Panama - The Pacific Side

Panama City - Balboa Yacht Club

Panama City looking northwest  from Roca San Jose

Arrluk pulled into the Balboa Yacht Club on the early afternoon of April 28th, 2013.  Repeated attempts to raise someone on the radio were frustrating, as we puttered around on the outskirts of the open mooring area, once coming very close to a shallow area, before a man on a Panga simply arrived to waive us over to a nearly submerged, sea life encrusted, "ball" (actually a couple of nearly submerged tires) and assisted us in getting moored.  Our location later proved to be "less than ideal," (my words) or, "The Shits," (my wife's) as we were right in the path of all the crew and support launches that left the port at all hours, always at full speed.  Thus we were constantly subjected to substantial wake action and the loud roar of the engines.  To top if off, the "boat" moored next to us, a large two deck, no cabin, catamaran party boat, hosted numerous events throughout our stay, always with the stereo speakers turned to full volume with music we seldom appreciated.  We would have loved to move to a mooring further to the north or east, away from the launches' path, but all moorings were in use by long term residents.  The place was convenient as a stop, but not particularly memorable, which may explain that we haven't a single photo other than one taken of our arrival dinner in the restaurant.

Oddly enough, although only 150 yards from the main channel for incoming and outgoing ships to the canal, we never received a wake from these vessels, regardless of their size.  They simply were travelling very slow and deliberately, often passing us without our even noticing them.

The Balboa Yacht Club provides water taxi, or Panga, service to the boats in their marina, if you can raise them on the radio.  We noted most of the cruisers in the area simply blew their ship's horn a few times to get attention, and soon the taxi would be motoring their way.  This was a blessing, as we found no need to launch our dingy during our stay.  The long dock, leading from shore to the office and fuel/taxi dock, was sturdy, but in need of some TLC.  Once ashore, we found a very nice outdoor restaurant and bar area crowded with people.  They served a very nice burger and, more importantly, very cold drinks, of which we immediately enjoyed several.  We learned that the marina was home to a significant number of long term ex-pat residents and it was quite common to hear as much English in the bar as Spanish.

On April 29th we were visited by Peter Stevens our agent for the Canal Crossing.  Peter is quite the character and soon was making arrangements for me to find a doctor to have an infected leg looked at, and chasing down some hard to find supplies/parts.  We relinquished copies of all our documents and our passports so he could process us out of Panama.  For a welcome change, we were not going to have to visit any government offices.

Over the next several days we visited a local clinic and I received some strong antibiotics (as well as a shot in the butt) to combat my infected leg, along with instructions not to leave town until I'd seen  the doctor in two days for a recheck; we made several trips to the Supermercado (supermarkets) for restocking our freezer, coolers, and cupboards; runs to various marine and auto supply stores to find some bronze pipe fittings; and a day long trip to the Albrook Mall for a dose of big city shopping (we bought little but enjoyed the air conditioned comfort).

Flock of seabirds with Cruise Ship in the distance
outside Flamingo Marina, Panama City

We had to adjust our travel plans due to the required doctor visit, so extended our Panama City stay until the  afternoon of May 2nd.  On the 1st, we scheduled a re-fuel first thing in the morning.  This ended up being half day operation, as communications failed and we reported to the wrong marina (La Playita, instead of Flamingo, several miles away on the other side of the causeway) first thing in the morning.  Several radio attempts, multiple cell phone messages left and finally just gut instinct had us parked off the entrance to Flamingo Marina, watching the cruise ship passengers motor from the ship into the harbor for their guided bus tours around the area, when we finally received calls back from our agent that we could pull into the harbor and the fuel dock.  By the time we were back on the ball in Balboa, we'd spent nearly five hours to take on less that 400 gal. of fuel and top off our water tanks.  (Note the last fill-up of fuel was in Jamaica, so we didn't do too badly on mileage, considering).

The Pacific was passive, compared to our Caribbean
cruising

On May 2nd, at 2 PM, after a final clearance from the doctor and last minute bulk beverage run, we dropped the ball and began cruising again!  Our destination was Naranjo (Orange) Point, 170 miles to the west.  Geography dictated that we had to actually head further south, to clear Pt. Mala (Bad Point) before we could start in a westerly direction.  Darkness soon set in, and we resumed our night shift routine, as the evening storm loomed just south of us, with quite spectacular lightning illuminating the various ships leaving or heading to the canal.  We kept a close watch on the radar for approaching vessels, to assure we had no unexpected encounters.  The evening passed with seas and weather being kind to us as cleared the point and turned West along the extreme southernmost portion of Panama.

Our little Anchorage Cove at Pt. Naranjo, Panama.

At about 5 PM on May 3rd we dropped Anchor in a small cove north of Pt. Naranjo.  We had fair protection from the swells and enjoyed a nice dinner and evening's rest.

That evening we were treated to a fantastic display of bioluminescent bugs, that swarmed around the boat and occasionally made entry.  We never quite identified the bugs, but they seemed to leave a long streak of light in the air rather than the brief blinks of light we were accustomed to from US fireflies. Unlike US lightning bugs, they seemed attracted to humans, which made us a bit uncomfortable and had us checking our windows and screens.

