AIRMAIL YOTREPS
IDENT: N6ABC
TIME: 2015/03/03 23:03
LATITUDE: 18-45.19N
LONGITUDE: 087-18.24W
COMMENT: Beach House – ANCHORED – Cayo Norte – Chinchoro Bank, Mexico – Belize tomorrow – we hope!
We\’ll we got out a bit later than I wanted. We had a lovely sail here and the seas calmed in the afternoon.
Problem is, we spoke with two boats that had just left here telling us how easy the entry and anchorage was….NOT!
We got into very shallow water (2.4 feet under the hulls!). It\’s sand for the most part, we\’re now anchored with 4.3 feet under the hulls which is fine.
However, getting an early start may be very problematic as we can\’t see the bottom until it\’s light. It\’s a 200 yd issue, but…it IS an issue.
We\’re not in the best anchoring spot, but it\’s safe.
This is one of only 4 true atolls in this Caribbean, the others are in Belize; our next stop.
February 24th – March 3rd, 2015 (UTC -5) Quintanaroo, Mexico has decided to stay on US East Coast time despite being as far east as Texas!
Dear Friends and Family,
We departed Isla Mujeres and motored with little wind down the coast for the 30 mile trip to Puerto Morelos, Mexico – still in the State of Quintanaroo. Ya\’ gotta\’ love that name! We arrived with Dennis and Lisette on “Windward” and decided that the next day we’d rent a car and the four of us would drive to the Mayan Ruins of “Coba” and “Tulum”. Along the way we made a quick drive through at Puerto Aventura which ended up looking like a Mexican Newport Beach, California. Very upmarket with a well protected marina. It would have made an interesting stop with the boats.
Note our alternate ride en route to Coba…..:-)
Scott and Nikki in our Coba Taxi. It was a long walk between pyramids, so we took the easy way out.
As there was no Toltec influence in Coba, there was no tradition of human sacrifice. This despite the fact that it was only a few hundred kilometers from Chichen Itza to the north.
Dennis and Lisette of \”Windward\” at the base of the 70 meter pyramid – El CitadelNikki and Scott (in distance) carefully negotiating our way down El Citadel. It was much steeper than it looked. Note the rope if you need a security blanket.Guard Tower: There were several roads that at one time were up to 10 meters wide and completely paved with stone. Guards would sit on the four corners of this structure and could see for miles who was coming toward Coba.
We got off to a late start and realized that if we wanted to get to Tulum before it closed, we’d have to make tracks.
We arrived about a half an hour before Tulum closed, but it was long enough to get a feel for one of the only Mayan sites that was right on the coast of the Mexican Riviera. In the Mayan language (of which there are about 22 dialects), Tulum means wall. It was one of or the only walled cities in the Mayan culture. An incredible beach setting, see all about the particulars at this link below: https://www.locogringo.com/mexico/ways-to-play/mayan-ruins-archaeological-sites/tulum-ruins/
Nikki entering one of the few places the wall has an entry portal – Tulum, Mexico \”The Walled City\”The main Citadel from the north side with the beach down belowBeach below the Citadel, Tulum – Mexico. Note the ever present \”Sargasso Weed\” on the white sand beach.The Citadel – The ruins of Tulum are actually not that extensive and the Citadel is the most interesting and prominent building as it is right on the cliffs above the beach. Reserved for the elite of course!Tourists on the beach below and just to the north of the Citadel. Day boats will anchor inside the reef on somewhat calm days. Today was not one of those days….
We got back to the boat late and were very glad we’d moved from our original slips as a Southeaster started to blow hard and the way the marina was oriented, it made for the docks to look like roller coaster tracks during the night.
The really cool thing is that when we went to the end of the dock, we saw another SWITCH 51 sister ship, “Neko” with Peter and Mary had just arrived from the island of Providencia, Columbia – headed north. A great surprise!
Peter, Mary, Nikki and Scott onboard \”Neko\” – Switch #12. \”Neko\” is cat in Japanese.\”Neko\” has the tall saloon roof like Beach House and except for their red versus our blue, the boats really do look alike. As well, they have twin aft wheels where we have a single steering wheel on the port forward bulkhead.Scott, Nikki, Mary and Peter aboard \”Beach House\” – Puerto Morelos. We\’d been hoping to catch up with each other for several years.
We had been in touch ever since Peter bought the boat (Hull #12, the one right after Beach House) and hoped that we would meet up one day. Friend and blog follower Mike Priest had even delivered the boat for Peter from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to San Francisco back in 2010-11.
We had a great time meeting them, looking at each other’s boats and comparing notes. Peter and Mary would be stopped off for an air trip to TITSNBN in a few days (You remember: That Island That Shall Not Be Named – aka: Cuba) while we would continue south with “Windward”.
After our trip to the ruins, we spent a few days in Puerto Morelos including visiting the small town which turned out to be really nice. Some great restaurants, a nice town square (zocolo) and all right on the beach. There is the old lighthouse that was turned into a “leaning tower” when Hurricane Mitch came through in 1998. Puerto Morelos was ground zero where \”Mitch\” came ashore. “Mitch” was a whopper and almost 20,000 people were killed throughout Central America and Mexico with over 6 billion dollars of property damage. The far Western Caribbean doesn’t get that many Hurricanes, but when they do, they can be devastating. See the following link on Hurricane Mitch: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Mitch
The old lighthouse in Puerto Morelos that was doing it\’s best leaning tower of Morelos imitation. It has since been replaced as a lighthouse but left as a reminder to the devastation of Hurricane Mitch.
Time was progressing and “Dad” Scott has to be in LA on the 30th of May to give away my one and only baby girl at her wedding! Temps Fugit – Time is Fleeing and as such, we moved on next to Cozumel which was only about 20 miles to our Southwest. We’d meet up with “Windward” at the small island of Cayo Cuelbra in a remote bay in southern Mexico – en route to Belize in a couple of days.
