Back on Bruadair and in Esnedup

Wow, what a spectacular ride from Panama City to Nargana. The folks at the charter company were very nice and professional. I was picked up at the domestic airport and taken to a hanger on the other side of the runway where my pilot and Cessna 202 were waiting for me. The crew took care of my bags, checked my passport and loaded me in the back seat while the pilot and co-pilot took their positions. The flight only took about 45 minutes and once over the Caribbean Sea the pilot followed the chain of islands in the San Blas towards Nargana. As we were making our approach and at an altitude of about 500' the pilot turned to me and asked me which boat was mine. I pointed out Bruadair, then the pilot asked if I wanted him to circle the boat before landing. Of course I said yes. So he turned slightly towards Bruadair where I could see David getting in the dingy and Jan and David on Winterlude watching and waving. After dipping the wings to either side as to say hi to those watching the pilot made a very slow circle above Bruadair, it was the neatest thing I've experienced in a long time. The view was spectacular, the motion smooth and the camera in my bag just out of reach behind me. There were about 15 boats in the anchorage below us, most of them looking up to watch the small plane circle above.

David made it to the dock at the airport just as we landed. I said my thanks to the flight crew, paid my $3 airport tax and was finally home after being gone for a short while. It's always good to come home no matter how short or long you've been away. The rest of the day was spent unpacking the bags and storing the provisions and supplies I brought back with me.

This morning we raised anchor and along with Winterlude we sailed to Esnedup, a new destination for us. It's another beautiful anchorage with the typical clear waters and three or four uninhabited islands with sandy beaches and lots of coconut trees. All four of us went snorkeling and I was surprised how beautiful the reef was. The corals were brilliantly colored and full of marine life, the formations different than those we've seen at other islands. We saw three large eagle rays and a lot of good sized jacks (no spear gun in hand today). Tomorrow we hope to try out our new kayak.

Barbara and Gary on Hoorah pulled in and anchored behind us this afternoon. We've talked with them numerous times over the past three months on the single side band radio and finally got to meet them today. Wonderful couple. They are headed back to Colon in a week or two then will transit back through the Panama Canal and head back up the Pacific Coast to Mexico. They made the trip down this way recently and said that the Caribbean Sea is some of the roughest waters they have ever sailed. They're trying to talk us into going through the canal with them and then on up to Mexico at a slow pace. Hmmmmmmm, we're thinking about it but with such short notice we're just not sure. This is a trip David and I have talked about numerous times, just not sure the timing is right.

So tomorrow will be another play day then a happy hour on Bruadair with the couples from Hoorah and Winterlude coming over. The weather is forecast states that in two days we should experience some high winds and seas so will probably make those our project days (days it's not comfortable to get off the boat make good project days). But until the weather turns we'll continue to play.