Just kidding. Andrew was overjoyed to see us and be in the Caribbean after a bleak trip shuttling passengers to Canada. For us, seeing Andrew meant that we would be sailing for a week with a dear friend, and that the bustle and schedules of the last two weeks were at an end. It was time to have fun and have no particular place to go. The Gloriamaris had a charter for the week of January 10-17, so it would just be the three of us on Leap. We were confident we would find some way to amuse ourselves.
Andrew had actually been carrying his mask and snorkel in his luggage for the better part of a week, since he didn't have time to stop at home before coming to see us. We brought him back to Leap on our mooring in West End, and the starboard settee became his 70-cubic-foot apartment for the week.
We took Andrew to see the nightlife of West End on his first evening, and have a real island dinner. By that, we mean a tiny kabob stand right on the main street run by a very kind, matronly lady who serves (seriously) the best food in West End. We've tried the fancy restaurants, we've tried the tourist traps, we've tried the hidden gems. None is as good as this lady's $5-a-plate street food stand next to the dance club. Anyway, we caught up on all the news we had missed over the last few weeks, and settled in to vacation mode.
Our first day revolved around the Packers-Cowboys playoff game. We descended upon Duke's place, a large sports bar run by a native Texan and filled with local flavor. What really drew us in, however, was Duke's promise of a pig roast on the beach for halftime. Duke delivered, we ate our fill of delicious island pig, and the Packers took home a win. What's not to love? We celebrated the victory at Sundowner's just up the street, and talked over the many possibilities of where to sail for the next week.
We took in our fill of West End, and took Andrew snorkeling for the first day. No fewer than three turtles joined us for the swim, though Andrew vehemently maintained it was the same turtle, which decreased in size each time we saw it. We did the island tourist routine for a day, and it was time to sail!
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| He is, in fact, steering. |
The wind, unfortunately, wasn't favorable for much of a trip. We started with grand plans to sail from Roatan to Utila, then to Cayos Cochinos, and back to Roatan. That's three trips of 22 nautical miles each in a single week. Very doable, but we eventually decided against using up three whole days simply traveling between islands. And so we set out for Utila with the intention of simply exploring the SW Cays.
Navionics has proven only so reliable throughout our trip. We've depended in large part on Steven Pavlidis' cruising guide book. In the SW Cays of Utila, however, both led us astray. Pavlidis recommended an anchorage close to shore on the south side of Utila.
This recommendation brought us within 100 yards of shore in 25 feet of water with a grassy bottom and no wind protection. The track leading off to the northeast is us loudly proclaiming "screw this" and returning to Puerto Este Utila to regroup for another day. It wasn't all bad, because once back in Utila we were able to stroll the main street and watch the backpackers and scuba diving students go about their nightly entertainment.
We woke up the next day determined to try again. We got some waypoints from The Parents via email, and set out for the Cays once more.
Experienced sailors among our readers may notice that we appear to have made a terrible choice of channels between islands. This is the only area where Navionics has completely let us down. We were in the deep channel all the way, and I know because I was standing on the bow pulpit the whole way in, keeping us in the deep blue water. Andrew was amidships relaying information, and keeping the whole process much more calm and civilized than it would otherwise have been. We made it through and anchored in good holding ground just off David Beach. The scenery here was gorgeous, as would be expected.
We then set about some serious snorkeling. A 40-minute dinghy ride brought us to a small island off the western shore of Utila, which we immediately claimed in the name of Milwaukee (because her grand overseas empire must start somewhere) and named Pelicanbush Island (because it had been an intense reef passage and we weren't feeling very creative). We circumnavigated our island, pleased with the population of turtles and pufferfish contained within our claim. We fell back into the dinghy, exhausted after a 2-hour marathon in the ocean swell.
That night, we were treated to a cloudless sky and stargazing the likes of which we've never seen. It's an unusual experience for a Northerner to lie back in shirtsleeves with a glass of rum punch and count the stars of Orion in perfect comfort. Alone in our anchorage, with the lights from the nearest town a faint glow on the horizon, we lost all track of time. And the lights in the sky, various and infinite, had imitators in the sea below. The anchorage was still and calm, reflecting only the stars overhead. But break the surface, shatter the mirror with a simple swish of a toe, and the depths came alive with an indefinable swirling pattern of surreal blue and green. Thousands of lights appeared suddenly and vanished again in a moment. They were real, reflecting our movements and within our reach, yet as beyond our grasp as the stars. None of us had ever seen bioluminescence of this beauty and magnitude before, and it may be many a year before we see it again.
The next day, it was time to set sail once more. Andrew only had a week with us, though each of us wished it could be more. Cayos Cochinos was out of the question, both in terms of wind conditions and time constraints, so we set about exploring the far reaches of the Southwest Cays by sail. Miles offshore, we found a breaking patch of reef and anchored nearby for a refreshing dive. Unfortunately, the reef appeared to have been fished fairly heavily. We saw no reef fish of any significant size, no snappers, no groupers, not even any large parrotfish. We have found underpopulated reefs to be a recurring problem in Honduras, and we are significantly worried that soon the reefs will be nothing but lionfish as far as the eye can see. Seeing the reefs now, even in their reduced state, is one of the primary reasons behind our Sabbatical.
