GOOD REASON

We have been motoring for nearly 3 days with only a small amount of sailing. The winds have been mainly headwinds, the swell comes from the 10/11 o'clock and we have a counter current. Although we have heard thunder we have been lucky to avoid lightning. It has however rained for half our journey. At times we feel like it is the North Sea-I am sure the South Pacific will be sunny. We try to keep a watch at night but it is quite demanding as we are rolling round lots-we have to stand up to get a good look at the radar but it becomes very wearing. We normally set a warning zone so that if a ship comes into the zone an alarm alerts us. This is not practical now because the many rain showers set the alarm off constantly. The showers are so heavy that if a ship were near it would be difficult to seperate from the clutter. We had seen no other ships for 2 days. As usual the rain was at its peak toward the end of the day-it was overcast and bleak. Just before sunset I stood up and noticed a boat at 400 metres in our stern following us. The probability of that happening in this remote area is low. We could only make out the lights. It continued to close on us. We are all alone here and this is not far from Columbia etc...so we beacame alarmed. We kept the shades down and turned off the lights. Sheryl collected the flare pack from the grab bag (our only real defence). We waited for 10 minutes as it followed us. We were starting to think that this was a bad situation. Eventually Sheryl turned us away and the vessel veered off to the other direction. After 10 minutes it came to a halt and the deck lights illuminated. I could just make out torch lights on the deck. We have concluded that it was another yacht also heading to Cocos Islands. They probably did not see us in the rain and murk. They probably stopped to refill their diesel tanks from portable canisters. We observed them later on the radar but as the night progressed they became distant and then faded(perhaps they know a short cut).

I took first watch and at 9.30 pm Sheryl came to join me. We were talking when suddenly there was a slow flashing ligt on the windscreen. At first we thought it was a reflection from the green LED on the GPS on the stern of Faraway. It became brighter. As it was bleak and drizzly I was reluctant to lift the side covers. Eventually I popped my head out and in the eery stillness I could see a flashing strobe in the pitch black. It was very disorientaing in the swell and we motored slowly toward it-we presumed it may be someone in the water or in a liferaft as it was similar to the strobes we have on our rescue equipment. I called out and shone our million candle power search light on the area. It was very creepy. There was no response so we moved closer. Eventually in the difficult light conditions we located 2 white balls with a flag and strobe attached. Although it was difficult to see there did not appear to be anyone or any other objects attached or nearby. Confident that we did not leave any people behind we motored away into the darkness. We concluded that it was unlikely to belong to fishing boat 200 miles from land and that it must be a weather buoy that they use to measure offshore conditions. We marked the position and will report it to the rangers in Cocos just in case........

It rained all night. We have a first class Bimini and sprayhood. We had extar work done on it to protect us in sunlight and rain. Once fully closed we are in our own warm cocoon. Well it does not matter how well you sew material if it rains enough the water gets in. Last night no matter where we moved there was a drip of water. When we lay down to rest we had to reshape our body to lie around the drip areas-how we ached this morning.

Apart from that it is the usual routine of checking the rigging/deck etc while secured to a lifeline-at first light and sunset. This morning I found 1 fish and 1 squid on the deck.During the night we get regular visits from seabirds that appear like luminous ghosts in the night as the light reflects off their wings. They dip and dive close to the boat for hours on end using the boat light to identify their prey. How they can manage to keep up with our speed in the strong wind and driving rain is incredible.

We have now got 7 hours to go and we are really looking forward to dropping anchor-we will arrive just before sunset hopefully. We can now see Cocos Island on the horizon towering above the grey rolling ocean. See the photo of Faraway crashing through the waves and Cocos Island in the distance.

Hopefully you are enjoying tracking us on SPOT it updates twice per day. Its on Sheryls Facebook or if you need the link let me know.

I hope that you understand from the blog how difficult it is to get to Cocos and the isolation and solitude that exists in this area. There is a GOOD REASON why few people visit here. That makes it more special-Lets hope it is worth it-Sheryl desperately wants to see a Red Lip Batfish and a school of Hammerhead sharks.

