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My video report. Check out also Oleg's amazing video report |
Crew: Andrew, Lena, Ben, Koby, Oleg
Island Time
The trip to the Spanish Virgin Islands (SVI) started at San Juan Airport, Puerto Rico, where Andrew, Ben and myself landed at 4.30AM. Andrew, with a little bit of help from the crew, had planned for this trip for months. As we landed, however, it was hard to believe that this was finally happening.
As soon as I stepped outside of the air conditioned airport, the warm breeze felt so good, a stark constrast from the sub-zero temperatures that I had left behind in Boston. Was that a little bit of adventure spirit that I felt in the air too? It was drizzling a bit, which was annoying, but that didn't stop Andrew from switching into his sailing attire, which means convertible pants that he was turning into shorts. I didn't know it at the time but that has become a critical component of my sailing attire since. I highly recommend it.
Sailing attire |
We were not scheduled to come back for another week, so there would be plenty of time for enjoying some of the promised Caribbean sun and warmth. As we waited in a long line for our rental car, we could already see a bit of the Puerto Rican culture in the rental car agency employee's demeanor and attitude, in the warmth and friendliness he was showing to his customers. He was, unfortunately, the only employee working at that time, which meant spending at least one hour in line waiting for our turn. "Island Time" indeed.
When we finally got our car, our first objective was coffee as none of us had slept very much. Yelp pointed to Los Pinos Cafe, one of the only places close to Old San Juan that was open on a Saturday at 6AM. As we made our way to the city, the drizzle turned into an unbelievable wall of rain. I was sitting in the front, next to Ben, who was driving, and I could not see the road ahead at all on the way to San Juan. If I was driving, this would have been my moment to freak out but Ben just drove right through it without hesitation. I didn't think I would get into such an adventure as early on the trip as this!
The Cafe was really a bar and filled with customers who were still partying from the night before. The floor was slippery and the place smelled. A very tired waitress gave us dinner menus at first before we told her we were there for breakfast. Not a great first meal on this trip to the SVI but it would only get better from there.
Old San Juan
In Old San Juan we had planned to park under the Ballaja building, hoping to catch the sunrise at Bastion de Santa Rosa but, as we got there, there were police barriers everywhere. Turns out that the city was preparing for "San Sebastian Street Festival", a 4-day festival to celebrate the life of Saint Sebastian, the first gay icon.
After a long conversation with a very helpful police woman, we learned that we could leave the car for the day at La Puntilla. As the sun rose behind a cloudy sky, I saw the vibrant Old San Juan colors emerging from their island slumber as we walked around for a bit of sightseeing and city exploration.
Fuente Raices and the wall protecting Old San Juan from enemy ships |
It didn't click for me at the time but I realized later why this was - the 16th century city walls, contouring an unsettled ocean, reminded me of another 16th century fort perched on top of a cliff where the ocean waves fiercely hit the rocks below. One that is near and dear to my heart as it was the place where, for a year, I wrote (or procrastinated writing...) my Marine Biology thesis while watching the ocean hit the rocks below from the lab window. This was the Fort of Nossa Senhora da Guia, in Portugal.
I must admit that watching the fury of the sea and the force with which the water was hitting the rocks did make me a bit nervous about our plan to live on a sailboat for the next several days, something that I had never done before (fears that were completely unfounded, it turns out).
The fury of the sea that day gave me second thoughts about sleeping on a boat out in that ocean for 6 nights |
Our morning adventure at Paseo de Morro ended with a gorgeous view of Capilla del Cementerio Santa María bathed by the morning sun and surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean. On the other side of that sea - Africa.
Capilla del Cementerio Santa María |
The city was waking up |
The next self-guided sightseeing tour of the morning would take us to Castillo San Felipe del Morro, a citadel that was originally designed to guard the entrance to the San Juan Harbor and protect what was then the Spanish colonial port city of San Juan, from seaborne enemies. The walk up to the castle involved going up an impressive lawn. We learned on wikipedia that this lawn was kept free of shrubbery to avoid supplying attackers with vantage points where they could hide and attack incoming military. Smart move!
The lawn was kept free of shrubbery |
Cannons pointed at sea, ready to attack invading ships and Andrew protecting the castle
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After the Castle tour, the crowds really started to gather on the streets of Old San Juan. Our last touristic visit was to Casa Blanca, which had a very nice view of the San Juan Harbor. That's when we heard from the next sailor to join our little group - Oleg. We met Oleg at Barrachina restaurant, where we had made a lunch reservations. The restaurant looked really nice, we sat outdoors and enjoyed the first of a series of lunches in the open and warm Puerto Rican air.
