San Pedro to Placencia a string of islands – dan

We exited the reef at San Pedro and traveled “outside” until we reentered at English Cay. On our way a pod of about a dozen dolphins accompanied us. One dolphin is fun, two even more so, after that, as more dolphins join in it soon becomes a party. And that’s what seemed to be going on all around us as dolphins zipped back and forth vying for the coveted inside spot on our bow wave. Younger dolphins rode the stern wave. What joy!

Imagine a tropical island and then make it smaller, smaller again and then add a lighthouse, a few small buildings and you’ve got English Cay. We anchored in 9’ of water just west of the island and I swam ashore to meet the inhabitants. First I came to three boys in a small boat (actually it was a old jet ski with the top removed and a small outboard fitted to it’s reinforced transom). The boys were having an obvious good time fishing. They told me that they were spending their Easter vacation on the island. Next I came to what appeared to be the remains of several buildings under water. There were dozens of large sheets of corrugated tin, what may have been some old foundation posts and even some furniture. I figured that some unfortunate structures must have been blasted off the island some past tempest. Finally I came to shore and met the light keeper. He seemed to be as interested in me as I was in him. He told me he loved it on tiny island and the fishing was great.

Our next stop was Colson Cays just 14 miles away. We were now inside the barrier reef and we enjoyed great sailing; 15 nmp of wind with only slight (1’-2’) chop. It was like sailing on a lake and almost before we knew it we were at Colson. We anchored west of an uninhabited island in 10’ of water. The chart indicated that there were blue holes near this island so after snorkeling to check the anchor I headed off in search of my first blue hole. The holes, there were three near shore in about 4’ of water. It was spooky and thrilling to go from a comparatively shallow and bright area, over an underwater cliff, to a hole that was generally 20 deep, with even deeper sections where I couldn’t see bottom.

On the way back to Gypsy I enjoyed checking out the sea anemones and small tropical fish when I saw a large cloud of slit ahead of me and then to my surprise and awe six large leopard rays emerged from the cloud like improbably huge birds. They had all the grace of a troop of ballerinas as they glided silently through the water.

Back on Gypsy we took down our genoa and put up our # 3 jib in its place. We had noticed some loose seams and a worn spot on the sail that need the attention of a sailmaker. The smaller jib didn’t slow Gypsy down any. The next day we broad reached in 15 – 20 nmp of wind making 7 – 8.5 nmp of boat speed. We arrived at our next destination, Blue Ground Range, at noon and were soon greeted by Henry the self-described mayor of those islands.

Henry looked like such a good-natured wildman with his dread locks flowing, clad in only a pair of underware, that I immediately invited him onboard for beer and something to eat. He told us that he’d been living on his small island for the past 3 and a half years, fishing and looking after the place. Susan asked him where he gets his water to which he raised his hands, palm up, and said; God gives me all the water I need. He manages quite well by fishing, catching rain, growing a few vegetables and occasional trips to the mainland. Oh and he reads a lot. A real-life Belizean Thoreau.

We had dramatic skies and a few passing showers the day we sailed into Placencia harbor. Nothing off-putting. It was actually a relief from the strong sun and it gave us a chance to replenish our water. I have never had so many incredibly fine sailing days in a row. The barrier reef kept the seas down and 15 – 18 nmp wind out of the east meant smooth sailing with Gypsy making an easy 7 nmp to Placencia. We had a lone dolphin join us for a brief time. Unusual to see one alone.

We anchored in 23’ of water just off the town. With only a dozen boats at anchor the harbor wasn’t at all crowded. We had plenty of room to let out 125’ of chain that should assure good holding. The town looks small enough to be quaint, large enough to be interesting and remote enough to have its own personality. We’ve got a long to-do list including; sail repair, minor electrical work, a leak in the dink, some changes to the running rigging and Gypsy needs a good cleaning. This looks like a good place to catch up on those chores and hopefully have a good time while we’re at it…