12th to 16th July 2018
Anchored just outside the mooring buoys in about 8m depth, excellent holding in sand. Sheltered from the worst of the wind-driven waves by the island; but the swell swings at times around both sides of the island (probably due to the acceleration zones) so even with a consistent NE forecast and maximum 1.5m swell it wasn’t the most comfortable place we have ever sat. Despite this, the bay was packed for the weekend with both charter catamarans and locals who ventured out to swim, sit and enjoy the sunshine. Unlike Graciosa and Papagayo, this was an all-day thing starting around 10am and ending after 8pm some days – this is not the most peaceful anchorage around.
In any case, the kids demanded we stay for a couple of days to enjoy the beach and being at anchor in general. So we did. The lagoon can be accessed by dinghy for around 3-4 hours either side of high tide – its easy to tell when the tide is receding visually as the sides of the dinghy ‘break’ a good while before the rocks in the middle are exposed. It’s a little busy, with the ferries, charter cats and other visitors, but it is a beautiful beach and sheltered swimming area – perfect for kids, and for Charlotte who wanted to practice snorkelling in more sheltered climes! We didn’t explore much beyond the beach, except to follow the kids a few hundred meters into the scrubland behind it, but there were some well-marked walking trails which we would have used if the tide times had allowed a morning visit (or we had felt like leaving the dinghy on the end of the ferry pier).
On our last day we decided against going out in the dinghy – it’s challenging managing two kids and a baby getting into the dinghy in any case, but half-meter swells from both directions made it a little too dangerous for our tastes. We’re trying to work out an easier way to board the dinghy than using the stern ladders (as the stern bounces in any kind of swell, and it is hard to secure the dinghy within short-step distance) – ideas welcome.
In boat news, Dave, with some help from Arthur, started the re-rigging process. We are making several changes to reflect how we sail the boat which I’m sure we will write about at some point. We generated more power than we knew what to do with, thanks to the solar panels – the microwave and electric kettle were both in use at times. Other minor maintenance, including cleaning out the paddlewheel from the log, too.
