Galapagos and heading for Marquesas
Thursday, 26. June 2008, 08:16:13
We left the Galapagos island of Christobal after a couple of days. Time enough for the sea lions to make themselves at home aboard Mind the Gap and have a snooze on the transom steps whenever they fancied. They are smaller and friendlier than their Cape Town cousins and leave as soon as requested. None of that teeth baring and lip curling snarl at your approach.
Went on a tour to see the giant tortoises, a volcano crater, and flora and fauna along the way and the iguanas. These big land based iguanas have adapted to diving into the cold waters for their food. They have to lie on the rocks in the sun to get their body temp back up to normal. There they lie baking in the sun and sneezing salt.
Head for Isabela sailing past the rim of a volcano that is just above sea level in places but the leeward side still rises high above the sea, making a beautiful crescent shaped bay. Unfortunately facing the wind and sea but what remains is probably the result of the wind and sea eroding the rest.
Isabela is beautiful. Sand roads compacted hard and flat and the street lamp posts made from almost straight 4 – 6 inch diameter length of tree branches with a lamp on top. A field of dried lava looked like the rumpled skin of some huge old beast. We had the erupting volcano lighting up the sky with a red glow of fire and brimstone for two nights but we were safe enough about 20 miles upwind.
No bank on the island which caused a bit of a problem when the port captains “problemo” needed settling. An obliging hotel helped out.
The day we are due to leave Te Harinui and two other yachts sail into the bay. The Port Captain is there quick sticks and wants us all out by late afternoon. Isabela is not really an allowed stop for us yachties.
We were lucky to have a couple of days even if not allowed to go swimming with the Hammerhead sharks or go on any of the other tours. I think I am done with tours. You do get to see some extra sites but it all turns out a bit too organized and fake. I much prefer seeing a snippet naturally, like the turtle tracks on the beach in Barbuda with no one else around, no signposts and yackety guide.
A quick trip ashore for the others after their all night sail and before sunset all four yachts sail out of the bay. Next stop Marquesas about 3000 miles away.
You’d think sailing the ocean is lonesome, by the morning there are nine yachts in a twenty mile radius around us. That is the range that our VHF radio receives and transmits. All have recently come through the Panama Canal and all heading ultimately for NZ or Australia with stop overs in the Marquesas, Tahiti, Tonga, Fiji plus other islands on the way.
We all left a Galapagos island within days of hours of each other and are following the desired course just south of the rhumb line to make the best of winds and currents.
Channel 16 is for emergencies but can also be used as a hailing channel before switching over. Out here on the ocean with only us cruisers in range all the chit chat between the yachts is listened to by all the others. Being about mid fleet one morning we found ourselves to be the relay station with yachts almost out of range up ahead hearing one side of our conversation with friends of theirs almost out of our range behind us. Messages were being relayed back and forth then other boats joined in asking about conditions further left or right. I had no sooner said “Mind the Gap clear” when another yacht would call us up asking for a relay to someone else.
It doesn’t take long and although we are all headed in the same direction each boat sails differently and a degree or two change in course makes a big difference and we all fan out sailing the best course for our own boat. The seas are lumpy and bumpy and the wind is not blowing according to the expected pattern. We are pleased to have “Blizzard” behind us and “Delicate Dawn” ahead.
Two days later and we are all alone on an empty ocean.
Not quite alone but out of VHF range.
Lorna and James
Went on a tour to see the giant tortoises, a volcano crater, and flora and fauna along the way and the iguanas. These big land based iguanas have adapted to diving into the cold waters for their food. They have to lie on the rocks in the sun to get their body temp back up to normal. There they lie baking in the sun and sneezing salt.
Head for Isabela sailing past the rim of a volcano that is just above sea level in places but the leeward side still rises high above the sea, making a beautiful crescent shaped bay. Unfortunately facing the wind and sea but what remains is probably the result of the wind and sea eroding the rest.Isabela is beautiful. Sand roads compacted hard and flat and the street lamp posts made from almost straight 4 – 6 inch diameter length of tree branches with a lamp on top. A field of dried lava looked like the rumpled skin of some huge old beast. We had the erupting volcano lighting up the sky with a red glow of fire and brimstone for two nights but we were safe enough about 20 miles upwind.
No bank on the island which caused a bit of a problem when the port captains “problemo” needed settling. An obliging hotel helped out.
The day we are due to leave Te Harinui and two other yachts sail into the bay. The Port Captain is there quick sticks and wants us all out by late afternoon. Isabela is not really an allowed stop for us yachties.
We were lucky to have a couple of days even if not allowed to go swimming with the Hammerhead sharks or go on any of the other tours. I think I am done with tours. You do get to see some extra sites but it all turns out a bit too organized and fake. I much prefer seeing a snippet naturally, like the turtle tracks on the beach in Barbuda with no one else around, no signposts and yackety guide.
A quick trip ashore for the others after their all night sail and before sunset all four yachts sail out of the bay. Next stop Marquesas about 3000 miles away.
You’d think sailing the ocean is lonesome, by the morning there are nine yachts in a twenty mile radius around us. That is the range that our VHF radio receives and transmits. All have recently come through the Panama Canal and all heading ultimately for NZ or Australia with stop overs in the Marquesas, Tahiti, Tonga, Fiji plus other islands on the way.
We all left a Galapagos island within days of hours of each other and are following the desired course just south of the rhumb line to make the best of winds and currents.
Channel 16 is for emergencies but can also be used as a hailing channel before switching over. Out here on the ocean with only us cruisers in range all the chit chat between the yachts is listened to by all the others. Being about mid fleet one morning we found ourselves to be the relay station with yachts almost out of range up ahead hearing one side of our conversation with friends of theirs almost out of our range behind us. Messages were being relayed back and forth then other boats joined in asking about conditions further left or right. I had no sooner said “Mind the Gap clear” when another yacht would call us up asking for a relay to someone else.
It doesn’t take long and although we are all headed in the same direction each boat sails differently and a degree or two change in course makes a big difference and we all fan out sailing the best course for our own boat. The seas are lumpy and bumpy and the wind is not blowing according to the expected pattern. We are pleased to have “Blizzard” behind us and “Delicate Dawn” ahead.
Two days later and we are all alone on an empty ocean.
Not quite alone but out of VHF range.
Lorna and James
WIDGETIZE
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