en-route - Panama to Grand Cayman
Saturday March 21st – Panama to Grand Cayman
“You’re going the wrong way”, those are the famous lines in the movie, Planes, Trains and Automobiles called out by motorists on the ‘right way bound freeway’ over to John Candy and Steve Martin just before they are sandwiched between two juganaut trucks.
We’ve not exactly been squashed between anything, but we are definitely having a very long upwind beat from Panama to Grand Cayman.
We left Shelter Bay Marina last Sunday 15th at noon, and it was clear as soon as we left the Panama Basin breakwater what was in store for us. We left at the beginning of a predicted weather window - 10 – 15 knots of easterly wind. The trades in the Caribbean always run easterly?? Not this week, they’re coming out of the north and sometimes a bit easterly at 15 - 20 and the accompanying waves and swells are keeping us at a steady 2 – 3 knots. Actually I shouldn’t complain, yesterday we sailed all day at almost a close haul and did between 4 – 5 knots.The water is the most beautiful blue – such a bright royal blue and in many places on our course it is quite shallow, even as shallow as 30 feet, which is a bit disconcerting as there are also many charted reefs with lots of little black ships with their little bows up and sterns underwater. We obviously don’t want to join them.
“You’re going the wrong way”, those are the famous lines in the movie, Planes, Trains and Automobiles called out by motorists on the ‘right way bound freeway’ over to John Candy and Steve Martin just before they are sandwiched between two juganaut trucks.
We’ve not exactly been squashed between anything, but we are definitely having a very long upwind beat from Panama to Grand Cayman.
We left Shelter Bay Marina last Sunday 15th at noon, and it was clear as soon as we left the Panama Basin breakwater what was in store for us. We left at the beginning of a predicted weather window - 10 – 15 knots of easterly wind. The trades in the Caribbean always run easterly?? Not this week, they’re coming out of the north and sometimes a bit easterly at 15 - 20 and the accompanying waves and swells are keeping us at a steady 2 – 3 knots. Actually I shouldn’t complain, yesterday we sailed all day at almost a close haul and did between 4 – 5 knots.The water is the most beautiful blue – such a bright royal blue and in many places on our course it is quite shallow, even as shallow as 30 feet, which is a bit disconcerting as there are also many charted reefs with lots of little black ships with their little bows up and sterns underwater. We obviously don’t want to join them.
Comments