Daily Logs

Ideal - It's a whopper of a Fish!

See picture below.Also caught a very big Mahi/Dorado briefly before it snapped the line and jumped out of the water to free the hook from it's mouth!Today, the 14th, we caught a fisherman's net line round the rudder, Zac jumped in and freed us in no time, but there are lots of nets about just off the Ecuador coast.Now 150 miles from the equator, the champers is chilling!Should be in Salinas late Saturday or early Sunday morning as we can't enter in darkness due to bad navigation marks.Thanks for all the e mails, great to read them.Missing you all but, not the weather!Paul and SallyIMGP2925IMGP2930. read more...

Whitbread - 14 February 2008

today its german log on whitbreades war 11 15 und ich sass am steuerrad unseres grossen blauen schiffes als ploetzlich unser fruehwarn fisch system alarm schlug. nach tagen auf see nur dosennahrung und kein wind waren alle schnell an deck um die einholaktion mitzuerleben. ich holte meine arbeitshandschuhe aus meinem fach nachdem ich feststellen musste dass es ohne nicht ging. das 'ding' was immer es auch sein mochte war riesig und zog wie verrueckt. langsam und bedaechtig holte ich die schnur ein jeff wartete schon mit dem haken und sam mit dem messer und schneidebrett. jeder von uns sah sich schon am tisch sitzen vor ihm ein schoenes grosses stueck fischfilet auf dem teller. die morgenliche muedigkeit war verflogen und die spannung zum zerreissen. das 'ding' schwam auf unser boot zu und. read more...

Ariane - ARIANE - Las Perlas-Inseln

Las Perlas-InselnHallo liebe FreundeWir segeln in dieser interessanten und lieblichen Inselwelt umher und geniessen teilweise nette Sandstrände, teils urwaldähnlichen Baumbestand und vor allem leere Ankerplätze. Wenn man sich dann mal mit einer anderen Yacht treffen will, greift man zum Funk und ruft diese einfach auf. Klappt wunderbar. So sind wir morgen mit der"Lady Lisa" vor einem Fischerdorf der Insel Cania verabredet, um dort frischen Fisch essen zu gehen; wir freuen uns darauf.Heute sind wir in eine gut geschützte Bucht bei Casayeta eingelaufen, zum Glück bei Ebbe! Zu unserem grossen Schreck sind da ganz üble Felsen und Riffe sichtbar geworden, die weder auf dem Plotter noch in den zu ungenauen Seekarten eingezeichnet waren! Zum Glück verfügen wir noch über ein sehr gutes. read more...

A Lady - Log 7 - day 27 - 02 Feb, Panama City.

Flamenco Marina was very pleasant and gave us a base to relax and explore. The meal organised by WORLD ARC was superb. On Saturday 30 January the crew of A LADY arranged their own very interesting tour of Panama City which was followed in the evening by a party arranged by WORLD ARC and then the amazing PARTY BUS, all great fun and very exhausting. Retail therapy was undertaken by all members of crew, three of whom had to purchase quad band mobile phones, our phones from back home just didn’t want to know. Two members of crew took a taxi over the Bridge of the Americas to see an Air Display which was rather disappointing.Today we refuelled, cast off from the marina and headed for the Los Perlos IslandsKDSkipper's personal blog @ http://blog.mailasail.com/alady. read more...

Strega - log 14.02.08

Der Pazifik, der Sanfte...hatte uns tatsächlich sehr sanft empfangen -kaum Welle bisher- und hat uns nun ein sanftes Regengebiet geschickt, dass sich gewaschen hat. Seit zwei Tagen teils hefige Schauer, aber sanft, kaum Wind drin. Schön zum duschen also, aber langsam werden die Finger weich und die Haut schrumpelig. Der Dieselvorrat und die Reserve sind fast aufgebraucht und so hoffen wir auf etwas Wind um unserem Ziel näher zu kommen. Die Pos. ist 01°01'N und die dünne Linie des Äquators ist schon an der Kimm zu erkennen.undHappy Valentine Girls ! :-). read more...

Crazy Horse - Las Perlas, Mogo Mogo

Well, we are anchored here near the island where the TV show "Survivor" wasfilmed. I know some of you really got into that series. One thing, I cantell you it is very hot here! When it showed them hot, drinking lots offluid, and getting very tired - that is really true. Think Matt had a littleheatstroke yesterday after Maggie, Matt and I went exploring around one ofthe islands here. It was an interesting island where lots of frigate birdsseem to have their breeding area. We went climbing over rocks and sand andsearched for snails and other life. We saw pools of interesting fish trappedby the tide.There are about 7 or 8 other boats here enjoying the islands. Eowyn, LadyLisa, Voyageur, Jeannius, Brown-Eyed Girl, Sunrise, and Ocean Jasper are allhere with us. The rest of the boats are. read more...

