Guatemala - another season that ends

With hurricane season upon us, we headed to Rio Dulce, Guatemala, a well-known hurricane hole, with 4 other boats.We had a great sail and we were glad to see the thunder storms always in front of us. At some point, we slowed down the boat on purpose to stay well of one. We even got a mahi! Not a bad way of ending our third season as cruisers.

Capt'n with the catch of the day

Because the entrance to the Rio Dulce is shallow, we decided to anchor in Cabo Tres Puntas and approach the Rio Dulce the following morning, at 5 am, with the high tide that would give us an extra 2 ft. of water.
And so we got to Livingston, the town at the Rio Dulce Delta, in the early hours of the morning. We didn't touch bottom but it was quite close, as we saw 6.4 ft of water (Taia draws 6 ft.). A few of the other boats did touch bottom, but they just plowed through the mud.
The check-in process is supposed to be simple but lengthy, requiring trips to several buildings and a visit to the bank after each one. Alternatively, you can use a company that does all the work for you for about $50. We always do the check-in process ourselves, but because there's been some theft incidents reported from boats anchored in Livingston (some friends of ours had their sheets cut and stolen from the boat) we decided to pay the fee and make the whole ordeal easier and quicker.

As soon as we were checked into the country officially, we lifted up anchor and proceeded to motor the 20 nm to the marina where we'll spend hurricane season. The Rio Dulce is beautiful. I wasn't expecting it to be as stunning, a gorge whose sides rise up to 300 ft.covered by luscious vegetation. It's hard to describe it with words and pictures; as usual, they don't do it justice.

This year we'll stay in a marina, as it's safer than being anchored. Also, the cost of the marina is really cheap compared to the rest of the Caribbean. Being in the marina offers the kids the ability to get off and on the boat at their will, without having to rely on us parents. And they are taking advantage of that, sometimes disappearing for hours on end. They spend a lot of time just walking around the marina, other people's boats and the pool. It's good for them, and it's good for us.

Entrance to the Rio Dulce

Local fishermen

Home for the next few months.

The pool at the Nana Juana marina

A quick dinghy ride or 30-minute walk over one of the tallest bridges in Central America, lies the small town of Fronteras. Some people call it just Rio Dulce. I wouldn't say the town is nice but it's very interesting to see at least once. It's a big loud mess of people, trucks full of cattle, motorcycles and animals coexisting together. There's a lot of small shops selling a bit of everything, a decent-sized supermarket (always important to us cruisers) and lots of market stalls full of fresh and very cheap vegetables and fruits. We're loving the strawberries and the watermelon!

The town of Fronteras.

The local market at Fronteras

Roatan and Utila

After spending 8 days in Guanaja, we departed to Roatan. We had a short and easy sail to French Harbour, something we hadn't had for a little while.

We had a lot of expectations about Roatan, having heard from other cruisers and friends that the diving there was excellent.

French Harbour is nice, although I was a bit disappointed in the fact that the beach at Fantasy Island can only be used by people staying at the resort or marina.  We did, however, have a beer at the marina bar where we met other cruisers and were introduced to Cheeky, the local monkey, who is wild but makes a point of making an appearance at the bar for happy hour expecting some peanuts.

We were anchored close to French Cay, a small private cay where tourists go and spend the day. They have a mini-zoo, 3 or 4 bars and restaurants, lots of kayaks and standing paddle boards to use, and, more importantly, a tower about 12 feet high from where to jump in the water. We paid $5 each and spent a whole afternoon there, where Camila and Matias spent hours jumping from the tower.

Matias jumping off...

We moved to West End next, where we got reunited with the crews of La Smala and Gone Walkabout, whom we last saw in August of last year in Grenada. Both of these boats have kids, so we were all excited to see each other.

West End Beach

The town of West End is pretty but what got our attention was the snorkelling and diving around the anchorage. Anywhere we went, the coral reef was healthy and just plain beautiful. It's been one of the best spots so far.

We did some snorkelling and diving in Utila too but we preferred Roatan and are looking forward to going back in October/November.

After each dive, with a little bit of spare air in the tank, Ernesto taught Camila and Matias the basics of scuba diving. Camila absolutely loved it and she was doing so well that, after a few lessons, Ernesto took her down to 15 feet and she was super excited. Matias likes it too but he's having some trouble equalising.

Camila on her first dive, using the octopus.

Camila's second dive, with BCD and all