Getting ready for a proper Puerto Rican meal |
Rushing to Fajardo
When we looked at the time it was 1PM. The car had to be returned before 5PM in Fajardo or, as Ben would put it, "5PM island time which really means 4.30PM". Google maps had told us that the trip to Fajardo, where our boat was docked - in the East side of the Island of Puerto Rico - would take approximately 1 hour. We still had to provision and our cook Koby, who was not set to arrive until later that day, had given us a huge shopping list of groceries such that he could prepare the meals that he had planned for the crew. Island time must've gotten to us to because we arrived at Ralph’s Warehouse, the grocery store recommended by the charter company (SailCaribe), at around 3PM. Even though we split the group into groups of two - with team Ben + Andrew took care of the top half of Koby's list and team Lena + Oleg the bottom half - it was 4PM when we were checking out and we still needed to buy water and load the car!
We learned that it's tricky to find ingredients on a shopping list that you didn't prepare, in a grocery store that you're not familiar with! In the process, we completely missed corn (which was later fixed), a key component for the corn fritters that Koby was planning to feed the crew. A gentle reminder of the need to plan well ahead and pay attention to small details whenever you plan to charter a boat and take it to places where there are no grocery stores.
Fortunately, Andrew and Ben were able to go back for the 20 gallons of water. It was a very crowded car: camping backpacks and gallons of water everywhere. But I'm happy to report that we managed to fit everyone back in! We arrived at the Puerto del Rey Marina and quickly unloaded everything into a cart which we could take to the boat. Ben quickly drove the car to the rental place - they were about to close but Ben made it in time! (Way to go Ben!) It was getting dark by now but there was still enough light to admire the boat that would become our home for the next 8 days: the Pura Vida, from St. John, USVI.
The captain inspects the cockpit while the crew is dazzled by the unexpected luxuries of the salon |
The term "Pura Vida" is used in Costa Rica to represent a relaxed attitude towards life, including its ups and downs, and an easy-going nature. It was the perfect name for our boat and for the attitude that would characterize our adventure!
After finding little cubbies and hidden storage places for all the food and water, Oleg and I mixed some drinks while our brave captain Andrew checked boat details with José from Sail Caribe. We toasted to Pura Vida and to a week of unforgettable adventure!
El Yunque and a second night at the Marina
The first night slept on the boat in the marina was uneventful albeit slightly wet as the rain from the previous day decided to hang around for a little longer. Still not fully adjusted to Island Time, I woke up only slightly later than my usual time, at 5.30AM! Eager to watch the first sunrise, I sat on companionway, hoping to stay dry from the rain and get a glimpse of the view in case the clouds dispersed. What I saw instead - arriving in a golf cart - was the last member of our crew Koby, which was supposed to have arrived in the middle of the night. Turns out that the snow in Boston had caused a 3 hours delay on his flight from Boston, but he made - the crew was complete at last.
The plan for Sunday had been to begin our crossing to Vieques. Andrew had laid out his plan carefully, thought about anchorages for every night, planned all the places that we would visit. However, as the waves on Sunday were quite high and hitting the Marina sea wall, José - our contact from SailCaribe - decided that it would not be safe to make the trip to Vieques, our first planned stop - and did not give the crew clearance to start the journey. It was with disappointment that we learned that we would spend another night at the Marina - another reminder that although careful planning and strategizing when going on a week long sailing trip is crucial, things rarely go according to plan and learning to adapt to the weather is a must.
Marina Puerto del Rey was huge and easy to get lost at + One of Koby's sophisticated lunches on board. |
To make the best use of our day, we followed Oleg's suggestion and ended up renting a car in the marina and driving to El Yunque National Forest, the only tropical rainforest in the U.S. National Forest Service. We did get quite wet as the rain was constant and intense (Oleg did warn the crew that there is a reason why it's called a 'rain' forest) but in return we were greeted with gorgeous waterfalls, luscious green vegetation and amazing landscape. That's where I learned the importance of "layering up"... I had brought to the El Yunque only my warm puffy jacket, not my water proof gear, which meant walking around in a moist jacket for the rest of the day.
Waterfalls at El Yunqye + five wet grounded sailors. |
Wet and ready to wrap up the day and return to the Pura Vida in Fajardo, our last stop was in a little town on the way back, where we found local art shops and came across a cute little juice shop - Degree 18 Juice Bar. If you are ever in those parts of the world, I highly recommend a visit to that place. In addition to the organic / vegan juices, they also had home-made hummus, which was a very nice addition to the menu onboard the Pura Vida. The whole crew agreed that even though we did not get to sail, it was a pretty good day overall.
The discovery of the day was a place called Degree 18 Juice Bar which had the most amazing juices and hummus |
Good food, good friends, endless stars and adventure in the air. The expectations had been set pretty high after that first night with the whole crew on board. |
Cast-Off to Vieques!
On Monday morning the whole crew was fully rested at last and the waves and strong wind that had prevented our exit the day before were losing strength and would subside around 11AM that day. José from SailCaribe stopped by for the boat briefing and to help the crew learn to handle the boat. We practiced raising the main, tacking and operating the electric winches.
Lena's Sailing Classroom: Each of the electric winches on the Jeanneau 440 is operated via pressing of a button, which tends to get stuck when the waterproof plastic surrounding the button gets stuck in the fiberglass casing. This is a problem since the sheer force of these powerful winches can cause the main or jib lines to break, something that is unlikely to happen when using a manual winch. Another important lesson about using the electric winches is to always remove the winch handles before pressing the button since their rotation will cause damage to anything on its way. There is a whinch handle release mechanism that is triggered when the button is pressed but it's better to be safe than sorry: José told us about how he broke a rib as the which handle came flying toward him when he switched from manual to electric.
