Day 10 the Jamaican adventure continues

We continue to make progress on boat repairs but enjoy the ability to just walk out of the marina and buy wonderful fresh fruit and vegetables anywhere along the street. We celebrate each day with a happy hour in the evening and meet new wonderful people everyday along with folks that have been here for a while. This post may seem long but the stories I think are worth telling.

We put off sightseeing until our boat repairs are completed and we have now completed them. The gybe from the autopilot broke the gooseneck toggle on our boom. The gooseneck is the connection between the boom and the mast because in earlier boats their was literally a gooseneck extension that fit down into a holder that allowed the boom to freely swing. On this boat the connection is a cast piece of aluminium that is secured by a vertical pin in the boom and a horizontal pin in the mast making a freely rotating and rising connection to accommodate the angle and direction of sail. Fortunately, it appears nothing more than the toggle broke and the tang for the boom vang was bent.

Heading out to Kingston.

The parts for us to fix the boat arrived in country last week but as usual the dance with the carrier and customs took most of the week before we could actually get the parts to make the repair. The delay was not as bad in Jamaica primarily because we could drive to the port of entry. In Bahamas there was usually a lot of water between us and the clearing customs.

The back road through the mountains.

Getting repair parts from the US into a foreign country is a little bit art and a little bit science. The science is the methodical procedure to get them, the art is figuring out what the process really is. I'm very pleased overall how quickly we were able to complete the repair. We got here late Wednesday; Thursday I tried to find a source of supply; Friday I was able to confirm it and learn availability; over the weekend I took apart everything to determine exactly what was needed; placed the order on Monday and it got shipped Monday; Tuesday it arrived in country and Wednesday I thought I had an idea of what we needed to do to get the parts by Friday. As part of the overall plan I got the Taxpayer Registration Number (TRN) that I was told I would need. Seems that you can't pay taxes in Jamaica unless you have a number. I guess it's like having a social security number in the US. Then here's where the story changes.

I had been told by the marina manager that they would get the paperwork. But, when I called FedEx and spoke with a gentleman who actually really seemed to know what he was talking about (unlike most customer service lines) he said if I had a TRN I could get the paperwork at FedEx and go to customs and clear the item myself which is what I intended to do and made plans to do. Finally, late Thursday the tracking information said the paperwork was available so we had the green light.

The guard rails looking up a valley.

We had planned to go to Kingston, the principal city in Jamaica, the worst spot for security on the island and primary commercial center to retrieve the package and do shopping with another couple, Rick and Lorraine Kwasnicki who were renting a car for a week.  The trip to Kingston over this narrow road was an adventure not for the faint of heart. It was harrowing but beautiful. Looked like West Virginia with palm and banana trees. After issues with getting the car we got a late start and made it to FedEx about 1300.

After some initial conversations it was explained to me the paperwork had been sent to the marina through some bureaucratic way. After some additional conversations it was determined by FedEx that they could replicate the paperwork and I could get the package. Finally about 1500 (the time customs closed) we were able to obtain the package, pay the fees and leave. Success was at hand!

More mountains off in the distance.

Our next order of business was to find the only chandlery in Jamaica to get some marine supplies. Google took us into a residential neighborhood and told us the store was at hand but we saw little that indicated we were at a marine supply business. We investigated and sure enough there was a marine supply store there. At first we thought it probably was not worthwhile to go in but we did and what a shock! We began asking for things and they took us on a tour to where things were and without a doubt it is one of the best stocked marine supply stores I've been in. After finding our items the owner came in and offered us a drink. He has a bar in the store where he serves his customers drinks while they shop. What a great family and a great business. The store has been there for about 40 years and is obviously making it. If you are ever passing this way and need supplies, Durae's Boat Sales and Marine supplies in Kingston, Jamaica is the place to stop. He has everything.

The chandler Mr. Durae in his store with his granddaughter as we sipped Red Stripe.

We then visited a grocery store which was almost like an American grocery and headed home in the dark and rain over the Burma Road.

Saturday with the help of some friends I was able to assemble to boom and we got it back on the mast. The major work was finished. Now all I needed was to pop out some of the old rivets and get a rivet gun that would install the larger rivets needed to secure the hardware being replaced.

