Belated Holiday Greetings from the Erbens
2020 has
been a year for the record books and most of us are COVID weary. That might
account for these late greetings, but actually plain old computer issues are to
blame. However tardy, we do send our warmest wishes for a much healthier New
Year with a return to a more normal life for all of you. Until then, please be
safe and stay well.
Our
computer problem relates to our recent return to the states followed by a rapid
move off the boat, a drive across country and resettling into a travel
trailer. Somewhere along this process
the computer was separated from its 120v-power cord – so when she died, she was
dead until we solved the problem. (FYI Dell computers do not play with just any
brick!) We will be traveling in the new
rig much of the new year but will retain our Florida address for snail mail as
well as our emails and phone numbers. Eventually, we hope to find a land base,
probably in the Jacksonville area.
Erben42@gmail.com, 411 Walnut St #6744,
Green Cove Springs, FL 32043 and 850 8324564 or 850 3813669
That
just about catches us up; however, there are some details below if you are
really curious about our year or just plain bored!
For most of 2020 we had the good fortune to be marooned, quarantined or stranded with a motley, random, disparate but remarkable group of fellow cruisers in an out of the way corner of Colombia. While it wasn’t the plan for 2020, we have no complaints.
Our year began on December 25th, 2019 as we finally departed Trinidad for Grenada after more than 5 months – most of it in the boat yard – boat out of the water. Feeling very, very happy to have all the work, dirt, and disruption behind us we headed out for a few weeks in Grenada. Our stop over mostly involved getting Teddy, our boat cat, a new Rabies Titer – proof that he is rabis free. (Many countries require this which is above and beyond the valid immunizations) We planned – naively as it turned out – to take Teddy back to the states for a couple of months in the summer while we left the boat in Panama.
From Grenada we had a run over to Bonaire, the most easterly of the ABC islands. This was our first run west and it took research to get the info on the currents and timing. Arriving in a new place in the dark is nice to avoid although leaving in the dark is rarely an issue. Thanks to a blog written by boaters with similar vessels to ours, we managed to time the currents and arrive in daylight. (There are several places to stop between Grenada and Bonaire, but these are island groups controlled by Venezuela where our welcome as a USA flagged vessel was questionable, so we made the 450+ mile trip in one jump – several nights and days). Bonaire is famous for the preservation of its reefs and a laidback vibe. Limited mooring balls are available and anchoring is not allowed. Diving off the back of the boat is a treat. As with most cruiser friendly islands – dinghy docks were available for small fees, as well as shopper’s taxis and a cruisers info “net” on VHF. Although “Dutch”, English is spoken everywhere making the process of checking in and out easy. All of the ABC islands were part of the Netherlands Antilles but now they each maintain their own customs and immigration procedures, meaning moving between these neighbors requires paperwork – in some cases a lot of paperwork, but fortunately very little money.
Our next stop was Curacao where most boaters anchor in one of the designated areas in Spanish Waters – a large protected bay on the south side of the island. It required a 30-minute bus ride into the main town – Willemstad – to visit several widely separated custom and immigration offices where the cheerful civil servants got us legally entered. (The process must be reversed to leave - lest anyone wonders what we do with our time.) From there we were on to Aruba (little America) for a few weeks waiting to make the jump to Colombia.
Towards the end of Feb, we made landfall in Santa Marta on the northern Caribbean coast of Colombia – another couple nights underway. This is a tourist town with lovely beaches, seafood restaurants and a small but quaint old quarter. Most of the tourists seemed to be from the region – other parts of Colombia, or neighboring countries. We saw one small cruise ship visit early on before the Covid lockdown. While the charming areas are small, the population and more modern sprawl were extensive.
We landed in the IGY marina which is adjacent to a large working port, boatyard and Armada base. The marina is gated and includes five main docks, all in great shape. The style of most finger piers was less robust than in areas subject to hurricanes, but more than adequate for us. Most of the boats were allotted two slips so we could tie across fore and aft somewhat compensating for the lack of pilings on each slip. When we arrived, our plan was to spend a month or so there to allow some land travel before going on to Cartagena and eventually heading to Panama within a couple of months. Of course, Covid 19 changed those plans.
Although we did get a ten-day inland trip, for almost seven months, we tucked into our cozy life in Santa Marta. It could not have been a better place to wait out the virus. Colombia was very proactive in shutting down, closing borders, and imposing quarantine restrictions. Some semblance of a normal life began to emerge in mid-August, a full five months into the new normal. Before that trips to the grocery store – conveniently only a few blocks away, were limited to a prescribed schedule based on the last number of our official ID (i.e. passport #). We had to show the number as we entered – get our temperature checked, walk through a disinfectant shoe bath and use hand sanitizer. The number of customers was regulated so frequently a line waited outside – at six-foot intervals and then checking out also usually involved long lines winding through the store at six-foot intervals. Everyone wore and still wears a mask some also a face shield and gloves.
There
are many reasons why we feel so lucky to have been “stuck” with this group –
most of the are listed with photos in one of my last blog entries. www.erbenrenewal.blogspot.com. They range from creative activities like
“trash Tuesday” a competition to clean up the marina – of course the kids
always won, to weekly yoga and visits by the trained Dolphins. But the warm hearted and generous people were
the greatest joy. Folks generously
shared their talents when one of the boaters had a problem – everyone took the
opportunity to work on big projects or repairs – as well as reaching out to
support the local community with food drives.
