Caribbean Panama
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If Balboa, where we entered on Tuesday morning, is the mouth of
the Panama Canal, then Colon is aptly named as … well … the
other end. Colon Town, where the Panama Canal Yacht Club is located,
occupies the bulbous end of a peninsula that extends into the harbor of
Bahia Limon, resembling nothing so much as a pre-cancerous polyp that
really ought to be excised and cauterized during the canal’s next routine
medical exam.
We stayed at the PCYC for three days. The first night we pulled in because
it was the closest dock to where we dropped off our advisors, and to reach
the other local marina would have required crossing the main ship channel
at night, which Cap’n Steve was unwilling to risk. We stayed for two more
days mainly because we were too lazy to move. When we arrived the first
evening we were greeted by Mike, the “night manager,” who collected a
$30 slip fee, gave us a receipt and told us that check-out time was 1100
the next morning. He was also very forward in informing us that he lived on
the boat adjacent to ours, that his position as “night manager” was a purely
volunteer one, that a $20 tip would be highly appreciated for his hard work,
and that we’d be welcome in the bar no matter how bad we smelled after a
day working our way through the canal in the hot sun, especially if we were
buying a round. We passed.
It would be charitable to report that the PCYC has seen better days, and
that it was worth every penny of the $29.90 daily slip fee. (Yes, in addition
to angling for his tip, Mike ripped us of for a dime that first night!) However,
other cruisers who'd been there before told us that the club was just as
nasty 20 years ago. Apparently the PCYC reached its state of maximum
decay at some point shortly after the opening of the canal and has been in
a state of delicate equilibrium between the pull of tropical entropy and
absolute minimum maintenance spending since then.
And yet they do have their standards. For example: there is a handwritten
sign in the bar: “By order of Commodore, laptop computers not used in
bar, go sit on porch!” Hence, the air conditioned and spacious bar sits
empty while laptop users, clearly second-class citizens at the PCYC,
huddle around a single aluminum picnic bench under a leaky, sheet metal
roof, vying for one of the two plug-ins, and of course it would be too much
to expect the wireless signal to extend another 40 feet onto the docks.
the Panama Canal, then Colon is aptly named as … well … the
other end. Colon Town, where the Panama Canal Yacht Club is located,
occupies the bulbous end of a peninsula that extends into the harbor of
Bahia Limon, resembling nothing so much as a pre-cancerous polyp that
really ought to be excised and cauterized during the canal’s next routine
medical exam.
We stayed at the PCYC for three days. The first night we pulled in because
it was the closest dock to where we dropped off our advisors, and to reach
the other local marina would have required crossing the main ship channel
at night, which Cap’n Steve was unwilling to risk. We stayed for two more
days mainly because we were too lazy to move. When we arrived the first
evening we were greeted by Mike, the “night manager,” who collected a
$30 slip fee, gave us a receipt and told us that check-out time was 1100
the next morning. He was also very forward in informing us that he lived on
the boat adjacent to ours, that his position as “night manager” was a purely
volunteer one, that a $20 tip would be highly appreciated for his hard work,
and that we’d be welcome in the bar no matter how bad we smelled after a
day working our way through the canal in the hot sun, especially if we were
buying a round. We passed.
It would be charitable to report that the PCYC has seen better days, and
that it was worth every penny of the $29.90 daily slip fee. (Yes, in addition
to angling for his tip, Mike ripped us of for a dime that first night!) However,
other cruisers who'd been there before told us that the club was just as
nasty 20 years ago. Apparently the PCYC reached its state of maximum
decay at some point shortly after the opening of the canal and has been in
a state of delicate equilibrium between the pull of tropical entropy and
absolute minimum maintenance spending since then.
And yet they do have their standards. For example: there is a handwritten
sign in the bar: “By order of Commodore, laptop computers not used in
bar, go sit on porch!” Hence, the air conditioned and spacious bar sits
empty while laptop users, clearly second-class citizens at the PCYC,
huddle around a single aluminum picnic bench under a leaky, sheet metal
roof, vying for one of the two plug-ins, and of course it would be too much
to expect the wireless signal to extend another 40 feet onto the docks.
The Panama Canal Yacht Club ... yes, that is mold
growing on night manager Mike's boat!
growing on night manager Mike's boat!
