In the land of the sea and sun

Our Jamaican adventure continues so that now we finally have some time to actually do some sightseeing. For much of the past 2 weeks we have been in a summer weather pattern with little wind but daily rain. Some days the rain just comes in at night and other days have rain off and on with some really heavy downpours. We're now looking at weather to sail to the Caymans. Wind appears to be light but later in the week there appears to be some wind coming up with less rain that will get us to the Caymans. Once we get away from Jamaica we should have less rain. The high elevation mountains here cause the moist air to rise, condense and rain. Caymans are flat like the Bahamas where it still rains but not on a daily basis.

A view of the assortment of boats in the marina.

Jamaica is so much different than the Bahamas. For one thing it is one big island rather than many small islands that is one country with one identity. In the Bahamas each island group has its own identity. Fresh fruits and vegetables are plentiful here where they are almost nonexistent in the Bahamas even when the boat comes in. Groceries are available every day of the week here. The geography has great diversity with mountains, waterfalls, rivers and lush rain-forest vegetation. The people here party almost every night with loud music well into the early hours of the morning. It's fun listening to but makes it hard to have a conversation.

View from up the mast when working on a few maintenance tasks.

In the Bahamas most of the cruisers are snowbirds visiting from the US for a few months before returning to their homes or cruising grounds around the US. The marina here in Port Antonio is a real intersection of international sailors going different directions. Some are headed north, some south, some east and like us some west. Most of the boats here have been in the Caribbean for some time. The mix is mostly American and Canadian but also with European and South American boats. Everyone has a different time schedule and comes and goes as they like. With the passage into summer weather is not as big of a factor as in the Bahamas because in the Caribbean the winds are down and so are the seas. The weather factor now is how much rain today.  

My meal at Tree Top Creperie. A Mexican sort of crepe. Very good. Linda had a vegetarian that was really good.

The food here is also very diverse. The most common food of course is jerk chicken, pork or goat with curries a popular second. But many places offer very different and good food selections and it is usually easy to find vegetarian options since Rastafarians are vegetarian. In Kingston the other day we had lunch at a Creperie, Tea Tree Creperie. Certainly not a French restaurant but very good. We also enjoyed an African styled vegetarian restaurant in Hope Bay, Soo Soom Ba  run by an American expatriate where we enjoyed a great lunch. Locally there is a good Italian restaurant, the Italian Job where we enjoyed pizza on one visit and other dishes on another visit. There are so many restaurants here because local folks all try to make a living selling or doing something and many have restaurants or bars.

Linda's meal at Soo Soom Ba. In fact we had the same thing. Curried tofu, salad, beans with rice, a potato ball and the special a black bean/pumpkin/sweet potato stew.

Articles in the local press featuring Sistah P and her cuisine.

Linda and Sistah P.

In preparing for our passage to the Caymans I discovered that I overlooked a set of charts for details of the Caymans. After some queries I was able to order them from a commercial shipping service firm in Kingston and picked them up so we have the charts we need all the way to Guatemala and beyond. Once we get to Guatemala I can review our expected route next year and over the summer order the necessary paper charts. I have the electronic charts for the entire Caribbean.

Friday while we were in Kingston picking up the charts we stopped at the Creperie for lunch on our way to the Bob Marley Museum. We received some shocking news.  Our good friends Michael and Tammy Hetzer with whom we had drinks on our boat and dinner Tuesday night before their Wednesday departure lost their boat on their way to Providencia. We don't yet know details other than that they are alright and now back home in South Carolina. My first thought was that they may have hit a reef. There are numerous reefs, shoals and Cays in the Caribbean. We'll wait to hear the details but it's a blessing they are still alive. Having spent most of my adult life in and around the Army you know to expect that things happen and its the risk we take for what we do. Risk starts when we get out of bed in the morning. But, it's horrible when bad things happen to good people. Hope they come back to sea! After the news we decided to just finish our shopping and head back to Port Antonio.

After dinner with Michael and Tammy Hetzer the night before they left Port Antonio.

We rented a car for a few days and took some time to visit some wonderful sights close by. Portland Parish around Port Antonio is very beautiful. On Wednesday since the rains abated for a few days we did a river raft ride down the Rio Grande. The attraction seems like it had better days. The rafts were made of large bamboo logs spliced together with cross pieces and then a higher section with a seat. Traditionally the rafts were used by farmers or rafters to move produce down the river to waiting boats for delivery to market. In the 19th century a railroad was built around the island and the rafters delivered the produce to the trains for shipment to the port at Kingston for shipping. As trucks gained use the rafters became obsolete. However, when Errol Flynn hung out in Port Antonio he would take his girlfriends for rides on the rafts which then grew to be a big activity in the region. Once cruise ships stopped calling on Port Antonio for bigger ports in Ocho and MontB interest in rafting waned. Now only a few people a day go rafting.

Starting out down the river.

Errol Flynn named this "Lover's Lane."

On Thursday we drove down the eastern coast of the island to another famous attraction, Reach Falls. The road along the coast was not quite as bad as the one through the interior to Kingston but once we turned off on to a side road that road became little more than a lane. But driving back through the narrow often muddy road we saw many iconic scenes. Unfortunately we weren't quick enough with the camera to capture them. Like a farmer coming out of his stand of banana trees holding piles of bananas on his head with one hand and a machete in the other. Back Country Jamaica is astounding. Civilized but raw at the same time.

Looking at the pool above the falls through the foliage.

Looking at the falls through the foliage.

Reach Falls.

Looking downstream.

Looking upstream.

We made it to the Falls and in the parking lot it looked like another past-prime attraction. There were 2 other cars in the parking lot but when we left it was full of buses and vans bringing in people from around the island. We started down the hill and a fellow came up behind us and told us he was our lifeguard/guide. He escorted us to the Falls and explained what was there. He also escorted me up the river through several pools with fast running current and then showed me the trail back. What scenic beauty there is in the rain-forest. This is why we are here.

On the way back from the falls we stopped at Woody's Burgers. This is Woody's backyard.

Inside Woody's lunch room.

Woody's women's wash room.

It's time now to prepare for moving on. Jamaica is wonderful and at some point hopefully we can come back here. There is so much more to see and do but I'm glad we got to spend the time we did. Cruise ship and resort visitors will never get this experience. This is why we're here.

We started getting the boat prepped by changing out the head sail to a much larger one for downwind sailing. I worked the main sail since I hadn't pulled it out since the crash gybe broke our boom, It had numerous wrinkles in it that kept it from coming right out but I worked through them and finally got it out. Finishing preparation we need to work with the government to get our clearance and we will be able to leave.

Amekaya sporting her new headsail.

So, I'm sad to say we're on our way. Won't be back for many a day. My head is down, I'm turning around had to leave a lot of fun in Port Antonio town. My apologies to Harry Belafonte. 

Jamaican Farewell.