Log #43K Puerto Rico - Part Two

Ensenada Dakity, Culebra, Puerto Rico, April 26, 2007

Following our procedure for making way into the easterly winds, we left Boca del Inferno at 0300, carefully using our computer mapping system and the GPS to get us through the relatively narrow channel through the offlying reefs into easterly force 4 winds that increased to force 6 (25 knots) by 0600, and had us pounding into 6 foot seas. If it was this bad early in the morning, the rest of the day would be even worse, and so at 0710, after only 15 miles, we anchored off the town of Puerto Patillas (17 58.59N, 065 59.65W), a nondescript seaside community with no obvious place to land a dinghy, a small public beach, and some run-down houses along the shoreline. We only went ashore to drop off some garbage.

There was only one other sailboat at anchor, but a few hours later AbraCadabra, a 40 foot power yacht, dropped anchor 50 yards outside of us. We had met Guy and Trudy first in the Turks and Caicos, then in Luperon, and again in Ponce. We dropped over for a chat and to exchange some books and weather information. We commiserated with them about the heavy weather we had encountered all the way from the Turks and Caicos. Even though theirs is a larger, and powerful, yacht with two 250 horsepower inboard engines, they too had to pick their times and dash from one anchorage to another to avoid heavy seas.

Decision to stay in Puerto Rico?

We still had over 400 miles to go to Antigua, and so far we had to limp along at 15 to 25 miles a day, taking refuge in short-passage anchorages to avoid the heavier day winds. It was now March 10th , and our flight from Antigua via San Juan to Panama City was March 21. We might make it if we were not delayed too many days by storm winds. Should we still try for it, or give up, just more leisurely cruise the area, and leave Veleda in Puerto Rico? Such would mean an additional $1000.00 in expenses as we would have to leave Veleda in a marina, give up the part of our flight from Antigua to Puerto Rico, and purchase an additional pair of tickets from Antigua back to Puerto Rico upon our return as our return tickets were direct from Toronto to Antigua. The tickets we had could not be exchanged or refunded. Judy was quite discouraged at the slogging we had been doing ever since we left Jamaica on Feb. 9th, a whole month of pounding into easterly winds and heavy seas, and still 400 miles to go! We made up our minds then, that we would not try for Antigua, cruise more leisurely, and accept the costs associated with missing our flight from Antigua.

Again, as the winds were supposed to be lighter in the morning, we left in the dark at 0415, being sure to give the shoals off Puerto Patillas a wide berth. We slogged east into a manageable 15 to 20 knot headwind around the southeast corner of Puerto Rico to head northeast (against NE winds sliding around the east coast of the island). After 17 miles, we pulled into the fuel dock at Palma Del Mar. Our pilot book indicated it was part of a large expensive condominium development with a private marina with "gated communities inside a gated community". There is a large bay inside where we thought we might be able to anchor, but it was now chained off for construction of slips for the condos' yachts. At the gas dock we got a couple of jerry cans of diesel, and tried to get some information from the minimally communicative dock attendant to see if we could get a slip for the day. He waved us across the large hard standing area, complete with large racks of dry-stored power and fishing boats towards the marina office. We wandered over, and found a police office, and a closed restaurant, and finally found what we think was the office in an upper room of a building behind the restaurant and boutique.

Of course there was no one around at 0830 of a Sunday morning, and so we just left, heading up another 5 miles to anchor off Cayo Santiago (18 09.42N, 065 44.20W), also known as Monkey Island. The anchorage in the lee of the island was good. We could see the monkeys cavorting along the shoreline and small stretches of beach, and also the warning signs prohibiting landing as the monkeys may attack. The island is home to about 1500 rhesus monkeys, free roaming the island which is used for research. We dinghied around the shoals of the island and sat a few yards off one of the beaches to just watch the antics of these primates. I have attached a picture of a couple of small monkeys on a tree stump preening each other. We also saw a furious flight of another hapless larger one being aggressively chased by a gang of other monkeys. We spent a pleasant day at anchor, did a bit of snorkeling, and left next day at the more civilized hour of 0900 for a short 16 mile northward journey, past the empty Roosevelt Roads Naval Station, the largest US naval station outside of continental USA (even larger than Guantanamo in Cuba) up to Puerto del Rey Marina (18 17.23N, 065 38.08W), the largest marina in the Caribbean.

