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4th Jan 2010 - 9th Feb 2010
Hocas Bocas -- Bocas del Toro
We’ve spent the last four weeks having a great time in Bocas del Toro, Panama. Bocas is only about 30 miles from the Costa Rican border on the Caribbean side. It’s a super laid back town located on one of six densely forested islands. It really reminds us of the Key West that existed about 40 years ago. Bocas originally started in 1899 as the location of the United Fruit Company, otherwise known as Chiquita Banana. Now it is a quaint town with plenty of bars, restaurants, backpacker and eco tourists, American ex-pats, and most importantly ----great surf! Bocas is an easy place to get stuck.
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Diary Photos
| 5th Jan 2010 |
| FAREWELL TOUR |
| After an overnight 34 hour sail from Colon, we arrived just in time to catch up with Roger and Linda on Sandcastle. We have traveled for the past year with Sandcastle but now they are heading back to the USA. So it was time for the farewell tour of Los Gringos! We only had about a week with Roger and Linda before a good weather window sent them sailing north. But we crammed lots of fun in a short time. |
| 6th Jan 2010 |
| HAPPY ANNIVERSARY |
| We even helped them celebrate their 42nd anniversary. One thing about this lifestyle is that you meet wonderful people. Now, we may be sailing in different directions but we will meet up again. It may be a large world but we find it is a very small ocean, especially among sailors. |
| 7th Jan 2010 |
| BOCAS DEL TORO |
| We anchored Liward in front of the Bocas Marina with its cool restaurant and bar and its only about an 8 minute dingy ride to town. Bocas town has plenty of small hotels and backpacker hostels. Many built over the water. There are a few cars on the island but most transportation is provided by water taxis. |
| 8th Jan 2010 |
| What's a girl to do? |
| So what is Lili doing while we visit a place that eats, drinks, and breathes surfing! There is a large ex-pat community here so theres yoga every morning and two hours of Spanish in the afternoon. And of course plenty of hanging around. This El Point Bar doubles as the surfboard repair shop. They are really busy after a good swell! |
| 9th Jan 2010 |
| Lili's Cafe |
| And then theres the new Lilis Café! Just kidding! But it is not often that you see that name on a billboard! |
| 10th Jan 2010 |
| BUTTERFLY FARM |
| Theres the butterfly farm, built by a local biologist. Heres some of the pre-butterfly catapillars. See how they chow down on the greenery! |
| 11th Jan 2010 |
| Blue Morpho |
| We chased this blue Morpho butterfly until we finally got a photo. Not a great picture, but after that much effort it was going on the website! |
| 12th Jan 2010 |
| Free Range Butterflies |
| Panama has beautiful butterflies everywhere so there's really no need to visit a butterfly farm but it was a fun afternoon. |
| 13th Jan 2010 |
| Our man LEO |
| And now, heres the surfing section!!! First things first was finding a the perfect water taxi driver for all our transportation needs. Leo was the man, he drove his panga very safely and was always on time, even if it was 6:00 am! |
| 14th Jan 2010 |
| Surfing by boat |
| The ultimate way to travel to a surf break is by boat and all the spots in Bocas del Toro are accessible by hired Panga or your own dingy. Anchor outside the reef, jump out, and paddle in. Nothing to it! |
| 15th Jan 2010 |
| Carenero Point |
| An ultimate surf rush is pulling up to the break and it is really going-off with nobody in the water. You go crazy trying to get your boat anchored while everyone is scrambling for their board, sunblock, and wax. Every surfer wants to be the first one in the water to jump on a perfect tube! |
| 16th Jan 2010 |
| Steve at "Paunch" |
| Most of the surf breaks in Bocas del Toro are lefts, like this one named Paunch. For those who dont surf, that is a wave which breaks to the left if you are out in the water and facing the beach. Steve is a regular foot which means he surfs a left breaking wave with his back to the wave face. Most folks probably did not think surfing had this much to it! |
| 17th Jan 2010 |
| Steve Under Paunchs Lip |
