The San Blas Islands lie on the northern coast of Panama. The area is inhabited by the Guna Yalas and maintain and manage the islands autonomously from Panama.
Most cruisers will travel downwind from Cartagena, Columbia, while others choose the route from Colon via Portobelo or Puero Lindo. As we traveled from Colon, the first islands along the path are Chichime. Chichime is very popular and easy to approach, even at night.
Provision in the “Swimming Pool”, an area of super clear water in the Hollandes Cays. Once a week, a panga circles the area with fresh vegetables, fruit, fish and chicken. Special items can be ordered for next week delivery.
Crossing the Panama Canal starts early, for us at 5:30am. For some friends as early as 4:30am. The Panama Canal Authority requires boats under 65 feet to have an advisor on board, over 65 feet a pilot is required. Here the advisor arrives via tugboat.
Once the advisor is on board, the journey begins and we pass under the bridge of Americas and head towards the Miraflores locks. The Miraflores locks contain two chambers and the visitor center.
Passing under the Bridge of Americas that connects Panama City to the north is quite the experience. It was very early in the day and the sun slowly makes its appearance.
Safely tied up in the first lock. Water enters the lock and slowly we ascend roughly 20 feet. This process takes about 20 minutes.
The Pedro Miguel lock is next, one chamber only. Then off to crossing the Gatun lake. For most sailboats this takes all day and a night at the lake is required. Unless you’re lucky like us. We caught up to the last tanker to go thru the Gatun locks at 4:30pm, three chambers.
Just as we exited the last chamber and dropped off our advisor, a major storm with tremendous rain welcomed us to Colon. We managed with limited visibility to enter Shelter Bay marina around 8pm. Whew, what a day!
Departure from Golfito, Costa Rica, Providencia has arrived at Puerto Armuelles in the evening, the first check-in port of Panama. The second day in the morning we just crossed the pier to the beach where the port captain located.
As described in the cruising guide, the Port Captain was waiting on the shore to give us a hand for dingy landing. The strong built, around 40 year man seemed know we would pay a visit at that moment, with his welcoming gesture.
Dinghy landing to Port Captain in Puerto Armuelles, Panama checking in
The checking process made easy as all the departments of immigration, agriculture are connected to the same building. As we all thought we got everything done after all, the computer made a joke on us, the officers couldn’t complete the final navigation permit, we would have to go to Flamingo in Panama City to obtain.
Glance from flamingo
The first impression of Panama City is Hong Kong alike international metropolitan, sky high rise buildings on blue clear water, busy crowd hurry in and out through metro system. With American heavy influence the city reshaped the business, infastrucure and culture, along with the canal revenue, Panama makes $70 Billions GDP, vs. HongKong $400 Billions.
Panama is the country captures every desire for cruisers, tourists, and young backpackers, whether you search tropical nature and adventure or settle for leisure with sipping cappuccino in metropolitan venue. As Panama is well known as canal infrastructure, it overrides its own natural beauty.
There are over 1400 island and exotic cost lines presenting white sand beaches, ocean rock with unique bird spices, and popular surfing bays. 76 National parks offer tropical plantations and lavish rainforests, many precious living spices like Jaguar, Iguana, monkeys, slars and are living among in this paradise.
San Lucas Island is located near Puntarenas in the Gulf of Nicoya. It provides a very protected bay perfect to anchor and which we had entirely for ourselves. Howler monkeys can be heard at dawn and again at sunrise. It’s a beautiful island with a green, lush vegetation. A half hour hike leads one across the island to the other side.
Beautiful hikes at San Lucas Island
It was only during the day were a few boats with visitors arrived, who wanted to explore the brutal prison that was operated here until 1991. Only the worst prisoners were incarcerated here. The cell rooms are now empty with plenty of evidence about the brutality shown in many gratifies.
Walkway from dock to the prison
Despite the brutal history of the prison, San Lucas Island is one beautiful place with luscious green trees and bushes and several hiking trails.
Cell Block at San Lucas Prison
The prisoner Jose Leon Sanchez, claimed to be innocent of the robbery he was convicted, wrote the book La Isla de Hombres Solos about his time in this prison.
We anchored in a small bay outside Quepos and took a bus to town. Quepos is a lovely town with some restaurants and stores.
On the way to Quepos
Just south of Quepos, Costa Rica is the famous Manuel Antonio nation park, housing animals from sloths to various monkeys, frogs and snakes and many more. A must see for anyone in that part of Costa Rica.
One of the many hiking trails
The park is very well maintained and provides various little hikes throughout. Park ranger are happy to help and point out which animals are most likely to be seen on which hikes. Some of the hikes lead to the other side where a beautiful bay with beach awaits.
Beach at Manuel Antonio National Park
If we visited again, we would anchor off this little coast. There is supposedly a fee for anchoring, but well worth it to visit the park and far less swell compared to Quepos, for a comfortable stay.
Puntarenas lies in one of two bays on the pacific Costa Rican coast. It provides a sought after relief from the constant swell present along this coast. There are several bays and islands within this larger bay. Here we treat ourselves to a few days in a marina.