I remembered the lessons about the electric winches almost every time except once... needing to trim the mainsail fast but too lazy to finish the manual work, I pushed the button without remembering to remove the winch handle ... The handle release mechanism worked like a charm and I did not break a rib or hurt myself… Just my pride!
I remembered the lessons about the electric winches almost every time except once... needing to trim the mainsail fast but too lazy to finish the manual work, I pushed the button without remembering to remove the winch handle ... The handle release mechanism worked like a charm and I did not break a rib or hurt myself… Just my pride!
José helping the crew steer the boat out of the slip |
At around 11AM on Monday morning our journey to Vieques begun and it was a magical experience. It was an opportunity to gain our sea legs again since none of us had sailed since October. Once we were far enough from the Marina, we raised the mainsail, unfurled the jib and began the adventure of a life time!
Goodbye Fajardo - see you in a week! |
Lena's Sailing Classroom: A sailing boat cannot sail directly toward the direction where the wind is coming from. But modern sail boats can sail very close to the wind direction - approximately 30 degree angles in racing boats and good wind conditions or about 45 degrees for the Pura Vida as Jeanneaus are typically built for comfort, not for racing. Since the wind was coming from the East that day, which was the direction where we needed to go, we set our direction to about 45 degrees north from where the wind was coming from which put us on a starboard tack. That meant that we would soon be heading toward land and thus had to rotate 90 degrees in the opposite direction, a maneuver called tacking.
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Approaching Vieques on a Port tack |
In the excitement of the sail and the navigation, it is easy to forget the less enjoyable tasks, like emptying the holding tanks that had been holding the product of our bathroom visits while on board for the previous 2 nights. Andrew had given me that one job and I completelly forgot to do it! Fortunately, Ben remembered my job and -- once we were >3 miles offshore -- had silently gone down below to release their contents into the big wild sea. Silent and pragmatic, we did not learn that he did that until much later!
Happy crew on the way to Vieques |
Hello wild untamed anchorage |
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| Jump right in! |
I think this is also where I first saw curious turtles poking their head above the water for a few seconds to take a look around. I would see them again many times in several other places and on one occasion we were also able to photograph a little guy poking his head out of the water.
The boat bobbed gently over the waves and we fired up the grill while taking pictures of the glorious sunset. The sunset was followed by Piña Coladas, compliments of chef Koby.
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| Sunset: the first of many over the water |
The night was uneventful. A few of us stayed on deck and admired the unbelievable sky with millions of sprinkled white dots. Venus was also above the horizon and it shun with such a bright light that it could almost compete with the moon.
A bottle of propane moving around in its storage cubby as the waves passed under our hull kept me awake a lot of the night. It gave me a chance to go outside and marvel at the stars (whilst trying to identify the source of the noise, which Andrew helped me to fix the following morning).
Esperanza and Ensenada Sun Bay
On Tuesday morning, we woke up to a glorious sunrise and of course jumped in the water after some delicious coffee. The cove felt like it belonged to us. We were the only boat anchored, not another soul in sight. We wanted to check out the beach so we grabbed the dinghy - which was later baptized Dory the Dinghy - and rowed ashore. The view from shore was even more amazing because it included the boat that we were already starting to call home. |
| The first beach we explored in Vieques with Pura Vida in the distance |
I managed to step on a sea urchin while walking on some rocks at the beach. There were some people on the beach further North from us. A horse might or might not have been involved! They were doing their thing, we were doing ours. They didn’t bother us and we did not bother them. Island mood!
We tried (unsuccessfully) to find a path or trail to explore beyond the vegetation. We rowed the Dinghy back to Pura Vida (it would be the last time we resorted to such intense manual labor since we were equipped with a outboard motor for the dinghy, which we had been too lazy to mount) and once back on board we lifted the anchor and we were off to Esperanza!
Esperanza was quite a different experience from our first otherwise uninhabited anchorage - Esperanza was an actual town, with moorings and a pier for dinghies. We actually had to worry about other boats here. Andrew showed us how to set up the mooring line around the bow. Once that was done, we jumped into Dory the Dinghy and made our way to one of the piers. The climb to the pier was not easy but nobody got hurt in the process. We wanted to go to a restaurant called Bili for lunch but were told that it was closed so we went next door to Banana’s instead. Island life was in full swing. We drank local beers and ate local fish and a great time was had by all. We also made a furry friend - a Lab called Max - that sat by our table begging for scraps.
