The sailor’s sailor is dreaming of faraway horizons. (Centkiewicz).

My Yacht log 2007.03.21-25

2007.03.21. (179^th day)

Mark’s Gospel of Faith:

"Believe in God! Indeed I say onto you: if someone tells the mountain:

‘Rise and throw yourself into the Sea!’ and has no doubt in his heart, but does believe that what he says will happen, then indeed it will happen."

After two free coffees in the morning in the harbor’s restaurant – you can get it before 10 a.m. – I went to a nearby Internet place where, for 40 cents, I wrote my log and uploaded pictures.

This is how I’ll do it from now on....

Essentially I must navigate without any maps again. Dad gave me coordinates for a few Way Points, with whose help "if there’s no problem, then there won’t be any problem" :-)

Naturally, should there be any problem and I do not dock in Colon, then I must solve it without any maps...(There isn’t even a general map of this area).

Later I ate at a local eatery where I had soup, a fish entrée and refreshments for $2.50 US. (They couldn’t understand why a tourist would eat there.)

Columbia:

There is no mail service, I couldn’t send any postcards.

You could buy the postcard, but would have to send it by DHL for example...

When we were out on town with Alex, we were frisked twice by the police. They were looking for cocaine, since, generally everybody carries some, and they could extort some money. Death sentence here for cocaine possession!!

It cost $9 US for docking overnight and I spent two nights here.

Then, the agent figured that I should pay $60 US for the customs papers!

I told them no way. Here an agent interfaces with the authorities, and this is their accepted price.

I think I might have been the first to negotiate it down to $50. Paid in pesos of course.

16:30: Departure.

17:30: Engine quit, up with the jib,

Barometer: 1012

Temperature: 29°C

Sea state: 4-5

Visibility: 3

Wind: NE. force 5-6

24:00 Jib down, storm jib up.

At night: steering.

Many large ships nearby, I’m trying to handle the situation with sixth sense and 15 minute naps again.

There were two critical occasions, they came very close and were much faster than I. Luckily they turned away in time. My reaction is sluggish and sleepy at dawn.

2007.03.22. (180^th day)

Radioed at 5:45.

Heard Laci (HA8RD) very well.

Unfortunately the others not so well.

6:00 (10-16N, 76-33W)

Breakfast: fruits.

Morning: jib sewing, then hoist it again at 9:00.

Resting and relaxing during the day, I’d rather pay more attention at night.

11:00 hoisted mainsail.

13:00 (UTC18) trying to contact Laci, AA7UY on 14.287

Dinner: baloney and bananas.

Barometer 1012

Temperature 31°

Sea state: 4

Visibility: 3

Wind: NE force 5

I have to sail against a 0.9-knot current, therefore going is a little slow.

At night: a lot of ship traffic, sometimes saw 3-4 ships at the same time

There was no critical situation.

2007.03.23. (181^st day)

6:00 (10-20N, 77-45W)

08:00 Mainsail up.

Breakfast: fruits.

Tried the radio, but heard nobody from Europe.

Started taking Lariant (against malaria), Venezuela, Columbia and Central America are infested areas!

Found a tick on my leg. Could have picked up in Columbia, perhaps in a park, and it was dug in quite deep. Cut it out and around it from my leg :-) I hope it won’t be a problem. (Later on consulted with Ney from Panama and he put my mind at ease that there won’t be a problem.

Lunch-dinner: scrambled eggs.

At night: high ship-traffic! Have been watching the ships for the 3^rd day with 15 min. naps, it’s tiring. 1 or 2 days are OK, but more....

2007.03.24. (182nd day)

I departed half a year ago. This day is perhaps the last one in the Atlantic Ocean.

In Holiday mood, but am rather tired :-)

Didn’t radio at 06:00 in the morning, I was asleep.

Got up at 8 and had cappuccino for breakfast.

At 10 I can see Panama already.

13:00 tried radioing with Laci from Nevada, but unfortunately didn’t hear them.

13:00 (9-45N, 79-26W)

I had stomachache all day.

The stay holding the starboard forward crosstree broke. (It was still the original, this could have been the reason).

Repaired with a turnbuckle and rope.

16:00: 30nm to Colon. Slowed down, I don’t want to arrive at night. Sailing with a jib only. Saw dolphins in the afternoon. The weather is wonderful!

The wind picks up at dawn sometimes, also had rain for 1 or 2 minutes.

Ship traffic is rough, always 4-5 ships in my vicinity.

I see 25 ships waiting and at anchor to the right of the entrance.

I begin to enter in the dark at 5:50 among the other ships between two large ships. The traffic is high!!

2007.03.25. (183^rd day)

6:00 dawning.

6:30 sunrise. Anchored in the marina.

Being Sunday, I can’t take care of anything official.

The harbor would be $20 US, I’m not using it for the time being.

Already found a man to repair the stays, I hope he won’t charge much.

Morning:

Tidying up

Inventory:

In the compartment under starboard coffinbed: 29 liters of bottled water (golden reserve), above it: yet another 9 liters. In the compartment under port side coffin bed: 31 liters of bottled water (golden reserve). Unfortunately I found cockroaches too, put out the trap, perhaps I can exterminate them.

(They are at the end of the starboard coffinbed!)

Later familiarizing myself with the town. Beautiful and old. Several people told me robberies are frequent here...

Panama:

Ferdinand Lesseps begun canal building operations in 1881.

V. Hugo: "You are astonishing the World with great Deeds which will not be connected with war".

Goethe: "This Creation is for future generations, it would be worth living another 200 years just to be able witness the completion of this splendid Work."

The "champion" of the Suez Canal recruited 40,000 laborers, of these 30,000 Negroes and natives.

The work proved more difficult than planned and lasted much longer…

400 workers died daily because of malaria and yellow fever!

Finally, the operations were halted because of lack of funds. Lesseps was tried, convicted and sentenced to 5 years.

Then came the Americans, bought the land of the Canal Zone and undertook the Canal works with greater measure, better technology and of course more funds.

In 1914, the day the World War started in Europe, they opened the Canal with celebrations...

Translated by Laci AA7UY. April 2,07.