Though the trip was only 20 miles, it took quite along time as the 3+ knot Gulf Stream Current yet again reared it’s ugly head. There are no great anchorages in Cozumel and it’s really a Scuba Diver’s Paradise. There are some of the best drift dives in the Caribbean along it’s western reefs.
I\’d like to give a better photo, but this cruise dock says it all
I had been here with Cindy in 1996 for a diving vacation and boy had this place changed. Again…not for the better. Back in the day, Cozumel was about 4 diver hotels with a few upmarket resorts – all catering to divers. Today, 4-6 cruise ships a day come here every day but Sunday. Why? I have no idea. There really is no site seeing here, nothing of archeological or historic interest and the Cruise Lines have created a giant open market (that looks local, but isn’t) where the tourists buy “Chachkis” by the bus load. The folks on the cruise lines think they’re buying local crafts and…a few of them maybe are. For the most part it’s a rouse and the market is owned and operated by the cruise lines themselves. Just another revenue source from the tourists. They typically stop is for just the day.
After one night of this, we knew it was time for our boot heels to be wanderin’….
The next morning, we left early to beat the cruise ship tango and motored along the Marine Reserve on the Westside of the island. Dozens of dive pangas (small boats) were on site by 8:30 a.m.
Cayo Cuelbra Dolphin. The water was only 10 feet deep, but an entire group of dolphins followed us into Cayo Cuelbra. Yet another bay with so so charting.Cayo Culebra Sunset.
When we reached the tip of the island, we set sail for the 40+ miles to Cayo Cuelebra where we hoped to meet up with “Windward” for the night. It was a combination motor/sail but a much easier trip than the day before. We arrived off the shallow banks of Bahia de la Ascencion and hailed “Windward” on the radio. They had arrived that morning after an overnight sail from Puerto Morelos. They had been to Cozumel more recently and knew that we’d be disappointed. They were right.
As part of the off the beaten path adventure route, Nikki and I decided to head for Chinchorro Bank which is one of only four true atolls in the Caribbean. Much like the islands of the Tuamotus in the South Pacific, this is a rarely visited Mexican National Park and research atoll. It was right on the way, so we decided to go. Along the way, we came across two boats headed north who had stayed there the night before. They said it was beautiful and that getting into the anchorage was easy if we followed the cruising guide….ummm!
When we arrived at Chinchorro Bank, it was getting late. First we realized that our charts and the guidebooks\’ waypoints had only the vaguest notions of each other in common. In fact, following the guidebooks waypoints, we’d be going right over the entry reef for over a mile! As such, we cautiously did so and had no difficulties till we got to the anchorage. Here, the guide book told us we’d have 6-8 feet of depth to anchor in the protection of Cayo Norte, a small island inside the north of the bank. This was also where the park headquarters were to be found. When we got to the anchorage, we quickly found we were in MAYBE 4 feet of water and no matter how we hunted and pecked our way around, it wasn’t getting any deeper. A panga from the park (we surmised?) came out and as it went zooming by, suggested the one mooring that was apparent. First, I’m suspicious of anyone’s moorings I don’t know. Second, it was in an open unprotected area and would have been very uncomfortable for the night, especially when the reef was at high tide. Lastly, every time I tried to get close to it, the water got shallower!
Cayo Norte with it\’s lighthouse at Chinchorro Bank. The water was all of about 4 feet deep here.
As such, I had found a 4.5 foot spot, went back to it and dropped the anchor. We did this just before it got too dark to see the bottom. We had a pretty comfortable night and also…a full moon. This turned out to be a light bulb (of sorts). Knowing that we had to leave VERY EARLY the next morning to get to San Pedro, Belize, I was concerned about seeing my way out with no light.
The sand flats were interspersed with flat areas of rock and hitting that would be more than a negative experience. I got up at 4 a.m. and low and behold, the moon was so bright, I could easily see the bottom and discern where the rock flats were from the sand patches. However, at 7 a.m. (when I wanted to leave), the moon would be too low, the sun too bright to see even the 4 foot depths.
So, (and here’s where the light bulb so to speak) went “on”. I turned on our very bright search light which is located about 1/2 way up our mast. It’s remote controlled and it lit the sandy bottom (before sunrise) up like a light show! This allowed us, using our in bound track, to see any obstructions and get out of Dodge.
The charts were clearly not \”geo referenced\” as there was no commercial need here. Geo Referencing charts is where the original surveys, often done in the 1800’s, are not correlated to accurate modern GPS positions. The charts are usually right (but not here), and the GPS coordinates which are highly accurate don’t match. Geo Referencing is an ongoing project by charting agencies around the world started back in 2007. Areas of high traffic and commercial interest are being done first – and for the most part – have been completed. Chinchorro Bank has not been done. The other aspect of our charts was that they showed land areas where there were none! I suspect Hurricanes over the years have submerged these areas. Chinchorro is a wild place and would have been fun to explore, but given the weather moving in and poor charting, it will have to wait for some other intrepid navigator to take it on.
Nkki en route to San Pedro Belize from Chinchorro Bank
Chinchorro Rainbow en route to San Pedro Belize
We had a brilliant and lovely sail, the 50 miles to San Pedro, Belize and yet again another “experience” with inaccurate charting. The entry to to reef would be with the sun behind it in the afternoon, making the entry potentially difficult to see. Dennis on “Windward” was already inside the reef and confirmed the location of the buoy and entry coordinates for us.