Like
most of you it was not what we planned to do in 2020, but looking back we were
very fortunate to have spent this time with a remarkable group who will be
friends for life.
From
Santa Marta we finally were permitted to travel on to Cartagena where we found
a warm welcome at Club De Pesca. However
– casting no aspersions on the group in Cartagena, they did not enjoy the close
“bubble” experience that was possible in Santa Marta. Their group was spread over two marinas and a
mooring field with no safe and COVID free place to gather. Clever cruisers did establish a VHF net to
help overcome the strict isolation imposed for almost 6 months. Only a few
weeks before we arrived in mid-Sept residents were allowed to exercise freely
around town with appropriate masks. Shopping was still limited to once a week
by ID number. (In the smaller and less infected Santa Marta we were allowed to
exercise and shop twice a week from early August.) Shortly after we moved to
Cartagena, more restrictions were removed and into October the shops started
opening and by Nov 1st in the old city almost all the shops that had
survived were opening at with the safety protocols of temps, hand and shoe
sanitizing and restricted entry. Only
outside dining was allowed but fortunately most restaurants had outdoor
facilities given the tropical climate.
(Did I mention one of the few negatives was the heat? Temps are warm and
muggy most of the year – more or less rain seasonally, but generally HOT –
thankfully our ACs were up to it)
In fact, as the shops and “crowds” returned – borders were still closed but tourists from within the country were taking the opportunity to vacation in Cartagena, we realized how lucky we had been to wander the old city virtually alone – and certainly unmolested by T-shirt, sunglass, or cigar vendors.
Tourism
is clearly a main source of employment and while we had great sympathy for
those missing the usual tourist income, we also appreciated the magic of the
historic district when it was less crowded. Without other visitors we could
easily imagine life there several hundred years ago. As the full scope of the
tourist attractions reemerged, we glimpsed the vibrant colors and smells which
make this city a major destination. Groups of ladies clad in traditional dress
sporting the colors of the Colombian flag wandered the old city ready to pose
for pictures (for a small fee). Street vendors offered sweets, baked goods and
outdoor restaurants tempted with spicey aromas which mingled with the scent of
horse drawn carriages. Imposing buildings and vibrant colors or stark stone
crowded narrow passages only to open into a district famous for massive wall
murals. We were indeed fortunate to take our exercise on the old city walls and
enjoy this unique, vibrant and well-preserved living museum for almost two
months.
We also got permission to make several short trips to the islands about 20-25 miles west of Cartagena Harbor. This group called the Rosarios are normally very crowded and a major draw for boaters from the big city. Again, we were fortunate to enjoy them almost on our own. On our second overnight trip out there in early November, we woke to a message from the weather guru, Chris Parker. A nice weather window was opening so if we could clear out quickly, we would have a chance to get back to Florida. Normally, clearing out of Colombia is straightforward; however, as with most things during the COVID lockdown, nothing was for sure. On our way back to the marina, we contacted our agent to start the process so we could leave the following morning. Dollars were paid and fingers crossed, yet we were still on the dock four hours after our expected departure! Finally, the papers arrived and we were off for the seven and a half day crossing to Stuart, Florida.
Previously
our longest trip had been the 5+ day crossing to Bermuda in 2017, but on both
those outward and return trips we had extra crew. This was our first long trip
with just the two of us. However, after the first night taking shifts we
settled into a routine and both felt we had adequate sleep, albeit in 3-hour
segments. The weather guru communicated updates regularly via our InReach and
we caught some very favorable currents thanks to the hurricane west of us. As a result, we flew north through the Windward
Passage – between Cuba and Haiti then west via the Old Bahama Channel and on up
the Gulf Stream to enter the St Lucy River inlet about 9 PM a little over a
week after we left Cartagena. This night time entry was possible since we had departed
via that inlet four days short of two years previously. Since this inlet is
subject to shoaling and has floating marker buoys that move accordingly, we had
probably the most intense moments of the entire trip during the 30 minutes it
took to reach the ICW and a safe anchorage. Steve, as an expert at the helm,
got us in and the hook down with a sense of accomplishment to end our 8+ years
of boating life. The next morning, we moved a few miles to a marina where we
began the heavy lifting to empty the boat. A sad few days – OK maybe 10 – as we
hauled and sorted and hauled – who would believe the “STUFF” that our fat
bottom girl could hold?
We made
a run to shift some to our storage in Panama City but still had two car loads
to move to Jacksonville where we rented another small storage unit! Hopefully one day we will find a land home in
that area and all our belongs will have a happy reunion.
While sitting around in Colombia we purchased a new truck to pull the used trailer that we also purchased via Zoom! The truck was shipped to Florida so we could load her and meet up with the trailer in Oregon – stored there with Steve’s sister, Kathy and husband, Howard. They greatly facilitated our transition from boat to trailer – much of it happening in their driveway! On our trek west we stopped for a couple days with our son, Paul and his wife Amanda in California. While we ran up to Oregon to get the trailer, they kindly cared for our Teddy cat, adding chaos to their menagerie including two older cats and a new puppy. While Teddy enjoyed Ziggy the puppy, the older cats and Teddy never reached a happy state. However, Teddy who has never known any home but the boat, is now happily settled in the trailer. He also had no stress with his cross- country hotel stays – quickly sniffing each room and claiming the best sofa or chair.
Summary of our Travels from June 2017
to November 2020
Happier 2021 to ALL!
