Blanquilla to Los Testigos

Our weather guru, Chris Parker, was signaling some possible changes in the weather patterns so we decided to get some more mile east under our belt. We left Blanquilla at 4 PM Friday hoping to pass between the looming rocks of Los Hermanos before it became dark.

We made very good time but with a negative current the sun was down and the sky black before we had cleared the rocks. A number of fishing boats were working near the cliffs confusing the situation further. All three of us were needed to keep track of the traffic for a half hour but soon we were chugging along under a starry sky and calmer seas than our last passage.

We saw only one boat on the trip, our good friends Brenda and John on "Willow". They had been delayed in Trinidad due to repairs and we had a schedule as Russ needed to be in Trinidad for his flight home - so we missed each other so closely. As Brenda said later, "We could have passed the Grey Poupon!"

Los Testigos (The Witnesses) can be seen from quite a ways away. They are all hilly with the highest peak 807 feet. Somewhere under 200 inhabitants make there living from the sea. They build many of their boats and they are unusually charming and well maintained.


Across the way from our anchorage is the main village with a small school and church. Several colorful homes lined the beach near us.
On the way into the channel Scott caught a MahiMahi , a beautiful and very tasty fish. We had intended to anchor at Playa Real, a place we had enjoyed last time here, but a dinghy raced up to meet us with Manuela on "Paradise" aboard.

She informed us that it was very rolly and advised us to anchor instead at Isla Langoleta near them. It was good advice and soon we were tucked in.
One man came out in his pirogue with a card offering meals at his home, the "Green House".
We were sorry not to take advantage of this opportunity to meet some locals but our just caught fish was too tempting. Russ and Scott cleaned and filleted it in my galley - and then cleaned up. There are some things this cook refuses to do! That's the remains shown here.

Sorry I didn't get a picture of it before!
Manuela stopped by again so we invited her and Sid over for drinks later. Meanwhile it was time for a long delayed big breakfast, now almost lunch. It is a tradition for us to really chow down after an overnight passage. This means omelets with veggies and Canadian Bacon with fresh hot ciabatta bread.

After lunch we snorkeled over to and around the island. A reef stretches between it and the main island Testigo Grande. It was some of the best snorkeling we've ever seen, lots of fish and beautiful coral. This activity was followed by another tradition after an overnight - naps!

Manuela and Sid brought a great appetizer of spiced tuna and we had various cheese & crackers and of course, rum punch, a specialty of mine. It's hard to believe but even after all that we had a great dinner of Mahi Mahi and beans & rice. We slept really well.
The next day we joined Manuela for a trip over the dunes to Playa Gozman on the windward side of Testigo Grande. The first dune is a BIG one as the several pictures here above show. We had to zig zag up sliding down some with each step. In the distance you can see our boat at anchor. On the other side the waves provided lots of fun for us all.

It was a lovely morning but the weather was starting to change in the days ahead so we decided to press on to Trinidad that night. It was hard to calibrate the time for the 99 mile passage as the currents can vary from one half a knot to two and a half knots against you. In addition we didn't want to reach a point 5 miles off Trinidad before good light. There is a lot of traffic in this area, big tankers and fisherman.
We left at 2 PM, prepared to slow down if the current wasn't too bad. It is important to have good light conditions leaving the Testigos as fish buoys dot the area up to 10 miles out. We kept a careful watch. The seas were the lowest we'd seen on the trip and the wind never got above 14 knots and was often much less. The moon rose later each night but happily we had a clear night. The many lights of other boats were fairly easy to track and it was the best night passage of the trip.

Heading East!

Our great friend Russ Wolf flew to Bonaire for our two week trip east to Trinidad. He and his wife Marty had joined us for a long weekend in the Chesapeake Bay five years ago but work and family obligations kept him away until now. Luckily for us, he has semi retired and has a more flexible schedule. We really tested his flexibility this time.


