Beautiful Bonaire for a while!

We feel very much at home here in Bonaire. We have friends that live on the island and there are usually several boats we know moored near us. At "our" health club Fritz the owner welcomes us and Valerie "Frenchie", my instructor and Scott's personal trainer, beats us into shape every other day. Here's a view of my Body Balance class from the rear. The club is in an old Dutch style architecture building downtown. That's Fritz above left, Valerie above right.





Bob and Barbara Gilmour, formerly on "Enkidu", whom we've known since Trinidad have fed us at their beautiful condo several times and with them we've eaten out and attended music events - all in two weeks!
Last Saturday we saw Dutch Jazz Pianist Michiel Borstlap perform with some talented local musicians. He played a long marvelous solo piece on the grand piano, recently purchased for concerts on the island, followed by some terrific ensemble pieces. We picked up pizzas before and ate out on Bob and Barbara's balconey overlooking the coast of Bonaire. Other Dutch friends Maita & Ood (below left), and Margaret & Hans (below right) were also there. I've known Maita and Margaret for years now through exercise classes. Hans is a talented pianist as well and kindly gave us one of his CDs which we have enjoyed immensely. That's Barbara with the drummer above.
We've been diving almost every day. It's very easy to do here. We have the tanks refilled only 200 yards away. The diving is excellent right off the back of our boat. We've seen hundreds of different kinds of fish, turtles, manta rays, eels and of course a huge variety of coral and vegetation. It is a different world down there. I feel like I've entered a science fiction movie and I'm visiting another planet.
Yesterday we went down to the camera set up 50 feet down which continuously shows the reef and fish of Bonaire to the world on the internet - and the occasional diver. We had a date to say hello to the 5th grade class at Mt. Holly Elementary School in Vermont. In September we visited them to talk about weather and maps. Important elements to sailors. Other days we dinghy over to one of the 50+ dive sites around the area. It's pretty easy to get in and out of our dinghy, even with all that gear on!
Halloween will be celebrated here on the island in style. It's a popular holiday all through the Caribbean. Every one has put up decorations. That's Bob and Barbara with Scott posing with a witch. Another one is flying up on a balconey.
This morning at 5:10 AM our very good friend Russ Wolf (shown at the bottom here) arrived by plane. Scott took our dinghy down to the airport to meet him. Imagine walking out of the airport to a dock and taking the dinghy back down the coast to our boat as the sun painted the sky and clouds pink.



We had coffee and Russ had a swim. Later we sat at our favorite breakfast spot "It Rains Fishes" and had a huge breakfast. Bob & Barbara lent us their car for awhile this morning so Scott could show Russ around the island. We're letting go of the mooring around 4 PM this afternoon and sailing (more probably motoring) east overnight to Los Roques. Our trip to Trinidad will most likely take around 10 days. Russ is flying home from there on 11/13. They'll be four overnight passages with a couple of days in each island group between. Our float plan is to stop in Los Roques, Blanquilla, Los Testigos and Trinidad. We did this trip in reverse in April 2007. You can click on the 4/1 - 5/1 2007 link over on the left to see pictures of these islands.

This last picture shows Tom and Bonnie on "Toujours" our neighboring boat here who we will sadly be leaving. They are on their way west to Cartagena. We had several lovely evenings on each other's boats.

Underwater in Bonaire

We've had a great time diving this spring in Bonaire. In the past we generally went out in Carib Inn's boat to dive with a dive master. As new divers this was reassuring. In addition our dinghy had difficulty handling the extra weight of the dive equipment. Scott reinforced the sides to keep it from buckling and it's made a big difference. So now we load up and head out alone to explore.

We got a little bit blase and had a rude wakening the other day - YOU ARE UNDERWATER and it can be dangerous! We were following a line leading to a wreck when I noticed some difficulty with my regulator. It was letting in some sea water with my air. I thought well, I'll just switch to my secondary system. Without really thinking carefully about the procedure, I did it. No air came through! I started to panic.

