Sailing, sailing,: Now It's Connie and Mark's Turn

Friday, March 11, 2022

Now It's Connie and Mark's Turn

Scott, Heather, Connie and Mark at Yoli's Bar in Placencia

Jenny left on Monday morning and on Tuesday our friends and Shrewsbury neighbors Connie & Mark Youngstrom arrived. The first half of their vacation in Belize was at the Table Rock Resort near St. Ignacio in the interior of the country. They kayaked, did some bird watching tours, and saw Caracol, the largest Mayan site in Belize. They were pretty impressed with the Sanctuary Development and the Reserve Marina when they arrived and we had a lovely first day. We enjoyed a great dinner and got them all settled in for the night.

Mark peaks out from on top of the engine
while Scott provides support.

Boat repairs continue to dog us and one problem had become a real concern. Our water meter shows a decline in our water storage that is not due to usage. We could hear the water pump going at odd hours and Scott knew we had a serious water leak in the system. When Mark heard what was happening, he dove into the problem - head first! For 3 hours on his first morning, he crawled over the engine space and eventually found the leak and repaired it!!!

That allowed us to cast off from the dock and head out of the lagoon and over to Blue Ground Range for our second night. It was a lovely spot although overcast all day. The next morning however the clouds parted and we continued over to South Water Caye for two nights. The weather was as perfect as possible down here - not too hot and a gentle breeze. Connie and Mark did some snorkeling in two different locations and we all enjoyed the crystal clear water for swimming.

In the evening we went over to IZE for Happy Hour and had fun with bartender Camille and Yoga Instructor Heather. One afternoon we walked around the island and had a drink at the Blue Marlin Resort on the north end. Our next stop was at our friends Dustin, Kim and Ama's resort at Hideaway Caye. We enjoyed a big dinner there after Scott and Connie enjoyed the good snorkeling nearby. Connie said it was the best so far and they saw a wide variety of fish and a shark - a nurse shark and resting on the bottom but still a thrill.

That's Scott Free anchored off South Water Caye.

Our last few days were spent in Placencia and happily we were able to sail for part of the way there - a nice change from our usual motoring. The chef was delighted to take a further brake as we enjoyed breakfast at De Tatch, the BBQ at Yoli's, and dinner at the Barefoot Bar. Of course we had several happy hours at Yoli's Bar so that Connie and Mark could meet some of our cruiser friends. It was a sad morning saying good-bye!!! What a fantastic visit and over all too soon.

BBQ Sunday at Yoli's: from left Mark, Connie, Lori, Peter, Jerry, Debarah, Marc, Brigitte and Heather.

This week has been spent provisioning and saying good-bye to our friends here in Placencia. It's Friday and we go up to Hideaway for the last time and then to Sapadilla Lagoon to weather the cold front arriving tomorrow night. If all goes well, we will sail to an anchorage in the north of Belize on Tuesday and sail overnight Wednesday to Mexico Wish us fair winds and calm seas.