Despite his arrival at 5 AM we dropped the mooring at Bonaire that very afternoon at 4 PM and motored off to Los Roques, 115 miles east. During his short time on Bonaire we ate a huge breakfast at "It Rains Fishes", drove him around the south end of the island to Lac Bay to see the salt pans, slave houses, flamingos and wind surfers, and still had time to swim and snorkel!

Needless to say he was exhausted that night and we kept him off the watch schedule till the morning. Going east is generally very difficult. Both the prevailing winds and currents are against you. During normal trade winds this would be almost impossible but in the fall months the winds are often lighter.

We had been listening to Chris Parker's weather report and watching the grib files for over a week. At least three days of favorable conditions were forecast and possibly longer. Our first night was very pleasant - about 10 knots of wind and 3-4 foot seas. A swell from the north was building so we were thrown around a bit but everyone got some sleep.

We had some rain and clouds at first but then it cleared off, the full moon rose, and it was unusually bright.
As we approached Los Roques the sea calmed down and the sun was just high enough to see the depth of the water by the colors. All of the islands are flat except for El Gran Roque at the far northeastern end. Within an area of 14 by 25 miles are a hundred of more small islands and reefs. It is a Venezuelan National Park.

We threaded our way through the deep water channels between the islands to the anchorage at Noronsquis. Three little islands and a barrier reef enclose a deep blue lagoon with several pretty white beaches. Over the reef El Gran Roque made a pretty picture. We stayed there for two nights; eating, swimming, snorkeling, kyacking and exploring the little islands.

At 3 PM on Tuesday we carefully threaded our way out the channel and headed east again, passing close to Gran Roque. The hills there are 360 feet high and rugged. It's the only island in the archipeligo that has a village. There are no cars: people arrive by boat and plane. That's it above left. Our next destination was Blanquilla, 120 miles east, another overnight passage.

The seas were rougher, confused by the north swells and wind chop, but it was a clear bright night with no squalls. We saw almost no boats but Russ had some excitement on his watch as we passed Ochilla. It's a military base and we stayed clear of the boundaries set up on our charts. They were conducting bombing runs with flares and planes - practice only of course, but pretty exciting for Russ!

Blanquilla is very low lying but we could easily see the Los Hermanos Rocks far beyond - six of them, one 600 feet high and coming straight up out of the sea. We anchored off a pristine white beach snuggled in between two rocky reefs. It's a one boat anchorage and very protected.

A little further to the south were several other sailboats anchored off Playa Yaque beach and it's distinctive two palm trees. We had two relaxing nights here as well. Our second day we very carefully motored north in our dinghy to Americano Bay. With three of us in the dinghy and choppy seas it felt a bit precarious.

I'm going to digress a bit here and talk about our dinghy choice. Most people have a rigid inflatable. We've had our 10 foot Port-A-Boat now for five years and it shows it. Scott has reinforced the stern with plywood and replaced the seats. He designed a bumper of navy blue sunbrella material which fits over the top edges on both sides too.

It is a very unique looking dinghy and has provoked many comments but is an unlikely target for thieves as a result. We haul it up on the dinghy davits every evening so it's comparitive lightness is a boon. And when it's just the two of us the also light 9 horsepower engine gets it up on a nice plane. It is very roomy and can hold a lot of provisions or all our diving gear.

So on the whole we've been happy with it and will be buying a new one and having it shipped to Trinidad this winter.
Back to Americano Bay. It was named for an American, Mr. Blankenship, who built a little house here, now in ruins. He came by private plane, landing on a dirt strip nearby. Rocky cliffs enclose a small bay with a lovely white beach. On one side are dramatic caves and on the other a large arch.

We could cross over the arch to a small still obvious patio with a outdoor fireplace. It was hot in the sun so we were glad to slip into the cool water and snorkel around the cliffs and under the arch. The landscape above reflected the one below, with many holes and even arches under the very clear water. There were lots of fish and very healthy coral.


