March - Floyd

Havalah tows us up the river from Livingston, out plan is to get the fuel pump fixed 1st thing instead of waiting like Roatan. Meanwhile engineless we glide in silky silence thru the river gorge, looking up at limestone cliffs and waterbirds flying like rain. This river is timeless we could be anywhere, anywhen, the spell is only broken when a banzi cayuco zooms on by. When we hit Lago Golfete the breeze springs up, and we cast away from Havalah and sail downwind on a beautiful beam reach, silently and speedily, we sure needed that.

Russel meets us in front of Mario’s and takes us for dinner at Comedor Mary’s. Fuel pump, he says, no problema! we have experts here.

6-16-91 - Floyd

Bozo and the Bozettes were out again last night, Linda woke up under a bush.

Helped Russel install his ham radio. Palantir is on his mooring in front of his property. It is really a nice chunk of land 4 or 5 huge mango trees loaded with fruit, bananas, limes, oranges etc... Going to Livingston tomarrow on the Dixie Gig. Should be fun with this crew.

Janice injures her knee

Sumata Santo (or whatever) week on the river a total madhouse, boats going everywhere, jet skies, water skies, time to hole up and hide our heads. Jan plays tennis and wishes she hadn’t, twists the leg on a backhand. At first it doesn’t seem so bad, like a sprain in the ankle and a pulled tendon - but as a couple of weeks go by and there is no improvement we head for the city and doctors. These are the dark days we should like to forget.

Meanwhile Russel gets back with our fuel pump and I install it. Two of the outlet pipes threads are mangled and I have to pull it back out. Timshell has the same problem with the one he sent to have fixed. Vinnie from "Strega" gets them clean with the file so I install it a 2nd time. Now the starter goes out while I am trying to bleed the damn thing. I pull the starter in and out about 10 times before I send it to the city with Russel.

Floyd

Must be Apr or May by now get the starter back - wait decide to get Jan to the City to see the doctor - in tuesday - operation Wed morning - fracture in the knee and removal of Cartalage vie surgery. Happy days indeed. We do run into Charles and Maggie and decide to go to Antigua for recouperation. Jan has new crutches but the streets are stone and slippery but it is worth it. We now have.

Run into Tina and have dinner at the "Oasis" then she disappears. Spend the evening at the disco and a great blues band jamming. Almost get shoved out the window during a fight and she Barny and Suzan from "Albotross" she is having a good time.

Back in the city Charles takes us for dinner in the ‘Combat Zone’, good but your head has to be on a swivel. Pick up the starter at the Taller - wanted only the bendex replaced but got the whole thing rebuilt. Lot’s of fun getting the starter and Jan back to the river.

Install the starter and bleed the pump, varoom! but now the pump leaks fuel out of the back plate! Pull it off again with a blindfold and give it back to Russel, when will this end?

Janice heads back to the States

Jan's knee continues to grow worse after the operation and we get her on a Plane back to the states, where she undergoes another knee operation. She is told that she will never get total use of it back. This revalation she refuses to accept.

Meanwhile, I am on the river by myself and alone.

May - June - Floyd

Maggie and Charles leave for the states by way of Puerto Barrios, Charles is coming back to help me bring Palantir across after they make Florida, they are some kind of freinds.

6-24-91 - Floyd - Rio Dulce

Just getting over the ‘Big D’s’ Charles should be here any day. Spent the day in the engine, more fuel leaks but got it almost all stopped, got to take the pump off again for that one, so screw it. Got new oil filter and odds and ends ."Doc" on Sugarfoot helping me a touch on engine advice, and told him all about Roatan, oops the rice is burning. Not too bad decided to try out those canned black beans, looks just like a pile of dog shit on maggots.

It is 11 pm, I never really wanted to find out what I would do if I drug anchor in the middle of the night by myself in the pouring rain and yards from one of the richest man in Guatemala’s private yacht. But I did find out. Noticed in bed the wind coming up and the boat not felling right, normally there is a squeek of the bow rollar when tension is taken up on the chain. I get up and notice I’m passing "Spay" doing about 3 knots! And heading for the Gallo Man’s dock. Get the engine on and run up bare assed to try and get a bite on the rode, Nope. Run back grab a seat cousion, untie the anchor rode and as it is flying out, tie the cusion onto the end, and guide it thru the pulpit. All this happening in about 10 secs, I lose the anchor wench handle over the side in the process. I look up and I am close Boy, gun the engine and out to clear water and throw down the ole plow. The rain lets up and I go back to retrieve the danforth with the dingy, I find it by luck in the dark, didn’t trust my knot, haul it up and it is all wrapped up in itself with the shank slid all the way up. I like the rope rode but I’m gonna to keep my plow on from now on. Goodnight.