Arriving outside the reef at San Pedro, Belize (Photo by Dennis). Believe it or not, in our next blog, you\’ll actually see Beach House UNDER SAIL!Scott breaking out the courtesy flag of Belize with our Yellow \”Q\” Flag below
You have to make a quick dog leg to the right just after you get through the reef as to not hit another reef, just inside the passage. The light was good, so the entry was straight forward. This was the first pass I’d seen in sometime that looked like some of the areas of the South Pacific. We anchored in 5 feet behind “Windward” and shortly after, the expected 20-30 knots started to blow. The reef was good protection, but at high tide, a bit bouncy! We’d check in the next day after sharing “sea stories” with Lisette and Dennis and begin our Belizian experience then!
Adios for now!
More soon,
Scott and Nikki (written from Roatan – The Bay of Islands, Honduras – waiting out the weather)
AIRMAIL YOTREPS
IDENT: N6ABC
TIME: 2015/03/02 20:19
LATITUDE: 19-42.35N
LONGITUDE: 087-30.15W
COMMENT: Beach House – ANCHORED – Cayo Cuelbra – Bahia De La Ascension, Mexico
We had a dinner and supermarket shop in Cozumel. The anchorage was okay, but we could see how it would be quite the roll under
certain circumstances. We left at 7a.m. just as the first of 6 cruise ships was arriving. Apparently, except for Sunday, the cruise ships
now dominate the island.
We motored while hugging the shore to the south west end of the island, then motor sailed or sailed the rest of the way here. Overall, a lovely day!
\”Windward\” is anchored next to us as they left Puerto Morelos last night at 6 pm! Another Catalina 42, just up from Belize is here as well. This spot
is about as remote a place as I\’ve ever been in Mexico!
We actually checked out of Mexico in Puerto Moralos, but they give you 48 hours to depart. As such, we decided to take 20 miles off tomorrow\’s
journey and come to the famous diving island of Cozumel. It\’s very built up since I was here with Cindy in 1996.
We luckily met sister ship Switch 51 #12 (the boat after Beach House) in Puerto Morelos. Peter and Mary aboard \”Neko\”. It was pretty cool to see yet another boat that looks pretty much – just like us!
Despite the only 20 mile journey, it took 4 1/2 hours to get here due to the very strong 2.5-3 knot current against us. Friends Dennis and Lisette on \”Windward\” will try and hug the coast to avoid this current as they head toward Bahia de la Ascension where we hope to meet up tomorrow late afternoon.
We\’ll take a look around shore if we can find a place for the dinghy and depart here early tomorrow for Bahia de la Ascension en route toward
Belize. We may stop at the Chinchoro Bank just before Belizian waters which is one of only a very few of the true atolls in the Western Hemisphere.
From there, we\’ll check in at Ambergris Cay – San Pedro, Belize….At least that\’s the plan!…:-)
KIT,
Scott and Nikki
YOTREPS: YES
TIME: 2015/02/24 21:21
LATITUDE: 20-49.80N
LONGITUDE: 086-53.38W
COMMENT: Beach House – DOCKED – Puerto Morelos, Mexico
We did a day trip by car to Chichin Izta (Mayan ruins) and a bit of exploring around Cancun
and Isla Mujeres. We\’ve now moved 35 miles south to Puerto Morelos and will do a day trip to the Mayan ruins
at Tulum (costal) and Coba (inland) tomorrow.
I\’ll try to get the first \”TITSNBN\” (Cuba) blog out today or tomorrow.
KIT,
Scott and Nikki – in now HOT, HOT, HOT Mexico
We departed Havana on the 15th of February for the anticipated two day sail to Isla Mujeres, Mexico. The Gulf Stream is the dominant feature and it would definitely let us know it was still here on our last day before we arrived in Mexico.
The first day, we motored for awhile and were then able to set sail with winds from the Southeast. We had nice protection from the land and were zipping along. We passed the famous harbor at Mariel where the Cuban boat lift departed from in 1980. This is where thousands of Cubans were let out of the country and Jimmy Carter welcomed them with open arms. They didn\’t really expect as many people to depart as ultimately did, but you can get the full story here:
Mariel Boat Lift 1980 – Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariel_boatlift
As we approached the West End of Cuba, a milestone was reached. \”Beach House\” had sailed around the world via longitude within the tropics. These milestones for me are still bittersweet and I suppose they always will be. I still often \”see\” Cindy standing where she always used to stand on the scuba cockpit hatch in her white visor, long sleeve blue sun shirt, white muslin pants and sandals. She doesn\’t appear to me as often as she used to, but she did on this day.
According to our calculations, we should have been off Isla Mujeres, Mexico (near Cancun) by around 9 p.m. on the 17th of February. However, we were really feeling the teeth of the Gulf Stream. Essentially, the Gulf Stream is part of the enormous clockwise current circulation of the Atlantic Ocean. It is actually an offshoot of the greater North Atlantic \”gyre\” that gets compressed into the Western Caribbean, wanders through the Gulf of Mexico as \”the loop current\” and again blasts off the Florida Keys, up the US East Coast and across the North Atlantic to the British Isles . Two areas are of particular strength. One is off Florida\’s Southeast coast and the other is where it essentially begins in the Yucatan Channel between Cuba and mainland Mexico. At this time of year, it\’s supposed to be slower – around 1.5-2 knots, moving south to north – but we started experiencing speeds of 3.5-3.8 knots!
Now imagine that were going around 7 knots and you can quickly see that we were often going less than 4 knots over the bottom. This really slowed us down and worse, the wind angle changed from ESE, then South, then finally to the WSW. This additionally slowed us down and we arrived 8 hours after we had thought we would. In addition, this made for a somewhat uncomfortable ride as we were plunging into 1-2 meter swells, current and wind against us. In some regards, it worked out okay as we were delayed till a few hours before daylight which would make a safer entry into the shallows of Isla Mujeres. Isla Mujeres means \”The Island of the Women\”. See this page for how it was named: Isla Mujeres: http://www.isla-mujeres.net/history.htm
Welcome to Isla Mujeres – The Island of the Women
Welcome to Isla Mujeres – The Island of the Women
Nikki on the beach at Isla Mujeres
Another factor was the \”Cruise Ship Tango\”. We passed several cruise ships all buzzing around the north side of Isla Mujeres en route to Cozumel which has become a cruise ship heaven….of sorts. Cozumel which is a true scuba diving destination is now inundated with 4-6 cruise ships per day, six days a week. It ain\’t what it used to be and I have no idea what the appeal is to the tourists as there isn\’t much to do there but dive!