Your first impulse is to take out the regulator and breathe - crazy huh? I managed to get the primary regulator back in my mouth and get it going. Scott was next to me greatly concerned. Now when you're below 40 feet you aren't supposed to go directly to the surface so he was prepared to offer me his secondary regulator if I couldn't use mine. Really the important thing is not to panic. Happily I didn't, although I admit I came close.

By keeping my head more vertical I eliminated the salt water incursion and was able to complete the dive. It turned out the regulator needed tightening. The secondary system worked fine; it just needed to be purged.
Scott and I scheduled a practice session the next day and spent some time going over safety procedures!

The diving has been amazing. We've seen a lot of turtles and a week ago one joined us for several minutes, swimming right beside us. We often have individual fish spend time with us, usually porcupine fish or parrot fish. A huge midnight blue parrot fish follows all the scuba divers near Small Wall, one of the many dive sites on Bonaire. A reddish orange seahorse, about 5 inches long, hung out around our boat for several days. He attached himself to a piece of coral and didn't seem too concerned with the crazy humans watching him.
Another day a line of squid performed a mini Rockette number - actually I thought of those old Esther Williams movies! We often see moray eels of several kinds and an occasional octopus (they change colors dramatically!). The water is very clear here and the fish, vegetation and coral in all colors - not at all like these photos!

We also dove with friends a lot. On two occasions we took Scott Free down the coast or over to Klein Bonaire for a day diving with a group, followed by a meal. Here is Honoree & Walt from "Will O' the Wisp" and Lynn & Paul(shown in his dive gear as he took the group shot) and Ron & Pat from "Kiyana" at a Mexican pot luck following our dive at Thousand Steps. Our last weekend before leaving for Curacao was the Heinekin Jazz Festival.

There were groups from Holland, Jamaica and the Netherlands Antilles. Bob and Barbara hosted us for dinner the first evening before the concert at their beautiful condo nearby. The second night, our last in Bonaire, we had ribs at Bobbe Jan's with Walt and Honoree and then walked down the waterfront to the venue. It was a full moon and the stage was set up almost on the beach.
The next morning we hoisted sail at 7 AM and didn't turn the engine back on until the entrance to Willemstad in Curacao - a lovely final day at sea until next fall. We're hauling the boat at Curacao Marine for the summer, returning September 29.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day is celebrated here too. The restaurants are crowded with families out for lunch or dinner. We mothers generally get the day off from cooking. Scott made a terrific breakfast to get the day started.
My youngest son Sean sent a beautiful email and then I spoke to he, James and Josh's family over Skype. We left a message with Zoe but weren't able to talk to her.

Our good friends Bob and Barbara flew back to Bonaire after two weeks celebrating Barbara's mothers 90th birthday on Saturday and we joined them for a brunch on Sunday at Roomer's Resort and Restaurant. It was an all you can eat buffet of local specialties and fantastic.

My favorite was a casserole of baccala, dried salt cod, with veggies and potatoes and a custard like base to hold it together. Other favorites were corn fritters, goat stew and macaroni & cheese. There was a local senior band with a south american beat. Bob and Barbara got a round of applause for a solo number.

We really miss seeing our children and grandchildren. Happily two neighbors came over to visit and reminded us how much fun kids can be. Brawny and Adam sailed from Sydney, Australia on their comparitively small boat with Jack (6) and Amy (4). We met at the Happy Hour and invited them over. I set up a painting table with watercolors and colored pencils. They are both really great creative and Jack left us fun picture to hang up!

Windsurfing Camp in Bonaire

Not long after we tied up to the mooring Stan on "Inner Wisdom" easily convinced Scott to join him for a week long windsurfing camp at Lac Bay on the other side of Bonaire. This beautiful lagoon is only 2 - 4 feet deep, perfect for windsurfing and people come from all over the world to do so! Internationally ranked windsurfers served as trainers - they run these camps in several spots around the world.

Stan had rented a car and windsurfed almost every day. Scott had only tried this three times before so he was a little nervous - all day for five days! He was in fact the least experienced but they divided the group into three levels. Maggie and I went over several days to lay on the beach and watch. That's Stan and Maggie above.
Several small restaurants line the beach. Scott's day started out with on land training, then two hours on the water in the morning and afternoon, with video taping and analyzing last. It was exhausting for him but very rewarding. He has learned to land start, water start and jib!


