Sign of a good anchor

Do you have a good anchor? Is it really good?!

We have been riding out some power Christmas winds in St. John’s Coral Harbor where we are protected from the swell, but the wind still seems to funnel its way into the anchorage. Since this is an incredibly popular spot, it is also crowded; this means we are at the edge of where we feel comfortable and completely reliant on our anchor doing it’s job!

Our anchor needs to hold us in place as we swing and dance around in the wind without letting us drift backwards into shallower waters. We have been here for a week now and while many boats have dragged away from us, we have remained in the same place.
The truest test of an anchor is the track you boat leaves on any GPS plotter. Here you can see if you boat is slowly plowing through the seabed or if you are merely swinging on an arc.

When the winds are more varied, you can see the arc better. The arc is the outer limit of your anchor rode. It also shows that your anchor is not budging and instead is holding you firmly in place.
If your track looks like a zig zag or a straight line, then your anchor is dragging and your anchoring setup should be re-evaluated.
While the anchor is considered to be the most talked about part of any anchoring discussion, it is not the only part! Another very important part is what connects you to the anchor. Be it chain, rope, or some combination thereof, the rode is made up of all the parts between the boat and the seabed.
Our anchoring system consists of a 65lbs Mantus Anchor, connected to a Mantus swivel, connected to an all chain rode with 7:1 scope (5:1 minimum) and secured to the boat with a 20 foot three lay line tied to the chain with a Magnus Hitch acting as the snubber.
This entire system holds onto the seabed firmly while preventing shock loads to the anchor and maintains the pull at the correct angle.

Must-visit Places When In Costa Rica

Tucked away in between the land bridge that connects Mexico and North America with South America is the small Central American nation of Costa Rica. While not big on the map, Costa Rica is big on adventure, sun, and fun.

This country is home to a plethora of natural wonders and some fun urban adventures as well. It can be tough to fit in a full travel plan worth of sites and sounds to see, but here is a quick collection of must-visit places.

Tamarindo Province

There are a lot of excellent areas that populate the country of Costa Rica, so many that it is hard to narrow it down to find ones you want to see. The folks behind Thepuravidahouse.com believed that the Tamarindo Province is a perfect encapsulation of what Costa Rica is all about. Whether it’s the villa accommodations, the sailing and open waters of the beaches, or the breathtaking views, it really has everything. This is one area of Costa Rica you should put in your plan.

Puerto Viejo

The town of Puerto Viejo is one of the most attractive places to visit when staying in Costa Rica. This town and its accompanying beach offer something for everyone. With amazing cove beaches that brush the tips of the jungle, it offers awesome surfing, swimming, and snorkeling for water-lovers. If you’re more for rest and relaxation, you can find plenty of that here, just be warned that the location is growing in popularity which makes it more crowded.

Arenal

When you first set off to Costa Rica, it would be a crime to leave Arenal off of your checklist. This volcanic mountain (don’t worry it’s mostly dormant) can offer you the sheer magnitude of might that the natural vistas of the country offer. You can hike the surrounding jungles, go up it with a guide to take in the views, or check out the awesome waterfall nearby to experience breathtaking serenity. There is so much to do here, it is certainly a must-visit.

Monteverde

Monteverde is going to be a place you see like no other. This cloud forest, which means low-hanging cloud formations, is a breathtaking experience with plenty of trails and paths to explore. One of the most sought after experiences for visiting Monteverde is to catch a glimpse of the quetzal birds, which are incredibly rare to find. If you’re feeling up for it, there is even zip-lining.

Cahuita

Last but not least we have the town and national park of Cahuita. This town is a small place that is best enjoyed as a rest and relaxation hub, and it is pretty quiet which makes it a good vacation within a vacation, but the real draw is the animal sightings in the national park which offers amazing hiking and surfing adventures. Cap it all off with some good R and R in the town for a full day of fun.

Costa Rica might be small, but there is no denying that it packs a huge punch when it comes to offering visitors amazing opportunities for adventure in the impressive landscapes, with some added fun in the towns and cities as well.

We Made It!

After a grueling 10 day passage, we made it to the Caribbean (actually the top of the Caribbean)! We are safely anchored in Coral Harbor in St. John, USVI.

The plan was to sail out of Suriname, cross the Guinea Current (which would carry us West), then sail due North hundreds of miles to windward of all the islands, then turn and have a pleasant downwind sail into the USVI. This plan went to crap when I underestimated the power of the Equatorial Current!
The Guinea Current is similar in strength to the Gulf Stream, so we knew not to fight it, just sail North and get through it as fast as we could. The Equatorial Current is not as strong, but enough that we were being carried into the Windward Islands with most haste. To compensate for the current, I had to point out bow slightly East (about 0* to 30* on the compass). This meant that we were now beating into the trade winds. We spent 9 days battling the trades and the current as we sailed close enough to Dominica that they radioed us to tell us that we are not allowed to enter their country due to COVID-19 lockdown rules.
We finally had to cross over to being leeward at Guadalupe; so much for being hundreds of miles to windward! After Guadeloupe, we were able to keep to windward of the leeward islands and eventually, on our last day, make our way into the Virgin Islands on a beautiful downwind passage.
After all that time at sea, it feels so good to drop anchor back in US waters and just relax!

We made it! Our second transatlantic is complete and we are almost done with long passages!

In the Virgin Islands, everything is so close together that the longest sail you could make would take an afternoon. When we set sail to Puerto Rico, it will only be a few hours, as it is only 14 miles from St. Thomas to Culebra, and 20 miles from Culebra to Puerto Rico. Our next long sail will be from Puerto Rico to Cuba or Florida, then we will be back in the ICW where a long sail is a pipe dream.
Sleeping underway is not as restful as sleeping at anchor, and I’m ready for my nice long sleeps!

Going back out to sea!

I know it has been a while since I have posted anything, and I have a good reason for that: the internet in Suriname is non-functional! I have attempted but the simple act of uploading a photo seems to exceed its abilities here.
The good news is we are going back out to sea again, the bad news is we won’t be able to post anything for a while while we are out at sea. The better news is we’re heading to the Virgin Islands where internet access is supposed to be much more reliable so we will have the combination of many stories to tell and the connection to bring them to you!

See you all in about two weeks! (10 days is the goal)

We made it across the Atlantic!

For our first ocean crossing, we were terrified of the unknown! Those who had done a crossing told us it would be easy and fun while those that hadn’t done a crossing told us it would be dangerous and difficult.
Once we finished our first ocean crossing, we realized that it really was fun and easy; which made shoving off for our second ocean crossing all the easier.
We knew how to provision, read the weather, what gear to have and what to leave behind. All we had to do was just shove off and go to sea!

The crossing was a bit lengthy, totaling around 27 days to make it from Cape Verde to Suriname, along the way we experienced all the weathers: too much wind, no wind, perfect wind, and everything in between.
The biggest problem we have encountered on the crossing was arriving in a country with very poor internet!
There will be many posts to come that take the typical in depth look at everything we learned and you should know before you go out to sea on your first bluewater passage!

Stay tuned!