Dodging the behemoths (doing the tango!), is always a bit challenging and stressful, but we do have experience at this sort of thing. You can imagine us, cold, wet and rained on at 4 am in a squall listening to Disney Music (think It\’s a Small World) emanating from the speakers of a 950 foot Disney Cruise Liner! 4am, really?
At first light, we entered the long shallow reef on the north side of Isla Mujeres (only a few miles east of Cancun) and went through the islands\’ canal into a sort of inner lake where we anchored and the finally tied up at the dock at Puerto Isla Mujeres Marina. Though I\’d been to Cancun in 1996, I wasn\’t really prepared for how much the area had grown. I might add….not for the better.
This is the canal from the outer anchorage into the inner lagoon which is very well protected and where we stayed at Puerto Isla Mujeres Marina
I\’d not been to Isla Mujeres before, so Nikki and I walked into town which had all the usual tourist \”chachki\” traps and what turned out to be some nice restaurants. We stopped at Bahia Tortuga, a boutique hotel, bar and small marina. Friend Karen Derrick had been here with family last year and it was owned by a friend of hers from Sonoma, but unfortunately she was in the US so we didn\’t get to meet here.. After dinner, we taxied back to the boat and planned our next day to take the ferry over to Cancun for a \”recky\” (that\’s reconnaissance in OZ speak…:-))
This ferry runs every half hour from about 6 am to 11pm daily! Cost was about 15.00 USD each way pp
Culture shock was the order of the day. In 1996, Cancun was a place with perhaps 10 large hotels, a remote small town and what would look like the best of Miami Beach with sugar white sand beaches all widely spread out. Today, it makes Miami look like a quiet little hideaway. The overcrowding is amazing, the town is 100 times the size it was 19 years ago. The traffic was awful and there was a hodgepodge of old and US Mall \”new\”. It completely caters to the fly in tourist and now the ubiquitous cruise ships. In short, for me it had lost it\’s charm irredeemably. Yet another unfortunate feature was the ever present Saragossa Weed. This \”seaweed\” grows in the mid Atlantic in the Saragossa Sea, and due to what seems the recent COOLING of the Atlantic Ocean (the past two years), the weed is dying off and has washed up on virtually every beach across the Caribbean. Notably, the cooling temperatures have also decreased the amount and intensity of the last two Atlantic Hurricane seasons. This phenomenon is well documented and if you google \”Saragossa Weed\” you can read all about it.
The ever present \”Sargasso Weed\” has inundated every beach in the entire Caribbean in 2015
We did find a nice market and along the way met a taxi driver who we hired to meet us the next morning for our day trip to the famous Mayan Ruins at Chichen Itza in the central Yucatan Peninsula. The Ferry runs every 1/2 hour from Cancun to Isla Mujeres and that made for an easy return. We went to a lovely restaurant and would be off on our junket the next morning.
We returned at 8 a.m. to the Cancun side and met our driver, Jorge. Jorge didn\’t speak very much English, but had made the drive before. We\’d take the toll road which added to our costs (about 35.00 USD each way!); the drive was about 3 hours, the road was very straight and in excellent shape. When we arrived at Chichen Itza, we were in luck (good planning) and we\’d beat the endless line of tour busses that were sure to be close behind. We hired an English speaking guide (wearing an LA Dodgers baseball cap) and were off.
Chicen Itza Gate. We arrived early enough to beat the big crowds that followed
I\’d been to Chichen Itza 19 years earlier and was interested to see it again. This of course would be Nikki\’s first trip. The area is actually quite immense, but due to lack of funding only a small part of it is excavated. It is thought best by the archeologists not too uncover areas until funds exist to preserve and maintain them. To this end, you can no longer climb the structures including the main pyramid known as \”The Citidal\”. I was able to climb this with Cindy in 1996. They stopped allowing the public to climb on them in 2007.
Nikki and Scott at \”The Citadel\”. This was the main temple structure of Chichen Itza and where many human sacrifices occurred at the top platform.The Serpent shows up at the equinoxes in March and September and appears to be slithering down the stepped pyramid on the left. Click on the You Tube video URL I\’ve provided to see it in action.Sacrificial Altar. This is where the sacrificed victims heart was placed for all to see.Ball Court: You can see the \”hoop\” vertically mounted on the wall. The opposite wall is a mirror image. Two teams would compete while royalty watched from the distant pedestal. It is unclear if the winner or the loser\’s team captain was then sacrificed. Currently, they think it was an honor the winner was pleased to oblige!….
Often it would beat for several minutes. No thanks, sounds a bit too much like current events to me.
The Citidal Pyramid is noted for how the Mayans knowledge of the stars and calendar worked. It\’s also where under Toltec influence, the Mayan civilization turned to every increasing human sacrifices. These were performed at the top of the pyramid by the elite\’s Priests. They were so precise in the orientation of this pyramid that on Spring and Fall Equinoxes , the \”serpent\” could be seen (his shadow) all along the edge of the structure as if were were climbing along the wall. This is pretty astounding and you can imagine that around March 21st and September 21st of each year, the crowds flock here to see this phenomenon.
Nikki\’s favorite was the \”Observatory\”. It is here that the Mayan mathematicians worked out the true 365 day calendar and oriented the building to key celestial passages and events. This is why is does not appear to be symmetrically placed on it\’s platform which faces the four cardinal directions of north, south, east and west.
