We anchored this morning, checked into Panama, Anna Mae was measured and given the go ahead to transit The Canal. We think on the 5th. keeping our fingers crossed.http://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/367563310
Down the Coast of Panama
After checking out of Costa Rica, Customs, Immigration and The Golfito Port Captain gave us 72 hours to exit their waters.
We planned a special dinner to say our goodbyes to the wonderful staff at Banana Bay Marina. If you find yourself in Golfito be sure to stop and spend a few days, they are very helpful.
We left the dock early April 24th at low tide and traveled to Isla Pardida. The anchorage was exposed with little shelter. We have been lucky to encountered mild winds. We enjoyed a soft little roll that put us all to sleep.
The next day we continued on to anchor on the east side of Isla De Coiba for the night. The snorkeling was mediocre with visibility at about 20 to 30 feet. A 4 foot morey ell let us know not to get to close. He was very protective of his home. Several large schools of shiny silver fish surrounded us. A variety of colorful large and small fish entertained us until the rainstorm; lightening and thunder forced us back onboard. I did manage to make it to shore to find a few shells. I was able to sneak a special few onboard. My collection continues to grow.
Another system learned the hard way. It’s a never-ending process and always a reward of accomplishment when we learn something new. We have been pampering our water makers and collected all of the necessary parts when we flew home last month. Upon our return Bill installed new fresh water diversion and flush valves. The old valves he replaced had been allowing air into the system. We had a celebration when both water makers were pushing out between 250 and 350 parts per million.
Now the interesting lesson… We had our 20KW running to enable us to run our air conditioning, hydraulic cooling pump and the two water makers. Bob Senter would be so proud of us. We know he is smiling when we have our NL generator running a heavy load. Luckily after our high fives Bill did another engine room check and found the water makers warm with excessive vibration. Note to self, in the future do not run the water makers, air conditioning and hydraulic cooling pump at the same time? Apparently our sea chest wasn’t engineered to adequately allow the volume of water needed to run all these systems simultaneously.
Frustration, is a mild word to use when this was discovered as a matter of fact, Bill used many words… At the time we were unsure how much damage had been done to the pumps on the water makers. We waited until we stopped for the night to investigate the situation, giving the water makers and engine room time to cool down. Our engine room temperature generally runs between 105 – 110 degrees in this warm weather / waters, much warmer than we are used to in The Pacific Northwest. Prior to heading out on this trip, we installed several fans and a blower in the engine room to help with the extreme heat.
We anchored and took a quick swim to cool off and allow the engine room to cool down and started the water makers again. We are keeping our fingers crossed, not much damage to report. One of the water makers has a slight vibration, but is making water. YEAH!!!
Our last little hurdle before getting to the canal was Punta Malo. We have heard the waters can be challenging. We experienced a strong current on our bow as the tide was going out. We dropped back to 6.5 knots. The seas remained calm throughout the day. We even managed to catch several dorado, they ranged from 20 to 35 pounds. Our freezer is getting full.
We are on our way to Isla Otoque to anchor for the night. Tomorrow we will continue to an anchorage outside of The Flaminco Yacht Club to wait for our agent to clear us into Panama.
Our plan is to spend a couple of days in Panama City. We have guests, Mitch and Cherie Vandehey flying in to transit the canal with us and explore Panama City.
Never a dull moment, we have enjoyed another wonderful day on Anna Mae. I am anticipating a delicious fish dinner tonight. I wish you could join us!
I have numerous pictures to share and would love to if my iphoto program would cooperate… Hope to rectify that issue shortly at the Mac store in Panama City tomorrow!
Day 109 – 365 Project…Swallow-tailed Kite
Welcome to day 109 of 365 photos…imagine my surprise today to see a swallow-tailed kite and then two more rising over the tree-line as Mr. B and I were eating lunch on the back porch. Of course, at the time, I had no idea what they were. I went running for my camera, hoping that […]
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Norfolk Adventures 2014 – Parade & Tattooo
Before writing this, I went back and reviewed the article I wrote on June 8, 2011 entitled “Norfolk Adventures – Day 245 to 248 – Norfolk, VA” to make sure I did not repeat myself. Below is a link to that article. I think did a good job of capturing the city’s flavor. It’s worth reading.
www.mvguideddiscovery.blogspot.com/2011/06/norfolk-adventures-days-245-to-248.html
As you know, we arrived last Friday after a somewhat slow trip on the ICW due to the bridges that open on a rigid schedule. Friday night, we had torrential rains connected to a front that produced a tornado in Elizabeth City, NC. We were just 20 miles east of there at Coinjock the previous evening.
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| Guided Discovery at night in Norfolk |
Saturday we awoke to a beautiful day and a parade that started at 10:00 AM with its reviewing stand right by the marina. The parade kicked off the 2014 Norfolk NATO Festival, an event that celebrates the founding of NATO. All 28 NATO countries had floats that symbolized their culture. Interspersed were bands and civic organizations that came out to support the program. It was a lovely parade.
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| Portugal (I think) |
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| Romania |
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| Slovenia |
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| Spain |
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| United Kingdom |
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| Turkey |
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| Norway |
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| Model A Ford Club |
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| Italy |
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| One of many bands providing great music |
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| The United States float captures our culture perfectly |
After the parade we wandered to a parkto the event itself (two football fields from the marina). Here we found 28 tents, one for each country, promoting tourism. Each tent had a sign that identified the country’s political system and the size of its armed forces. In the center was a beer garden with music. Diana could not resist knackwurst and sauerkraut. I could not resist the bratwurst.
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| View from Nauticus Museum on the NATO Festival festivities |
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| The “crew” poses in front of seven of the circle of 28 NATO country tents |
Sunday we experienced another part of Norfolk’s culture when we attended the Virginia International Tattoo, a part of the Virginia Arts Festival Spring 2014.
