leave the strong winds behind us. We sailed overnight to Bahia Ballena and arrived before sunset on Friday. It was a nice shallow bay, with good holding and protection from the wind - which thankfully was not very strong.

We went ashore to the Bahia Ballena Yacht Club and had a nice fresh fish dinner. On Saturday mornings they have an organic produce market next to the yacht club. We went ashore and stocked up. It was the best market I'd seen since Mexico. We returned to the boat, pulled anchor and were on our way to the next spot by 10 am.

Our next stop was Isla Cedros another very protected anchorage. We dropped anchor by 4 pm and relaxed. There were a few other power boats at anchor near shore, but it was very quiet. We slept well and had decided to go to Puntarenas the next day to see if we could buy a new anchor. When we pulled in we were surprised to see Dick on Mentor. His wife Cindy go off in Playa de Coco and he was leaving the boat in Puntarenas for two weeks to fly back and join her. Sadly, her father had passed away before she arrived.

We told Dick where we had been and he said he'd had a fishing pole stolen off his boat in Isla Cedros a few days earlier. Another sailor had an outboard stolen. it was locked on board and he was sleeping in the cockpit when they came aboard and took it! Talk about BOLD! So we were pretty lucky to get away with all of our gear.

Puntarenas is NASTY. It is shallow, so we called for the free panga from the Costa Rica Yacht Club, but it never came. We had the list of TWELVE way points to get in, so Tom plugged them all in to the GPS. At one point the depth sounder showed NO water under the keel, but we made it in. The yacht club was pretty tired looking, but they did have tight security. We'd used our dinghy to go ashore, then took the motor off and locked it aboard and used a heavy chain to lock the dinghy to the boat.

The security guard stopped by and told us that it was "unsafe", so we had to winch it up too. Once an hour the guards came by in a panga with a big search light, needless to say I did not sleep very well - wondering if it was security or robbers! We went to town early the next day and found the marine supply store - all they had were two "toy" anchors. We couldn't get out of Puntarenas fast enough!

We sailed to Punta Leona, an nice protected anchorage for the night, and left at first light the next day. The next night we anchored at Punta Quepos. It wasn't as protected and was a quite rolly. The next day we'd planned to go the 6 short miles to Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio. It is supposed to be amazing - full of wildlife and a "must see" park. I'd had a fever the night before and we too weak to spend a day hiking so we passed it by. We decided to head for Bahia Drake - a day sail away instead.

Tom was starting to feel better and we had favorable wind that afternoon. It was going to be tight making it into the anchorage before dark. Tom wanted to keep going to Golfito. I told him I wasn't well and didn't think I would be much help with night watches. He said he could do it alone, and so we continued on. I slept up in the cockpit and enjoyed the evening breeze. We arrived at the entrance to Golfito at first light on 1/20/11. 

Wild Goose Chase in Nicaragua

Against the advice of our new friends at Marina Papagayo, we decided to rent a car and drive back to the bay in Nicaragua where we lost our anchor. Tom was convinced he could find it because he knew exactly where we dropped it. You can't rent a car in Costa Rica and drive it to Nicaragua.

Instead, we rented a car in Costa Rica from Alamo and they delivered it to the marina at 7 am. We then had to drive to the border and drop off that car at the Alamo office on the border, walk through immigration, customs, etc and meet the Alamo rep on the Nicaragua side who had a pickup truck waiting for us. It was about 11 am before we finished because we wasted a lot of time talking to customs about us coming back with an anchor we didn't have when we entered.

After driving about 100 miles on mostly pot holed dirt roads, we finally arrived it the little bay. We pulled into a beach side restaurant that had a sign saying they rented boats by the hour. We hired a panga and loaded the generator, air compressor, hose and other dive gear into the boat. The wind was howling, but not quite as bad as the last time we'd been there. Tom was ill, but still spent two hours combing the bottom.

There was no sign of it, so reluctantly we abandoned our search and headed back. Unfortunately, we made a wrong turn and ended up navigating two sections of the road with rivers running across them. We finally asked for directions and got back on track. We made it back to San Juan Del Sur to meet the Alamo rep to take us back to the border. it was after dark, which we'd hoped to be back before losing daylight.

