Happy Days

Since I last wrote the blog last week the weather seems to have got a lot better. We left the Lemon Keys for Puerto Linton which is a town 40 miles away and we did the formalities there. You anchor behind Isla Linton with 100 other boats and it is quite rolly with the swell wrapping around but unfortunately it is only one of the few good anchorages along this bit of coast. There is a good Marina that is reasonably priced(for Panama) and a little town. The town looks very quaint and beautiful from the anchorage and then you go ashore and it is a disaster with rubbish and crap everywhere, the Panamanians don't seem to be too worried. We went to Portobello 15 minutes away to get a few supplies and then I got a message from work saying I might be going back mid January so after going back and fourth with ideas what to do we decided to come back to the San Blas. I would have liked to go through the canal and leave the boat on the pacific side when I go back to work but it is just
ridiculously expensive over there, unbelievable so here we are.
We arrived just before Julie's birthday so we spent it in the Holandes Keys, very nice chilled out anchorage and we just cooked up lots of nice food and had a few drinks and filled the tanks from the rain:) On the way in though we did manage to put a little scratch on the bottom with a bombie, very lucky it wasn't worse but was just hard to see coming in the narrow channel.
Yesterday after anchoring in another bay we could see a beautiful 50ft Catamaran sinking so we rushed over to help. Turns out they come in at night doing 6kts into an area with lots of bombies and went over a couple with a big one at the stern that broke the saildrive for the propellor. The port hull was full of water, luckily the only hole was from the saildrive and they were also very lucky there was a few young guys in the anchorage to help anyway after a lot of messing around we managed to pull the whole engine out, saildrive and all, put it on the deck and patched the hole with a piece of wood. Then they pumped out out all the water, pushed of the bombie and floated back again and made there way back Linton to haul out, never a dull moment around here.
Anyway thought that we met some nice people, Brazilians, Spanish, Italians, Americans, quite a mix. There are a lot of young people with boats here that do charters for backpackers and seem to do very well out of it keeping there cruising kitty cashed up.

San Blasted

Welcome to the San Blas, torrential rain big squalls from all over the place and few good anchorages. We arrived on daylight but had to hang around 3 hours out the front for the rain to clear. Was funny on the way I saw some rain squalls on the radar at night and I was trying to chase them to give the boat a much needed wash, there was no need at all. 

We arrived at Porvenir Island where we thought you can check in with authorities but you can only get a visa there and not the rest of the permits ect so we have to sail further east 40nm to a town on mainland called Linton, we will next week. 

Had a look on the next island there is a little local village, friendly Kuna people living a simple life. Managed to get a couple of very basic supplies and a SIM card that seems to work every known again but internet is very limited. 

Porvenir anchorage is pretty exposed to the swells that come in and the next morning a big squall came through with plenty of rain that hit with force.  First the boat next to us dragged a little then a large 55ft steel motor sailer behind dragged straight onto the reef, well his stern was but his bow still into the wind. We started our engine, fired everything up and then the wind dropped a touch and I went over in the dinghy to lend a hand to the older French couple, a hell of a lot of boat to look after with 2 when it all goes pear shaped. Anyway we managed to pull it off with the anchor and then the engine and all seemed ok. I quickly jumped in my dinghy as the sight of the other boat dragging with his 6ft bow sprit he was motoring with anchor down and was swinging from side to side out of control and twice came Very close to us, time for us to get the hell out of there!! Again outside waiting for a couple of hours for the weather to slightly clear and then we made our way into East Lemon Keys Where we are now. 

Today the weather is better so far this morning but the last 2 were much the same, not a lot to do as you can't leave the boat for long. Went to try and get a fish at a couple of spots yesterday but only saw very small fish but lots of nice coral. Locals have been coming by in there dug outs selling lobster they call longastinas "baby lobster" and that's what they are, slightly smaller than big shrimp, big shame. 

Thought maybe Julie could stay on anchor here if I get called back to work but with this weather there's no way so we are trying to come up with a new plan. 

This place would be paradise in good weather, maybe next month but not now. 

I'm trying to find some patience, but it's hard:)