Explanatory Note: The next two paragraphs explain what is meant be the term “tattoo.”
“In the old days, field musicians were vital to commanders as the sole means of relaying orders during battle. For marching, the bands kept the company or regiment in proper cadence, and served to beat the daily duty calls and ceremonies such as Reveille, Taps, the General, the Assembly and the Retreat. The distinctive and colorful uniforms were necessary to distinguish them easily on the battlefields, and were often the reverse color of those worn by the line soldiers.
The term “tattoo” derives from the cries of the 17th and 18th century Low Country innkeepers, who, as the fifes and drums of the local regiment signaled a return to quarters would cry, “Doe den tap toe!” -“Turn off the taps!” The sound of the “taps” caused the innkeeper’s customers to depart and return to their barracks. The word “tattoo” evolved over time, and refers to what developed as a ceremonial performance of military music by massed bands today.”
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| I need a better camera |
I borrowed a paragraph from their website to give you a sense of the spectacle we enjoyed. Their “hype” cannot capture the thrill of the performance we observed to a packed house (at the afternoon performance).
“The spectacular Virginia International Tattoo performances will once again inspire audiences, leaving them with a renewed sense of pride and optimism. The Virginia International Tattoo invites military and non-military bands, drill teams, bagpipe and drum bands, highland dancers and more from around the globe to create a unified and extraordinary performance. The Virginia International Tattoo offers an astounding display of patriotism and the spirit of international cooperation. Inspirational music…majestic massed pipes and drums… show stopping drill team maneuvers…colorful and elegant dancers…ALL give reasons for the crowd to roar!”
Kodi and I enjoyed a 4 mile morning walk on Monday. Then it started to rain and it has been raining off and on every since.
Good news: Tuesday morning two technicians (JT and AJ) arrived at 8:30 AM to resolve a leak at the port transmission sensor. The confirmed the diagnosis made by Rafael Betts from Performance Power System in Stuart and proceeded to resolve the issue. They also found and corrected a fuel leak and installed a After Cooler Condensation Valve Hose that was missing when we took possession. As of today, there a no open issues on Outer Reef’s Warranty Issues list. Hurrah.
The next article will deal with the weather related to our 480 nautical mile trip from Norfolk to Hingham Massachusetts. Stay tuned. It will be interesting..
Written by Les
New Bern, NC to Solomons, MD (Mar 20, to Apr 27,2014)
After some careful weather watching, Joe decided that Thursday, March 20 was the day to leave Northwest Creek Marina in New Bern. It was in the 40’s as we cast the lines off. Who knew that we would consider that a reasonable temperature.
&…
New Bern, NC to Solomons, MD (Mar 20, to Apr 27,2014)
After some careful weather watching, Joe decided that Thursday, March 20 was the day to leave Northwest Creek Marina in New Bern. It was in the 40’s as we cast the lines off. Who knew that we would consider that a reasonable temperature.
&…
Top 10 list of things to do and see in Toronto
Toronto is metropolitan world-class city of 2.5 million people and growing and the longer I live here the more reasons I discover why I Love Toronto. There are so many wonderful things about this great city that I want to share … Continue reading →
April 28 – Lake George, FL
Salt Spring Creek
“If I could have, to hold forever, one brief place and time of beauty, I think I might choose the night on that high lonely bank above the St. Johns River.”-Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
We had two anchorages today. Our first was close to Silver Glen Springs…unfortunately we draw a little too much water to take our large boat into the spring run. This is a popular spot for houseboats and smaller boat to anchor for the weekend. The water is a beautiful, crystalline clear blue that stays a constant 72 degrees. I would have loved to spend a few days anchored in this clear amazing water, swimming right off the boat. Even before we entered the spring run the water in the lake became clear and we could see the aquatic grass, algae and fish on the bottom. We spent the day swimming and doing a little hiking, but mostly we spent it relaxing on the banks of this beautiful spring. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings had a cabin in the area and it inspired her book “The Yearling”. We hiked the Spring Boils Trail that leads to Jody’s Spring, which was named for the spring described in her book.
Silver Glen Springs is a first-magnitude spring with a large, semicircular pool that measures 200 feet by 175 feet. Sixty five million gallons of water flows from two cavern openings in the rock at the bottom of the pool and flows nearly one mile down the spring run to Lake George. Most of the spring pool has sand and limestone on the pool bottom, with areas of aquatic grasses. Large fresh and saltwater fish are common in the pool and around the vents.
After we returned to the boat we decide to pull anchor and move closer to Salt Springs, which we’ll explore tomorrow. Lake George is a large lake and offers little wind protection. Last night was very calm…making it a bit warmer, but we slept well on a calm ship. This evening the wind has picked up and we have gotten a little rain and we are definitely rocking. I’m sure it’ll be more than a gentle roll putting us to sleep tonight.
The view from our picnic table
The water was so clear and blue it looked like we were swimming in a pool…just amazing.
Aww…this is the life!
Looking down to the vents on the bottom of the spring
Most of the spring pool is shallow…until you get close to the vents, then it drops off quickly.
This little island stand guard at the entry to Silver Glen Creek.
Granite Day!
To those of you who have re-modeled your kitchens and elected to go with granite, you know all too well the plethora of choices that abound with all types of stone. We are up to deciding on the counter tops now and since granite is standard on th…
Day 108 – 365 Project…AICW – Spring Exodus
Welcome to day 108 of 365 photos…the AICW spring exodus has begun. I sat along the waterway for about a half hour and saw five different boats heading north. These are mostly folks who have spent the winter in Florida on their boats and are now heading back home, wherever that may be. During the […]
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