The installed gooseneck toggle.

The reassembled rig.

The new tang for attaching a preventer.

Assembling the gooseneck toggle was fairly straightforward and simple. The difficult part was getting all the washers in place on the pin at the mast. I had previously drilled out the old rivets and removed the tang and bale under the boom.

The nutmeg seed with the red wrapping that is the spice Mace.

The Nutmeg tree.

A Soursop tree.

One of the many mango trees.

The marina from the mountain top.

The village and East Harbor.

Sunday looked like it would be another rainy day. The entire past week it rained inches of rain everyday which is not totally unusual in the tropics but is for this time of year. We decided we were going to walk up to the top of the high peak overlooking the town. The road was fairly steep but at the top was an old resort that had been abandoned. As we walked around the back of the overgrown hotel rooms a man came out of the jungle in messy overalls, knee high boots carrying a machete.  He introduced himself. His name was Omar and he was working on his mother's farm just behind the property. He explained some of the history of the resort and pointed out a number of the fruit and nut trees growing around there. He showed us a nutmeg tree and found 2 ripe fruit to open and give us the nutmeg seeds. We had a very pleasant conversation with him and learned a lot of local knowledge.

The local Anglican church here in Port Antonio.

On the way down the hill we picked a red fruit that looked like something we had seen but not sure what it is. Another man was out cutting weeds and we stopped and talked with him a bit and he was happy to talk to us. He explained that the fruit was the Ackee fruit, the national fruit of Jamaica. He told us that usually you pick fruit that has opened because the fruit gives off a poison gas when opened. He used his machete and opened it downwind then peeled out the fruit and explained which part could be eaten but only after being cooked. I wonder how people figured out what was poison and how to deal with it.

The red lining that is on the outside of the nutmeg being dried to turn into the spice Mace.

We walked on back to the marina and relaxed after the wonderful experience walking up the hill. There was no rain and a bunch of us cruisers gathered for happy hour and the sun actually came out for the beginning of a new week.

Our evening happy hour.

Today on Monday I borrowed the rivet gun I needed to install the 1/4" rivets into the tangs and the bale so I could finish up the work. So in a little more than a week I was able to get all the repair parts I needed, the tools I didn't have and complete the repair. Now on to sightseeing and continuing the Jamaican adventure.

This boat, Germania Nova came into the marina today. It is the boat that a British teenage crew member fell from the rigging and died about a week before we got here.

Oh, island in the sun...

It's really hard to believe we've been here in Jamaica for a week! The time has passed so quickly and we have barely gotten started on enjoying the things to do here. We have done a myriad of boat chores and just gotten organized. Over the next week we should complete our repairs and be on our way to sightseeing and fun.

A restored colonial building across from the marina that now houses an assortment of small businesses.

We arrived on the Wednesday before Easter and here the holiday is a big deal. For most it was a four day weekend featuring parties and celebrations. There were parties on the beach next door and in clubs around the Bay with music going until the morning hours. The market was supposed to be closed but there were vendors about so while businesses being closed kept us from getting some things done we were able to keep well stocked with food.

Having a jerk chicken lunch and a Red Stripe in a little place down by the market. Food was good and yeah beer.

Our first major order of business was to repair the damage to our boom so we could move on. I was able to take everything apart and assess each damaged part and cleanup what was left. Working with Graham and Jason at Oxford I was able to get a source of supply and order the parts making arrangements to expedite their shipment. Like in the Bahamas importing things is not easy and I believe we are all set to go pickup the parts from Jamaican Customs in Kingston on Friday of this week, 21 April.

Sunset across the Bay from the marina.

The marina building.

The marina we are staying in is designated a duty-free zone for parts and supplies for boaters. The only issue is that the parts arrive into Kingston, several hours away, and to ensure they meet the requirements to qualify for duty-free a customs officer and import broker need to escort the parts to the boat the cost of which of course exceeds the duties on most small items such as what we purchased. So we will pay the duty. But of course you can't just go to Customs and pay the fee and go. In order to pay the duties you need a Taxpayer Registration Number issued by the Jamaican Government which we obtained today. As Vinny Gambini would say, it's a procedure thing. I could have FedEx clear but it would take several more days and cost much more.

