Adios, Hasta La Vista, Au Revoir, Good Bye, Farewell Brooksy Point!

So its official, we are off the dock . . . free from the clutches of Brooksy Point! Yeh! We miss them already! It's like leaving family behind. We are sad that we will not be there when Sophia Grace, Lilo and Mike's baby, will arrive in May, but so looking forward to staying touch.

I personally will miss the children the most. Lilo and Mike tried to convince me to stay on and teach the children while David went sailing . . . I think he gave that more than a passing thought, but then he probably wondered who would take care of him! We will also miss Paul, Roy, Jerry and Annie and Jeannette and Reginald, our fellow cruisers and many others that have stopped along the way and of course Ramon and Rosa who work at Brooksy Point.

We followed our friends, Big Fun, Heurisko and Blue Monday to the South West Cays of Utila. It is beautiful there, a paradise. We went to the beach and snorkeled.

Yet another cold front interrupted our quiet anchorage. Our friends decided to move on and head back to Guatemala and the Rio. We stayed, but we anchored in the East harbor as we have done several times before. Sometimes it just doesn't make good sense to be the only boat in an anchorage. Our visas don't expire for a couple of weeks so why go??? Although, our planning could have been better. We totally forgot about it being Semana Santa (aka Easter), which is a week-long party here; we survived the crowds, the traffic music till dawn.

Over the next week or so we enjoyed lunches and happy hours with Ralph and Cheryl on Fortuitous and Lenny and Sue on Windancer. We had the pleasure of meeting Lenny and Sue last season at BPYC where we had learned that they also own a home in Orlando. They are Yankees like us, some of the very few we have met from the northeast. Most of the cruisers we've met are from Texas and Canada and Britain.

Our generator is giving us problems again! David is almost ready to throw it overboard and purchase a Honda generator. We paid a lot of $$ to have it re-built in Roatan and it worked fine while we were at the dock. Good money after bad.

In mid-April we left Utila with Windancer bound for Glovers Reef, Belize, one of those spots we missed on our way down. Unfortunately, no moonlight while underway. Probably, a blessing, because if I'd have been able to see the waves rolling in, I might not have been so calm. Luckily, they were large, long and smooth.

We arrived at SW Caye (Glover’s Reef) early the next afternoon.
There are two islands at Glover's Reef, one private. The un-private island has the Marisol Dive Shop, a bar and several residences available for rent. Obviously, the conch are plentiful as they lined the properties with conch shells. There is a restaurant on the island, but we were told that because of a “shift change”, it wouldn't be open for business. LOL!

 

While in SW Caye, I saw more sea life than I have ever seen snorkeling! I think we saw more than 30 types of reef fish and also a small eel. I saw my first barracuda! I nearly swam into a school of about 40 fish slowly moving along. It was pretty awesome! I wish I had had an underwater camera.
 

We arrived in Hatchet Caye and were very surprised to learn that there is a resort there. We picked up the mooring and went ashore.http://hatchetcaye.com It is now necessary to pay a Guide about $30 US to snorkel on some of the Belizean! Another freebie taken away!
It is an all-inclusive resort, though cruisers are welcome. They offer 4 moorings and for a small
charge you can leave your trash and get fresh water. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. The food is reasonable and very good. They have a pool, small gift shop, bungalows, dive center, small catamarans, paddle boats, guides for snorkeling. Check out their website:

We spent a very rolly afternoon and evening in Hatchet Caye as the wind clocked around to the East. Just before dusk Lenny and Sue offered to help us pickup another mooring as we were “hobby horsing” very badly. Not wanting to spend another day bobbing up and down, we decided to move on to South Long Cocoa Caye, a little further west, bringing us a little closer to our next destination, Placencia.

South Long Cocoa Caye has beautiful white sand and a very large guard dog! So no exploring on land for us! Lenny and Sue went fishing instead and were lucky enough to catch a couple of large conch and some clams. We left the next morning enroute to Placencia, only about 10 miles away. The sails were hoisted, but alas not enough wind to fill them. Motoring again!

We arrived in Placencia by noon . . . feels like home! Now we know why Brooksy Point is barren of cruisers this year, they're in Placencia and other cayes in Belize. There are a least 15 boats here now, but we heard there was close to 35 earlier.

Early the next morning, we took a bus with Lenny and Sue to Dandriga to check into Belize. On the way, I was surprised to see a new, very large development being built. The homes looked just like the homes in Orlando! I can’t imagine why someone would want to build a stucco home in this environment, the maintenance will kill you! The only upside I see is that it provides jobs for the natives. It must be hard knowing that they will never be able to afford to live there.

Building a home/business in Belize gives you clear title, not a land lease as in Guatemala. If you want a vacation home and you have cash, this is where to build it. The Canadian and Americans are building here like crazy. There is a lot of available coastline in Belize, but of course, no roads, only water travel. You won’t see a neighbor for miles if you settle outside Placencia, Dandriga, Maya Creek. Unfortunately, someday it will look like Miami, which I personally find very sad.