The roads in Costa Rica are much better, so it wasn't quite so bad. It was getting late, bu since we had a car, it only made sense to stop at a supermarket for provisions. At 8 pm we wandered through the Jumbo store like zombies, grabbing what we thought we needed. It was about $160 for not so many groceries: another problem with Costa Rica is how EXPENSIVE everything is!

We finally returned to the marina about 10 pm, exhausted and really bummed out that our day did not yield the return of our anchor. We decided it was time to move on so we got up early and drove to Coco to check out so we wouldn't have to take the boat over and unload the dinghy, etc. We made it back to the marina before the rental car company noticed so we avoided a second day rental charge. 

Hepatitis A is a Nasty Virus!

We found out that our friend Maggie on Blue (expedition style trawler) is a nurse. Tom had been very sick and we were getting very concerned, not knowing what we wrong. He wasn't eating - no appetite. When we saw Maggie in Playa del Coco, he explained to her how he felt and what his symptoms were. She took one look at his eyes (without his sunglasses) and his skin and said "you have Hep A" - as it turned out she's been a specialist in that area of medicine.

Once we found out what was wrong I went online to to some research. You get it from tainted food or water. We have no idea where it came from - it really could have been anywhere. I looked for treatment (there really isn't any), and found out that antibiotics don't work. I called mark Burcaw and he ran through a list of vitiamins, herbs and supplements to take. Otherwise, you just tough it out and get through it - lots of liquid, fruits, veggies, etc. No alcohol, no caffine, no refined sugar/flour products.

Unfortunately, I got it too. I have a stronger immune system that Tom ans suspect I was exposed at the same time but my body was fighting it off. By the time we stopped in Quepos, I had a raging fever and the jaundice was begining to set in. It really slows you down!

Incompetence, filth and crime plague Playa Del Cocoa

On Monday morning we left about 7 am to motor over to Play Del Coco, the first port of entry in Northern Costa Rica. We passed by Gorilla Rock on out way to Play de Coco.

We pulled in and anchored near Blue and unloaded the dinghy to go ashore. The Port Captain's office opens at 8 am and we arrived about 8:30 am to begin the "paperwork Cha Cha". We saw Neville and Maggie at the Port Captain's Office, they'd already been to the Immigration office. There were no instructions as to what the process was and impossible to get that information.

After about 45 minutes, we received a piece of paper from the Port Captain's assistant and were instructed to go to the Immigration office. We arrived at 9:15 am and saw a sign on the door that said 'cerado por comission". We had no idea what that meant so we knocked on the door.

It opened and a woman who appeared to be the cleaning lady explain that they were closed for "coffee break". But she let us come in to sit down and wait. Paula, the Immigration Official, who made it clear that she was the only employee there, didn't just have coffee - it was a full breakfast. We listened to her clang silverware on a plate for a full 30 minutes. Then the water ran for a very long time - either she was washing dishes or taking a shower. We couldn't tell.

At 10 am - a full 45 minute later - Paula was finally ready to stamp our passports. Dan the marina manager later explained to us that she's a political appointee and has her job FOR LIFE - how pathetic! This woman has absolutely no clue that she is the first impression people get about her country - Costa Rica. We'd heard good things about it, but our experience entering the country was nearly enough to make us want to by pass it.

After Paula finished, we had to go back to the Port Captain's office, then to the bank, wait in line to pay money, then Tom and Neville shared a cab to go to customs. it was 3 pm in the afternoon before we'd finished the process - an entire day wasted!

As for Playa Del Coco, it wasn't what we'd expected at all. Dan said it best: it's a dirty little beach town. He lived there for a few years, so he knows it well. Later we spoke with a couple who'd been victims of theft there. It seems two 13 year old boys boarded their sailboat and stole a bunch of stuff. Ben caught them and forced them ashore and turned them over to the police. He confiscated a bunch of the stuff they stole.

Ben was sitting with two policemen at a table sorting the items into two piles: one for trash like electronics that had been destroyed by salt water; and one for salvageable items. In that pile he'd placed a waterproof watch that had been a retirement gift. When we went to gather the good items - his watch was gone. One of the two policemen and stolen it! So much for punishing theft in Costa Rica.

It would be an indication of what was to come. Although we got through Costa Rica with all of our belongings in tack, others did not and we were paranoid the whole time we were there. NEVER in Mexico, were we fearful of theft. Yes, we locked our motor, dinghy, etc. but we always felt safe and thieves we never so bold as to board your boat - especially when it was occupied!