Southern Princess - Towrads the Ecuador coast 14th Feburary. 01:50N 79:59W

Not a lot to report since yesterday. The fish tasted great for dinner last night and we have so much of mahi mahi it will be the staple diet until we land. The radio sched at 12:00 yesterday was interesting. 'Blue Flyer', one of our number was boarded by Columbian Coast Guard during the previous night. Must have been terrifying as it is sometimes difficult to tell the baddies from the goodies and to have shouts, lights, guns and fast approaching motor boats is not much fun. All the fleet was also in pouring rain but as we were a day or two behind it hadn't caught up with us at that time. Lots of rain during the night but no wind. We are now doing calculations to see if we have enough fuel to  motor all the way. Didn't hear anyone on today's sched as we are spread out over a lot of ocean.. read more...

Voyageur - Log day 1 - Back into the Pacific....

1 February 2010Flamenco Marina, Panama, to Contadora, Las Perlas 37nm We fuelled up and headed out into the Pacific in sparkling sunshine, the ocean a glassy calm. It was not long however before we unfurled the main and genoa and cracked along in twenty knots of wind. A beat! When were last close hauled? Not since the Canaries. Wonderful to be sailing again, and just heavenly to have a sea breeze blowing through the boat. Every day is hot, around 95degrees. But this is what we have to expect and acclimatize to now that we are nearing the Equator. The majority of rally boats left yesterday and had already moved on from our first anchorage in the Perlas Islands, Contadora. We dropped our hook west of the small runway and settled down for a quiet evening. Flocks of Pelicans fly in formation. read more...

Lady Ev.VI - Daily Log, Final Report Panama Kanal

Der Panamakanal verbindet bekanntlich den atlantischen mit dem pazifischen Ozean und ist eine der wichtigsten Wasserstraßen der Welt und verkürzt die Passage z.B. von Europa in den pazifischen Raum erheblich. Porto Colon mit der Shelter Bay Marina liegt am westlichen, atlantischen Eingang des Kanals. Von hier aus konnten wir uns in Porto Colon versorgen und neben der herrlichen Landschaft, z.B. den River Chagres mit seiner tropischen Tierwelt besuchen. Am atlantischen Kanaleingang wurde jede Yacht vor Anker liegend mit einem Lotsen besetzt und sogenannte Agenten organisierten die langen Leinen und extradicke Fender. Die World ARC "Armada" wurde in mehrere Gruppen aufgeteilt. Wir wurden mit der deutschen Thetis als Lotsenboot in der Mitte und der Schweizer Yacht Ariane zu einem dreier. read more...

Lady Kay - Calm to Ecuador

Well we're heading down towards Ecuador. We're currently off the coast of Colombia. There is absolutely no wind and it is very hot and humid. We are having to use the engine all the time. The sea looks very strange, as calm as a mill pond with occasional ripples created by cross currents. Every now and again we cross great patches of red sea created by phytoplankton. The sea in these sections seem full of algae and perhaps silt which our watermaker doesn't like. Still we have plenty of fresh water. Today we have been doing odd jobs and boat cleaning.This morning it was so humid that the visibility was down to under a mile. Out of the haze we were buzzed by a US Coastguard plane. Presumably based in Columbia. As I write this, we have just caught a large Mahi-Mahi, so we know what we are. read more...

Graptolite - Getting Wet

01:53.33N 080:10.74W Thursday 14/02 04:26 in a squall 70 miles off the coast of EcuadorShin did a blog in Japanese for us today but it turned into a row of little squares in the email. We'll work on the technology. Caught a huge dorado this afternoon. At least we got it to the side of the boat but it made a final lunge and snapped the line under the keel. It was well over a metre long. Shin said it was "a big brudder". Can't argue with that. So far the score is Fish: 3, People: nil. Fortunately there is still plenty of chicken in the fridge to use up.The weather has turned a bit unpleasant. Cool and damp with lots of rain and the wind is no use at all. I have to say I expected something a bit more scorchio being this close to the equator.It's only about 120 miles more until the water. read more...

Voyageur - Log day 23 - Second time around.....

31 January 2010No hangovers on this boat, David and I were up bright and early. We had to vacate our space on the dock for its private owner and now rafted alongside A Lady, the Irish flagged Oyster 56. We may not have managed the city tour but I was not going to leave Panama without a second visit to the Miraflores Lock Museum. Francois came along too. We spent quite some time on the viewing platform watching the ships passing through, just where we, three days previously, had waved like mad to the crowd watching us. We ate in the restaurant beside the last and final lock, as these ocean giants paraded before us, dipping down as if in a final theatrical bow as the lock emptied itself of water. Forty ships a day transit the canal. It is compulsive viewing but we had to tear ourselves. read more...