Nikki at the \”Observatory\”Note the asymmetry of the observatory to it\’s platform
It was a long day with a 3 hours ride each way, but very well worth it and a highlight of our time in the Cancun and Isla Mujeres.
German \”Tall Ship\” with Cancun in the background – departing Isla MujeresFarewell Cancun – High Density tourism at it\’s finest….?
Every season, we somehow find a \”buddy boat\”. A buddy boat is another cruising boat who you more or less tag along with. We never know who it will be or if we\’ll even find one (though we have every season!). When we were nearing our departure from Isla Mujeres, we met Dennis and Lizette of s/v \”Windward\”, a Norseman 447. This is the same type of boat that our friends Dave and Kathie have whom we met in the mid Indian Ocean in 2012. They became our \”buddy boat\” that year and Ron and Kathleen of s/v \”Lady Amelie\” (sister ship Switch 51) were last season. We would both be departing for Puerto Morelos the next day and it\’s what Humphrey Bogart said in \”Casablanca\”…..\”Louis, this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship\”….:-)
Stay tuned for our second Mexican Blog….I\’ll try to get it out in a few days!
KIT,
Scott and Nikki (written from Barefoot Cay Marina, Roatan – The Bay of Islands, Honduras)
We departed Havana on the 15th of February for the anticipated two day sail to Isla Mujeres, Mexico. The Gulf Stream is the dominant feature and it would definitely let us know it was still here on our last day before we arrived in Mexico.
The first day, we motored for awhile and were then able to set sail with winds from the Southeast. We had nice protection from the land and were zipping along. We passed the famous harbor at Mariel where the Cuban boat lift departed from in 1980. This is where thousands of Cubans were let out of the country and Jimmy Carter welcomed them with open arms. They didn\’t really expect as many people to depart as ultimately did, but you can get the full story here:
Mariel Boat Lift 1980 – Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariel_boatlift
As we approached the West End of Cuba, a milestone was reached. \”Beach House\” had sailed around the world via longitude within the tropics. These milestones for me are still bittersweet and I suppose they always will be. I still often \”see\” Cindy standing where she always used to stand on the scuba cockpit hatch in her white visor, long sleeve blue sun shirt, white muslin pants and sandals. She doesn\’t appear to me as often as she used to, but she did on this day.
According to our calculations, we should have been off Isla Mujeres, Mexico (near Cancun) by around 9 p.m. on the 17th of February. However, we were really feeling the teeth of the Gulf Stream. Essentially, the Gulf Stream is part of the enormous clockwise current circulation of the Atlantic Ocean. It is actually an offshoot of the greater North Atlantic \”gyre\” that gets compressed into the Western Caribbean, wanders through the Gulf of Mexico as \”the loop current\” and again blasts off the Florida Keys, up the US East Coast and across the North Atlantic to the British Isles . Two areas are of particular strength. One is off Florida\’s Southeast coast and the other is where it essentially begins in the Yucatan Channel between Cuba and mainland Mexico. At this time of year, it\’s supposed to be slower – around 1.5-2 knots, moving south to north – but we started experiencing speeds of 3.5-3.8 knots!
Now imagine that were going around 7 knots and you can quickly see that we were often going less than 4 knots over the bottom. This really slowed us down and worse, the wind angle changed from ESE, then South, then finally to the WSW. This additionally slowed us down and we arrived 8 hours after we had thought we would. In addition, this made for a somewhat uncomfortable ride as we were plunging into 1-2 meter swells, current and wind against us. In some regards, it worked out okay as we were delayed till a few hours before daylight which would make a safer entry into the shallows of Isla Mujeres. Isla Mujeres means \”The Island of the Women\”. See this page for how it was named: Isla Mujeres: http://www.isla-mujeres.net/history.htm
Welcome to Isla Mujeres – The Island of the Women
Welcome to Isla Mujeres – The Island of the Women
Nikki on the beach at Isla Mujeres
Another factor was the \”Cruise Ship Tango\”. We passed several cruise ships all buzzing around the north side of Isla Mujeres en route to Cozumel which has become a cruise ship heaven….of sorts. Cozumel which is a true scuba diving destination is now inundated with 4-6 cruise ships per day, six days a week. It ain\’t what it used to be and I have no idea what the appeal is to the tourists as there isn\’t much to do there but dive!
Dodging the behemoths (doing the tango!), is always a bit challenging and stressful, but we do have experience at this sort of thing. You can imagine us, cold, wet and rained on at 4 am in a squall listening to Disney Music (think It\’s a Small World) emanating from the speakers of a 950 foot Disney Cruise Liner! 4am, really?
At first light, we entered the long shallow reef on the north side of Isla Mujeres (only a few miles east of Cancun) and went through the islands\’ canal into a sort of inner lake where we anchored and the finally tied up at the dock at Puerto Isla Mujeres Marina. Though I\’d been to Cancun in 1996, I wasn\’t really prepared for how much the area had grown. I might add….not for the better.
This is the canal from the outer anchorage into the inner lagoon which is very well protected and where we stayed at Puerto Isla Mujeres Marina
I\’d not been to Isla Mujeres before, so Nikki and I walked into town which had all the usual tourist \”chachki\” traps and what turned out to be some nice restaurants. We stopped at Bahia Tortuga, a boutique hotel, bar and small marina. Friend Karen Derrick had been here with family last year and it was owned by a friend of hers from Sonoma, but unfortunately she was in the US so we didn\’t get to meet here.. After dinner, we taxied back to the boat and planned our next day to take the ferry over to Cancun for a \”recky\” (that\’s reconnaissance in OZ speak…:-))
This ferry runs every half hour from about 6 am to 11pm daily! Cost was about 15.00 USD each way pp
Culture shock was the order of the day. In 1996, Cancun was a place with perhaps 10 large hotels, a remote small town and what would look like the best of Miami Beach with sugar white sand beaches all widely spread out. Today, it makes Miami look like a quiet little hideaway. The overcrowding is amazing, the town is 100 times the size it was 19 years ago. The traffic was awful and there was a hodgepodge of old and US Mall \”new\”. It completely caters to the fly in tourist and now the ubiquitous cruise ships. In short, for me it had lost it\’s charm irredeemably. Yet another unfortunate feature was the ever present Saragossa Weed. This \”seaweed\” grows in the mid Atlantic in the Saragossa Sea, and due to what seems the recent COOLING of the Atlantic Ocean (the past two years), the weed is dying off and has washed up on virtually every beach across the Caribbean. Notably, the cooling temperatures have also decreased the amount and intensity of the last two Atlantic Hurricane seasons. This phenomenon is well documented and if you google \”Saragossa Weed\” you can read all about it.