One of many local Rum Bars.

Towards the repair work I was able to get the boom vang tang straightened although I ordered a new one. We found a guy that had a little shop and he was able to straighten the stainless steel tang. It took hours trying to find him and it was only through the effort of one of the marina employees taking us there that we actually found him.

Since we arrived we have enjoyed the abundant produce available from street vendors. The local markets don't really sell much produce because it is all available outside. Mangoes, papayas, bananas, pineapples, watermelon, tomatoes, beans, etc. from many different vendors at very reasonable prices.

The marina from across the water by the I scream store in the park. The marina is surrounded by a large urban park.

When we got here we weren't sure how prices would be and although they aren't really cheap they are way better than the Bahamas and generally not bad. The Jamaican Dollar is worth about .8 US cents. A thousand Jamaican dollars is US$ 8. Figuring out prices for purchases is mind-boggling. For example the other day we bought 3 pounds of papayas at J$200 per pound. The cost was J$600 which is about $2.40. In the US papayas are usually $ 2.99 a piece when you can find them and although that is a reasonable price it takes a lot of cash to buy things. Today we bought a pound of Grotto Bread (really good too) for J$175 or about $ 1.40. We go to the ATM and get J$10,000 and it's about US$80. Reminds me of being in Italy with the Lira when it took about 900 or so to a US dollar. Doing the math is easy, its just carrying around wads of paper money, There are several ATMs near the marina and there are always long lines because of the need to get cash.

A sunken sailboat by the park shore near the marina.

One of our other major errands was to get a Jamaican Sim card for our unlocked phone so we can get data service away from the marina. There are 2 competing companies here, Digicell and Flow. We went with the Flow. We were able to buy the SIM card, get 3 gigs of data and 300 minutes of voice for about J$1,900 or US$12. Minutes for calls anywhere in Jamaica or to the US and Canada are billed at about J$2 a minute or about US$.15.

Two of the performers on Saturday night at Syds.

We have also been enjoying socializing with other cruisers. There aren't all that many boats here and some have come and gone since we've been here but we've gotten together with others on several occasions. A few regular happy hours and a couple dinners out. On Saturday night we went with friends Michael, Tammy, Serge and Charlotte to Syd's for a very light dinner with local poets and performers featuring their works that was quite interesting. Then on Tuesday night after the long weekend 11 of us went to Camp Soldier for local cuisine at the top rated restaurant in Port Antonio. Camp Soldier is run by a guy that was born in New York and served in the US Army until retiring and moving to Jamaica. He also has what he calls a wall of heroes with some memorabilia and he lists the names of veterans who ate at his restaurant. We need to go back and see if he added my name.

Part of the wall of heroes at Camp Soldier.

Our gang gathered by our table.

Getting around is not especially difficult except the streets wind about and places are tucked in behind other places. On the streets it's obvious we're not local. Unlike the Bahamas where everyone knows and is related to everyone else Port Antonio has a big population. But cruisers are obvious among the large population of African descent.

After seeing the flat and barren Bahamas for months it really is nice to see lush green hills filled with huge fruit laden trees and massive tropical vines. The smell of jerk meats grilling is everywhere and the hot sun makes a cold Red Stripe beer a friendly sight. It will be hard to leave here.

We be in Jamaica mon!

After getting the anchor secured we bid farewell to Great Inagua and the Bahamas. When I climbed back aboard I muttered that I hoped the anchor issue was a good omen because we just had our bad luck but there was more to come. Inagua is 50 miles from Cuba and Haiti situated just north of the Windward Passage. We came in to the Bahamas in mid-November in the far northwest corner and were leaving from the southernmost island in the chain. We enjoyed the Bahamas but were very ready to move on.

The Matthew Town light in the early morning light as we left the Bahamas behind.

The wind was light when we started which was a good thing when we were dealing with the anchor issue but it stayed down for a couple hours. It finally came up and we were able to broad reach toward our first waypoint. The route was very simple. Sail at about 195 degrees true for about 60 miles to a point below the tip of Cuba and the traffic separation zone east of the southern tip of Cuba and then turn west to about 240 degrees true for 180 miles to the entrance to Port Antonio. Wind was forecasted to be mostly 15-20 with some 20-25 northeasterly which put it almost dead behind us.