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| Island life in full swing - at Bananas |
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| Max the Lab was a sweetheart! |
After lunch, we saw a giant iguana which was just hanging out, enjoying the view. We all took lots of pictures of the iguana before heading off to look for a grocery store for supplies. The cruising guide pointed us to a store called “Green Store” which we found around a corner under the name “Tienda Verde”. There were some nice painted signs about Vieques on the way. Koby felt we needed more onions but the only onions they had were giant onions so we took one - it weighted 1.5 pounds! We also bought some more gallons of water (it’s important to not run out of drinking water!) and an overly priced container of cashews for snacking while sailing. Then we returned to Dory the Dinghy, who was patiently waiting for us at the dock. A guy was sitting at the dock and instead of helping he laughed as he saw us clumsily try to enter the dinghy equipped with the gallons of water.
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| An iguana enjoying the view in Esperanza, Vieques - with Pura Vida in the distance |
Then, it was time to head over to Ensenada Sun Bay, where we had planned to spend the night. Andrew, our brave skipper, allowed me to steer the boat while we approached the Ensenada under motor. The little cove where we anchored had a ship that was aground - a great picture opportunity - and there was one other boat - a motor boat - in our little cove but they were very quiet and didn't make any noise. Andrew took over the wheel for the motoring part of the anchoring, which I appreciate.
This was going to be our last night in Vieques, but we didn't know it yet!
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After Andrew looked at the chart and the weather, we discussed whether we should aim to do the long trip to Culebra on Wednesday (the following day) or Thursday (and give ourselves an extra day in Vieques). We had decided to do it on Thursday since the wind looked better then and would give us an opportunity to try a tour of Ensenada Mosquito - famous for its bioluminescence tours - or anchor on Puerto Farro, where bioluminescence was also supposed to be good.
After sunset, we were all hanging out in the cockpit when we started seeing some green specs of light around our boat. Our little cove was right next to Mosquito Bay, which is very famous for its incredible bioluminescence and for tours on kayaks with glass bottoms.
The first person to jump in the water in the dark was Andrew. While the rest of us were hanging out in the salon, he came over - still wearing his snorkel equipment - excited to share what he had just experienced in the water: amazing bioluminescent specs swimming all around him. I think that Oleg and Koby were the first to follow Andrew back into the water. I was falling asleep in the cockpit and had already taken a quick shower so it felt too much of a hassle (and a little scary) to jump in the dark water. Also, my internal lazy reasoning self took over: since we had planned to stay in Vieques another night, I could always swim in the bioluminescence tomorrow.
However, as the morning approached, the weather forecast changed and going to Culebra on Wednesday sounded like a much better idea. Down the drain went my plans to swim in the bioluminescent water that night. We decided (me and my lazy rational self :D ) that this was a good excuse to come back to Vieques at some point in the future and do the tour on the kayak with the glass bottom (spoiler alert: I DID swim in bioluminescence water before our return to Fajardo).
Before we lifted anchor, we were greeted with what I think is one of the best view of the whole trip - a magnificent rainbow streaming just for us behind Cayo de Tierra, on the left side of our cove.
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| Not photoshopped :) |
We set sail to Culebra as soon as we were done with the morning rituals: "mud" coffee (compliments of Ben), quick breakfast and a jump in the refreshing water to shake away the morning grogginess. On the way to Culebra, we made a first long tack toward the wide open ocean. Facing the respectable waves and decent winds once more made us realize and appreciate the protection that Vieques - and our wise Captain's anchorage selection - had granted us from the swell and the winds for those two amazing nights.
We caught a fish! No ... wait... it's HALF a fish..
When we were far enough from shore (at least 3 miles), I remembered my job (at last). Once that was done, we tacked and Koby was put at the helm while Andrew explored the chart planning our approach to Culebra. |
| Koby at the helm while Andrew examines the chart and Ben forecasts when is the best time to tack |
We could not stay too long on that tack since we were getting too close to shore so we tacked again. I remember this particular collection of tacks to have been pretty meditative, especially since we had constant sight of shore and could see Vieques on our port side most of the time. Since the east side of Vieques is a national wildlife refuge, there were very few anchorages but they were either not convenient for us (or prohibited by SailCaribe) which means that we had to make our way to Culebra on a single trip.
After a few tacks Oleg took the helm for the last port tack before we cleared Vieques: our final starboard tack before clearing Vieques was beautifully timed: Had we tacked a little bit earlier, we would have needed to tack again; had we tacked a little later, we would still be OK but had had to go further offshore.
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| When we saw the building at the Punta Este of Vieques, we knew we were close to clearing the tip of Vieques |
Once we cleared Vieques, and given that the wind was blowing from the south east, we were able to turn to our port side and let the wind go behind us for a smooth run to Culebra - or "civilized sailing" as Andrew's sailing instructor used to call it.
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| "Civilized" sailing toward Culebra |
At this point, I notice that the contraption that Ben and Oleg had created to know when a fish had been caught was triggered. But I should explain: while sailing along the shore of Vieques, Oleg had setup his fishing rod to troll for fish. Since the pressure on the bait is pretty constant - and our Pura Vida was not set up for fish trolling at an angle, Ben and Oleg came up with an ingenious contraption to know when there was pressure on the line: using a clothespin! Low Tech Indeed!