The ever present \”Sargasso Weed\” has inundated every beach in the entire Caribbean in 2015
We did find a nice market and along the way met a taxi driver who we hired to meet us the next morning for our day trip to the famous Mayan Ruins at Chichen Itza in the central Yucatan Peninsula. The Ferry runs every 1/2 hour from Cancun to Isla Mujeres and that made for an easy return. We went to a lovely restaurant and would be off on our junket the next morning.
We returned at 8 a.m. to the Cancun side and met our driver, Jorge. Jorge didn\’t speak very much English, but had made the drive before. We\’d take the toll road which added to our costs (about 35.00 USD each way!); the drive was about 3 hours, the road was very straight and in excellent shape. When we arrived at Chichen Itza, we were in luck (good planning) and we\’d beat the endless line of tour busses that were sure to be close behind. We hired an English speaking guide (wearing an LA Dodgers baseball cap) and were off.
Chicen Itza Gate. We arrived early enough to beat the big crowds that followed
I\’d been to Chichen Itza 19 years earlier and was interested to see it again. This of course would be Nikki\’s first trip. The area is actually quite immense, but due to lack of funding only a small part of it is excavated. It is thought best by the archeologists not too uncover areas until funds exist to preserve and maintain them. To this end, you can no longer climb the structures including the main pyramid known as \”The Citidal\”. I was able to climb this with Cindy in 1996. They stopped allowing the public to climb on them in 2007.
Nikki and Scott at \”The Citadel\”. This was the main temple structure of Chichen Itza and where many human sacrifices occurred at the top platform.The Serpent shows up at the equinoxes in March and September and appears to be slithering down the stepped pyramid on the left. Click on the You Tube video URL I\’ve provided to see it in action.Sacrificial Altar. This is where the sacrificed victims heart was placed for all to see.Ball Court: You can see the \”hoop\” vertically mounted on the wall. The opposite wall is a mirror image. Two teams would compete while royalty watched from the distant pedestal. It is unclear if the winner or the loser\’s team captain was then sacrificed. Currently, they think it was an honor the winner was pleased to oblige!….
Often it would beat for several minutes. No thanks, sounds a bit too much like current events to me.
The Citidal Pyramid is noted for how the Mayans knowledge of the stars and calendar worked. It\’s also where under Toltec influence, the Mayan civilization turned to every increasing human sacrifices. These were performed at the top of the pyramid by the elite\’s Priests. They were so precise in the orientation of this pyramid that on Spring and Fall Equinoxes , the \”serpent\” could be seen (his shadow) all along the edge of the structure as if were were climbing along the wall. This is pretty astounding and you can imagine that around March 21st and September 21st of each year, the crowds flock here to see this phenomenon.
Nikki\’s favorite was the \”Observatory\”. It is here that the Mayan mathematicians worked out the true 365 day calendar and oriented the building to key celestial passages and events. This is why is does not appear to be symmetrically placed on it\’s platform which faces the four cardinal directions of north, south, east and west.
Nikki at the \”Observatory\”Note the asymmetry of the observatory to it\’s platform
It was a long day with a 3 hours ride each way, but very well worth it and a highlight of our time in the Cancun and Isla Mujeres.
German \”Tall Ship\” with Cancun in the background – departing Isla MujeresFarewell Cancun – High Density tourism at it\’s finest….?
Every season, we somehow find a \”buddy boat\”. A buddy boat is another cruising boat who you more or less tag along with. We never know who it will be or if we\’ll even find one (though we have every season!). When we were nearing our departure from Isla Mujeres, we met Dennis and Lizette of s/v \”Windward\”, a Norseman 447. This is the same type of boat that our friends Dave and Kathie have whom we met in the mid Indian Ocean in 2012. They became our \”buddy boat\” that year and Ron and Kathleen of s/v \”Lady Amelie\” (sister ship Switch 51) were last season. We would both be departing for Puerto Morelos the next day and it\’s what Humphrey Bogart said in \”Casablanca\”…..\”Louis, this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship\”….:-)
Stay tuned for our second Mexican Blog….I\’ll try to get it out in a few days!
KIT,
Scott and Nikki (written from Barefoot Cay Marina, Roatan – The Bay of Islands, Honduras)
One of the more well founded metrics for a circumnavigation is crossing the longitude of which you began while
remaining mostly in the tropics. As of about 20 minutes ago at 084 degrees 40.7 minutes West, we were 795 miles due north
of Bahia Herradura on the WEST COAST of Central America. That is where Cindy and I left Central America on the 21 of April, 2009.
It\’s taken awhile and we\’ll have at least two more \”country to country\” circmnavigation milestones. First will be tomorrow when we arrive in
Mexico and next will be at the Rio Dulce in Guatemala. At that point, we\’ll only be 150 miles from where we were on the West Coast of Guatemala.
The crossing so far is flat seas and currently (pardon the pun) we\’re getting a 2.8 knot PUSH across the Yucatan Channel which we are just entering.
It won\’t last! ETA around midnight.