The mountains of southeast Cuba as we passed by their coast.

The first leg of the trip was uneventful averaging over 7 knots in winds that averaged just over 15 kts. When we turned toward our second waypoint the wind was almost dead behind us so we brought in the main and went only on the jib. That really slowed us down and to keep any angle on the wind sent us way off course. All would add distance and time.

So after a short while we discussed the options and when we needed to get to Jamaica. Unfortunately, Skipp our crew member had a flight Thursday morning so it clearly meant we needed to make Jamaica and be cleared in Wednesday afternoon but the only way we could do that was to motor sail. Against my better wishes we turned on the engine and used the main instead of the jib because in heavy wind it would be easier to furl than the jib and we got our speed back up over 8 kts.

All was fine and we were knocking out the miles as our chart plotter was projecting an early afternoon ETA. Then about midnight on my watch the autopilot crash gybed the boat in response to a big wave. I made the decision earlier to forego a preventer because with the engine on the apparent wind angle was in the 150 range so I thought we would be fine but when the autopilot took the boom back before I could sheet it in the gooseneck toggle broke and the boom fell to the deck.

The broken toggle.

The noise woke Skipp and Linda who came up to see the damage. The main sail was flat out and on the shrouds. The topping lift was keeping the end of the boom up and actually kept pretty good angle on the sail. The wind had come up and was about 30 kts so the challenge became how to untangle the mess, get in the sail and secure the boom so it didn't do any further damage. In addition to the toggle breaking the tang on the bottom of the boom that connected the boom vang was bent and since it's a quarter inch of stainless steel was not getting bent back easily. After considering a couple options we took our spare halyard and attached it around the toggle pin in the boom and used it to hoist up the boom. We also wrapped a dock line around the boom to keep it from flopping when we lifted it.

The Jamaican coast.

There was a huge full moon all night which provided lots of light for us and while we were on the deck it seemed to be very smooth. I know we were rocking so I put my tools in behind the liferaft but at one point I laid down a pair of vice grips on the deck and they instantly flew off into the water. We found out later that the entire time the boat was moving double digit speed and even hitting 14kts because Linda had brought the boat a bit higher on the wind to help with a better wind angle to avoid any other gybes. 14 kts is a record for us eclipsing the 12.5 going down the East River in New York.

So with our jury rig we were able to hoist the boom about 75% of the way up as the vang kept it from going higher and furl in the sail rather easily slowing us down and relieving the stress. We used the dockline to secure the boom from swaying and went the rest of the way to Port Antonio like that.

Errol Flynn Marina in Port Antonio, our new home.

Amekaya sporting the Jamaican courtesy flag.

We arrived at the dock in Port Antonio about 1600 on Wednesday and the authorities agreed to clear us in. What might normally take a few hours we did in about an hour as everyone was in a hurry to go home for the evening. Friday started a 4 day weekend celebration for Easter and everyone was busy getting ready so we got there at a good time.

Skipp arranged a ride to the airport departing at 0430 so we cleaned up and went out to dinner at Marribelle's on the dock at the marina for a cold Red Stripe to celebrate our arrival having already finished the champagne.

The happy crew celebrating arrival in Jamaica.

On Thursday our first order of business was to get some fresh food having missed the boats since we flew back from Chicago. In Port Antonio we found all the fresh fruit and lots of fresh veggies we were looking for. There were some things missing but no worries mon. We be good.

Street scenes in downtown Port Antonio.

We met Michael and Tammy Hetzer on Aria for happy hour and began to plan our Jamaican visit. Just from first blush Jamaica is totally different than the Bahamas. It's like a real place with water, electricity, trees, hills and real stores. I think we'll like it here.

Salt ponds and Pink Flamingos

We had 1 day left in the Bahamas with 2 missions to accomplish. The first was to get a clearance from Bahamas officialdom and see the Great Inagua Park home of the Bahamas flamingos.