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| Contraption to tell us if something was caught in the bait |
Basically, the idea was that an increase in the force with which the bait was trolling behind us would cause the line to snap out of the clothespin and we would know we had caught something. Which was exactly what happened soon after we turned toward Culebra.
Oleg quickly asked Andrew to take the helm so that he could reel it in. Everyone was super excited - the only one of us who had ever fished before was Koby! As the bait got closer, we were super happy to see that there was indeed something attached to the line; as Oleg pulled it out of the water was when we first noticed... it was only half a fish!
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| Only half a fish but still a proud fisherman! |
We hypothesized that a bigger fish had eaten the other half - it was a very clean cut. Koby thought it was (used to be) a red snapper. We now had two options: we could eat half a fish for dinner... or we could try to use it as bait. We decided to be adventurous and maybe a little bit greedy and attached it back to the bait in the hope of grabbing a bigger fish... which we failed to do. Of course, in the process, we lost the half fish we did catch... live and learn!
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| Dory the Dinghy quietly followed her big sister everywhere she went. Vieques in the background. This need for our dinghy to "just keep swimming" behind us was the origin of her name! |
As we approached Culebra with plenty of time to spare before having to look for anchorage to spend the night, we decided to stop at Bahia Mosquito for lunch and a swim. According to the chart, there was a red buoy protecting an area of shallow water - red number 8. We strategize that we should turn just before red number 8 in order to make a proper entrance in Bahia Mosquito. In the distance we saw a red buoy, whose number we could not read, but which we assumed was the buoy we were looking for. Spoiler alert: it was not! The buoy we were actually pointing at was red number 10, which protected the entrance to the Culebra's Ensenada Honda from - you guessed it - extremely shallow waters. Turning just before red buoy number 10 would land us right on top of the rocks that the buoy was supposed to be protecting us from!
Turns out that red buoy number 8 was missing. The missing buoy required some fast reaction on Andrew and Ben's part. Fast reaction, good leadership and teamwork saved the day and we anchored safely in Bahia Mosquito. At this point, I remember feeling complete confidence in our captain and our crew. Even though we were in a slightly perilous situation due to a missing marker, I felt none of the drama. Pura Vida!
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| Not the right red buoy! |
At the Bahia we swam and through the binoculars saw what happened to red buoy 8 - possibly as a result of the hurricanes that destroyed much of Puerto Rico a few years ago, number 8 had been dragged ashore at Bahia Mosquito. At this point, my sister asked what I was up to and I sent her a selfie with Bahia Mosquito in the background - "Life is good" ;-)
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| Koby's mixed drinks were not just delicious, they were beautiful too! |
Another boat came into our Bahia (how dare they! :D) - a catamaran - they gave us space and that made us happy. The water was transparent and we could see seagrass. Koby discovered some swimming noodles in a compartment in the bow. He also mixed some drinks to go with lunch. Then we were off to Ensenada Honda to look for good anchorage to spend the night.
Ensenada Honda
Our original plan was to head over to Ensenada Fulladosa, which seemed to be super well protected. When we got there, however, we realized that it was a mooring field with mostly private moorings - our assumption that it was well protected was correct ... thus the mooring field in that location. It was also too shallow for comfort. Next, we tried Ensenada El Coronel but something did not feel right there either. We really wanted to avoid sleeping surrounded by too many boats, whose numbers would increase the closer we got to Culebra city. We were quickly running out of options. We ended up finding a nice anchoring spot just slightly south from where all the other boats were and it turned out to be a pretty nice place to anchor - far enough from the other boats but deep enough into the Ensenada that we could barely feel any waves. |
| We had several anchoring options within Ensenada Honda but ended up staying just south of Culebra |
We anchored, there was some jumping in the water and then it was time to go to town and for Dory the Dinghy to get some action!
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| Oleg all dressed up and ready to go to town! |
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| We had forgotten what it meant to "wear nice clothes and go to town"! Pura Vida! |
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| Our Pura Vida nicely anchored while we left her for a few hours to visit Culebra city |
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| The lamp posts in town flashed a red light - which, as we were told by Oleg - is better for the turtles |
We had dinner at Mamacita's per José's recommendation. While at the restaurant Andrew was almost eaten alive by hundreds of bugs that started flying over his head toward the light - turns out the bugs are way worse on land than in the sea. After dinner we walked a little around Culebra at night. We walked to the ferry stop and headed back - not our type of crowd - we were so used to the solitude and the waves and having deserted beaches all to ourselves that we just felt out of place in this bubbling island city. It felt nice to get back to Pura Vida.
Oleg had tea and Russian delicacies that he had brought with him - by now this had become a nightly tradition at Pura Vida, which made her feel that much more homey. In the following morning we woke up to roosters! Who kept singing non stop throughout the morning. So much for our deserted islands!
Koby prepared an amazing breakfast and everyone jumped in the water. The roosters just kept on going.