We\’ll keep you posted!
KIT,
Scott and Nikki
We arrived in Havana\’s \”Marina Hemingway\” after an 85 mile journey from Cayo Blanco – the end of the Varadaro Peninsula.
We checked in at the Customs and Immigration Dock where the boat was again inspected; this time with a dog. The dog was a cute little beagle, who I was convinced was nothing more than the guys house pet. There was a little \”mordida\”(bribes) here. For now, I\’ll just leave it at that. We did not experience this at Marina Gaviota.
The next day, we met a nice young couple, Dani and Tate from Louisiana. They had recently left the US for a planned 5 year circumnavigation on a Westsail 32 – s/v \”Sundowner\”. They were young and tough and will have quite the adventure by the time their 5 year plan is complete.
Dani and Tate\’s s/v \”Sundowner\” on the first leg of a world tour Speaking of Americans…
There were at least 15 and perhaps 25 US registered vessels here. Technically, we\’re not supposed to visit Cuba of course, but again, as I had need of some mechanical assistance, that takes precedence when sailing a small boat on the big sea. Speaking of which, we were again told about the wonderful mechanics who would be down \”any time\”. We asked when, as we sure didn\’t want to just sit and wait. Of course you know the answer?!….\”Manana Senor\”….:-)
We quickly surmised this may be a replay of our experience in Marina Gaviota. In short…it was.
As we were waiting for \”Guidot\”, we found a nice reference for a day tour of Havana with a young guide who spoke perfect English and would be escorting us in his
associates 1952 Chevy! We were met at Marina Hemingway and began our tour with our guide Ricardo telling us lots about the general history of Cuba. One of the first buildings we passed was what he called, \”The ugliest building in all of Havana. Can you guess what it is?\”. I already knew….it was the Russian Embassy and indeed, unattractive was an understatement, it resembled the Lego man crumpled up and on steroids. We were on embassy row where all the old colonial homes were the embassies of one country or another. The US doesn\’t have an embassy, but rather an \”interests section\”. This is kept on the Malecon (waterfront) downtown away from all the other embassies. This \”interest section\” had been in Havana since just after the Castro revolution in 1958.
El Moro Military Fortress – The cities main defense in years gone by
We went down the Malecon where the Military Morro fortress across the way could be seen with the Fortaleza de San Carlos de la Cabana (commonly called La Cabana) fortress just inland. The La Cabana Fort was Che Guevara\’s domain just after the revolution and at least a few thousand Cuban\’s were executed here. This little fact was not on the tour….
For some interesting reading on the USA\’s relations with Cuba since the revolution, see:
\”Back Channel to Cuba: The Hidden History of Negotiations between Washington and Havana\” by William LeoGrande and Peter Kornbluh
This is a rather favorable tome as far as Fidel Castro\’s relationship is concerned. It shows the convoluted nature of the entire relationship between the two nations.
If interested in Che Guevara: \”Exposing the Real Che Guevara: And the Useful Idiots Who Idolize Him\” by Humberto Fontova
Mr. Fontova and his family were exiled from Cuba after the revolution. He very well documents with first person interviews his take on all things Che.
He additionally writes a book on Fidel Castro: \”Fidel: Hollywood\’s Favorite Tyrant\”.
Another book on Che which is far more favorable to his legacy is: \”Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life\” by Jon Lee Anderson.
This book is quite long and uses mostly sources from Castro\’s Cuba.
As to which slant you believe…read them and you decide.
La Cabana Fortress where Che Guevara oversaw the executions of anti revolutionary CubansChe\’s image is on the \”Ministry of the Interior\” building. Some call it the secret police building. Che was Cuba\’s first \”Minister of the Interior\” under Catro\’s Revolution.
The Military Morro fort on the point was used to protect Havana from raiders, pirates and other nations fleets till the Spanish American War, where it was obvious it had, like most of these forts, been made obsolete by technology. This was the harbor where the USS Maine blew up, beginning the Spanish American War. It\’s still quite controversial how the Maine met it\’s demise. Some say it was the Spanish, some an accident and some even suggest (which I\’m sure is poppycock), that the US blew it up to have a causus belli to start the war. The evidence removed and not properly preserved or investigated; we\’ll never know.
Obispo Street is the happening tourist mecca in Old Havana. The Capitol Building is in the distance under going renovations.
Next we stopped to do a walking tour of the old city which centers upon Obispo Street. Obispo Street has been extensively rebuilt as an important tourist destination. The streets just to each side of it look like slums. There is a big renovation plan to include them as well as the city center where the Capitol Building is. Ironically, it\’s design was inspired by the US Capitol and like the US Capitol today which has scaffolding all around it for renovations, the Cuban Capitol Building does too!
Tourism is very big in Cuba, most especially Havana. Many of these busses were here for the day trip to Havana from the Varadero Peninsula
One of the first attractions we saw was the United Buddy Bears exhibit the Plaza de San Francisco. This is a touring exhibit, co-sponsored by the United Nations and private donors to promote tolerance amongst the peoples of the world. The Cuba Bear was an attraction, but no bear had a bigger line for families to pose for photos than, you guessed it…The USA Bear.
United Buddy Bears – a UN/Private Donation sponsored touring event to promote understanding between the nations.Without question, the lines were by far the longest for the locals to get their picture taken with the USA – Statue of Liberty BearNikki supported her UK roots by posing with the UK BearAnd of course, no photo op would have been complete without Nikki posing with Austraila Bear!
After our experience with bears, we went to see the beautiful old Cathedral de San Cristobal de La Habana. It\’s known for it\’s uneven, non symmetrical towers. It took so long for the Jesuits to build it, that the design changed during construction. Christopher Columbus was interned here from 1795 until 1898 when his remains were moved to Seville, Spain.