MOTORING BY IAN

Hi all

We are here at last in the South Pacific-well not quite as we are still at 8 north but at least it is the Pacific. Everything here feels and smells different to the Carribean. The ocean has large swells but the gaps between each is greater making the sailing smoother. Unfortnately we are in the Inter Tropical Convergence Zone ITCZ for the next 2 weeks so there is very little wind. We anticipate motoring most of the way from Panama City to Cocos Islands and then Galapagos. Thereafter we should pick up the trade winds and sail most of the way to Australia.

As predicted we motored all the way down the bay of Panama and arrived 1 day later in Punta Guanico. We decided to stop for 2 hours and try the new kayaks. We paddled towards the shore but I got too close and was pushed forward by a huge wave. I quickly turned the kayak to point to sea, too late another wave crashed down on me. I struggled to stay upright and paddled frantiically shouting "paddle Sheryl paddle"-she took off like a rocket glancing over her shoulder to see me being battered by the surf. Luckily I paddled cear of the surf and headed back to Faraway. The kayak was so full of water that we struggled to lift it aboard. I made a note to wear a life jacket in future and steer clear of the shore.

As we were leaving a small fishing boat came alongside. They proudly pulled a variety of fresh fish out of their ice box. Some were huge but eventially we gestured that the small skipjack tuna would suffice. When we tried to pay for it they would not take anything. After a great deal of persuasion they left with a couple of dollars and a beer each.

We continued the journey around to a very remote anchorage Ensanada Naranjo that was completely surrounded by jungle. We were the only ones there and as the sun went down we could here all the insects and animals only metres from Faraway. We woke to the sound of howler monkeys and a beautiful sunrise.

We progressed north to anchor between an island and the mainland in a place called Santa Catalina. There were reefs around the island and huge breakers pounded the shore and island. We cautiously navigated between the spray and found a resonable anchorage. The tidal range is around 15 feet and so Faraway spun back and forward throughout our stay. We took the kayaks on the 1 mile paddle to shore so we could pay for the dive trip to Coiba. Sheryl took her turn being pounded by the waves. We explored the little island that we anchored next to and I spotted some amazing purple and red land crabs. That night we sat down and had a cold beer before falling asleep in the cockpit. We were awoken by distance flashes of lightning. We placed the sides of the Bimini down leaving only the back open so we could observe the weathers progress. Around midnight it arrived. Faraway was rocking and spinning in the current/tide and wind. We left the nav plotter on to see if the anchor dragged. It did we shifted 340 feet at one point-very unnerving as we were surround by reef and surf. We tried to get a visual fix on the land but it was a complete white out from the spray caused by the tropical downpour. Just when we got a visual on the land, the sky would go blue and purple as were completely surrounded by lightning-blinding us and preventing us getting a good visual reference. After half an hour of monitoring the nav plotter we went below and waited out the weather hoping that we would avoid a lightning strike.

It was a calm overcast day when we awoke. The dive boat arrived and we completed the 20 mile journey to Coiba. (see Sheryls dive blog). After an exhausting day of diving in strong currents we returned to Faraway. We had a BBQ on the back of Faraway and drifted into deep sleep.

The next day we motored 25 miles to a small island called Jacaron. We arrived late in the day-it was not as tranquil as the guide book suggested. It was rolly and had local fishing boats nearby. One boat pulled alongside. One of the six on board pointed to a fishing hook-my spanish is poor so I can only presume they wanted more-they left after I gave each of them a Coca Cola-a small price to pay in exchange for meandering through these remote islands freely. We did not feel comfortable so dashed south for 1 hour and tried to anchor in a deep water lagoon. We anchored twice before the anchor dug in. The island looked beautiful and we could see a small group of echo tourists camping on the beach. They had an entire jungle island to themselves.

We woke to another beautiful sunrise this morning and are now heading to Cocos Islands under motor. We have a head wind, head swell and head current so it wil be a long painful 3 days. We are also surrounded by towering clouds so Faraway will get a really good fresh water wash soon.

Thats all for today folks.