Next to Isla Mujeres, Placencia has the best beach in the Western Caribbean. When we were last here, there was a petition to thwart the cruise ships from setting up shop here. So far they have not arrived, but locals still seem concerned that this will still become a reality. The area called Big Creek has been purchased, and it appears that is where the cruise ships will dock and then their guests will be shuttled over to Placencia. Hopefully, the cruise ships will not destroy the livelihood of the natives selling their wares on the sidewalk and streets of Placencia.

Most cruisers listen on the SSB each morning to get weather reports. Chris Parker had predicted a very bad storm; he was right on the money! We spent one harrowing evening with our motor running just to make sure the 50+ wind gusts didn't pull up our anchor. Luckily no boats dragged anchor that evening. I don't think we have weathered a storm that powerful since we were in Pumpkin Cay, off the intercoastal waterway near Miami.

Our friends, Darwin and Jaime and Jaime's three young daughters (4,7,11), on Blue Monday, were actually were in town when the storm struck and had to ride in their dinghy in 45+ winds to get to their boat. Luckily they made it, but it was frightening watching them trying to get onto the boat and tie up the dinghy. Actually, they got a little close to uswhen they forgot that they had left the engine in forward gear, luckily they had their VHF radio on.

A number of boats left Placencia to seek shelter from the storm, including Windancer; who sustained damage to their wind generators and dragged anchor into their friends Will O’ the Wisp. Luckily, no one was hurt. We also heard that one of the Moorings charter catamarans was lifted into the air, the boom flew away and was then dropped onto the reef.

We found a great place to stay in Placencia. Our friend Harry has a few bungalows on the beach a stones throw
 away from Yoli's.  He and his brother bought the place 25 years ago.  Harry and his friend Fern continue to make improvements, but it is a lovely place to stay.  You can visit their website ww.cozycabanas.com

 

While visiting Placencia we met a couple who settled in Belize back in 1972. They wanted a simpler life, so they built a tree house! Sounds like Swiss Family Robinson! One of my favorite movies! I have always been so enchanted with that story. I once told my late mother-in-law that I’d love to live in a tree house like the Robinson’s. Of course she thought me crazy, but as it turns out we did do something different, living on a boat traveling the western Caribbean. Had I realized this cruising lifestyle existed way back, I would have loved to have raised our boys aboard. I still wish they could travel more with us now and hope they may find a simpler life one day.

 

Anyway, Christina and Kirby raised a family (a son and a daughter) in the tree house until a bad storm caused significant damage to their home. So they quickly changed direction and began a wood crafting business and in the process also built a boat, Morning Star. For a time they had their own wood shop, but it became easier and less costly to sell their crafts by consignment.

By 1982, their children moved on to pursue their own dreams. Christina and Kirby set about to build a larger boat. Their dream became an all wood boat they now live aboard. We weren’t treated to a tour aboard, but they have written a book of their tale. It’s called “Chance Along” (which is also the name of their boat) and they gave us an autographed copy! I haven’t finished it yet, but it’s quite an interesting story. Their first book is titled “Tree house Adventures”. Kirby was very intrigued with our Downeaster 38’ and we invited him aboard for a tour. I think he liked it!

With the boat provisioned for about 5 days, we checked of Belize and headed to New Haven on our way back to Guatemala.   We arrived back in Livingston on the 24^th of May. Unfortunately, our main engine was overheating so it was a long ride up the gorge on our way to Burnt Key Marina, aka Texan Bay. Motoring against a strong current, we were only able to motor at about 2.6 knots; it took us about 3 ½ hours!!!!

Though Texan Bay has become “Burnt Key Marina”, it hasn’t changed much, but it has been great seeing old friends. Maurits and Mavis are working hard to update the marina. The food is great with new specials every day.  Every dish is homemade by Sandy, including her pasta!

Of course, we visited with our old friends, Pat and Penny. They now own their own “bay” with land . . .they added some fill and made a garden area and septic system. They're happy and content and at home. It is just lovely and with the amount of cruisers on the Rio, a good investment property. There are definitely more boats than there were when we were here last. The marinas are very full. Cruisers are now reserving their slips in advance.

Also, we visited with Chris and Dani (El Hotelito Perdido). They have a new hostel/restaurant called the Round House. He and Dani are making a good go of it as it seems to be visited by more backpackers and guests every day.  Cool place, you can check the reviews on TripAdvisor.

We ran into our friends, Linda and Ricardo from Bailando at Burnt Key. They have just returned from the states where they had been recording a CD! www.itgoeswithoutsayingmusic.com They are quite talented! He plays guitar, she has a great voice. They are headed to Maine for a family party. Whoa! It is hurricane season guys!

It's time for us to take a break and get off the boat. So we are going to go to Antigua; a trip we have wanted to make since the last time we were in Guatemala. It is about an hour or so from Guatemala City. From there we may go to Lake Atitlan. Volcano, quaint Spanish town, high altitude, cool temperature and a big X pat community. Can’t wait for the photo opportunity!

Stay tuned!