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| Morning face |
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| Attempting some early morning fishing |
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| Feeding the crew (we can't thank Koby enough!) |
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| "So you thought you could sleep in, huh" - says the rooster as he prepares for another wake up call |
We needed to re-supply so we headed back to shore - on the way there we saw a boat called Spiritu Libre (Free Spirit), red and green and very hard to miss. I think that the boat's name just said it but we all felt it.
It took us a while to find tomatoes at the grocery store that Oleg had seen but we did! We were very proud of ourselves.
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| Island attitude |
We did return to Culebra later on Friday but on the other side - the side of the ferry - where Koby and Ben went on shore because we were running out of rum. And that simply is not acceptable on board of the Pura Vida!
Welcome to Culebrita!
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| Culebrita is a small island east of her big sister Culebra (Culebra means snake, Culebrita means little snake) |
The passage from Culebra's Ensenada Honda to Culebrita was smooth and uneventful. We anchored at a small cove near Monte Primero, where all the other boats were. At this point we had faced the reality of our situation - we were not going to be the only anchored boat anymore!
The color of the water in Culebrita was majestic! Beautiful turquoise waters, tropical vegetation and an adventure to be had! We had planned to go to the lighthouse in Culebrita (Faro Culebrita) - the only remaining Spanish-era structure in the Culebra archipelago. We were all hungry from the crossing but before we ate, we all jumped in the water first, which was refreshing.
There was some rum drinking with lunch, which meant we were all extra relaxed when we finally jumped on Dory the Dinghy to go ashore. In the process, we were half way across to the beach when I asked if anyone remembered to close the hatch and the companionway. Nobody did. Not a big deal but I was worried nonetheless. I am the one to hope for the best and prepare for the worst. As a result Ben and I dropped everyone on the beach except me and we went back to lock up the boat.
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| Ben and myself coming back from our "lock the boat" mission. The guy in the other boat (Cabo) totally photobombed our picture, which is funny! |
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| Twin pic! Lena takes a picture of Andrew taking a picture of Lena. Koby enjoying the view |
On the way to the lighthouse, we saw lots of red crabs in borrowed shells - they were funny: as soon as we approached they would start walking away in unison. As we got closer to the lighthouse, we also saw a bunch of goats - including a baby goat! The view from the lighthouse was spectacular!
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| Spectacular view from Faro Culebrita |
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| Leo the dog was a great source of entertainment while myself, Oleg and Koby explored the "baths" |
On the way to Culebra, the weather started getting nasty. That's when Oleg caught his second fish - this time, a complete fish (yellowtail snapper)!
In Culebra, we first checked out Bahia de Almodovar as anchorage. It had some mooring balls and there were already a few boats anchored. We aimed for one of the free mooring balls but it said "Day Use Only". Bummer. We went for another mooring ball.. same thing: it was not until later - by reading the documents that Sail Caribe had left in the Navigation table - that we discovered that "day use only" meant "You Can Moor Here for One Night Only"! Go figure!
As we left Bahia de Almodovar to go look for better anchorage at Puerto de Manglar, it REALLY started to rain. Even though the bimini was somewhat protective, the rain was relentless. For a while we all stayed in the cockpit, getting wet but providing emotional support to Andrew (and to Ben, who was likely going to be the one dropping the anchor).
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| Wet and cold but providing emotional support to the skipper |
Slowly the non-cockpit essential people started to head down to the salon to keep warm. The rain was so intense that we could not see a thing! That, of course, did not make the anchorage operations any easier - how can you tell if you're not moving when you can't see a thing? Andrew and Ben arrived at the salon completely drenched (thanks guys!)
We had dinner down below that night. Oleg prepared the fish that he had caught and cooked it on the stove. It was so awesome to eat fish that we had caught ourselves! Of course, one yellowtail snapper is not enough to feed 5 hungry sailors so Koby also kindly prepared a meal that kept the sailor's bellies full.
The rain eventually stopped but everything in the cockpit was so wet that it was not pleasant at all to sleep on deck. The waves were minimal at this anchorage site and we saw some more bioluminescence. As the morning approached, the rain clouds were completely gone and another gorgeous day begun in Culebra. As we were hanging out on deck drinking coffee, Koby and I saw what Koby refers to as "boiling fish" - a large school of fish all jumping out of the water at the same time, possibly driven into shallow waters by a hungry turtle and desperately trying to escape. It was in this quiet cove that I later saw a true flying fish - not just a jumping fish but a glorious creature with fins that reminded me of the wings on a bird. This was my favorite anchorage place in spite of the rain... and the mosquitoes who were eating me alive in spite of multiple layers of smelly bug repellant.
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| My favorite anchorage site - Culebra, Puerto de Manglar |
Pura Vida Photo-Shoot
While sailing in Boston, we rarely get a full picture of our ship with the mainsail raised and the jib unfurled. But having Dory the Dinghy happily swimming behind Pura Vida gave us an idea: what if we raised the sails while part of the crew was sent on the dinghy, equipped with a camera, with the aim of taking a picture of Pura Vida in her full glory?