We did not spend too much time reflecting on the future of the reefs, however, as there was plenty of sailing to do before we returned to our overnight anchorage in Puerto Este Utila. We said farewell to the backpackers and scuba students, and had dinner at a delicious and delightful Chinese restaurant called Foo King Wok. Had we stayed on board, we probably would have fallen asleep the moment the anchor was set.
Roatan was calling, partially because we had explored Utila up and down, but also because Andrew's time with us was unfortunately running short. We set out for French Cay Harbor early the next morning, enticing Andrew with tales of swimming amongst lobsters and dining on lionfish. The passage was unfortunately devoid of dolphin companions, but was otherwise lovely and calm. We anchored next to our old friend and neighbor Smart Move, and showed Andrew around the more settled community of live-aboard cruisers.
We swam with the lobsters in Sherman's park, which Andrew appreciated since the reef is only 4' deep, and for the first time we could not dive far beyond his reach! We did our souvenir shopping at Arch's Iguana Farm, and took Andrew to dinner at Temporary Cal's. All in all, it was a typical day in French Cay Harbor.
Soon afterwards, it was Andrew's time to fly home, and our time to figure out what could possibly come next after such an amazing week.
In spite of the overall joyful adventurous tone of the week, Andrew did have some trouble relaxing. He had scored an interview with Spirit Airlines in the days immediately following the trip, and needed to prepare himself for a potential major career change. We spent many an idle hour going over interview questions and wrapping our heads around the potential life change to come. Within days, we got the wonderful news that Andrew had landed the job with Spirit, as we had known he would!
Next time: slow down, you're moving too fast
We then set about some serious snorkeling. A 40-minute dinghy ride brought us to a small island off the western shore of Utila, which we immediately claimed in the name of Milwaukee (because her grand overseas empire must start somewhere) and named Pelicanbush Island (because it had been an intense reef passage and we weren't feeling very creative). We circumnavigated our island, pleased with the population of turtles and pufferfish contained within our claim. We fell back into the dinghy, exhausted after a 2-hour marathon in the ocean swell.
That night, we were treated to a cloudless sky and stargazing the likes of which we've never seen. It's an unusual experience for a Northerner to lie back in shirtsleeves with a glass of rum punch and count the stars of Orion in perfect comfort. Alone in our anchorage, with the lights from the nearest town a faint glow on the horizon, we lost all track of time. And the lights in the sky, various and infinite, had imitators in the sea below. The anchorage was still and calm, reflecting only the stars overhead. But break the surface, shatter the mirror with a simple swish of a toe, and the depths came alive with an indefinable swirling pattern of surreal blue and green. Thousands of lights appeared suddenly and vanished again in a moment. They were real, reflecting our movements and within our reach, yet as beyond our grasp as the stars. None of us had ever seen bioluminescence of this beauty and magnitude before, and it may be many a year before we see it again.
The next day, it was time to set sail once more. Andrew only had a week with us, though each of us wished it could be more. Cayos Cochinos was out of the question, both in terms of wind conditions and time constraints, so we set about exploring the far reaches of the Southwest Cays by sail. Miles offshore, we found a breaking patch of reef and anchored nearby for a refreshing dive. Unfortunately, the reef appeared to have been fished fairly heavily. We saw no reef fish of any significant size, no snappers, no groupers, not even any large parrotfish. We have found underpopulated reefs to be a recurring problem in Honduras, and we are significantly worried that soon the reefs will be nothing but lionfish as far as the eye can see. Seeing the reefs now, even in their reduced state, is one of the primary reasons behind our Sabbatical.
We did not spend too much time reflecting on the future of the reefs, however, as there was plenty of sailing to do before we returned to our overnight anchorage in Puerto Este Utila. We said farewell to the backpackers and scuba students, and had dinner at a delicious and delightful Chinese restaurant called Foo King Wok. Had we stayed on board, we probably would have fallen asleep the moment the anchor was set.
Roatan was calling, partially because we had explored Utila up and down, but also because Andrew's time with us was unfortunately running short. We set out for French Cay Harbor early the next morning, enticing Andrew with tales of swimming amongst lobsters and dining on lionfish. The passage was unfortunately devoid of dolphin companions, but was otherwise lovely and calm. We anchored next to our old friend and neighbor Smart Move, and showed Andrew around the more settled community of live-aboard cruisers.
We swam with the lobsters in Sherman's park, which Andrew appreciated since the reef is only 4' deep, and for the first time we could not dive far beyond his reach! We did our souvenir shopping at Arch's Iguana Farm, and took Andrew to dinner at Temporary Cal's. All in all, it was a typical day in French Cay Harbor.
Soon afterwards, it was Andrew's time to fly home, and our time to figure out what could possibly come next after such an amazing week.
 |
| Fortunately, Andrew bought us a hammock chair. |
In spite of the overall joyful adventurous tone of the week, Andrew did have some trouble relaxing. He had scored an interview with Spirit Airlines in the days immediately following the trip, and needed to prepare himself for a potential major career change. We spent many an idle hour going over interview questions and wrapping our heads around the potential life change to come. Within days, we got the wonderful news that Andrew had landed the job with Spirit, as we had known he would!
Next time: slow down, you're moving too fast
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