We explored the ruins, imagining how it must have looked when still occupied. It is certainly a fabulously beautiful spot. The beaches here and near our anchorage are pristine and very white - none of the trash we've seen many other places.
The next day we explored the beaches and land around our anchorage. There are two small ruined houses around a small almost dry pond. We didn't get close enough to find out if it was fresh, but there must have been water somewhere for these homes to have been occupied. The cactus were everywhere, including on us! We learned the hard way about jumping cactus. Balls of spiny cactus attach themselves to your skin and are very difficult to remove. As soon as you pull one spine out (your skin stretches out as there are little hooks in the end) two more spines grab hold. Painfull! Luckily we had a doctor with us!

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.

Back in Curacao

You'd think by now we'd have learned to check on our flight schedule the day before! We arrived at the airport at 6 AM for a 8 AM flight and found our intinery had been changed to a 6 AM flight to Charlotte. CheapOAir didn't notify us. The name says it all. U.S. Air very nicely rescheduled us but couldn't get us into Aruba until late in the evening. Too late to catch our Tiara Air flight to Curacao.

So, hotel reservations to postpone and new ones to make, a new flight the next day thank goodness available. Still, four flights instead of three AND an unexpected night at a hotel in Aruba. By the way The Town and Country Hotel is near the airport and a good value.
Our boat is up "on the hard" at Curacao Marine (see photo). It's hot as hell too. For the first time we've chickened out and are staying at a hotel until she's in the water. The air conditioning is heaven after a day working on the boat.

And the repairs on the boat are taking much longer than we expected. Our new propeller, a folding Gori, needs a retooled shaft and realigned engine. We won't be in the water before next Monday. There are a million other projects ongoing of course so the boat's a mess. Scott's happy not living on the boat as he can leave all his tools and projects in place.
Our hotel is the Plaza and is in the Waterfort, standing a quarter of a mile around the entrance to the harbor. It was originally built in 1634, but redesigned in 1826 to protect the enlarged city. During WWII the Dutch installed anti-aircraft guns and it was used as a base to protect the Shell refinery.

Steel cables were also placed across the entrance to Willemstad in St. Anna Baii in an effort to deter German submarines. Our room overlooks to the harbor and the lovely Queen Emma floating bridge (see photo top). Big and little ships are constantly going by our window! Another shot (just above) is taken looking at the hotel from our boat when it entered the harbor.
Last night we walked along the fort wall where a series of restaurants have been built in the arches. They have decks on the ocean side where the waves crash only feet away from where you're sitting. But we were attracted away by some lively music. The tourist board was putting on a cultural evening in the square.

The music came from a Ka'i Orgel and a Wiri, or metal scraper. The Ka'i Orgel is a Cylinder Piano - an vertical piano without keys that plays from a big cylinder made of mahogoney with a crown of 64 teeth. This means the operator needs to turn it that many times to finish the composition. There are 5,000 to 7,000 nails determining the melodies - up to 8 on one cylinder. The deeper the nail goes into the cylinder the finer the sound. These instruments were already popular in England at the beginning of the 18th century but originally came from Italy.

An Englishman Joseph Hicks produced many of these in the years from 1805 to 1850 and is usually credited with inventing it. The sound is reminiscent of a piano, kwarta, bass and guitar (a richer sound than a hurty gurty).
We had seen one of these being played last fall at the Harvest Festival. There are more than 40 of them on the island, 20 of which are still actively played by musicans. Each Ka'i Orgel has it's own name. The national museum's is called "Rais di Pueblo" to symbolize that it is rooted in the folk culture of Curacao.

A series of dance groups performed traditional dances. They asked for a volunteer to turn the cylinder for one dance and of course Scott was up there in a minute. He is so tall that in order to keep his back straight, he had to bend his knees - up and down to the beat. The crowd loved him. One dance group pulled up members of the audience to dance - very sexy moves! Both of us were chosen and did solo dances with our partners for the audience. Of course Scott was hysterical. Honestly, I was in tears laughing. Later when he won the grand prize everyone was delighted; a nice cloth cooler bag with a radio filled with gifts - a hat, three china traditional houses and a china Ka'i Orgel, DVD on Curacao and a hot/cold vacum cup. They served traditional foods as well - goat stew, rice, green beans & beets, and plantains. It marvelous luck to come upon it.

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.