On to the San Blas Islands 22 February 2024.

It had been quite a windy night and it had also rained so from being fast asleep we had to close hatches in the night. John the rigger chap was coming round at 10.00am so I unscrewed a few bits in the rear cabin so that he could see where the turning blocks I had ordered could be fitted. The others went off for a nature walk in the jungle and when they came back they had seen several monkeys and tepia’s etc.

John came we planned and we discussed where everything would go which was great so we have a plan. In addition to this I had found the previous day that the coupling bolts on the propeller shaft had come loose again. John said I should Loctite them so Jonas and I spent an hour undoing the bolts, cleaning them and locktiting them so they will not come loose. This was a very hot job and I got covered in oil so I hope this stops them coming loose again.

I also planned what we were going to do and thought we would go back through the breakwater and head off to an Island called Isla Naranjo which is very protected. This was some 9-10 miles away and apparently is very attractive. We set off from the marina about 2.00pm and headed out. The Signal Station gave us permission to proceed through the breakwater again. It was quite rolly with 2 metre swells which were breaking on the breakwater. There was not too much traffic so after the first set of buoys we headed off East and toward our Island. We had to dodge a number of tankers en route and we decided to motor due to the distance and the wind angle. It took us roughly an hour to get to the Island and I had carefully thought about our approach as there were a number of reefs around the Island and this was clear as you could see breaking waves on them.

We crept into the bay and anchored in about 4.5 m of water so only 2m under our keel. We were the only boat here and we could see a reef on out left and one to the right of the island but some distance away. The Island was just jungle with a bit of beach showing with palm trees lining it. The mainland was very similar so we sat in the middle with a gentle roll but protected from the wind.

Keith, Joyce and Carolyn swam and I did a bit more navigation. It was Jonas’s birthday and he was 60. Joyce and Carolyn had put up a birthday banner in the saloon. We had birthday drinks on the stern as the sun went down and there was a lovely breeze and we gave Jonas a Panama shirt. Jonas flew his drone and got some good pictures as a result of Stormbird at anchor. Joyce and Carolyn cooked a vegetable bake with chicken and we had a lovely supper being gently rocked.

I had thought of. doing an overnight sail to the San Blas some 60 nm away, However I thought it would be better to get up early as either way we needed to be there in daylight and to get a cruising permit. Therefore we plan for 3 of us to get up early and the rest later. The moon is very bright tonight providing great light on the water and silhouettes. IT was good to be away from the marina and on our way to what I understand are great Islands.  

The blog will continue as we head off to Panama and beyond.

If you have any comments or suggestions about the blog do email me on hine.nick9@gmail.com  I can only upload one picture a day and visit our website www.stormbirdgoesglobal.co.uk