Voyageur - Log day 22 - Party Bus

30 January 2010We settled happily into Flamenco marina. Tight for space we were rafted alongside Asolare. The marina has not progressed one iota, the pontoons still the rickety planks of four years ago. Ashore there are still a good choice of restaurants and bars but they could do so much more. Having spent more time in the San Blas, we had denied ourselves time here. Hoping to go on the city tour we had to abandon the plan, instead taking the part for the top of the furler to a metalwork shop in Panama City. It was however, expertly done, so a very successful outcome. I did make sure of my long awaited retail therapy and spent a lovely long languorous day at the Albrook Centre, completely lost myself in a shopping heaven, David totally tolerate of my indulgencies. In the early evening,. read more...

Maamalni - Leg 2 - Day 3 Flat calm

Happy Valentine's DayThe skies are a bit overcast today and we had a little drizzle this morning, but no wind to speak of and the seas are flat and look like a mirror. The good news with the overcast is that the temperature has dropped a bit - its 84 degrees, but the humidity increased to 82%. Now we know that friends and family tells us that there is record snow fall in the mountains back home, so much so that the mountain passes have been closed for days, so we shouldn't be complaining of the heat.... its just current perspective... we would like a like snow right now.... well actually we would prefer some ice cubes for the afternoon drinks. We are pleased with the versatility of our new dodger and cover... the maker, a guy in Seattle (Breezy Canvas) thought about cover from heavy seas. read more...

Maamalni - Leg 2 - Day 2 Pushing onto Salinas

After a lovely day of beach combing and general enjoyment of the lovely bay in the north end of Bahia San Telmo, we decided to weigh anchor and head towards Ecuador. Deb (of the English couple) caught her very first fish which we had for lunch and it was marvelous. Absolutely no wind and flat seas... but likely not to continue.. read more...

Crazy Horse - Las Perlas

We are here anchored in Las Perlas tonight. The moon is out and it is awonderfully clear and cool night. Ocean Jasper caught some tuna and whitefish and shared with us on Crazy Horse. It was absolutely delicious. Thanks!Many of the other boats are here too- Destiny and Brown-Eyed Girl- or willbe joining us in these islands before heading to Ecuador. Some boats areplanning or going straight to Galapogas from here. We hope to get somerepairs done here while at anchor.Rosemary. read more...

Andante of Mersey - Approaching Equador

It is 0900 on 14th Feb. 2008 We are now 90 miles away from  crossing the Equator. All yesterday was overcast with little wind we have been motorsailing for most of the day. The previous day was lovely and sunny and we had the cruising chute up most of the time only dropping it before the evening meal. This was the remains of the yellow finned tuna which we had marinated in Soya sauce ginger and garlic.  We have seen a lot of dolphins and have had plenty of time to read, listen to music and even watched a DVD yesterday afternoon! After the DVD we had our evening meal the ships favourite Leg of lamb with roast potatoes and peas. It was calm enough to sit below aound the table with plates and not bowls...there's posh! The peas even stayed on the plate. There is enough lamb left on the joint. read more...

Ariane - ARIANE – Panamakanal, ein einmaliges Erlebnis

ARIANE – Panamakanal, ein einmaliges ErlebnisLiebe FreundeDie technischen Details sind auf unserer Webseite gut beschrieben. Nur soviel: Am 27. erreichten wir leider bereits in der Nacht die 3 Gatunschleusen, die fast taghell beleuchtet waren. Wir waren jeweils 3 Schiffe miteinander verbunden, das innere steuert mit dem Motor, die äusseren, zu denen wir gehören, müssen die Leinen anziehen oder nachgeben.Nach dieser spannenden Durchfahrt wies uns der mitfahrende Adviser einen Ankerplatz zu, nicht ohne uns klar zu warnen: Nicht baden im Gatunsee, hier gibt es hungrige Krokodile!!! So übernachteten wir gemütlich in unserem Boot, getrennt durch die Schiffswand von den Krokis!Am 28. fuhren wir durch den Gatunsee. Dies ist wirklich eine traumhafte Landschaft: richtiger Regenwald auf zahllosen. read more...

Voyageur - Log day 21 - The Transit

27 - 28 January 2010The TransitIt was a two day transit. Up early I had spent the morning of departure preparing our evening meal. Meanwhile David checked out and prepared the fenders and warps. Francois arrived nice and early, taking the train from Panama City. We all had lunch together and shortly after that Paul from the WARC came on board. We cast off and headed over towards Colon and to the flats anchorage where we were to await our own personal advisor. We were given a departure time of 5pm. The wait there seemed interminable as it always does when you are anticipating something very exciting but at last at 5.30pm we saw the boat come storming out to all of us, manoevering expertly alongside each boat as it delivered each advisor to each yacht. Nick another employee of the WARC. read more...