Frogfish, Frogfish, Frogfish

Yesterday (May 22) we did 3 dives in the Coiba Island Marine Park in Panama. It was incredible diving and the dive sites were crowded with white tip sharks, jacks, huge moray eels, turtles and a variety of reef fish. The visibility wasn't that great but the marine life certainly made up for it and once you got your eyes focussed everything came towards you and into view. The sharks actually started to get in the way after a while. On the first dive the guide pointed out 2 tiny seahorses. Not sure how he spotted them but we were off to a good start. On the second and third dives we saw around a total of 12 Frog Fish varying in color from green, yellow and brown. This was incredibly lucky for me and I took lots of photos. I was amazed by their ugly little ghost like faces and their web like feet that clung on to the coral in the strong currents. They are true masters of disguise and we really enjoyed straining our eyes to spot them in between the soft corals. It was a wonderful experience to be in amongst an abundance of marine life and to have the opportunity to observe and photograph species that were unusual to us. Today we are heading to Jaicaron Island south of Coiba to rest overnight before sailing to the Cocos Islands (3 day sail) for some more diving. Sorry Ian I just have to see a red lipped bat fish on Cocos and some Hammerheads sharks if possible. Jaicaron Island is described as one of the most beautiful islands along the Panama coastline so I'm looking forward to arriving there in a few hours time. If any followers are interested in finding out our location in the Pacific on Google Maps you can follow the link on my Facebook Profile. We bought a 'Spot' GPS and it regularly updates our position. Just follow the Facebook link and you can see where we are. Unfortunately we only have internet access via satellite phone so I won't be able to update the blog with photos for some time now. Watch this space for the Frog Fish photos though.

Miraflora Lock - The Pacific

Finally at around 2pm we passed through the Miraflora locks. The first photo shows a screen capture from the web cam showing Faraway (cream colour) rafted to Hakuna Matata in Miraflora lock. Thanks to all our family and friends who tuned in to see us make this journey and probably squinted for hours trying to catch a view of us. As we went through the 3 locks we could see the Pacific Ocean. It was so near but yet so far! We could also see the famous Bridge of the Americas and Panama City which was an exciting view. Incidently we are currently moored on the other side of the bridge (next to a noisy dredge). We screamed and cheered when the last lock opened into the Pacific Ocean. When we anchored that afternoon after dropping off the line handlers we celebrated with a few beers and got an early night. Ian and I were both absolutely exhausted but really enjoyed the adventure. Tomorrow we plan to head off to the Cocos Islands with a few stops at islands along the Panama coastline to break up the journey. We probably won't have internet access for a while but every now and then I will update the blog via satellite phone. We were lucky to make some more last minute shopping trips in Panama City.

Panama Canal - Day 2 (continued)

We passed through the Pedro Miguel lock and dropped another 10 meters. We were rafted to 'Discovery' and another yacht called 'Hakuna Matata'. We unrafted and then joined up again at the famous Mira Flora locks. There were 3 more chambers to pass in this lock before we reached the Pacific Ocean. Things got quite tense as our rafting position was changed and we had to motor in tandem with the other yacht. Ian did very well to steer both boats and we managed to raft up to discovery 3 more times without incident. We owe thanks to the line handlers who had done this before and were good at their job. The photos show the lock slowly opening before we all rush out.

Panama Canal - Day 2 (continued)

As we approached Pedro Miguel lock the water turned very muddy. There had been heavy rainfall in the area over the last few days and the lake was fed by the Chagres River which brought the silt and debris down. We caught up with Puffin along the way and met some more container ships going the opposite direction. After a while the large ships didn't seem to frighten us as much anymore. We seemed to get used to their presence! As we approached the lock we passed under the Centennial bridge and marvelled at the interesting architecture. I was later told in the Balboa Yacht Club bar that an Australian engineer was responsible for the bridge design and construction.

Panal Canal Crossing - Day 2

We woke up around 6am and had cereal and tea. The second Advisor was late so I went below and made bacon rolls for everyone. Puffin left about 1 hour before us and we bid them farewell from the mooring ball. When the Advisor arrived we set off across the man made lake towards the Pedro Miguel lock. It took around 4 hours of motoring to reach the first lock but the scenery was amazing and large container ships could be spotted behind the backdrop of the rainforest. The journey across the lake was spectacular and I was so grateful that the weather was good.

