Moving on – to Panama Thursday, 08/12/2022
The last couple of weeks have been spent fiddling with the boat and researching my onward movement. This included getting a yellow fever vaccination – required in some places. Very easy here, and nothing to pay – simply went along to a government-run health centre and was injected and given a Colombian vaccination certificate. No ill effects either – felt a bit tired that evening, but next day absolutely fine. Apparently side effects are pretty common: headaches, muscle aches and low grade fever. None of those!
I was intending to head north, to Jamaica, the Cayman Islands and Cuba. But after a lot of research I finally concluded that I didn’t want all the hassle involved, not least a potentially difficult 4-day trip against largely northeasterly winds. So I am opting for the easy route – simply heading a little south of west to Panama. I will leave on Saturday morning. This will be a relatively short trip, about 250 nautical miles to Puerto Lindo, which is close to the most northerly point of Panama, northeast of Colon and the Caribbean entrance to the Panama Canal. It is a clearance port, so will check in there and spend a few days, and then very likely head east, only 60 miles or so, to the San Blas Islands. This is an archipelago of about 365 islands and cays, only 49 of which are inhabited. It’s well known for its beauty: classical tropical islands and perfect beaches, and pretty unspoilt – no hotels or other big developments. The Kuna, an Indian tribe who inhabit the islands, are very resistant to tourist development.
From Panama, I can sail on along the western coast of the Caribbean. Hopefully I will come across people who have done so and get useful tips from them. That’s the best sort of information really – nothing to beat talking to someone who has recently done something (whereas a lot of stuff posted online is by people who want to stress “how amazing” everything is, which means that the positives are often over-hyped and the negatives left out altogether!).
I seem to have adapted well to being back in the heat… today was typical, sunny and a maximum 32 degrees (feeling like 35 or 36) – but definitely a few degrees cooler than what it was back in July and August! The evenings are very pleasant: at the moment, at 7pm, it’s 27, feels like 30. So noticeably cooler than at midday.
It will be strange sailing again, heading off into the blue. But a two-day trip (hopefully 48 hours or so) is not so challenging – I’ll soon be there!