Quasar V of Lleyn - Wednesday 13th February

CROSSING THE LINEAn unpleasant morning with lots of rain and we are motoring into a slight headwind all day, although by the afternoon it is dry and humid and the sun is poking through the clouds.Heard this terribly serious and formal net controller at lunchtime only to realise after a while that it was Steve and could imagine him sitting there in his bowler hat! First thing we heard on the radio was that one yacht, 'Harmonie', had been boarded by Columbian coastguards and 'Blue Flyer' had been approached by them!The fisherpersons have been at it again, this time with some success! They had fish on both lines simultaneously! The larger of the fish a black monster (possibly a small shark) got away, but a 'dorado?' was caught and dispatched to the freezer! (Lori) The larger black fish. read more...

Quasar V of Lleyn - Log Tuesday 12th Feb

12th February 2008(Lindsey writes) Wow this is a rare honour indeed. Whilst JB sits on an extended night watch (due to the poorly skippers) I have got my hands on the log writing. Having come off my evening watch at 10pm I shall appraise you of the events of the day. Well the dawn broke fairly misty and murky. Still with high humidity it was a grey old morning. Bob cheered us up with 'eggy bread' for breakfast. Poor Robert still did not show his face for more than a few minutes at a time but luckily Malcy seems 95% recovered.The 2 fisher persons (Bob and Lori) decided to set their tackle and catch us some supper. Whoops of joy were heard when the line started to spin out and thoughts of fresh tuna or mahi mahi made our mouths water. Alas the big fish (and I am sure it was a whopper) got. read more...

Lady Ev.VI - Daily Log, Final Report Leg 1

Bericht über die 1. Etappe von St. Lucia zur Shelter Bay Marina, Atlantikseite Panama KanalAm Mittwoch, dem 06. Jan. um 12:00 Uhr erfolgte der Startschuß zur Ralley um die Welt. Wir erwischten gleich eine gute Position und konnte uns in die Spitzengruppe des Regattafeldes von ca. 30 Yachten vorarbeiten. In Höhe der Inselhauptstadt Castries bog das gesamte Feld in die Karibische See ab, mit Kurs 280 Grad, Richtung eratem Ziel, den San Blas Inseln, ca. 1100 Seemeilen entfernt. Nach anfänglichen schwachen Winden aus Ost, begann der 2. Tag mit auffrischendem Passat aus Ost, der sich dann von Tag zu Tag steigerte. Ab Samstag hatten wir nicht die im Wetterbericht angekündigten 5 Windstärken, sondern 7 und am Sonntag und Montag volle 8 mit 6 Metern Wellenhöhe. Die Passatbesegelung mit 2. read more...

Crazy Horse - Emberera Indians Log 5

What an interesting day we had with the Emberera Indians today. They took us down the Chagris River to a wonderful waterfall swimming site. It was very refreshing after some challanging trek through the forest. Of course the youngsters took it all in stride and encouraged this older folk, me- along.They prepared lunch for us and had some great fruit to go with it all. Afterward, they did some native dances for us and invited us to join in.If you are interested in their history you should look them up. They have been put off their homeland before and this village is a way they can keep their land. They are part of the tourism in Panama. They grow some of their own crops and fish out of the river. They are not permitted to hunt anymore.Matt and Bill stayed on the boat today and did some. read more...

Asolare - Leg 2 day 4 - Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day to my very special absent Lover!Today we reluctantly left the Archipelago de Las Perlas to give them their correct name. Over one hundred islands, most small and uninhabited, others with air strips and great hotels and restaurants. Most with fantastic, dreamy beaches. The tidal range here in the Pacific Ocean is about 7 meters, compared with less than one meter in the western Atlantic/Caribbean so the beaches are long and wide with beautiful soft sand, fringed with both Coconut Palm and Deciduous trees. Gentle fresh water streams meander down the long sand making fantastic patterns with the separation of the intensely black volcanic and the golden sand colours. Some beaches have low cliffs with fresh water waterfalls falling right onto the beach and orgasmic. read more...

Crazy Horse - Log 4 Panama City

This is an exciting day for all the ralliers since we will all finally bereunited since we had the opportunity to attend the reunion at San BLas. Wewill be together for a dinner tonight here at the Flamenco Marina. I'm surewe will have some stories to share.Half of the fleet had a wonderful time at a dock party hosted by WildTigris last night. There was wonderful company, food, atmosphere, and music.A plus was that we even had a full moon. Thanks to Casey, Heidi, Sophia,Sean and Yoyo for organizing and hosting the get together.Tomorrow I plan to go to the Emberra Indian camp. The rest of my crew willstay on the boat and do the repairs to the water pump and various other oddjobs. It is hard to get parts here and we are all having a tough timegetting our repairs completed. I will be happy. read more...