| When the waves are smaller, Steve rides his Yater 86 fun shape. This is a classic shape and just right for tucking inside small tubing waves. Well, there is another surf term. A good surf break will produce a wave that forms a hollow or tube shape. The tube is an extremely serene place and only a moment inside feels like time is suspended. |
| 18th Jan 2010 |
| Ernesto and Ricardo duet at Dumpers |
| As soon as we got to Bocas Steve met a great group of surfers from Argentina who were onboard the sailing yacht Don Juan. Steve didnt realize that while growing up learning to surf in Cocoa Beach, there were other guys, south of the equator doing the exact same thing. Heres good friends, Ernesto and Ricardo, sharing their passion. |
| 19th Jan 2010 |
| Oso The Bear |
| Carlos also known as Oso (Spanish for Bear) owned one of the first surf shops in Mar de Plata, Argentina, many years ago. He lives mostly in the U.S. but hooks up with old friends for surf trips. He is a real hoot in and out of the water. |
| 20th Jan 2010 |
| Paky at "Dumpers" |
| Packi is Argentinian but lives full time in Bocas del Toro. He and his wife Melissa own a beautiful little waterfront hotel called El Limbo, and also a very unique outdoor restaurant called Bocas Bamboo. He grew up surfing in Argentina and made sure his old friends made port of call in Bocas. Packy and Melissa also produce the television show Survivor Panama for the international market. Talk about a perfect location! We think they definitely won the ultimate challenge.......living full time in Bocas! |
| 21st Jan 2010 |
| Michael at "Secret Spot" |
| Michael, our surf guide, is an excellent boat captain and surfer. He took us to this secret spot a few times. This wave is one of the few rights and this day we had it all to ourselves. Thanks buddy! |
| 22nd Jan 2010 |
| U. Steve at "Secret Spot" |
| When the waves pick up Steve rides his 76 Westwind pintail gun, a retro shape from the mid 1970s. Steve surfs the classic style and has never made the transition to the modern shortboard. Hard to train a old dog new tricks. |
| 23rd Jan 2010 |
| DON JUAN |
| One afternoon we had a beach party with the Argentinians on Wizard Beach and took the beautiful Don Juan out sailing |
| 24th Jan 2010 |
| AT THE HELM |
| Don Juan is a beautiful 80 foot sailboat owned by Ernesto. It is really high tech, made of carbon fiber in Argentina. A fast boat and fun to sail. The captain on board was also a great photographer and he took some of the great surfing pictures. |
| 25th Jan 2010 |
| Just a little bigger! |
| These winches are a little bigger than the ones on Liward. And they are hydraulically powered
..so you just push a button and things happen! |
| 25th Jan 2010 |
| Just Relaxing |
| It was nice to sit back and relax while sailing, for a change! |
| 26th Jan 2010 |
| NEW FRIENDS |
| Some really great guys are now wearing new Liward t-shirts in Argentina! Steve looks forward to surfing with them again in another part of the world! |
| 27th Jan 2010 |
| Frogs, Frogs, Frogs, |
| Panama has some really interesting frogs. Weve seen red, yellow, and neon. Every island or area seems to have their own color. Weve spent the day at Red Frog Beach and stayed in the Golden Frog Inn in the mountains. |
| 29th Jan 2010 |
| La Coralina |
| On a bike ride to the other side of the island, we found a great open air restaurant/bar called La Carolina. It overlooks a couple of surfspots called Paunch and Dumpers. Once they found out that Steve plays, they asked him to come back and they didnt have to ask twice. Talk about a perfect setting. |
| 30th Jan 2010 |
| Full Moon over La Carolina |
| And when the full moon came up over the water
..it was almost magical! Thanks for the great photo Deborah! |
| 1st Feb 2010 |
| We'll be back! |
| This picture pretty much confirms that we will be back to Bocas! Consistent waves, great breaks, and excellent rides mean we wont be able to keep Steve away. But for now, we plan to sail back to Colon, Panama and leave the boat in Shelter Bay Marina while we fly back to Florida for a couple of weeks. There are birthdays to celebrate! Steves Dad and sister Sandra share the same day
and one will be 93! |
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