Sounds a bit like Women's Alpine Adventures at Okemo doesn't it? Why didn't I go you may be asking? For one thing this sport has never interested me that much. I hadn't ever been on a board.

And I'd have missed my mornings at the gym. Yep! We joined a great exercise club here and I went five days a week while we were in Bonaire. Barbara has been teaching me a yoga and exercise routine and I attended step aerobics and body balance classes. Hilary, Tony, Jackie, Mel, Bob and Scott, when he wasn't windsurfing, joined us.

Back in the ABCs

With a little substitution that is; the Aves (Venezuela), Bonaire and Curacao. Our S/V Scott Free spent a few months on the hard at the Curacao Marine Boatyard this winter while we returned home to Vermont. Scott flew back to Curacao 2/4 and I joined him 2/24. This gave him time to accomplish a long list of projects without cleaning up after himself every evening (as I wasn't there to care).

The most serious and precarious job was removing the mast to replace the step at the base and then rethreading it through the deck. A big crane accomplished the heavy work and a rigging team did the fine tuning.
We really enjoyed our next "door" neighbors, Harold "Smitty" and his wife Jackie on their boat "Windy" from Newfoundland. .
They were lots of fun and we hope some day to get up there and visit. Not sure however it will be for a skiing vacation as they have urged us. Who knew there was a great ski resort in Newfoundland? Jackie returned home to work and "The Judge" joined Smitty (close up above shows Smitty on the right) for his trip west to Cartagena. We hated to see them go.

Just before we left we lucked out when the "Green Boat" was launched out of our boatyard and the party was fun! Free drinks, excellent hors d'oeuves (really dinner) and very short speeches are a great combination. Two young dutch men are sailing around the world to promote environmental issues facing the oceans and reefs.
Early in March we sailed back to Bonaire with one night at Klein Bonaire on the way. Many of our cruising friends were waiting for us and it was a joyous reunion. Hilary & Tony on "Miss Charlotte", Ellen & Cal on "Patience" and Karen & Ralph on "Kara Dream" and of course Bob & Barbara, formerly of "Enkidu" and now living in Bonaire. We met new friends Stan & Maggie on "Inner Wisdom " and Mel & Jackie on "Feisty".

Away from it all in Klein Curacao & then "On The Hard"

Friday morning after Thanksgiving was a busy one. Scott had cleared out of Bonaire with Customs & Immigration yesterday but we still had to fill out our tanks with water, do some last minute shopping and pay our bill at the dive shop. It was 10 AM before we finished battening down the interior and dropped our mooring. Ellen & Cal were joining us for a few days at Klein Curacao,
a small flat island 17 miles away. At one time this had a mining operation but now it has a picturesque lighthouse, a breathtaking white sand beach (that's our dinghy to the right with "Patience" behind) and a small day bar/restaurant for boats from Curacao that come for a few hours. We've been here before three times, once alone, once with Sean & Sarah, and last with Brent & Wilma. It's great downtime (from our "stressed out days???") with nothing to do but swim, snorkel, walk and read. Ahead, particularily for Scott, is the dreaded repairs "on the hard" for nine days in December and then three weeks when he returns in February.
He's planning to rebed all our windows and hatches among other big projects. Without me there he can leave his tools around, the floor boards up and work without interuption (cleaning up). We're hardly ever apart for even one night, so that'll be the hard part!

Willemstad is the capital of Curacao and a very charming colorful Dutch city. A cafe lined canal connects the ocean to the big industrial lagoon in the interior. Connecting both sides of the city is a 1900 walking only bridge that floats on pontoons and is motored open to allow traffic to pass. That's the bridge opening on the left above and the view right as we motor through.

Curacao Marine is the haulout facility and now a small marina with the addition of 15 slips. Our boat was pulled from the water by a John Deere tractor! Shades of Vermont! Tony and Hilary of "Miss Charlotte" were there to greet us. We've been hearing about them for years from Bob & Barbara so it was lovely to get to know them.