Kealoha 8 - Crossing the Equator - Respecting Neptune

At 05.55 local time (10.55 GMT) we finally crossed the equator, we are now in the southern hemisphere ( much to Adrian and Jen’s joy) !  David’s claim of previous crossing in a cruise ship was dismissed as not qualifying - so with Rosie on hand as photographer, Rosie , David , John and Nick all paid their respects to Neptune in the traditional manner  . Not that Neptune was kind to us for the last 17 hours it has rained constantly in varying strengths – at times even wetter then Dublin or Sligo , as Adrian & Jen did not get up to pay their respects  -  Neptune gained revenge by turning a routine impeller change into 120  min task .  Other fun elements of our trip from Panama   have included , dodging various shipping at night  - it really is v busy here , coupled with. read more...

Jus'Do It 3 - on the move again!

st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) }Sorry no logs for a while – we got busy and distracted on a regular basis in Panama city! We saw a good bit of the city, including the old town, a few local bars,some traditional dancing and a superb typical Panamanian restaurant with no menu – you got what you were given ! Also did a day trip into the country where we were taken up the river in dug out canoes by the local Indians. They took us to waterfalls where we all went in for a swim, to see birds and iguanas throughout the river route and to visit their village where we were given food and a chance to learn about their way of life – gentle, kind people who made us welcome despite our bumbling touristiness! We of course did the carnival again and also had a very raucous night on the rum with. read more...

A Lady - Log 6 - day 22 - 28 Jan, Panama Canal Transit.

Our fourth day at Shelter Bay has almost given us port fever, but it also gave us an opportunity to get to know quite a lot of people on the other boats which form the second half of the WORLD ARC fleet. It is a really nice group of life minded souls. Three nights ago we celebrated Robbie Burns (the Scottish poet) on the marina next to Voyageur, we were given a taste of Haggis and mash, washed down with a dram of Scoth Whisky.Yesterday 27 Jan, with all formalities completed we departed Shelter Bay and headed for Panama Canal Ricardo our pilot arrived on board late afternoon, we were nesting-up alongside the yacht J Sea (Canadian) so with lots of fenders we tied up together and headed for Gatun Lock at the northern end of Panama Canal. The feeling on board was amazing and really exciting;. read more...

Quasar V of Lleyn - Log continued

Emergency 'Nav' lightsYou can imagine that we were all feeling a little jaded the following morningbut we spent most of the day working on the boat preparing her for sea.It was a long day and an early night! (JB out)Sunday 10th FebruaryTO PEE OR NOT TO PEE THAT IS THE QUESTIONJB: No doubt the title is causing you to frown my dear readers but all will be revealed in good time. Today was the start of LEG 2 - Panama to Ecuador, which is a 4 day sail due south. The rally started at 12 noon, however, we decided to leave at 9.00am given that Asolare, the boat we were moored alongside at the marina, wished to leave early. Our departure was uneventful save that a parade of Panamanian pelicans bid us a fanciful farewell as we left.The wind persisted in its flightiness and so we pressed ahead. read more...

Chessie - WorldARC 2010/11, SY CHESSIE

Auf die letzte Minute - oder: jetzt werden erst mal die Weihnachtsgeschenke ausgepackt.Hallo Ihr Lieben,leider haben wir verpasst, Euch ein schönes Weihnachtsfest zu wünschen, und für ein Happy New Year ist es auch schon reichlich spät.Nicht verpasst haben wir dagegen unseren privaten Start - nicht direkt ins Neue Jahr, da lagen wir in der Rodney Bay vor Anker und haben bei einem? Gläschen Sekt das Feuerwerk der umliegenden Hotels genossen - sondern zur Round the World Rally des World ARC, welche ganz nach Plan am 06.Januar um 12:00 in der Rodney Bay stilvoll mit count down und Startschuß begonnen wurde.Und das auf die letzte Minute, am Vormittag wurde noch die Rettungsinsel von der Wartungsfirma per Watertaxi auf unser Schiff gebracht, und gegen 11:30 war dann auch endlich das. read more...

Voyageur - Log day 20 - A giant "leap" across the land!

26 January 2010I really do hope that our fellow ralliers fully appreciate the significance of transiting the Panama Canal. For a start it is the short cut between west and east. How many of us would want to go round "The Horn"? It is the 'Path between the Seas' to quote the title for McCulloch's famous account of the whole history and building of the Panama Canal. It is a point of no return, there is no going back and who would want to, for it just gets better and better. The Atlantic and Caribbean Sea are behind us now. We only have the South Seas ahead. Today we received our Panama warps and fenders. Last time we had to use our own 100metre lines but this time the WARC have arranged for the warps and fenders to be delivered directly to the boat. This is good as now we have light weight. read more...