After checking our anchor and a light breakfast we dinghied in to the Government Basin. Somehow I think we were expecting more than was actually there. Posts said there was a dinghy dock but we didn't find any. What we found was some bulldozed low spots where we could land with nothing that could be used for tying up the dink. We finally went onto a low corner with a long length of cable to which we could tie the dinghy and there to meet us was Kevin our new found friend.

The lighthouse at the south end of Matthew Town.

Kevin offered to take us to wherever we wanted to go. He grabbed our trash bag and took it to a barrel where he tossed it and then to Customs and Immigration. We had heard from folks that cleared in George Town about the rather tortuous and innocuous process that cost $75. In Matthew Town it took a few minutes at no charge and was over before we knew it. We were cleared out of the Bahamas.

Kevin asked what we wanted to do and our other objectives were to see the Park and have lunch. So we got back in his car and he took us around the Morton Salt operation for starters. There has been a salt operation on Great Inagua since the 1950's. He explained the process and took us to one of the pumping stations where sea water is sent into the inland lake and the salt pans to begin the evaporation process that would result in salt crystals that would be crushed into what comes out at your table as salt.

The water intake that is pumped into the system that ends up as salt.

It was all very intriguing especially the obviously visible fish swimming around the lagoons and estuaries of the process. Bonefish in schools and Barracuda in the lagoons presenting easy targets for fishermen.

Our guide Kevin showing us the salt ponds.

The salt-making process is fairly simple. The sea water goes through several steps where the water evaporates and the salinity increases to where it is flooded into salt pans where the water is evaporated. The pans are flooded continuously as the layers of salt are increased until it is ready for harvest. About 8" of salt crystals are layered and scraped up in a simple process that sends the salt into a cleaning tank and then loaded on ships to the final processing. Most of the people on Inagua work for Morton Salt either in the factory or on one of their support structures like the company stores. Inagua is not a tourist town like most of the Bahamas. It has a business and tourists are welcome but most of all it is a business.

Piles of gypsum which is the result of washing the salt. Probably not becoming sheet rock.

Piles of salt that could end up on your table,

After learning about the salt business Kevin drove us past the factory and out into the Park. Inagua is not a small island and most of it s reserved in the Great Inagua National Park. Inagua boasts the largest flock of flamingos in the western hemisphere. After seeing lots of other birds including hornbills, white tailed ducks and a miscellany of other species we finally saw the pink flamingos. There were large flocks and small flocks all of which were very shy. We did get some closeups of the birds but most were far away. A skilled photographer with good equipment could get some very great pictures of the pink bird.

Flocks of flamingos.

The entrance to Great Inagua Park.

After the birding we drove back to town for a late lunch. We ate at the S sin L which appeared to be the happening place in town where the local owner/manager got our food but we had a young woman from Santo Domingo as our bartender. At the bar we had TV, internet and our last taste of Bahamian food.

A flamingo cloesup.

Flamingos in flight.

Kevin took us back to our dink and we motored back to our mother ship after hours of fascinating discoveries. We made it an early night knowing we had a long journey ahead. So after seeing the salt ponds and flamingos we relaxed on board with a nice dinner and went off to bed for an early rising.

Working the salt flats.

We got ready for a 0600 departure to Jamaica. We began our usual routine of raising the anchor when we got to about 25' and the stress on the anchor flipped the breaker. I reset it and tripped again. After a minute I noticed that the anchor had hooked a cable. What a surprise! There were no cables on the charts, no signs ashore or any visible signs on the terrain. The next thoughts were how were we ever going to get it up. We tried the trip line to no avail so it was time to swim. I swam down to see if I could get the anchor out but at 20' it doesn't allow lots of time to work hard. I tried to move the cable but there was no way. I found that I could manipulate the anchor under the cable and saw the trip line was wrapped about the chain and shank of the anchor. I unfouled it and thought if I swam off at an angle I might be able to pull it out. So I did that and it slid out. I called to Skipp on the bow to raise the anchor quickly before it slid back under the cable and we had it. It was coming up. I swam to the stern and we were off.

I reported the cable on Active Captain and also to Bahamas Chatter. As a result, Monty Lewis, the publisher of Explorer Charts will be changing the charts for Great Inagua as a result of our report.

http://explorercharts.com/chatter/?p=16219

But after the land of salt ponds and flamingos on to the land of reggae and red stripe.