Drowned Cays to Cucumber Beach Marina, Belize

After spending a day doing laundry and such, we were invited onto Mobetah for happy hour and great conversation with Pat and Bill, Dave and Booker also joined us (whom we had met in Isla Mujeres. They have a big, beautiful catamaran. Tortuquita) Pat makes a wonderful homemade salsa!

Much thanks to Dave from Tortuquita (for repairing a small tear at one of the battens of our mainsail). He was so kind to come over with his sewing machine. As requested, we hope to pass the favor along to some other sorry soul one day.

Our last evening in Cay Caulker was spent with Pat and Bill from Mobetah, and Dave and Booker from Tortuquita, We enjoyed a few drinks, conversation and dinner at Habanero's. It was a very nice evening. We were sad to leave, but another strong front is expected and we have spent too many nights here worrying about dragging anchor.

We left Cay Caulker on Friday, February 12th heading south to a safer anchorage in the Drowned Cays, about 20nm. Mobetah soon followed.

We thought we'd try to catch some fish on our way. Wouldn't you just know it, just as the reel went RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR, fish on, we were in the midst of going through Porto Stuck, a very shallow area. It must have been a "big" one, cause it broke the line and took our lure!

David added a new lure, barely had it in the water, and guess what. . .we caught a seagull! The crazy bird flew about 3 times around the mast and the genoa before David could grab the line to stop him! He lifted the bird onto our outboard and tried to remove the hook, which went right through his beak! That wasn't working very well, it kept trying to bite the pliers. I put on a pair of gloves and held the gull and David was able to remove the hook and save the bird. Better yet, I was able to get a couple of pics! I'm thinkin' fishing and sailing aren't quite a good combination, or maybe we just have bad luck. (A local fishing boat came by the anchorage on Saturday and we bought a good sized hogfish and a couple of pounds of lobster for like $50 Belize ($25 US). . . so much easier, but then not free!

The first pics were of an old fish camp on Stilts.

We arrived in the Drowned Cays about 11:30 am where we planned to hide in the mangroves, waiting for yet another front. Our friends Pat and Bill from Mobetah joined us shortly there after. They are so kind. As I was about to hoist David up to retrieve the fishing line caught around the mast, Pat and Bill came in their dinghy and did the deed for me! I don't know how we will ever repay them for all their kindness. We are truly grateful for their companionship and kindness. We have been so fortunate on this voyage and have met so many nice people.

The front arrived right on time, about sunset, but since we were in a very protected area it wasn't a problem.

On Saturday, Pat and Bill were heading down to Bluefield Range to do some snorkeling. (They were concerned about "no seeums" in the anchorage, since the winds were expected to die, but luckily we didn't have a problem with them or mosquito's either. We thought about following along, but decided it would be best if we left on Sunday and got fuel and water in preparation for our voyage to Placencia, didn't want to cut it too close. Another front is expected at first light on Tuesday, go figure~? We are missing numerous cays and bogues, too many to mention, to explore and snorkel. Hopefully, we will be able to do this on a return trip. There is much to see and do in Belize, but it is only a bus ride from Placencia or Guatemala, so we plan do it another time.

A little after sunrise, David pulled up the anchor and we headed west to Cucumber Beach Marina for fuel and water. No fishing this trip! We arrived about 10:30am under cloudy skies and calm seas, which is a good thing, as the entrance to the marina is very narrow and bolstered by rocks on both sides!

Our plan was to get fuel and water and head out to Placencia, 55nm away, another "over-nighter". David doesn't sleep much these days, and being very tired, we have decided to chill here for a couple of days so he can get some much needed rest. Well it turned out to be more costly to stay for a couple days, reduced rate for extended stay, so we ended up here almost a full week.

It is a nice place, not quite as upscale as El Cid, more of a working yard. They do have a lift here. Also, a nice restaurant/bar, beach, water slide, gift shop, and a little museum. Yeah, I even took a pic of the ladies room, the wooden doors were the nicest I've ever seen! They also have a lot of antiques here in the restaurant at Old Belize, sewing machines, old bottles, nautical stuff. Their night security carries a sawed off shotgun!

Belize city has one of the largest cemeteries we have seen since leaving the US. It's on both sides of Northern Highway, approximately 1/2 mile long. We were traveling via taxi so we didn't investigate.

It's said that Belize City was built on broken bottles of rum and mahogany chips along the mangrove bank of Haulover Creek. It has served as the main commercial area and seaport for more than 350 years. Hurricane Hattie, 1961 devastated Belize City with winds gusting to 200 mph and waves of 10ft surged through the streets of the former capital. The capital was later moved about 30 miles inland.

We went into Belize City; what a hell hole! There is obviously a lot of poverty, as in Mexico, San Pedro, Cay Caulker, but there is trash every where in Belize City and no one seems to care. It seems very few have any pride in their homes or property. It's just filth. Many go to the states for their education, but they ultimately return here. I chose to take pictures of the nice buildings instead of the poverty; who needs to see that! There are also a lot of vagrants sleeping on the streets and looking for hand-outs.

Belize City, like San Pedro and Cay Caulker have a sizable Mennonite and Asian population. The taxi drivers said that the Belizeans like the Mennonites because they "give back" to the community. They feel that the Asians are trying to take over their country and they don't like them much at all. We did see quite a few Asian restaurants and grocery stores!

We did have a beer and lunch in a little place in the city. Red beans, rice, chicken and potato salad for like $4.00 US! Hell, the beer was $3.00 US. I found it strange that there are very few bars here, probably more grocery and hardware stores than bars. Hey, you get good local information in bars!

In the city, everywhere you look there are chain link fences or tin barricades. All windows are boarded up or covered with steel bars; doesn't matter whether it's a shack or a nice home. Everyone has a dog, but we have seen so many dogs roaming the streets and many of them were nursing females. We walked and rode all over the city and never came across a humane society once. . . which I find sad.

When David got a haircut, I took a pic of the hair dresser; he has a striking resemblance to Bob Marley! I guess he thought we were rich and gave us a website to sell us the island his family owns!

We came across a catamaran in Cucumber Beach Marina that our friends Gene & Deb, the Deborah Lynn II, rebuilt from the ground up. They spent the better part of five years on it. They made their maiden voyage en route to Guatemala a couple of years ago, but did some damage to one of their keels and then lost all electronics in an electrical storm so they turned back and ultimately sold the boat. I'm sure they'd be pleased to know how well the boat has held up and that the current owner is very happy with it. Gene & Deb recently purchased a cabin cruiser and will be making the trek to Guatemala next season. We spent a lot of time with them in Indian Cove Marina, Merritt Island, FL. Their stories and those of Pat & Penny spurred us on to ultimately make this voyage. . .and it looks like we are going to all meet in Guatemala as we planned so long ago!

Next stop Placencia. Pat & Penny are meeting us there and are going to join us for the trip down to Guatemala. We can't wait to see them! Only about 120 nm to go! Stay tuned!