Voyageur - Log day 19 - "Tasting the Bard"

25 January 2010Tasting and toasting. The "boys" from Eowyn, Graham , Mike and John, and ourselves gave a pontoon party for all the rally yachts here in Shelter Bay. The haggis came from tins, so it could hardly be "piped" ashore. The "tatties" were easy enough, and a mixture of carrots and sweet potato was the nearest we could get to imitating the "neaps", (turnip to the uninitiated.) All this was served up on a toasted slice of Graham's freshly baked bread.To wash it down we served a "tot" of Highland Park malt whisky. It was nice that practically all the boats came along. We really did try to keep it on the pontoon. With only 0.8metres under her keel we did not want Voyageur to get stuck in the mud. We want to go into this canal as much as everybody else. I think "Rabbie" Burns might. read more...

Quasar V of Lleyn - Log continued

Instead I shall focus on the "city bus night tour" which went on in to the wee hours of the morning. When we exited the bar, we saw the buses waiting for us to board them with their neon disco lights flashing. You can imagine we looked on with a certain element of trepidation given that Lindsey and I had come armed with our cameras believing that a city night tour would be showing us the city's treasures at night. "and to the left we have the palace..and to the right we have the parliament..." and such like. But we gingerly boarded the bus which was akin to Dr Who's tardis as we were transported to a 70's/80's disco. The bus driver drove at a steady pace of 5 kph through Panama City whilst we drank and danced the night away - actually it would be fair to say that the bus driver could. read more...

Andante of Mersey - Panama City and Onwards- Andante of Mersey

Staying in Flamenco Marina on the outskirts of Panama City. Marina O K, good bars etc. Panama city I thought was an ugly place,slums and skyscrapers and oppressivly hot.  The highlight of our stay for me was Carnival. An area of the city is cordoned off, work stops and the inhabitants party day and night for 3/4 days. We joined a long queue to enter the area but eventually we were approached by an old lady who led us to the front of the line, she explained to us that retired people had priority- well I suppose there are benefits in looking old. We were all body searched and allowed to enter the carnival. The floats were sensational, the drumming loud and rhythmic, you just had to dance. We all joined the party, beer was 50cents a can plus a great choice from stalls selling local food.. read more...

Ariane - ARIANE: Livekameras Panama

Liebe SegelfansHier nochmals ein Vorschlag, wie man uns zu einer vernünftigen Zeit sehen kann:Die Durchfahrt durch die Gatunschleuse erfolgt ca. 18 Uhr, kurz vor dem Einnachten. In der Schweiz wird das Mitternacht sein: Nicht jedermanns Sache! Aber am 28. werden wir um ca. 11 Uhr in die Miraflor-Schleusen einfahren: das entspricht 17 Uhr nachmittags in Sibirien... und vor allem, es ist Tag!Wir werden in 3 Dreierpäckchen und in 2 Zweierpäckchen einfahren, also insgesamt 13 Yachten. Uns könnte man am sehr grossen dunkelblauen Bimini entdecken (Dach über dem Cockpit). Ausserdem werden unsere Solarzellen mit Kissen und Wolldecken zum Schutz zugedeckt sein.Unsere Iridiumverbindung mit dem miserablen Mailasail-Anschluss funktioniert im Moment nicht wegen äusserst lausigem Support! Wir. read more...

Crazy Horse - Panama Canal

We had an excting time getting through the Panama Canal and the locks. Wewere all excited not knowing what was expected of us and how the boat wouldreact to the current and being tied up to the other boats. We had advisorsfrom the canal with us on all the boats both days. We had wonderful advisorsand they really helped us get through safely and without any problems. Theywere very professional and very friendly to all the crew of Crazyhorse.Sempe was our advisor on Saturday and Jose Banos was our advisor on Sunday.Sempe helped us get through the locks on Saturday and got us safely tied upto the mooring. He left us at 9:30pm after a long day of heat andanticipation. We learned sooo very much about the canal and its importanceto the people of Panama and the world.We anchored in Gatun Lake. read more...

Whitbread - Log Day 3, Booby's

Its funny this american sports fisherman dude walked past us on the dock in Panama and had a chat about the trip to Oz and he thought this "concept" of sailing (as if its a new thing!) was great because you didn't use the engine.....well it's all good if there's wind!We've been racking up a few engine hours and couldn't help but picture his sports fishing boat cruising at 36 knots and reaching Ecuador in 12hrs! Wouldn't like to get the fuel bill at the end though.Very hot today.Wolfy was excited earlier as he managed to get his hands on some boobies, and it has been a while. Well it was one booby, a brown booby that decided to have a go at our lure and get entangled. We quickly lit the BBQ and....nah I'm joking we cut the hook out and put him back in the sea.It is hot.Had a big lightning. read more...

