We left the Rio Dulce on Valentines Day, crossing the bar at Livingston
without difficulty. We had left Mario's Marina a couple of days before and spent two enjoyable days at Texan Bay, a small anchorage just a few miles upriver from Livingston.After crossing the bar we went to Bahia La Graciosa in company with our friends John and Beth Talley on UPJINX. We had originally planned to sail with them to the Bay Islands of Honduras but they developed problems with their electronics and had to return to the Rio Dulce.
Since the winds were not right to sail to the Bay Islands and wouldn't be for several days we decided to sail up to Placencia Belize, about 40 miles north and a good all-weather anchorage. Yes, although we are in "paradise" we are very much slaves to the weather as sailors. Most of the time the weather is quite nice and mild, but this time of year those cold fronts that produce bad weather in the states sweep down and produce strong winds from the north( hence the term "northers"). This frequently is manifested by a sudden change in wind direction and speed with winds as high as 30 or 35 knots from the north or northwest, sometimes lasting several days and accompanied by clouds and rain... such sudden changes can cause one's anchor to dislodge, typically it seems at 2:00 AM. That is not fun folks...its not always sunshine, beaches and drinks with little umbrellas!
Placencia is a nice little village in southern Belize and is a favorite stop for cruisers on their way north or south. A couple of days after we arrived we participated in a "dinghy drift". Everyone ties their dinghys together and we drift through the anchorage. Of course everyone brings an hors d'ouvre and beverage. After this broke up we were treated to a total eclipse of the moon....quite a show and the whole thing was visible from the cockpit of our boat.
Mary is going home for a few days to get her grandkids "fix" and I will remain aboard to
repel boarders.We miss all our friends and family.
More later....