We had tested the short range radio as a means of communicating with the crew on the dinghy. However, in the excitement of raising the sails, they forgot to take the handheld radio. When Ben motored back to Pura Vida to get it, Oleg - who was on the dinghy with him - forgot that he had left the hook from the fishing rod hanging from the stern and as Ben started to motor away, Oleg's shirt got caught in the hook. Fortunately he was wearing long sleeves so flesh was not pierced. Lesson learned! Never ever leave a fish hook hanging from the stern or anywhere else on the boat!
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| Pura Vida in full glory with her sails raised as seen from Dory the Dinghy |
After collecting our dinghy-marooned friends, we set sail back to Culebra city - we had plans to go snorkeling next to Punta Melones. It was supposed to be an easy sail - however, soon after we left Puerto de Manglar, we saw fog in the distance. The rain started soon after. We made sure we had a fog horn handy in case we needed it. We didn't need it as the fog would soon pass. Pura Vida :-)
As we had been promised by Ben's friends, snorkeling was indeed very good next to Punta Melones - we must've spent an hour or more in the water, swimming after fishes and watching the corals dance in the waves. Ben and I even saw a manta ray on the way back to Pura Vida. If felt so amazing to see all the fish swimming under us! For a second I even felt bad about catching and eating them.
After snorkeling, we set sail again and leisurely started making our way toward the other snorkeling spot that we had heard about - Punta Tamarindo Grande. When we got there, however, the waves were crashing into the rocks quite furiously, which in turn made us think twice about anchoring or jumping in the water at that particular location. Didn't matter. There would be other snorkeling opportunities. Pura Vida!
Our next stop would be Cayo Luis Peña, where we had planned to spend the night. Reality hit when we realized that it was almost sunset - we had agreed with Koby that we would not be sailing late that day since it was Friday and the sunset meant the beginning of Shabbat. We motored to a cove on the West side of Cayo Luis Peña and made it on time to observe another gorgeous sunset. The arrival of Shabbat had a bitter sweet taste to it: on the one hand, it was an important and meaningful day for the crew; on the other hand... it meant that our adventure was approaching the end.
Our next stop would be Cayo Luis Peña, where we had planned to spend the night. Reality hit when we realized that it was almost sunset - we had agreed with Koby that we would not be sailing late that day since it was Friday and the sunset meant the beginning of Shabbat. We motored to a cove on the West side of Cayo Luis Peña and made it on time to observe another gorgeous sunset. The arrival of Shabbat had a bitter sweet taste to it: on the one hand, it was an important and meaningful day for the crew; on the other hand... it meant that our adventure was approaching the end.
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| The sunset that would start Shabbat was bitter sweet |
Then all of a sudden our boat rotated 180 degrees or so around its anchor and our bow was now pointing in the same direction as the catamaran. We looked at the tide table, which indicated that the tide had changed not too long ago. Our running hypothesis was (and still is) that the spot we selected was so well protected from the wind (kudos to Andrew for picking such a great spot) that our positioning was being controlled by the water current, as weak as that was, whereas the position of the other boat's direction was being impacted by the light wind. Once the force from the wind and the tide pushed our boat in the same direction, we were finally aligned. For me, this whole incident was the perfect illustration of WHY, when deciding where to anchor, it is so important to think about the full circle around the anchor - not just the specific direction that you happen to be pointing at when anchoring. Things can change suddenly and if you're not careful about having enough depth all around the anchor, you may find yourself running aground when you least expect it. When, in the following morning, we looked at the path that our boat had tracked on the GPS during the night, it looked like a perfect hourglass.
Smelly Business
The sunrise on Saturday morning at Cayo Luis Peña was glorious and relaxed, Pura Vida style. Our only neighbours at the anchorage left early in the morning so we had the beach all to ourselves. The swimming and island exploration started soon after breakfast - eggs with leftover peppers and spinach - I had to show off my omelet preparing skills, which is basically the only cooking skill I possess!
I felt the unease and longing for more days like these that is associated with the finale of an amazing experience (Mono no aware, I am told, is what I was feeling). If the rest of the crew felt that same way, they didn't share it. Some things are better left unsaid. We had another day and a half to enjoy and decided to make the best of it.
As usual, the reliable Dory the Dinghy was ready when we needed her to take us to shore where we could explore the secrets of Cayo Luis Peña. Each member of the crew found their own unique way of exploring the island. Ben relaxed by the Dinghy, Andrew decided to find a path to the top of the hill, Oleg went looking for good photo opportunities and Koby swam in the deep turquoise waters. I sat on the beach and stared at the ocean.
Soon after our return to Pura Vida, we noticed something not right with one of the heads that required us to make a small adjustment to our plans for the day: the holding tank was overflowing; we needed to sail 3 miles offshore to dump it.
As we were raising the anchor, we saw a huge turtle poking her head next to Pura Vida and showing off her shell. Since Koby and I had agreed not 2 minutes before that he would help out with the sailing while I would use his camera for pictures, I was holding the camera at the right time in the right place with the right lens and managed to take a picture before she dived back down.
I felt the unease and longing for more days like these that is associated with the finale of an amazing experience (Mono no aware, I am told, is what I was feeling). If the rest of the crew felt that same way, they didn't share it. Some things are better left unsaid. We had another day and a half to enjoy and decided to make the best of it.
