Gettin To Know Ya in Guatemala

We arrived in the Rio Dulce mid-afternoon, brimming with anticipation to see Leap once again. A local immediately noticed our enormous backpacks and concluded that we needed a taxi right away. Copan? Tikal? No, to his surprise, the answer was Tortugal! A 5-minute water taxi ride and an almost-man-overboard-due-to-said-enormous-backpack later, and Leap was in our sights. She looked clean, happy, and well cared for.

We were greeted by Manuel the manager and Jefe the dog, and made to feel at home. We stepped aboard Leap only 6 months after our wedding on her bow, but somehow it seemed like much more time had passed. This time, we weren't just along for the ride. We were responsible for her, and thought it was up to us to bring her (and ourselves) safely to Roatan to join The Parents (praise their knowledge and patience). 

Guarding the docks

Originally, the Gloriamaris and The Parents were supposed to spend New Years with us in the Rio, help us get supplied and organized, and sail in company to Utila. The owners of the Gloriamaris, in their wisdom, elected to extend their Christmas trip and foil this plan. As a result, we set about the task of provisioning the boat, filling our water, diesel, and propane, finding buddy boats to Utila, configuring our navigation, testing the engine, re-sealing the hatches and installing the lazy jack system on our own.

Our saving grace in this time was the marina wifi for incessant emailing of The Parents, and the local cruiser community. We were welcomed immediately into a singularly friendly and open community of sailors. Cruiser Coffee Mornings, chance meetings on the pier (our projects could be observed and commented on from the bar) and dinner time beers quickly brought us under the tutelage of many an experienced cruiser. It helped that many knew and liked The Parents. Dave and Ellen from Cordelia, Tom and Colleen, and Patrick and Nicole in particular took us under their wing and made sure we never lacked an answer for any question we had. Whether it was long sessions in Navionics setting down channels and waypoints, stories about running onto reefs, advice on cooking for long passages, or tips on getting weather reports via SSB radio, we gathered years of second-hand experience in the course of a week. We had a difficult series of tasks to get Leap ready for sea, but the cruisers of Tortugal made it as easy as possible, and we are deep in their debt for the knowledge and kindness they shared with us.

And get Leap ready for sea we did. RAM Marina and their West Marine store for lazy jack lines. Chiki's for propane and basic groceries, especially noodles and marinated meats. Dispensia Familiar for more basic groceries. Numerous street stands for produce, tortillas, and daily needs. We installed the lazy jacks according to a modified system we found, installed the incorrectly-sized hatch seals, and did our engine trial.

Making spacers for the hatch seals

The engine works perfectly! (spoiler alert: this was a lie)

We celebrated New Years Eve at Backpackers bar with the whole cruiser community. Most of the experienced cruisers left after dinner, but we stayed until 11:00 or so with Thomas and Uli, another fun younger couple. Bryna made the Rio website by dancing joyfully when the singer pulled her up from the table. We made it back to Tortugal in time to pull our dinghy out into the middle of the river. We rafted dinghies with Thomas and Uli and another boat, and watched the fireworks coming from 6 different sources throughout the Rio. 

Only one dark cloud remained on our horizon. As a result of delays and scheduling conflicts, a large shipment of parts, appliances and flooring for the Gloriamaris was being held at Abel's boat yard. Over the course of 4 business days and 5 trips, we managed to clear up a series of misunderstandings and get the entire shipment onto Leap. She became the prettiest cargo freighter to ever sail.

Time was running short to meet up with Andrew. Our first guest flew into Roatan on January 10th, and we needed a break in the weather to make the crossing and meet him. The Parents decided that the best overall option was for them to return to Livingston and meet us to make the crossing to Utila. We had the best buddy boat we could have asked for. We would have liked to visit the local Mayan ruins, take trips up the smaller rivers to experience the local culture, and visit the hot spring waterfalls, but the treasures of the Rio will have to wait for another trip. On our penultimate evening in the Rio, we visited the Hotel Kangaroo. This gem of a restaurant/hotel is tucked back in a small tributary to the Rio, and serves the best Pina Coladas and Mexican food we have ever had.

Behold

It was time to stow the cargo, finish our preparations, and take off down the river for Livingston to meet up with The Parents and head for Utila.