The Spanish Virgins

I'm writing this on board JetBlue #6 JFK to San Juan.  Just took a week off to watch AJ play some high school golf tournaments in Hilton Head.  Now that I'm heading back to Top Shelf, I'll catch up on the blog.

Greg & Sandy in Culebra

Sandy & Greg Ford, our friends from Buffalo flew down to join us on Saturday.  We took the rented car and picked them up mid afternoon in San Juan.  After having lunch at the El San Juan Hotel, we headed back to Fajardo and got them settled on Top Shelf.

Eastbound 3-5 ft Seas

The plan was to explore the Spanish Virgin Islands.  This included anchoring at both Vieques and Culebra.  The wind was forecast out of the east to blow over 20 knots, so the seas would be 4-6 ft or possible 5-7 ft.  The wind was forecast to ease up Sunday afternoon, so we departed for the 3 hour cruise around 11 am.  The waves were 3-5 feet right on the bow.  Greg had done many deliveries with me in the past, so he was a proven entity regarding sea sickness, but Sandy was the unknown.  After 3 hours, Sandy was still on the flybridge enjoying the ride.  That was a big relief for me.

At Anchor in Vieques

We got to the Vieques anchorage around 2:30 and it was a very well protected anchorage, almost like a fiord.  There were more "ghost ships" further in the bay, but we decided to anchor in the middle to avoid them.

Bombing Control Tower - Vieques

The reason the US got involved with Puerto Rico was to have a Navy base that could be used to protect the Panama Canal after World War II.  “Roosevelt Roads on the east coast of Puerto Rico was designed to be able to house the entire Atlantic Fleet if needed.  During the 1950 and up to 2003, the Navy used the western shore of Vieques island for naval exercises.  Amphibious landings on the western shores and naval bombardment in the mountains to the east.  There are warning on our charts about unexploded ordinance in the eastern harbors.  That did make me think twice when we dropped the anchor!

Dominican Cigars with Greg

Greg and I go back to his banking days in Buffalo over 10 years ago.  There isn't a better person to know if you are into scotch and/or cigars.  I pass on the Scotch these days, but I'll smoke more cigars when I'm with Greg than at any other time.  He had given specific instructions to gather up some of the finest Cuban and Dominican cigars when I was in the Dominican Republic in January.  I knew I would have to store these for a month before his arrival, so Top Shelf now has a humidor.  No complaints from Greg on the cigars....another big relief!

We cooked up some of Ryan's Bahama lobsters for dinner.  When we caught them in December, Ryan had very detailed procedures for vacuum bagging the tails.  Tails are carefully removed with a knife from the body, not just twisted off is the common practice.  Once the tails are separated, they are stored in the refrigerator for 36 hours.  To prepare for vacuum bagging, the pointed ends of the tail are removed with wire cutters, then the tail is wrapped in white paper plates and put in the vacuum bagger and immediately frozen.  It was worth the effort, as they tasted as good as the ones we ate in December.

Selfie at W 65.15 Longitude

We cooked extra lobster, as this would be used in the lobster omelets the next morning.  The meal was great, we pulled out the coffee table to the back deck and ate under a wonderful night sky

The next morning after breakfast we headed east to our turning point in the trip.  We were at W 65.15 longitude, the furthest east we Top Shelf will travel when we turned due North heading to Culebra Island.  We took a 4-6 ft sea on the Starboard beam and the stabilizers worked overtime to keep us comfortable.

Anchorage at Culebra

I consider Culebra as the best anchorage of the trip to date.  As we got to the island, we had to weave between reefs and then took a sharp turn to the west to anchor in 15 feet of water right behind the reef.  We were completely exposed to the easterly wind from the North Atlantic, but there was no swell whatsoever.  The sound and sight of the 8 foot breaking waves only 100 yards away was fantastic.  Tonight’s menu was
Grouper, cigars and scotch.  Greg continued his tradition of Top Shelf DJ, playing great music all night with the breaking waves in the background.

Downtown Dewey - Culebra

The next morning we woke up to Julianne using the last of the coconut bread to make her now partially famous French toast.  Today would be the last leg of the Spanish Virgin Island and the first time since October that Top Shelf would cruise down wind.  The wind “puffed-up” to over 25 knots, but I didn’t care as we were surfing the 8 foot waves downwind.

We arrived after our two hour cruise to Puerto del Rey Marina, the largest marina in the Caribbean with over 1,000 yachts.  This is the largest marina I have ever been in, and we had to dock in a continuous 25 knot wind.  It took 3 attempts, but I finally got Top Shelf into the concrete slip where she will rest for the next 10 days.

The next morning, we rode with Greg and Sandy to San Juan, were we all departed for the States.

Rain Forests

Lines & Fenders Deployed

There is something about the emotional relief a captain gets when their vessel is secured in a marina slip.  I had been on anchor for the last 25 days.  It's nice to not worry about your anchor dragging  We got into Palmas Del Mar Marina at 9 AM before the trade winds started to pick up.  The investment in this marina is substantial, but the docks were only 25% full.

Jim in the Engine Room

Folks who have cruised with me have accused me of using too many lines to secure Top Shelf in her berth and they are probably right.  I prefer to use 4 stern lines, two spring lines and 2 bow lines.  This particular marina had about a 6 inch surge that caused the vessel to move in the slip.  This movement gives the lines a good workout.  I carry four 5 foot lengths of chain for this situation when the lines would be stretched over a concrete corner on the dock.  I used 3 of them for this particular slip.

Auto Road to El Yunque Rain Forest

Julianne went and explored Palmas Del Mar as I washed the boat that had not seen a scrub brush since Samana 5 weeks earlier.  Needless to say, this was a long and tedious job cleaning both dirt and salt from the entire boat.  Julianne found some good restaurants and some shopping that we would take advantage of over the next few days. 

El Yunque Rain Forest

The engines needed some TLC.  The main engines had run 317 hours since her last oil change in the US.  The generator had racked up 623 hours.  I asked around at the marina and found competent diesel mechanic.  Three things I worry about with marine diesel engines.  The first is the raw water systems, specifically the pump impellers that are used to cool the engines, the second is the cleanliness of the fuel which can result in clogging of fuel filters, and the last is engine oil.   Juan changed all fuel, coolant and oil filters as well as 3 raw water pump impellers.  The total job took 11 hours with me holding the flashlight for most of this.  Top Shelf is now ready for the return trip to the states.

Climb to Summit

With the engine work done, we had 3 days until the Fords arrived.  We had time to rent a car and explore the interior of Puerto Rico.  Our first mission was to re-supply the boat with food and some mechanical items, then is was off to the El Yunque Rain forest.

Cloudy at the Summit

We did most of the mountain climbing to the rain forest in the rented car, but the last 600 feet we had to do by foot.  Surprisingly we didn't get rained on, but we climbed right into the clouds just before the summit, so there was no view from the top.

Hiding in the Rain Forest

We had wanted to see the 1,000 foot radio-telescope at Aricebo, but the visitor's center closed at 3 pm and we wouldn't make it across the island in time.  However, we did make it back in time for a nice Italian dinner in Palmas del Mar.

Next:  65 West Longitude