Panama Canal- Day 1 (finished)

As the sun set and we exited the lock into Gatun Lake we felt very relieved. I had made a lasagne for the Advisor's dinner and during the chaos of the lock I was running downstairs and heating it up in the oven and boiling peas for him. It all seemed a bit surreal in amongst all the chaos. Anyway he cleaned up the plate just in time for the tug to pick him up from Faraway. We motored across the lake as the light faded and moored up to a huge mooring ball that are used for ships. I made dinner for everyone and we drank beer and red wine. Around 8pm Puffin and Scila arrived. We had some more beers with the crew off Puffin and did some boat swapping by hopping across the mooring ball until around 11pm.

Panama Canal- Day 1 (continued)

Around 5:20pm we finally saw our line up for the transit! We were in the line up behind a container ship and were going to be rafter with a power catamaran called 'Discovery' and a fishing vessel. Lucky for us we were rafted on the outside of the fishing boat so only had one side to worry about. Discovery was in the dangerous position fending off the wall and handling the lines. In the first lock we rose around 10 meters and the boats rocked against each other as the lines pulled and strained. At this point we don't look too stressed at all do we? We had 2 more locks to go through and repeated the same procedure 2 more times rising 10 more meters each lock. As we exited the last lock into Gatun Lake the sun was starting to set and it was really very tranquil. We marvelled at the engineering feat that was required to construct the lock and maintain its operation.

Panama Canal Crossing - Day 1

Around 3pm on the afternoon of Saturday, May 14 our 3 line handlers that we hired boarded Faraway at the marina. Ian and I had spent the previous evening wrapping car tyres to protect our yacht from other boats and/or the lock wall and sorting out the lines. We motored out to the designated meeting point on 'The Flats' anchorage. The yachts 'Puffin' and 'Scila' also joined us in the flats. Keith is up the front of Puffin trying to release the anchor. We could hear him cussing from 50 meters away! After an hour or so our 'Advisor' for the first day of the canal transit boarded our yacht from a tug boat. He was a very friendly guy called Ricki who was enthusiastic about his job and really put us all at ease. The photo shows our 3 line handlers and Ricki to my left. At this point we didn't know which vessels we would be going through the lock with. We waited patiently trying to second guess the options that had been allocated to us by the Panama Canal Authority.

Gatun Lock landside

Yesterday we returned to the supermarket in Colon to finish our grocery shopping for our journey. On the way back to the marina in the taxi we had to stop at the canal and wait as a huge ship squeezed through the lock. You can see the ship in the background going through and leaving the lock in the distance. It was a pretty amazing process to watch. It was even more daunting to think that we'll be going through ourselves tomorrow. We will enter the canal around 3:45pm so if anyone is interested in watching us via web cam tune into the link between 3:45pm and 5:00pm and you might just see us.

Molas

Molas are the most famous Panamanian traditional handicrafts. They are made of brightly coloured squares of cotton material sewn together. You can buy Molas directly from the Kuna ladies who still make and wear them as part of their tradition or from city outlets where they are made by anyones guess. The prices vary from a few dollars to hundreds of dollars depending on the quality. The examples posted are from a lady who purchased some off the 'Mola Queen' in the San Blas islands. Unfortunately we missed the San Blas islands due to time constraints but hopefully I will be able to purchase some Molas in Panama City after we cross the canal. Ian is trying to avoid this shopping expedition at all costs but I think I have finally worn him down. It has to be more exciting them buying water maker parts and oil filters for the yacht.