This is an excellent full service marina, so large that there are golf carts to help cruisers go along the docks from their slips to the office and to help lug any supplies they have back to their boats. The price was reasonable, a daily rate of $1.00 a foot, and a nominal metered charge for electricity (water was free). It had several services available such as a grocery store, delicatessen, chandlery, car rental agency, canvas shop, travel agencies, dry stacks for fishing boats, an aviary, and disco clubs, as well as haul out facilities and repair shops. As we were now looking for a marina to leave Veleda while we returned home, we checked the price of a month's dockage - $720.00 US. Not too bad, but we found Villa Marina just up the way would cost only $590.00 for a month.

AbraCadabra was also in the marina and we had a chat with them and told them of our decision not to slog on to Antigua. They could fully understand and agreed with it. However, the marina is a few mile south of Fajardo, and 60 or 70 miles from the San Juan airport, with no bus service. This remote area is one of the limitations of the marina unless one has a vehicle.

Roosevelt Roads Naval Station

Next afternoon we went 6 miles out to Isla Pinero (18 14,76N, 065 35.13W), to anchor for the night in the lee of this private island before heading next day, again at the civilized time of 0900, the 5 miles over to Roosevelt Roads Naval Station. We tried calling on channel 16, got no reply, but entered the large almost deserted bay anyway, going in on range markers past a fantastically long but empty pier with fuel gantries like preying mantises in place forlornly awaiting battleships, cruisers, and destroyers which would be coming no more, as the base is closed down! We saw large oil tanks, radar scanners, sheds, office buildings, picnic shelters, baseball fields, large balconied residences like resort condominiums, and tracts of houses like a suburban community, all deserted, no evidence of activity except for the occasional dump truck hauling rocks and sand out to the point. Beyond the pier is a field of 24 mooring buoys with only two sailboats tied up to them. On shore there is a large, well maintained marina dock area with concrete slips, built in rubber fenders, launch ramp, and power and water stanchions to service the three sailboats and half dozen power boats still alongside. We saw the occasional person near the docks, several trailers with power boats loaded on them, and we noticed someone on one sailboat on the mooring buoys. We motored over towards this boat, called Abu Dai, and talked to Bruz, a lean leathery tanned cruiser, who suggested we take a mooring and then go in to the PX convenience store on the dock to register. He helped us secure to a buoy (18 4.00N, 065 37.65W), and filled us in on the semi-closed down base and the limited operations of the marina.

As we dinghied ashore we saw a large catamaran that seemed familiar, called St. Christopher. Judy remembered it from Hog Island in Grenada. We went over and spoke with Tom and Jordan Fisher, who remembered us from an SSCA get-together we had at Roger's Bar on Hog island last summer. Small world. He too said to register at the store. Well, then the bureaucracy started! The ladies in the PX spoke English and were trying to be helpful, but could not take my word that I was a retired Canadian Navy officer, and needed to see an ID card before registering Veleda. I was never issued such upon retirement. They were limited in what they could do, but after a phone call suggested we go down to the base security office to get clearance to be on the base.

OK, it is a one mile hike along a wide paved road along the shoreline. We started walking. About half way along, a base police security SUV stopped ahead and a very polite sergeant introduced himself and explained that we needed an ID card to be on base and that he would drive us down to base security for a debriefing. Oh boy, are we going to be grilled as intruders, questioned and then told to leave? Down at the nice air conditioned operations room we were introduced to a master sergeant who would debrief us, all very polite but official. We sat at a table and explained again that I did not have an ID card to verify my naval retirement. Why did we not call in on VHF before entering harbour? I explained we tried on channel 16, the international calling channel, but got no reply. Did we call on channel 12? No, we had no information in our pilot about that frequency being used by base security. Just a few more questions and they would take us back to the marina, the implication being we could not stay.

The master sergeant excused himself to go over to talk to another officer who came over and introduced himself as the base commander. He too felt nothing could be done without an ID card, even though I could show membership is the Naval Officers Association of Canada and had correspondence addressed to Lieutenant Commander A. Millard. However he also asked if there was anyone in the marina who knew us and could sponsor us. Yes! We mentioned Tom Fisher who has had St. Christopher there for a couple of months and who is a retired naval surgeon. Would he sponsor us? Oh yes, he is an old friend we have known from Grenada. If he agrees we could be his guests while here. Verify it and take care of the paper work at the PX at the marina. We were also advised we would have to file a Float Plan indicating when we were leaving to where and when returning. We went to the operations desk to fill it out, then were driven back to the marina by another friendly security man. When there, we saw the base commander having a conversation with Tom. Tom turned to us with a big smile and said he was glad to have us as his guests. OK! We were in! We then planned to leave Veleda there while we went back to Panama City and Toronto.

More in my next log about some of the bureaucracy and concerns about getting back on the base once we left.



Next log - Log43L