Scenic Colon Harbor
| We left PCYC and Colon on Friday, October 19, and cleared out through Cristobal Signal Station, bound for the San Blas Islands. We stopped for two nights at the approximate halfway point, Isla Grande, and made it to Porvenir, in the San Blas, on Monday, October 22. |
| Isla Grande, home of Pupy's Reggae Emporium right on the beach, with Bob Marley on the sound system and a bevy of girls-gone-wild, barefoot on the sand |
| Nationalities, from left to right (below): Russia, Michigan, Coronado, Colombia, Coronado, New Orleans, Coronado |
Proprietor Pupy, himself
| Somewhere along the line we picked up a guest on Dakota Rose ... we decided to keep it in the hopes that it's good at insect abatement |
| The San Blas Islands, also known as Kuna Yala in the native language, compose an autonomously-governed protectorate of Panama that is home to the Kuna Indians. A string of small islands and reefs strung out along the Caribbean coast of Panama, they range to the Colombian border. Many of the islands are uninhabited specks covered with palm trees, while others have villages with reed and thatch huts that extend right to the waterline. |
| The Kunas are at home on the water in their in dugout canoes, some equipped with sails. It isn't unusual to see three generations - grandmother, daughters and infant granddaughters, in a canoe paddling out to sell their handicrafts to the cruising boats. Unfortunately, they don't like having their pictures taken, so we had to be surreptitious. |
| The Kuna women specialize in making molas, intricate sewings with up to six layers of cloth, and are significant earners of cash for their families from tourists. This is Venancio Restrapo, whose business card identifies him as a Master Mola Maker from Isla Maquina. Venancio lives as a woman, which is an accepted lifestyle among the Kunas. |
We befriended Fernandino, from Isla Wichubhuala, who
showed us around his village, introduced us to the local
Tienda and baker, and spent the afternoon with the
boys, spearfishing on the local reefs.
showed us around his village, introduced us to the local
Tienda and baker, and spent the afternoon with the
boys, spearfishing on the local reefs.
Fun with close-ups!
After spending two nights in the beautiful, totally protected
lagoon surrounded by the Chichime islands and reefs, on
October 29 we left the San Blas Islands to return to Colon.
Although this involved backtracking about 70 miles, it was
necessary because there are no stops between Colon and the
Colombian border where we could take on water, fuel and
provision for the six day trip to Aruba.
We stopped for two nights at Isla Grande, then on November 1 we
entered the breakwater into Bahia Limon. Rather than returning to
the PCYC, we went to the other side of the bay to the Shelter Bay
Marina. What a difference! Shelter Bay is fairly new, situated on
the site of the old Fort Sherman, which was built in 1910 as the
first U.S fort defending the canal. They have on-site wireless
internet, laundry, a pool table, professional staff, a nice restaurant,
a night manager who doesn't beg for tips, and some of the
fanciest showers we've seen ... they even have jacuzzi tubs! All
this for only $20 more per night than the decrepit PCYC.
We were originally going to stay here for two or three days, then
strike out for Aruba. However, unknown to us, we arrived just as
the long Panamanian independence weekend was kicking off,
with offices closed on Friday and Monday. So, we'll stay here until
Tuesday, November 6, do our exit clearance paperwork that
morning and, weather permitting, leave that afternoon. This will
also give the boys a chance to make some real progress on their
college applications.
lagoon surrounded by the Chichime islands and reefs, on
October 29 we left the San Blas Islands to return to Colon.
Although this involved backtracking about 70 miles, it was
necessary because there are no stops between Colon and the
Colombian border where we could take on water, fuel and
provision for the six day trip to Aruba.
We stopped for two nights at Isla Grande, then on November 1 we
entered the breakwater into Bahia Limon. Rather than returning to
the PCYC, we went to the other side of the bay to the Shelter Bay
Marina. What a difference! Shelter Bay is fairly new, situated on
the site of the old Fort Sherman, which was built in 1910 as the
first U.S fort defending the canal. They have on-site wireless
internet, laundry, a pool table, professional staff, a nice restaurant,
a night manager who doesn't beg for tips, and some of the
fanciest showers we've seen ... they even have jacuzzi tubs! All
this for only $20 more per night than the decrepit PCYC.
We were originally going to stay here for two or three days, then
strike out for Aruba. However, unknown to us, we arrived just as
the long Panamanian independence weekend was kicking off,
with offices closed on Friday and Monday. So, we'll stay here until
Tuesday, November 6, do our exit clearance paperwork that
morning and, weather permitting, leave that afternoon. This will
also give the boys a chance to make some real progress on their
college applications.
| Three locals paddle across the bay at Isla Grande in a shoebox |
Chillin' in the Caribbean ... life vests
can be worn oh, so many ways
can be worn oh, so many ways
Our final stop in Panama:
Shelter Bay Marina
Shelter Bay Marina