Costa Rica gets 40% of it's GNP from tourism, unless they want to see a decline I suggest they get serious about the problem. Our personal recommendation: SKIP COSTA RICA!

Marina Papagayo

We pulled into Marina Papagayo on Saturday afternoon and Dan the dock master met us at the slip. Although the cost to clear in the country in Costa Rica is minimal, Dan said we had to use the marina's agent to clear in. The cost was over $350. That was on top of the the marina's slip price of $2 per foot, per night (about $100 per night for us). We'd decided to spend the money for a slip, but weren't prepared for the agent fee. The cruising guide said we'd have the option of clear in ourselves. Dan said the cruising guide was wrong - again!

I started to cry, it was just too much for me. Tom was very ill, I had a fever and hardly slept the night before due to flu-like body aches. We'd lost our anchor and had two close calls with our secondary anchor dragging. Our only safe, option was a mooring (there were none) or a marina. We explained our predicament to Dan. He made some phone calls and then informed us that everything was closed for the weekend so there would be no clearing in until Monday. He agreed to let us stay, under quarantine so we couldn't leave the marina, but then we could take the boat to Playa del Coco on Monday to see the Port Captain, etc.

The Marina and Four Season's Resort are five star. There was a pool, a very nice bar/restaurant with a killer daily happy hour with food and drink specials, a crew theater/lounge, a store and other amenities. On top of that, Dan comped us the first night since we'd arrived so late in the afternoon. When we went to his office to register he even made a calls and got out marine supply catalogs to help us try to locate an anchor. It was so nice to be treated so well by Dan and his staff, especially in our fragile state.

Seeking Refuge in Bahia Santa Elena

When we went to bed at dawn in Bahia Santa Elena we were the only boat there. When we awoke at about 10:30 am, we were delighted to be surrounded by the group we'd been with in Puesta del Sol, Nicaragua. Passion had come in and was off our stern, Mentor was off our bow and Blue was anchored on the other side of them. In comparing notes, we'd all had a tough go of it, although no one had the harrowing experience we did of losing our anchor in 50 knots of wind.

Mentor was on a mission as Cindy's dad was on his death bed and she needed to catch a flight home. Although the Papagayo winds were still howling a good 40 knots, Mentor left the next morning. They called to report conditions as they rounded Key Point to Blue, because they were trying to decide whether to leave that day or wait until the next day. We listened in to Mentor's report "It's not bad, blowing about 40 knots". Pacific Northwest sailors certainly have a different perception of conditions! Blue decided to go anyway but we decided to stay put that night and leave the next day - hoping the wind would die down.

Tom was really sick and loosing weight. He had very little appetite and was feeling lousy. We went ashore in the dinghy anyway, just to get out and stretch. We went with Passion, but had trouble locating the hiking trails described in the cruising guide.

It was getting rough because of the wind and Passion wanted to go up the estuary. We decided to go back to the boat. Tom decided we wanted to put around the shoreline in the dinghy, then we found a protected gravel beach that looked inviting. It was a fish camp, with a fire pit, old nets, shells, etc. We hung out and walked the shoreline for a bit.

We were ready to leave and hopped back in the dink. As we got closer Tom said "Is that an optical illusions, or is our boat REALLY CLOSE to Passion?" I said "It must be an illusion." But as we approached, it was clear that our anchor had dragged and our stern was about 3 feet from Passion's bow. I was off the dinghy before we tied up, fired up the engine and put her in gear to keep from hitting Passion. Tom quickly ran to the bow and pulled up the anchor. We moved closer to shore and further from Passion. There we were, in this great big bay, only one other boat and we drag anchor to Passion - like a magnet. How does THAT happen??

That was the second time our secondary anchor had dragged, so we were losing faith in our ability to continuing anchoring. We looking at the guide books and there was only one marina within 100 miles: Marina Papagayo. It was expensive, but safe. I was starting to feel sick too and we might need to find a doctor.

We decided to head to the marina the next day at first light. Fortunately, waiting a day had been a good move. The wind had died, so much so that we had to motor the 40 or so miles to the marina. With the seas calm and no wind, we were fine with using a little fuel to reach a peaceful place. 

