Finally an update for all of you! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
S/V Sirena at anchor in San Blas islands
View from the top S/V Sirena anchored off Chichime island
Western Holandes Cays ~ BBQ Island
Sunset off Banedup island ~ Lemon Cays
We spent the holidays from Thanskgiving onward in the San Blas Islands off the Caribbean Coast of Panama. Originally we intended to stay just a short while, but once we arrived in these beautiful, remote islands we fell in love with the clean, clear water, stunning reefs and picturesque beaches. There are 340 islands in several small archepelagos which make up the San Blas island group. Primarily we have stayed anchored off the outer islands where there are not many of the Guna Indians present. Closer in to shore the islands become densely populated with these natives who cling to their traditional ways, living simply for the most part off the sea and land. Although recent innovations such a cell phones and television have become popular. The natives are famous for the handcrafted molas they make, fashioning traditional patterns from layers of fabric hand sewn with intricate stitching.
Guna Molas
Shopping for Guna Molas in San Blas
The outer islands have fabulous reef systems surrounding them and many shallow anchorages protected by the low lying islands and the reef systems. Here we found a great abundance of healthy coral and variety of fish. Additionally, in the outer islands we can safely eat the larger fish such as barracuda and dog snapper along with triggerfish and others since there is no ciguatera to be found here. It truly is a rare habitat here!
The most popular food in the islands is lobster, which the Guna men gather along the reefs and sell for about $5 each. They bring their dugout canoes alongside our boat once every couple days with fresh fish and lobster and sometimes crab or octopus too.
Lobster are readily available in San Blas islands.
LoWang and Ninja explore the possibility of dinner.
The islands are often covered in coconut trees, so coconuts are also readily available. Every coconut tree is owned by an indian though, so gathering your own is prohibited. For a small fee they will cut them open for you, a more difficult task then it looks!
Young Guna indian cuts open some coconuts for us.
Popular BBQ Island in the Western Holandes Keys
This island is much more "groomed" than most thanks to the cruisers who cleaned it up.
Soon after Christmas we had an unfortunate event happen...the cable for our centerboard broke. This left us with our swing keel all the way down and about an 11 ft draft instead of our usual 5'6" draft. Normally we keep the centerboard in the up position unless we are sailing to weather, at which time it provides increased stability and superior sailing performance compared to a standard keel.
Tayana 55 Swing Keel Centerboard Diagram
Our anchoring options were limited to deeper water while we worked to get a replacement cable and restring it through the system of pulleys located inside the centerboard housing. Some friends on S/V Sundowner were able to contact the Tayana shipyard for assistance and they sent this diagram. but we had to figure out the lifting system ourselves.
Underwater camera shows image of roller at one end of centerboard in down position as we attempt to fish a line under it. Without the aid of an underwater camera we would have never been able to make this repair in the water! Don't leave the dock without one is our recommendation!
Eventually with the help of a small underwater camera on a line (Big thanks to Bob and Irma from S/V Gaia) we were able to see into the compartment and run a small fishing line down under the roller and fish it back up, attach a heavier line and eventually... several weeks later...get our replacement cable attached. It was one of those very challenging situations so many cruisers face and lucky for us we had lots of support from our friends. Due to limited internet in the islands we were fortunate to be able to make contact with the USA to have the cable shipped to a friend who was coming down to visit another boat. That's the beauty of cruising...sailors helping each other out. We keep in touch on VHF radio channel 72, which everyone monitors, and in the mornings there is an SSB radio net. Cruisers are in general the most helpful people you will ever encounter.
