La Parguera is often referred to as ‘Little Venice’. If you have been to Venice there really isn’t much similarity but it was very charming. There are little mangrove cays scattered about and it is fun to dinghy around looking at all the brightly
painted homes. It was Super Bowl weekend and after some debate we thought why go to see the final game of something we hadn’t been following at all! We opted for staying in for the night with a good book! It was blowing pretty good which means traveling east while doing the Caribbean Two Step (one step forward, two steps sideways) was going to be bumpy. There isn’t much chance of sailing these parts heading straight into the wind so most leave early in the calm of the morning and go 10-15 miles to anchor before the wind picks up.
So, after two days in La Parguera we made the big move of 12 miles to Gilligan’s Island. There we anchored next to a group of other boaters we had met the week before in Boqueron. We were in a nice protected area so decided it would be a good time to clean the bottom of the boat until the weather settled down.
After two days at Gilligan’s Island we made another big hop of 15 miles to Isla De Cajo de Muertos (Dead Man’s Chest). These two cays are just south of Ponce and one really does look like a corpse! There is a neat light house, hiking trails and good snorkeling. Willow was traveling with us…such fun!
After a day of goofing around we met up for happy hour on Boto and we saw our first amazing, undisputable ‘Green Flash’ at sunset. Sometimes you hear people say, “I think I saw it!” or “Didn’t you see that quick green flash?” but this one was vivid and lasted long enough for us to oohh and aahh for many seconds!
Well, up and at ‘em the next day…we have my mother to meet in San Juan! Another short hop and we were in Salinas. Many, many boats were here and it is a nice little harbor. We aren’t staying but one night so on our quick walk about town we met our first BIG iguana. Up until now they had been small and kinda cute. I wouldn’t want to tangle with this one!
That evening the restaurant at the marina served up an excellent BBQ. We ate half of it and had enough for another meal the next day! We bid adieu to Willow and took off the following morning.
Again, another short jump to Point Patillas. We didn’t even need to go into town that night because the music was so loud it serenaded us perfectly right in our cockpit. The music is typically loud; thumping ‘island’ music but tonight it was a quartet with brass. It was fun to hear the likes of ‘New York, New York’, sung in Spanish, by such accomplished musicians.
Our next leg was going to finally put us on the east coast of Puerto Rico! The weather and seas can pick up in the afternoon on the east coast so we set the alarm for 3am and were underway by 3:30am. Yes…coffee is normally mandatory but an absolute necessity at this time of the morning!
By noon we had pulled into the Palmas Del Mar Marina. Yes…a marina! This is a rare event but did I mention….my mother is coming to visit. We needed to clean the boat, do laundry, provision, rent a car and then pick her up at the airport for 2 weeks of fun! To some the thought of going to a marina means parting with their hard-earned cash but for us it means WORK!
We were exhausted after getting home in the wee hours from the airport so we decided to spend one day to recuperate after all the work and for Mom to relax after traveling for almost 20 hours to get here.
That night the cruisers in the marina had planned a potluck Mexican dinner so Mom got her first ‘taste’ of the cruising life! PLUG: Voted the friendliest and most helpful marina…and it is true. A lovely stopping place!
The next day we threw the lines and set sail for Vieques (referred to as the Spanish Virgin Islands but really part of Puerto Rico). We had a nice sail and anchored by a lovely beach in Ensenada. Mom got her first experiencing getting into and traveling in our ‘car’. It wasn’t so easy at first but with a few changes to our methods she was a real pro at getting in and out of the dinghy. Did I mention?....she is 86…87 the next month! Yes, you should be impressed!
The next day we are off to Culebra where we will spend most of our time. We normally trail a fishing line while underway because we sometimes get lucky. So, Mom says, “How do you know when you have a fish?” and all of the sudden the reel when ‘WeeWeeWee’. Good answer to the question! Ed fought with the fish, worked it while Mom and I cleared the decks. If you read our blog about the Mahi mess you will be pleased to know we learned a few things! After several minutes Ed landed us a Spanish mackerel (we are glad we have the book that helps us identify fish!).