The experience prompted us to break out our stored screening for the aft deck and work on getting it installed for the first time on the voyage.  This was a bit of a challenge as it had been years since the screen was up and the aluminum track it slid into at the top was corroded and rough.  It was a task to identify each screen, then pull it through the track to the proper position, but we managed to get it done before the next evening.  In the process we identified that many of the heavy nylon zippers had deteriorated to the point they were nonfunctional and needed replacement.

Isla Rancheria Anchorage (Northeast of Isla Coiba, Panama)

On May 4th we cruised 51 miles west northwest to the northern tip of the large Isla De Coiba, where we dropped anchor in a very sheltered and deep cove on the east side of Isla Rancheria, reportedly a private island.  There we weathered a significant thunderstorm with spectacular lightning, thunder, winds to 25 knots, and rain pouring down.  Thankfully, we were well anchored and had dinner cooked before the torrential downpour arrived.  It did make for a bit of a sleepless night, as concern over our anchor and changes in wind direction caused the boat to move differently, something that quickly wakes us cruisers up to check our anchors.  The next morning, as shown in the above photo, left little sign of the storm we experienced the night before.

Fishing Pangas were everywhere.  Most have no lights
so beware if you are cruising around this region at night

The next morning we departed for Isla Parida, another 50 miles to the northwest.  There, we found some competition for our intended anchorage with local fishermen, who anchored their pangas close to where we hoped to drop ours.  Instead we puttered our way north a half mile to Punta Jurel and found a fantastic little cove just off a "resort;" anchoring at only 3:30 in the afternoon.  The resort was little more that an outdoor dining area and fire pit, from what we could see, but did have a fair amount of small boat traffic.  Isla Parida is very close to mainland Panama, and is a frequent weekend destination for vacationers.

Punta Jurel, Isla Parada, Panama (to the right) with our anchorage cove in the center, right

As darkness fell we succummed to yet another night time sunset photo (below) with the little campfire glowing and cracking in the quiet night, only punctuated by the occasional howler monkey or bird call.

A gorgeous Punta Jurel sunset.

We had a very quiet evening, with only a minor thunderstorm and a bit of rain to keep things damp and cool(er).  It was still quite hot and humid, but being off the coast, we had only a few bugs, especially with our rear deck screening deployed, which permitted us to sleep with our rear deck's french doors open all night, allowing the slightest breeze through the boat.

The seas remained calm for much of our voyage, a real blessing. This photo is of the north side of Isla Parada as we left

The morning of May 6th saw us weigh anchor and set out for our last intended anchorage in Panama, Punta Balsa.  Punta Balsa is located at the extreme northwest of Panama and is an isthmus of land upon which the border with Costa Rica runs through the middle to the Pacific Ocean at its western tip.

Punta Balsa anchorage area.  Costa Rica is just beyond that ridge line!

We arrived in the early afternoon at high tide and anchored as shown in the above photo.  Upon the tidal turn and upon reflection we moved the boat to deeper water toward the left in the photo.  It was a relatively quiet evening, but we did get some constant swell activity that kept us rocking all night.  By early next morning we were set to leave on a 55 mile trip to Quepos, Costa Rica where we hoped to rest up for a while and enjoy the pleasures of another marina.

Sealife

A Pod of Dolphins "Riding the Bow Wave."

While yet to spot any whales, we've had the pleasure of visits from many other creatures.  Of course, our nearly constant companions are the dolphins who seem to delight in riding the pressure wave in front of the boat.  We had to wonder about their communication with nearby pods, as it seemed that just as one pod tired of visiting with us, another would jet into position and begin their play with the boat.  On a number of occasions we would see them breach the water, jumping high and spinning before splashing down with a great slap.  On a few occasions we would catch a glimpse of one out front "standing up" with his head out of the water giving us the eye and checking out what was above the water line.  This occurred so often that we actually quit photographing them and the kids no longer rushed to the front of the boat to watch when the watchman announced, "Dolphins!"

Sea Turtle moving right along

We've also seen a large number of sea turtles of various types, lazily swimming along.  I'm afraid weve even given a couple of them a rude bump, not spotting them in time to turn the boat.  They simply bounce off the side of the boat, but one poor chap not only bounced off the boat, but then slammed into the trailing dingy.  Poor guy made an immediate, but tardy dive for deeper water.

Two or three Sea Rays 'sunning' the tips of their fins

One of the strangest behaviors we've seen and have yet to find an explanation for, are the sea rays' morning ritual.  Early each morning, as the sun begins to hit the water, the rays come to the surface where they cruise along for some time with the tips of the fins, like batwings, sticking above the surface of the water.  In some instances there will be several of them doing this together.

A Sea Ray of some sort swimming with his fins out of the water

We will then see the rays (we are not sure if they are the same ones or not) breaching the surface and flying 10 to 12 feet in the air while flipping at least two times, landing with a great splash in either a belly or back flop.  It happens with regularity but no predictability, so our attempts thus far at capturing this dance with a camera have failed.

Of course it is rare for us to not be escorted by a group of birds, some large, others quite small.  Some appear to be using the boat as a means to target fish who fly or swim across the surface (literally) to escape the boat.  More on this (with photos) in future additions of the blog.

Our next blog installment should get us through Costa Rica.  As we author this installment we've successfully cruised to El Salvador where we are weathering some storms, swatting bugs and simply relaxing.