A Very Short Stay in SJDS

After losing our anchor, we looked at our options and decided to a make a run for San Juan del Sur, a large port in the southern part of Nicaragua. We just might make it before dark, but if we didn't it was well marked and lit with red and green markers and channel markers with a heading. Tom was still not feeling well, and we were exhausted by the wind and seas.

The sun never seemed to have set so fast before, soon it was getting very dark. We just don't go into unfamiliar harbors at night, but we did. We had a great computer program Jack gave us in Barillas, it turns your computer into a chart plotter. We had a great chart of SJDS, and knew exactly what our position was at all times. Without it, we would never have attempted going in.

The cruising guide warned of empty mooring balls and unlit boats. Tom got out our big spot light and identified plenty of both. He was on the bow, my eyes as I was flying blind. He'd pulled out our secondary anchor on the way to the harbor, found the dead center of the bay and dropped the anchor. We put out lots of chain and set the anchor alarm on the GPS. We were starving fo I made a quick easy meal of angel hair pasta and marinara sauce. We took showers and were in bed by 8 pm.

We awoke at 11:30 pm, something wasn't right. The wind seemed to be increasing - if that was possible?? Tom checked our position and confirmed that we'd dragged anchor. We were up in no time, I had the engine started and was ready at the helm - scared to death and not knowing how we'd get out without hitting something. Tom was calm, cool and collected and just told me to follow his directions. He pulled up the anchor and guided us past the immediate obstacles. From there it was just a matter of doing the reverse of what we'd done to get in.

Restful sleep would not be ours that night. We were only about 20 miles from our destination in Costa Rica, and we didn't want to enter that one at night. Tom explained that we'd just go 2-3 knots, bare poled with no sails. We'd work our way around the next bay and enter the bay in the morning. We saw other boats at sea too, it was probably safer there than at anchor. First light was just beginning and we slowly approached our destination: Bahia Santa Elena - a pristine park and completely protected anchorage. By 6:30 am we were finally anchored safely and went to bed.

Papagayos Stole Our Anchor

We left Puesta del Sol on 01/04/11 at 3 pm in the afternoon - when the paperwork Cha-Cha was finally finished. Santorini and Passion headed south together for an over night sail to Bahia Santa Elena, Costa Rica. With her longer waterline, we knew Passion might not be able to stay with Santorini if there was wind, and BOY WAS THERE WIND!

We went offshore about 10 miles and and nice 20 knot breezes. That meant we were sailing over 7 knots, however the wind continued to build to 30-35 knots. With too much sail and building seas, we started surfing into waves coming our way, slamming down after going over the top of them. So everything in the cabin started flying. By now it was pitch black out as it was a new moon. We reduced sail and headed for the shore.

January and February are peak Papagayo season and the further you go off shore the heavier the seas due to "fetch" - wind generated wave that build to greater heights the further you are from shore. It was a long bumpy run to the coastline, and finally morning light came. After sailing all night, very fast at times, we'd only traveled about 55 miles from where we started. The cruising guide recommends southbound vessels hug the shore line and only travel during daylight and "anchoring in uncharted nooks and crannies" - great. the problem it that there is a lack of protected anchorages in which to escape this Devil Wind.

After sailing in these conditions all night we were exhausted and urgently sought a safe harbor to wait out the wind - which can and did blow for 5 straight days. We saw a remote surf-spot beach that looked protected from the north east and decided to head there. We dropped the anchor in 15 feet of water with a sand bottom. Unfortunately there weren't high hills around the bay so it wasn't protected from the wind. Tom let out 125 feet of chain after dropping the anchor. Just then a 50 knot gust blew and 75 feet of chain came straight out of the water.

Before he could let out more chain or tell me to move forward with the motor, we heard a loud "pop", then the chain went limp. Our 75 lb CQR anchor was gone. Tom jumped overboard to see if he could find it, but the water visability was only about 3 feet. Due to the conditions, we had to leave without our anchor. I almost cried as we pulled out of the small bay.

On to Nicaragua

It first light, we left Isla Meanguera along with our buddy boat - Passion. Dick and Nancy, one of the cruising couples we spent Christmas with at Barillas, suggested we stop at Puesta del Sol - a marina in Nicaragua about 50 miles from the Golfo de Fonseca. We thought a couple of days there for some R & R sounded good, and the cruising guide said they had reasonably priced moorings available.