As we round into Dakity Bay in Culebra our VHF radio sounded the lovely greeting from our pals on Kuhala (Linda and Harry). We met them last year in Georgetown, Bahamas and wondered if we would see them along the way again! A happy hour was quickly arranged.
The following day we lounged around, dinghied over to a sand bar and hung out for the day. A nice relaxing day which is just what the doctor ordered! The following day who should appear but Willow! They also caught a fish on the way over, a Pompano. We had already invited Linda and Harry over for a Mackerel dinner so we added it to the menu and Jenny and Nancy joined us. Ed really went gourmet and the meal was fantastic!
That evening we took our first night ride into town to Mamacitas Bar where we drank and listened to the local drum music. Now Mom got to experience trying to get in and out of a dinghy with liquor involved!
The following day we went into town shopping. It is still a mystery to me but when you are on vacation you MUST bring home gifts for those you left behind whi
ch means you need to spend your precious vacation time…well, SHOPPING?! Am I the only one who thinks that is a chore…kinda a bit like work? We were invited over to Kuhala (Linda and Harry) for pizza tonight along with Steve and Sue (Loose Change) and Rick and Diane.
The next day was more up my alley. First, Jenny and Nancy stopped by and we went in search of conch for dinner. With their help we managed to bring home 5 conch which was plenty for fresh conch salad.
It is pretty hard to imagine that you eat that creature right?! After peeling the skin off you get nice, white but tough flesh. Next you need to pound the heck out of it and then chop it up! Delicious but a bit of work!
That afternoon Mom and I went to Flamingo Beach. Ah, this is my idea of a vacation? The beach is very beautiful and we hear that it is one of the top 10 beaches in the world…but it seems that every island boasts of one and we have lost count!
OK…we’ve been in one spot too long so we pick up and move a whopping 3 miles to the west side of Culebra. This is a preserve area and my Mom wants to snorkel for the first time (on her bucket list!). We relaxed the first day just shelling on the beach. The next day was for snorkeling….or so we thought. After donning the gear, getting in the water she just couldn’t get comfortable so we returned to the beach and combed some more. We’ll just have to settle for rum drinks and a beautiful sunset!
We were having such a good time that we talked the captain into staying one more day before heading back to Puerto Rico. So, on Friday we got up and started underway. About half of the 10 mile trip wasn’t too bad but then the wind and the following seas picked up giving us a bumpy, if not a bit of a hair-raising trip for my Mom.
We settled into Sun Bay Marina just as the very windy weekend began. It is going to be a good time to tour the island by car! Saturday we rented a car and drove to El Yunque, the only rainforest that is part of the US Park Service. We took in the sights and even did a little hike to some pools of water. Considering it gets over 300
inches of rain a year we were very fortunate not to have rain during our visit. 
On the way home we stopped by the El Conquistador, where Ed had had rented the car. He was so impressed with the view he had to show us as well. Dinner that night was at a quaint, little tapas bar that we spotted on the hillside. Absolutely fabulous!
We got up earlier than usual and on the road to Ponce. We opted for the scenic route which takes much more time than the toll roads and it was
worth it. There were lots of twisting roads with beautiful vistas of the Caribbean Sea. We got a bit lost in Ponce but finally found the downtown historic area. Amazingly it is many miles away from the coastline which isn’t typical. We poked around the plaza where the old fire station has been restored, ate some pizza and took at the cathedral before driving around and looking at the old architecture. Most of the area is still under renovation and the untouched homes have ‘good bones’. Wouldn’t it be fun to fix up one of those?!
Well, only one more day left of Mom’s visit. No trip is complete to Puerto Rico without seeing Old San Juan (And yes, that is a Starbuck in ‘Old’ San Juan!). We booked a hotel right in the middle of it so we could site see in a leisurely fashion. The airport is only 15 minutes away too so getting Mom off the next morning should be a breeze. PLUS, our friend, Julie Bane, is coming in this afternoon to spend 5 days with us! More on her visit later!
It was great to have Mom with us for 2 weeks and she enjoyed seeing how we spend our days!
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