Charles Arrives

6-25-91 - Floyd - Rio Dulce

"Manana Marina, this is the Bar Hotel California" Is that you Charles? yepper indubitably. We have dinner at Comedor Mary’s, discuss plans for our departure. Fomalhaut had a good light air 9 day passage to Miami, hopefully we will fare the same.

6-26-91 - Floyd - Rio Dulce

This damn danforth anchor doesn’t seem to work anymore, we drop it at Cheeky’s in Fronteras and it doesn’t set well, so I store it and go with the plow. By nood we are provisioned and headed downriver, arriving at "October’s" little bay in the Golfete by 1430. Jennifer and Kent ply us with beer and pinapples. Thier little hideaway is coming along, very beautiful and quiet.

6-27-91 - Floyd - Passage to Florida

Arrive Livingston and take on fuel and oil, SIr Perkins eating ½ quart of oil every 4 hrs - rings resetting I hope. Talk to Jorge and get bread and french pastery, Yumm. At 1210 we haul up and head across the bar, a beautiful day 10 -15 knots on the nose (of course) we set our course to pass the Snake Cays before dark.

6-28-91 - Floyd - Passage

Wind has freshened a bit but backed more to the east, so we are flying. Can’t decide wheter to leave the genny up or go back to the working jib, decide to leave the Jenny on because it doesn’t feel like we are straining, got plenty of freeboard left. Pick up Bugle Cay light at about 0300 and slip past Placencia and alot of good memories.

Disaster Strikes

0900 - Up from a nap, Charles and I sip a cup of coffee. He has been really great - baked a loaf of bread coming up the river - and has done most of the cooking except for my dogshit and maggots which was really good with a hard boiled egg. The wind a steady 15-18 now and we fell that the genney has been a good test for the rigging but maybe should shorten down to make the motion more comfortable... As we are saying this glancing up at the mast we notice the starboard lower shroud curled up around the spreader! Charles brings us up into the wind and I have the main and Jib down in record time.

As we lie ahull we discover the toggle has sheared where the turnbuckle attaches, we swap on from the mizzen and clamp it with clamps. I notice and tell Charles that the forward stays seem awful loose, we discover thenthat the forward lower has pulled up from the deck about ¼" Not much to say, we have to go back. We come about on a port tack, putting no strain on the bad side, and set course for Placencia, to recooperate and decide what we will do.

We pass thru the cut silently under sail at 6 knots, it is exhilarating even with our troubles, I have dreamed this a million times. Into the lee and flat water silently zoom, the water gurgling under our keel. I pick out the spot where "Aphrodite" once sat in another adventure, and drop the hook into Belizean water.

Not an hour after we arrive so does Edward D Rohan, but in the intense heat of the afternoon the harbor and Placencia seem erreily deserted.

After a nap, as we were really tired, we go ashore to find everyone partying on the beach after some auction or something, Reggae rap blaring and the Belicans flowing. I run into Cleveland and ask him and everyone I see if they know where Harry is. They say he is here but we never find him. None the less to walk the sidewalk and see all the newly painted houses, places we have been together is very nice. The Seabreeze is gone but the log remains. THe Cozy Corner won’t open til way pas my bedtime but we have Hamburgers at Gene’s at the very same table I met Janice, so many years and happy times ago.

6-29-91 - Floyd - Passage back to Rio Dulce

Underway again for the river, the wind has died but on the nose, of course, out of the SE, just as well as we are motoring. Sir Perkins seems to be better on the oil. Arrive over the bar at dusk. All our plans are up in the air, can Charles make the turnaround if we fix the chain plate, or can Larry come down with parts, should I go to Roatan to fix the boat? More inspection reveals more cracked fittings.

6-30-91 - Floyd - Rio Dulce

Larry can’t go, Charles can’t stay everything needs to be replaced, even a passage to Roatan seems risky, better to leave the boat in the womb and fly back for parts. Miami will have to wait for Nov, because our "Guatemalan Experience" is not yet finished. We are out of Livingston by 11am and to Manana at 1530, we flew. Within ½ hour Charles has made me a list of materials that I’ll need, he is amazing.

Our air passage begins auspisiously when we catch the "Especial" at the Crossroads and it makes it 100 ft before the motor blows up. We soon get picked up by another, when we are stopped at a roadblock and whip out our papers Charles realizes it is his birthday. The night is spent listening to a Marimba Band at Los Zocolos, Charles gets to dance with a toothless drunken woman.

7-4-91 - Floyd - Guatemala City

July 4 and on the way to Estados Unidas and the end of this trip and end to this log for awhile. Things never happen as you plan but plan that things happen. I guess....