Southern Princess - Wednesday 13th enroute Las Perlas to La Libertas 04:32N 79:38W

After a couple of days in the Las Perlas, we are now heading for La Libertas in Ecuador. Not much to report from yesterday except for a very worrying night for your truly. When we started the motor yesterday the exhaust was puffing white smoke (Tony off Storyteller suggested that a new pope might have been elected!) and as a result we consulted all the diesel books we had on board which made dire predictions as to what the problem might be. But the smoke had the consistency of steam and all the instruments, oil pressure, engine temperature etc were all within normal limits so we kept going. Now the only thing which was different was that I had cleaned out the raw water filter while in Isla San Jose and both John Gilder (Storyteller) and I worried about what might of caused the problem.. read more...

Voyageur - Log day 18 - Return to Civilisation

24 January 2010Shelter Bay Marina was just exactly what we needed after the simplistic life in an around the San Blas islands. A swimming pool to cool off in the intense heat of the day, a restaurant where I can take some time out from galley duties, but best of all we get to see our cruising buddies again. Although we are somewhat "out in the sticks", being 30 minutes from the city of Colon, it is a return to some form of civilization for all of us. Shore power, water, shower and toilet facilities, laundry services AND…. the internet, ah! The internet! This morning we saw skippers and crew alike, sitting in the restaurant, a veritable "sea" of laptops. We were no exception. There is weather to download, internet banking (very important if we are to stay solvent), and catching up with. read more...

Ronja - Arrived in Panama - Yipyyyyyyyy

Dear Readers, As you might have seen from the two last posts, we had some rough weather on the route to Panama. We were not unprepared for this since the Columbian cost is ranged as the worst coast in Caribbean and as the fifth worst coast to sail in the world. The reason is an constant area of low pressure in the Columbian mountains and rainforests. But, when you finally arrives at your destination ? Panama in our case ? what a thrill and enjoyment that fills all of the crew (and the captain). A famous Norwegian singer, which also is a sailor, once said: ?it is all the spots on the edges of the oceans that are the most interesting?. We couldn?t agree more, here finally arrived in Panama. Again the arrival was most welcoming, with other World ARC participants waving from their boats, and. read more...

Talulah Ruby II - In Las Pearlas

The excitement of transiting the Panama Canal is now behind us.We had some great experiences in the rainforests and exploring Panama City at carnival time,and canoeing upthe Chagras River to visit the Indian villages.After our start from Flamingo Marina on the 2nd leg of our adventure we decided as there was very little wind to stop off at LasPearlas Islands which turned out to be great fun quite a few other ARC boats did the same thing and we all had a BBQ on the beach the first night.Some of the islands are still uninhabited and others with small settlements still using hand carved canoes as our picture shows, and living self sufficiently on fish and fruit. Today (Wed) we are 180mls south of Panama on our way to Ecuador no wind. During the night we saw dolphins playing in the. read more...

Lady Kay - Hot hot hot

Heading further south and the temperature is rising. Luckily the huge bimini over the cockpit gives good shade, unlike some of the racier boats in the fleet. The weather over the last 24 hours has changed to very light winds from the north which has meant a lot of motoring. The sea is flat calm only punctuated by very marked tide lines where the sea stands up in small vertical waves. Parts of the sea were a distinct red from the presence of phytoplankton, nice to look at but necessitating a change of water maker filters. The tide however has been our friend adding as much as 1.5kn to our boat speed. Thank you Neptune. Last night the wind increased to 12 - 15 kn and allowed nice progress under sail. Either side of the boat the clouds were lit up by distant lightening. Phosphorescence lit. read more...

Bristol Rose - Leaving the Caribbean

Wow, hard to believe. Trish and I have sailed Bristol Rose 5,000 miles and are about to leave the Caribbean. With Owen, Elliot and Rex, we are about to enter Colon Harbor, Panama where we will prepare to transit the Panama Canal. For us it is a time of mixed emotions, to be leaving the now familiar Caribbean and the many good friends we have made along the way, as we begin our long awaited return to the Pacific Ocean; the ocean we fondly think of as our home waters. As we sadly say goodbye to the Americas we think just as fondly of our chosen home for the past 13 years in North America, and the good friends we hope to see again. Across the Pacific lies our homeland Australia, about 8,000 miles and 6 months away.. read more...

Cleone Log Leg 2 Day 4 - Cleone crosses the Line, and gets Long-lined Twice!