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A Cruiser's Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day started off beautifully with a lovely sunset and no threatening clouds. It has been unusually rainy for this time of year in Bonaire and the last few days have seen some heavy precipatation. It has resulted in a much greener countryside though!

We were leaving for Klein Curacao the following morning so we had our last dive on "Little Wall" not far north from our mooring. We've managed several times to dive from our dinghy but it's no easy task getting in and out of it! I would be horrified if anyone but Scott saw me flopping into it. The water clarity if amazing here - you can see down 40 feet easily and this
was a lovely spot. In several places towering coral "islands" with a multitude of varied fish residents caused us to hover there obseving their civilization in action. Surprisingly we don't seem to cause the slightest concern to any of the fish. Well, French Angel Fish are very curious and keep you under survellience from the corner of their rather large eyes.

A parade of dinghies left the mooring area together to motor over to Barbara and Bob's condo at 4:30PM Four presently cruising couples were attending and two retired cruisers. Audrey's husband was in Texas working and so this holiday she was alone. Very sadly for all of us, Luray from "Pizzazz" was ill and so she and Randy couldn't come.

At the top left Ralph and Dave help themselves at the buffet. On the right Ellen & I pose and in the group picture just below, on the floor, left to right, are Audrey, Valerie, myself, Ellen and Barbara. Bob is in the chair. On the couch are Dave, Scott and Cal. Standing in the back are Ron & Bonnie, and Ralph & Karen. From top to bottom, a group shot out on the
porch, Ellen & Cal, Scott pontificating with Ellen and Audrey, the desserts, Barbara, and Valerie & Dave. Ellen & Cal have been friends for a year while we've been in Cartagena and arrived from there just after we did. They'll be sailing with us tommorrow and will also be hauling out at Curacao Marine. Valerie & Dave "Angel" were our buddy boat friends on our trip last year from Grenada to Bonaire. We've known Bob & Barbara "Enkidu" for several years and spent a summer in Trinidad with them at Cruz Inn Marina. They visited us last August in Vermont.


Although our thoughts strayed more than occasionally to our families back home, it was a wonderful cruiser family holiday!

Thanksgiving Prep in Bonaire

Cruisers are part of a movable but close knit community. We all depend upon each other in foreign countries and environments and everyone comes through for each other. Holidays are a special time to join forces and celebrate.

This year we had sixteen present and ex-cruisers at a Thanksgiving celebration at the home of Bob and Barbara Gilmour on Bonaire. Two other ex-cruiser couples have settled here and were present, LuRay & Randy "Pizzazz" and Bonnie & Ron "Forever". The present cruisers were ourselves, Ellen & Cal "Patience", Valerie & Dave "Angel", Audrey "" and Ralph & Karen "KaRa Dream". Six of us women spent a lovely day preparing for the meal the day before. Barbara made a lovely lunch for us and we took breaks now and then for a glass of wine & a chat. Barbara did a lot of the work in advance, including the shopping. That had to be done over some time as any one item is not always available on the island. Substitutions became inevitable.
The menu:
Shrimp Cocktail, Crab Meat Dumplings, Turkey with Stuffing and Giblet Gravy, Potatoes Au Gratin, Mashed Sweet Potatoes stuffed in Orange Shells, Beets, Peas & Carrots, Green Beans with olives, Rolls & Butter, Pecan Pie, Apple Pie, Mince Meat Tarts and Cookies
Guess we won't starve!

Of course there was a lot of peeling and chopping to do. "Bring a potato peeler or knives with you", Barbara suggested. Bob and Bonnie's husband Ron went fishing and then sat having a drink on the porch to stay out of our way.

Top is Ellen, Barbara, myself, Valerie, Audrey and Bonnie. Then Ellen cleans up the counter, Audrey makes potato au gratin, Bonnie & Val do dishes, and Barbara slices and dices.
Those of us coming from our boats are forming a dinghy train at 4:30 to motor up to their condo for the occasion. We'll all be wearing our "best" (not like home best) clothes and hopefully it won't be raining!