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| On the last day of our journey, at Cayo Luis Peña, saudade sets in. |
Soon after our return to Pura Vida, we noticed something not right with one of the heads that required us to make a small adjustment to our plans for the day: the holding tank was overflowing; we needed to sail 3 miles offshore to dump it.
As we were raising the anchor, we saw a huge turtle poking her head next to Pura Vida and showing off her shell. Since Koby and I had agreed not 2 minutes before that he would help out with the sailing while I would use his camera for pictures, I was holding the camera at the right time in the right place with the right lens and managed to take a picture before she dived back down.
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| We saw a huge turtle at Cayo Luis Peña |
After our hygiene adventure, we steered back to where we had been snorkeling the day before. We could not get enough of the colorful fish, the manta ray and the dancing corals. This time, however, we had company - two other boats were already anchored in "our spot" - another reminder that the weekend had arrived and with it, plenty of other adventure-seeking explorers with whom to share our Culebra shores.
As we all jumped in the water I discovered, with some frustration, that I had failed to recharge my underwater camera. I quickly reminded myself that it did not matter. Pura Vida!
Our anchorage for that night was by Punta Tamarindo Grande. As we approached, we saw some swimmers next to their motor boat, sipping beers and blasting loud music. We grabbed a mooring ball and quickly jumped on the dinghy to go ashore and leave the boom box behind. The plan was to find the trail that led to Flamenco Beach, on the other side of Culebra island. Flamenco Beach was ranked the 3rd best beach in the world according to TripAdvisor ranks. The way there was surprisingly muddy even though we had seen no signs of rain that morning.
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| A muddy path on the way to Flamenco Beach |
The path ended in a huge parking lot - after 5 days of deserted beaches, this was a culture shock! We crossed the parking lot and made our way to the water. The beach was indeed pretty albeit more crowded than we were used to at this point. We didn't linger. Pura Vida was calling us back.
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| The last sunset |
That last night was solemn. Everybody knew what the morning would bring - given the 5-10 knots of wind and a 4/5 hour trip back to Fajardo (where we had to be by 10AM), we would have to get up before sunrise and probably motor all the way. I had corn fritters for the first time in my life. The rum flowed. I lost count of toasts - we toasted to everything and everyone under the stars. The morning came too soon. As we were preparing the boat for its early departure, I noticed the same flickers of green light in the water by the hull that we had seen in Vieques. I decided that I was not going to miss my last chance of swimming in a bioluminescent sea. So I faced my fears and jumped in the dark water. It was indeed as magical, exhilarating and unreal as the crew had been telling me it was.
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| Andrew motors us back to Fajardo with that solemn look in his face, probably planning our next adventure |
As we made our way to Fajardo, the sky granted us one last view of a surreal sunrise, as if waving goodbye, "come back soon!"
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| The last sunrise |
SVI itinerary:
Day 0: Old San Juan - Puerto Del Rey Marina, Fajardo
Day 1: El Yuenque
Day 2: Puerto Del Rey Marina, Fajardo — Green Beach, Vieques (anchor)
Day 3: Green Beach — Esperanza — Ensenada Sun Bay, Vieques (anchor)
Day 4: Ensenada Sun Bay, Vieques — Bahia Mosquito, Culebra — Ensenada Honda, Culebra (anchor)
Day 5: Ensenada Honda, Culebra — Bahia de Tortuga, Culebrita — Puerto del Manglar, Culebra (anchor)
Day 6: Puerto del Manglar — Bahia de Sardinas, Culebra — SW corner of Cayo de Luis Peña (anchor)
Day 7: Cayo de Luis Peña — Bahia Tarja (S of Pta Melones), Culebra — Bahia Tamarindo (S of Pta Tamarindo Grande), Culebra (mooring)
Day 8: Bahia Tamarindo, Culebra — Puerto Del Rey Marina, Fajardo (dock)
Day 0: Old San Juan - Puerto Del Rey Marina, Fajardo
Day 1: El Yuenque
Day 2: Puerto Del Rey Marina, Fajardo — Green Beach, Vieques (anchor)
Day 3: Green Beach — Esperanza — Ensenada Sun Bay, Vieques (anchor)
Day 4: Ensenada Sun Bay, Vieques — Bahia Mosquito, Culebra — Ensenada Honda, Culebra (anchor)
Day 5: Ensenada Honda, Culebra — Bahia de Tortuga, Culebrita — Puerto del Manglar, Culebra (anchor)
Day 6: Puerto del Manglar — Bahia de Sardinas, Culebra — SW corner of Cayo de Luis Peña (anchor)
Day 7: Cayo de Luis Peña — Bahia Tarja (S of Pta Melones), Culebra — Bahia Tamarindo (S of Pta Tamarindo Grande), Culebra (mooring)
Day 8: Bahia Tamarindo, Culebra — Puerto Del Rey Marina, Fajardo (dock)
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| Our complete sailing itinerary |
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