Entering the harbor of Puntarenas
It’s convenient to visit to San Jose from Puntarenas, although we weren’t impressed by the capitol. Since our batteries were suffering a slow death, it was a good place to buy new batteries. The marina staff was super nice and helpful in accomplishing the task.
Sunset in Puntarenas
While Costa Rica is pretty safe from hurricanes, heavy winds and vicious storms with heavy lightning are common. The other downside is the debris during rain season, which consists of large tree trunks that can hit our hull. Otherwise its a great time to be in Costa Rica, it’s not too hot and very green vegetation everywhere.
Got lucky, we caught a yellowfin tuna
On our way to Panama, we got lucky and caught a young Yellowfin Tuna.
After departing San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua we headed south towards Santa Rosa national park. This area is often plagued by heavy winds blowing from the Caribbean, called Papagayos. We were lucky, we had near perfect conditions.
As we entered Santa Elena bay, we dropped anchor in front of the entry to a lagoon which we would visit in the coming days. But first a dive into the water and on to a refreshing swim.
The following day we met up with our friends and went exploring the nearby lagoon. And after lunch we’re up for a hike in the afternoon. About an hour up a river bed, we found a small waterfall, just enough to take a bath.
After seeing enough of Guatemala City, it was time to move on to Antigua. A one hour chicken bus ride and 10 Quetzales ($1.50) is what it takes. The bus leaves at the eastern bus terminal in Guatemala City and ends its journey by the big, open market in Antigua.
Chicken bus culture is quite different from El Salvador, it costs a little bit more with clean looking and better maintained buses. With more bus stops, we added more passengers as a 3rd person squeezed onto 2 person seat row, with their 1/4 butt support from each seat. I had a young man almost sitting on my lap and leaning on my shoulder. The entire bus was at least 50% over capacity. I finally got the idea of what travel by “chicken bus” means.
Our ride to Antigua, Guatemala
Getting off the bus, I noticed the air extremely fresh and sweet with a gentle breeze, 73 degree makes perfect sense of the mountain city with 2500 altitude. I feel we are back to Kunming in China, Luzern in Switzerland. Walking toward the center, we are as curious and amazed as children in a wonderland, filled with hundreds of years of historical architectures and cathedrals with colors, scratchy paint and broken bricks, yet standing still greeting thousand of tourists with admiration.
Do not be disappointed by Old Town structure, you will find many of modern coffee shops, beer brewing companies and franchise like McDonald with Antigua version. McCafe cappuccino tastes as good as any other country we traveled, which I have not seen many in the US towns.
Antigua – Guatemala
I found women are beautiful either native Mayan or Spanish heritage, or mixed, they are exotic, colorful and dressed in natural woven fabric. These skirts are just simple pieces of fabric wrap up from waste to ankle secured by a belt either sleek looking leather or fabric with embroidery, that saves labor sewing work. Young mothers carry their small child in the front of their chest by a soft yet thick fabric, their back are straight, and the hair sleek and tied up above their neck, and their face and body look so relaxed without economic stress.
As this is tourist town, souvenir can be purchased in shops or walking individuals. With good negotiation skill you can bargain many goodie taking home.
Antigua offers wide range of food selection from street food to high end Westernized Italian steakhouse. Local vendors offer Guatemalan tray with rice, salad with option of shrimp, fish or chicken, it cost $2.5, however they usually hide the food in basket with towel covered.
we like xxx cost 30Q including good size of quarter wood fire chicken, beef or pork with two side dish options of potato, salad or rice, additionally complementary cold sweet drink with refill.
We are neither vegan nor vegetarian however we love the xxxx with simple restaurant offer $3 dollar glass of wine. We sat with many fascinating young european with their mother languages.
When you walk into these local bars, you will find many of them with contemporary design and artistic walls, tables and patios. We enjoy the xxx beer brewing company with the roof top open for bar, where you join local working class and tourists social life. Many romantic young kissing lovers, middle age couple holding hands and sipping a glass of red wine, fun colleagues and business groups after work hang out with their joyful laughters or group selfi. With soft American 70s and 80s music this top corner oversees the whole town.
Without much knowledge of local chicken bus operations at the moment, we followed the local travel agency advice, and started our next voyage with a scheduled shuttle to Panajachel, a key port villages of the Lake Attitlan. The shuttle took us 4 hours to get into the town while pouring rain with muddy road. Our Airbnb host picked us up from the restaurant called La Palapa.
We skipped Santa Cruz as the local port guide advised that the village is small size with limited restaurants. Directly fairy to San Marcos in rain with panga. Through the rain I see a beautiful scenery with huge straight rock in green plant, green water reflect xxx, remind me Mildford Sound in New Zealand.
Guatemala City offers modern, shopping, coffee shops and restaurants, as well as traditional old style city life. Walking around town seemed quite save if one does not wander too much into unknown territory. With just a little intuition and common sense, we felt immediately at unease once approaching a suspicious area. We loved the busy, open market in Guatemala City.