It was a nice day sail, and we arrived at the mouth of the estuary Puesta del Sol was tucked into before sunset. The channel was nicely marked with red and green buoys to guide us in. Although their staff was directing us to a slip, we preferred the less expensive mooring. We passed the docks and proceeded directly to the mooring area of the marina. After we got tied up, a panga came by and handed us a flyer with rules, policies, prices, etc. I looked it over as the panga went to hand one to Passion as well.

On the price sheet, it said the cost for a slip was $1.25 per foot, per day for the first two days and $1.00 per foot after that. It listed the price for a mooring at $1.25 per foot, per day for the first two days and .50 cents per foot, per day after that. The guide had indicated the moorings were .50 cents a foot, with a higher rate the first two days - we expected to pay .75 per foot per day. I confirmed with the Panguero that the price was correct, asking incredulously: "It's the same price for a slip as a mooring?" "Yes" he said. We quickly realized we'd make a mistake coming there.

We moved off the moorings and into slips, thinking we'd leave the next day without clearing in/out. Alas, no that was not possible. The officials had been called upon our arrival and we're already en route. Once they arrived, seemingly never ending sheets a paper were generated - with a long list of fees for this and fees for that. We said we wanted to leave that day, but the officials insisted we had to wait until they returned - at 2:00 pm to clear us out. In short, our "quick stop" of one night in Nicaragua cost us well over $200! If we'd only had know.

There was a silver lining in the story of this port: we meet great cruising friends there who we were delighted to spend time with and travel south with. South Africans Neville and Maggie on Blue - a beautiful expedition-style trawler that used to be owned by John McVee of Fleetwood Mac had the slip to our port side. On the other side of them were Dick and Cindy on the steel sloop Mentor.

We also had a scrumptious and inexpensive lunch at Joe's. There was an adorable little kitten I just had to share my lunch with. He's a former cruiser that swallowed the hook and decided to stay there 6 years ago. Our cruising guide said anchoring in the estuary near the marina was possible, but complicated due to "politics". It said there was a cruiser who got permission from the Port Captain to anchor there, only to have his boat removed by the Navy 23 days later. It turns out that was Joe's boat!

It's still at anchor near the estuary, a source of irritation to the marina owners. According to Joe, the Port Authorities in Managua encourage yachts to anchor and will issue permits freely to do so. Unfortunately, the marina owners have the local Port Authorities in their back pocket. If yachts can anchor for free in the estuary, the marina isn't making money. Get it? Oh yeah, this is another one of those empty marina/resorts. Can't see how they are making it as a business. According to Joe, the washing machine is running at full chat.

Bahia de Hotel de la Joya

The Golfo de Fonseca borders El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua. In 1992 the International Court of Justice resolved a land dispute between the three countries and drew new boundaries.

Our first stop was Punta Amapala because it's an easy day sail from Barillas. We anchored for the night in the calm bay. On the way there we put out our fishing poles and caught two fish we did not recognize. The first one I caught and it looked a little small. After Tom threw the second one back, he spoke with Don on Passion (our buddy boat for Barillas) and found out they are Sierra Mackerel or King Mackerel - and damn good eating! Oops! When we caught a much larger third one we were sure to fillet it and its taste lived up to what Don had said.

On New Year's Eve Day we sailed from Punta Amapala to Isla Meanguera (El Salvador). We initially anchored off the town, but there was no dinghy landing. A young man approached as we were pulling up the dinghy on the beach and said that there was a better anchorage just south, with a nice hotel where you can land the dinks.

We hopped back in the dinghy, pulled anchor and went around the corner to the scenic anchorage. We went to the hotel for a drink and met Richard, the owner, who greeted us warmly and provided local knowledge. That night they had the most amazing fireworks show - just above the little cove where we were anchored. We went to bed after the show - about 10 pm.

The next day we walked to into town and over to the pier. Tom wasn't feeling very well for the past few days, and we assumed he got a touch of Montezuma's Revenge. We had an amazing dinner at Bahia de Hotel de la Joya - I had the stuffed lobster and Tom had a steak. It was just the two of us on the ramada overlooking the bay. We couldn't remember the last nice, romantic dinner we had but decided it had been in San Diego before we'd left. It was magical.