Provisioning for the Pacific

Marinas are great sources for obtaining information from people about the hottest sailing destinations, what's good, what's ugly and the places to totally avoid. The people you meet can also persuade you to change your entire sailing plan as well if you're not careful. Once we reach the Pacific our plan is to sail to the Cocos Islands for a few days and do some diving, head to the Galapagos Islands then across the South Pacific to the Marquesa Islands in French Polynesia. It will be about a 23 day passage from the Galapagos to the Marquesa Islands (approximately 3,500 nautical miles) depending on the weather of course! We then hope to visit the islands around Tahiti, Tonga, Fiji and hopefully New Caledonia depending on our progress. Whatever happens we need to be safely back in Australia before the start of the cyclone season starting in October. The total distance we will sail from Panama to Australia will be around 6,000 to 7,000 nautical miles. So far we have only really sailed 1,500 nautical miles since leaving St. Maarten in the Caribbean. We were told by other experienced sailors that Panama is the best and cheapest place to provision so yesterday Ian and I hit the supermarket to buy our groceries. We had to plan meals and had a list of items that would keep us well fed and watered for 5 months. Of course we will be able to top up on fresh food along the way once we cross into French Polynesia but it will probably be a lot more expensive and it's good to know we have ample supplies for any eventuality. We ended up spending $1,500 on groceries that filled 6 shopping trolleys. One trolley was entirely filled with beer and wine which should keep us happy for a while. We spent the afternoon and the next morning storing everything on Faraway and making a list of where we had stowed the items so we could find them while at sea. Check out Ian's tan lines and yes he still has those darn smelly boardshorts on. The bad news is that we have to go back to the supermarket tomorrow to buy the items that we forgot or decided that we needed some more of.

Panama Canal Info

Our Panama Canal transit date has been set for the afternoon of Saturday, May 14. We are scheduled to transit around 3pm with 2 other boats called 'Puffin' and 'Scila'. As we are the larger yacht our position will be in the middle and the other 2 yachts will be tied to our yacht on either side. We have hired 3 local line handlers to help with the ropes. They will stay on our yacht overnight as it will take a day and a half to get from the Atlantic (Caribbean Sea) to the Pacific Ocean. We overnight in Lake Gatun before crossing to the Miraflora locks which are technically on the Pacific side. The canal is 80 km in length and around 14,000 vessels pass through the canal every year. The locks are 305 metres long and 33.5 meters wide. The canal has three sets of double locks and between them the ships pass through the artificial lake called Lake Gatun. With the passage of each ship 52 million gallons of fresh water is released into the ocean. Ships pay according to their weight with the average fee around $30,000. The highest amount paid was $200,000 in 2001 by a French cruise ship called 'Infinity' and the lowest paid was $0.36 by Richard Halliburton in 1928 who swam through the canal (gross thought really as it is pretty murky and there are crocodiles along the way). We will be paying an agent around $1,200 to transit the canal plus the line handler and customs fees. There is a live webcam for the locks on the canal which can be viewed at:

http://www.pancanal.com/eng/photo/camera-java.html

At a guess we will be going through the Gatun Lock at around 5pm on the Saturday afternoon and the Miraflora Lock early on Sunday morning Panama time. We will be the ones panicking and waving frantically no doubt. I have bought a cheap bottle of champagne to celebrate with when we are halfway through! The canal was actually closed this morning as a large ship hit one of the locks and it had to be repaired before re-opening later in the afternoon. This was a relief for us as we didn't really want to be delayed any further than Saturday.

Rainforest Walk

Our Panama Canal transit date is set for Saturday, May 14. We are going through with 2 other smaller yachts. Our main worry now is finding 4 line handlers for our yacht to help us with the ropes in the loch. It's an overnight crossing and I will need to feed the crew and find somewhere nice for them to sleep and provide a lot of beer no doubt as well. We also need to provision for 5 months and that's going to be a big shopping expedition on Thursday. The Shelter Bay Marina where we have been staying since Tuesday is a great place to wait. We spend the mornings and afternoons taking rainforest walks in search of different creatures and birds. The photos aren't great due to the low light and because of the dense forest you can't get very close to the subjects. You can just make out a Toucan in one photo. Interestingly they sound like frogs high up in the trees. The Howler monkey was a big male and he was howling as I took this photo. Ian was jumping up and down on the ground trying to get it's attention but I don't think it was very amused by him. The birds soaring over the trees are some kind of vultures that eat monkeys. We saw the Capuchin monkeys on our walks as well. They have the big white faces and are highly intelligent. Organ grinders used them to collect money from customers in the past. The ones we saw were very cheeky and deliberately breaking off branches over our heads so we had to dodge the falling debris.