This Cathedral was the site of Columbus\’ last internment before he was finally moved to Seville, Spain in the late 1800\’s
Our next stop was the Plaza de Armas (Plaza of Arms) where the Hotel Isabel is located. Many US dignitaries including President Jimmy Carter stayed here.
The next stop was the Hotel Raquel which was built by Jews living in Havana. It has gorgeous stain glass arch windows and wrought iron elevator (lift) right out of the 1930\’s.
Ricardo and Scott at \”The Raquel\”. This hotel is connected to the still existing Jewish Community of Havana. There are beautiful stain glass ceilings inside. Note the Mezuzah above Scott\’s arm on the door post
Next we went to the Hotel Ambos Mundos (Two Worlds – old and new). This was made famous by Ernest Hemingway who stayed here for months at a time in the same 5th floor room. He wrote a \”Farewell to Arms\” and the \”Green Fields of Africa\” – standing at his typewriter (due to a back injury suffered while an ambulance driver in the Spanish Civil war in Spain). Also decorating his 5th floor room (now closed and used as a museum) were several of the telegrams he received while here congratulating him on his Nobel Prize for literature in 1954. This hotel also has a lovely roof top bar where much of the old city can be seen and an open wrought iron elevator (lift) that is old enough that even Hemingway used.
Hemingways private room at the Ambos Mundos Hotel. Today it is a museum to his memoryThe museums guide showing us the model of his beloved fishing boat, \”Pilar\” as well as the original telegrams in the frames congratulating Hemingway on his 1954 Nobel Prize for literature. \”Pilar\” is now located at the Hemingway \”Finca\” (residence). It is being restored as part of the Hemingway Museum. \”Pillar\” was the nickname of Hemingway\’s wife, Pauline.
We then returned to our \”ride\”. A 1952 Chevy Bel Air. Remy was our driver and told us that he inherited the car from his Dad. The engine had been replaced and now has a Nissan diesel in it. I asked him how many miles it had on it? He said, \”The odometer broke at 287,000\”. I asked how long ago that was? He said, \”About 25 years ago\”. He said he really didn\’t know how many miles it has on it.
Cool…a real live 1952 Chevy Bel AirScott, Ricardo and Remy hanging out with Remy\’s 52\’ Chevy man….:-)
We then went to a nice lunch at a local Palador (private home) which serves as restaurant and residence to the owners. Capitalism is slowly creeping into Cuban life. Some reforms have been instituted which allow small private business to flourish, paying certain license fees and taxes to the government. This is an exciting prospect for many Cubans which allow them to supplement their income.
Health care is free, but as Orwell said, \”not all animals are created equal\”. The elite and tourists get quick and very good treatment. Locals…not so much.
They may have to wait prohibitively long periods of time and the facilities are not the ones seen in the Potemkin Village Hollywood films as pictured by Michael Moore.
Cubans receive a ration card each month. They generally say it works out to about 2 weeks/month of basic needs in terms of food. The Cubans all have other means of supplementing their incomes as it\’s necessary to do so to meet their daily needs. Like all places, some people are doing pretty well while others (many) aren\’t. The rural areas are truly subsistence livelihoods while some in the big cities are doing okay. Our young guide Ricardo, is very optimistic as he says, all of Cuba is about the prospect of normalized relations with the US and ending the embargo. My distinct impression (and mind you), not everyone can say out loud – is that once Fidel and Raoul have passed on, the next generation of leaders will really make big positive changes.
After all this sight seeing, it was time for a visit to the very up market, \”Hotel Nacional\” for a Mojito. The National was built by Mafiosa Boss, Meyer Lansky as his Cuban retreat. Apparently, the mob bosses including Al Capone would meet here to discuss, \”business\”. Cuba became the center of Casino Gambling and of course Rum Running during Prohibition. The Hotel is beautiful and commands one of the best views of the Malecon and Havana Harbor. Another refreshing feature was that we had one of the two best Mojitos ever. Mojito means, \”the little moistener\” and was apparently Ernest Hemingway\’s drink of choice.
Hotel Nacional – built by Meyer Lansky. A favorite hangout for the Mafia in the 1930\’s.Scott, Nikki and Ricardo enjoying a fabulous Mojito – take note Ron!!!…:-)
Our last stop on the way back to the Hemingway Marina was at Cuban artist, Fustero\’s home. He has developed a niche mosaic as well as modern impressionist painting style. He has a great deal of latitude in his travels and has made a substantial income from selling his art world wide.
The street he lives on is lined with mosaic art and is a must visit while touring Havana.
The artist, \”Fuseros\” home. It\’s a living museum to his art. The entire neighborhood around his home are done in mosaic tile art work.
As we realized \”yet again\” that we were waiting for the Cuban equivalent of \”Guidot\” for mechanical assistance, we decided that we would leave the next morning and head directly to Isla Mujeres, Mexico (our original intended destination). The cute beagle was back, small \”mordida\” yet again extracted. Our trip would be two days and two nights.
Goodbye Havana! – Exiting Marina Hemingway. Once knows as Marina Monte Carlo, Fidel Castro renamed in the author\’s honor after his death. They met only once.Tug departing Mariel. This is the harbor where in 1980, the \”Mariel Boat Lift\” authorized by President Carter saw over 80,00 Cubans depart for the USA
Next stop, Isla Mujeres (The Island of the Women) and glitzy Cancun, Mexico.
Stay tuned!
Scott and Nikki (written at Cay Caulker, Belize
It was a VERY long 13 hour day to move the 88 miles from Cayo Blanco to Marina Hemingway here – 10 miles SW of Havana.
We have a nice slip and again…lots to tell, especially about our check in process here…
The Harbor Master speaks excellent English and will try to get us our needed expertise as soon as possible.
Knowing \”how it goes\” in the land of Manana…we expect to be here at least a few days before heading west.
All is well, crew safe, tired and sound.
KIT,
Scott and Nikki