Cleone has been long-lined twice - oh, and in between we crossed the Equator! Hurrying along and minding our own business, we were mulling over the things that went nearly bump in the night, and looking forward to the Equator and the promise of a Norfy concoction for dinner - just what was a matter of speculation, but we were looking forward to it all the same.  It was getting towards the end of the Skipper's spell as duty Radio Operator.  To reduce electronic "noise", we were sailing - which in itself was a bit unusual for this leg.  The skipper was having a hard time.  Reception was poor, and the Fleet were walking all over eachother (ie all talking at once rather than one at a time) as he struggled to get their positions and weather reports.  Finally, after resorting to a different. read more...

Voyageur - Log day 17 - Arrival in Panama

23 January 2010We left Isla Linton and motored all the way on a windless heaving Caribbean Sea towards Panama. When within 1nm of the breakwater you have to call up the San Cristobal Signal Station on Channel 12. They control the movements of all ships entering and leaving the Canal. They then give you the "go ahead" for your entry through the breakwater and beyond, in our case Shelter Bay Marina on the west side. We are split into two groups as there is not enough room for us all in Shelter Bay. As we entered, the first group had already left and were at anchor in the "flats", awaiting their pilots who will take them through over the next couple of days. Paul was there to meet and greet us and at long last we were able to "dump" our rubbish, twelve bags in all, clean the boat, and have. read more...

Tucanon - WARC week 3

As we lifted the anchor at Barbecue island, a ray, around one metre wide, jumped from the water three times. Wow! Had I realised there had been one so close, perhaps I might not have swam around the boat.We moved to the anchorage at Chichime island on Friday afternoon. From just one nautical mile away from our destination, there just didn't look as if there was a passage through the reefs although a narrow one was shown on the chart.The pelicans look just amazing as they fly from reef to reef and across the islands. They stand on the reefs and dive to catch fish.Apart from the ray, I haven't seen while snorkelling, any fish larger than the size of whitebait. When we walked around the island of Chichime, a Kuna woman was sitting in a boat working on a fish which was huge. It must have. read more...

Graptolite - Entering the Doldrums

04:59.31N 079:47.42W Tuesday evening off the Colombian coast.The winds are light so we are doing some motoring. Not sure how far the diesel will take us. We don't have any horses but there is no need to throw any creatures overboard just yet.Bumped into 'Adante of Mersey' this afternoon and had a mutual photo session. They have the same type of asymmetric spinnaker as us. We compared notes over the VHF and discovered that we had ours flying back to front.Doesn't seem to make any difference though.M. read more...

Quasar V of Lleyn - Log Thursday 7th - Saturday 9th February

A précis of 3 daysJB writes: Hello everyone I'm back on board Quasar V having been on Cleone and then Kasuje helping them transit the Panama Canal - Panamanian authorities require 5 people on board each yacht - 4 line handlers and a helmsman. Both transits were incredible experiences and I loved every minute of them. I like to think of myself now as an honorary Cleonite and Kasujeite although no doubt this is at the full discretion of the respective skipper of each boat, suffice it to say that both skippers and their crew made me feel very welcome on board to such an extent I am now suffering post holiday blues!But in true Quasar style we hosted a magnificent dinner party, cooked by Lori and helpers on Thursday night inviting Cleone and Kasuje on board for some delicious supper prepared. read more...

A Lady - Log 5 - day 18 - 24 Jan, and to Shelter Bay. Panama.

On 22 Jan, we called to Isla Linton where some of the crew went ashore and had lunch, we then sailed on to historically interesting Portobelo. We decided to give the restaurants a miss. Your scribe celebrated his 40th Wedding Anniversary with his wife Fie back in Ireland on 23 January, the Atlantic Ocean and Carribbean Sea between us, cards and goodies had made it in each direction, a celebration lunch was held aboard A LADY.We did an interesting boat tour up the Mori River where we saw lots of birdlife. We then raised anchor and headed for Shelter Bay Marina where we arrived late afternoon.Today 24 Jan we settled into Shelter Bay and made a visit to Gatun Lock which really gave us a feel for Panama CanalKDSkipper's personal blog @ http://blog.mailasail.com/alady. read more...

Kasuje log: Wednesday 13th February

We spent most of the day under motor, it has still been hot but at last the weather looks like breaking.... but you should always be careful what you wish for. By mid afternoon we were optimistically looking at the wind-meter hoping that there really was some wind coming and it had turned (as expected) WNW. Kasuje's familiar 'fish boat' look was soon gone as the twin poles were stowed and we were ready for a full on, close hauled, scary ride. Even the Led Zeppelin CD was readied. Still only 5 knots but surely we would get some more soon. Whilst we waited for a little more wind (and encouraged by yesterday's success) Skipper and Guy indulged again in the fishing competition. Once again the unbelievably lucky Guy was first to land and has now whopped the skipper 3:1. Another Dorado! Suzy. read more...

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