Our friends are back with us!

On July 4^th our friends on the catamaran Let It Be dropped anchor beside us. What a great surprise to see Mary Grace and Frank again.

 

After one more trip to Home Depot we finally left Salinas July 7 at 4am and motored 20 miles east along the shore of Puerto Rico and arrived at 8am in Puerto Patillas. Puerto Patillas was a nice change from Salinas, the mountains here are a lush green and the beaches are so much quieter than the loud power boats driving around the bay in Salinas.

 

We walked around and had lunch on shore. The ice cream man drove by and we had to have one. We chased him down and final caught him and the chase was worth it. It is so hot here and I have been told it gets hotter.

July 8^th we up anchor at 5:30am to motor to Palmas Del Mar Marina. This is where Let It Be will stay for hurricane season. We will stay 2 nights to charge our new batteries and the say good bye until we see them near the end of the year. We will miss them very much but we know we will see them soon.

 This is a beautiful marina in a gated community with golf courses.

 

 

 

When they built this community the put in a water way to let water in and out. They didn't count on the seaweed coming in. The Sargassum sea weed builds up here and cooks in the sun cause a release of methane gas witch smells like a farm only a little stronger.

So if weather permitting we will head to Calibra a island in the Spanish Virgin Island and meet up with some new friends on a boat called Ishtar.

What a difference a day makes!

We are still in Salinas. We noticed a hurricane forming in the Atlantic so we think we would be safer staying where we are. Salinas is a place where a lot of boats will come when a hurricane is aiming at Puerto Rico. The boats will hide in the mangrove rivers and they are very safe. The models so far shows it coming this way, some models show it staying out a sea and some show it coming close. So we will sit here until it passes.

 

This was disappointing news because it's very hot and humid here and we want to get into the islands where we can get into the water to swim. Although you don't get cooled of until you get out. The water temperature around here will be between 85F to 90F or 31c or 34c.



July 2nd One Year On The Boat

 

Here's what the water maker looks like today!

 

So we are leaving tomorrow if the weather cooperates and try and make our way east. We will meet up with some friends in Palmas Del Mar marina and stay a few days. Then I hope we can move out to the islands. It's hard to get around because of the weather. We have to keep our eyes on the weather waves coming across the Atlantic. Any tropical storm in the Caribbean can effect us by wind or waves and keep us in one place for over a week. If we get stuck for a long period we want to be in a place we can provision. Right now our goal is to get to the French side of Saint Martin. If all goes well we will be there within 3 weeks. It's not to far away but we just want to take our time.

 

 

 

Happy Canada Day!

What to do on the weekend in Salinas Puerto Rico

We took our dinghy's out to the mangrove lagoon to see what the locals do on the weekend. They all gather here, some for the day and some for the weekend. They anchor the front of their boat and tie the back to the mangrove. They stand in the water all day and drink beer. Remember what goes in must come out! You want to be up stream of every one if your going in the water. We arrived late and some boats had already left. We saw about 50 to 100 boats and they all play there music very loud and each boat is playing different music. Have a look.

Still in Salinas Puerto Rico

We are still in the same spot and it's not a bad place to be. The weather is still blowing and we are not in a hurry to get out into the big waves and wind so we will wait. While we wait we have ordered a new water maker from Florida. It should be here by Wednesday and the weather should be better by then for leaving. We have taken a few pictures around town.

Every house has bars on the windows, doors, and driveways

 

So we will stay here until Wednesday then watch the weather for our next move. I hope we can make it to the Spanish Virgin Island soon.

Waiting for a weather break AGAIN!

Well the tropical weather waves are moving across the Atlantic and the Caribbean. That is causing large waves in our area so we have to sit here at least until later in the week.

 

I have a treat for every one following this Blog. Our buddy boat Wind Machine with Abby and Ben have produced some great videos. Abby does great work and I want to share two videos. Enjoy!

 

This is a video Abby made of Dominican Republic



 

 

This is a video of crossing the Mona Passage

 

We are busy in Salinas.

We have moved to Salinas on Saturday and we have a few things to do while we are here. We left Gilligan's Island at 5am and arrived at Salinas around 10am and just rested for the afternoon. Sunday we walked 2 miles to the grocery store for a few things and walked around the village a bit. The village of Salinas is a beach area and it gets crazy on the weekends. The Puerto Rican's love to party and the music is VERY load.

This is a nice little bar built in the mangroves. A nice relaxing place for a drink in a great breeze.

Sunday night we decided to go out for dinner with our buddy boat friends Ben and Abby.

 

Monday Ben and I walked many miles to by parts for our boats and Ben had to drop off his alternator for repairs. We had a long day while the girls did laundry. There's always some thing to do, I wish we good have some fun time by the water again like we did in the Bahamas. Well that will come soon enough, we are very close to the Spanish Virgin Islands. We decided to rent a car to do some more shopping for parts and the go into Old San Juan.

Here's some pictures from around town

 Very narrow cobblestone streets

 Strange tree with moss

 Small sguare

 Looking for a place for lunch

This is not our boat!

 

 

 

We also visited the old fort in Old San Juan and Laurie will tell us all about that. So that means it's time again for;

So Here's Interesting Tidbits SHIT for short!

 

 

De Pozzi Cemetery

 

This cemetery was built in 1827. Many members of San Juan's economic and political elite were buried here.

 

 

Castillo san Felipe del Morro

El Morro Fort

 

This fort was built in 1539. This impressive stone fortress has the most fantastic views of the Atlantic Ocean high on the land in the old city of San Juan. It was built by Spanish Colonists to defend against attacks from the sea. El Morro was also occupied by the American military service and was an active base for World war 1 and 2. this fort attracts two million visitors a year.

 

 

The City Of San Juan

 

This city was founded in 1520 after Juan Ponce de Leon relocated here from the town of Caparra. The first settlers established a settlement on the edge of a 2.5 mile area overlooking the bay. they settled here to escape the heat and humidity as well as to escape rebellious Taino Indians. the first dwellers were mostly gold diggers and clergymen. San Juan became a full blown city by the late 18th century but was limited to growth because it was confined within the walls built to protect it from invaders. The first walls were built in 1634 after attacks from the English and the Dutch where they burned down part of the town and came close to conquering San Juan.